The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright

by Clare Swatman

Starting over can be hard to do… So when mum of two Beth moves out of her beloved marital home and into an unloved and unkempt cottage, she can’t help but feel demoralised. Faced with months of DIY and dust, her children Jacob and Olivia aren’t impressed either. But when Beth finds a box of letters while she’s clearing out the children’s room, things start to look up.

The correspondence is decades old, between agony aunt Evelyn and those in need of solace. Intrigued as to why the letters have been kept safe all these years, Beth can’t resist reading them, and as the wisdom and kindness of Evelyn falls off the pages, so Beth starts to feel she has a friend and champion in this woman she has never met.

Good advice doesn’t age, and as life starts to look brighter, Beth begins to wonder if she could track down Evelyn and thank her for her help. But as Beth uncovers more about Evelyn’s story, it becomes clear that everything is not as it seems. And now Beth is determined to bring peace to Evelyn as she has to her.

A spell-binding, heart-warming story of friendship, love and being brave enough to be yourself.

Praise for Clare

'A sensitive, touching story with emotional depth and page-turning quality' Helen Rolfe

'I loved The Night We First Met by Clare Swatman. Warm, romantic and wonderfully written, it's an emotional and thought-provoking read with such relatable characters.' Debbie Howells

'The Night We First Met is a beautiful love story that vividly evokes time and place, transporting the reader… and leaves you rooting for everyone who is brave enough to follow their heart and not their head.' Victoria Scott

'Heart-breaking and life-affirming in equal measures, Before We Grow Old is the tender story of a chance meeting between former childhood sweethearts Fran and Will, and is packed with secrets and revelations. Through her beautiful writing, Clare Swatman delivers a powerful lesson in learning to love with your whole heart and accepting the same, no matter what life throws at you.' Sarah Bennett

'Irresistible... A delightfully bittersweet story that will appeal to fans of One Day' - Sunday Mirror

'The Night We First Met is a breathless story of enduring love that will fill your heart and give you hope.' Laura Kemp

'The Night We First Met is such a special book, filled with broken and relatable characters, who you can't help but love. Just Gorgeous!' Emma Cooper

'The Night We First Met is a gorgeously romantic, sliding doors love story about how The One will find you in the end.' Katy Regan

Readers love Clare

‘I’ve enjoyed all of Clare’s books, but this one I just couldn’t put down. I was hooked from the first page.’

‘Another amazing read from Clare x another must read from her! You can’t wait to get to the bed.’

‘I really enjoyed this book, a real page turner. Great characters in a brilliant mystery story. Worthy of a book club, I wish I had someone to discuss it with!!’

‘Clare Swatman weaves a beautiful tale that grips you from the first page, leaves you wanting to travel on this journey and ultimately tells a beautiful story.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Chick Lit, Ebooks, Contemporary, Adult, Womens Fiction

354 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 15, 2024

Reviews

[Shelley's Book Nook · Rating 2 out of 5]

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I have loved every other book by Clare Swatman. How to Save a Life was a five star read for me and everything else from The World Outside My Window to A Love to Last a Lifetime were a solid four stars. But The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright left me wanting. I couldn't stand the main character Beth, she was selfish where her children were concerned and childish when it came to her ex and his new girlfriend. I get it, she was cheated on and that really hurts and makes a person angry but for the love of god by the time the divorce is final, you've gotten your share of the money, bought a house and custody arrangements are made it's time to get over it and move on. All she did was wallow in self pity and that isn't good for the kids. And don't get me started with her lusting after a married man when that's how her marriage ended. And her giving out advice when she isn't even remotely qualified, that's rich!

I really wish this focused more on Evelyn Wright/Lois and her daughter Catherine. Yes, it does eventually get there but it took too long for my liking, I was ready to DNF this one but I was halfway through so continued, what a mistake that was. I should take my own advice and not worry about finishing books I am not enjoying. Needless to say (but I am going to anyway) I was really disappointed with this one. It didn't have the magic that the author's other books have. Swatman usually comes through making the ordinary extraordinary and I recommend all her other books, this one just made me angry.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advance Readers Copy.

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

In a Nutshell: A book that is too realistic to be likeable as it has plenty of judgemental characters who care only about their own life and have no ethics at all. I am conflicted in my opinion because while I see the accuracy of the portrayal of such characters, I am not sure if such a book fits well in the feel-good genre.

