I’m really delighted to be helping launch the blog tour today for the latest book from Clare Swatman, The World Outside My Window, and sharing my publication day review: published today (5th June) by Boldwood Books, it’s now available as an ebook (free via Kindle Unlimited), in paperback, and as an audiobook. Thank you, as always, to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for the invitation and support, and to the publishers for my advance reading e-copy, provided via netgalley.
I was, I’ll admit, a little late discovering Clare’s books. The first one I enjoyed was The Night We First Met (I read it as How to Save a Life – you’ll find my review here), kicked myself for not finding her sooner, and included it (without a moment’s hesitation) as one of my 2022 Books of the Year. As I said in my review, it’s one of those books that you live and experience rather than simply read – quite wonderful. And then came A Love to Last a Lifetime – described as “an epic love story”, I loved it even more, a moving and compelling story, tremendously engaging, emotionally complete perfection (you can read my full review here). Her books are now firmly on my “must read” list – and I was so looking forward to reading her latest…
Laura is watching the world go by without her.
Unable to leave her house since suffering a trauma, Laura is stuck gazing out of her window at Willow Crescent, relying on husband Jim and best friend Debbie for help.
Then one day, Jim doesn’t come home.
A day becomes two, days become a week, and still no sign of Jim. And with the police half-hearted in their efforts to look for him, Laura is forced into a decision. She’s going to have to face the world outside and find her husband herself.
But what Laura hasn’t realised is that Willow Crescent is a community, eager to help. From Arthur and Carol next door ready to rally the neighbours, to Marjorie and her daughter Faye at number nine looking for their own reasons to engage with the world. From Sonja at number seven who thinks she may have seen Jim in London, to widower Ben at number four who understands all about being lonely. Laura has a world ready to embrace her if she can just find the nerve.
And when it slowly dawns on them all, that the Jim they thought they knew, may have been hiding some unfathomable secrets, Laura has a choice – retreat back behind her window, or start living the life that was waiting for her all along.
This is Clare Swatman’s tour de force. At the same time emotional, uplifting, page-turning and breath-taking, Laura is a character you will never forget.
My goodness, what a wonderful read – I read it in a single sitting, entirely caught up in Laura’s desperate predicament, attempting to overcome her issues and connect with neighbours when her husband Jim suddenly and inexplicably disappears. My only small quibble is the publishers calling this one the author’s tour de force – that rather implies that she’ll never write anything better and, given that her every new book is better than the one that went before, I’m quite certain there will be many more superb reads like this one to come.
It’s some years since Laura has stepped outside her home, following an attack when returning at night from her job as a chef in a prestigious London restaurant. Increasingly fearful of the outside world, her anxiety has made her agoraphobic – and, cut off from the world and propped up by her alcohol deliveries, she’s entirely dependant on her husband Jim for her survival. When she became convinced there was someone watching the house, he agreed to them moving to a quieter neighbourhood – but, if anything, that only increased her isolation, living among people she doesn’t know. Now at a distance, only one supportive friend remains, the wonderful Debbie – and when Jim doesn’t come home one night, and his absence continues, that’s who she first turns to in an attempt to find him. But the effort has to be hers too – Jim was friendly with some of their neighbours, and they might just hold the clue to where he might be. So, with Debbie’s support and drawing on every reserve of bravery she can find, she sets about connecting with those individuals she’s never even met – and finds a network of individuals only too happy to recognise her bravery and desperation, offering her their help.
This book really isn’t so much about the mystery of Jim’s disappearance – you might well draw your own conclusions fairly early on, as I did, and you might just be right. It’s far more about Laura’s increasing strength and bravery, and the painfully slow transformation of her life of isolation – and the interventions of the diverse and quite wonderful group of individuals who were always there, just outside her window. It’s a book you feel rather than just read, but it’s not all traumatic – there’s a particular welcome and warmth just waiting out there for her, the wider cast of characters just so wonderfully drawn. Arthur and Carole next door might be archetypal nosy neighbours, but with hearts of pure gold – and widower Ben, who’s been through plenty of trauma of his own and perhaps understands her better than most, provides much needed practical and emotional support.
Emotionally, this book is particularly intense. I loved Laura from the book’s beginning, felt deeply for her, and really appreciated the insights into her pre-isolation life and the development of her relationship with Jim. Her journey into isolation is entirely believable, understandable, and so sensitively built and handled. And every step she later takes outside her front door is acutely painful – the author vividly captures her experiences, making every moment of approaching panic hurt and the reader’s heart beat almost as fast as hers does. As she makes slow progress – and I found myself cheering every small win with tears in my eyes, the friendships and the way they helped build her courage especially moving – the author really made me present in every moment. And that included those moments when it became possible to smile, even laugh a little – once the mystery of Jim’s disappearance is finally resolved, this really is one of the most joyous and uplifting and books I’ve read in a long time.
This book was everything I could have possibly wanted it to be – so emotionally engaging, a compelling story, and an extraordinary portrayal of trauma and recovery. Unforgettable, and without question one of my books of the year – one that really should be on everyone’s reading list.
About the author
Clare Swatman is the author of seven women’s fiction novels, which have been translated into over 20 languages. She has been a journalist for over twenty years, writing for Bella and Woman & Home amongst many other magazines. She lives in Hertfordshire.
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Bookbub | Newsletter sign-up
