It’s such a pleasure today to be joining the blog tour for the latest book from Clare Swatman, Five Things I Love About You, and sharing my review: published on 24th April 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 first discovered Clare’s lovely writing with The Night We First Met (I read it as How to Save a Life, and it was one of my 2022 Books of the Year – you’ll find my review here), and she’s been on my favourites list ever since. I really loved A Love to Last a Lifetime, such a compelling read, with all those perfect emotional touches (you can read my full review here) – and thought The World Outside My Window was even better, such a moving portrayal of trauma and recovery, and the book I chose to include in my 2023 Books of the Year (you’ll find my review here). The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright was fantastic – emotionally authentic, moving and engaging, with the most wonderful characters (you’ll find my review here): and I loved every moment of Last Christmas, her really clever “sliding-doors love story”, and such an accomplished piece of work. I’ve learned to expect the unexpected – but I always know her books will be something rather special.
Let’s take a look at her latest…
One fate, five clues, and a love story waiting to be told.
With Miranda’s children grown, a perfectly amicable divorce long behind her, and her career in need of a spark, life feels steady — but a little too predictable. She can’t shake the feeling that something has to change.
So, when she’s knocked off her bike and wakes up in hospital bruised but not broken, Miranda wonders if the universe is trying to tell her something. And when she starts to be plagued by recurring dreams featuring the same featureless man, Sophie is convinced it’s a sign.
Her repeating dreams offer five clues to the man’s identity so, with nothing to lose, Miranda sets off on a journey to the future she’s always longed for. Somewhere there’s a life and a love waiting for Miranda, but when destiny finally presents itself, will she take the leap?
An uplifting, magical story about fresh starts, best friends and soulmates. Perfect for all fans of Lucy Diamond, Beth Moran and Jill Mansell.
A man steps off the pavement as Miranda cycles to work in the rain around the North Circular – and she wakes up in hospital, remembering little, but the man has just featured in her dreams. He had dark hair, a Geordie accent, a pink tie, and his name might have started with a J, but she couldn’t see his face clearly – but the dreams are still happening nine months later (and she’s added the detail that he has a dog called Colin), and she knows she needs to find him, convinced that he really must be “the one”. So when she’s made redundant from her teaching job, her new relationship doesn’t work out, and her grown-up family are living their own lives, she decides there’s only one thing she can do – let her house, find some supply teaching in Newcastle, and try to find him.
This was such an original concept, and quite beautifully delivered – her quest seems impossible, but she really does give it her very best try. And it helped – even if I shook my head at times and didn’t entirely agree with some of her choices along the way – that Miranda was a character I really loved, wavering and indecisive at times, distracted from her mission, but both easy to identify with and extraordinarily brave as she attempted to achieve the seemingly impossible. I really enjoyed living through every setback and small victory with her – and I’m deliberately avoiding any mention of the way her life unfolds, as her story is one full of surprises that it’d be unforgivable for me to share.
Another thing I really loved about this book was the friendships – always so supportive, even if they (especially Kirstie, who’s only too happy to tell her so) think she’s taken leave of her senses, and still making wrong choices in her new life. Sophie’s rather more in her corner maybe – a little more open to the woo-hoo side of things, even grabbing the opportunity to give her a tarot card reading (with a little more negative energy from the more grounded Kirstie). But they’re both so very firmly in her corner, always there when she needs them – the special bonds between them all made me quite tearful at times.
The ending? Does she find him? And is he the one? Well, that’s for you to find out when you read it – but I will tell you that I loved every moment of the story, and couldn’t recommend this wonderful book more highly. It’s very different, it’s unpredictable, it’s emotional, it made me laugh and cry, and – by its perfect ending – it really made my heart sing. Do add it to your reading list – I think you might just love it as much as I did.
About the author
Clare Swatman is the author of ten women’s fiction novels. Her last book, Last Christmas, is a sliding doors love story set in New York and London in the early 2000s: her latest book, Five Things I Love About You, was published on 24th April 2025.
She also writes psychological thrillers under the name CL Swatman. Her debut thriller, No Son of Mine, was released worldwide on 21st December 2024, and her second will be released in September 2025.
Clare lives in Hertfordshire in the UK with her husband and two boys. Even the cat is male, which means she’s destined to be outnumbered forever.
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