Andrew works for the council investigating deaths where there is no traceable family. I didn't know such a job existed but if it does I'd like to think of someone like Andrew doing it an caring about the people who die alone. He's been trundling along for years living in his flat, with his model railway for company, while maintaining the lie at work that he lives with his wife and children. There has obviously been a trauma in his past which is alluded to, especially when he speaks quarterly to his sister or when he thinks back to younger days. His routine is upset by the arrival of new staff member, Peggy, who joins him on house inspections. As they become friends we learn more of Andrew's life and wonder how he will dig himself out of his lie. It's a pleasure to watch his transformation and a lesson in how circumstances can change our lives and see us living a life we didn't plan.

This was advertised as compelling, and it certainly is! I thoroughly enjoyed this and it’s gone into my “reread and recommend” pile. Definitely one to read.

Andrew’s life seems very mundane. He spends his days searching through the detritus of dead people’s lives- finding means to pay for their funerals and clues to tracing the relatives or friends of the unclaimed dead on the council’s books. Home is a lifeless flat, brightened by his record collection and his train layouts. He is an enigma, and this gently hooks you as you attempt to puzzle out his back story. How did he come to invent a wife and children? What is the issue with his sister?
This story makes you laugh with some of the outlandish situations that occur, but also makes you count your own blessings. Ultimately it offers hope that compassion is alive and well in the world despite all too frequent evidence to the contrary. A gentle, pleasing read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Something To Live For is the story of Andrew. He works for the council and his job is to deal with the aftermath of death – he has to find if the deceased person has a next of kin. Andrew is lonely but he’s accidentally told his boss that he’s got a happy family life and now he can’t u-turn on this lie he’s living.

Something To Live For is a stunning book and I adored it. Andrew has told his boss right before he got his job that he has a wife and two children at home but this isn’t true. Andrew lives in a grotty flat on his own and he’s lonely. All day at work he’s dealing with what happens when people die without a next of kin, without family and he takes it upon himself to go to the funerals of people who would otherwise have no one present. I felt so sad for Andrew, it’s such a lonely life he leads and you realise that his job must impact on his loneliness.

Andrew loves Ella Fitzgerald’s music and spends a lot of his spare time listening to her but he has an overwhelming visceral response that he can’t control to one of her songs. I immediately realised what was wrong with Andrew but over the course of the novel we gradually find out about his past and learn more about how he has ended up the way he has.

Things begin to come unstuck for Andrew when his boss decides that his team needs to bond a bit more and suggests a Come Dine With Me idea whereby the whole team goes to a different team member’s house for dinner once a month. Andrew’s blood runs cold as he realises he has to get out of this or he’s going to be found out. The thought of just explaining how he got into living a lie isn’t something he can comprehend so his stress levels are rising. He then gets a new teammate, Peggy, and life begins to open up for Andrew in ways he couldn’t have imagined and the burden of his fictional family begins to overwhelm him.

Something To Live For also captures how much of our lives are now lived online. Andrew is part of an online community of train fans and he logs on every night to catch up, and yet he is so vulnerable and alone in reality. Social media can help make us feel less lonely but we still need people in our real lives in order to thrive. The book really shows how we can appear to have happy life but the reality can be so very different. More importantly though this book shows how if we take a step towards inviting people into our lives, asking for help when we need it, that the world can suddenly become a much bigger, brighter place and I loved this aspect of the novel.

This book is such a charming read; it’s very moving but also heart-warming and funny. I found Andrew to be such a believable character and I was rooting for him all the way through this book. It’s such an honest and sensitive portrayal of loneliness but it’s also a novel that is full of hope. The idea that if we can just be honest about our own lives, about the failures we perceive in ourselves that things really might get better. It left me with an overwhelming feeling that there is always hope, there is always a chance to change things. Life might not turn out as we planned but it’s still possible to find happiness down other avenues.

I adored Something To Live For, it’s one that will stay with me. It’s a wonderful thing for an author to make a reader feel real emotion at a character’s pain but in the next chapter have you laughing out loud at something. This is how life is and this gorgeous novel captures that in all its glory! I highly recommend this book!

I really enjoyed this book. When I heard that it was inspired by council workers whose job it is to clear out council properties where someone had died, I knew that it would be fascinating and a little different.

What I didn’t expect was to get so fond of Andrew, the main character. He’s sweet and he’s funny, and he’s ended up tangled in a web of lies that started with one simple white lie.

