Many thanks to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and Amanda Prowse for the opportunity to read and review her latest novel - another winner! Amanda Prowse is so good at developing such engaging characters that really pull at your heartstrings. 4.5 stars!

Thomasina, nicknamed Hitch, was born with some issues - cleft pallet that was badly repaired, along with a club foot and other disabilities. She was raised on her family farm and lovingly cared for by her parents, but she always was told and known that she wouldn't be able to learn and achieve what the other kids did. Add much bullying on top of that and Thomasina was happy to stay on the farm and tend to her chickens. Until one day a guest at their B&B, Grayson Potts, came into her life. He had his own share of issues - probably Asperger's, and a troubled family life. But Grayson was the first one to really see Thomasina's beauty and allowed her to finally see it in herself, But could it last?

Just a good book to get lost in. It also should serve as a warning to not install those self-fulfilling prophecies into our children or others.

This is the first book I’ve ever read where I cried at the first chapters.
Hitch - Thomasina - is such a sad character as the story opens, taking happiness in the very small things in her life.
Over-protected by her parents, her life is kept small as her health, as a baby, was precarious, and he rparents hadn’t realised how strong, physically and mentally, she had become.
The story is both sad and also uplifting. It reminds us that happiness is in own hands and can be created from small beginnings.
As we see Thomasina grow in self-belief, we are shown possibilities. There is a strong underlying philosophy apparent in this story that is developed empathetically and subtly with great style.
One of the best quotes from the book is:
‘I know that words are powerful things and have great weight’.

Amanda Prowse is the queen of emotionally intricate women’s fiction and this book is another fine example of the genre. I loved it from start to finish. I was drawn in to the small, confined, but deeply complex life of ‘Hitch’ Waycott, a person who is full of potential but hemmed in by family circumstances and the under-estimation of the people who surround her. She wants more from life, and we follow her as she starts to believe she might get it, as do we. The author is so good at building deeply rich and believable characters that the reader cannot help but fall in love with from the start.

This book is set within a small world, with small lives and small concerns, or so it might seem from the outside. But, of course, nothing is small to those people involved and what may seem unimportant, insignificant, to outsiders, means everything to the people involved and Amanda is a genius at making us just as involved in these seemingly minor troubles as those people to whom they mean the world, literally. Hitch’s entire world has been built on one tiny patch of land and, when that is under threat, so is her stability, her security, everything she has ever known, unless she is brave enough to recognise that it could be the opportunity she has been waiting for.

This book had, for me, a very curious and unusual ‘other-worldly’ feel to it. Despite being set in contemporary times, it had the feeling of a piece of period writing, as if it could be set at any time, as if it were happening out of the normal ambit of current experience. I fear I am not explaining myself very well here, possibly because I have never experienced anything quite like it before and I cannot quite put my finger on what it is that felt so different about it. It was a little dream-like maybe, disconnected…I am not sure. Maybe this was a reflection of the disconnection that Hitch feels to the world around her, sheltered as she has been from it. Whatever it was, it really added to the suspension from reality I always feel when I lose myself in a really good book and I welcomed it as part of the reading experience.

This book really moved me. The characters captured my heart and made me care for them. They were beautifully written, sympathetic and realistic. The story, for all its gentleness, packed an emotional punch and I was compelled through the story by the connection I had with the characters and the ease and beauty of the writing. This is as pretty much perfect as you can get for a book in this genre.

Amanda Drowse has produced another magnificent read and remains the author to whose heights I aspire with my own writing. If only.

Amanda Drowse does it again in this book. She will leave you thinking about the limits we set on ourselves either personally or by others.

Thomasina "Hitch" Way-out knows she is different and has heard it all her life especially from her family. She thinks of herself as the ugly duckling due to her deformed lip and twisted foot. She has so may things she would love to do like travel, try new things, and fall in love but she feels she is trapped working at her parents B&B.

Along come Grayson who stays at her parents B&B and hits it off with Hitch. He doesn't lie and isn't comfortable with life and they seem more in tune with each other. He opens up to Thomasina and challenges her to see things differently. They fall for each other but will they be able to overcome the limits they set on theirs lives and be brave enough to take the steps need to venture out.

A beautiful story of love, believing in yourself, overcoming obstacles, having the courage to speak your mind and taking a chance on life. A great summer book to add to your TBR pile.

