Giving up on page 80 , I cannot get into the writing. Tara is a very unlikeable character, and when you not like one of the main characters, there is no point of pushing, right?
Now, I know why I left this book untouched I bought it in 2009.

To be honest I am sad it is over. I loved hearing about the lives of Katherine, Tara & Fintan and how Keyes incorporates love, loss and meaning into all of her novels. Friendship is at the core of this novel and its a heart warmer as well as a tear jerker at times. It made me feel very very sad imagining the situations each of these characters had to face.

I’ve often wondered personally whether I’m in the last chance saloon, as many of us probably do. So this one hits home. But gives hope too

Once I got over the fact that this novel set in the early 2000s is “historical fiction” I loved it and loved all the characters and friendships. It gives modern Mauve Binchey vibes where all of the characters from a small town have their own solid story lines that are interwoven with each other.

Buku ini bercerita tentang persahabatan. Dan menurut aku, buku ini bagus, karena gak hanya sekedar haha-hihi and talking about sex, tapi juga tentang sebuah sahabat yang selalu ada dalam saat senang dan sedih.

Para tokoh ini buku ini ada Tara, Katherine, Liv dan Fintan. Tara, Katherine dan Fintan berasal dari kota yang sama di Irlandia. Kemudian Liv masuk ke dalam kehidupan mereka ketika jadi teman seapartemen Katherine dan Tara di London.

Cerita dimulai dengan pesta ulang tahun Tara yang ke 31, dan ditutup dengan acara yang sama setahun kemudian. Masih tetap masalah percintaan yang seolah jadi masalah yang benar-benar berat dalam hidup mereka. Di antara mereka berempat, hanya Fintan yang bisa dibilang punya hubungan yang stabil. Fintan yang gay punya pacar bernama Sandro. Tara, punya pacar, Thomas. Tapi, herannya meskipun Tara begitu mencintai Thomas, tidak ada satupun teman-teman Tara yang menyukai Thomas. Menurut mereka, Thomas terlalu mengendalikan Tara. Sementara, Tara sendiri, masih lebih baik punya pacar, dari pada tidak sama sekali. “Siapa yang mau dengan cewek berumur tiga puluhan?” begitu pikir Tara.

Sementara Katherine, dijuluki si Ratu Es. Karena sikapnya yang dingin sama semua cowok. Pengalaman disakiti pria beberapa kali yang membuat Katherine jadi dingin. Ketika ada cowok keren, anak baru di kantornya, Joe Roth, yang memperhatikannya, Katherine mencoba tetap bersikap dingin, meskipun dalam hatinya dag-dig-dug.

Lalu, Liv… Liv punya hubungan gelap dengan pria yang sudah punya istri. Meskipun berurai air mata, Liv tetap keukeuh tidak mau meninggalkan kekasihnya itu.

Tiba-tiba, sebuah cobaan menghantam Fintan. Benjolan sebesar buah kiwi di lehernya ternyata merupakan sebuah penyakit. Semua menduga Fintan terkena AIDS, tapi ternyata Fintan terkena kanker. Dengan lagak seorang yang sedang sekarat, Fintan mengajukan permintaan terakhir untuk para sahabatnya. Fintan minta Tara untuk meninggalkan Thomas, dan minta ke Katherine untuk berani membuka dirinya untuk Joe Roth.

Meskipun kesal, kaget, gengsi, dan marah, permintaan itu membuka mata mereka, dan memberi kesadaran baru pada diri Tara dan Katherine, kalau mereka harus berani melawan hal-hal yang tidak beres di sekitar mereka. Tapi, toh, tetap mereka bingung, apakah mereka berdua harus memenuhi permintaan terakhir Fintan, atau tetap pada pendirian mereka?

Sweet and amusing. Too long.

Laugh out loud funny but emotional too loved it

St. Marian of fiction can really do no wrong in my eyes, well ears really. I can’t believe I had never read this title, I don’t know how it passed me by, I kept waiting to remember the story and I never did. An early Keyes (1999) and a winner! The old emotions were a bit ropey, I was on the brink of tears often, but more importantly were the friendships, and the laughs. The book covers the stigma of HIV and the trauma of cancer, but it’s funny, and kind and smart and Mariany so you know it’s worth the trauma.

Now for a review of the audio if you’re of a nervous disposition look away now

Shit the fucking bed. Narrators; If you’re English you’re English that’s ok, just read the whole feckin thing in an English accent, that’s fine, but Jesus suffering fuck stop pretending you can do an Irish accent to get the gig, you absolutely cannot, you can’t do Scottish either btw. The only glimmer of good news is that the one Scottish character sounded a teeny bit County Clare so there was almost an Irish character.

Publishers: Have none of you heard an Irish or Scottish accent?

Seriously, stop it!

And another thing, I was going to wrap the moaning about accents since the audio was published in 2008, then I remembered Scotland and Ireland existed then.

So yes. Stop it!

This story is all about making the most of your time and not wasting your life. Tara is so afraid of being alone and Katherine can't get over her past, and both have to be forced into making a change in their life so they can find happiness. I liked the contrast of the stability of Fintan and Sandro's relationship, though I thought it was heartbreaking that Sandro had to go through all he did for a second time. No one should have to do that more than once. I found it interesting the way Lorcan's story would pop up throughout the book, even though he doesn't really figure in until right at the end - personally, I think that karma let him off easy.

Rather a disappointing Keyes book. Was expecting the whimsy of her other books - not found here. Good holiday book though.

Great book. Kept me guessing. Well developed characters. =)

Esta es una historia "cozy", en el sentido de que es del tipo de novelas por las que se dice eso de que con un libro en la mano, nunca estarás solo.

Es la historia de tres amigos de la infancia que en su juventud decidieron irse de Irlanda y probar suerte en Londres. Ahora, en la treintena, un suceso trascendental hará que todos ellos se replanteen sus vidas y tomen decisiones importantes.

Me ha gustado mucho, me he sentido muy acompañada durante toda la lectura, me he sentido una amiga más en el grupo. La historia está llena de clichés, situaciones previsibles y típicas, etc., que he leído cientos de veces, o incluso vivido, pero que no me ha importado leer. Eso sí, he sufrido un poco con el ambiente sexista que se describe en el entorno laboral de una de las protagonistas.

Review to follow