writing

Book Review: Well, That Escalated Quickly by Sarah Turner

Posted on by Libby Price

I thoroughly enjoyed Sarah Turner’s previous forays into fiction, and have continued to follow her life on social media, as I have done since The Umumsy Mum years – so was delighted to be granted an advance review copy of her new novel ‘Well, That Escalated Quickly’ which is out early July 2026. Here’s the blurb:

“Meet Fran. This is her to-do list:

  • buy milk
  • get promoted
  • book dentist
  • swerve PTA meeting
  • practice gratitude
  • be a better friend
  • stop crying in Morrisons
  • rescue relationship
  • organise life
  • stop keeping secrets

Not on her to-do list? Being made redundant when she was expecting a promotion.
And when one tiny, impulsive decision leads Fran to tell a lie she can’t quite keep up with, suddenly everything starts to unravel.
But could rock bottom be a golden opportunity instead of a complete and utter disaster? With the help of her friends and family, Fran’s about to blow her life wide open…and start piecing it back together. Her way.

Well, That Escalated Quickly is a hilarious, painfully relatable novel about the magic of what happens when you finally stop trying to have it all.”

I really liked Fran from the start. She is juggling trying to be the perfect step Mum to Cora, who is 7, and Mum to her new baby, Sonny, who is 6 months old, as well as expecting a promotion at work. Then – she actually loses her job rather than getting the promotion – but doesn’t quite get round to telling everyone straight away that this has happened. The book shows how easily one tiny omission can lead to a complete double life!

I loved lots of the little details – like Cora being an obsessive Plymouth fan! My 15 year old daughter’s best friend and her family are Argyle fans too (not common in Worcester!) so what with their influence and those of Josh Widdicombe on one of my favourite podcasts – Plymouth have become a team I’m always interested in the results of! #UpTheJanners #GreenArmy. (Weirdly, the aforementioned friend’s big brother is also called Sonny – spooky!)

Fran ends up being known as Chesca to a whole new group of people due to confusion over an email address that she doesn’t correct. I have a very similar situation with our local postmaster who assumed that as I’m officially Elisabeth, I would be known as ‘Liz’ so has called me that for YEARS (rather than Libby, which is what most people know me as). It’s gone on so long it would be awkward to correct him now………

It is clear that Sarah is writing about what she knows – from the big picture stuff like being a busy working Mum – but also more niche things like kids’ grassroots football and coworking spaces (I feel like a bit of a stalker for referencing that – but write what you know is always advised!) It feels incredibly authentic and Fran is a fully rounded – and perfectly imperfect – person.

Fran’s relationships with her immediate family, extended family, friends – old and new, and PTA frenemies are all explored and add to the tapestry of the storyline.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book – and think there is something in there that most people will empathise with. I’ve already pre ordered it for others!

A huge thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for my ARC – and for Sarah for another cracking read.

Book Review: The Sisterhood Rules by Kathy Lette

Posted on by Libby Price

“The Sisterhood Rules:

1. Never let a man come between you
2. Share all your secrets
3. Live life to the fullest – girls just wanna have fun

For twin sisters Isabel and Verity, the sisterhood rules were shattered when Verity had an affair with Izzy’s husband. Unforgivable, right? Devastated by her sister’s betrayal, Izzy casts Verity into social Siberia.
But when their mother goes missing, Verity and Izzy are forced to come together again to find her. And then the estranged sisters’ problems only get bigger. Their mother has a new younger lover and where there’s a will… he’d clearly like to be in it.
Can they stop their mother making a dreadful mistake? And in doing so find a way to bury the pain of the past?
Full of laugh-out-loud humour and devastating pathos, Kathy Lette’s brilliant new novel takes us on a roller-coaster ride which proves that from pain comes healing, from honesty comes forgiveness, and that nothing is more important than your sisters.”

I’ve always enjoyed books by Kathy Lette. They are fast paced and wise cracking and a definite #womanpower genre. So when I saw she had a new book out this year, I was delighted to be granted an advance review copy by Net Galley.

The book follows the story of estranged sisters Izzy and Verity as they try and track down their missing mother, Nicole. The women all work in music in some way, shape or form – which was interestingly explored. There are also geographical location switches – whilst all now live in London (having relocated from Australia when the twins were little) the book takes us to European mountains and Derry for different chunks of the storyline.

There is also a wide variety of supporting cast – from Johnny (Izzy’s husband that Verity stole), Chrissie (Izzy and Johnny’s teenage daughter), Gawain (Nicole’s new alpine horn playing toy boy), Fiachra (Izzy’s guitar student) and Melissa (Nicole’s long suffering manager) who all interweave in the storyline. I particularly enjoyed the interactions between Izzy and Chrissie – having kids of a similar age!

