I absolutely loved this book! The most amazing characters and so well written. I was really sad when it ended. Highly recommended.

I really loved Us Three so was very excited to read this latest book by Ruth Jones. It certainly didn't disappoint! This is the story of4 generations of a family. Grace is soon to turn 90 and her best present would be to be reconciled with her estranged daughter Alys, who she hasn't had contact with for many years. But she knows that would be very upsetting for her granddaughter Elin, who was effectively brought up by Grace. Elin is having problems of her own, trying to steer her daughter Beca through exams and wondering what has happened to her marriage. The story is told through the eyes of all four women, and is an absolute joy! I loved all the characters and couldn't wait to see what happened to them. This is a story which will make you laugh and cry but is ultimately uplifting. Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
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If you only read one book this summer, make it this one. It is utter joy and perfection! I loved this flawed family, their complex relationships and fundamentally, the strength and resilience of women. It made me laugh out loud and also shed tears. Loved the Welsh-ness of the language too. And the end was unexpectedly perfect. Highly, highly recommended.

I am late to the Ruth Jones party with Love Untold being my first novel of hers that I have read and add to that the first novel that I remember having ever read that features a family of four generations of strong women.
Grace is head of the family and has her 90th birthday fast approaching and what a sprightly 90 year old she is. Her daughter Alys has had a turbulent life and she takes a little more warming to as her actions scream selfish and self-centred but as is often the case there is a root cause that lead her down the path she took. Then we have Erin who looks like the most in control, successful woman who has it all until things take a turn and her life and the way she knows it looks like it is about to turn on her head. Finally, we have Bec who brings a youthful vibrancy to the storyline along with her friend Soozi who channels “Ness” with her Welsh dialect and splashes of wit.
There were copious amounts of relatable realistic issues that each of our characters face which gave a more in-depth and somewhat believable feel to the storyline. The characters all have their flaws and these are not sugar coated they are tackled head on and this shows the repercussions some of the things have on life of the flawed and those close to them.
There is a lot of hopping around from one character to the other which takes a little getting used to but before long you find it easy to differentiate between each character and begin to build an insightful bond with each of them by not hearing just what others thoughts are of them but to be able to hear from the character themselves too to see both sides of the story.
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and I loved getting to know these characters as I love a book that looks into family dynamics and complex characters added to this such a bittersweet ending that was tied up perfectly just made this book a real pleasure to read and I will be adding the authors previous books to my TBR pile now.

What an absolutely wonderful book. I’ve loved all of Ruth’s books but loved how this booked spanned four generations of a family of incredible women. Touching on so many different and important topics, written so beautifully and I couldn’t put it down. Such an unexpected ending for Grace and her family with equal amounts of joy and sorrow. Can’t wait for the next book. Thanks netgalley

I love a family centred book and this one delivered for me on all counts. Four generations of woman who each have their own story to tell.

Grace is the great grandmother who is 90 years old but fit as a fiddle, swimming each day. Her granddaughter Elin and her have a special bond as Grace has raised her after her mother Alys disappeared. Elins daughter Beca is struggling with growing up and the pressures she faces making her own decisions.

I loved how we got to know each character and although they all faced different issues they were also very similar in many ways.

The Welsh setting was fantastic I could hear the beautiful accent in my head throughout the book.

The strong strings which ties families together are beautifully explored in the book and the love which binds each member together even though at times they try to untie the strings.

This book covered every emotion for me. I come from a family who had four generations of woman living together so I could relate to a lot of the story. It made me smile, sob and rekindle memories definitely one of the best books I’ve read recently.

Grace (nearly 90), Alys, Elin and Beca - four generations of strong women whose lives we learn are full of emotion, anguish and longing.

The relationships and dynamics between the four women, and their extended family are complex and flawed at times, and the mother-daughter love is clear, yet tested throughout.

I found Grace, Beca, and (the totally brilliant) Soozi, the most likeable and engaging, and I could hear myself reading Soozi in the voice of ‘Nessa’ (Gavin and Stacey). In fact I could easily see these characters in a TV drama.

The story did jump around in places which I found hindered the flow at times, and I was irritated by Alys. I just couldn’t sympathise with her, especially the 70+ year old Alys, and the way this character developed towards the the end for me was the least believable.

That said the ending, with its extra layers of character depth and history, was lovely - heart-aching and joyous in equal measure.

