When the goal is to have more fun…

Synopsis

A Tale of Love, Discovery, and Second Chances…

In the bustling world of Dublin’s advertising scene, Kitty O’Sullivan, a copywriter, feels an unexplainable void in her life that she can’t quite pinpoint. Her five-year relationship with Dave is stagnant, her creative juices have dried up and she’s even entertaining thoughts of marriage as a cure-all! Something’s missing from her life but she can’t work out exactly what it is…

When Dave decides to take time out from ‘them’, Kitty finds herself momentarily liberated to explore life and have some fun. She and best friend Shazza are corralled into joining a five-aside football team where she meets the intriguing Sweetman brothers, Tom and Rory.

As they sail around the enchanting coast of Dublin, engage in fierce football battles and stumble upon a magical secret drinking den, Kitty falls in love with her new life – and her new self – but is it only temporary until Dave returns?

Will Kitty find the answers to life’s mysteries and take charge of her future?

My review

Kitty O’Sullivan feels that something is missing her life. Her job as a copywriter in an advertising bureau has always been thrilling, but lately that little extra is gone.
Also in her personal life, things aren’t that exiting anymore. Being together with Dave the past five years has turned into a lacklustre relationship. It has even come to the point that Kitty thinks that perhaps getting married may be the solution to get things fired up again.
But instead of being excited, Dave decides he needs a time out, as he cannot handle the ‘pressure’ Kitty puts on him.
With Dave temporarily back to his mother, Kitty now realizes that she has the opportunity of a lifetime. Together with her best friend Shazza the plan is to have more fun. But plan and execution don’t always completely match, as suddenly the friends are joining a five – aside football team, together with the Sweetman brothers, Tom and Rory.
The more Kitty is expanding her world of fun, the more Kitty enjoys her new and busy life. But where lays her future? Will she follow the new path or will her future be alongside Dave?

Sian O’Gorman is the kind of author that can apparently write easily compelling and heart – warming stories, that are so realistic and relatable. But of course I know that writing books isn’t an easy job, and I was once again amazed by the talent of this author.

I truly believe that Kitty at the start of the book is in a situation many people recognize… The job isn’t going as it used to and also your relationship is turning into a hardship.
Now, Kitty is doing her best to support Dave, but let’s be honest, didn’t you dislike him from the start like I did?
I couldn’t’ grasp why she even wanted to stay with a person like Dave. Yes, everyone can go through a difficult moment, and everyone works on it at their own pace. But with time passing, there should be some evolution, some kind of progress in one’s behaviour.

And I couldn’t understand Dave at all, him claiming that Kitty is putting pressure on him. I felt like it was the total opposite, as Kitty is trying to get him out of his dark cloud. So while it broke Kitty’s heart, I was glad to see him going back to Mummy dearest (another character that made me cringe!).

I loved the dynamics between Kitty and Shazza. They are best friends, yet they are also very different. Like they say themselves, Kitty isn’t having any fun, while Shazza is having ‘too much fun’. And the idea of having together fun, making them compensate each other, was a great one!
It’s clear that Shazza sees fun in everything, ‘dragging’ Kitty with her. At moments it felt like Kitty had no other choice but saying yes to whatever Shazza proposed.

But it was also great to see how much Kitty truly starts to enjoy life. She sees how fun and exciting life can be. And yes, I know it’s not all sunshine and rainbows, and that new hobbies can be very exhausting.
That doesn’t take away that new adventures can bring new people in your life, people that are an asset to have in your life. People that see you for who you are, appreciate you and want to get to know you better.
Not only that, but Kitty getting more outside, also makes it possible to rekindle some strained relationships.

The more the story evolved, the more we see the real Kitty emerge, the Kitty that enjoys life, and that also results in Kitty finding the right inspiration job – related. And the more the story evolves, the more I truly liked the person Kitty is turning into.

So obviously I was disappointed at a certain moment in the book. Because to me felt like we were back at square one. And it was so unfair in many different ways, towards so many different people. Because unwillingly, Kitty is hurting people with her choices…

But I also felt like that is part of Kitty’s journey… because it’s a journey filled with trial and error. It’s easy to go back to what we know, because going for the unknown can be a really scary thing. And that is the strength of this book, as the characters aren’t flawless, they are human just like you and I. Sometimes we need a slap in the face to understand that we are in a rut and that there is so much more to life than what we are experiencing at the moment.
So just dare to have more fun in life and say ‘yes’ to challenges! You may never know where it may take you!