A beautiful tale of love and adversity. A tragic incident leaves the lives of Molly and Alex changed forever. The journey that follows is a bumpy one and really tests the vows 'in sickness and in health'. This book is very well written with well developed characters.

This book is full of emotions, love, jealousy, unrequited love and sibling rivalry. Molly and Alex are happily married and trying for a baby. Until one night while at his twin brother Graeme's house he falls and suffers a catastrophic head injury which changes his personality to such an extent that the people who love him no longer recognise him. How would any of us cope with this if it happened to our loved one? A very well written story with strong emotional connections.

I thought this was a beautiful and moving account of losing a loved one to a traumatic brain injury and it asks the question, how far do the vows of sickness and health count when your husband becomes a stranger to your happy lifestyle?
Told in flashbacks, we first see young love with all their hopes and dreams, ambitions and hopes sadly crushed by a fall that results in a traumatic brain injury. The relief of recovery is tempered by the realisation that so much has changed, as the loving, considerate and gentle husband is replaced by a distant, violent and totally unpredictable husband who is suffering from memory loss.
I feel this is a brave book and could well be helpful to the medical student. Living or caring for a brain injured person takes a great deal of adjustment to all parties and it is heart breaking that a loved one doesn't recognise you, cannot share happy memories you have both made and instead of being your lover, instead becomes more child like with unpredictable mood swings.
I greatly enjoyed her previous book, This secret we're keeping, and she doesn't pull any punches or shy away from difficult subject matters in this engrossing read. I have today posted this review on Goodreads. I will recommend this to my students working in the fields of TBI care.

I really enjoyed this book and loved the alernating viewpoints for each chapter. It was quite hard to read at some points but I thoroughly enjoyed it. This was the first book I have read by this author and I would definitely like to read more

A story of love that can overcome adversity....
This is a beautiful story, written from the three main characters perspectives in past and present.
A tragic accident changes Alex and Molly's lives forever, gone the plans to travel, perhaps move abroad and have a family...their lives now consist of difficult conversations, stress and tears.
I found myself willing Alex on, hoping that somewhere he'd remember their lives before, that he'd begin to show the love he still had for Molly.
I'm not usually a fan of romance books but this wasn't just a romance, this was a book full of struggles and the determination to be together ....For better, for worse

I enjoyed how this book showed you Alex's POV before the accident and how he and Molly met. Alex was changed after his accident - he looked the same but he suffered a brain injury so 'he' wasn't the same. We get to see how Molly copes with knowing that the man she fell in love with is gone and in his place is someone different and she still loves him. There were ups and downs - lots of different options but love won through in the end. It ended as happily as it could as there is not a miraculous cure and it would have been totally unrealistic for Alex to wake up and be his old self again someday. It's a hard read in places because you think 'what would I do' and there isn't a right or wrong way to deal with something like this and it is so incredibly hard for everyone involved - how do you mourn for the person that was when they are still here?

Thanks, NetGalley and Penguin UK for the opportunity to read this book in exchange of an honest unbiased review.
My husband the stranger is the first book I have read by R Done.
Molly and Alex are your ‘classic’ love3 story, falling in love at first sight, they inherit a house from Alex’s father which they set about turning into their own home, with dreams of starting a family of their own.
The dream turns to a nightmare when Alex falls down the stairs, smashing his her on wrought iron. He received a terrible brain injury in the fall which landed him in a coma.
When he returns home, he is no longer the man Molly fell in love with. However, Molly believes in the vows she took, she promised to love him in sickness and in health and that is exactly what she sets about doing.
Can Molly ‘learn’ to love the new Alex who has almost become a recluse with a short-term memory, quick temper and no sense of smell or should she move on.
I love this book is told in the present day an also in flash backs.
This is a well written, thought provoking book with an ending that will leave you wanting more.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for supplying me with a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

The synopsis of this book drew me in. The tagline "But what if you found out that it wasn't an accident at all...?" was the clincher.

It was a very well written book which stirred up far more emotions in me than I was comfortable with but I was actually hanging on for that twist which started off the rollercoaster ride I'd been expecting. When it eventually came, it was very disappointing without the reaction I had anticipated on picking up this novel.

I hate to give this book such a low rating, but it was incorrectly marketed. I was expecting a pychological thriller; this book was certainly not that.

