Book Review: Beyond Grace's Rainbow by Carmel Harrington

Beyond Grace's Rainbow by Carmel Harrington

Published by: HarperImpulse (12th Sept 2013)

Received a proof copy for review from publisher, many thanks to HarperImpulse team!

Blurb:

When Grace is diagnosed with cancer her best chance of survival is to find a bone marrow transplant from a family member. Only Grace is adopted and her one previous attempt to connect with her birth mother resulted in bitter disappointment.

But with her young son, Jack, to think about, and the return of her ex Liam, Jack’s father, reminding her of feelings she’d thought she’d buried long ago, Grace refuses to give up hope just yet. With the help of her friends she bravely embarks on a journey of discovery.

This search will bring her from her home in vibrant Dublin to the unspoilt beauty of Wexford where she must unravel a web of lies and deceit that has spanned over thirty years.

Get a copy now on Amazon Kindle! 

Why you would love this:

First of all, I love the cover, don't you? I wish I had hair like that, but that would never happen in a million years. End of. I was so honoured to be asked to do the cover reveal of Beyond Grace's Rainbow a month back, so ta-da! It's finally out now and if you've loved PS. I Love You, you'll definitely enjoy this one too!

Beyond Grace's Rainbow follows the story of Grace, a single mother to Jack, discovering that she has cancer. What happens if she dies? Who will look after Jack? Still hurting from her break up with her ex-boyfriend, Liam, she finds that she still loves him. One day, he shows up and insist on being in Grace and Jack's lives. However, with the impending treatments the cancer, Grace has to face her past and learn to follow her heart, but at what cost?

I can't tell you how much this book moved me! I fell in love the characters immediately! First off, Grace was truly a sweetheart, an amazing, thoughtful friend, a passionate lover and dedicated, loving mother to the adorable Jack! Grace's friends, Tom and Gerry (hah!) were incredibly sweet and I loved Gerry right from the start! They form a close-knit group and there's nothing more touching than friends supporting you when you are facing the worst life has to offer.

Although the book centres on Grace's life, there are also some parts where the secondary characters, mainly Abby, a close friend of Grace's, who can't seem to find a guy who she truly loves. And Grace's cousin, Tara and her husband, Sean, although in a happy marriage, but struggling to bear a child.

I did wonder, was there a silver lining to her discovery of having cancer? And the answer is yes. But I must not spoil it for you as it's such a captivating book! It had me blinking back tears, both happy and sad ones. When one moment of your life seems to be getting better, then at the snap of Life's fingers, you're free-falling and the most precious things are snatched away from you. Beyond Grace's Rainbow will no doubt compel you to feel for Grace, fall in love with the characters and be enchanted by the story as it presents you its spectrum of true emotions.

I loved it. I loved how Carmel Harrington has a wonderful talent to weave a touching tale of finding love, supporting each other when life gets rough and I felt my heart swell during the romantic bits. Her writing could be described as "funny, poignant and bursting with heartfelt humour". Let me tell you, Liam is the perfect husband. Oh my! Don't get me started on Gerry! God, I loved him. I wish he were real, then we'd definitely get on like a house on fire! End of the line: If you have a Kindle, get it. Beautifully written!

Rating: 10/10

Anne Hathaway as Grace, Chris Hemsworth as Liam, Patirck Dempsey as Sean, Katherine Heigl as Tara, Zooey Deschanel as Abby, Colin Firth as Tom and Michael Urie as (MY) Gerry!