A bucket list to die for by Lorraine Fought
This book certainly takes you on an emotional roller coaster. It has wonderful characters and is packed full of troubles and wonder. This family saga set in our modern times spans 3 generations. Set upon a wonderful island in France which the author has based her novel to include real people from the villagers there. The story is both believable and warm hearted. After a family member dies the rest of the family are wrapped apart and only one member must do his upmost not only to keep them together but also has to make them all happy. Will he do it? Well you will have to read the book to find out. This book contains a wonderfully written ending.

This one focuses on the grief of an entire family when the matriarch dies too young from dementia. We have lots of points of view (probably too many) but most of the book is from the surviving spouse – Joe’s – perspective.

The setting is my favorite part of the book, the island of Groix, off the coast of Brittany, France. It was fascinating to read about island life and how passionate some of the residents are there.

The reading of Lou’s will sets in motion most of the action for the book. Lou has tasked Joe with trying to make their family members happy in a short amount of time. This is a daunting task as Joe doesn’t have the best relationship with his adult son, Cyrian. Joe has to figure out how to make Cyrian happier in his life and marriage and his daughter Sarah has romantic troubles of her own. Throw in two young girls, Joe’s granddaughters – Apple and Charlotte – and there are lots of people in the mix in this one!

I wasn’t sure if Joe could pull it off in time, but the journey was interesting. The characters grew on me. We also get to hear from Lou from the beyond, which added another unique element to the book. Overall I liked this one, but there were some issues, like too many characters and details and the writing style took some time getting used to for me.

I was unsure what this book would be like but I really loved it. Sad yet funny in parts, this is about the family of Lou and how she orchestrates their happiness after her death. When Lou passed away, she was aware that the relationship between her husband and their two children was fractured. Her dying wish was for him to help them find happiness. Sarah is battling a medical condition and rejection and is unwilling to accept love, Cyrian looks for love from everyone except his wife, who is battling a family curse. For me, the star of the story was Apple who was wise beyond her years. A beautiful story.

It’s bit late, but sometimes you just need to take your time with a book. Like a fine wine, or cheese, you can’t just ingest it in one sitting, you need time.

And I took my time with A Bucket List To Die For, and I enjoyed it enormously.

The story is about Lou and Joe, unfortunately Lou passes away, and her love Joe stays behind. But before she passed away, she notices that neither of all their children, Cyrian and Sarah are happy. So Joe has a final task, he has 2 months to change the mindset of their children.
But will he succeed?

This was a beautiful story, I really loved reading about their family, sometimes it broke my heart, and sometimes it made me laugh, just like so many families out there, there is none without it’s problems.

The death of a parent is horrible, it’s scary and I’m extremely happy to tell you, I have my two loving parents at my side at all time.

Every character get’s a voice in this story, and that’s what I loved about it.

It came out on the first of June, and I hope that, when you get the chance to read this book, you’ll take it.

I was very disappointed with this book,. I felt like I was missing a huge chunk of the story, as if this was a sequel. I was very confused throughout and had to really push through

Thanks to Netgalley and author for the arc in exchange for my unbiased opinion on the book..a gentle sweet read..loved it.

A very emotional story about family, connections, and what it means to be happy.
We meet a family at the funeral of the loving mom that kept them all together and discover that, despite some appearances, they each are going through life in a fog of unhappiness. The matriarch leaves a message in a bottle to her husband, Joe, and instructions just for him to make sure that their unhappy children find happiness. This sets off a series of discoveries and actions by Joe that slowly get the family back together.
It's not really a story about the big moments or exciting scenes, but more about the little things that make you fall in love, get up every morning and enjoy the days that go by. I like the fact that it makes it so that each character has to put in the effort to make things better for themselves and that it's not about big, dramatic changes, but about little changes in actions and perspectives that end up saving the day.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the read!

Grieving widower Joe is finding life very hard after the death of his beloved wife Lou.. Set on the tiny French

island of Groix, things become even more challenging when the solicitor tells Joe that Lou has left him her

bucket list with a single goal - to bring love and harmony back to their dysfunctional family.

.All the members of the family tell the story from their viewpoints.

The book draws you under its spell immediately. Philosophical and heartwarming,
A treasure to read.

This was a very emotional and story centering around the heart break of losing a loved one to dementia.

This is going to stay with me for a while to come.