This book gives you a warm fuzzy feeling! A beautiful story well written! First book of hers I recall having read..will have to look at more. a story about overcoming others opinions and finding your trust self. very enjoyable! thank you netgalley for the arc

You know, it’s okay to be different ! If we were all the same, what a dull world we would live in! Thomasina “Hitch” Waycott always knew that she was different from everyone else. Tucked away on a farm, she only knew about working hard and loving animals. Her favorite animals were the chickens! Until the day that she met Grayson Potts from London, she had never met anyone else who was just a little bit different. These two characters will steal your heart and have you reading with a big smile on your face while you cheer for both as they fight for the life that they dream of. A big five glistening stars for this book! Be sure to put it on your list.

I received a copy of this book from netgalley in return for my honest review. This book was so good. The Author had such a beautiful way with their words. It kept my attention and made me want more and more! Thank you so much!

This is a beautiful story about two people who were destined to meet. They bring out the best in each other and overcome so many obstacles to be together and really see the other for what they are.
The story was slow moving at times, but it is beautifully written and really makes you feel for these characters.

The Things I Know by Amanda Prowse – NetGalley – 4 Stars

This book was really hard to get into. It was a slow starter for me and I kept with it in spits and spurts. It was a pick me up, put me down book. I was so glad I kept with it. The main character is disabled and lives on her family farm. She is cared for but has a cousin who makes her life worse by being incredibly mean. She so longs for love, travel, the things other people take for granted. Her brother leaving the farm for a life in the US on a ranch really is hard on her. Then a visitor comes to stay at their B&B and her life is to change in all the best ways possible. This book does unfold to become a really great romance that tugs at your heart strings as you go through the hurdles with these two as they find each other. Stay with the book it’s worth it in the end!

Description From NetGalley:
From bestselling author Amanda Prowse comes a heartwarming tale of first impressions and lasting love.
Thomasina ‘Hitch’ Waycott loves living and working on the remote family farm and B&B. But she also wants more. To see the world. To own her own home. To fall madly in love.
But those are fairy tales, and if her life is a fairy tale, then she’s the ugly duckling. Her deformed lip, her crooked limbs and her weak heart have kept her from taking chances. But that’s about to change.
When Grayson Potts comes to stay, he’s unlike anyone Thomasina has ever met. He’s aloof, eccentric and exceptionally kind. He’s also totally unconcerned with the physical flaws that have always defined Thomasina.
The two form a bond that neither has had before. It’s possible that it could become something more, but Thomasina also wonders if it’s too good to be true. By putting her heart on the line, Thomasina may open herself to heartbreak. But she may also open herself to so much more.

A Note From the Publisher
Amanda Prowse likens her own life story to those she writes about in her books. After self-publishing her debut novel, Poppy Day, in 2011, she has gone on to author twenty-one novels and six novellas. Her books have been translated into a dozen languages and she regularly tops bestseller charts all over the world. Remaining true to her ethos, Amanda writes stories of ordinary women and their families who find their strength, courage and love tested in ways they never imagined. The most prolific female contemporary-fiction writer in the UK, with a legion of loyal readers, she goes from strength to strength. Being crowned ‘queen of domestic drama’ by the Daily Mail was one of her finest moments. Amanda is a regular contributor on TV and radio but her first love is, and will always be, writing. You can find her online at www.amandaprowse.com, on Twitter @MrsAmandaProwse, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AmandaProwseAuthor.

What a charming story, I loved it !
The characters are so skilfully painted and the setting is just perfect (speaking as a Gloucestershire farmer’s daughter!!)
I loved the way each chapter ended with ‘the things I know’
I look forward to reading more of this author

Amanda's books never disappoint and this was up there as one of her best in my opinion. Loved the main characters and their extended families. In places this was quite a sad story but in others it filled me with hope that everything would turn out OK for the couple. Loved Buddy and the chickens too. I would love a sequel to follow this little family. This is a story that will stay with me for some time and I highly recommend it.

At the start this book the reader is introduced to Thomasina, who is known as Hitch. She lives a sheltered life with her parents, who have cossetted her due to her physical appearance, on their farm.

She is kept busy running the Bed and Breakfast business but secretly dreams of a life away from the farm and away from her suffocating parents. When her brother John get a job in America, Hitch fears that her dreams are slipping away and with her hens for company she reluctantly accepts her fate.

Little does Hitch know that a booking at the B&B for a Mr Grayson Potts will develop into an unlikely friendship between the two of them.

This is a beautiful book about love, friendship and looks at life outside “the norm. The words flow from the page, encouraging you to keep reading – Amanda Prowse really is a wizard when it comes to creating magical stories that draw you in.

