Saturday, July 20, 2024

Book Review: The Life Impossible


When retired math teacher Grace Winters is left a run-down house on a Mediterranean island by a long-lost friend, curiosity gets the better of her. She arrives in Ibiza with a one-way ticket, no guidebook and no plan.

Among the rugged hills and golden beaches of the island, Grace searches for answers about her friend’s life, and how it ended. What she uncovers is stranger than she could have dreamed. But to dive into this impossible truth, Grace must first come to terms with her past.

Filled with wonder and wild adventure, this is a story of hope and the life-changing power of a new beginning.

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig will be published September 3, 2024. Penguin Group/Viking provided an early galley for review.

Haig was an author who hit my radar in late 2020 and early 2021. Enjoying earlier works meant this was one I would check out based on his byline alone.

The plot, as often is the case with this author, is a bit unconventional. However, he uses those fantastical elements to explore interesting aspects of human nature. His work often provokes deeper thought.

I quickly found a connection with Grace even though we have nothing in common. I chalk it up to the author's effortless presentation of the character, making her appealing and sympathetic. The fact that the narration is one of her telling/writing to someone also gives it a more personal feel as well.

The structural layout of this novel is an interesting. Rather than numbered chapters, they are instead each given a title of some sort. The lengths are also highly varied with some as short as a single paragraph. This makes for a very different reading experience and for the story to stand out.

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