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Plot Preview:

After a bitter divorce from her cheating husband Rob, Beth is looking for a fresh start. Unfortunately, with her limited funds, all she can afford is an old, unkempt cottage on the outskirts. Her children Olivia (7) and Jacob (5) aren’t impressed with the house, and are frank about their opinion.
When Beth finds a box of letters while clearing out one of the rooms, she discovers that they are all agony aunt letters written by someone named Evelyn Wright. As Beth reads them and relishes the wisdom of Evelyn’s words over the next few days, she decides to begin her own agony aunt ‘column’ online, so that she too can help others the way Evelyn helped her. And if she can locate Evelyn and thank her, all the better.
The story comes to us from Beth’s first person perspective.

The title is a little bit misleading because the story is not ABOUT the lost letters of Evelyn Wright, but about what happens in Beth’s life once the letters are found. The story is mostly Beth’s, and therein lies the trouble.

I remember what Jane Austen had said about her most infamous protagonist, Emma: “I'm going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like.” Yeah, well, I wonder if Ms. Swatman thought the same while creating Beth. Because if she did, she certainly succeeded! But if she meant for us to root for Beth, tough chance!

Usually in such stories, where one half of the couple has cheated and the other is bitter, it is easy to sympathise with the spouse who has been caught unawares by the infidelity. In this case though, I could sympathise with neither Beth nor Rob. They both are such annoying and self-centred characters that I felt sorry for their kids at being caught in between the mess. Are there couple like this in real life, fighting through divorces acrimoniously and shaming each other in front of their children? Of course, there are. Does that make reading about them in a fictional novel easier? Nope!

Initially, I attributed Beth’s aggression at her anger over being left with the raw end of the deal. Rob got the house as well as a new woman, while Beth had to start her life all over again with two young children. She had every right to be angry! But soon, Beth took some decisions that didn’t sit well with me. Becoming an agony aunt and advising people over major personal problems without any professional qualification, using the old Evelyn columns and moulding their advice to new issues, talking about some of the problems shared privately to her ‘Evelyn’ email id with her new friend Catherine and Charlie, discussing Catherine’s private matter with Charlie without her knowledge – all are major red flags. But the biggest irritant was when she engaged in an illicit relationship with a married man, after she herself had suffered because of her husband’s infidelity – ridiculous!

Again, do such women exist? Of course, they do! But so much reality doesn’t suit what is essentially escape-from-reality fiction. I’d have expected such behaviour from characters in a literary fiction exploring the depths of human murkiness. A well-written literary novel would have handled the emotional and moral aspects of this plotline far better, while not resorting to commercial melodrama. So I am not questioning the authenticity of the character portrayal; I am just saying that I didn’t expect such frustrating characters in the women’s fiction genre.

The only four characters who work well in this book are Catherine – who is too forgiving for her own good, the two children Olivia and Jacob – who aren’t afraid to speak up, and Natalie – a surprise addition to this list as she is the woman who slept with the married Rob. I don’t think I have ever included a marriage wrecker among the better characters of a novel, which shows how horrible the rest are.

Evelyn’s magazine column seems interesting, and as many chapters begin with one of her letters, we get a glimpse of her outspoken advice as well as some outdated thinking, thanks to the letters being from the 1950s. The quest for Evelyn has its charm, but I wish we could have heard more from Evelyn herself. Some interlude chapters containing her perspective from the past would have worked wonders. Evelyn’s arc contains a mystery, but this “mystery” is a trope slowly becoming so common in this genre that it doesn’t even feel like a mystery anymore! I wish this particular “secret” wouldn’t be so overused; it will lose its impact soon.

The only good thing in this story is its realistic depiction of what a bitter divorce does to children. It is painful to read, and sadly, not entirely fictional.

I had loved this author’s ‘How to Save a Life’, but the two books I read after that – ‘A Love to Last a Lifetime’ and ‘The World Outside My Window’ – were a mixed bag and a dud, respectively. The rating trend is not improving much, which is really disappointing.

All in all, is this a bad book? Not really. But is it an enjoyable book? Not at all. If you treat this as a story showing all that is wrong with humans AND you can enjoy books with characters whose ethics are non-existent most of the way AND don’t mind some OTT drama, this will work better for you. But to typical women’s fiction readers who are looking for a light or feel-good story, I’d not recommend this at all.

2.5 stars.


My thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the DRC of “The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.





