Brilliant. This was a well written book that I greatly enjoyed and already plan to recommend. Believable characters and an inticing setting. Some parts were perhaps a little lengthy, but maybe because I was impatient to reach the novels conclusion! Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review by Kelly Lacey
Allie’s world is one filled with love and family. But when she accidentally opens an envelope in her Grandmothers drawer, her whole safe world begins to crumble.

I fell in love with Catherine Isaac’s writing style. It is beautiful, well-paced not to heavy on mushy emotion but just the right amount for you to connect and care about the characters. A terrific story weaver, tentatively giving you the bits of the puzzle to fit together and just when you think you have it solved whooshing you off with a new twist. 

At the heart of the book is the affect secrets have on our lives. How many times do we not cause a scene or express our feelings because we wouldn’t want to make a scene or create a fuss? How many opportunities are missed in life because we are taught to have that wall of the face we put out to the world?  In the book as well as secrets in her family, Allie has them too. But the angst it brought me as I read the book wondering what would happen was incredible. I could see and feel everything as it played out. 

Italy plays a key character in the book and the descriptions were so perfect. Garda is an area I have visited and Catherine Isaac captures it perfectly.


My absolute favourite character was Granny Peggy. It was nice to see the history of the older characters in the book as well as following the younger Allie and Ed on their mission. Seeing life through Peggy in the ’60s was fascinating and heartbreaking. 

The copy I read was the paperback edition and it is so fresh and lemony looking. The light sage green and the lemons on the front is a gorgeous and beautiful addition to my bookcase. 

Catherine Isaac is a new firm favourite of my must-buy authors.

A talented storyteller with a knack for pulling on the heartstrings.

Kelly Lacey

Unfortunately I had to purchase a new Kindle device and could no longer access this book. I will come back and review if I read this in the future.

This is a beautifully written and evocative story of a woman trying to uncover the truth about her family. I don't want to say too much about the plot here as I went into this one slightly blind and I think my reading experience was all the better for it. However, I will say that this book is an emotional rollercoaster and you would be well advised to keep some tissues handy when reading it! Well written, and a beautiful setting too.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley. 

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity. 
Natalie.

Catherine Isaac has a warm and conversational prose style. I enjoyed the definite Englishness of her writing. Though sometimes I thought her scene setting was a bit labored, if I'm honest, but maybe that is just me though. 

Anyway, childhood besties Allie and Ed travel to Verona while pursuing and/or avoiding some serious emotional baggage and upheaval. A beautiful setting for an enjoyable work of general fiction. 

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

A gret read that keeps you interested throughout. Some surprises as the book progresses.
The setting of the book also sounded amazing.

Emotional rollercoaster of a read.  I loved this book & would highly recommend it to anyone.  Love this author.

Well written novel and loved the twists and turns in the storyline along with the narration from different points of view. Its quite a light read and easy to get through

When Allie discovers a hidden envelope in her grandmother’s house, its contents make her question everything she thought she knew about her family.  Determined to uncover the truth, even though she knows it could forever change not only her life, but the lives of those closest to her, Allie embarks on a trip to Italy, accompanied by her best friend Ed. But will she have the courage and strength to face revelations which could change her future forever? 

From the outset, this beautiful story captured my heart and my attention and has taken me on a whirlwind journey full of emotion! I really liked the alternating chapter perspectives of Allie in the first person and Ed in the third person. The flashback chapters were also extremely clever and I love how I was completely surprised by who this character actually was as they were not who I anticipated!  There were even greater twists to come, especially with the reveal three quarters of the way through as to who a central character was. I even found myself going back to re-read a beginning scene to marvel at just how brilliantly this was written; I didn’t see it coming at all! The last part of the book completely floored me too and my heart was racing as I waited to find out what would happen to Allie and Ed, who I came to love so much! It was just phenomenal! 

I really enjoyed the beautiful imagery that was created throughout too, and felt like I was there experiencing all of the sights and smells of Northern Italy; it felt so vivid and picturesque! I also loved how I felt so many emotions towards all of the characters as this story progressed, especially when the darkness within Ed’s world was uncovered. Some of those chapters brought a lump to my throat! 

I really didn’t want this to story to end and know it will stay with me for a long time to come. I can’t wait to see what Catherine Isaac writes next!

