Publisher: Macmillan
Release: 1st January 2015
Genre: Women’s Fiction, Chick-lit
Source: Received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Synopsis
"It's New Year's Eve, and Gemma and Spencer Bailey are throwing a house party. There's music, dancing, champagne and all their best friends under one roof. It's going to be a night to remember.
Also at the party is Caitlin, who has returned to the village to pack up her much-missed mum's house and to figure out what to do with her life; and Saffron, a PR executive who's keeping a secret which no amount of spin can change. The three women bond over Gemma's dodgy cocktails and fortune cookies, and vow to make this year their best one yet.
But as the following months unfold, Gemma, Saffron and Caitlin find themselves tested to their limits by shocking new developments. Family, love, work, home - all the things they've taken for granted - are thrown into disarray. Under pressure, they are each forced to rethink their lives and start over. But dare they take a chance on something new?"
Review
I started reading The Year of Taking Chances on New Year’s Eve and it was the perfect book to start 2015 with! The book follows three characters who meet at a New Year’s Eve party and whose lives intertwine as we follow them throughout the year.
My favourite character, and the main character of the story, is Gemma who has a picture perfect life until her husband is in a terrible accident that leaves him both depressed and unable to work. Now Gemma’s struggling to make ends meet and to be the glue that holds her family together during such a hard time. Next up is Caitlin who lost the two most important people in her life in one day when her mum passed away and she returned home looking for comfort only to find her boyfriend cheating on her with a friend. Then there’s Saffron who has just discovered that she’s pregnant. The baby’s father doesn’t want to know and she’s dreading telling her sister who is undergoing IVF trying to get pregnant. All three women are going through an awful time but are hopeful that a change will soon come.
What I really enjoyed about The Year of Taking Chances is how the book is about ordinary acts of bravery. All too often New Year is seen as a time for a dramatic lifestyle change and a strict list of resolutions but this book shows that a far better approach is to take small baby steps and make gradual changes towards the life you want. It made the book that much more relatable and inspiring to read and it was great to see each character slowly grow in confidence throughout the year.
Despite being busy with New Year celebrations I flew through this book because I was so caught up in the characters’ lives. The Year of Taking Chances is a brilliant new year, new me book and is one that I’d recommend to anyone who is going through a tough time and hoping for a better year ahead.
