REVIEW: Note to Self

REVIEW: Note to Self - Anna Bell

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Release Date: 23rd June 2022

Publisher: HQ

Edie isn't exactly where she wanted to be, but life is good enough. She's the co-director of her successful family business, owners her own home and has a boyfriend who's sweet and not too pushy about making plans for the future.

But then on her 35th birthday, she gets an email. Not the usual birthday-10%-off-cake email, but one from her 18 year old self that she'd completely forgotten she'd sent during the summer of her life. Her past self had such hope for the future, hopes of comfort and confidence and clarity - and also love.

Maybe with her teenage boyfriend, Scott, but then there was Joel - the one that was never quite was but left a question mark hanging ever since. So she takes her own advice - and goes back through the years looking for any happiness she might have left behind and reconnecting with old friends. Is this her chance at rediscovering herself? Or is the past better forgotten?

After Anna Bell decided to break my heart with The Man I Didn't Marry, I had high hopes going into this and I was not left disappointed. An absolutely refreshing and delightful summer read, full of relatable wit and humour and that sparkling feel-good charm.

As Edie reconnects with old friends, with past versions of herself, we're prompted to wonder if we'd really want to go back to the times we remember fondly or if the past should stay in the past. The story flows so easily, relationships falling back into rhythms, time and distance falling away with the pages. Full of deep nostalgia, Bells writing transports us to vivid summers and cool summer nights with ease.

This story reaches into the heart of loss and longing, and anyone who feels like they're not a main character in their own story - and shines light on the dark, heart-breaking parts of life in a sensitive, hopeful way that left me laughing through more than a few tears.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

I was gifted an advanced reviewers copy of this title in return for an honest review.

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