Having loved Matt Cain’s previous book The Secret Life of Albert Entwhistle I couldn’t wait to settle down and read Becoming Ted.
This is an outstanding book that takes us on Teds journey to discover himself and finally do what he’s always dreamed of rather than what his his family expects. Devastated and confused when his husband of twenty years just turns to him one morning to tell him he’s leaving he is left bereft with grief. Slowly we see Ted emerging from his heartbreak and starting to grab hold of life and make the most of it.
With a cast of wonderful characters whose own personalities jump off the pages we are treated to much humour and a host of emotions. Ted is such a wonderful character and all you the reader wants is for him to fulfil his dreams and be happy.
When I finished the last page I felt uplifted and satisfied and in awe of this authors ability to write such a story. I cannot recommend this book highly enough and have just sent the link to my daughter for her book club to read.
My thanks to netgalley and publisher for the opportunity to review this book honestly.

I absolutely loved Albert Entwhistle - it was one of my favourite reads last year. So I was really excited for Becoming Ted. Don't want to give anything away but this is a gentle take of Ted finding himself and his place in the world. The journey isn't always easy - but then life never is. Some great quirky characters really bring the story alive. Highly recommended. Matt has done it again.

Forty-one-year-old Ted finds himself at a crossroads when his husband, Giles, leaves him for another man. Working in his family's ice-cream business has never been what he wanted to do with his life, but somehow he has never had the heart to tell his parents how he feels - or even that he has never actually liked ice cream.

Boyed on by his enthusiastic best friend Denise, Ted begins to drag himself out the rock-bottom place he is in, and gradually reassess what he wants from life. Was his relationship with Giles really as happy as he thought? Has he spent his life living by the rules of others, rather than being himself? It is time to dust off the secret that he has kept for far too long, and follow his dream!

Becoming Ted is a lovely tale of finding the courage to be yourself, and I am going to be very careful about what I give away here, because where Matt Cain takes you in this follow-up to The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle is an emotional adventure you really need to take for yourself - I promise, it is worth every moment.

Ted is in a low place at the beginning of this tale. His all consuming journey to happiness, through rediscovering his self-confidence and remembering who he is inside, is the spine of this story. However, he has a helping hand from an enchanting cast of characters, who work through their own issues and insecurities along the way too. My favourites are his conflicted friend Denise, who is determined to help Ted achieve his dream, even if her methods might be a little suspect; wise old Stanley, who gives Ted perspective on his problems; and most importantly, Oskar, running from his past in Poland, and with his own journey to make too. The separate threads of their experiences weave together with accomplished flair from Cain, and bring real poignancy and depth to the story. Each character helps Ted find a way to move on from the pain of his past to achieve his destiny, and I love how they all manage to reach a better place by the end of the book too.

Cain writes with heart, humour, and honesty. He weaves some dark themes in this novel around control, betrayal, prejudice, loss, and abandonment; but he balances them beautifully with warmth, love, and friendship. There are secrets, lies, and many misunderstandings to be overcome, but the most uplifting of endings brings romance, forgiveness and reconciliation to the fore in a way that makes your heart sing - and your eyes brim over with tears. Treat yourself to some life affirming loveliness with this warm hug of a book!

My heart is so full of love for Ted after reading this book. What a sweet, gentle man that you can't help but root for. Some serious laugh out loud moments and moments of absolute joy as you follow Ted on his journey to become the person he was always supposed to be. Very strong supporting characters too. We all need friends like Denise and Stanley. The details of Stanley's past broke my heart and made for very difficult reading. Sometimes it's hard to comprehend how tough life was...and to an extent still is for a gay man. I think that anything by Matt Cain will be a must read from me in the future.