I loved everything about this book. It’s heartwarming and funny, sad and life-affirming. So well written, with both a fabulous plot and characters, it’s a real page-turner.

An excellent debut, I really hope this will be one of the big novels of this year. Highly recommended.

Something to Live For; thought-provoking and tender

Something to Live For, the debut novel from Richard Roper definitely has that ‘special something‘ – quirky, moving and poignant. It is also very uplifting. With echoes of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, this is a compelling portrayal that strikes a chord, tenderly exploring the taboo subject of loneliness.

Something to Live For (published as How Not to Die Alone in the United States) is Andrew’s story. Andrew is 42 – happily married with two children. Yet the problem is that his wife and children aren’t real – Andrew made them up to fit in. He told a white lie during an interview to just feel normal for once, truly believing he wouldn’t get the job. Yet he was offered the role and five years on his work colleagues believe Andrew to have a happy family life living in a beautiful town house.

Yet in reality Andrew is extremely lonely living in a dingy flat with only the music of Ella Fitzgerald and a model trains forum to keep him company.

Andrew’s life is turned upside down when Peggy starts working alongside him and he begins to view her as more than just a colleague; experiencing a connection with Peggy that he has not felt in a very long time.
To add further complications to Andrew’s life, his boss decides that each person in the team should take it in turn to host a dinner party at their home. Yet Andrew’s colleagues, including Peggy thinks he lives in a family home, not a lonely flat with ‘one plate, one knife and fork, and a single saucepan.’

As the novel progresses, more of Andrew’s history is revealed, explaining exactly why Andrew is so frightened to connect with people and truly live. Andrew’s story is so raw and poignant, my heart broke for him. But in my view, he’s also a true hero.

Apparently Richard Roper was inspired to write Something to Live For after reading an article about employees who have to follow up, searching for next of kin etc after people die alone.

Something to Live For is an immersive and intelligent read, confronting in a compassionate way the growing issue of loneliness in today’s society, especially how it can affect anyone of any age. Yet it is also a character driven read that will make you think and also uplift you.

Something to Live For is published on 27th June 2019.

This was a very different book for me and I’m not sure what i expected!
A book about dealing with death and funerals on a daily basis and model railways could have made for a depressing read! Andrew a single loner works for the council and his job is to investigate when someone dies with no next of kin or family ,this involves returning to the deceased home and searching for evidence a role that I wasn’t really aware of and the graphic descriptions of the homes really helps you appreciate the role these people play!this book illustrates that one can easily get drawn into ones own little world of fabrication and the knock on effect this can have in yourself and those around you! However it also illustrates the goodness of friends, that everyone deserves to be loved,liked and included no matter what, overall a lovely telling of the true value of truth, honesty and friendship.
Thank you net galley for this early copy to read and enjoy x

This was a brilliant, emotional, moving and thought-provoking read. We meet Andrew who works for the council dealing with death…..he goes round to people’s houses who have died alone to discover if they have a next of kin and if they they have funds to pay for their funeral. Most of the time they don’t have a next of kin and no-one to attend their funeral so he goes along…..

At work he gets on ok with his colleagues, has an over the top boss (who thinks he’s everyone’s mate) and he regularly updates them on his wife and kids at home….but his life isn’t really what he leads people to believe…..

Then a newbie starts, Peggy and her and Andrew strike up a friendship. She’s dealing with her own issues at home and they gradually grow closer. But nothing can happen because they’re both married…..or so Peggy thinks. But what will happen when his colleagues find out the truth about his life? Will he get the sack? And will Peggy stop talking to him? There’s only one way to find out……(read the book!)

This book gave me all the feels! You know there’s something going on with Andrew to start with but you don’t know the full extent which is spread out slowly across the book, making you want to keep reading! Andrew drew out every emotion in me – I felt sorry for him, he made me laugh, at times I just want to shout at him and tell him to sort himself out and then he finally made me really proud!

As well as Andrew there are some fantastic characters in this book. Cameron, Andrew’s boss is something else!! I would probably murder him if he were my boss!! The fact that he forces ‘Come Dine with Me’ style dinner parties on his team is hilarious and cringe worthy at the same time! I love Peggy, she’s a brilliant and strong woman and again, she made me have all sorts of emotions. One minute I was cheering for her, the next I felt let down. And Andrew’s train friends are all amazing and really make you think about friendship and how it truly means a lot.

I really wanted to learn what had happened in Andrew’s past….and we do eventually which also makes him realise that he actually has something to live for…..

