The saddest day of the year last year was the last episode ever of Gavin & Stacey, which will forever be one of the best things on TV, along with Nessa's iconic, 'Oh! What's occurrin'.'

Ruth Jones is, of course, one of the writers as well as one of the main characters (Nessa), so I had no doubt whatsoever that anything penned by her was going to be excellent. I've watched every single episode of G&S, but I've never, until now, read any of Jones' books. This was a treat from start to finish.

Utterly readable, thoroughly entertaining, tinged with a teensy bit of sadness but lightly peppered with that amazing, gentle, clean humour we grew to love about the TV programme, it's a book in which you can immerse yourself and feel warm and cocooned.

What a brilliant writer Jones is. I don't think my reading list will be complete until I've read all her books.

Wonderful, just wonderful.

This is the second book ive read by Ruth jones. She definitely isnt a one trick pony. By you side is just lovely. Even though "lovely" is a simple word, dont underestimate it. This book is adorable, the characters are all so likeable and pleasant, even when discussing death and grief, i was invested in the story. I marvel at Ruth jones ability to spin stories and create such wonderful characters both on paper and on screen. I loved it

Very atmospheric and authentic.
Linda has one final job before she retires.
She finds herself on a Scottish island.
Then we move back and forth between Diana’s and Levi’s lives.
And then of Levi years later.
Well written. Great characters and details.

Arranging the funeral and tracking down relatives of a loner who died on a remote Hebridean island is the final job of Linda Standish before she retires. Little does she realise the impact it will have on her future.

By Your Side is the fourth book from Ruth Jones and easily her best, it offers the reader everything; romance, humour, mystery and heartbreak. Filled with a multitude of remarkable characters, I could have happily turned back to the beginning and started reading again once I'd finished.

Linda is happy with her life, although she's divorced she isn't lonely as her son and grandson currently live with her, she also loves her job working for the local council in the Unclaimed Heirs Unit. When someone dies and there's no obvious next of kin it's Linda's job to arrange the funeral and try to trace any distant relatives. Unfortunately, downsizing at the council is forcing early retirement on Linda. In the run-up to Christmas she has one last job to do, travel to a Hebridean island and bring back the body of Levi Norman, a loner who has lived on the island for six years.

You get an immediate idea of Linda's character, in her role working for the council she is extremely professional, the rest of the time she is cheerful and easygoing, apart from where her ex-daughter-in-law is concerned. Linda is accompanied on her trip by a local undertaker, someone she went to school with. The pair delight in annoying each other and it's very funny the way they always address each other by their full names, Linda Standish and Fergus Murray.

Once the pair arrive on the island of Storrich we are introduced to a host of wonderful characters and a relaxed way of life. Everyone knows everyone else, doors are never locked and everybody helps out when the need arises. As Linda and Fergus are welcomed by the community, mystery surrounds why Levi never integrated. We are given a glimpse into the past and meet a younger Levi, a solitary figure, happy in his own company, with a strong sense of right and wrong. This leads to Levi unexpectedly finding happiness. I felt my heart breaking for Levi as the happiness was torn away from him in the cruelest possible way.

All of the different threads had me completely immersed, desperately wanting a happy ending for everyone involved. Ruth Jones has managed to tread a fine line between uplifting and melancholy, with a huge dollop of comfort thrown in for good measure. I would love to see a return to the island of Storrich in the future.

Fifty-something Linda is going to take redundancy from the local council but has one job to do before she leaves. Set in Scotland, Linda needs to find if there are any missing heirs to a man who recently died on a small and remote island.
The characters are relatable and often funny. (Except for the hideous daughter in law.) Ruth Jones always delivers in this area, and I wasn't disappointed. Linda is the star, as she rediscovers there is life beyond retirement and being a granny.
The story is revealed with sections from the past, and I was keen to find out what had happened to leave Levi so alone in his old age.
A hug between the covers. I would recommend By Your Side to anyone wanting a cozy, but sensitive and thought provoking read.

I enjoy Ruth Jones as a screenwriter, but, unfortunately, I didn't enjoy her as an author.
I felt that the characters lacked personality and the plot was staid.
There were no unexpected surprises throughout the book, the storyline was predictable and the ending was weak and disappointing.
Sorry Ruth - stick with Gavin and Stacey ( they never let you down! ).

I asked for this out of curiosity, to see if it was yet another celebrity book, but was very pleased to see that the writing was perfectly readable and the story kept jogging along nicely. Very much commercial fiction and does the job.