This story centers around two lifelong friends Allie and Ed as they both face decisions as they reflect on their past and their future. This was an easy read overall but not one I came racing back to find out the next installment.

I absolutely adored this book (I'm sorry the feedback is so late, I thought I had already posted this). It had me hooked from the very first page and I devoured it over two days - reading well into the early hours until I physically couldn't keep my eyes open. Thank you for the opportunity to read this.

Pleasant read but not really my kind of book. HOWEVER its well written and plotted and I think it would make a brilliant holiday read

Messy, Wonderful Us is the perfect book to escape into for those of a romantic disposition. Never cheesy, this is an exquisite and complex look at love, family and buried secrets. Allie Culpepper has been best friends with Ed Holt since secondary school. But recently, Ed has seemed troubled. And Allie's world has turned upside down, upon discovering a hidden letter in her grandmother Peggy's house that makes her question everything she thought to be true. 

Who is Stefano? Why is her Mum Christine holding his hand in the photo accompanying the letter? And could he possibly be her biological father? Her Mum Christine died when Allie was six, and she has a wonderful relationship with her father Joe - but the discovery of the letter has consumed her every waking moment, and she is determined to find out the truth. 

She travels to Italy to find Stefano, and Ed accompanies her. As they spend time together they realize that they have always loved one another. But Ed is heartbroken as he has just found out that his wife Julia is pregnant, and he will not abandon her, despite the fact that she is emotionally and physically abusive to him.

Interspersed between the chapters are letters from a young girl, who is pregnant and afraid. She is forced to give birth in secret, and her baby boy is cruelly taken away from her without even the chance to say goodbye. All along we believe we know who that young girl is but there is a surprise in store. 

As a reader I fell in love with so many of the characters in this lovely book, and I was rooting for Allie and Ed to find their happy ever after together. Do they? I recommend you find our for yourself, you won't be disappointed.

"Messy, Wonderful Us" incorporates a lot into one novel, and succeeds on all counts. It's a multi-generational family drama, love story, mystery and more, with surprises right up to the last page.

Messy, Wonderful Us focuses on the characters of Allie and Ed, who have been friends since their teenage years. I quickly became immersed in the story and really enjoyed the majority of the book until I came to the final chapters. I found that the story became unbelievable and overly dramatic.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC

loved this book - would 100% recommend and am looking forward to reading what this author writes next!

I was really intrigued by premise of this story - it had all the potential to be a heartbreaking tale. Unfortunately the meatiness of this story didn’t deliver for me. It seemed rather soap-operaesque without any of the heart. There were some twists that I didn’t see coming but it wasn’t enough to really grab me.

What if loving someone means keeping a secret that will break your heart?

In 1983, Northern Italy, a letter is written and sent. Its recipient hides it away as it contains shocking and unthinkable secrets. Many years later, academic research scientist Allison (Allie) Culpepper finds a photograph along with the hidden letter amongst her gran's possessions. She tries to discuss the revealing contents with her Grandma Peggy, but her Gran refuses to open up to her about it. So Allie decides to take matters into her own hands and takes a trip to Italy, along with her close school friend Ed, to discover the disturbing truth for herself...

Messy, Wonderful Us is a complex story of love, relationships, self discovery, loyalties and responsibilities. Catherine Isaac has made a great job of seamlessly weaving together three timelines to tell the story; Allie's and Ed's in the present day told by each of them; flashback snippets from their friendship over the years; and someone in the past from an (at first) unnamed narrator.

Set against the backdrop of Northern Italy, the author's descriptions of all the places Allie and Ed visited were so vivid that it almost felt that I was there alongside them, while they explored and took in the sights around them. The characterisation by Catherine Isaac was truly masterful and was particularly entranced by Ed's story, although I was still interested in learning more about Allie and the anonymous narrator's past.

Everything was solidly wrapped up in the poignant and believable denouement and I highly recommend this bittersweet tale about the messier side of love and relationships. The richness in detail together with a large smattering of Italian goodness elicit this affecting and riveting read.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel at my request, from Simon and Schuster UK via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

I loved this book so much.  It captured my attention right from the very beginning and was a real page turner.  It was so beautifully written with lots of twists and turns that I didn’t see coming.   I enjoyed how the author described Italy and introduced us to a group of characters who I grew to love, as the well-written story unfolded.  Emotional, engrossing and very enjoyable!