Becoming Ted is a beautiful, brilliant read. Full of warmth and hope, Ted’s story grabbed me completely. I loved seeing how he was brave enough to challenge himself - to put himself first for a change - to have the confidence to go for it. It was so inspiring.
Matt Cain writes such wonderful characters. Ted is written with so much love and empathy and I couldn’t help but fall for him. The secondary characters who surround Ted, like Denise and Oskar, have their own fascinating stories, and I loved how their lives were interwoven with Ted.
A joy to read, Becoming Ted is a huge contender for one of favourites of the year already.

I absolutely loved Matt Cain's last book : The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle. It was one of my favourite books last year, and Albert is one of my favourite characters in literature. Becoming Ted shot to the tip of my to be read pile and I had high expectations It definitely did not disappoint. Ted, despite seeing himself as plain and a non entity, is another triumph in characterisation from Matt Cain. He is full of heart, and it is beautiful to watch him.blossom after years of trampled dreams. Ted is married to the beautiful, but arrogant Giles, who dumps Ted when a better offer comes his way. Ted is devastated, but has a wonderful support network in his best friend Denise and in his parents (although they sometimes get it wrong). He soon remembered a host of things he used to enjoy before Giles vetoed them all, including his ultimate dream. Is he brave enough to follow it though? It is big and bold and I urge you to read all about it. I#becomingted #mattcain #netgalley #separation #lifeafterbreakups #reinventingoneself #blossoming #followyourdreams

Thank you Matt Cain for another fabulous book. Loved meeting Ted, his family and friends. Loved how he rediscovered his purpose in life and stopped letting other people make his decisions. A reminder for everyone about being true to yourself.

Published review from blog tour: Thanks to Joe Thomas at Headline books for your invitation to join the blog tour for Becoming Ted and a proof copy of the book to review. Regular readers of my blog will know that I loved reading The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle by Matt in 2020 and you can read my review here: https://mentoringmumof2bookreviews.home.blog/2021/05/28/the-secret-life-of-albert-entwistle-by-matt-cain/ I also enjoyed listening to the audiobook narrated by Layton Williams last year.

2023 is going to be a tough year to pick a favourite book of the year, because here is another fabulous contender for that award. So what makes this book special? Grab a seat, a drink (Ted would pick a bottle of seccy) and let me tell you more but without spoilers!)

Ted has been dumped by his husband Giles for a younger model and finds himself depressed and at a loss to understand what happened. However, after spending time with his friend Denise and a bottle (or two) of Prosecco, Ted starts to realise that he hasn’t been living as his true self but has been constrained by his family and his ex-husband. Can he be brave and do what will make him happy?

Ted starts to make new friends including Stanley and Oskar, both with difficult and heartbreaking pasts. The contrast between their stories and Ted’s is a reminder about how different peoples attitudes to gay relationships have been over time and across the world. Ted also has to deal with some mysterious anonymous letters and in a series of flashbacks we find out more about Ted’s childhood and how he came to work for the family ice cream business rather than his original planned career.

I loved how Ted started to move forward with his life, rediscovering his passion for dance and dressing up, leading to a new career opportunity. We also found out more about Denise and why she had been reluctant to be involved in a relationship again. Could they both take some risks and find happiness?

This is another fabulous tale from Matt Cain, who has created a set of characters for readers to care for (but not Giles!). A reminder to everyone about how we need to find our true purpose in life and to shine brightly. Another five star read for me – I’ve ordered a copy of the hardback book from Bert’s Books (my local independent bookshop) to go on my favourite books bookshelf next to my copy of The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle.

It's not long before the reader learns the nature of Ted's dream but although the destination may be clear, it's the journey that Ted goes on to reach it that is at the heart of the book. It's a journey the author makes us want to accompany Ted on as he battles with the low self-esteem resulting from being dumped, quite out of the blue, by Giles, his partner of twenty years, and the responsibility he feels towards his parents to be part of the family business, famous for its ice cream. It's a feeling partly born out of gratitude for his parents' wholehearted acceptance of his sexuality.     

