#Review: Maybe Tomorrow by Penny Parkes @CotswoldPenny @simonschusterUK @TeamBATC #blogtour #newrelease #womensfiction #MaybeTomorrow

I’m so delighted today to be joining the blog tour for Maybe Tomorrow, the latest book from Penny Parkes, and sharing my review – published on 22nd June by Simon & Schuster, it’s now available in paperback, as an e-book on all major platforms, and as an audiobook. My thanks to Sara-Jade Virtue at @TeamBATC for the invitation and support – and thank you too for my advance reading e-copy (provided via netgalley), and the finished paperback that I was very happy to add to my bookshelf.

And on that bookshelf, it’ll be joining quite a few more of Penny’s books – all in pristine condition, because she’s an author I’ve sadly never managed to read before, although I’ve always been entirely convinced that she was an author I’d enjoy. Did you read her last one, Home? It’s free for kindle at the moment (but do check again before you click), and has the most wonderful reviews. I do hope I can catch up with it one day… but let’s take a closer look at her latest..

A story of friendship, possibilities and hope that maybe tomorrow will be brighter than today…

 

Jamie Matson had once enjoyed a wonderful life working alongside her best friend, organising adventures for single-parent families, and her son Bo’s artistic flair a source of pride rather than concern.

 

She hadn’t been prepared to lose her business, her home and her friend. Not all in one dreadful year.

 

Jamie certainly hadn’t expected to find such hope and camaraderie in the queue at her local food bank. Thrown together with an unlikely and colourful group of people, their friendships flourish and, finding it easier to be objective about each other than about themselves, they decide that – when you’re all out of options – it’s okay to bend the rules a little and create your own.

 

What a difference a year could make…

This isn’t a romance – but it’s certainly a story of love, unlike anything I’ve read before, beautifully written, powerful and immensely moving, and a testament to the hope and possibilities that can carry us through the darkest of days.

The covid pandemic may be over, but the empty unit on the high street – Jamie’s former innovative travel business, always her dream – is a constant reminder of everything and everyone she’s lost. She now works for minimum wage at an upmarket food outlet, treated appallingly by her employer – and lives with son Bo in a small and mouldy flat, with a landlord whose attentions are becoming increasingly threatening and unwelcome. Bo is special – she’s determined she doesn’t want him labelled, he has an exceptional artistic ability and a wisdom beyond his years, and is the centre of her world with serious health issues that need constant vigilance and care.

Her purse, and her food cupboard, is always empty – but the food bank provides a lifeline, however ashamed she might be by the need to visit. But, in the queue, she finds unexpected support – other women who are also struggling, each for their own reasons, and the strong friendships that develop begin to give her a glimmer of hope and a measure of joy as she faces her future. There’s little help available through official channels – a searing condemnation of the failures of government – but the book becomes a strong testament to the kindness of strangers, as the wonderful Henry and Ruth, facing their own issues in later life, offer Jamie and Bo much needed sanctuary and help her recover her pride and sense of purpose.

Deeply affecting, this book tells a very real story of the strength to be found through friendship and community when the rest of the world lets us down. The writing is simply perfect, the group of individuals and their separate heartbreaking stories, the characterisation quite wonderful – and it’s an emotional read, with situations that made me weep with frustration, but immensely uplifting with its focus on the small kindnesses that can turn people’s lives around. But there’s a considerable amount of joy too – the strong relationships that form, the solutions found to seemingly insurmountable problems, the humour to be found in the direst situations.

This is a book entirely filled with love and hope – a totally unforgettable read that I really loved, and one I’d unreservedly recommend to others.

About the author

Penny Parkes survived a Convent education largely thanks to a ready supply of inappropriate novels and her passion for writing and languages.

She studied International Management in Bath and Germany, before gaining experience with the BBC. She then set up an independent Film Location Agency and spent many happy years organising shoots for film, television and advertising – thereby ensuring that she was never short of travel opportunities, freelance writing projects or entertaining anecdotes.

Penny now lives in the Cotswolds with her husband, two children and a geriatric spaniel. She will often be found plotting epic train journeys through the Alps, baking gluten-free goodies or attempting to prove that you can, in fact, teach an old dog new tricks.

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