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[Sujoya - theoverbookedbibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5⭐️

As the story begins, we meet Beth, a newly divorced schoolteacher and mother of two, as she moves into an old cottage with her two children after her husband buys out her share of their family home. A fixer-upper in need of a lot of repairs, Beth has her hands full what with her children’s unhappiness, the unpleasantness between herself and her ex-husband and the lack of much of a support system in terms of friends or family. When she discovers a bundle of decades-old letters addressed to an “agony aunt” column (addressed to “Evelyn Wright") in an old magazine addressed”, she finds the process of reading about other’s problems (some similar to her very own) cathartic and her curiosity about the real Evelyn Wright motivated her to not only attempt to find out more about the person but also start a blog/advice column of her own. We follow Beth as she discovers more about Evelyn, makes new friends, and gradually rebuilds her life.

I really liked the premise of The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright by Clare Swatman. I loved the idea of finding old letters and how a character could be motivated to deal with her own troubles based on advice meant for other people (though Beth acknowledges some of the advice wouldn’t quite apply in today’s world, she was able to understand the wisdom behind the advice and relate to the same). I was sympathetic to Beth’s situation and hated her ex-husband (it's difficult not to) and could understand Beth’s resentment and pain. Unfortunately, I found little else to like about this novel. The pacing is on the slower side and the narrative suffers from repetitiveness. The search for Evelyn and her story was an interesting plot point but as the story unfolded several aspects of the plot felt contrived (more telling than showing) and the convenient coincidences soon took the joy out of the overall reading experience. Beth’s immaturity in dealing with her husband was off-putting, but I would have been willing to ignore this had she exercised better judgment in her personal life and made less questionable choices. The new relationship angle was poorly plotted, distasteful and cringe-worthy. I did like the characterization of Beth’s daughter and thought that the author was able to portray the seven-year-old’s confusion and her reaction to the situation between her parents realistically.

Overall, I can’t say that this was a satisfying read, but please do read other reviews as many readers have enjoyed this novel more than I did.

Many thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the digital review copy. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. This novel was published on February 15, 2024.

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[Sandysbookaday (taking a step back for a while) · Rating 3 out of 5]

EXCERPT: I sat for a moment, dazed, then propped the piece of wood against the wall and peered into the gap underneath the raised wardrobe floor. There were a few pieces of rubble and some scraps of damp, slightly smelly carpet. I curled my fingers under the base of the next section and tugged. Slowly it started to give and I braced myself so I didn't go flying backwards again. This time the piece of wood yielded much more easily, as if it had been unscrewed many times before and it was off within seconds. I laid it to one side too and leaned forward to pull off the next piece. But as I did, I stopped. There was something buried under here, a black plastic box. I reached for it. It was quite big, and heavier than I'd expected. I held it with both hands and stood, looking round for somewhere to put it. The room was empty so I wiped the dust off and took it through to my room and laid it on my bed. It was, I realized now, a box wrapped in a black plastic bin liner, which was held on by a series of elastic bands. I gave it a shake, pressing my ear to the top. There was a bit of movement, books moving around, or something like that, but nothing distinguishable. Should I open it? What if it was private?
But then again, if it was important, why would somebody have left it behind?

ABOUT 'THE LOST LETTERS OF EVELYN WRIGHT': Starting over can be hard to do… So when mum of two Beth moves out of her beloved marital home and into an unloved and unkempt cottage, she can’t help but feel demoralised. Faced with months of DIY and dust, her children Jacob and Olivia aren’t impressed either. But when Beth finds a box of letters while she’s clearing out the children’s room, things start to look up.

The correspondence is decades old, between agony aunt Evelyn and those in need of solace. Intrigued as to why the letters have been kept safe all these years, Beth can’t resist reading them, and as the wisdom and kindness of Evelyn falls off the pages, so Beth starts to feel she has a friend and champion in this woman she has never met.

Good advice doesn’t age, and as life starts to look brighter, Beth begins to wonder if she could track down Evelyn and thank her for her help. But as Beth uncovers more about Evelyn’s story, it becomes clear that everything is not as it seems. And now Beth is determined to bring peace to Evelyn as she has to her.

MY THOUGHTS: This is a slow story about moving on from broken relationships. There is nothing really wrong with it, other than the main character irritating the s**t out of me, but nor does it have much to recommend it.

Beth's constant anger and immaturity grated on my nerves. The 'Agony Aunt' extracts slowed the story exponentially and weren't at all interesting. I think the author was trying to make them relevant to what Beth was experiencing, but if that was her intention, it didn't work for me.

