In Home Truths Susan Lewis tackles some pretty heavy subjects. Following the death of her beloved husband at the hands of a violent gang and the disappearance of her eldest son Liam, Angie is faced with the reality of bringing up her younger two children on her own in a time of austerity. Despite working several jobs, she is without an income for several weeks due to the failure of the Universal Credit scheme. Falling behind on her rent, council tax, TV licence etc, she is faced with a mountain of arrears and debt that she simply has no chance of ever being able to pay off. Angie feels a sense of shame and desperation, which becomes despair as her and her family are made homeless. Her sister Emma takes in the children, but Angie finds herself sleeping in her van. It's clear that Lewis carried out thorough research to write this book and no doubt many readers will relate to Angie becoming, 'another helpless victim of the austerity that had created a different class - the working poor, with jobs but no homes, always in debt'.

There is however, joy to be found in this book, and by the author's own admission, she did not want to write a wholly depressing story. Kindness is found in the form of Martin and her sister Emma, who provide unfailing support to Angie at the point when she has reached rock bottom. Sometimes perhaps, it all feels too good to be true, but at the same time, it is always nice to read a feel good tale. Ultimately, for Angie, everything works out and after a long estrangement from her son Liam, he is located and returns to the fold of his loving family. She also finds in Martin, the potential to love again. A little schmaltzy at times, but we read to escape reality and Home Truths is beautifully written.

A very gritty book dealing with no end of social ills. Well written but not one I relished. That was definitely the content though and no fault of the author. You can’t pleas3 all of the people all of the time...

I loved this book, gritty, raw and tugging at the heartstrings but filled with love and how family should stick together when sometimes they are all we have.

I read the acknowledgement at the end and Susan you have done the subject matter justice, it is hard to touch the emotional level that homelessness and debt bring to the table and in my view you get the full gamut of emotions in this story. (I work in mental health and see another side to the coin yet still similar issues).

Another powerful heart-wrenching story from Susan Lewis which I found very thought provoking. . In this book the plight of homelessness, vulnerable people and county lines are forefront and many characters in this story suffer while experiencing these awful situations they find themselves in.

Angie, the central character, shows through her story just how the lives of families are destroyed and no one is spared young or old. Circumstances that arise in this book can affect anyone and at times made for a sad read but through Angie who has plenty of her own problems, she struggled through offering hope and support to others.

I enjoyed this story with its current topics and was shocked how those most vulnerable are often let down by our Government and the system who we think are put in place to help them.

My thanks to Net Galley for the ARC these are my own views of Home Truths by Susan Lewis.

Susan Lewis never disappoints and this book is no exception.
Dealing with difficult subjects such as poverty and all that is associated with it. How to get out of the spiralling downturn of events when things go wrong. Trying to keep on a brave face for the children so they have some normality and the terrible sense of feeling that you are on your own.
This book covers all these issues and the lengths a mother will go to to protect her family even when faced with the most devastating issues.

Every parent’s worst nightmare becomes a reality.
Wow!! What a brutal, vicious start to the book. Susan Lewis throws the reader straight into the action from the very first page.
Angie’s life is turned upside down- from the idyllic home life with her husband and three children to finding herself grieving and homeless. Just like the many luckless people that she works so hard to help.
Every parent’s worst nightmare.
Angie tries as hard as she possibly can to keep her son on the straight and narrow but he is too deeply involved in the drug-fuelled, violent world of gang culture. Home Truth’s follows Angie’s desperate struggle for her family.

Home Truth’s is an incredibly sad and traumatic tale that shows just how quickly a person’s life can change dramatically through no fault of their own. This was at times difficult to read- the desperation that Angie felt was palpable- and I wondered if I would be able to continue. However, I am glad the I did as the last part of the book took a more positive (if slightly unbelievable) turn. My honest feeling at this point was relief but also the understanding that although Home Truth’s is a work of fiction the story represents reality for many and most would not have an ending such as this.

