Imagine you find a scrunched up piece of paper that obviously has some sort of picture printed on it.

You think you know what it is from the small bits you can see but it is only as you carefully unfold it and iron out each crease that the full, detailed image becomes clear.

That’s exactly what reading A Life Without You, Shari Low’s brilliant new book, felt like to me.

Each gripping chapter revealed just a little bit more - with a fair few surprises along the way.

Here’s the blurb:

Dee and Jen have been best friends since their days of teenage crushes, bad 90's make-up and huge hair.

They’ve passed every milestone of their lives together and now in their thirties own a successful boutique, sharing a bond that is as strong as the closest of sisters.

Until one day everything changes.

Dee is gone, killed by a reckless driver, leaving Jen to face the harsh reality of a world without her.

Jen vows to honour Dee’s dreams and take care of everything and everyone she loved.

Until she realises that sometimes the only way forward is to let go of the past.

The book starts off at a cracking pace and never really lets up. Part of that is because, while it’s written in the first person, it switches between Jen, Luke (Dee’s husband) and Val (Dee’s mum) and that helps give it its energy – not to mention makes it nearly impossible to put down.

There are so many heartbreaking moments but also lots of heartwarming ones too.

An experienced author, it’s clear Shari Low is a talented writer who obviously puts a lot of work into her characters as they all seemed very 3D – so much so I wanted to reach out and hug them all at different points.

It is a great, very true to life, tale – one which deserves all the praise I’ve already seen being heaped upon it.

Format: Kindle.

Price: £2.48.

My rating: Five stars.

With thanks to publishers Aria (via NetGalley) for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Jen and Dee have been best friends since they were twelve, they do everything together until one Sunday evening Dee goes to get her phone from her car and is killed by a reckless driver while trying to save a young boy.

On the night of Dee’s funeral, Jen discovers her boyfriend of fifteen year Pete is leaving her without any explanation, within the span of a couple weeks she has lost the two people closest to her. With Pete gone, Jen tries to help Dee’s husband Luke through the grieving process.

Jen and Dee run a business which includes overseas travel which Dee used to do and it is decided that Jen will take on Dee’s travels. While Jen is travelling she discovers things about Dee that shock her as they were supposed to know everything about each other. Jen has to decide whether to keep these secrets to herself or to let Luke and Dee’s family know.

I love Shari Low’s books and this book was no exception. The beginning was heartbreaking and the secrets of Dee’s life that unravelled were unexpected. This was an excellent book and I would highly recommend it.

After reading The Story of Our Life by Shari Low i was super keen to read her next book A Life without You and all i can say is wow.

Shari Low's writing style is just amazing.
From the moment you pick up the book and start reading you can't help but be captivated. Her books are always touching, bittersweet and will pull at your heartstrings. If you lucky like me you may even shed a tear!

A Life without You follows the story of two best friends Dee and Jen. They have been friends since high school and are practically like sisters.
In a tragic turn of events Jen witnesses a terrible accident where Dee is struck down by a drug induced motorist and dies in Jen's arms.
The day of the funeral, Jen's boyfriend Pete of 15 years decides to up and leave without and explanation and Jen is left to deal with her grief.
She finds solace with Dee's husband who is trying to come to terms with the death of his wife and together they try their hardest to move forward with their lives and learn to live a life without Dee in it.
Along the way Jen discovers some secrets about her best friend and is faced with possibly giving up her own happiness for the sake of her late friend. Jen has a lot of soul searching to do and some very tough decisions to make. Can she move forward and forget the past?

I just loved everything about this book! I was hooked from the very first page and really love how in Shari Low's books most of the action so to speak happens within the first paragraph. definitely my favorite read of 2017 and Shari Low is fast becoming one of my favorite authors.

If you like Dani Atkins then i think you would enjoy this book too.

A huge thankyou to Netgalley and Aria for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Set in Glasgow focusing on the lives of two friends since they were five years old, Dee and Jen.

They run a business together now all week except Sunday's or probable party day considering when we meet them!

However, a crime on the doorstep and a one in a million accident sees us watch as Dee tries to save little Archie a young child from a car hitting him, thus instead we see Dee through Jen's horrified eyes and how she comes to term with what she's not just witnessed but just whom she has now lost.
We see Jen go through the motions of grief and the support she has from everyone including Pete, her boyfriend as well as seeing Dee's family including her husband coming to terms with their sudden tragic loss.
But then Jen's life is changed once again only this time on the day of her best friends funeral in a way she didn't see coming.

The romances in the book and the actions of our characters display all the usual chick lit traits and I also enjoyed the a split perspectives amongst the group of friends and family around Jen and Dee.

This was a great book from a lovely new author to me, I can't wait for more to come in the future from Shari.
Thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!