The unexpected events are always the ones which surprise you but can lead to a better outcome for everyone. You do not warm to Kip and feel he is being ridiculous and his bombshell continues to reverberate and disrupt the family dynamic BUT as the book unfolds you see that sometimes change can be good and settling isn't always for the best.

Heart warming and a good read.

I've loved reading Erica James since I read A Breath of Fresh Air back in the 1990s. An Ideal Husband didn't disappoint. A family drama with a theme of relationships. Is the grass greener on the other side? Sometimes and sometimes not.

Erica James does family sagas so well. An Ideal Husband deals with the dynamics of family life when what seemed like the perfect marriage of Louisa and Kip breaks up as Kip meets someone new after 40 years of marriage. You get to know each individual character and their own story.
Always an easy read with short chapters.

Despite some of the distressing events, this is a herta warming read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read An Ideal Husband.

I did enjoy this story and liked most of the characters. I did feel for Louisa, especially how and when Kip told her he was leaving. I was so glad she was able to come to terms with it and become a stronger person. Kip was a real jerk, very shallow and self centred. He really wanted things on his terms and the way he went about things was cowardly. At times, I was also felt sorry for Zoe, the other woman. This story tells how it affected the whole family and how they found a way to move on. I was hovering between a four or five star rating but as I had read this a while ago and even though I had read a number of books since, these characters stayed with me. I have read a number of books by this author and she always has such memorable characters. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A delicious treat of a novel!

Louisa and Kip have been happily married for almost forty years; they have built a home and a family together and are looking forward to a bit more freedom, with time for each other. Or, at least, Louisa is .. until, on Boxing Day, after another triumphant family Christmas, Kip drops the bombshell that he's leaving. Louisa is, understandably, knocked for six then, over time, it transpires that Kip has a younger woman in his life - and not just any woman; Zoe is the ex-girlfriend of their son . . .

I know, when I have an Erica James novel on my list that I am in for such a treat and this one - oh, it's just packed with goodies from beginning to end! Beautifully written, as always, and written with real insight and understanding of any family breakup. Life just stopped around me while I read, immersing myself in Louisa's life and riding the ups and downs along with her. A tremendously satisfying read and easily earning all five sparkling stars!

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

I enjoyed this book. Louisa finds herself single again after 40 years of marriage. Her ex-husband Kip is loving life with his new, much younger lady who just happens to be his youngest son’s ex-girlfriend.

It was an easy, gentle read. I liked Kip, but I found myself getting irritated with Louisa as well as her daughter-in-law Caro. Louisa was just too good to be true and so saintly. And Caro was a know-it-all. I couldn’t empathise with either of them and I feel that the reader should at least feel empathy for Louisa.

A good holiday read.

I started this book by thinking oh my goodness, Ashley, Arabella and Angus, Kip and Louisa, another upper middle class novel that I'll be unable to relate to . I was very wrong and this modern day story proved to be one of Erica James' best so far. I was so totally invested in the family that once past the halfway stage I started to ration myself because I didn't want it to end. Thoroughly recommend if you enjoy a light, family drama style book.

This was a lovely light read and would be great for a holiday book. However, it also had a seriousness about it.

Louisa was able to rediscover who she was after 30 years of marriage to the same man. After the initial shock she was able to move forward and create a new and enjoyable life on her own.

The change in her personality was great, after years of having Kip making decisions and she going along with what he said. She still carried her good traits of understanding, kindness and compassion but she became more assertive and gave her opinion and was not a walkover once she found her freedom as a single person.

It could be inspiring to people to know there is a way to move forward as a person after so long as a couple and still be happy and find enjoyment and fulfilment.

The book was a change from her previous writing because it was written in more modern time.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC of this book.

I need to begin this review by saying I loved Erica's style of storytelling. The world she created was so richly detailed and realistic that I genuinely felt like a fly on the wall with this family.

Having said that, I really disliked the actual story. Perhaps it's a testament to Erica's storytelling that I felt everything so viscerally but I could not stand Kip, Louisa and the rest of the family and ultimately disliked this book.

I quite literally hated Kip and was not convinced by his redemption arc. His constant victim mentality and woe is me attitude was so off putting. I was also gobsmacked that we just completely brushed over the fact that Kip slept with another woman as soon as he got the chance to be away from Zoe and never owned up to this.

On the flipside, Louisa's lack of backbone and constant understanding made her seem like a Mary-Sue type character. It irritated me to no end that she didn't show any sort of irrationality or anger and just got on with things after her husband left her for her son's ex girlfriend.

The wider family just seemed dull and meddlesome in comparison and I found a lot of their actions incredibly juvenile, it was hard to believe they were adults.

Overall, this story wasn't for me but Erica's writing style was great

Erica James certainly knows how to formulate and tell a great story. Louisa has been married to Kip for years and has three grown up children. Completely out of the blue Kip asks for a divorce as he has fallen in love with Zoe, the ex girlfriend of one of his sons. The story grows from there and deals with families coming to terms with the end of relationships. She also deals with some issues which may be triggers but she deals with it in an incredibly gentle way.

This book is a little idealistic and possible a little far fetched but I loved the gentle meandering through so many different peoples lives and story’s

I really enjoyed reading this book and loved the characters. seeing Louisa starting out on her own after 30 years of marriage and rediscovering herself was great to read. There is hope in her fresh start whilst Kip gets all he deserved! A very good read.

