I received an ARC of this book via net galley i exchange for an honest review - so here goes.

At first I couldn't decide about this book, It appears to have little or no narrative and little in the way of character development that made me feel involved with them. However it wasn't a book that I thought I couldn't read. There was a style that made it easy to read. As I progressed however, the author did begin to create a narrative that was full of emotion. There was love, loss and longing within the story line. I do think it will stay in my memory but it won't be one of my all time favourites

She is quirky, she lives in a small town in England, she feels she doesn’t fit in, she has a twin called Julia, she is oppositional, she loves facts, she is obsessed with words - she is Augusta Hope. And I loved her!!!

2 worlds are brought together in this powerful novel of wanting something more than what you have. Both Augusta and Parfait want a better life and both have their sights on Spain.

The novel is engrossing and thought provoking with vivid, relatable characters. It’s the perfect read for fans of Eleanor Oliphant. I predict this book will be HUGE!!!

I spent a lot of time reading this, unsure whether I was actually enjoying it or not! Once the connection starts to show it's relevance it becomes much more enjoyable and is a decent book with some emotion in it.

I read this through NetGalley - thank you to them. This is my impartial review.

I enjoyed this book so much. The two thread narrative works really well, with quite distinct voices. I loved Augusta - her fierce intelligence; her love for her sister, Julia; her need to flee suburbia - she felt like a real person, making mistakes, learning from life - really well captured.

Both narratives contain tragedy, and both protagonists learn from those tragedies, even though it's hard. The resilience of the human spirit, the strength we get from others, all told so well.

How do I explain how great this book without giving anything away!

Julia and Augusta are the Hope twins - bought up in an ordinary place by ordinary parents who are of their time.
Augusta is extraordinary, clever, eager to learn and outspoken. She can be like this because she has a home - her twin sister.
The threads of this book weave in and out of time, place and experience. Its about family of whatever type and learning from others.

Can highly recommend

This was a very different book and one that's quite hard to describe. I'm still not sure if I particularly liked it or not... but it was certainly very different and one that I'll remember.

There are two main characters, Augusta who lives in England and Parfait who lives in Burundi in Africa initially, but escapes to Spain by boat. Augusta is a twin, but is very different from her sister Julia who is the 'normal' twin. Augusta is a bit odd in her way of thinking and the way she looks at words all the time. Their parents are very straight and stuck in their ways, and her Father is definitely a bit odd, which is probably where Augusta gets it from. Augusta has also always had a fascination with Burundi since fixating on the word whilst young.

Parfait was born in Burundi, but had a very hard life to start with, with all the unrest in their country. His Mother died, one of this brothers died, his Father was killed and his sisters abused and they then disappeared. So he decides to escape to Spain with his youngest brother, Zion, ending up washed up on a beach, like so many escaping refugees.

The story follows both Augusta and Parfait's lives, with little chapters on each, but mostly Augusta, and you wonder where it's all going really, until it starts to become a bit clearer in that they are both working their way towards each other over the years.

For me it was a bit of a struggle as I wasn't entirely sure where the story was going, and it felt quite disjointed at times, but it was also one of those books where I had to keep reading to see where it all ended up. There was a small incident of an animal dying too, right at the very end, which I wasn't happy about so put a bit of a damper on the end of the story for me. A very unusual, quite sad feeling, book.

The Other Half of Augusta Hope is about twins Augusta and Julia who lives in a little town in England. Augusta is the odd twin. She reminded me a bit of Eleanor Oliphant. She is an odd child and loves words. Her favourite book is the dictionary. She finds hard to fit in life. Her sister Julia is the ‘normal’ child and is always there for her sister. The story continues telling us of the summers they spend travelling with their parents. They share everything together until she meets Diego and both girls drift apart and then tragedy strikes. And Augusta is never the same again
The story has an alternate one. The story of Parfait, who lives in the town called Burundi in Africa. He has hopes and dreams, to make a better life for himself and his family ad escape the Civil war. He decides to buy a boat with his brother Zion they sail away to Spain.
This is a beautifully emotionally written novel by Joanna Glen. It is one of them thought provoking books that will keep you thinking about long after you read it. 3.5 half stars from me.

The other half of Augusta Hope is a beautifully and heartfelt written book, that will make readers laugh and cry in equal amounts.

