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A review by sil_the_lobster
All the Little Moments by G Benson
4.0
This one’s a bit tricky to rate, and even trickier to review. It has a nurse + doctor romance in it (ugh) and small children (gasp), neither of which is what I’m usually looking for when choosing a book.
However. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting the author and she is such a lovely, charming and sweet bundle of happy bubbles and so lovably excited about having published her first novel, and so I thought, what the heck, I’ll give it a try.
Well, what can I say. I haven’t regretted it. It’s a lovely, heartwarming book. Yes, there’s a doctor and a nurse falling in love with each other, yes, there’s small children and yes, family issues are pretty much in the centre of this story. There’s heartache and loss, there’s sappy romance and cuddling, there’s angst and hurt - but while this may sound like your average tearjerker and, even worse, like perfect ammo for the romance-bashing critics out there, let me tell you it’s not a tearjerker and it’s anything but stereotype.
Although it’s pretty much en vogue to label everything AWESOME and BREATHTAKING and GUT WRENCHING and yada yada, I would label this book lovely and heartwarming. It almost qualifies as comfort read. It’s refreshingly drama-free without being bland. Take Anna’s and Hayley’s break-up, for instance (don’t worry, this is no spoiler because a) it’s mentioned in the blurb and b) it happens pretty much at the beginning of the book). There’s no door slamming and bitching, and Hayley doesn’t turn from formerly loving partner to murderous uberbitch. Sometimes, something so drastic and heartbreaking happens in one’s life that there is just not enough energy left to create a massive scene. Then a decision must be made, and quickly, and this is what happens. There’s this new situation and it turns everything upside down, and Hayley knows she won’t be able to handle it without causing more damage. So she delivers the blow and as the story progresses, it turns out it was the right thing to do. Instead of becoming somebody ice cold and in the distance, however, she keeps Anna in a special place in her heart and she does what she can to help when help is needed. I liked that a lot. There’s just too many books out there where the ex suddenly turns into this hateful bitch making the hero’s or heroine’s life hell. It’s so nice to see a change from this trope.
(In fact, I’d be delighted to find out how Hayley’s been doing since the break-up. Hoping for a novel probably is too much, but maybe a novella? And while we’re at it, Kym deserves her own story, too. Thank you.)
While Benson does touch tricky subjects – how do you handle your grief, or that of a friend, or that of a child? How do you cope with people frowning upon your ‘lifestyle’ (not giving that away because, SPOILERS)? –, she does so with a very light hand. I didn’t bite my nails, I didn’t stay up late to read the next chapter, and the next, and the next… but I did look forward to it because I wanted to know how the story continued, and the tedious train rides to and from work passed away quickly and pleasantly.
‘Light entertainment’ sounds horrible, I know, but it’s actually an art form. It takes a truly talented writer to deliver a light novel with adult/grown-up contents that doesn’t fall into the soap opera trap. I don’t want to bite my nails, and I don’t want to stay up too late all the time, but I do want to read good stories. And sometimes, a book that calms me down after a stressful day at work is even more welcome than one that gets my blood pressure up.
I’m giving four stars because I was pleasantly surprised and much enjoyed reading about Anna, Ella Bella and Tobes. Well done, Ms Benson!
However. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting the author and she is such a lovely, charming and sweet bundle of happy bubbles and so lovably excited about having published her first novel, and so I thought, what the heck, I’ll give it a try.
Well, what can I say. I haven’t regretted it. It’s a lovely, heartwarming book. Yes, there’s a doctor and a nurse falling in love with each other, yes, there’s small children and yes, family issues are pretty much in the centre of this story. There’s heartache and loss, there’s sappy romance and cuddling, there’s angst and hurt - but while this may sound like your average tearjerker and, even worse, like perfect ammo for the romance-bashing critics out there, let me tell you it’s not a tearjerker and it’s anything but stereotype.
Although it’s pretty much en vogue to label everything AWESOME and BREATHTAKING and GUT WRENCHING and yada yada, I would label this book lovely and heartwarming. It almost qualifies as comfort read. It’s refreshingly drama-free without being bland. Take Anna’s and Hayley’s break-up, for instance (don’t worry, this is no spoiler because a) it’s mentioned in the blurb and b) it happens pretty much at the beginning of the book). There’s no door slamming and bitching, and Hayley doesn’t turn from formerly loving partner to murderous uberbitch. Sometimes, something so drastic and heartbreaking happens in one’s life that there is just not enough energy left to create a massive scene. Then a decision must be made, and quickly, and this is what happens. There’s this new situation and it turns everything upside down, and Hayley knows she won’t be able to handle it without causing more damage. So she delivers the blow and as the story progresses, it turns out it was the right thing to do. Instead of becoming somebody ice cold and in the distance, however, she keeps Anna in a special place in her heart and she does what she can to help when help is needed. I liked that a lot. There’s just too many books out there where the ex suddenly turns into this hateful bitch making the hero’s or heroine’s life hell. It’s so nice to see a change from this trope.
(In fact, I’d be delighted to find out how Hayley’s been doing since the break-up. Hoping for a novel probably is too much, but maybe a novella? And while we’re at it, Kym deserves her own story, too. Thank you.)
While Benson does touch tricky subjects – how do you handle your grief, or that of a friend, or that of a child? How do you cope with people frowning upon your ‘lifestyle’ (not giving that away because, SPOILERS)? –, she does so with a very light hand. I didn’t bite my nails, I didn’t stay up late to read the next chapter, and the next, and the next… but I did look forward to it because I wanted to know how the story continued, and the tedious train rides to and from work passed away quickly and pleasantly.
‘Light entertainment’ sounds horrible, I know, but it’s actually an art form. It takes a truly talented writer to deliver a light novel with adult/grown-up contents that doesn’t fall into the soap opera trap. I don’t want to bite my nails, and I don’t want to stay up too late all the time, but I do want to read good stories. And sometimes, a book that calms me down after a stressful day at work is even more welcome than one that gets my blood pressure up.
I’m giving four stars because I was pleasantly surprised and much enjoyed reading about Anna, Ella Bella and Tobes. Well done, Ms Benson!