All these places had their moments
With lovers and friends, I can still recall
Some are dead and some are living
In my life, I’ve loved them all

[In My Life – The Beatles]

I sit listening to Libby and Jack’s song as I write this review and can so clearly see it accompanying a montage of their life together on the screen in my mind’s eye. It’s truly a fitting choice for the emotions evoked by this fabulous second contemporary romance novel by Amelia Henley.

Charming. Devastating. The Art of Loving You invoked chills on more than one occasion as it wove a spell on me and captured my heart. Whilst there is much sorrow encapsulated in the story (have a ready supply of tissues to hand), it was accompanied by so many brighter moments of hope. Witnessing the havoc wreaked upon Libby and Jack’s lives after a simple sliding doors moment is truly heart breaking, it’s impossible not to be invested in willing the shattered pieces to find their way back together. I loved that each character really was integral to the story, something to love present in (almost) all. Ultimately what I loved the most were the cross generational connections forged, from ageing Sid to teenage Liam, which were so joyful to witness, ensuring that despite the undulating experiences of its characters, this novel leaves the reader with a feeling of safety and warmth.

An easy five stars from me and a heartfelt thank you to Amelia Henley and HQ Stories for allowing me to be one of the first to read this charming novel.

This is the first book I’ve read by Amelia Henley aka Louise Jensen, and I now know that I must read more. This is a book I didn’t want to put down, as Amelia took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions with the characters in the book. The quality of her storytelling is exceptional and this book is now in my top 10 reads of 2021.

At the start of the story, Jack and Libby are moving into their new home, bought from an elderly friend, Sid, with plans to help young people thrive and avoid falling into a life of dead end jobs and petty crime by running courses and offering a safe space.

However four events in a short space of time conspire to change their plans. I can’t say any more about what happens without spoiling the story but I do recommend that you have a box of tissues handy throughout the book.

This is a book full of love stories, in the past and the present, full of creativity and dreams. new beginnings and farewells. In a time of anxiety and angry voices, I recommend curling up with this book, to remember why acts of kindness and helping others is such an important thing to do. And to remember that Sid says “life ain’t all beer and skittles but that everything will be okay”.

This book took a while for me to get into but once I was in that was me lost. It started out all lovely with a happy young couple moving in to their first house together. The author made me get to know them and bask with them in their happiness, then she pulled the rug from under my feet and ripped my heart to pieces.

Strangely it wasn’t the scene I expected that broke me but the one with the kids holding their paintbrushes aloft. Anyone who has read this will know exactly what I mean.

This book is virtually impossible to review without spoilers so I will avoid the plot but instead tell you all about the wonderful characters and the charm that accompanies them. First there is Libby the photographer, I know the author is quite an accomplished photographer so that was a lovely touch and it was also wonderful to see my beloved Norfolk mentioned as a favourite spot. Then there is Jack all round nice bloke and artist who has acquired them a new home as a place to give young kids an art retreat. Alice, Libby’s sister who is pregnant but not giving any information on the baby’s father. Their well intentioned but rather quippy mother who rarely gives a compliment without it becoming an insult. And Sid, wonderful, glorious Sid. The calm in the storm and in my opinion the perfect character. This may be Libby and Jack’s love story but he was who I fell in love with.

So if you want a book that will make you smile, laugh (the vicar’s mugs did it for me) and become a snotty mess from ugly crying then grab this book and a box of tissues.

Make sure that you have tissues handy, you will cry tears of happiness and sadness at various parts in the story. No spoilers but life definitely has a way of putting challenges in Libby,'s and Jack's relationship. I loved the story, the characters and am really hoping we get to follow Liams story.

It’s safe to say that a few packs of tissues were used whilst reading ‘The Art of Loving You’. I instantly fell in love with Libby and Jack and could easily relate to their position in life - bought a house, long term relationship etc which made the book come to life. I couldn’t put this book down (which hasn’t happened to me for a while) as with every page, I wanted to know more; I wanted to see how the story panned out and I wanted to delve into the characters. I thought the characters were well thought out and I loved how their best friend was Sid - we all need a Sid in our lives. A tale of love, heartbreak, death, family, friendship and everything in between, this is a book that everyone needs to read.

Amelia Henley has a gift. She can write a story so romantic, so full of love that you are completely invested in the couple. And then she destroys it all with the turn of a page. That's not meant to sound like a negative thing. Far from it. This is the gift of a phenomenally talented writer.

