Like other readers, I struggled initially with the multi narrator writing style of this book and felt a bit like I was having to plod on to get to grips with the story line. Once I did, the characters were deep and realistic and I enjoyed watching the story unfold as Lou’s widow attempted to bring their family together. Overall an enjoyable read and I’m glad I persevered!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

Lou is in her fifties, and she is suffering from a very rare type of dementia.

When she passes away, for her husband, she leaves a message, in a bottle. He has to face a challenging task, in two months he has to reunite their family, who aren’t speaking to each other.

He doesn’t have to think how he’s going to do this, as, his wife’s thought of this before passing away. She’s left a list for him, a list of activities to do with the family and recipes, that they’ll love.

So, will they all find their way back to each other? He has a Cyrian and his daughter Sarah.

For Joe, the time slowly running out, will he be able to reunite everyone? But the other important thing is what's in the mysterious letter?

I enjoyed this book and loved the way that it was told from the perspective of all the characters. A true insight into what family life can really be like and that you also never always fully understand what is going on in someone else's life. An enjoyable read.

Lou has died at the age of 56 and left her beloved husband a challenging task to complete in her will. He is tasked with ensuring that their two adult children are happy. At present their family is dysfunctional and he has been a fairly hands off father so this is a tall order. Ultimately this is a tale of redemption, a bit slow to get started and using the multi narrator device, the it is worth persevering with.

Written originally in French, this is an excellent translation which flows beautifully.

It is an emotional read of the love of a mother who wants to heal the rifts in her fractured family. The mother is Lou, the kingpin, the fulcrum of this family. Lou has early onset dementia and is determined to try to bring the family together again and gives her grieving widower the task of doing so. There are multiple voices in the narrative - everyone having the chance to put their point of view, wrong as it often is. While the wonderful granddaughter Apple seems more mature and sensible than her relatives - the only criticism I have is that her voice is at times too mature for her age. Even at 10 years old though she is larger than life. We feel her deep sense of loss of her grandmother. We come to love her indefatigable loyalty, her common sense and we feel her loneliness. A wonderful character.

Thank you for the opportunity to read 'A Bucket List To Die For' by Lorraine Fouchet.

I really loved this book. The narrative style was unusual but hooked me and I enjoyed the fact that it was a French book, set on the idyllic island of Groix. Each of the characters was well developed and I know the author hadn't originally intended to include the chapters of Lou after her death but she made the right decision to keep them in.

My only negative comment is that I don't think the title is as good as it could be -the book is not really about a 'bucket list' in the terms most people would think of and it seems a little superficial to me.

This is an emotional story and I am glad that I read it. The death of a parent, once the children are grown and living away, can be an event that draws the other siblings together, but in most cases I find that it breaks the family apart. Can the deceased make a plan while still alive to help her family stay together?

This book is written in many voices. Almost every character has its own point of view being told. While I think this style of structure must have been very difficult to write, I personally did not care for it. It made the story line drag to me. I was only at 21% of the book read and already was feeling the story taking too long to unfold. I pushed through reading, since I thought the plot was fantastic and definitely wanted to see the outcome. I am so glad I did! About halfway in the book, I was so deeply involved in the lives of these characters. I was hoping that this fractured family would blend as a strong unit by the end of the book. I also adapted to the book style (written in many voices) and just went with the flow.

When I was not reading, I was constantly thinking about this story. I was so anxious to get back to reading to find out what would happen. The characters (even minor ones) are created so expertly that I cared about them. The plot is fantastic and original. This is the first book I read by Lorraine Fouchet and I am interested in exploring her prior books. This seems to be the only one translated into English.

I want to thank NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for giving me the pleasure of reading the advance reader copy, with no obligation to write a review. My review is written freely as a hobby, and is totally my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.

This book is essentially a Family Drama .Set mainly on the Island of Groix,a beloved wife dies and leaves her grieving husband a list in her Will of what she wants him to do for her now she no longer can .Mainly this is to fix their grown up children's lives .The story is full of drama and of course Family love ,a most charming read .Many thanks to the Publisher ,the Author ,and NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review .

An intrigiuing read. I am not a fan of books that jump from character to character but it worked. The island sounded amazing. As for Lou what a character and what a decision to make. We all want our children to be happy. I loved the tests for the mistress and the wife. You have to know all the facts before you judge. Apple was a great character and Charlotte. A brilliant story of sadness but the right ending

After the initial pages, I found myself not connecting with the story or characters, so I decided to pass on this book. Did not finish.