The mystery surrounding Evelyn Wright had some interesting moments but wasn't enough to carry the whole book.

I think this was yet another case of the author trying to cover too many bases. The book should have focused either on Beth rebuilding her life, or the mystery of Evelyn. It did justice to neither and resulted in a rather average read.

⭐⭐.5

#TheLostLettersofEvelynWright #NetGalley

THE AUTHOR: My career began as a journalist for many of the brilliant women’s magazines, where I wrote true life stories. I have also worked as a press officer, have written advertorials for many major brands and have worked as Health Editor and Travel Editor at various times.

I love any kind of writing, but it had always been my dream to write a novel. I did it. And, to my utter amazement, people actually liked it.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Boldwood Books via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright by Clare Swatman for review. All opinions expressed in this book are my own personal opinions.

https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Lost Letters of Evelyn Wright is the eighth novel by British author Clare Swatman. Recently-divorced mother of two, Beth has had to move from the family home in Banforth, to a dilapidated cottage fifteen miles out at Ecclesthorpe. She’s not used to living in a village, and has to commute to the high school where she teaches science.

Her ex, Rob has installed his mistress, her seven-year-old daughter’s teacher, in the family home and, even though she has custody, Beth is worried that Olivia and five-year-old Jacob will prefer the familiarity and space of their old home to sharing a room in a still unlovely little house. Making it habitable is a lot of work, and while her children are away, she’s finding the nights lonely, despite her exhaustion.

Then she comes across a bundle of magazines that look to be at least fifty years old, with the agony aunt page bookmarked. The Dear Evelyn Wright column is a fascinating look at the problems that people of the era faced and, while some of Evelyn’s advice is rather dated, much of what she tells her readers is sound and still applicable in today’s world.

Reading those letters sets off a series of events for Beth. The idea of helping people the way Evelyn did sees her setting up an agony aunt website while Evelyn’s idea for keeping children entertained and for making new friends leads to an addition to the household and succeeds on both counts.

Meanwhile, the website increases in popularity and brings a new man into Beth’s life. With that and the other challenges in her life, Beth keeps finding Evelyn’s advice helpful, even as she begins to feel confident in relying on her own instincts to answer the letters.

Swatman prefaces each chapter with a letter to, and a reply from, Evelyn Wright. Some of the issues she and Beth deal with are age-old ones, others on which Beth is asked to advise are much more topical.

The author would likely be disappointed with the inaccurate, misleading blurb, which reads like the person who composed it read only the first two chapters of the book, then guessed at where the plot would go, and got it spectacularly wrong. Ignoring that, this is a fairly enjoyable read.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Boldwood Books.

[SUSAN WOOD · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow. This is a DNF for me. It started out quite well and I thought it was one I’d romp through in a matter of days.
But at 60% I’m giving up. Mainly because although “Charlie’s toned stomach” has made YET ANOTHER appearance, the rescue dog appears to have disappeared without a trace.
Beth is irritating beyond belief. She is also a massive hypocrite despising in her ex husband’s new love the very behaviours that she is also now guilty of. And grown adult females do not make BFFs with someone they’ve chatted to for 5 minutes and they certainly do not leave their vulnerable young children home alone with a random bloke she met a couple of weeks ago. Even if he does have a “toned stomach” that keeps conveniently being flashed at her making her face flush. Grow up!
Pah! I won’t waste any more time - I was going to skim read to the end but I can pretty much predict what will happen and I have better things to do with my time!

[Melty · Rating 1 out of 5]

I very nearly dnf this and tbh I should have listened to myself. Just... Blah.

[Star Gater · Rating 2 out of 5]

Relieved this ended.

This had so much potential until it went off the rails.

Cheating husband gets the house, gets girl friend pregnant and gets to manipulate kids with money -- geesh not my pick for a good time or light read. I stuck with the book because I liked how Swatman handled the relationship between the children and their mother. She truly put them first in spite of all her problems.

By 50% I now know a rapid descent is happening. Rapid fire profanity starts, female - female relationships, dialogue between the cheating husband and main character was nauseating. The ending went on and on and on for way too long.