Libby and Jack are a dream couple. They have a wonderful life together. And thanks to Sid, they have the makings of a perfect home too. But things don't always work out, do they? Shocking things happen and Libby and Jack will never be the same.

I also loved Alice, Libby's younger sister. She is what I would have wanted in a sibling; upportive, caring, fun.

I can't say much more without spoilers, but I absolutely urge you to read this book!

"Life ain't all beer and skittles"

Libby and Jack have just bought their first home, with the help of their friend, Sid and they have so many plans for their future together, then tragedy strikes which turns their lives upside down and it seems nothing will ever be the same again.

The Art of Loving You is a tale of hopes, dreams, love and loss, which completely enveloped me from the first page, I was so invested in Libby and Jack, theirs was a perfect love story, with so much to look forward to, whilst never knowing what's around the corner and just shows that you should live for today, because tomorrow is never promised. I absolutely adored Sid, he was such a positive thinking man, everyone needs a 'Sid' in their life. I fell in love with Henley's books after reading her debut novel, The Life We Almost Had last year, so was really excited when I heard about this one. Her writing is so seamlessly beautiful, evoking a mix of emotions throughout (yes, I cried and laughed through this one too!) and I especially enjoyed the little hints that she dropped as to what was going to happen next, very clever! This author is so talented, whether it be romantic fiction or the psychological thrillers she writes under her real name Louise Jensen, I cannot fault her with either genre and I can't wait to see what she brings to us next. I devoured this book in a matter of hours and highly recommend this five star read.

I'd like to thank HQ and Netgalley for the auto approval, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

After reading Amelia’s first book: The Life We Almost Had (which I can’t stress people enough about how much I loved it) I was very excited to be selected for #theartoflovingyou ‘s #booktour

I fell in love from the first pages with Libby and Jack, from the synopsis it’s understandable that life won’t always be easy for this loving couple and again I had to have some tissues at arm’s length 🥺

The story is as always beautifully written and full of relatable life events. The book will definitely highlight how life is so volatile and it’s important to never take anything for granted and make the best of the time we have at our disposal.

After reading Amelia’s second book I can certainly say that she has a way with words that rarely disappoints you, and makes you feel so invested and immersed that it’s easy to experience alongside the characters happiness and heartbreak.

Thank you

A beautifully written heart-breaking story that will stay with you forever!

After falling in love with Amelia’s debut novel last year, I couldn’t wait for her next book. Did I take this story to my heart as much as I did with The Life We Almost Had? Absolutely!

This incredible story had my attention from the start where I fell in love with the main characters Libby and Jack. The blurb makes it clear that life for this lovely young couple doesn’t always remain all beer and skittles (you’ll know what I mean here when you read the book). It isn’t long before we realise this and all I can say is get the tissues ready. Not many books make me cry by chapter four.

Another character who you can’t help but fall in love with is eighty-year-old Sid. A friend to Libby and Jack but more like a Grandfather, Sid plays a huge part in this couple’s life and future. He’s not had an easy life himself, but he is an upbeat character and made me smile a lot throughout the story. Everybody needs a Sid in their life!

The story is perfectly paced and beautifully written with real-life situations at the core. If I’ve learnt anything from this book, then it is to not waste a single day and enjoy everything in life and never take anything for granted.

Amelia’s extensive research and her own life experiences shine through every chapter in this book, she really is an incredible writer. I don’t know how she does it, but she manages to make everything seem so real, you literally feel like you’re there, right inside the story. I felt all the heartache and happiness that the characters felt.

This book broke my heart and then slowly chapter by chapter it put it back together again. The Art of Loving You is an absolute must-read this summer!

I was quite underwhelmed by this book. The story seems very contrived and the characters never really ring true. I was irritated by the author's writing style, and in particular her tendency to flag up a drama in the following chapter. Not one I would recommend I'm afraid.

Amelia is a new author for me and I have to say I really enjoyed this book. The art of loving you is told from Libby’s view point and the story explores Libby’s life after the love of her life dies. It’s a very heavy subject matter but I feel the author wrote it perfectly.
You can tell the author has previously written thrillers because of the amount of twists and turns this story took. I did guess a major one ( because I’ve seen greys anatomy and this is almost a copy of one storyline ) but that didn’t take away from the fact this is a very good read.