There are times in the book where you can’t believe what’s happening and some proper cringe-worthy moments, but also moments that will get you thinking about life. Especially when you read about the people who have died with no-one around them to care or show up at their funeral. I found it a bit depressing at times, and sad that these things actually happen, but I think highlighting something like this is important – good on Richard.

Overall, I honestly loved this. The story was compelling and really thought-provoking and you definitely couldn’t guess what would happen next. A fantastic debut from Richard – I’m looking forward to reading more from him in the future.

Not my usual sort of read this one but it was wonderful, insightfully emotional, with a main protagonist who you genuinely engage with and root for all the way through.

Andrew works for the council, sifting through the lives of those who have died alone. To his colleagues he seems to have a normal fulfilling life but the truth is somewhat more lonely…

Something to Live For does exactly what it says on the tin, taking you through one man’s journey towards living an actual life. It is funny and emotive, with some great characters and a lot of thought provoking human themes.

I was glued to the page hoping Andrew would find his way, this is life affirming and very very real.

Loved it. Recommended.

This is one gem of a find, that will take you on a journey of the life Andrew would love to be living, which is far from his reality.
In a moment of madness, Andrew went from being a lonely 42-year-old man living on his own to a successful family man with a beautiful career wife, two adorable children, and even a dog. It was just chit-chat at an interview, where he never thought he would be successful enough to get the job in question. But that friendly get you relaxed chatter took him off guard and well made him a hit with his now new boss! The pretense had to continue, it was simply too late to say there were no wife, kids or dog.
Andrew took his work role so serious, he was the person that had to go to the former homes of anyone found dead, dig round in their belongings and past to see if there were any life policies, bank accounts, hidden money or long lost relatives that could cover the cost of a funeral. He did it sensitively after all this could be him one day.
Wow! wow! wow! this story really gets under your skin! It kind of exaggerates even more Andrew's loneliness and makes his life even more empty because of the family he has created. I could feel his love for them grow the more it went on. The lives that he would have wanted for his children and wife. Then someone new arrives at work.
This story knocked the wind out of me, made me sad, made me laugh and made me think about what is important in life. It may sound funny to start with but it really goes much deeper. What a crazy and wonderful character Andrew is, too scared to live and have a real life because of his past. There is certainly a coldness between him and his estranged sister, which just doesn't make sense at first because he is a caring man. When a whirlwind, in the form of a new work colleague, comes into his life it could be the ruin of him and his made-up family or the end of the rainbow he really deserves.
Beautifully written and heartfelt. Highly recommended.
I wish to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an e-copy of this book which I have reviewed honestly.

This is a sweet and special read, with some moving moments that will make “Something To Live For” this year’s summer read.
Andrew is living a very solitary life, he works at the council attending funerals; it needs a very special person to work in a place like this as you can imagine. But he is happy with it, doesn’t need to socialize with the coworkers or make friends and fits perfect on the lie he has told to all his coworkers, he is married and with children! The problem will begin when he is asked to bring his wife to a work dinner, his imaginary wife.
This will be when everything will start to change…
Andrew is living in his own bubble, he thinks he doesn’t need to socialize or connect with anyone; he thinks he is happy but when his world is shaken he starts to discover what is living and happiness; but is it worth the sacrifice?
I could understand the need of solitude of Andrew, sometimes the society is too overwhelming and is easy to protect our heart and feelings from the pain and suffering. But in these moments we need a little help to remember us that living has ups and downs but it’s worth every minute on it.
This is not a book I use to read, but it has been worth every minute I spent reading it, “Something To Live For” will be in my heart for a long time.

We’re now getting fairly used to seeing quirky and unusual females at the centre of our books – the Eleanor Oliphant phenomenon, I guess – so it was a rather refreshing change to encounter Andrew. He works for the council, visiting the homes of people who’ve died alone, looking for the means to pay for their funerals and any traces of friends or relatives. It’s a job he takes very seriously, donning his mask doused in expensive aftershave to mask the smell of decay, sifting through their belongings with the utmost respect – and if his search proves fruitless, he goes along to their funerals, ensuring they don’t depart alone.

And being alone is something he’s only too familiar with – although his work colleagues think otherwise, a misunderstanding he’s allowed to continue and can see no way of escaping from, he lives a solitary life surrounded by his model train layout, listens to his Ella Fitzgerald records (except one particular one), his only “friends” on an on-line forum.

