One of the things that I love about the Amazon website is the way that it shows you other things that people have bought who also bought something that you are looking at. I often use these as a way of browsing and through this I have discovered some pretty good authors that I might not have read otherwise. It was through these suggestions that I stumbled across ‘The Love of My Life‘ which is the début novel of Louise Douglas. It is a very moving and absorbing read and after having read it I shall definitely look out for more from this new author.
This book tells the story of Olivia and what happens after (and before) her young husband, Luca, is tragically killed in a car accident. The story is told in the first person by Olivia herself and alternates between the present day and her reminiscences of the past. The reader gets to know Olivia very well and gradually gets to piece together pieces of her life which helps one to understand why the Felicones, Luca’s family, are so unsympathetic towards her.
Olivia is a strange central character. I actually warmed to her quite a lot but it could have also been very easy to hate her. She has a rather self destructive streak and some of her previous actions could have easily have helped her end up as a guest on the Jeremy Kyle Show. Having sex with her first boyfriend under the pier, an affair with the dad of the children she babysits for and eloping with Luca just days before he is to marry his fiancé Nathalie are not actions that are likely to endear her to the reader. However, these are all actions from the past and now she is a grieving widow with no one to turn to. That is until a chance meeting with Luca’s twin brother Marc who is feeling almost as bad as she does. By helping each other come to terms with what happened, she could be in danger of making the same mistakes all over again, especially as Marc is now married to Nathalie. It might all sound quite confusing but it is really quite straightforward and easy to follow.
I really enjoyed Louise Douglas’s style of writing and loved the way that it switched between the past and the present. It was well paced with relatively short chapters which I always enjoy. The characters were fascinating, especially Olivia. I also liked reading about Luca and understanding what had kept drawing him and Olivia together.
I did wonder whether I would find this book too sad,as it is about a young woman dealing with her grief. However, although it is very moving, and at times I did feel tears pricking in my eyes, I also found it quite uplifting. On the back of the book it is described as ‘sad but lovely’ and I think that sums it up exactly.
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