[Alayne Emmett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a lovely read. It was funny, sad with romance thrown in. I raced through this as it was so addictive. The story was so Interesting and ending was left as so you could think that could be another one. My thanks to netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

[Fictionophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beth's marriage has just dissolved and she's forced into starting over. She feels betrayed and is bitter about her situation. Her cheating husband seems to have fared much better from their divorce. He lives with his girlfriend in Beth's old house... Now, for financial reasons, Beth has purchased a fixer-upper in a village a half hour's drive away. Her two children, Jacob and Olivia are confused and unhappy that they now have to share a bedroom and travel between the two homes.

Beth is attempting to renovate her little house to make it more comfortable for her and her children. While doing so, she discovers a cache of old 'agony aunt' letters addressed to "Dear Evelyn". After reading some of them, she decides she will carry on the 'Dear Evelyn' letters, only online, and with a modern slant. She hopes this activity will help her curb her loneliness and fill the long evenings alone.

Her decision brings about new friendships, a new pet, and sees her finding her own way to happiness.

This novel is a delightful combination of women's fiction and Uplit. With themes of parenting, step-families, sexuality and fresh starts, it should appeal to many who like 'starting over' novels that have happy endings.

3.5 stars rounded up for Amazon and NetGalley ; rounded down for Goodreads where the stars have different values

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beth is starting over after a divorce. She’s redoing a cottage while adjusting to her new life. While renovating one of the rooms she finds some letters.
It’s a nice story about relationships and starting over. New friends and new romance.

[Sammy Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice fluffy read for a day in front of the fire

[Deb Knowlton · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was *fine* but I found myself skimming to get to the end, which was meh.

[Mairwen Minson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

I really liked a lot of the themes of this book. But I also had some issues with it. I liked that the main character struggles with her emotions and the tough situation she is in. Divorce is not easy on anyone involved and restructuring your life and perspective afterwards is tough. I personally didn’t like the main character, Beth, but I liked that she was so flawed. She isn’t perfect which fits really well with the novel's themes.

But the book does pile on information and plot a lot. There are 27 chapters for 357 pages so a pretty normal chapter amount and length, but there was so much information, especially in the early chapters and the timing of the novel is quick through a long period. I don’t have an issue with the length of time the novel takes place, but characters make a lot of changes and we don’t get time to see the progressions or sit with the emotions generated frequently as we are moving along so quickly.

Beth is suffering at the start. She starts over very alone and wants to be angry and blames other people a lot, but she isn’t reflective. I liked that she’s a pretty regular woman, but she has isolated herself and now feels the effects. She sometimes blames other people for the same things she does to them. Again, with her, I don’t mind it because she feels so real in her reactions, but I wish there were a few moments of real self-reflection and apologies that are not immediately brushed off.

I liked the mystery or quest in the story. I knew of agony aunts before reading this book and it’s a fun concept, but the timing really impacted my enjoyment. Because the story moves so quickly, there isn’t room for characters to be genuinely upset or take pauses within the narrative. I did really like the side characters. We don’t hear from their perspective, but I think Beth’s perception of the people in her life was such a window into her own perspective and her relationships that I appreciated that feature. And the side characters were such a good example of the fact that people can be good and still make mistakes, even big mistakes.

Beth does grow as a person over the course of the novel without becoming an entirely different person. The book is not about redemption or getting even. It is about searching for community and love of different kinds. The whole book moves quickly from moment to moment with little time for characters and readers to process, but it has themes I enjoy and some fun moments.

[Sally Tyrer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The lost letters of Evelyn Wright is a lovely comforting read of a book that will stay with you long after you have read it!
Huge life changing events such as divorce, infidelity,abandonment and sexuality are all incorporated into the book and provide a very realistic take that many could relate to, particularly those of us of a certain age!
Starting again after a divorce is never easy but Beth realises she is stronger than she thought and demonstrates resilience, strength of character and tenacity as she renovates her cottage for her and the children,makes new friends, starts dating again and becomes fulfilled once more!
Acquiring friends, new skills and making peace with her lot makes for such an uplifting read, I loved the characters especially the lovely Charlie and all that he added to the book!
Thank you NetGalley for this early read.

