The Wife Who Got a Life

From the first page this book grabbed me, late forties is where I am so it had me hooked. I read the book in 24hrs. Its pure genius.

I laughed at parts were life as a mum, wife, a forty something woman is laid bare. The reality of getting older, periods, teenagers, a role thst exceeds you as a person.

The diary of Cathy is the formation of this book, it starts in January instigated by a motivational journal bought for her as a gift by her sister. It does not quite work out as planned by her sister. But Cathy does change her life in unexpected ways without seeing the changes occur.

Highly recommend this book, for giggles and some tears but to embrace working mums everywhere. Awesome read!

#NetGalley #TheWifeWhoGotALife #TracyBloom #newin2021 #bookreview

Absolutey brilliant. I loved it. There were sad parts with Hazel and Paula. For woman of a certain age it is true. But any one will love it. I could not put it down. The sisterly parts were great. It had humour and tears. Fantastic. Ten out of ten

Tracy Bloom is an author that I had heard of but never read. This book is not in any genre that I am familiar with, however it was offered to me by the publishing agent who has asked my opinion on some books that I have found to be interesting.
Like most of the world I am now into my 1oth month of quasi lockdown because of the Covid-19 virus and strangely I related strongly to the main character who is a good decade younger than me and has teenage children. I think this is because of the strong female friendship theme, I have found in lockdown how important my middle-aged female friends have been in keeping my spirits high via WhatsApp and calls.
Cathy's catalyst is an unwanted motvational diary her rich, successful, older sister gifts her. The story follows Cathy, her husband, kids, parents, sisters and CRUCIALLY her old and new friends as she seeks a more fulfilling life.
I emoted with Cathy and truly wanted her to gain fulfillment without losing her core values.
Ms. Bloom writes well and apart from the sister in L.A. (my digression) her characters are credible and rounded. Love is well described.
Death is also approached with care.
A well crafted 'year in the life of a perimenapausal English mother'.
A must read....

This is a book full of warmth, love, tears and laughter. It is a handbook for every mother of teenagers. It is a book for every woman who, seeing something dropped on the floor, knows that she is the only one who will pick it up! It is a book for every (un)dutiful daughter to aged parents, yet the daughter who does it all.
Almost every woman will empathize with Cathy as she stumbles through the maze of life and at midlife takes stock of what has been and what might still be to come and will rejoice with her as she takes charge of her own life and fashions it to give her a life she could only once have dreamed of.

Loved this book.
A story (mainly) of Cathy who is approaching menopause with dread.
The book tells of her relationships with her sisters, her children and her husband.
She starts the year with lack of purpose and lack of motivation to do anything. She feels undervalued, without purpose and in many cases overlooked.
By the end of the year she has a new job - high importantly, she found for herself - a renewed relationship with her husband and children not to mention her sisters and is ready for the next year.
The book is well written and the characters warm and appealing. Relationships at all levels are realistic and draw you in.
I've thoroughly enjoyed this pre release copy and highly recommend it.

A very funny book, written in the form of a diary of a Mum with 2 teens 16 & 17 a funny experience in real life (or is that spelt strange time) plus a husband who travels a lot in his job, plus the parents. So there is plenty of scope for fun and it comes in bucket loads. There is sibling fun as well two sisters one in America the other just down the road here in England 🇬🇧 (UK).
The tales run through the book and is just good humour of life events with a twist and some quirkiness, well there has to be because in our own way we all are or as some believe its just everyone else not them. There's a word for that but can't quite recall it🤔.
If you like a good escape for a while its one you can pick up any time even dip into but best read through to enjoy the most, Just like catching up with a good friend that you want to catch up with. Hope you enjoy it.

A charming, light hearted, easy read. Just what is needed in these weeks of lockdown. I think every forty something will relate to this!

A lovely, warm and easy read! The cast of supporting characters are wonderful, we have heartbreak in the form of two totally different ways, sibling relationships (the WhatsApp groups are SO relatable!), and you feel so connected!

I love it! I could not be more in love with it. It starts off a bit depressing as many Januarys do. Cathy’s life is far from perfect, and she has a lot she would like to change about her life when she discovers, at the age of 48, that is actually unhappy with her life. Having been a working-from-home mum for the majority of her almost grown up children’s lives while her husband gets to travel for work, Cathy decides it’s time to shake things up.

This book touches on pretty much every topic. It touches on the troubles of being a working mother; how it feels to be an unappreciated mother, daughter, wife, and sister; the struggles of bringing up hormonal teenagers in their gen z glory; grief, depression, and more. And it manages to do it in a sensitive, uplifting way.

This is the first Tracy Bloom book I have read and I think this author has a real talent for wit, and generally capturing the mood. I would recommend this novel to anyone in need of a laugh, a light read, or anyone who is looking for heart-warming next read.