Augusta Hope is a different kind of heroine than most. Her love of words is magical and you find yourself falling in love with the authors words as the book goes along.

There are moments in the book where I was smiling and then crying the next minute. A certain part of the book had me in floods of tears!
It's an excellent debut by Joanna Glen. I recommend this book if you like novels such as Eleanor Oliphant, or The wisdom of Sally red shoes, just make sure you have tissues at hand!
I will be looking out for the next book by Joanna Glen and will be recommending 'Augusta Hope' to my friends and family.

There were parts of this story I loved and parts that absolutely draaaaaggggged. There were some fabulous characters (Parfait’s siblings) and others that were just glossed over, even though they contributed to the atmosphere (the Spanish friends)...
take one pair of twins with hopes and dreams, one boy to lust over, a boy who wants a better life out of Africa and some parents who have a favourite twin. Mix them all together and you have this interesting story. It could have been amazing - themes of first love, loss, determination, migration and finding your way - with the contrasts of fairly affluent Britain and war-torn Burundi.

Unfortunately this book feels like a mishmash of stories that don’t fully get explored - think there’s just too much going on. That said, I really did like the main characters but the parallel lives of Parfait and Augusta just didn’t work for me.

Interesting concept and potentially fascinating storyline that, for me, just didn’t work in its execution. 3*

A bit like Eleanor Oliphant, Augusta Hope isn't your typical heroine and I have to admit that (like Eleanor Oliphant) I put this one down thinking that I couldn't get it to it and then returned to it some weeks later. I am so glad I did. Augusta and Parfait's stories really affected me, to the extent that two weeks on from finishing it, I am still thinking about them. It's a wonderful, funny, heartbreaking book with exceptional characters. I cannot recommend it highly enough and I will be buying it for all my friends! An exceptional debut.

This is a rather sweet account of the childhood of a challenging and clever twin, of the connections and lack of connections in a family where siblings can grow differently. There's another twin story of a boy growing up in Burundi in much more difficult circumstances and becoming a migrant as does our heroine Augusta. This is a characterful and complexly interwoven story of lives, loves, sadness, loss and continuation. It repays careful reading and is highly accomplished as a debut. Some of the observations were instantly recognisable in one's own experience of childhood and growing up and many made me laugh out loud. This is a highly recommended and will be savoured by many readers.

Thanks so much to Harper Collins, Joanna Glen and NetGalley for the opportunity to read THE OTHER HALF OF AUGUSTA HOPE.
I don't think I can praise this book highly enough, to be honest. It's beautifully written, the prose often laugh out loud which I did, simply because the family dynamic described often resembled my own, and although I didn't laugh at the time felt I could when reading about it. Augusta and Julia are twins. They were born at roughly the same time which made them twins but that is where the similarity ends. They are very different people, Julia beautiful and ready to please, Augusta different, quirky, a little offbeat. I liked her immensely. She loves words, reads the dictionary endlessly and loves etymology. I recognised her immediately. I was the same when I was young and I have autism, so I'm guessing she may also be autistic. Augusta is also an adventurer and wants to see the world, particularly Burundi which she has a special interest in simply because she liked saying the word, and then discovers she wants to know more. Her story is narrated side by side with Parfait, born in Burundi and witness to many atrocities, particularly those which involve his own family.
The writing is so heartfelt that when Julia loses her baby, Rose, you feel it too, and you understand why she does what she does because human beings can fall so low they do things they wouldn't have if they were not so entrenched in grief. There are various human conditions brought about by circumstance and many of them are covered in this wonderful, heartwrenching, beautiful story. And I loved the ending. It was just what it was meant to be.

I requested this book for personal reasons. I have often felt different in life so I really wanted to read this and like it. Ok pleased to say I did! It resonated me in lots of ways and I’m so glad authors are exploring the differing ways people think.

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins for this ARC of The Other Half of Augusta Hope.

Though I have given this book four stars, I have to say that the story itself merits a full five. Unfortunately, poor formatting and elementary mistakes such as not giving each speaker their own paragraph spoiled this read immensely. I realise this is an ARC and that many formatting issues will get taken care of before publishing—I would hope—but the dialogue paragraphing issues shouldn’t be here in the first place.