An accident, an horrific injury. Your husband is no longer the person you married. How do you cope? Slightly difficult and uncomfortable read about just how life changing an accident can be. The ultimate love story. Well researched. 3.5*. My thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for the advance reader copy.

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.
A tragic accident causes Alex to no longer be the same man that Molly fell in love with. This book is split between the present day and the past which gives the background to the story. Narrated by different characters it is well constructed and sympathetic to the plight of Alex following the accident. I empathised with Molly for the loss of the man she had known originally and her memories of their love and life pre accident are quite moving. Their relationship seemed to be perfect before his life changing accident and the difficulties it causes to both of their lives is very moving.
A thought provoking and poignant story. My final question is "how do you grieve and mourn for someone who is still alive?"

Oooooooh I really enjoyed this book, right from the start I knew it was going to be great and it didn't disappoint!

I found it a hard read and quite emotional really, I found the storyline an interesting one and could see just how hard it must be for the people who are left after such a life changing injury, how hard it must be to look the same but not be the same.

The pace was slow in parts but the twists soon come, then it got interesting. I really enjoyed it and won't say too much but I certainly didn't see it coming...! Enjoy

An absolutely stunning book. Compelling from beginning to end, keeping pace with Molly and Alex's life. Sometimes dark. Sometimes heartbreaking. Triumphant in the end.

My Husband the Stranger
Alex suffers an awful accident which leaves him brain damaged, the accident happens when he is visiting his twin brother Graeme.
Alex can function but struggles to cope with daily chores and is unable to work.
Molly is married to Alex, she struggles to hold down her job and ensure Alex is safe during the day. Without a support network Molly finds it hard to cope and has decisions to make about her career and the future with Alex.

Thought provoking and not what I was expecting. You know those conversations you have, 'if your other half became bedridden, wheelchair bound, mentally ill, terminally ill etc etc.. would you stick around, stick them in a home, stick them with divorce papers?' This is kinda like that. After an accident Alex is not the man Holly married. Think personality transplant, though I'm sure my hubby would say the same about me after 20 odd years! (I'd stick him in a home just in case you were wondering).

Seriously though, imagine the gentle, loving man who'd do anything for you, trapped inside a volatile, petulant, selfish, pedantic shell. Glimpses of the old Alex do come through, which is what keeps Holly hanging on in there. The story is also told from Alex's perspective before the accident which helps us understand just why Holly stays. It really brings home that 'in sickness and in health' vow, how many of us really think about that one affecting us, especially when in our prime?

Subtle twists and nuances keep this from being just another marriage in crisis, will love be enough book and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this warm hearted book.

Molly is a very likeable human being who tries to do her best for the memory of what she and her husband, Chris once had. Since a devastating brain injury that husband has disappeared, and his flashier twin brother is more like the real thing than he is himself.
She agonises over every move in order not to trigger a toddler/adult temper tantrum and buries herself in a work, pacify, work routine until even the work part is under threat.
Molly’s parents and friends pull together t help her and want to do more but things are complicated by her husband’s need for continuity and routine and the fact that the unconverted home of theirs which still needs expensive work and time lavishing on it is jointly owned by the twin brother.
Except for two characters, most of the others are fallible humans not starkly drawn good or bad guys. Descriptions of their courtship related by Chris are beautifully written and explains why she fell in love with him. Meanwhile Chris relates his version of similar past events and shows how loveable he was, and so unlike he is now. Graham, the twin is not as nice, but has been damaged by a tragic event in his childhood so it is not surprising that he resents his perfect brother- whilst also loving him.
This isn’t a straightforward, predictable story because there are so many crossroads Molly could go any way at each one. I really enjoyed this book, the author’s second – so I am now keen to read her first.

A really interesting read and raised some questions in my head as to what I would have done in the same situation. The story line was well written and kept you coming back for more. Would have no qualms about recommending this to friends.

Gripping and a real,page turner. Will definitely look for this author in future.

Well..it was depressing and I couldn't really get in the flow or connect..

I enjoyed this book It was a bit harrowing to read in parts as you just wanted to give the husband a shake because of what he was putting his wife through that being said it was a good read

This is the first book I have read by Rebecca Done and was very impressed by her style of writing and the story line. I found this book really moving and made me question what I would do if anything happened in my life the same as in Molly's.