The Two Lives of Lydia Bird by Josie Silver.

This is the second book from Josie Silver, author of One Day in December, which I absolutely LOVED! I had been anxiously waiting for Lydia to hit bookstands. Needless to say, I had high expectations. I just adore my UK writers.

Now I like to get drawn into a book immediately, but this one took about four chapters and then I was hooked. The story of course is about Lydia Bird. Lydia, 28 years old and engaged to marry her long-time sweetheart Freddie. Unfortunately, Freddie departs this world and Lydia is left to grieve the life she never had. Now have a handful of wonderful ladies in my life who have experienced this type of grief. Losing their partner to unexpected circumstances that completely rocked their world. The partner they thought they would share their life with, so this book really spoke to me.

With the TWO lives of Lydia Bird, you have Lydia in a dreamlike sleep where Freddie is still alive, and then you have her reality. This book is about how things change you, how you grow from them, and how to move on in your own way, but the loss is still always there. Having not experienced such a loss it was really eye-opening for me. The stages of grief, self awareness, and choosing to grow instead of always being rooted in the past. I highly recommend it.

What have you been reading? Share with me please.