Book Review: Together Again By Milly Johnson @millyjohnson

Hayley Reviews

Sep 29

Blurb: Sisters Jolene, Marsha and Annis have convened at their childhood home the huge and beautiful Fox House following the death of their mother, the cold and impenetrable Eleanor Vamplew, to arrange the funeral and sell up. Born seven years apart, the women have never bonded and are more strangers than sisters.

Jolene, the eldest, is a successful romantic novelist who writes templates of beautiful relationships even though her marriage to the handsome and charming Warren is a barren wasteland.

Marsha, the neglected middle child, has put every bit of her energy into her work, hoping money would plug up the massive gap in her life left by the man who broke her young heart, only to find it never has. And now he has been forced back into her life.

Annis is the renegade, who left home aged sixteen and never returned, not even for the death of their beloved father, Julian, until now. It is therefore a surprise to all of them to discover that Eleanor recently changed her will to leave everything to the daughter she considered a wretched accident.

Review: Where do I begin? And how do I do this masterpiece justice. I feel so privileged to have read a book that's left it so hard to speak about, in the best way obviously. I can't claim to have devoured all of Milly's books as I haven't but so far everyone I have read I've enjoyed. When Together Again was mentioned I knew I had to read it almost instantly, and when Catriona mentioned buddy reading it that was also an absolute must.

I was lucky enough to read this before publication and wanted to share my thoughts on the day it's published so here I am.

Together Again has the classic Milly trademark wit and humour although with this one we also get a different feel. It was compelling and intoxicating from the off. Each chapter has you wanting more. If life hadn't got in the way this could have been a single sitting read.

Together Again reunites sisters Jolene, Marsha and Annis and we get snippets of the then and now of the family. Like most families it's not all plain sailing but there are so many unspoken words just within the sisters alone. I instantly loved all of them and I liked hearing from each of them. Three very different women whose lives could have been different if they had communicated earlier in life. As I was getting to know them I found myself frustrated with them as I just wanted them to talk. There were a number of things that in retrospect you could and couldn't see coming and that just added to the suspense and the intrigue, meaning those pages turned faster and faster.

Eleanor Vamplew is an interesting woman in some ways I thought of her like Hyacinth Bucket. We only get a snippet of her life via letters and through her daughters. An interesting woman who could have shared more with her children.

A tale of love, loss and united loneliness. Milly has created a story with characters you wholeheartedly care for. In each of the sisters there's a little of us all in how they are and seeing them get to know each other and ultimately learn from each other was heartwarming.

I don't think I'll ever forget reading this novel and I would love Milly to take us back to the Vamplew sisters someday. There's so much I cannot say about this story but I will say Milly Johnson has created a masterpiece with a few hard hitting messages at the centre of this tale.

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