I just love books by Tracy Bloom. This book was very funny and relatable. Cathy is a 48 year old mother of 2 teens and a wife. Mike,her husband, has a successful career, but he is getting fed up of being away from home a lot, so he decides to change jobs. Cathy's sister giver her a diary for Christmas and Cathy decides to set a challenge per month. Will she achieve them? I highly recommend this book to anyone, who is juggling career, motherhood and being a wife. Great read!

I bloody loved this book! This is not my first by Tracey Bloom so I felt honoured to be selected to review this advance read copy on netgally and it did not disappoint. Cathy is on the cusp of the menopause and after receiving a motivational diary as a gift from her perfect sister Lizzy she sets some rather unconventional goals. The characters in this book are brilliant and the plot plucks the heartstrings and resonates on so many levels. A great read.

Even Better Than I Expected... Makes You Laugh From The Start 🤣

Starts with Cathys take on a family tree, ie relation and brief through Cathys eyes (not your normal family tree 😂). Written in diaryish form, as her sister brought her a motivational diary for Christmas. Her husband Mike decides he wants to make changes in life, set goals etc which triggers thoughts maybe Cathy should be looking at doing something for herself at last. Setting her own motivational goals, a little different to what her sister would've expected, but aims for each month Cathy would like to achieve.

The Wife Who Got A Life is one of those reads that's lighthearted, then you find you're laughing out loud, but also touches on serious subjects.

Harshness of life, encourages Cathy to take stock of her life and moves to what she would like rather than follows on its current mundane path. A fab read which you don't want to put down. Look forward to the next...

This book was so different to what i normally read but i must admit i really enjoyed it.I found it a lighthearted,funny read and will be reading it again.5*

I loved this book a lot. I would happily re-read it a million times over as it is just too good. Cathy is a wife and mother, she has to do everything around the house as no one else is going to do it. I am sure a lot of women will be able to relate I know I did and I only have a husband. It is hilarious so much so I could not stop laughing through out. I think the fish finger scenario really had me in stitches. You need to read it for yourself. Her husband has a midlife crisis and Cathy decides she needs to take control of her life. A book that you really do not want to miss out on. I did feel sorry for Cathy at times but I could sympathise with her. Tracy Bloom is an addictive author. I can't wait to read her next one.

Wow what an absolute gem of a story!
Absolutely beautiful, funny and well written.
The characters are so true to life you can believe they are real,
Cathy was the embodiment of every woman of a certain age and she dealt impending age and it’s downsides like a superstar.
I really enjoyed this book, it was a refreshing change and so easy to read.
This Author is definitely on my read more if list!

I didn't think I would particularly enjoy this book - I'm more into crime and psychological thrillers - but I have to say that I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT. Probably because the characters were of my age and I could really identify with some of the things they said.. Any book that brings up "School bag in hand" from Mamma Mia and how they can't listen to it because it makes them sad is going to go down well with me! Brilliant read - will be trying others by this author. Highly recommended.

Laugh out loud funny, poignant and I was able to equate with the situations. At bit difficult at one stage as I am in the same situation as Tania and Hazel but realistically the way it will be so thank you

I absolutely loved this book, particularly being of a similiar age to Cathy and the challenges that that ' time of life ' can bring. Honest, funny, easy to read and light hearted.

Cathy is 48 and when her sister sends her a journal for Christmas to enter her motivational goals for the year, Cathy is very sceptical. However she takes the challenge of a goal a month to see whether it improves her happiness.

Cathy battles with aging parents, s husband who appears to he having a mid life crisis, 2 children embracing teenage years alongside the threat of approaching menopause.

Over the course of the year, Cathy realises what is most important not only for herself but her friends and family.

Highly recommend this feel good book.
Look forward to more by this author.

I absolutely loved this book and if I could rate it higher than 5* I would. There are so many similarities and relatable happenings within the story, it was as though the author had written about me lol. I think women of a certain age,(with or without the teenagers) could certainly identify themselves with aspects within this book. This book is warm & witty, emotional & real, its given me food for thought thats for sure. Highly recommended reading it.

This is my first Tracy Bloom book and I thoroughly enjoyed it and will be looking out for more titles. A proper laugh out loud, down to earth read. Having just turned 50, I can sympathise with the main character Cathy, who reminds me of a grown up Bridget Jones.
A thoroughly enjoyable read for all ages, really uplifting, but with some sad tears at times too.

What a lovely, really funny book! A well-written book that made me laugh a lot of times! I found it very interesting and insightful in its description of family dynamics. I thoroughly enjoyed all the characters. I found them all warm and kind people. I highly recommend it!

Thank you so much for sending this book. I laughed out loud and totally recognised Cathy and could identify with all the scenarios. The way the menopause is discussed is exactly how my friends and I discuss it and yes laughter and sadness do go hand in hand and this is shown with the friendships formed in the book club. I loved 'the chat' and I'm sure every woman can identify. I also will be finding out if I have any local student chefs! Genius!!. As a mother of two teenagers this totally hit the spot and I will be recommending this book to my friends.