A great book, the first I have read from Ruth Jones, and I will definitely put her earlier titles on my ‘TBR’ pile.

I gave this book 4 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House, Transworld Publishers for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the story, set over many years, of Grace, Alys, Elin and Beca. Four generations of women and how their lives have panned out. It is a wonderful story, set in Wales in the main, and has such depth in the characters and Ruth has captured the joy and sadness of their lives so well.
I have read all three of her books now and this is easily the best. The ‘welsh-isms’ in it are charming and add to the realism and you can hear the soft lilt through the pages.
I would highly recommend this as a book to buy and share as the story draws you in, there is humour and pathos throughout.
Loved it, easily 5 star

What a lovely read. A book that was just lovely. Well written and really engaging. Loved it. Not my usual genre but it was so worth trying something new. Would recommend.

Not my usual genre of read but a thoroughly good, well written book exploring four generations of women which kept me involved in the storyline from beginning until the end.

All the characters were interesting to read about each with their own story to tell and I can definitely recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Transworld Publishers for this ARC.

First time reading a Ruth Jones book, even though I've had the others in my book collection for a while. I really enjoyed this one. Well written and containing likable characters. I'm now looking forward to reading her other books, as I liked this one a lot.

Four generations of strong women form the basis of this novel. We have Grace, approaching her 90th birthday but with the constitution of an ox, Alys her daughter, troubled mind and estranged from the family, Elin, her granddaughter, headmistress at a school and also at home and Beca, great granddaughter, finding her way in the world.
From the past to the present their lives mingle and entwine showing that in the end blood maybe is thicker than water. Heart warming story

I really enjoy reading Ruth Jones novels, they make such a refreshing change from the gritty thrillers I also enjoy. Her novels are full of wonderful characters and the stories so well written, much in the same vein as Graham Norton.

This is a story of mother and daughter relationships, a bitter sweet tale that tells of heartbreaks, joy and forgiveness. Grace doesn’t like a lot of fuss, so a surprise party to celebrate her reaching ninety is not going to be well received. What she does want is for the heartache caused by family rifts to be healed. Rifts that have gone on far too long over decades.

To heal the rifts she must first locate her daughter Alys. which will risk betraying granddaughter Elin. Elin is far less forgiving of the past rifts and may not be as ready as others. For Grace time is running out to solve the family rifts that have been going on for the last thirty years.

Beautifully written.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Random House for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a perfectly lovely read from Ruth Jones. All of her characters are so real, I loved Grace, Beca, Alys and Elin. Each has her flaws, but remains likeable and you end up rooting for each as you move through the book. I adored the ‘welshness’ of the characters - soozi is brilliant and a absolutely read her with Nessa’s voice.
Another must read from this author! Thank you so much for the arc.

First time of reading this author but certainly wont be my last. A real heart warming read with characters that are likeable and relatable.

Four generations of women....Grace is the 90 year old matriarch of the family, still very sprightly and enjoying regular fresh water swims in the sea. She has a great relationship with her grandaughter Elin who she has raised since her early teenage years after Alys her mother disappeared. Elin had always pretended she had died but Grace has beem desperate to try and track her down. Becca, Graces gran daughter has a fractious relationship with Elin as she never feels she can meet her mothers expectations.

This story is told from 4 different viewpoints as we learn how these women have gone through their lives with in complete facts hence very fractured views of their relationships. Really easy to read and kept me reading, eager to find an ending they all deserve.

Highly recommend a read.

Having read and enjoyed Us Three by Ruth Jones I was excited to read this.
The story centres around four generations of mothers and daughters - Grace, Alys, Elin and Beca.
Grace is the great grandmother of Beca, Elin is Beca’s mother and Alys is Grace’s daughter.
It sounds a complicated set up, but it isn’t really.
The story is told from the perspective of each of the women with their chapters interspersing with each other but it isn’t difficult to follow at all.
Alys is the prodigal daughter and a recovering alcoholic. She hasn’t had any contact with her daughter or mother for decades.
Elin is having marriage and teenage daughter troubles, and Beca is having parent, school and life troubles.
Grace seems to be the glue that holds most of the family together, but even she has own worries.
This book takes us on a wonderful journey, telling the four women’s stories with flashbacks to past and present.
I really went through the ringer emotionally reading this book and the last few chapters really hit me with all the feels (no spoilers though).
This is a story about second (or maybe fiftieth chances), homelessness, sexuality, strong women, love and so much more.
A really beautiful read with some twists and turns.