What a lovely book, I couldn’t put it down.
Lina works for the council finding information about deceased people who die without family.
Levi Norman is one such person. We find out his life story and how he did once have family and what happened to leave him all alone on a highland island.
Sad, funny, all in all a great book.

I’ve read all of Ruth’s novels so far and this one didn’t disappoint. I liked every character and loved Linda and Levi and how their entirely unrelated stories came together. The book was beautifully structured, moving back and forth in time whilst eventually coming together at the end (no spoilers!)
The setting was beautifully described and made me want to visit!
Definitely recommended reading.

I've always enjoyed Ruth Jones as an actress, but never knew she was an author until I saw this book on Netgalley. I had to request it to add to my "written by British celebs" collection, and I'm so glad I did. I couldn't put it down. The characters immediately drew me in and took me on a real emotional journey. Even the minor characters were a joy. I liked the dual timelines, and the fact that romance and paddle boarding were not just for the young.

I loved this, and will definitely be seeking out Jones' previous books.

***Disclaimer: This e-ARC was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Huge thanks to them. ***

If you’re a fan of Ruth jones work & writing skills I.e gavin & Stacey, Stella you will instantly love this book. It is witty, funny, sad, heartbreaking but also heartwarming

Ruth jones knows how to collaborate the essence of a lot of emotions in one book but also make you feel like your in that world.

When reading this book I felt like I was watching everything unfold the descriptions of the characters and the settings made the reading experience so enjoyable.

I absolutely adored the characters, Linda the witty, funny woman who is unapologetic of growing old gracefully. She truely is an icon.

Levi 🥺I absolutely loved his character getting to know the character from his history and how he met the love of his life was absolutely beautiful. I could scream more about all the other characters but i truly think this book should be read with the least context possible.

This book was truly a masterpiece and I feel honoured to have had an arc copy of this book. I highly recommend

This is the first Ruth Jones book I've read, but like most readers I know her from her TV writing and acting. I knew if it was written to the same standard as her screenwriting it would be a decent book.

I wasn't disappointed. This is a lovely story of a local council worker whose job it is to trace lost heirs. Due for retirement, her last job takes her to a small island off the coast of Scotland to uncover a story of love and loss, joy and pain. There are two narratives in the story: her life and her investigation, and the story of the man who had died and whose heir she was trying to find.

Predictable in many ways, as stories like these often are; but that's not necessarily a bad thing, and it makes this a good holiday read, or for when curled up on a sofa on a rainy day,

I'll be honest here: I choose this book out of interest because of the pedigree of writing from Ruth, and although I enjoyed it, it didn't pull me along and put off eating, drinking and work to carry on reading. It's not my type of book, but nevertheless, I enjoyed it.

Linda Standish has worked for the local council for years in rural Sotland and is now in the little-known lost heirs department. Her job is to find out more about the deceased and track down their relatives, tying up loose ends and to bring things together in a tidy fashion.
Linda is now in her mid-fifties and the department is facing a shake-up. In her last 'case' before taking redundancy, Linda finds herself on a tiny island, investigating the life of Levi Norman, a hermit of a man no-one knows very much about.
This was my first Ruth Jones novel - I love her screenwriting and also her television roles, so was pleased to be sent this book from NetGalley and the publishers.
I was not disappointed.
It's a lovely, easy read, with lots of humour, heart and warmth, and holds its head higher above its women's commercial fiction competitors by really getting to the kernel of characters and taking the reader with them, laughing with them, crying with them, and wanting to find out what happens.
The dual narrative between Linda in the present and Levi and his family in the past works very well, with the reader quite comfortable in both time zones. It's pacy, funny and would make a great Sunday everning television series, with Ruth (obviously) taking the role of Linda.
Highly recommended.

This was my first Ruth Jones read but it certainly won't be my last!

What a beautiful and heartwarming read about the trials and tribulations of family life. We follow Linda, a council worker for the unclaimed heirs department who takes on one final case before accepting early retirement.
The story crosses between timelines between present and past as we learn the life of Levi Norman. This is a truly heartbreaking read at moments, but it is beautifully balanced with humour and connection.
I loved the setting, I loved the multiple and interwoven story lines and mostly I loved the characters. Ruth's writing made me feel like I knew them all - I enjoyed the humour and the more tender, vulnerable moments each character showed.