Sound a little depressing? Just another man heading for a lonely ending? When Peggy starts work in Andrew’s department, he’s disgruntled and reluctant to engage with his new “shadow” – but despite problems of her own, she lightens his days, gives him a glimpse of how his life could be, and they begin to laugh together. And with her support and companionship, he begins to see how his life could change…

I’ll mention “depressing” just once more – but only to emphasise that this book is anything but. The way it addresses loneliness is immensely moving and poignant – Andrew’s own situation, but also in the glimpses of the lives of the dead, where relationships have often disappeared through casual neglect. But there’s also a rich vein of dark humour, perfectly delivered – the writing is quite wonderful, and this is a book that will make you feel so uplifted, while passing through so many extremes of emotion from heartbreak to sheer elation. Andrew himself is perfectly drawn – you feel his loneliness, his social awkwardness, his embarrassment – but there’s real strength in the supporting characters too, and in the way every interaction is written.

I also liked the way Andrew’s back story was revealed – his relationship with sister Sally, its legacy, and his more recent history which quite broke my heart. But there’s a real joy in his relationship with Peggy, as it grows and develops – she’s a breath of fresh air that he finds difficult to cope with at first, then begins to crave, as he grows to realise that she perhaps needs him every bit as much as he needs her. And the book’s ending is absolutely perfect – funny, moving, uplifting and everything it needed to be.

I really loved this book – it made me think, it made me laugh, it broke my heart and put it together again in the most glorious way, and it left me with a smile on my face that I never expected. As a debut, it’s quite exceptional – and very highly recommended.

A really lovely heartfelt, funny and endearing read.

Andrew works for his local council and has done for some years.  He deals with the deaths of people that do not appear to have any next of kin.  When a body is found, and sometimes this can be some time after their death, the council are notified and Andrew goes round to their home trying to find evidence and details of someone whom he can contact.  If there isn't anyone he arranges for their funeral which is then paid for by either some form of cash found at the deceased home or by the council.

A seemingly macabre job to put into a novel but a very interesting one and one that the  author makes into a very funny and touching story line.

Even though the bodies have been taken away by the time Andrew arrives at the homes the smell can often be unbearable and Andrew has personalised his 'kit' that he wears to deal with this.  Sometimes the flats and houses are clean and cared for but more often than not they are in a mess, dirty and cluttered and it is Andrew job to hunt amongst it all trying to find notes of a next of kin.

In work Andrew tries to keep himself to himself.  Due to a misunderstanding at his interview everyone believes Andrew is happily married with 2 kids, this however is far from the truth and we hear how he has managed to not only keep this lie going over the years but the lengths he has had to go to.  When one day his boss, a great character, comes up with another team building idea it throws Andrew into a panic! Plus with the arrival of a new work colleague Peggy, who throws Andrew completely off his tracks (pardon the pun) we read a marvellously touching and laugh out loud funny story of a really likeable and real character.

I really enjoyed this book.  It is both a very heartfelt and touching story of loneliness and loss but also a wonderfully witty and uplifting one full of friendship and people just trying to get along.  I laughed out loud many a time, which I don't often do with books and the characters were so likeable and Andrews one liners so perfect it was a joy to read.

I felt the way in which the author describes the job and office life back at the council was done in a very believable way and a very realistic one too.  Andrew's online friendships with his fellow model train enthusiasts are lovely and the complicated relationship he form with Peggy delightful.  I highly recommend this book and would encourage you all to read it.

Something To Live For is out now!!

Thank you to the publishers for a preview copy of this book via NetGalley.

The hero of Something to Die for (and I think he is a hero) is Andrew. Andrew could best be described as socially inept in that he lacks certain social skills and finds it difficult to mix with people and judge their reactions. So he disappears into his world of model railways and finds it much easier to mix with the faceless few railway enthusiasts online who are somewhat cliquish and unsociable in pursuit of their hobby. Andrew works for the council in a somewhat unusual role; he visits the houses of recently departed tenants, destitute people who have no next of kin, and it is his job to trace relatives, and hopefully they will help fund the funeral, if not it falls under the auspices of the council to provide a paupers grave. Andrew has created a fictitious world, in his need to be wanted by his work colleagues, pretending he is happily married to Diane with two lovely children Steph and David. A change occurs in his life when Peggy comes to work with the council and in particular as a colleague to Andrew. There is a certain attraction between the two, is it really possible that this strange likeable young man might at long last find some happiness

This was a very enjoyable, funny, poignant and ultimately uplifting book, a joy to read from start to finish. There are some genuinely laugh out moments but equally some compelling thoughtful observations…..”because as Andrew had discovered, once you’ve smelled death it never leaves you”……”Peggy had hugged him. This wasn’t physical contact through formality-an introductory handshake. Nor was it the unavoidable touch of the barber or dentist, or a stranger on a packed train. It had been a genuine gesture of warmth, and for that second and a half he was reminded about how it felt to let someone in”……. Many thanks to the good people of Netgalley for a gratis copy in return for an honest review and that is what I have written.

