The Life She Left Behind
by Nicole Trope
When I wake up in the middle of the night, it’s not a sound that disturbs me. It’s a feeling. Silently, I creep to my daughter’s room, breathing a sigh of relief when I see her sleeping, her night-light twirling, butterfly shapes moving their pink wings. Quickly, I lock the door. I won’t let anything happen to my little girl.
Except what if you can’t?
What if your happy marriage has plastered over one huge lie? A lie you have even started to believe yourself, in order to survive?
What if you have a secret, something you have hidden from your beloved husband and your strawberry-scented baby girl, to keep them safe? What if the guilt has kept you up, night after night, for as long as you can remember?
What happens when suddenly, after twenty-eight years, that secret refuses to stay buried? What will you do now everyone you love, everything you cherish, is in harm’s way?
An emotional, thought-provoking, and beautifully written novel which examines the pieces of ourselves we are afraid of, and the impossible decisions we make when we are desperate. Fans of Jodi Picoult, Kerry Fisher, and Liane Moriarty will be moved by this heartbreaking tale.
My Rating:
Favorite Quotes:
Poor Dad. Things have definitely not worked out the way he hoped. He had a plan for perfection. The perfect house, the perfect kids and the perfect wife. He had an idea of this Christmas card, picture-perfect family, all smiling widely in matching red sweaters. The trouble is, we live in Australia. It’s too hot around Christmastime to wear sweaters. You have to wear T-shirts and T-shirts don’t hide bruises very well. The trouble is, his wife and children hate him. The trouble is, you can’t beat perfection into someone. Although he tried, he really tried.
His mercurial nature kept us all on our toes. We were his dancing monkeys.
My Review:
This wasn’t an easy read, it was a painfully realistic, intensely insightful, tragic, and cringe-worthy tale of family drama with long-held secrets, shame, guilt, anger, violence, emotional battering, mind games, and regrets. The storylines were well scaffolded and cleverly paced with powerful and emotive word choices. There were times I wanted to scream at the characters in disgust for allowing and enabling a long-standing pattern of abusive and violent behaviors, and other times I wanted to comfort them, ease their pain, and assuage their confusion. I despised the male contingent of the family in near equal measure as they were vile and heinously twisted, while the females were nearly inert in their learned helplessness – until they weren’t. I fell into this challenging read and had a hard time resurfacing as while my experiences were paltry in comparison to the horror of this monstrous family, Ms. Trope’s strong word voodoo resurrected and stirred some uncomfortable feelings and memories that left me more than a bit rumpled.
Nicole Trope went to university to study Law but realized the error of her ways when she did very badly on her first law essay because, as her professor pointed out, ‘It’s not meant to be a story.’
She studied teaching instead and used her holidays to work on her writing career and complete a Master’s degree. In between raising three children, working for her husband, and renovating houses, she has published six novels. She lives in Sydney, Australia.
This sounds like it’s tough, but worth the read. ❤️
This sounds like a very emotional read. I may have to give it a try.
This sounds heart breaking. Glad it was a winner for you.
Oh my type of book. I believe I have this from NetGalley.
This was such a difficult read for me too. I was prepared for emotional but not this. Lovely review.
This sounds very difficult to read but worth it.
Sometimes being taken out of your comfort zone is good. Glad you enjoyed it even if it was a difficult read. Great review.
Oh, not sure if I can read this but on the other hand, your review makes me want to
Sounds like a hard book to read. Great review!