Thank you to Netgalley, Ruth Jones and the publisher for allowing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Families are not necessarily made by blood but love and commitment.
Working for the council tracking down relative's of people who have died with no known heirs Linda travels to a remote Scottish Isle to find clues leading to any relatives.
Not just the story of the deceased but residents of the Isle, Linda and her family.
I became invested in all the story lines and enjoyed all of them.
Enjoy I definitely did.

God how do I even start to talk about the impact this book had on me? After reading Sunrise on the Reaping last month I honestly didn’t think any book would hit quite as good but I was so very wrong!

‘By Your Side’ follows Linda Standish, a council worker in the Unclaimed Heirs Unit on her final case before retirement - that of Levi Norman, a Welshman who had made his home on a remote Scottish island. The more that Linda (and I) learned about the details of Levi’s past the more hooked I became in the story. How Ruth Jones interves the details of the past and present is nothing short of pure genius storytelling.

You will fall in love with every character you meet in this story (except perhaps a certain Storrich local and his angry wife) and really feel like you come to know them infinitely - Linda and Levi in particular. Linda’s character feels so refreshingly honest, she is a wonderful mix of humour, anguish, insecurity and strength.

From probably 15% of the way into this book I’ve been telling everyone I know about it, updating them on Levi’s life and the revelations as they came, usually with tears streaming down my face. Having recently lost a family member this story felt particularly poignant; it was completely heart warming whilst also being utterly devastating. It’s fair to say I will be buying a copy of this book for all of my friends and family when it is released.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review 💜

It’s been so long since a book made me both laugh and cry in equal measure.

I’ve been filled with existential depth: You never really know the importance of a stranger’s memory box until you learn their story.

Linda’s about to retire from her role of 30+ years as an employee who hunts out the wills of the lonely deceased, tracking down their next of kin to ensure any treasured inheritance lands in the right hands. Her last job is a particularly emotional one, it’s the friends she makes along the way that are 100% the real treasure.

A beautiful book by Ruth Jones. I’m a huge fan of her writing, notably Gavin and Stacey of course, but this book gave me all the feels too. It felt like reading about Nessa in another life. Highly recommended if you want to set your emotions alight in one delightful sitting. X

This is an emotional and compelling read which really tugged at the heartstrings. Linda works at the missing heirs section of the council in Inverness, tracking down relatives of people that have died alone. Contemplating retirement she is given one last case, that of Levi Norman who has died on an island in the Hebrides.
As she travels to the island with a local undertaker, to bring back the body and search for clues as to whether he has any family, Linda reflects on her own life and the next stage of it. Her son and grandson are moving away and she is feeling slightly lost.
This is also the story of Levi and the reader is treated to his past history, how he met the love of his life and the secret he has kept for most of it.
I found this book very moving, Levi’s decisions were not well thought out but he made them because of love and a very human emotion, fear of loss
The novel also examines grief and how different people deal with it. Levi found it difficult to let go but Linda is driven to help others to mitigate her own loss..
The characters are all well rounded and seemed real to me- Linda’s large size and her jokes about it are a defence mechanism against tge hurtful comments she fears.
I liked the romance element, both in Levi’s life in the 1980s and Linda’s present day encounter on the island.
There was also a lot of humour in the novel which lightened the dark subjects being discussed. Linda made an excellent narrator - she had such a great turn of phrase and some of her comments were so funny. Her banter with Fergus , her travelling companion and the local undertaker offers many examples of this.
All in all this was a thoroughly enjoyable read, cleverly plotted and thought provoking. I definitely recommend it as a five star novel and will look out for further books by this author as, believe it or not, this was actually my first!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my advance copy.

A lovely, heart warming, unusual tale of grasping life while you can and celebrating it. Linda searches out the family of the bereaved and her last case is a man who died alone on a Scottish island. His story is gradually revealed as is that of Linda.

Thank you to @netgalley @bantambooksuk for the digital advance copy of By Your Side!

Linda works in the unclaimed department of the council, which leads her to a case on a remote Hebridean island where an elderly man has passed, seemingly without any family or next of kin. A recluse in the tight knit, small community, no one knew the mysterious Levi Norman. So it's Linda's job to find out more and hopefully tie up some loose ends.

And what follows is a heartbreaking journey through past and present as Linda learns as much about herself as she does Levi.

I absolutely adored this book and the way Ruth has told the story so beautifully and with so much humour and heart. There's so much to take away from it about the power of family and never taking anything for granted.

Five stars from me if there's nothing higher available!

By Your Side is released in May 💜