Book Review: If Only You Knew by Claire Allan

Cousins Ava Campbell (married, sensible, feeling old before her time) and Hope Scott (single, debt-ridden, in love with a man who will never love her back) have nothing in common. But fate is about to throw them together. When their beloved Aunt Betty the free-spirited black sheep of the Scott family dies in France, the girls find themselves flying to the picturesque village of Saint Jeannet, tasked with sorting through her belongings and fulfilling her last wishes. To guide them on their way, Betty has left them a series of letters detailing her own life, the heartbreak that led her to move to France and the peace she found there with her beloved Claude. As the women find each letter, a different layer of Betty's life, and their own lives, unfolds with hilarious, devastating and life-affirming results. A story of secrets, love, loss, longing and purple shoes.

 I've read a couple of Claire Allan's books now and she has a real knack for writing really warm and realistic characters that you want to read about in a well woven and written story. It seems that Irish authors are really on the up at the moment, and it's a terrible fact that they are often overlooked by the bigger name publishers because they are a lot better than some of the big names I read if I'm totally honest... especially celebrity authors! The cover of this book caught my eye, it isn't anything amazing yet it intrigued... what did the wedding dress and purple shoes have to do with the story, and exactly what secrets was Betty hiding from her 2 nieces.

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