Wise, compassionate, fallible and pragmatic, Lucy’s is a calm and reassuring voice that encourages the reader to face up to the reality that life is hard and you can never rewrite history, but that you can go on. There are some fascinating lessons here about surviving catastrophe but also about supporting others going through tough times. From purely practical advice about what to have ready if you need to leave your house suddenly, to how to navigate life post-crisis, this is a realistic but optimistic view of humanity dealing with the worst that life can throw at us. You can choose to read it as a fascinating primer on disaster relief (it turns out that the fundamentals have not changed from The Great Fire of London in 1666 to the Grenfell Tower Fire in 2017), or a manual for the dark times in life, or a call to arms in dealing with climate change, political upheaval and unrest. Lovely.

Packed with pragmatic and perceptive advice and examples of how humans can navigate all kinds of crisis from huge disasters, to divorce, ill health and death. I felt the author was gentle and so kind in her words both about the people that she has come across over years of emergency planning but also her own personal crisis and it felt like chatting with a friend, both comforting and enlightening.
This is ultimately an uplifting and positive book about the very worst that humans can encounter but so many reasons why this shapes us and connects us.

This is a book about what a life in disaster has taught me about how we go on, during and after terrible times. It's about the lessons that have revealed themselves to me through witnessing the weeks and months after disaster over and over again. And about the lessons that have come home with me and mended me when I needed them.

Lucy Easthope is what she calls a "last responder", someone who comes in and helps groups and communities mend and heal (she doesn't particularly like the term recover). Like the medical books that feel similar, she shares her own story and (respectfully) others' and draws points that ordinary people can use, whether they're at risk of disaster (living somewhere that floods regularly, for example) or living with more prosaic issues around illness and bereavement. She especially applies the book to everyone who has lived through the recent pandemic, exhorting us not to play down our responses and the effects it has had. She's a bit unusual and defiant, celebrating defiance in others who might eschew an official commemoration for their own one, especially the kids of the Grenfell tragedy who go off-script and give their own raw responses. She's very pragmatic, urging us all to think about what we should have in our grab-bag just in case, and to upload precious photos and documents or keep copies somewhere else, also acknowledging that healing takes time, might involve your responses being policed by others, and some things are never resolved. She uses her own response to her father's death as an example of how she's put some of the points here into action, pulling it back into the personal against a backdrop of huge, national and international disasters. A thought-provoking and fascinating read that, thankfully, didn't have too many bits that were hard to cope with!

Blog review published 11 May 2025: https://librofulltime.wordpress.com/2025/05/11/book-review-lucy-easthope-come-what-may/

This is a really interesting social history lesson. There is also some tips in there for your own survival but what really struck me was how humble these stories left me feeling. How lucky am I!

Come What May is a book that explores the aftermath of trauma and the ways that people and communities process and recover from what happened, also the harms that can be done but also the help. I'm currently recovering from PTSD after an awful trauma last year so I was very keen to read this book. I had to read it slowly but I have to say that it was invaluable to me, and it's a book that I know I will reference again. I was interested in the slump parts of recovery, it's a reminder that it is the nature of things and doesn't mean you're going backwards. I loved how this book explores widescale traumas that affect whole communities but also the trauma that affects individuals, plus Lucy talks about the loss of her beloved father and how her family are processing the grief. This is such a helpful and hopeful book. The point I am at in recovery is that I am now looking to make changes to my life to build my own resilience so the discussion on exodus and epiphany really struck a chord with me and made me see that I am making the right choices for me. This is an incredible book that I think everyone should read!

Thank you to Lucy Easthope, Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for access to this ARC.

In Come What May, Lucy draws on her own experiences and major historical disasters to offer a thoughtful guide on how to navigate life in the aftermath of crisis. Building on the collective trauma of Covid-19, she acknowledges that we are now all too familiar with disaster, and uses this book to challenge how we think, act, and recover in the months that follow. Alongside powerful reflections, she provides practical calls to action and step-by-step guidance to help ensure we are better prepared for whatever comes next.

Going into this book, I wasn’t sure what to expect, and I had never heard of Lucy before. A few chapters in, I realised she’s actually from the Wirral, like me, which instantly made the book feel more relatable. The part about quicksand especially stood out. I swear every child from the Wirral grows up with that fear!

Even without that connection, I absolutely loved this book. It was not only informative but also deeply reassuring. Knowing that even in the most chaotic, life-altering moments there is a pattern, and a way forward, felt incredibly grounding.

Lucy’s use of real-life examples to support her insights was both powerful and sensitively done. At times, I found myself reflecting on actions I’ve taken during crises that, looking back, may not have been all that helpful. But Lucy doesn’t judge. Instead, she offers realistic, compassionate alternatives that anyone can apply.

I also learnt a lot about past disasters I had never heard of. For instance, I’ve lived just 30 minutes from Wrexham my whole life, yet I had no idea about the mining explosion there. Lucy’s reflections on the aftermath of events I do remember were eye-opening as well. I realised how little I had thought about what happens once the headlines fade.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and will carry its lessons with me for years to come. It’s a guide I know I’ll return to whenever life takes an unexpected turn.

Thank you for allowing me access to the Ebook Arc too. I am looking forward to rereading and highlighting

Lucy Easthope is a fascinating woman! Having read her previous book, which I recommend to many, I knew I had to read her latest.

This book takes a slightly different approach, whilst the stories of her experiences of disaster recovery / planning remain it is more as a way to explore ways of dealing with such events both big and small using the lessons and wisdom learned over the years.

I thought this was written in a very informative way, providing the context for the advice to provide reassurance to the reader as to the substance and weight of the advice. Delivering a comforting message…It has worked time and time again in circumstances so you can trust in your time of need you are not alone, your feelings are valid.

It resonated to me in on many levels both for my own experiences but also those of others around me and ways in which it could help. My only thought was I am unsure of the optimal timing of reading this book, I feel it needs a little distance from the event rather than being used at the moment of a difficult time.

Would definitely recommend, thank you for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is such an inspiring and insightful book. Fascinating about Lucy’s work, and the things you might never consider about crisis situations and what happens before, during and after. I also found the tips about how to apply the things Lucy has learnt so useful, and hopeful. As someone who has suffered a loss recently, I was so encouraged by her words, and feel better equipped to handle the future and the struggles I - and my family - are inevitably going to face.

A great book to help deal with crisis. I greatly appreciated the great advise, tips, and information presented in this book and I think it will help alit if people!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC. I loved this warm and wise follow up to Lucy's first book. It includes intensely useful practical advice and personal story. It's brilliant.