The Life List

Perfect for fans of Cecelia Ahern and Jojo Moyes, a beautifuland moving story about the unbreakable bond between a mother and daughter

Brett's Life List

1. Go to Paris

2. Perform live, on a super big stage

3. Have a baby, maybe two

4. Fall in love

Brett Bohlinger seems to have it all: a plum job, a spacious loft, an irresistibly handsome boyfriend. All in all, a charmed life. That is, until her beloved mother passes away, leaving behind a will with one big stipulation: In order to receive her inheritance, Brett must first complete the life list of goals she'd written when she was a naïve girl of fourteen.

Grief-stricken, Brett can barely make sense of her mother's decision-her childhood dreams don't resemble her ambitions at age thirty-four in the slightest. Some seem impossible. How can she possibly have a relationship with a father who died seven years ago? Other goals (Be an awesome teacher!) would require her to reinvent her entire future.

As Brett reluctantly embarks on a perplexing journey in search of her adolescent dreams, one thing becomes clear. Sometimes life's sweetest gifts can be found in the most unexpected places.

My opinion: I've read so many good reviews of this book and this is about to join them!

Brett's mother dies at the beginning of the book, and after a disastrous event at the wake Brett finds that her mother seems to have plans to change (or possibly ruin) her life from beyond the grave. Brett is the only one of her siblings who doesn't receive her inheritance at the reading of the will. Instead her mother has instructed her lawyer to give Brett a list that she had written when she was 14 setting out her ambitions. She then has a year to achieve those things that she thought were what she wanted for her future when she was a teenager. We follow her over the next year as she goes on a voyage to discover what her mother was up to, and finally find her real self.

I was a bit unsure about this book before starting it as generally I'm not that keen on American chick lit (with a few exceptions). I really had no need to worry though as it didn't feel too 'Americanised' and could have been set anywhere. In fact I would say that Lori's writing is up there with some of the British greats.

I absolutely devoured this book, reading it in only three sittings and staying up late on week nights just to read one more chapter. The characters were brilliant and very believable. The story itself was very well thought through and really well written and seemed to unfurl gradually, but in a way that was fairly fast paced.

I'm afraid that my review just can't do justice to this book as I don't want to spoil the storyline in anyway and just want to urge everyone to read it! I definitely think this book will stay with me for a long time and will make me think about my own life.

I would definitely recommend this book as it was a fantastic read and really made me think. I look forward to reading more from the author in future as I absolutely loved this book!

My rating: A very well deserved five stars!

I received a review copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review