An easy read with the story told from the viewpoint of different members of the family. For me it all seemed a little saccharine sweet and unbelievable that such huge changes in family dynamics and relationships could so easily be resolved over the course of a mere twelve months.

Erica James has the ability to portray relationships in a very realistic way, whilst still creating a compelling story that has you hooked straight away.

When Louisa’s husband of over 30 years leaves her for their son’s ex-girlfriend she thinks her life is falling apart and she’s going to have to move out of the home she created for her family and start afresh. As she starts rebuilding her life, other members of the family face difficulties in their own relationships.

A great read that you just won’t wan5 to put down.

Yet another great book by Erica. Beautifully written book with lovely, friendly characters and setting. This one ticks all the boxes for me and didn't disappoint.

I have loved many books by Erica James over the years so I had high hopes for her new release An Ideal Husband and with a cover that pops out from the shelves thanks to its bold coral colour I am sure there will be many hands reaching for this one at the airport on the way to their Summer Holibobs!

This book felt very different from the authors previous books but none the less it was still such a fabulous current read that felt so honest and believable as she tackles infidelity and marriage break down after an affair, exploring the effect it has not on just those directly involved in the relationship but the results it has on the rest of the family too.

The family all have a very close bond and have lived a very loving life together but all it took was one crack to then splinter the family and yet the power of love shows there is still a thread connecting them together but we continually find ourselves unsure of how stitching their family back together will look in the end thanks to the unpredictability of the storyline.

I loved all of our characters ( other than Giles ) which surprised me because some of the things the characters done particularly Zoe and Kip I thought would turn me against those characters but I genuinely felt for them all. I was so desperate to see Louisa with a happy ever after that is the romantic in me but I never quite knew if Kip and Louisa would find their way back together again and I am not going to spoil it for you but all I will say is the way the book ended did in the end feel the right outcome to the story.

This book felt more fresh and modern compared to the authors previous novels and has a more uplifting feel looking at new beginnings in later life when our lives take an unexpected turn. It shows that our paths can get so tied up in our partners that when we find ourself out of the relationship its learning to start again alone and find our own strength to then go ahead with what we want for ourselves.

Although there were many sad and devastating parts of this book the storyline never felt heavy or gave a sense of doom and gloom it was full of hope, optimism and shows the strength, love and support of a loving family.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would actually say its probably my favourite novel by Erica James.

Wow, what a rollercoaster of emotions I have been through whilst reading this.

I started off this book with such strong emotions to certain characters of this book, mostly negative due to their behaviours (looking at you, Kip) however, through each turn of the page I grew to understand and learn to love them all despite their flaws (except you Giles).

This book was superbly written, with great details and attention to each character and their personalities. I absolutely loved it and will be reading more from this author.

Louisa is stunned when after 30 years of marriage her husband, Kit asks for a divorce, on Boxing Day after a lovely family Christmas
She is even more stunned when she realises he is leaving her for a much younger woman, an ex of their youngest son
Their beloved family home, Charity Cottage has to be put up for sale
Yet despite the tensions and awful circumstances when Louisa lays eyes on what might be a welcoming new home she feels a glimmer of potential hope that things may be taking a turn for the better
A story full of fresh starts and second chances, showing how Kip’s actions hugely disrupted the family dynamics
Loved following all the family member’s points of view
It was warm and uplifting showing for the Kip the grass isn’t always greener on the other side
Thanks @the_ericajames @hqstories & @netgalley for the heartwarming modern family drama

Louisa and her husband Kip have been married for forty years, they have three grown up children, twins Ashley and Arabella and youngest son, Angus, it's a happy marriage, or so she thought until Boxing Day when Pip declares he wants a divorce, the family home needs to be sold and he's been having an affair with Angus's ex girlfriend Zoe! Louisa's world comes crashing down around her and the fallout has far reaching consequences with the rest of the family too.

An Ideal Husband is the latest family drama by this author who knows how to bring characters to life through the pages of her books and this one is no exception. The story is told from all perspectives of the main characters; Louisa who feels she must be to blame for the split, Kip who is loving having the freedom to do as he pleases, their three children who are questioning what their childhood hero is thinking, and Zoe who believes she's found the man of her dreams, but nothing in life is ever that straightforward. This is a complex story with many layers which, when stripped back, revealed more in-depth reasons why Kip made the decisions he did and blew his family's world apart, I was Team Louisa all the way, except for how she handled the whole thing, the woman is a saint!! Another great read from this author that I definitely recommend.

I'd like to thank HQ and Netgalley for inviting me to read this book, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

Another winner from Erica. The story of Louisa, whose husband of 30 years, Kip, has blown her world apart by asking her for a divorce, on Boxing Day.

We follow Louisa and her three grown children as they navigate the divorce and Kip’s new relationship with Zoe, their youngest son’s ex!

We follow the relationships of the three children too, Twins Ashley and Arabella and youngest son Angus.

Full of Erica’s usual warmth, wit and emotional insight, this is an enjoyable story and well worth setting aside an afternoon to read.

My ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ review
I do love an Erica James book and this new offering has everything I would expect from her. This novel explores family dynamics and the multitude of effects one persons actions can have on everyone around them. This was an easy read, a “classic” Erica James, which I enjoyed and would be happy to recommend. I rated it 4 stars.