I’ll be honest, I didn’t go into this book with high hopes, I never do when it’s an author I’m not familiar with, but it was really good! I enjoyed it from beginning to end, very chapter. I really liked the premise of the book, the characters were good, it was funny, it was sad - everything a book should be. Definitely read it,

The Wife Who Got A Life by Tracy Bloom
A few chuckles, a few 'I know how that feels' and at the end a few tears.
A totally relatable, quick easy read about Cathy, middle aged, fed up and unfulfilled. Her teenage son and daughter drive her crazy, her husband has decided to completely change his life and where does that leave Cathy? Time for a change? Cathy plucks up the courage to pursue a few changes for herself and couldn't be happier!

This was the first book I've read from this author and it was just okay. It was hard for me to get into and the characters didn't keep my attention.

The Wife Who Got A Life follows 48 year old Cathy Collins. She is married to Mike and mum to two teenage children. She gave up her career originally to take care of her home and young children.

One of her sisters, who lives in America, gifts her a motivational diary for Christmas and Cathy sets a target for every month for the upcoming year. Within that year, she manages to hit them all, getting a job that she loves working in finance at a start up, falling in love with her husband again as well as ensuring her children make the best decisions.

This book is funny, there is no doubt about that, but at the age of 30, I don't know if I was the target audience for this book. The death towards the end was written beautifully and was very moving and I appreciated the comedy throughout.

Such a great novel about a woman who starts the year feeling lost as a parent to two teenagers and wife to a 'travelling for work' husband. She spends her year finding herself, and ensuring that the rest of her life starts now.

Such a relatable character and story - very happy to recommend!

I found this amusing rather than laugh out loud funny, but it was an enjoyable light read and I would look out for more by Tracy Bloom.

Many thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

I’m sorry to say I had to DNF this one, at 16%. I just couldn’t connect with the character and found her manner very cringey. I’m a mum of 3 but I just didn’t get it.

As a forty something woman, this book spoke to me in ways that nothing else has for a while.

Cathy is given a diary for Christmas by her sister. Although at first, massively insulted, Cathy soon decides to give it a god and fills out a goal for each month. She wants to shake things up both at home and at work to hopefully help her to feel more than "just a wife and mum".

Cathy's husband is having a midlife crisis of his own and with two teenagers as well, Cathy has her hands full.

There were a couple of subjects and situations that were a bit too close for comfort and some serious subjects addressed but all done in a way that made this book a pleasure to read.

The Wife Who Got a Life is a light-hearted read following 48-year-old Cathy as she sets out to reclaim her life over a year-long period. I liked the journal/diary form this book used, and I found it particularly helpful to get to know Cathy and understand her reasoning, her fears and her dreams.

This is clearly meant to be a light-hearted read and, even though I didn't find most of the humour particularly funny, I definitely noticed the multiple attempts and can see how other readers might find this a laugh-out-loud read. Maybe I just wasn't the target audience for this, but while a lot of the issues Cathy faced felt very realistic, I was often quite irritated by her attitude and that of the people around her.

None of the characters were particularly likeable, nor did they feel very well developed. In fact, most came across as embodying a specific stereotype (e.g. "rebellious teenager", "selfish younger sister", "supportive friend" and so on) and barely ever moved from that.

Cathy also came across as extremely passive-aggressive, complaining about people not behaving like she'd like them to but never actually telling anyone what she expects. And, surprise surprise, basically all of the problems she identified with her life at the beginning are solved by having actual conversations with people. I also really didn't like her constantly shifting the blame on others for things she could have honestly proactively tackled herself.

Her conversation with a GP was a prime example, where she tried to make it out as it being the health practice's fault for her not knowing about the pill until she was 48 years old. Now, I'm all for having a serious conversation about the multiple ways health systems globally fail women and do not account for their specific needs, but this is taking it one step too far, seeing as this book is set in a place and age where all this information is available if one only were to look for it and the main character is a middle-class, educated white woman.

Overall, this was an underwhelming read for me at best. I definitely appreciated the effort that went into trying to tell this story in a light-hearted yet reflective way, but sadly it just fell flat for me.

Oh my goodness I could relate to this book so much. A really entertaining and gripping read. Such fun characters and great storyline.

Screaming To Be Read….
She’s on a mission to take back control. Never mind her husband’s so called mid life crisis. She’s had enough. Cathy Collins is going to take back her life. Sizzlingly slick, rollicking riotous, rompingly funny but also often heart wrenchingly sad and definitely thought provoking. Screaming to be read,

Oh I just loved this book! Cathy’s resolve to tackle one thing per month in her life was fun and endearing and made me laugh out loud so many times!

Genuinely unputdownable book. Such an engaging story that captures every emotion you can bring to a domestic-setting story. All characters truly recognisable and relateable. If you fit the description, this book could pratically have been written for the individual reader.

I really like the diary format to this, a few days of each month makes up each chapter but each chapter also has a theme which is the main characters goal for that month. Really kept my attention and kept me engaged throughout with short, snappy entries.
Really humorous, the story had me giggling away on more than one occasion but it also felt bathed in reality. You could imagine this being the exact mindset of many middle aged women disenchanted with family life after 20years of domesticated "bliss"
I really liked the story, the writing style and the flow. I would definitely read more by this author.

I unfortunately found this hard to connect with, as I'm not in the same life stage as the main characters in this book. It's just a case of the wrong book at the wrong time.

I really enjoyed this light hearted story and found the lead character Cathy easy to relate to. It was funny in places and so well observed. A story of relationships and family. Thought provoking and funny, perfect for ladies of a certain age.

I recommend this book as a perfect holiday read or for a cosy afternoon on the sofa.

I look forward to reading the next book by Tracy Bloom.

Oh I just absolutely loved this book. It is full of fun and feel goodness! You will definitely struggle to put this down! Its brilliant! Loved the characters!

I really enjoyed this, covered so many topics relatable to mums raising children and had many funny moments

This was entertaining, funny in places and, I’m sure, very relatable for many women. I really liked the format, diary entries interspersed with the main narrative, and I found the writing to be warm and engaging. I think I would have maybe enjoyed it more if I had been able to identify more with our main character, Cathy. But overall, a nice, heartwarming read which was just the right book at the right time.

With thanks to the publisher for gifting me a digital copy to review

Tracy Bloom has excelled herself with this seriously funny diary of a perimenopausal woman and her determination to find a new life. Cathy is a long-suffering wife in the tradition of all menopausal women who are wondering: is this it? Is this to be their life from now on? Having long been a fan of Bloom’s No one ever has sex novels, it was a joy to find the same humour, the same enjoyable ride through family life as previously. And yet, there’s now more. There’s a slightly more sophisticated handling of the main character – Cathy - than with previous Bloom novels. It was a joy, kept me enthralled all the way through and certainly with more than one actual laugh out loud moment.