The Art of Loving You by Amelia Henley is the story of Libby, a photographer in a relationship with Jack, an artist and their wider family. The story unfolds around four lifechanging phonecalls Libby receives through the course of the book, and how these impact her life and the lives of her family. Her sister Alice and Sid, previous owner of the house Libby and Jack buy are other key characters. Sid is such a lovely elderly man with much wise advice. Although I enjoyed the storyline, I found it a bit of a catalogue of disasters in the form of 'and then it all went wrong' over and over again. That said, I enjoyed the twists and turns and didn't see them coming until they happened. An enjoyable read.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

The Art of Loving you by Amelia Henley is an absolutely wonderful but at times heartbreaking read. I’ve read and loved the authors previous book so was delighted to have the opportunity to read this one. It’s the story of Jack and Libby, a young couple deeply in love. They’ve just purchased their first home together and are looking forward to spending many happy years together. However life doesn’t always work out that way. This book really drew me in, the writing was wonderful and I loved the characters especially dear Sid. I won’t lie that this book had me in tears in places but there were also some laugh out loud moments. I highly recommend this book.

Libby and Jack are the happiest they’ve ever been. Thanks to their dear friend, eighty-year-old Sid, they’ve just bought their first house together, and it's the beginning of the life they've always dreamed of. But the universe has other plans for Libby and Jack and a devastating twist of fate shatters their world.
All of a sudden life is looking very different, and unlikely though it seems, might Sid be the one person who can help Libby and Jack move forward when what they loved the most has been lost?

For the past few years, I have steered away from “love stories” and “chic lit” until last year when I read a book by Sophie Cousens. This book made me fall back in love with the genre and every now and then to mix up the fantasy and the thriller, I lose myself in a book like this.

One Friday evening when my boyfriend was at work, I switched my kindle on and lost myself for a few hours with a box of chocolates in Libby’s world.

The book is told from the viewpoint of Libby, who has lost her soulmate.

There a couple of twists in this book that you don’t see coming, but this book is both beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time.

I really enjoyed the plot and meeting all of the characters.

I have only read this author’s thrillers, but after reading this I will be looking out for more of her lighter reads.

Thank you to the publisher for inviting men to be part of the tour.

After reading the book description of ‘The Art of Loving You’, I knew this was a book I wanted to read. So when I received the email telling me I got to be a part of the Blog Tour, I couldn’t be more excited. I just knew I was going to love this book. And I did..

In ‘The Art of Loving You’ we read the story of Libby and Jack, a young couple in the bloom of there lives. Libby and Jack seem to have it all. They are madly in love, and they got a bargain on a house which they are going to fix up together. Everything seems to be going great for the two of them. But then in one moment everything changes.

This was my first book by Amelia Henley, and I must say I was hooked from page one. ‘The Art of Loving You’ was definitely a book that touched me right from the start. It’s romantic, fun and it keeps you sitting on the edge of your seat. Throughout this book there are moments you think this book is going to go a certain way, but the next, things are totally different. And I loved everything about it. I don’t think I ever read a book like this.. and it blew my mind.

The romance between Libby and Jack is just beautiful. Their love is one of those one-in-a-lifetime kind of loves. Absolutely beautiful, and absolutely heart shattering! This was definitely a story that made me feel every emotion in the book. I was laughing one minute, and crying the next. What a story!!

Next to the two main characters, there are a few side characters I really liked. For example Sid. I loved that old man. I loved how he became best friends with Libby and Jack. And I loved how he took care of them, and how they took care of him. It was a precious friendship, despite their age difference and I loved reading about them.

Nothing in this book went the way I thought it would go. And I loved that. This book definitely made me realize I easily think the worst in people. And I’m determined to keep a little more faith and hope in my heart.

Amelia Henley.. Definitely an author I’ll need to read more books from. If your looking for a romantic, life altering book this one is for you!