I confess Ted's dream took me into a world I knew little about, not being familar with the TV programme he and his best friend Denise enjoy watching over a glass (or four) of 'seccy'.  In this respect I was in a similar position to Oskar, a young Polish man, who is on his own personal journey. The author has a real knack for creating memorable characters and I absolutely adored Oskar.  For instance, I loved that, in an effort to improve his English, he learns a new word every day including some peculiar to Lancashire. There's also a tender moment involving him at the end of the book that provoked the same reaction in me as does that scene at the end of the film, The Railway Children. 

Denise has her own experience of toxic relationships but is an instantly enthusiastic supporter of Ted's dream offering much needed emotional and practical assistance to help him achieve it. Initially I thought Stanley, an older gay man with a love of wearing pink and listening to Barbra Streisand, was a bit of a stereotype but in fact what he tells Ted about his experiences of being gay in the 1950s at a time when homosexuality was illegal acts as a serious reminder of what a long fight it has been to gain acceptance. Oskar's story also highlights the homophobia that some gay people still face today.   

I liked how we see Ted grow in confidence, learn to stand up for himself and reject taking the easy way out when it is offered. He has a dream and this time he's not going to let anyone stop him achieving it, not even that inner voice that tells him maybe he's just not good enough. As it turns out, he's a natural.

The uplifting, joyful message of the book is perhaps summed up by Denise. 'She catches a tiny glimpse of a future that might just involve happiness, that might just involve love.'

Another heart warming story from Matt Cain. This time, Ted’s journey to leave from heartbreak to finding his true authentic self with some dark moments along the way.

I absolutely loved Matt Cain's previous book about Albert Entwistle and I was eager to read this new book. For me it wasn't quite as good as Albert Entwistle but I still enjoyed reading this book. I liked the characters Ted and Oskar.
There were some hard hitting subjects but also some more lighthearted and entertaining moments.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my ARC.

The wait was finally over, to read and review the new Matt Cain offering. Some interesting characters, but well written and very enjoyable.

I always take it as a sign of a great read when I’ve never read anything by the author beforehand and then find myself checking out their other titles and thinking about reading them before I’ve finished the book in question. This was my first Matt Cain read, and I’m so grateful to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this. It certainly won’t be my last!
A coming-of-age story with a difference. Tender, heartwarming and genuinely laugh-out-loud funny, Becoming Ted is a story that needs to be told.
Ted works in his family’s ice-cream business. He hates ice-cream. He has been happily (he thinks) married for decades and is shocked when his husband says he’s found another man and wants to split up. Such a period of upheaval would derail most people, but this begins a period of growth where Ted reflects on himself and his relationships before starting to live a life true to himself.
We follow Ted as he learns what makes him happy, finds a new love and works out what to do about his family and the pressure he feels to stay in a business he hates.
There’s a large assortment of characters, a thoughtful examination of attitudes to homosexuality over time and an interesting insight into the process of drag. Occasionally some events/interactions seem a little contrived, but this was a story that it’s hard not to open your heart to. Is it wrong to say I’d love to see this as a movie?

I was so excited to be invited on this tour! (Thank you Joe and Matt) If you’ve read Matt’s last novel ‘The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle’, then you’ll know why. If you haven’t, what are you waiting for?!

Just like Albert, Ted is a gay man that, although firmly out of the closet this time, has hidden a part of himself for fear of what others would think. The beginning of the novel sees Ted being dumped by his husband of 20 years, Giles. Heartbroken and confused, Ted struggles to imagine how he can rebuild his life.

However, with the help of his friend Denise, he soon begins to wonder if the perfect life he thought he’d had was really all it seemed. After, enrolling in a dance class, his childhood dream of becoming a drag queen begins to resurface. This is a passion that had been repressed due to the disapproval of Giles and Ted’s sense of duty to his parents, whose only wish is to see him take over the family ice cream business.

