Tuesday, 6 December 2016

It Was Only Ever You by Kate Kerrigan

It Was Only Ever You by Kate Kerrigan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Set, like Maeve Binchy's early bestsellers, in late 1950s Ireland and New York, this is the story of three women and the charismatic man with whom their lives are interwoven.

Patrick Murphy has charm to burn and a singing voice to die for. Many people will recognise his talent. Many women will love him. Rose, the sweetheart he leaves behind in Ireland, can never forget him and will move heaven and earth to find him again, long after he has married another woman. Ava, the heiress with no self-confidence except on the dance floor, falls under his spell. And tough Sheila Klein, orphaned by the Holocaust and hungry for success as a music manager, she will be ruthless in her determination to unlock his extraordinary star quality.

But in the end, Patrick Murphy's heart belongs to only one of them. Which one will it be?


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I think one of the reason for me liking this book so much is because I really liked the women in this book, or rather two of them, Ava and Sheila. Rose was a bit harder to like, although, in the end, I did find myself warming up to her.

It Was Only Ever You is such an interesting story about three very different women who end up playing very important roles in Patrick Murphy life. We have Rose, his sweetheart in Ireland, Ava, the warmhearted woman with low self-esteem who falls for him despite being engaged to another man and the self-assured Sheila who is hellbent on turning Patrick into a star.

For me was Patrick not the star of the book, he was the thing that connected the woman, but what I found interesting was the period, the life of the women and their struggle. I found myself totally fascinated with each of the women journeys (yes even Rose's now and then), although there were some parts that made me roll my eyes mentally, mostly when Rose took the center in the story. But, even Rose would in the end, as I mentioned, grew on me. And, even though it was not the ending I wanted, I still liked how Kate Kerrigan decided to end the book.

It Was Only Ever You is an intriguing book, with many strong women in focus. I quite liked the book and I'm looking forward to reading more from Kate Kerrigan!

I want to thank the publisher for providing me with a free copy through NetGalley for an honest review!

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