Grace Meredith is approaching her ninetieth birthday and her granddaughter, Elin, is determined to celebrate it in style by throwing a surprise party. Grace means the world to Elin as she rescued her at the age of twelve and has acted has her mother and father for over thirty years. Elin's daughter, Beca, is pretty sure Grama Grace really wouldn't appreciate a party. As her birthday approaches all Grace really wants is to be reconciled with the daughter she last saw thirty years ago, Alys.

This is a feel good story but it is tinged with sadness throughout. We learn so much about each character and what has molded them along with everything they are dealing with in life.

Grace is a wonderful character, the type of grandmother we would all wish for. Patient, forgiving, always willing to listen. Grace is also a feisty character, refusing to give in to old age. Over time we learn that Grace was forced into a loveless marriage. Her husbands death triggers the poor relationship between her and her daughter Alys.

Elin is the head teacher of a secondary school, very organised and extremely concerned about appearances. Her marriage is in a rut but at the moment her main concerns are organising the surprise party for Grace and her daughter Beca's GCSE results.

Beca isn't academic and this is causing friction between her and her mother. Beca doesn't know what she wants to do with her life but she does know she doesn't want to go back to school. Beca loves art and music and it's her talent for music that has her forming a friendship that will build her self-esteem.

Alys is the least likeable of the four women. She's flighty and for the majority of her life has made questionable choices. Alcohol has played a major part in many of the poor decisions she has made and even though she's been sober for thirty years she still makes some dubious choices.

The vast majority of the story is set in current day, however at various points we jump back to periods in time over the past seventy years. These points give us insight into how the relationships between the four women developed. Many of these instances also allow us to see how similar the women are even though they would probably deny they are similar in any way. They are all stubborn, refuse to accept help and refuse to discuss things. There were times reading this novel that you wanted to shake some of them.

The country of Wales and it's friendly people come across really well. Throughout I could hear Ruth Jones as Nessa whenever anyone spoke.

There are redemption arcs as we reach the conclusion, some of which are left slightly vague. I'm happy with that as we know that in real life not everything is tied up neatly with a bow all at the same time. Most of all this is a story of love, love in it's many different forms.

Four generations of women from the same Welsh family live, love, fight and frustrate in Ruth Jones' novel Love Untold. Grandma Grace, the 89-year-old cold water swimming matriarch is a tower of strength and has phenomenal energy, looking after her friend Cissie and her brother who live in a local old people's home.

Her granddaughter, Elin, is the head teacher at the local school and has just found out her husband is cheating on her. Their daughter, Beca, is 16 and waiting for GCSE exam results whilst doing all the things a 16-year-old should.

The missing link? That's Grace's daughter, Elin's mother, Alys, a selfish woman with a long history of drink problems who dumped her daughter and went off to have fun. Grace has tracked her down and wants to bring them all back together, but sometimes there may just have been too much water under the bridge to mend things that have long been broken.

This is a very endearing story. The dialogue is spot on - you can't read it without hearing the tones of Welsh voices (especially from Sooze, the young singer who falls into the family when Beca becomes her accompanist). Can Grace get them all back together and what mysteries will be uncovered in the process?

I enjoyed this book a lot. I probably wouldn't have chosen it if I wasn't intrigued to see what sort of book Ruth Jones would put together, but I wasn't disappointed. At times it felt a little laboured, flipped back and forth through time rather too much, but in the end, it was all worth it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for my copy.

The life stories of four generations of Welsh women are related in this new novel from Ruth Jones. As Grace approaches her 90th birthday, grand-daughter Elin and great grand-daughter Beca face challenges and . estranged daughter Alys returns unexpectedly to the fold.

This is a real page-turner, an effortless, fun and emotional read. The important characters in the novel are all women and they are written with real skill, so that even at their most unreasonable and difficult, they are still sympathetic to the reader. Ruth Jones is very clever in depicting how parental behaviours influence our character and our choices, creating friction between the generations, although the love remains.

Lovely novel, highly recommended.

I have read all of Ruth jones books and they just get better and better - I was immersed from page one in all the characters how they where all so different but blended together to make this story - which basically was the story of graces. Lifetime - I def couldn’t put it down and each chapter brought on a new revelation