I often find that the books that I remember the most are not those that come from my ‘favourite’ genres of crime and psychological thrillers, but from other genres. I’m not sure where you shelve uplifting and life-affirming reads but Something to Live For is first and foremost in the category for 2019.
Andrew works for the council where one of his duties is to trace the relatives of those who have died with no known family. Anyone who has worked in an office will recognise some elements of Andrew’s work, especially the absurdity of his manager Cameron. Cameron was both arguably the cause of the misunderstanding around the existence of Andrew’s family and his panic over the exposure of the actual non-existence of the carefully crafted wife and two children. So far so amusing around a man who is so sad he has invented a make-believe family, but intriguingly this is a springboard to a story far broader, and deeper than the one you might be expecting.
One day a new employee arrives, Peggy Green and rolls up her sleeves, literally, to help Andrew search through the debris of some poor deceased man’s home to find links to family. Having warded off some chancer on the doorstep, and searched meticulously it appears that the man will have a ‘pauper’s funeral’ i.e. one only attended by the vicar and Andrew who does so out of the wish that someone witnessed the event. Peggy however is the catalyst for Andrew to look at the realities of his life. Meanwhile Cameron is pushing ahead with his plans to get the team to bond via a Come Dine with Me series of evenings – obviously Andrew with his make-believe life is going to run into problems but let’s face it many of us shudder at the mere thought of being forced to bond with our colleagues, especially in our own time!
This is a book that starts off as being mildly entertaining and then slowly creeps up on you and steals your heart. Partly that’s because it truly does take you through the range of emotions, and perhaps these feel a bit more authentic because they are from a man’s point of view which arguably isn’t as overworked as the female perspective in this type of book. Another plus is Andrew is just an average man; he has no disability physical or mental, his love of model trains is not dressed up as something anything other than it is and I for one found that incredibly refreshing. This could be a classified as a book about loneliness, and it is one of those books that makes you reflect and consider how easily that someone can come adrift from society but it is also about the essential goodness of people, something I think has been delivered in a timely manner when all around us seems to be endless news about the harm people do to each other.
I was extremely grateful to receive an advance copy of Something to Live For from the publishers Orion Publishing Group ahead of publication date of today! This unbiased review is my thanks to them, and the author Richard Roper for an entertaining yet thoughtful story which reflects a part of life that we prefer not to see!
First Published UK: 27 June 2019
Publisher: Orion
No. of Pages: 352
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Amazon UK
Amazon US

A Story About Lies and Loneliness with a Touch of Humour

When we lived abroad, strangers would often say things to me in passing that I didn't understand. In a split second, you take the decision to either admit that you didn't understand, or just to nod and smile and hope they move on. If they continue the 'conversation' though you can very easily find yourself in a hole of your own digging.

Andrew, the main character in Something to Live For, is deep in just such a hole. A little lie told at his job interview has grown bigger and bigger to the point where he cannot see a way out.  It is stifling him, but at the same time, the nature of his lie also provides him with some comfort in his loneliness.

And loneliness is ever present in this book. The story centres around the council department that deals with people who die all alone and often undiscovered for some time. Andrew and his colleagues have to sort through the deceased person's possessions to try and find either the money to pay for the funeral or details of any living relatives.

Initially, I found it quite frustrating that Andrew himself has always just assumed that he will be one of these people who die alone. He is unconfident and quite passive about the situation he finds himself in. I did warm to him though as I got to know and understand him better. By the end, I found that I was totally invested in the story and was really rooting for him.

All this sounds quite serious but there is plenty of humour in the story too. Andrew's colleagues and boss are wicked characterisations of the type of people you might come across in an office environment. There are also some crazy Come Dine with Me style scenes after Andrew's boss Cameron decides they should take turns hosting dinner parties to get to know each other better.

