What an absolutely heartbreaking story. It was quite hard to read sometimes but it was well written and a great read

All the Water in the World by Karen Ramey is a wonderfully written story of a family in crisis. It’s told alternately by Eve and her daughter, Maddy. The emotions described in the course of the story are so evocative; the reader can’t help but be drawn in to the drama. The tragic storyline is sensitively handled and never becomes overly sentimental. I thoroughly recommend it.

Grateful thanks to Netgalley and the publisher Two Roads for the opportunity to read this novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and John Murray Press for this advanced reader's copy. Slow burn of a book. While it takes times to build the story, it definitely pulls on a heartstrings. Hard to imagine enjoying a book thats story is build around teen cancer but it's beautiful and engaging.

Hard to say you enjoyed a book when it's about a teen with cancer but I did! Maddy is a very sympathetic character and you really feel for her. It's unimaginable what families in this situation must go through but I think Maddy portrays her feelings very well.
Eve just irritated me to be honest. I didn't like her and thought she was incredibly selfish. I'm not sure why Robin wanted to be with her.
Overall, i thought that it was an impressive debut.
My thanks to netgalley, the author and the publisher for this copy.

This novel tells the story of 16-year-old Maddy, who has cancer, and decides to reach out to the father she has never met before it's too late. It also tells the story from her mother's perspective, offering insight into how she's coping with having a terminally-ill daughter.

It's certainly a slow burner, and the large focus on the teenager and her friendships and relationships made it feel more like a YA novel. Although it's about a tragic situation, with the potential to pull at the reader's heartstrings, I did not feel drawn to the characters unfortunately and if it weren't for reviewing it, I'm not sure I would have persevered.

I loved Maddy's sections of this book. She seemed very natural, well written, and I understood her. I couldn't empathise with everything she was going through but I understood her actions and her questions and her decisions.

The book itself I think is well written, I was devastated when then inevitable happened and I thought it was handled beautifully. It was honest, and heartbreaking. I would imagine that is a fine line to tread as an author and Karen Raney trod it perfectly.

I could not comprehend Eve, at least, not afterwards. If she's supposed to be incomprehensible then well done, but it made for hard reading when you can't understand a character's motives. I wonder if Eve didn't understand them herself. Robin's shout of "you're wrong!" finally recalls her to herself, perhaps she had become destructive in her grief.

While writing this review I changed my grading from 3 to 4 stars because I was thinking more about Eve. I still don't understand her, but maybe I understand why I don't. She's lashing out at a world she no longer understands. I'll be thinking about this book in the future.

I hadn’t read a synopsis of this novel before starting it and since I was reading it on my Kindle it meant that I came to the structure and story entirely fresh.

The story unfolds gradually, interweaving the narratives of Eve and her teenage daughter Maddie. I suspect that most people will engage more with one voice than the other, probably depending upon their own stage in life, however both have very touching moments and the inter-generational relationships in particular are handled well and say something interesting.

I don’t want to delve into the specifics of the story too much as I don’t want to add spoilers but I will say that the book covers themes such as teenage illness, teenage relationships, single parent families, art and climate change.

I enjoyed the book and found some sections really moving but I did have a few issues with it which lost it the 5th star. I’m not sure of the target audience? This is mainly because of the split narrative. If Maddie’s has been the only voice then it would have clearly been in John Green territory but the adult pov makes that more problematic. To me, the tone throughout sounded younger than the material. Finally, everyone is nice and supportive of everyone else. Having experienced considerable periods of illness in my own youth, that sadly didn’t ring true. There are always some people who surprise you with their kindness - usually those you least expect - but there are also those you are sure will support you, who in the event, run a mile. Having people like that might have added a more nuanced and honest element to the narrative.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

I waited quite a while to read this book.

Couldn't really remember what drew me to it in the first place.

And if I'm honest it took me a while to make my way through it once I had began to read the story.

The writing itself is very articulate.

Almost poetic in places.

And the story itself, which was broken down into three parts, was a slow burner.

I found myself tearing up at times because it was quite a sad set of circumstances.

But it felt like there was something missing, like the book wasn't quite complete because in the end I wasn't sure what the purpose of it all was.

It felt like I should have had this big moment of enlightenment that just didn't come.

Over all I would say that the novel is a good one. The characters are all likeable (but needed more depth in my opinion) and the writing was done with purpose. It just a little more - of what I'm not sure - to make it a really memorable book.