The Things I Know tells the story of Thomasina (Hitch) Waycott who has always lived life on the outside due to terrible bullying aimed at her physical appearance. She is resigned to her lonely life with her chickens on the family farm when she meets Grayson Potts. Now all the things she’s always wished for could come true if she can just let herself fall.

Whilst it’s not my favourite from Amanda Prowse as it’s quite slow and predictable, it is still a solid romantic read.

I enjoyed this book, it’s an unusual, refreshing tale of two lonely people who have suffered all their lives because they do not fit in with the ‘norm’. The bullying and abuse they have been subjected to as they grow up seriously affects them as adults, but when they find each other, the world begins to make more sense. Thomasina and Grayson are both hampered in their progression through life by over controlling parents, though both in very different ways. The author highlights how this affects their adult children, even when in Thomasina’s case, it is rooted in the best of intentions and deep love.
The graphic descriptions of farming where the farmers are only just surviving, provide an insight into their hard and unrelenting working life. It made this reader marvel that anyone would wish to be a farmer now.
At times the story is unutterably sad, as the limitations of Thomasina’s lonely and narrow life are explored. The narrative did dip somewhat in the middle, where the two lovers seemed to reach an impasse. However all was resolved in the end, possibly just a bit too improbably neatly, hence four stars. All in all, a feel-good story, well written, which I would recommend. I will look out for more of this author’s work.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book.

Loved my first book by Amanda Prowse. Engaging story of two somewhat misfits and how they changed each other’s lives for the better.

This story about a young woman and a guy who both have unique differences that set them apart from the rest of the world was a breath of fresh air.

Thomasina lives a sheltered life on the family farm. Grayson lives with his alcoholic mother in a tiny, cheerless London apartment. Their meeting is almost by accident, but the two feel an immediate connection. Because of their unique differences, both have been bullied. Neither has much experience making friends.

Initially, I found the writing charming. Each chapter ends with Thomasina listing things she knows (hence the book title). Grayson's answers to questions and observations often were blunt . . . always the truth. Thomasina was straightforward with her frustrations.

But then the dialog got strange.

As the story progressed and the pair spent more time together, their dialog became increasingly far-fetched, to me. Both seem a little too self-aware and entirely comfortable talking, at length and in specific detail, about their grievances. I'm not entirely sure how true-to-life that would be.

The novel's ending did not come as a surprise to me. Overall, I considered this a positive experience.

Thomasina Waycott has had her fair share of adversity. She has been ridiculed because of her looks. She lives with her parents ion the farm that they operate, but she longs to have her own life. To be on her own, to fall in love. There are what she dreams of. When Grayson Potts comes to stay on the farm she finds someone that she can confide in. They both know what it is like to not be like others. Grayson's life is in London, and Thomasina is anchored to the farm.
This was a beautiful story about finding the confidence to follow your dreams and having hope. I had never read anything by Amanda Prowse before, but I certainly will read more.

Sometimes a book just touches your heart and The Things I know by Amanda Prowse was one of them. Thomasina (Hitch) Waycott lived and worked on her family farm and loved it, but there were so many other things she wanted to try to do, especially travelling. However, her parents were always very overprotective of her because she had been born with several disabilities, including a cleft palate and limb deformities. She was also told she had learning disabilities, although she didn't feel that was the case. She never thought she could travel by herself, find love or have a family.

Then a gentleman guest came to visit the family farm/B&B and completely changed her outlook on life, making her determined to change her fate and try new things...and take a chance on love. A lovely story by a wonderful author who never disappoints! Thank you to the author, Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thomasina (Hitch) loves living & working on her family's remote farm & B & B. She knows she is different from other girls with her damaged foot & damaged face, but that doesn't stop her wanting the same as other girls- someone to love & a home of her own. Life changes when Grayson Potts comes to stay in the B & B & he is nothing like anyone she has ever met. He's eccentric, socially awkward & very kind.

I loved this story of the two lost souls who showed that the only opinions that really matter are the opinions of those who love you. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this lovely book.

A really sweet story which follows Thomasina's evolving from a timid, scarred young woman to a mature and confident woman woman who is finally able to love her for herself. I really felt like the reader got to feel the pain of her trials and tribulations while growing up, which made her transformation very heartwarming. I also liked the relationship that she had Grayson. I did find myself thinking many times that this setting was from years ago because all of the characters seemed so old fashioned, but that was not the case. So that made for a bit of disconnect in the novel. I also thought Thomasina's treatment by her family bordered on just a bit too harsh, which took a little bit away from the story for me. But overall a sweet story with a lovely main character that you will root for.