I loved the mention of several characters from Susan Lewis’ previous novel, One Minute Later. It felt like a small reward, a pat on the back and it made me smile.

I enjoyed the beautiful, easy-flowing writing style and found it simple to place myself in the action as harrowing as that was at times.
Home Truth’s is a traumatic and often heart wrenching tale that is extremely well-written and sensitively approached. This is the second book I have read by Susan Lewis and I hope to read many more in the future.
Thank you, Harper Collins and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

My thanks to HarperCollins for an eARC via NetGalley of Susan Lewis’ ‘Home Truths’ in exchange for an honest review.

Angie Watts happy life is shattered when her husband is savagely murdered by a local gang and her son, Liam, disappears after being cleared of involvement. Now a single mother with two children, it’s not long before she is struggling financially.

A cascade of horrible things happens to Angie that sees her threatened with eviction from her rental home and homelessness. At times it is quite a harrowing tale and while Angie is stressed and working multiple jobs in order just to keep the family’s head above water, she’s unaware of the danger threatening Grace, her 13-year old daughter.

Grace’s desire to help her family and her deep sense of loss following the death of her father was probably the most compelling part of the story for me. It was easy to see how vulnerable this made her.

‘Home Truths’ covers a number of contemporary social issues including gang violence, drugs, grooming, trafficking, poverty, homelessness, and the failure of the benefits system.

Angie is a caring person and her main job is working for a small charity, Bridging the Gap, that provides housing and support for vulnerable adults. It was easy to care for her and be concerned for the spiral of debt that she has found herself in.

While I have not read any of her earlier novels, it is clear that Lewis has quite an extensive body of work and loyal following. It appears that there is some overlap with her earlier novels in terms of setting and characters.

In her acknowledgements for ‘Home Truths’ Lewis thanks her publishing team at HarperCollins: “In steering me away from too much brutal reality I believe you’ve helped me to create a far more readable and hopeful story.”

That’s certainly true, it is readable and more uplifting than I expected after reading its first half. Yet is it believable? I found it a slightly uneven mix of kitchen sink realism and romantic drama.

It’s a novel that many of my friends will likely want to read, even if not quite my thing.

After the vicious murder of her husband, Angie, is barely coping and the bills are mounting up. Her teenage daughter is desperate to help her mum. Her young son is missing out on new football boots and fancy birthday presents as Angie is broke. Her oldest son, Liam, is estranged after being implicated in his father’s murder and Angie is at her wits end. An old friend of Angie’s husband offers to help and maybe things will look up for her.

Susan Lewis never fails to write good books. The emotion in the books is beautiful and the human element of her stories is amazing. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is a really heartbreaking read and covers a wide range of social issues that are rife in our country at the moment. The ending was abit too fairytale/man rescues the damsel in distress for me but it was still a good read.

Many thanks to the publishers and netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Susan Lewis, The publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy of the book.
Steve is a well respected man. His son Liam has got involved with a gang that deals drugs. One night he goes in search of Lim but is murder on the estate.
His wife Angie is left with there three children to bring up on a reduced income. Liam is missing. Her daughter gets into trouble trying to help out the family and Angie plunges into debt.
A well written book worthy of a read.

A beautiful and heartfelt story; draws you in very quickly and doesn't let go. Excellent character development. Highly recommended!

A brilliantly written family drama covering many current topics that gave the story a very authentic feel. The characters were very well developed. Some aspects were a little far fetched but in the main a totally believable tale of modern life.

Loved this book, a really truly inspiring read.

A story of hardship and sorrow and grief at its worst. This was a story that you know could be true. Down to the misguided trust of a teen, to the truth about the working poor in England.

Makes you realise how hard some people have to fight to get through each day. Sometimes all it takes is that one helping hand and the rest falls into place.

An emotional read but a heart warming ending.
Would definitely recommend.