[Ayva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay overall very enjoyable I flew through this and was always wanting to pick it up and keep reading. It was very easy to empathise with Beth and I think the way she portrayed divorce and emotions of a dysfunctional family and terrible ex-husband and man (of course) very well was really engaging. It was very sweet and uplifting as Beth found a new life, hobbies and friends and still remained devoted to her kids. New things kept popping up to keep it exciting and I liked how it was very much centred on her character development but also followed her friends and the Evelyn letter situation. My only critiques were the lowkey continuous unrealistic expectations Beth had of her friends I did find her to be selfish at times because why would she be so distraught at the fact a married man couldn’t drop everything in a second and come to comfort her in the middle of the night as she cried about her tiny children saying they hated her or something trivial 🙃 and I definitely did not relate to her becoming friendly and accepting with her ex-husbands fiancé who he left her for but that’s just because I could never. Lol overall very simple and cute whilst still having a good amount of substance to it ✌🏼📝🏚️

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Endearing and relatable

So much may feel familiar n this tale about an average woman, two kids and a cheating husband leaving her for his mistresss. But if you stopped there, you would surely be missing out on some mystery, value of new love, friendships, mysteries to be solved and writing your own ending. Beth learns these lessons surrounded by a new type of family. She laughs, she cues, she discovers and she unravels the pieces of her life, to put them back together in a different pattern. Enjoyable read.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought that this book was okay. Nothing special. But I enjoyed the journey of Beth and her character development in this book. From the person who was willing to argue with her husband to the person who was okay letting someone else into her life.

The writing of this book was wonderful and thought that it kept me invested even when I didn’t want to read.

This is one of those books that you will either love or you will hate but it depends on your reading tastes.

[denise edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

As one door closes another one opens

After Beth’s husband has an affair and she has to move on to a smaller house, she feels sad and lonely. Finding an agony aunts paperwork in the cottage she takes her advice and finds how to love herself and move on. Great book couldn’t put it down !!

[Sarah Kingsnorth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clare Swatman - The Lost Letters Of Evelyn Wright.

This is a truly heartwarming story of second chances and discovering the wisdom of the past.

Beautifully written with real heart. I was very moved by the raw emotions that Clare Swatman captured about Beth’s marital breakdown and trying to co-parent with someone who has basically ripped her life apart.

An absolutely delightful read.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Sue Gioia-millwater · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable, unique read! As a former fan of advice columnists such as Dear Abby, growing up, I really connected with Beth reading Evelyn’s letters. As she was going through a difficult time, it was easier to help other people then deal with her own problems. Surrounding herself with new friends while working on her new home, was really endearing. It shows that anyone can start over and build a new village!

[Sukh Hamilton · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a really good premise but failed to deliver.. There was too much going on in terms of plot line which meant that things were stretched thinly. And the ending was very rushed.
The notion that an agony aunt’s advice from yesteryear is still applicable today, is an interesting one. Equally that almost anyone could be an agony aunt…

[Milena Teichert · Rating 3 out of 5]

My review won’t be much, but I liked reading a light book for a change!

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Didn’t want this book to end absolutely loved it! First one I’ve read by Clare Swatman, will definitely be picking up another of hers 🥰

[Tamara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this probably like a 3.5. It was a slow and steady read but I always enjoyed the experience. Think it being kinda marketed as a light read might be misleading and potentially put some people off because wasn’t particularly lighthearted in places. Overall I liked getting to know the characters and seeing their lives unfold and I liked the development of them through the book.

[Katrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read. Was hoping it would be like Can Any Mother Help Me, but sadly not. If only life was like this??

[Leanne Farnell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took a while to get into, then I was hooked, but left disappointed by the ending. Not the one I wanted her to end up with.

[Deborah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story of an old house with a new owner and what she uncovers!

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting story, a lot going on with many characters. The main character sometimes annoyed me. After the first couple of chapters the story flowed better and I was able to enjoy the book.

[Tracie Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Lost Letters Of Evelyn Wright by Clare Swatman
Beth starts life over in a new town and an unkept cottage, all she could afford after her divorce. Her two kids are not impressed with their new home and they let her know. Feeling lost, lonely and unloved, Beth finds some hope in a box of letters that she finds hidden in the cottage. An advice columnist, Evelyn Wright, left her legacy of hidden letters behind with a lot of questions unanswered about her life.
Wisdom and kindness are shared in the pages and Beth finds a friend among the pages, a champion. As Beth seeks out Evelyn to show her gratitude, Evelyn’s story is not as it seems.
This was a heart warming story of friendship and found family. A lesson of being brave enough to find yourself and celebrate who you are, is found in the pages of this story. This book is full of emotional depth and page-turning inspiration.
I really enjoyed this book. It was just a good story of friends and finding yourself. 4/5⭐️