The Memory of You by Samantha Tonge ~ Blog Tour #BookReview @SamTongeWriter @BoldwoodBooks @rararesources #BoldwoodBloggers

I’m delighted to share my review of The Memory of You for the blog tour organised by Rachel’s Random Resources.

My Thoughts

Alex had reached the heights as a best selling author but after a scathing review of her latest book and an unsettling text from her agent, she felt her career was over. Consequently, she had no idea how she was going to fund the lifestyle she’d become accustomed to and was all but drowning in self pity. All this, on top of the end of her marriage and the death of her mother, sent Alex into a tailspin. Bumping into Hope in a bar offered Alex a lifeline.

Hope was in a quandary. She and her daughter, Leah, were supposed to be going travelling for a few weeks before Leah’s final year at uni. Being used to a routine Hope was getting cold feet at the thought of being in foreign climes and not knowing what each day would bring. Her job also included her apartment and if she couldn’t find someone to fill in during her absence she would lose both. She hadn’t even told Tom, her boss, about the trip.

Alex cocked her head. Right at this minute Hope’s life sounded perfect, with an uncomplicated job, a child who clearly loved her, flights booked to somewhere sunny. But then people tended to think an author’s life was enviable, with parties and high rankings. Often it was. Sometimes it wasn’t.

Meeting Hope changed Alex’s life in ways she could never have imagined, despite the rocky start. The Wrong Order Café was nothing like Alex had imagined and, with her present mindset, prickly attitude and health worries, feels working there is not for her. She’d been insular in her designer penthouse for too long and was finding dealing with people difficult. Tom, the café owner, had previously run the business with his father but a dementia diagnosis had forced Tom to rethink, and the Wrong Order Café was conceived.

Like countless other families, mine has also be affected by Alzheimer’s and so I was intrigued by the premise of this book. Tom and his staff, not forgetting the resident parrot, are lovely. He’s created a place where there’s the opportunity for those affected by dementia, including his father, to integrate into the community and feel appreciated. It doesn’t matter if customers are given the wrong order. I enjoyed Alex’s transformation as she begins to live in the real world, working at the cafe while getting to know the staff and witnessing how their lives are enriched.

The Memory of You is a story with heart, depth and emotion, written with empathy and understanding about the disease and the way it affects not only the person suffering, but also family members and friends. A unique concept, exploring relevant issues in a very sensitive way. Another wonderful read by Samantha Tonge.

A gorgeously uplifting story about memories, storytelling, love and friendship, about the journeys we take and the people we meet, what we remember and how there are some things we can never forget.

Alex would like to believe she’s a woman who has it all. Or that’s what she tells everyone, including herself. But this is far from true. Actually she’s on the cusp of losing her home, her dream career as a writer is in tatters, her ex won’t speak to her, and her mother’s gone forever.

But then a chance meeting with a stranger named Hope gives her the opportunity of a lifetime, when Hope jokes that perhaps Alex should take over her job in a cafe while she goes travelling.

Just at that moment, it sounds like the answer to all her problems. So Alex persuades Hope to let her step into her shoes for a month. She brushes away Hope’s attempts to explain about the café, instead demanding to know more about the owner Tom.

But she should have asked to know more. Because the ‘Wrong Order Café’ isn’t like anywhere she’s ever been before. And Alex’s life is about to change forever…

Purchase Link – https://mybook.to/memoryofyousocial

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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