As expected – the book is full of puns, one liners, caustic asides that you would expect from a Kathy Lette book – and if that’s what you want, then it’s perfect – but it can get a bit exhausting. I felt reading this was like spending time with someone who has ADHD – you need to have a lie down in a dark room to decompress afterwards!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for my ARC – I thought from Net Galley it was out in June, but I’m now thinking that might only be in certain geographical areas – as it appears to be out in the UK already!

Book Review: Private Lives by Emily Edwards

Posted on by Libby Price

I thoroughly enjoyed Emily Edwards’s previous book The Herd – so when I saw she had a new book out I was delighted to be granted an advance review copy. It actually came out in June 2025 (I’m just behind in my reading and subsequent reviewing) but at least that means if you like the sound of it you can order it immediately! Here’s the blurb:

“I thought I was inviting a friend over for a cup of tea. I had no idea I was opening the door to my worst nightmare.
The moment my husband saw her, it started. The look on his face. The silence that followed, before she hurriedly left. Signs that told me more than words ever could.
Then came the whispers. The whole town watching. Judging.
But it’s not what you think it is. It’s worse.
Because it’s not just my family with everything to lose here. And it’s only a matter of time before one of us does something we’ll regret. . . the question is, who’s going to get hurt first?
Some secrets end a marriage. Some ruin a reputation. Some bring a whole town crashing down.“

This book is EXCELLENT! Like The Herd it’s set in a comfortable middle class area – and all of the judgement that comes with that. The blurb doesn’t give much away – and I think you need to read it blind so the twists and turns come to you throughout. (This is not just an excuse for me not to write a detailed review, no, absolutely not at all!!!)

The lives of the families who are ‘friends’ and are intertwined with the local community are central to the story – and the characters are a real mix – some are likeable, some aren’t – but some change during the book. It’s so easy to see how it could unfold in real life – and I suspect most people can identify a friend or acquaintance who could take each role.

I’ve seen other reviews say this would be great for a book club to dissect – and I can completely agree with that – there’s a lot to discuss.

I would definitely recommend this as a real page turner to everyone. A huge thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for my ARC.

Under 16s Writing Competition for PDSA

Posted on by Libby Price

I wrote some weeks ago about my eldest daughter having her lost purse returned to her because of the brilliant people at PDSA Pet Protectors who gave the station staff our contact details.  Well, she is going to be featured in their June magazine (although based on the photo it does like it should be a ‘woe is me’ newspaper feature!)

daisy

 

I exchanged emails with the lovely lady at PDSA who sorted the purse out – and showed her my blog post – and she asked if I would be happy to blog about their children’s writing competition – and how could I refuse?!

PDSA

Firstly some background on PDSA:

“At PDSA we believe that every pet deserves a happy and healthy life. We strive to improve pet welfare through preventive care, emergency treatment and education work. We provide charitable vet care across the UK through our 51 Pet Hospitals and 380 Pet Practices, and we help around 470,000 pets every single year. For more information visit www.pdsa.org.uk“

And now their competition:

“To celebrate World Book Day’s 20th anniversary on 2 March we have teamed up with award-winning children’s writer Hilary Robinson to launch our annual writing competition.

The competition is open to budding young writers, aged 16 or under, and this year’s theme is Animal Heroes. To help this year’s entrants, Hilary has started the story of Buddy: a pet who comes to live with twins Jess and James when their grandma moves into a care home. It’s now up to the young writers to complete the story – more details can be found at www.petprotectors.org.uk/writing.  

The winner – judged by Hilary – will receive an Amazon Kindle, a signed set of Hilary’s books, and a VIP tour with Hilary at a PDSA Pet Hospital. Three runners-up will each win a signed copy of Hilary’s latest book Flo of the Somme and a special PDSA Pet Protectors goodie bag.

Entries should be around 1,000 words and can be emailed to petprotectors@pdsa.org.uk or posted to: Young Writers Competition, PDSA Head Office, Whitechapel Way, Priorslee, Telford, Shropshire, TF2 9PQ. The closing date is 26 May 2017 and entrants should give their full name, date of birth, email address, plus their membership number if they are already a Pet Protector (our kids club).”

And for those of you not familiar with Hilary – or World Book Day (bane of the life of parents everywhere who have to send their children into school as characters from their favourite book!!) :

hilary_robinson_2014

“Hilary, who is an author, radio producer, broadcaster and feature writer, has written over 50 books for children and is perhaps best known for Mixed Up Fairytales as well as her WWI picture book series, created with War Horse illustrator Martin Impey.  For more information on Hilary Robinson, visit www.hilaryrobinson.co.uk.

World Book Day is designated by UNESCO as a worldwide celebration of and is observed in over 100 countries. It is the biggest celebration of its kind and helps to encourage millions of children to explore the pleasure of books and reading. For more information visit www.worldbookday“

I thought it might be a nice thing for kids to do over the Easter holidays – particularly if the weather is pants – and the deadline isn’t until near the end of May, so still plenty of time to get writing!

Now to persuade my 4 under 16s that they want to enter…….

Good luck kids!