The title is misleading but who cares once you start reading. Beautifully descriptive, wonderful characters. Superb. I would love to visit Groix one day as would anyone who reads this book.

Heartbreaking and sweet. Definitely have your tissues and get ready for an adventure. Recommend to those that love a little cry every now and then

A very emotional story that will rip your heart.
I was so engrossed in the book where I was not aware until the story ended. Wasn’t quite sure why the title was bucket list though?

I have mixed emotions about this book. It took me such a long time to get into. I thought about giving up several times. I persevered and it’s true it got better but I’m not sure it was amazing.

The characters are all very well written and developed extremely well and the story links together very well. I just felt it was a little slow.

I was disappointed there was only one item on the bucket list but it was a nice idea

I AM THANKFUL TO THE PUBLICATION HOUSE AND AUTHOR FOR PROVIDING ME WITH ADVANCR READERS COPY OF THIS BOOK AND MY OPINIONA ARE NOT INFLUENCED BY ANYONE
IT WAS SUCH AN EMOTIONAL GRIPPING READ LOVED IT

As usual in my reviews I will not rehash the plot - plenty of other reviews like that out there already!

This was - for me - a very slow read to begin with, but I persevered as I liked the premise of a "message in a bottle" from "The Beyond".

I enjoyed the book, which is set mainly in France (particularly the island of Groix) and is told from the viewpoint of many different characters - both inside and outside the family.

Some of the characters seemed very unpleasant initially, but as their stories and backgrounds unfolded, my opinion changed. The relationships between family members were well written - there are often rifts that only become apparent when someone passes away.

The book starts on a sombre note (the death of Lou, the Matriarch), moves through various difficult and emotional events, and ultimately ends optimistically.

One thing I remain puzzled about - the title - as I didn't really feel there was a bucket list in sight! However this may be something that was lost in translation as I understand it was originally in French.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC. All opinions my own.

Joe and Lou lived on the Island of Groix, off the coast of Brittany. When Lou dies, she leaves Joe a task to do - he has to make his children Cyrian and Sarah happy again. How will he achieve it?
A charming tale which I thoroughly enjoyed.

This story is told from the perspective of multiple people. Set mainly on the island of Groix, which is off the coast of Brittany, it focuses on a family who have just lost the grandmother, Lou, who is Joe’s wife, mother to Sarah and Cyrian and grandmother to Apple and Charlotte. Joe, a retired cardiologist, is distraught at the loss of his wife and the family lacks the ability to live together harmoniously and are all grieving separately. Lou leaves a request in her will for Joe to make their children happy. Cyrian is divorced from Apple’s mother and lives with his second wife Albane, who is Charlotte’s mother but is having an affair with Danielle. Cyrian is angry with his father and says he will not be returning to Groix. Albane dislikes Apple and sees her as a bad influence on Charlotte. Sarah is single after having been jilted by Patrice and has vowed not to go out with any man more than twice. On the whole they are a totally dysfunctional family and Joe will have a hard time trying to make them all happy but somehow they are all eventually reconciled because of Joe’s interventions which he goes to great lengths to achieve. The story looks at relationships between parents and their children, between siblings and between spouses and exes but the biggest focus is on the beauty of Groix which I felt compelled to find out about. The island is very central to the plot and is a place where everyone knows one another and support is offered freely. Although remote it sounds idyllic. The story is well written with some very complex characters – some are difficult to warm to but others leave you liking them very much, particularly Apple, Joe’s eldest granddaughter. The book is also quite complex but it is the sort of story that one could read more than once. Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me an ARC of this book.

Thanks to netgalley for the chance to read this book.

When Lou dies from a rare type of dementia in her fifties she leaves behind a message to her husband Joe. To get the message Joe has the task of getting his family reunited within two months in order to get the message from Lou’s solicitor. Joe slowly manages to get the family back together but can he do it before his time runs out so he can find out what the message actually is.

I wasn't sure about this book when I started reading it, but I persevered, and am I glad I did!!
It was such an emotional story, from different sides of Joe & Lou's family!! When Lou dies, she leaves Joe to sort the family out, because they all have troubles, and he's left to make sure they end up 'happy'!! Well that is quite a 'task and a half' for him, and this tells the story of each individual, including the two little girl step sisters, their point of view, and their exploits, as well as their families sides too!!
Quite a ride of sadness, emotions of all kinds, of a beautiful story!!
If you're not sure to begin with, persevere, you will be glad you did!!
I highly recommend it!!