Matt writes wonderful characters and it’s lovely to see Ted step out from the shadows he’s been hiding in and into the spotlight as his alter ego.

However, as much as I love Ted, I think my favourite characters are Stanley and Oskar. Both men grew up in a world where being gay was not accepted and both bare the scars of that. Through their stories, Matt uses fiction to shine a light on the true story of appalling discrimination and persecution that gay men have faced, and still face, both here, in the UK, and abroad. Stanley is particularly heartwarming, as a man in his 90s who lived through the times when being gay was illegal in the UK. I found his story particularly tragic, but I loved the way he never let it change who he was and his warm and charming personality stole my heart. I think it’s a real skill to deal with such heartbreaking topics but still tell a story that’s filled with such humour and love.

This is a lovely, uplifting and very funny tale of following your dreams, being true to yourself and never letting anyone dull your sparkle!

I loved the Secret Life of Albert Entwistle by Matt and this one had me gripped too. Matt draws you in with such real characters and in this you so grow to love Ted and all the other characters you meet along the way. The story of Ted, trying to make his dreams happen after being dumped by his husband is sad at times but there are laughs along the way too, thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommend. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this early copy.

After reading & loving #TheSecretLifeofAlbertEntwistle, I was so excited about Becoming Ted & had great expectations. But sadly, this book fell short for me, though it had a great potential.

Thanks NetGalley & Headline for providing me with the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

Synopsis –

Ted Ainsworth is shocked about his husband Giles’ sudden decision to leave him. As he struggles to comes to terms with this, he also has to carry the burden of his family’s ice cream business that is in some financial distress. Ted’s heart has never been with running this ice-cream store, but has his dreams set elsewhere. Can the end of his marriage throw open an opportunity for him to pursue his passion?

Review –

The book starts with the sad news of Ted’s world turning upside down. Initially Ted comes across as a timid, unassuming, sweet & caring person who lets everyone walk all over him. Low on self-confidence & self-esteem, Ted can barely keep afloat.

The setting of the book is in a gorgeous seaside town of St-Luke’s on sea. I loved the small town charm & also the wonderful supporting characters of Denise, Stanley & Marina. I also enjoyed the humour & witty jokes that is used generously throughout the story.

Apart from Ted, the other main thread is of Oskar, the painter & redecorator, who Ted “bumps into” shortly after his breakup. I really wished Oskar’s personality was different to that of Ted, but it felt like both of them had the same meek demeanour & introversions.

Cain uses an inner voice to let us know the thoughts of his characters & this became a bit too much when used with both Ted & Oskar. Unlike with Albert Entwistle, I think Ted’s character lacked depth. I couldn’t really connect with him or even Oskar.

The storyline itself was fairly predictable & the only thing that held my curiosity was the anonymous notes that Ted was receiving. Also, some parts were unnecessary – like Denise’s thread & Ted’s mother’s illness - which did not add anything to the story. Furthermore, flashbacks felt random & all over the place causing confusion about the timelines.

I hadn’t guessed who the mystery note writer was & when it was finally revealed, it wasn’t exactly a “wow” factor. Family secrets are suddenly out of the bag & it somehow all works out both in Ted & Oskar’s favours.

However, I did appreciate Ted’s journey of transformation & the support he receives from his little community. I was happy for him & cheered him on as he sheds his fears, embraces his dreams & gathers enough courage to set himself free – “becoming” his true self.

I think Matt Cain is a greatly talented author & he deserves credit for his research about the history of the LGBTQ community. I look forward to his next one.

Folks who love a book with a transformation trope with great LGBTQ+ representation will enjoy this.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

A book about a gay man’s journey of self discovery after he gets dumped by his husband and realises that his husband has been dulling his sparkle. He then realises that it’s never too late to start living your dreams and be true to yourself.

I absolutely loved this book - it just shows that everybody is human and that we all make mistakes, even some that we’re not necessarily proud of. But from those mistakes, growth can blossom and create something beautiful out of the pain and that’s exactly what happened here.

