It’s such a pleasure today to be joining the blog tour and sharing my review of the latest book from Samantha Tonge, When We Were Friends: published by Boldwood Books on 4th October, it’s now available as an ebook (free via Kindle Unlimited), as an audiobook, and in paperback. My thanks 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).
Sam’s writing certainly took a rather different direction when she joined Boldwood – I was always quite partial to light and lovely, but I now find her books are something really special, added to my reading list without even reading the blurb. Her first book with them, Under One Roof, was a total delight as it explored the complexities of family relationships (you can read my full review again here): Lost Luggage was even better, heartwarming and very moving, life-affirming in every way, and I really loved it (you’ll find my review here). And as for her last book, The Memory of You, with its focus on memory, and the importance of acceptance and belonging – well, it was so entirely filled with kindness and love that it couldn’t have failed to touch anyone’s heart (you’ll find my review of that one here). Her books just get better and better – and now there’s another, and it’s one I was so looking forward to…
Four friends, one big secret… and the journey of a lifetime.
It’s nineteen years since they stopped speaking to each other, but now Morgan needs to contact her three best friends from school: Paige, Emily and Tiff.
Her teenage son wants to meet his dad and Morgan can’t ignore his requests any longer. And Paige, Emily and Tiff all knew what actually happened back then. Even if that was what led to their friendship group falling apart, they’re the only people Morgan can think of who might be able help her find the man who disappeared without a trace before she could tell him she was pregnant.
Can Morgan persuade her old friends to go on a road trip to track him down? As adults – with marriages, children and a whole bucket-load of their own problems – will they be able to work together to solve the mystery? And if so – just when forgiveness for the past looks like it might be possible – how will they cope with the biggest shock of all?
A story about love, families and how the people who know you best are the ones you will always need in your life. Totally heartbreaking, brilliant, uplifting fiction for fans of Jill Mansell, Paige Toon and Sheila O’Flanagan.
In their school days, Morgan, Paige, Emily and Tiff were inseparable – with the help of their “superpowers”, which were the different character traits they each possessed, they felt stronger together and stood up to the bullies, setting up the Secret Gift Society to solve others’ problems too. Until, on the night of their prom, their friendship was blown apart by a boy with his own agenda – turning on each other too, the hurt was deep, and their estrangement has lasted for nineteen years.
In that time, their lives have moved in very different directions. Morgan became a mother – her ambitions to be a maths teacher abandoned, but the wonderful relationship she has had with her growing son largely making up for that. But now he’s on the verge of university himself, and their relationship is faltering a little – he needs to know more about his father, but he disappeared before Morgan even told him she was expecting. She needs help, and reaches out to her former friends – one last job for the Secret Gift Society, if they’re willing, and if they’re able to let each other into their lives again and put aside the issues that divided them.
While they all agree to engage, the path to renewing their friendship proves to be a difficult one. Their lives have been complex, and they each have secrets they’re unable or unwilling to own up to or to share with the others. Added to that, they need to try and understand what happened all those years ago. And those different elements make it a totally compelling read – and a particularly difficult one to review, because it’s so very important that every reader should share their separate journeys.
These were four women I really took to my heart – not immediately with some, but as their stories emerged and those secrets were slowly uncovered (sometimes with substantial shock waves attached – there’s one that I defy anyone to see coming!) I really felt for every single one of them. And while the women themselves are wonderfully drawn, so are the supporting characters – the men of the story, the childhood bully now in an unexpected role, and the fondly remembered teacher who shows the same warmth in the present day as she helps and supports their efforts.
This is such wonderful writing – the complexity of the characters who are entirely real and live on the page, the wholly unexpected twists and turns of the story, the exceptional degree of emotional engagement. I absolutely loved this book, and couldn’t recommend it more – impossible to put down, and totally unforgettable.
About the author
Samantha Tonge is the bestselling and award-winning author of over 15 romantic fiction titles published by HQ, and most recently Aria. Her first book for Boldwood, Under One Roof, was published in February 2022 and her move to Boldwood marks a broadening of her writing into multi-generational woman’s fiction. She lives in Manchester with her family.
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