As soon as I heard about Sunshine on a Rainy Day by Bryony Fraser I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy of it. When it finally arrived I dived straight into it with very high expectations and I was not disappointed. From the super cute cover to the words contained on its pages I adored everything about this delightful, drama-filled and laugh-inducing novel. It’s a real little diamond that I’d highly recommend to anyone looking for a book that will not only get them thinking but will also brighten up their day.
Approximately one month ago, Zoe and Jack tied the knot surrounded by all of their family and friends. You’d think that they’d be nothing but happy, enjoying their life together as a newly married couple but unfortunately that is not the case. If anything the exact opposite is true, their marriage is not harmonious - they’re clashing more than ever before, sleeping in separate rooms and desperate to get away from eachother. Totally fed up and questioning where it all went wrong and why their relationship turned so sour, Zoe suggests that they get a divorce, which they announce to their friends and family at their first wedding anniversary. The question is, just how final is this divorce for the pair?
Bryony Fraser has presented this book to us in a way that works really well. We get to read about their relationship in the present and also in the past where we get to find out how they came to be together in the first place. The parts about the past also worked wonders for allowing the reader to get to know Zoe and Jack, discover what influenced them and led them to be the people they are today. Both the past and present sections flowed beautifully, were equally entertaining and both very well paced.
This novel wouldn’t be as successful as it is without the cast of characters who it’s clear that Bryony has spent a lot of time thinking about. Although to some people their antics could be seen as childish I thought that Zoe and Jack were fabulous lead characters, particularly Zoe who stood up for what she believed in and was also quite a caring individual and paticularly protective of her sisters. The characters that surround Zoe and Jack all have a part to play and all fit into the story fabulously.
Sunshine on a Rainy Day is not your standard boy meets girl, falls in love and lives happily ever after novel. Instead, in a humerous way, it demonstrates how things can go wrong in a relationship and really throws the whole concept of marriage into question. It certainly got me thinking about how important it is - if a couple love eachother and are faithful does it matter if they are married or not?
It’s safe to say that I thought Sunshine on a Rainy Day was a beautiful book that provided the perfect introduction to Bryony’s writing. So much effort has gone into this book and it’s certainly paid off as I for one am now left feeling very excited about what Bryony will write next. Don’t let this book pass you by, take a chance on it and let it be your sunshine on a rainy, autumnal day.
Extract
It was half ten before Benni and I had finished at the bar – departmental stuff had come up that required intense discussions over many glasses of melon daiquiri – and my entry into the flat was noisier than I’d intended. Smash! The front door. Crash! A low bookcase falling over. Crunch!The pile of recycling I was going to lie on for juuust a second.
‘Shhh,’ I recommended.
‘Zo, is that you?’ Jack called from the sofa.
If I stay quiet, he won’t know it’s me, I thought.
‘Zo, if that’s not you, it’s a woefully clumsy burglar and I’ll need to actually get up and do something about it.’
Shhh, I thought again.
Suddenly, Jack was standing over me.
‘Come on, you, let’s get you to bed.’
‘Bossy,’ I muttered, as he pulled me up and half walked, half carried me to bed. He removed my clothes, but as he tried to tuck me in I wrapped my arms around him, suddenly amorous.
‘Stay with me,’ I groaned.
‘I’ll get you a pint of water, then I’m coming to bed, ok?’
‘I don’t want a pint of water, I want you.’
‘You’ll want a pint of water when you wake up in three hours’ time, Zo.’
‘Yes, but I want you now,’ I said, closing my eyes to give them a rest.
When I woke up again at 2 a.m., my mouth tasted like the sole of my shoe, and Jack was snoring next to me. There was a time, even a month ago, when he would have been with me tonight. He’d have been out, I’d have been out, we’d have eventually met up on our routes and we’d only just be getting in now. There might even have been dancing, Monday night be damned.
