Despite having never read anything by Darcie Boleyn previously, when I was offered the chance to review Something Old, Something New I jumped at the chance because it sounded incredible. It didn’t disappoint me and is one of those heartwarming books that is guaranteed to leave almost any reader with a smile on their face and the occasional happy tear in their eye. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute I was lucky enough to be able to spend with this delightful book.
In Something Old, Something New we meet Annie who has three children and has been married twice and divorced twice all before the age of forty. Working as a teacher in a local secondary school, her working day doesn’t end when the school bell rings as she returns home to deal with her children’s dramas and look after the family’s two dogs. Annie’s remained friends with both of her ex-husbands and it’s not long before an invitation drops through her letterbox to the wedding of her second ex-husband, Dex, who is to marry Trevor. She soon finds out that her second ex-husband, Evan, whose job sees him jetting off to many exotic destinations will also be attending the wedding. From the first time we see Annie and Evan together, it’s evident that their true feelings for eachother never really died but will they act on them or not?
This is one of those books that I loved from the very first page thanks to the way in which it was written. Even though I could see from pretty early on how it was going to end there were a few surprises thrown in to the novel along the way that I wasn’t expecting to happen. This is one of those books that once started I did not want to put down, I just wanted to read it right through to the end and if I had to put it down I found myself thinking about the characters and where their lives were going to take them next.
I have to say that this book would not have been what it was without the amazing crowd of characters that the author had clearly spent a long time thinking about in terms of the role each was going to play and how they would all come together. I really loved Darcie’s character who was believable from the start and who I admired as, despite her difficult past, she wanted nothing more than to give her children the very best future possible. Despite not wanting to admit that her oldest daughter, Janis, is rapidly turning into a young woman, Annie is clearly someone who has a very wise head on her shoulders and realises the importance of remaining on amicable terms with her ex-husbands for the sake of their children.
I think that this book would be an absolutely perfect addition to anyone’s summer reading lists this year, thanks to its fun and generally light-hearted story. It’s the perfect book to read whether you’ll be in thirty degree heat or sheltering from the rain that is typical of a British summer. I’m so happy to have discovered Darcie’s wonderful writing with Something Old, Something New and will certainly be back to read more written by her in the future.