There are multiple POVs in this book (Ted, Denise and Oskar) with the narratives switching between the past (through flashbacks) and present.

I loved to see the RuPaul references - iconic! I also loved to see how much the characters developed over the course of this book - there were such powerful and important conversations in this book that I think many will find inspiring, which could even spark people to rethink what their dreams are and what’s holding them back. It was also really interesting how this book explored internalised homophobia (and how this was challenged), which turned into gay positivity and I loved to see the evolution of the characters who experienced this.

I got so emotional and cried at the ending because it was such an important, inspiring and monumental moment and I am so happy to see the people who mean the most to Ted, supporting him when he needs it the most. He has the most amazing support group around him which made me so happy to see.

The only issue I had with this book was instead of saying “committed suicide”, use death by suicide.

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline Review for giving me an ARC of this book. This book will be available on 19th January 2023 as an e-book for £8.99 or a hardback for £16.99.

I have posted my reviews on my NetGalley and Goodreads accounts. I will be posting my review on my TikTok and Instagram next week.

⚠️ content warnings: mentions male genitalia, sexual situations, domestic abuse, bullying, harassment, cancer (and chemotherapy), conversion therapy, chemical castration and injections of oestrogen, suicide and abortion, racism, alcohol use, profanity, fatphobia, misogyny, derogatory language, physical assault, homophobia (and internalised) and cheating ⚠️

Another fantastic read from Matt Cain.
This book had me fully immersed in the life of Ted and his dream to become a drag queen. He was living his life to please his parents working in the family ice cream business and dreading the day his parents hand the business over to him. Lots of wonderful characters in this book with lots of humour throughout too. I could not put it down.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in return for an honest review. It was an absolute pleasure.

I loved THE SECRET LIFE OF ALBERT ENTWISTLE that this was an automatic must read. I absolutely adored this book. Such a feel-good, heart-warming story. I loved all the characters, and I liked that there's storylines for each of them rather than some of them just being there in the background. There's just so much to the plot, I highly recommend giving it a go!

I'm always so excited to hear of a new book from Matt Cain, who's writing always manages to somehow leave me feeling like I've received a comforting hug. Becoming Ted was no exception.

I love just how accessible and downright joyful Matt's stories are, and I always appreciate the extra thought and care he puts into all his characters. Having fallen in love with the darling Albert Entwistle in 2021, I'll admit I was a little afraid to be introduced to his newest male lead, but I needn't have worried, as Ted, alongside the rest of the novel's diverse and delightful cast were there waiting to welcome me with open arms.

Ted's story of heartbreak to happiness was a bumpy ride of self discovery - witnessing him blossom and slay his dream was a real pleasure, not to mention an absolute blast! But his fabulous transformation wouldn't have been possible without his nearest & dearest. Enter Denise, Stanley and Oskar, who's support and love MADE the story for me - you NEED to make their acquaintance!

Despite exploring many emotionally difficult topics, Becoming Ted is such a hopeful read that manages to shine a dazzlingly bright light on the importance of being wholeheartedly and unapologetically yourself. It's a fun, gloriously uplifting novel that radiates warmth and acceptance, champions the LGBTQ+ community and celebrates living life to it's fullest - I really, really enjoyed it!

Matt Cain, Shantay you stay! 🌈✨

I absolutely LOVED this book. I have read all of Matt Cain's previous books and they just get better and better. He is the most fantastic writer. This book features the most wonderful characters who I wish I knew in person - I adored Ted, Denise, Stanley, Oskar and all the rest of them. And SUCH a lovely story, so heartwarming and emotionally uplifting. The drag queen humour was also hysterically funny. If you're looking for a hilarious and joy-filled book, this is a must-read. I can't recommend it enough.
With grateful thanks to Matt Cain, Headline and NetGalley for my advance copy in exchange for an honest review.