I first discovered Imogen Clark on a chilly December day, when I stumbled upon ‘Postcards from a Stranger‘ and devoured it in a couple of sittings! Although her books have a nice breezy feel to them, I’ve always found the underlying themes of family, loss and love to be very heart wrenching and thought provoking.
‘The Last Piece’ focuses on similar themes of love, loss and abandonment, and most importantly family and the importance of having ‘your tribe’ around you to keep you grounded and centred.
This was a gifted copy by Amazon Publishing
Summary:
The plot revolves around the Nightingale Family, whose perfect lives are thrown into a disarray on account of a mystery letter that takes the mum, Cecily, on an impromptu trip to Greece. What follows is a tale of a hidden past and family secrets, narrated in six parts, flipping between Greece and England and across timelines, culminating in a perfectly imperfect conclusion.
What I Liked:
Imogen has created some deeply flawed but very relatable characters, and woven a tale which will feel all too real.The overall pace of the book is also very gentle, which makes it a perfect read for those times when you just want to read something soothing and non- dramatic.
The author has made some characters very unlikeable, to the point where you, as a reader, instantly detests the moment these characters make an appearance – this for me scored brownie points because it is a skilled writer who knows not just how to make a character likeable, but also unlikeable.
What could have been better:
The book definitely needed a bit more editing to snip out the wobbly bits, as it does tend to waffle in certain parts, especially where some of the characters are going through their own inner introspections.
Although by no means a fast-paced thriller, these middle parts made the pace of the book even more languid, to the point where nothing seems to be happening for the plot to progress.
Final Thoughts:
This is definitely a perfect holiday read and I’d recommend it to anyone who is looking for a something light-hearted that will help them escape from their lives for a bit, into a very relatable alternate world.
The Last Piece is now available to purchase on Amazon as a paperback and e-Book.
Between Pages 