Eleanor and Julian Vamplew appeared to have the perfect life: good-looking; intelligent; wealthy; parents to three daughters. But the reality was somewhat different. As their three daughters Jolene, Marsha, and Annis meet for the first time in years after their mother's death, their lonely and unloved childhood comes into focus.

Jolene the rule-follower and the oldest is a successful writer of romances, married for 10 years to Warren, a businessman.

Marsha, the middle child who was expected to be a boy, seven years younger than Jolene, has spent her life trying to be deserving of things. She has built her own very successful business but love has escaped her, other than her The Thorn Birds mad pash for the young and sexy Father Gerard which never really went away.

Annis, the youngest at seven years younger than Marsha, is the true enigma. She left home when she was only sixteen, and never contacted her family ever again. Jolene had to put adverts in national newspapers to get her home for Eleanor's funeral.

What comes as a surprise to all three women is that Eleanor has left all of her not-inconsiderable fortune, the huge house, its contents, her investments and savings to a daughter she hasn't spoken to for years.

These three women never truly felt like sisters growing because they were too far apart in age, but when they come together as adults can they put aside the past and become the family they always wanted.

I enjoyed this, I enjoyed the writing, I enjoyed the feelings developing between the sisters. I liked the dramatic tension, although TBH I guessed some of the 'secrets', and I liked the plot. I will say that Milly Johnson (in my opinion) writes cosy women's fiction, there's angst but not too graphic and her male characters in this novel are lovely but almost too good to be true.

Recommended for those who like women's fiction with a HEA.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

The death of the three girls mother brings them back together. Born 7 years apart they have very different childhoods. They were never close but all are scared by both of their parents.
At this painful time can they talk to each other? Build a new relationship as adults and put the past behind them? All three of them carry hurts and emotional pain. As the get ready to bury their mother they open up and move forward.
An emotional and heart wrenching book but a powerful story that I enjoyed

Emotional family drama, with some dark narrative threads. This was a really well written and empathetic look at the lives of three sisters who are pretty much strangers. Brought together by their mother’s death, they uncover the secrets that have tainted their entire lives.
I really enjoyed this, it was a little bit darker than the author’s usual style but still had her trademark warmth and feel good elements.

Milly Johnson can always be relied on to strike the right balance between chick lit and family dynamics, this book is no exception, all likeable characters and a plot that keeps you invested

When Eleanor Vamplew passes away unexpectedly her daughters, Jolene and Marsha, are left to carry out her final wishes. In her will Eleanor has left almost everything to her third daughter Annis. The problem is that Annis walked out of the house at the age of sixteen and completely cut herself off from the family.

Completely unexpectedly Annis turns up and the sisters spend the next few weeks slowly getting to know each other. The three women were born seven years apart so never really bonded as siblings, added to this were emotionally distant parents. As the women get to know each other we discover that their personal lives are suffering as a result of their upbringing. By sharing and supporting each other they begin to put things right.
Fans of Milly Johnson will recognise the basic premise of the story; three women who are all facing dilemmas in their personal lives. Over time they each face up to what is causing their problems and by supporting one another they manage to move on in their lives. What fans won't be familiar with are the much darker themes at the heart of the story. I really don't want to go into the details of the darker themes as they will give too much of the story away.

Jolene is the eldest of the three sisters, the reliable one. Jolene is a successful novelist and has been married to Warren for ten years. There are problems within the marriage but Jolene keeps explaining them away rather than facing them head on. It is easy to see that Jolene is seeking the love and support she didn't get as a child, she is frightened that by challenging her husband she will lose him.

Marsha is the middle sister, born seven years after Jolene. Marsha has never felt as if she was good enough, this stems from not being the boy her parents had hoped for. A lack of love from her parents meant that Marsha looked for it elsewhere and fell in love with a priest. The unrequited love has hampered Marsha from forming meaningful relationships.

Annis is the youngest of the sisters, born seven years after Marsha. There was resentment and jealousy between the girls as their father lavished his affection on Annis. When Annis walked out of the house at sixteen everyone was surprised as she gave no reason for leaving.

As the sisters get to know each other they learn about how the lack of love from their parents impacted on their childhood and the decisions they made as adults. By understanding what each other went through and supporting each other they gain the strength to action change in their lives.

As you would expect their are a couple of knights in shining armour sprinkled through the story. Daz in particular adds a little bit of lightness to the story. Knights in shining armour is probably the wrong expression as they don't swoop in to save people, it's the sisters who save each other.

This beautifully written book tells the story of three sisters coming back together and discovering themselves and each other having shed the presumptions they grew up with.
The emotions run high from start to finish between the sisters and the supporting cast of characters, each with their own stories to tell to help us get to the wonderful ending which was totally satisfying and left me with a smile as I finished the book even with the difficult subjects that are involved.
Having a difficult family myself I wasn't sure about reading this book but I've loved all the other Milly Johnson books so I dug in. The way it's written is very sensitive to the subjects it touches on and made for an interesting read where I wanted to see where the characters journeys would take them.

Lots of different emotions in this fantastic novel written by Milly she always produces great stories. 5 stars and I recommend this.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

This is a superb book about three estranged sisters each born 7 years apart to parents who were more absorbed in themselves and each other leaving none of their daughters with many happy childhood memories. The death of their mother, 8 years after their father, causes them to reunite for the first time in many years as Annis, the youngest, has been missing since she ran away aged 16. To further add to the situation their mother has very unexpectedly left virtually all her estate to Annis which was as big a shock to her as anyone as she had expected to have been cut out from the will.

The three sisters are each so different - Jolene, the eldest, is a successful author of twenty books (not unlike Milly Johnson herself) but is struggling in her marriage; Marsha, the middle daughter, is a very successful business women who was driven to prove to her parents how well she could do yet never gained any acknowledgement from them and Annis has had some difficult times since leaving home yet they’ve shaped her into the wisest of the sisters.

This is a much deeper read than Milly’s previous books but it’s still unmistakably Milly with the Yorkshire warmth you’d expect but a whole lot more. The dynamics between the sisters was well written and it was interesting to see how spending time together in their old family ‘home’ changed them as individuals and sisters. Jolene was a solid character, her struggles very well conveyed and her difficulty in moving forward empathetically told. Marsha has done incredibly in her work life but it’s interesting to see just why she struggled so much in her private life which was doubtless linked to her loveless upbringing and lack of self worth. Annis was an incredible character, my favourite of the sisters by far, she’s had a challenging life but it’s given her wisdom beyond her years which she used well to support her sisters and she acted incredibly selflessly towards them. Throw in a neighbour who is struggling with the reaction their mothers letter to Annis caused in her when curiosity got the better of her whilst it was in her safekeeping and a grieving dog owner come Monkees tribute act member and you have a wonderful blend of characters amongst a very powerful storyline.