I'm not sure what I was expecting but this wasn't it, that said, the book didn't disappoint.
I enjoyed the very contemporary feel to this book. The plot was packed full of issues but somehow managed to maintain an upbeat and positive feeling throughout. I liked the way that it highlighted all kinds of difficult situations and hazards of modern life, while keeping a sense of hope throughout.
The characters were realistic and engaging. They dealt with their problems in a practical way, with unexpected moments of humour. I found myself hoping for the best and expecting the worst throughout.
A very modern, almost Cinderella style story, of overcoming the seemingly impossible. Definitely worth reading.

Angie has lost her husband and her son is missing and she's struggling to cope. Soon she is in debt and on the verge of being homeless with her two youngest children. Can she find a way to sort her life out and find her son without her or her daughter doing something truly dangerous.

This is quite a heart wrenching read. It deals with some difficult issues and some very current ones as well. This was an interesting read but didn't quite go the way I expected it to. I wanted to know more about the stuff with her husband, it seemed to be glossed over rather quickly. The rest of the story however was well written and had me praying for a happy ending. The ending was touching and ended the story well.

I love how despite her own awful situation, Angie was still so desperate to help others. Shes a wonderful lead character and I soon grew to love her.

This book tells Angie’s story as her life begins to spiral out of control following the murder of her husband.
Set once again in Kesterly, we re meet several familiar characters as the story develops, they are however not main parts.
Susan draws once again on real and current events to tell this story. (The struggles faced by people on universal credits, County lines, internet grooming etc)
For me the downside was the happy ending, Angie meets a stranger who turns out to be her hero and helps to solve her problems it was all just a little twee for me. Sorry Susan!
Thanks Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review

Any book written by Susan Lewis is a winner in my eyes and this was another massive success to add to her already huge catalogue of wonderful books. This story is all the more poignant as the situations the characters find themselves in could happen to any one of us. Spiraling debts following a partner's death can occur so easily. With a young family to house, feed and care for whilst all the time struggling to keep several jobs running to cover their expenses the family soon find themselves in dire straits. When their unscrupulous (and criminal) landlord then drives them out of their home it is truly heart breaking. Mum Angie, not only has these problems to deal with but adding to her heartache is the fact that her teenage son, Liam, is missing having been lured into a gang culture and hasn’t been in contact for ages. The plight of homeless people is highlighted here and especially the failings of a system that is woefully inadequate and apparently often uncaring about these poor victims of poverty, debt and despair. Thankfully, there are kind people out there and it is some of these who come to the aid of the family and we see the goodness and love, not in the system, but in the shape of ordinary people with hearts who can shine a positive light on circumstances and bring comfort and relief to these individuals. I loved that the book highlighted these within the story. I especially loved the character of Hamish, a gentle, loving father figure to so many and also Martha for her fabulously funny quips. These lovely people were in stark contrast to the horrible people and dreadful scenarios within the book including sex trafficking, gang violence and murder. The book concluded nicely but I do feel that there is scope for more - maybe a sequel as several of the characters, Angie and Martin included, could have much more to offer by way of what happens next. That part was left rather open ended I thought. All in all another excellent read from a master story teller.

I liked this book, it was a different and rather heart-rending story. Any mother can equate with the agony of losing close members of her family in this way. Here she is fighting to regain a family.
There was a great deal of insight into street life today, which was enlightening.
The book deals with drugs, street life, bereavement and loss, special needs children, homelessness.
It sounds depressing, but it is well written and interesting.
A good read.

I am a fan of Susan Lewis and have read many previous works. She really understands characterisation and helps you get to know the cast early on in her writing. This book is an up to date reflection on some of the issues in our western society dealing with mental illness and homelessness. To begin with I felt that the book held a lot of promise but it tailed towards the end into unreality and was somewhat disappointing.

I'm afraid I just couldn't get in to this book-I managed to get a third of the way through but it was just a bit too 'kitchen sink drama'for me.So sorry-not for me this time.