I enjoyed this book and found that the language flowed well despite being a translation. The characters were well written and complex - i enjoyed the way that the relationships unfolded. Definitely worth read!

Started out absolutely loving the premise of this book- a husband tasked with making amends with his adult children as one of his wife's post-humous requests. Unfortunately I felt that it dragged on and had far too many subplots. By the end, I just wanted it to be over.

3.5

Joe on Groix Island (lies off Lorient, Brittany) is drowning in grief for the loss of his much loved wife Lou. At the will reading he is given a challenge by Lou in which he has to make their grown up children Cyrian and Sarah happy, to bring a smile to their faces and he has two months in which to do it. His relationship with Cyrian is strained to say the least. The story is told in multiple points of view including Lou.

I’m not entirely sure what to make of this book. I really like the sentiments and the message of the book which is basically that love conquers all and there are sections that I enjoy. The setting in La Groix is lovely and you can tell how much Joe loves it there, it’s in his blood. The will opens a can of worms which is interesting as this is a family at odds. Some characters are likeable and some become more likeable. I like Joe’s granddaughters Apple and Charlotte points of view which is mostly charming, especially Apple and their perspectives are illuminating about the adults and their behaviour. There is some bitter resentment built on misunderstanding and you do wonder at times, who exactly are the adults? I quite like the chatty style which makes for some lively storytelling. Through this we can ‘see’ Lou and hear her voice and you realise that even from the grave she is manipulating for change for the better and it’s as if she and Joe are conversing.

However, there are far too many points of view and it becomes dizzying and some of it is just plain weird. The constant switching of perspectives halts the flow and sometimes Apple and Charlotte (😋) sound like sweet ten year olds but at others their voices seem too old for their years. There’s a lot of inconsequential detail which adds little. The ending is predictable and a bit cheesy although I don’t dislike it!

Overall. I like the message, some sections are sweet, charming and poignant and others rather bewildering.

With thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the arc in return for an honest review.

A beautifully touching read about a man trying to get his family back together, following the devastating death of his wife.
Joe and Lou were a couple truly meant for each other. They lived on the island of Groix, happy together. Both their children had moved on, and as is the way, fractures in the family dynamics threatened to break them apart indelibly, after Lou's untimely death.
Her forward-thinking, however, end up bringing her precious family back together in a way none of them ever thought possible.
Told through the viewpoint of several characters, the story moves along over a period of a couple of months, with some flashbacks here and there.
I loved the character of Apple, the feisty granddaughter, who, in many ways, ends up being the catalyst for many of the changes.
A lovely read.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A deceased woman leaves her clueless husband a request for him to pull their family back together and make things right. There are rotating perspectives including the thoughts of the deceased wife. The attempts of the father to fix his adult children’s lives is creative and clever, even when the machinations don’t produce what he thinks they will. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book starts at the funeral of Lou a mother of two and devoted wife of Joe. She leaves Joe a mission to reconnect with their children and make sure they are happy. You get the story from everyone's perspective even Lou from heaven. I wasn't sure about this book but the more I read the more I enjoyed it. The story pulls you in with drama, emotion and family love. It's well written with fully rounded characters with a lovely ending for all.

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What a great book. It's a little slow starting but picks up quickly, please persevere.
A great book about overcoming everyday family issues and life struggles.
Beautifully written and I love the way each section is titled with whom is speaking.
A great easy read.

I received an advance copy of, A Bucket List To Die For, by Lorraine Fouchet. I really liked this book, the characters and the plot.

I'd like to thank Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an early copy in return for an honest opinion.
I absolutely loved the storyline of this book, and I feel a lot of people can relate to the content - a family at loggerheads, all trying to grieve for the loss of a beloved family member. It took me a few pages to get into the writing style of this book, and at first it felt quite disjointed and forced as they were using it to set the scene to the reader, but I quickly caught onto it's style as it is written as conversations between the many perspectives shown and Lou, who sadly died of dementia at a very young age. All in all, this was a wonderful book, and I devoured it within a day.

WoW! I haven't read a book this good in a while. The writing just flowed so beautifully. What I loved most was the characters. Such beautiful people. This book made me thunk of my grandmother. Who died from dementia in 2007. Really hit home for me. Absolutely loved this book and devoured it.