Okay, so, on to the tale …

Have you ever felt like you don’t fit in? Ever wanted escape a bad situation? Or felt that you just can’t go on? If so, this book will resonate with you on so many levels. Though it tackles such difficult topics, the author does this with delicacy and grace, and the whole book holds a glorious thread of humour. It had me laughing out loud a few times.

At first, I wondered what the connection could possibly be between Augusta and Parfait, but it all came clear soon enough. I loved the beginning, which had me read the first 40% of the book in one sitting. I loved the middle, which didn’t lag at all. And I loved the ending, which was well rounded and tied off nicely. The only reason I didn’t finish this wonderful book in one go was time constraint.

I haven’t read Joanna Glen before and will definitely look out for her in the future. Thank you for a great read.

***
NOTE ON RATINGS: I consider a 3-star rating a positive review. Picky about which books I give 5 stars to, I reserve this highest rating for the stories I find stunning and which moved me.

5 STARS: IT WAS AMAZING! I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN! — Highly Recommended.

4 STARS: I WOULD PULL AN ALL-NIGHTER — Go read this book.

3 STARS: IT WAS GOOD! — An okay read. Didn’t love it. Didn’t hate it.

2 STARS: I MAY HAVE LIKED A FEW THINGS —Lacking in some areas: writing, characterisation, and/or problematic plot lines.

1 STAR: NOT MY CUP OF TEA —Lots of issues with this book.

An interesting and original book spanning so many different emotions. Really enjoyed reading this one.
Thanks for the advance copy

Powerful, raw, emotional and strangely filled with hope. This book has so many layers. Simplistically, it switches between the privileged first world life of Augusta, and the devastating third world life of Parfait. She cant wait to flee suburbia and he cant wait to flee the horrors of Africa. I had thought it would the quirky "Eleanor Oliphant" vein, but quickly realised that this was not the focal point but the catalyst.
The author is skilled and weaves the story well, almost poetically. I cant say that knowingly would have read a book that handles such heavy, depressing issues, but I will say that it was delicately handled and threaded with hope so that I felt richer for having read it. It felt like a work of art and it made me think.

This is a clever and wonderful book - it has everything; humour, joy, loss, sadness, hope and love, the whole spectrum of human emotions. It’s the sort of book you think about when you have to put it down and don’t want to finish because it is so good. Joanna Glen writes deftly with a lightness of touch which makes even the saddest parts of the book easier to accept. It’s a novel about coming together and hope and redemption. You will smile and laugh and perhaps shed a tear but you will be very glad that you have read it.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this book but still I was surprised. The story of Augusta and her twin sister Julia was emotional and I really felt that I was rooting for Augusta to find her place in the world. She had a different way of looking at life than the rest of her family and over time there was a feeling of foreboding about what was going to happen.
Joanna Glen has written a thought provoking and at times heart breaking story, which I found staying with me even when I wasn’t reading it. The contrast of characters was interesting though I found the final section of the book taking an unexpected and not altogether comfortable turn.

The Other Half of Augusta Hope is a quirky read on a par with Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. I say on a par as there’s a quirky main character who is alone in the world and who everyone thinks strange.
It’s also similar due to the beauty of the writing and the subjects within. That’s the end of the comparison as Augusta stands on her own two feet (as does Eleanor)
I liked Augusta from the off. She’s considered off as she loves dictionaries and books. Well, hello! A lot of what she said and did took me back to childhood days and I think that’s how Augusta started to get under my skin and how she will with other readers too.
She travels to Spain in search of many things, herself included. That’s where the story of another person without a place in the world ends up. Parfait is, like his name suggests, perfect in many ways. He’s the other half for Augusta, lives in another country, yet shares so many traits with her.
She’s from England and he’s from Burundi and these two cultural differences are what drive the story. Very opposing experiences yet what brings them together is human contact and emotion. We all look for some where to feel safe and loved. Burundi, England become the shared story of Tarifa in Spain , where the locations take the story to their joint conclusion.

The locations worked really well here to propel the story, share the history and showcase how differences can make us more similar than we would think. More unites people than divides them. What a message for life in general.

This is a beautifully told story. It took me a while to get into this book and I am so glad that I persevered. Augusta Hope is definitely unique. She spends her life trying to find where she fits in. A world away Parfit is growing up and is trying to find his place in the world as well. This is a memorable read,

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.