The grass isn’t always greener on the other side…

Synopsis

In this captivating story from the bestselling author of Picking up the Pieces, Daisy has always envied the perfect family next door. But will a weekend of unexpected drama prove that the grass isn’t always greener?

Daisy Harrop has always felt like she exists in the background, and since her mother stopped getting out of bed, her life has come to a complete standstill. Daisy would give anything to leave the shabbiest house on the street and be more like the golden Kelleways next door, with their perfectly raked driveway and flourishing rose garden…

Winnie Kelleway is proud of the beautiful family she’s built. They’ve had their ups and downs—hasn’t everyone? But this weekend, celebrating her golden wedding anniversary is truly proof of their happiness, a joyful gathering for all the neighbours to see.

But as the festivities get underway, are the cracks in the ‘perfect’ Kelleway life beginning to show? As one bombshell revelation leads to another and events start to spiral out of control, Daisy and Winnie are about to discover that things aren’t always what they seem.

My review

Daisy Harrop always wished she were part of her neighbours family, the Kelleways. The Kelleways have everything they could dream of, while Daisy’s home is a struggling one.
Daisy’s mother is struggling with depression, their house isn’t the nicest looking one and Daisy doesn’t stand out in anything. Yet young Daisy has the hope that one day her crush Cas Kelleway will admit that her feelings are reciprocated.
But the Kelleways aren’t that a happy family as everyone may think. As there are the festivities of the matriarch and patriarch’s golden wedding anniversary are taking place at the restaurant where Daisy works, slowly more and more revelations are being made that are putting the show of a happy family at risk…

I was very intrigued and looking forward at starting this book. It’s a bit of an evil side of me, wanting to see how things slowly falling apart…
And not only that, but also seeing what secrets are being revealed and how it affects the people involved.

Daisy is a character I immediately liked but also pitied a little bit. She isn’t a really bubbly character, she isn’t a popular girl and even at home things don’t got that well, as her mother is struggling with a depression and it affects the whole family.

Her behaviour, dreams and hopes are very recognizable, as she sees how easy things appear to go for her neighbours and she even has a secret and unreciprocated crush on the neighbours’ grandson Cas.

Winnie Kelleway I found to be the total opposite… I never took a liking to her, as I found her obnoxious, selfish and a smart ass.
She may have the wealth, but she cares more about appearances and not about the real happiness of her children.
Even the fact that she has an actual favourite child, bothered me a lot, and how she discards her daughter’s choices made even boil my blood.

This is a story about secrets and how things aren’t always that straightforward as they may seem. A few revelations didn’t come as a real surprise, while others absolutely did.
There were secrets that were accepted without prejudice, showing the power of unselfish love. But there were secrets that only show the egocentric characters.

Every family has its own cross to bear, no matter how perfect the family appears to be. And this book shows us perfectly that even if we are jealous of someone else’s perfect life, we should appreciate what we have.
And that works both ways in this book. Both the Harrops and the Kelleways should appreciate the lives they have, and accept also each other for who they are. But also learn from the mistakes and admit the need of help.
Because your loved ones can only accept and forgive until a certain point…

Perhaps in this book I would have loved to see more how things would actually be wrapped up. As I didn’t have an actual answer to all my questions. But I guess that is also part of life, that things don’t get solved that quickly and that it may take a whole different journey.

This for sure is a book that makes you pause and think about your own life and makes you appreciate what you have, even if it isn’t the perfect life you imagined having…