I think that it is the main theme of the book that will stay with me for a long time. Our lives are often so busy that it is too easy to just let friendships and relationships drift. Likewise, we should never forget that there are legions of people out there who are alone and lonely, but who have interesting stories to tell if we can just take the time to listen.

Many thanks to Tracy at Compulsive Readers and Orion for including us in this blog tour.
Reviewed by Ali Walker for The Glass House Book Club</a>

This book was definitely something else.
There are jobs in this world that aren’t for everyone as there are many people who loves to live their whole lives alone. They even get to a stage where the introverted person is even forgotten by the others around them.

The book was quite good overall, I was ok with the writing style, the characters changed a lot during the story, there are twists and turns that made me wanna read and finish it.

There are also things happening that I don’t agree with but I can see why the author has chosen this path and I really liked all the small references about how a single person interacts and live their lives.

It definitely makes you more aware of the ones around you whether you’re in the park, at work or shopping.
I’ll be reading more books by the author for sure in the future.

Thanks for the opportunity to read and review it to NetGalley and the publisher.

What a quirky, unusual love story.

Something to Live For is the story of Andrew. Andrew spends most of his time looking after the final journey for the dead. He arranges funerals for those who have no families. Andrew has something common with those he looks after. He is dead too. Not literally but his life is that closed off to people that he may as well be. But Andrew has a secret…

You cannot help but fall for Andrew and his little quirks but equally you cannot help but feel increasingly uncomfortable as his secret gets closer to being revealed.

I think Richard Roper has written a great story here and what I like is that he could write an accompanying story to give more of Andrew’s back story as a novella (hint hint – I really want Richard Roper to do this.)


You could liken Something to Live For as a similar kind of will they won’t they story much like One Day. It is of that ilk and is a thoroughly entertaining read.

Something to Live For by Richard Roper is available now.

For more information regarding Richard Roper (@richardroper) please visit his Twitter page.

For more information regarding Orion Books (@orionbooks) please visit www.orionbooks.co.uk.

Something to Live For
Andrew loves his life. At least that’s what he’s told people…
Richard Roper

Sometimes you have to risk everything to find your something…

Andrew works with death for a living. Searching for people’s next of kin and attending the funerals if they don’t have anyone, he’s desperate to avoid the same fate for himself. Which is fine, because he has the perfect wife and 2.4 children waiting at home for him after a long day. At least, that’s what he’s told people.

The truth is, his life isn’t exactly as people think and the little white lie he once told is about to catch up with him.

Because in all Andrew’s efforts to fit in, he’s forgotten one important thing: how to really live. And maybe, it’s about time for him to start.

Today is my stop in the Something to Live For blog tour thanks to Tracy Felton, Richard Roper and Orion books.

It did take me a little while to get into this book, it felt quite slow going in the opening stages, but it did pick up after a while and I ended up really enjoying.

Andrew’s character intrigued me as I wasn’t quite sure what to make of him to start. At the beginning he almost seemed too much of a loner for this book to work. But once you understood more about Andrew’s past, especially his childhood, you understand why he is the way he is.

As someone who is happier in his own company, Andrew has a job that suits him, however he told one white lie at his interview five years beforehand which has snowballed. Then Peggy joins, who I really liked as a character, and develops a friendship with Andrew, the first he has made in a long time. This friendship opens Andrew’s eyes up to the life he could be living.

Despite death being a strong feature of the book, this story was uplifting and full of hope and humour.

Something to Live For is a unique, quirky novel that will captivate you and steal a little bit of your heart. Andrew, our leading man, is not handsome, sexy, brave or wealthy he's just human. A man that has experienced so much heartache as a child and growing up that now as an adult he's found his comfortable life and is just going through the motions.
His job with the Council is not glamorous but it's an essential cog in the wheel of many people's lives. People that sadly find themselves all alone as their life draws to an end. Andrew's job is to find any evidence of a next of kin and investigate if the deceased has any funds to pay for their own funeral. The job brought more cons than pros however, the author injected a lovely dark humour breaking the dread of the task at hand.
When a new colleague starts in the office Andrew's life takes a different slant. Peggy brings out something in Andrew he's not felt in a long time. He feels companionship, light, fun and hope.
Andrew is one of those endearing characters that have so much sadness about them but they are also comforted by their routines and objects.
Something to Live For is such a beautiful, poignant story with a very important message. The story has left me feeling quite uplifted and the ethos behind the storyline will stay with me for a long time. A fabulous debut novel that I wish the author, Richard Roper, huge success with.