Life isn’t always beer and skittles.
To be honest, when I first started reading this book, I didn’t know if I could finish it because of the subject matter. Having been diagnosed with a life-threatening disease and tumor in the last year, some of this hit way too close to home for me, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read a book that delves into the way that we experience grief and loss. Emotionally, it didn’t seem to be the right time, or that’s what I told myself.
But I soldiered on with it, and I’m glad I did. So many of us have had to deal with unexpected grief in the last year, whether it be via illness or a sudden catastrophe that this book could not be more timely, nor more beautifully written. Ms. Henley’s honest, realistic portrayal of the many stages is grief is sometimes a sucker punch to the gut, because it’s so beautifully raw, it eeks out every bit of emotion out of you.
I found great comfort and relief in the characters of Sid and Norma, especially in their relationship. Although the primary relationship is of Libby and Jack, Sid and Norma taught me so much, and Norma’s Book of Kindness reminded me that indeed, life isn’t always beer and skittles but we can do things, small things, to help brighten the day of someone else.
In times past I’ve always heard that helping someone else out can sometimes make your own troubles seem easier, and truthfully, this is hard to put into practice, as is illustrated by Libby as she deals with what so many of us are dealing with right now: the unexpected and sometimes cruel changes of life.
Yet thank goodness there are the Jacks and Sids and Norma’s of this world who try to make life more beautiful one painting, one square, one page at a time. Simply breathtaking.
A must-read for everyone. I cannot rate this book highly enough.

"The butterfly effect. The delicate flutter of wings. The tiniest change leading to chaos, catastrophe, an ordered life falling apart."

The Art of Loving You is a different kind of love story. An exploration of love, grief and the afterlife, it looks at what we do with the love we have for someone when they are suddenly gone and asks how we find new meaning when life feels meaningless.

It is narrated by Libby, who has been left heartbroken and adrift after the sudden death of her soulmate Jack. But it isn’t only grief that she is struggling with, Libby is also finding it hard to trust people and the world around her. She is stuck in a tortuous roller-coaster that she can’t seem to get off. Family and friends rally around and do their best, but nothing helps. All she wants is the one thing she can’t have: Jack.

Skillfully written, every page is coated in pain, but there is a hopefulness that creeps in and some funny moments that lighten the mood. But the writing device I enjoyed most of all was how Libby would insert snippets of things that are yet to happen or be revealed, referencing her ignorant bliss before something rocked her world. This happens mostly at the end of a chapter, a cunning ploy by the author to make the book impossible to put down that totally worked on this reader. That devilish hint of foreboding that kept me on the edge of my seat and made me think I’d read just one more chapter; and then another, and another. Before I knew it I’d flown through half the book. Well written and well played, Ms. Henley.

"Enjoy the beer and skittles days."

There are some wonderful and fascinating characters in the book and I really liked both Libby and Jack, but the one who stole my heart was Sid. Delightful, funny and wise, he brightened up every scene he was in and I could have happily read an entire book just about him. I loved his relationship with Jack and Libby and I feel like I need to write his words of wisdom in a notebook. He is a character that I won’t forget and I think will make an impact on everyone who reads this book.

Uplifting, emotional, heartbreaking and hopeful, The Art of Loving You is an hopelessly romantic tearjerker that also manages to be funny and real. A truly beautiful and captivating story that I highly recommend.

Oh my god, make sure you have tissues ready for this one.

After reading The Life We Almost Had I knew Amelia Henley was going to be an all time favourite author of mine and The Art of Loving You just confirms that. This book was emotional and it was beautiful. it took me on an absolute rollercoaster of feelings that I will never forget or want to forget, no matter how many tears I shed.

Libby and Jack were beautiful characters whose story you can't help but love and root for. With the addition of Sid, this character had such an amazing range of characters that made this book absolutely perfect. They all added to this story which was full of so many twists and turns I had no idea how it was going to end.

This book broke me. I cried so much, both happy and sad tears. It's a story of love, of hope and moving forward in your life. Henley has this beautiful way with words that make you feel like you know these characters in real life, that you're a part of this world and going through it all with them. I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

Thank you so much to HQ and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book!

I just knew this book was going to be a tearjerker and I wasn’t wrong! An adorable, heartbreaking but ultimately uplifting read with a gorgeous cast of characters. I read this book in the sunny garden yesterday and almost completed it in one sitting! It’s a delightful page turner and and an emotional story.. Although Amelia Henley breaks your heart, she puts it back together again in the most beautiful and satisfying way 💗

Thank you so much to the publisher for my advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Wow, what a tear-jerker!! I’m not usually sentimental over books. But, this one ticked all the boxes and I loved it. It was hopelessly romantic something I don’t usually go for but, wanted a change and I’m so glad I did. What a great debut novel. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.