Mandy is 16 , lives with her mum Eve and her partner, not Maddy's dad. Mandy has cancer, which turns out to be terminal. The story is told from both Maddy and Eve's perspective and is well told. The story is complicated by Maddy looking for her father, who she has never met. Eve has kept details of him sparse, always thinking she would tell Maddy more when she was 18, but of course never got that chance. I think the story works as a YA story but also for a more general readership.

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for providing me an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. I enjoyed this story very much and felt like I knew each character personally due to the description of them. I enjoyed the storyline. This is not my usual genre but in this instance I am extremely pleased and grateful for opening up my mind to something totally different. Thanks again.

I found this a great debut. It was very moving and emotional. It's told from 2 perspectives, a mum and a dying daughter. Very well written.
Thanks to NG and the publisher for this copy.

This has a good premise and a lot of potential, but there are certain elements that ruined it for me.

Maddy is 16 years old and she’s been diagnosed with cancer. We get to follow her and her mother as they deal with the impact that this has on their lives (both adult and teenage). I found that the parts told by Maddys perspective to be far more interesting than her mothers. In fact, the last 20% (which is told largely from the mums’ point of view) just ruined the entire book for me. The premise of this is based on such an emotional topic that I thought this would be relayed in the writing style but sadly not. Also, who is Coda??

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This story about a mother and her terminally ill daughter was heartbreaking in places but a very honest read. I wanted to love it, but found that I couldn't quite get close enough to the characters. I found the second half more enjoyable, perhaps because it seemed that more of it was told from the mother's point of view. It had similarities with The Fault in Our Stars and I did wonder if perhaps it would work better as a YA novel.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

A great debut- told from split perspectives of mum Eve and her 16 year old daughter Maddy who is terminally ill. Detailing how they come to terms with losing a family member and facing death, this is a gripping story with a lot of heart.

This is the story of Maddy (a teenager with cancer) and her mother Eve.

While it obviously addresses being a teen with a terminal illness, as well as being the parent of one, at it’s heart this the story of normal lives. We follow Maddy in the awkwardness of first romance, finding a cause to be passionate about, and tracking down the father she never knew. Eve meanwhile works through her relationship with her boyfriend, while watching her little girl growing up.

This had a lot of heart and emotion to it. While I don’t totally get the comparisons to Celeste Ng, there’s no denying both are wonderful writers. I can’t wait to see what else she writes in the future.

My thanks to Netgalley and to the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Superficially this is a young adult book, but the focus is upon both Maddy's own relationships and those between the others in the story, which means that this is becomes a subtle and nuanced read. The adults in the book, her family, teacher, previously unmet natural father, are all well drawn, rounded and sympathetic portraits. There is much to enjoy in each of them and their actions are believable and well handled.

The theme which stands out is that of the echoes of past decisions and how they impact upon life in the present. This is cleverly done, with a light touch and seems to offer good reflection opportunities for readers.

The descriptive writing is lyrical, particularly enjoyable are the sections of the book set on the lake and in Falling Water, so evocative of setting.

All in all, a joyful and hopeful novel, despite the tragedy at the core of the writing.

I thought this book offered interesting insights into what it would be like to be a teenager faced with cancer. I felt drawn into Maddy’s story and enjoyed the aspect of family relationships too. Thanks NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

I felt this to be a sad, heartbreaking and poignant read in parts. This is a well written and thought out book. The author wrote of Maddy and Eve’s thoughts, feelings and emotions so sensitively it was really touching. This is a book about young love, coping with cancer, family relationships and family secrets. A haunting yet very good read. 4 stars

This story follows Maddy and her mother, Eve as they both try to navigate life and relationships and Maddy’s illness.

This book wasn’t at all what I was expecting. At first I wasn’t sure about the dual POV because I just loved Maddy so much that I was disappointed when it switched to her mum. But I grew to really like Eve and her story was just as compelling.

Their stories were so moving and real and utterly heartbreaking. The writing was wonderful and all of the characters were really well done. Great emotional read.

*actual rating 4.5 stars

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the free book in exchange for an honest review

I had high hopes with this book but was really disappointed. I wasnt gripped, by 10% I found myself skipping paragraphs and couldn't finish. The premise was my kind of book but I just didnt get on with it. It was too slow for me!