How well you enjoy a book is highly dependent on what your state of mind is when you pick it up. When you pick up a book at the right time, it speaks to your heart. Thus, what might have ended up as an average read at any other time ends up connecting with your emotions deeply. Luckily for me (and for the author), I picked up this book at the right time.

Joseph, a retired cardiologist, has recently lost his wife of many years to dementia. As she was just in her late fifties, he isn’t mentally prepared for her death and finds himself struggling to go on living without her. Imagine his surprise when he finds that his wife Lou’s final wish is that he spend the next two months reuniting his discordant family members and making sure that they are truly happy. Their family includes their son Cyrian, his wife Albane and daughter Charlotte, extending to his ex-girlfriend Maëlle and daughter Apple, and their daughter Sarah, who is determined not to engage in long-term relationships because of her disability. Ensuring happiness for this motley group isn’t easy and Joseph, who hasn’t been a hands-on father any time before, finds that his assumptions about his family’s emotional status quo are quite wrong.

The storyline is very straightforward, and to a great extent, predictable. Each of the characters mentioned above has their share of struggles and are portrayed in a very human way rather than black or white. I love writers that do this. Reading too many goody-goody characters can be harmful for your health. :P I especially loved the way the granddaughters were portrayed with sass and gumption rather than plain old sugar and spice.

What turns this book from a typical general fiction novel to an intriguing one is its writing style. Every single main character in this novel (YES, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM!) finds a voice in the story. So the plot comes to you from the perspectives of the parents Joseph and Lou (the latter speaking from the place beyond death), the children Cyrian and Sarah, their past and present love interests (Danny, Maëlle, Albane, Patrice, and Federico), the grandchildren Apple and Charlotte, AND three additional minor characters. That’s fourteen character voices in a single book! Yet, the book doesn't get overwhelming but helps you connect better to the individual behind the voice. To take it a notch higher, most of the main character perspectives are written in first person and addressed to second person Lou. This makes their stories feel even more intimate as they talk from their hearts to the one who is no more. The rest of the povs are written in third person, and you can sense the feeling of this narrator being an outsider because he/she isn’t speaking to Lou directly. The distinction is really well demarcated.

One very special character in the book who doesn’t get an independent narrative is Groix Island, the place where the entire story is set. What a perfect setting it is for this story! You will find yourself longing to be at the island, amid the gulls, watching the cold waves thrashing on the rocky shores. At least half of the magic of the story is because of the locale. The internal conflicts of the characters are perfectly complemented by the stoic atmosphere of the island, its reliable presence an anchor to the emotionally adrift people in the story. The book highlights, time and again, the need to look deeper in people's hearts rather than judge them by face value and surface actions. Every single character in the book has hidden secrets, some of which don’t get revealed to the rest even after the story is over.

The book isn’t perfect. I have a strong feeling that there is something major lost in translation here. The original French version, “Entre ciel et Lou” (Between the sky and Lou), has a solid GR rating with mostly 4 or 5 stars. The English version’s rating is vehemently clustered around the 4 star mark. While I didn’t find any flaw with the language used per se, I couldn’t help finding the passion behind the words missing in many cases. The biggest clue to this lacuna lies in the title. “A Bucket List to Die For” is a complete misnomer as the story has nothing to do with a bucket list. The title and the cover make the book appear like a chick-lit novel, which it isn’t, though it does have its share of humour and light moments. The book is a strongly emotional drama and those who pick it up in the hope of light relief will be disappointed.

Another problem could be the pace of the story. It is really very slow and takes a long time to unfold. For me, it clicked because I’m in a state of mind where I can’t concentrate on any page for more than a few minutes. If you are looking for a quick story, this book might not work for you.

However, as I said, the timing was perfect for me as the book suited my current mood. In a way, it was cathartic for me to read this. It’s a book that deals with grief, loneliness, friendship, health issues, family relationships (spousal, parental and sibling), love, death, trust, heartbreaks… It offers an emotional release for every mood without inundating your senses. So I’m quite happy with this read. It offered me just what I needed—a light, emotional read--without overwhelming me. I would rate it a 4.25.

Thank you, NetGalley and Hodder Paperbacks, for the Advanced Review Copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.