I really enjoyed this book. I don’t tend to read many books with anything supernatural or remotely fantasy but I enjoyed the other books I’ve read by Matt Haig so wanted to give it a try. I’m so glad I did, I loved the characters, I thought their journey was brilliant. I would have liked t learn a little more about mourice but other than that it was just a delight. I particularly liked how all of the supernatural was linked to and backed up by science so it felt more real.

This is the third book by Matt Haig which I’ve read. Despite knowing that he includes fantasy elements in his novels, I was still surprised when it suddenly turned in that direction, especially as it started out as more of a “real-life’ story. Having said that, Matt Haig’s writing is just superb. He obviously knows Ibiza intimately and his descriptions of its fascinating culture and natural bio-diverse eco-system make me want to visit!

At the heart of this brilliant story is his clear desire to raise awareness of mental health issues and the importance of looking after your mental health. Grace Winters is such a complex character who faces some hard mental challenges through her life and Matt Haig handles these topics with sensitivity. Care for the environment is another key theme. I particularly liked the idea that everything in the world is intimately linked together and is also essential to our mental health. I’m passionate about the environment and how it links to our mental wellbeing so this really appealed to me. I find his writing to be so full of wisdom and there are so many quotes I would happily print out and stick on my wall!

An unusual story with unexpected twists, brilliant morals and life lessons, I’d definitely recommend, especially if you like a bit of fantasy!

This wasn't quite what I was expecting from the blurb - yes it is the story of retired teacher Grace, who heads off to discover a new life on Ibiza - which is exciting and eye-opening; but the strangeness of the story is other-worldly and alien - a bizarre glowing presence which inhabits Grace giving her clairvoyant and other peculiar powers.

I enjoyed the story, but I wasn't expecting quite so much other-worldliness. Great to see a different side to Ibiza though.

I loved The Midnight Library and really wanted to love this,but, although there were some really astute references to grief and life, it was just a bit too weird/too many supernatural references for me

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

This book is beautifully written with relatable characters, particularly the main character, 72-year-old retired maths teacher Grace, who gets left a house in Ibiza by a friend she hasn't seen in years. I've not been to Ibiza, but the descriptions have made me want to go there. If you loved Matt Haig's previous book, The Midnight Library, you'll enjoy this thought-provoking story, with a touch of magical realism thrown in to emphasise the message.

I read daily, and I've read a lot of books over the years, and most of them you tend to forget very quickly, as they don't really connect with you on an any real emotional level.

This book doesn't just connect with you straight away, it won't let you let go during, and after you have finished reading it.

A story for our current times, where what you thought you knew beforehand, you become no longer certain of anything.

Take the journey, and see where this story takes you, and then share it with those people you care about, and actually even with those you don't care about.

Why not.

This was such a beautiful and magical read overall, I am very glad I read it and would have no hesitation is recommending it to others.

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig is an unnusual book full of magical realism and initially I was sure what to make of it.

The book begins with retired school teacher Grace Winters receiving an email from an old pupil who was having a rough time.

"I look at what is happening in the world and I see that our whole species is on a path to destruction. Like it programmed, another pattern. And I just get fed up with being a human, being this small tiny thing that can't do anything about this world. Everything feels impossible."

Grace shares her story with him, an unbelievable story at that.

"What I am about to tell you is a story even I find hard to believe."

Grace Winters stopped having a purpose in life when her son was killed in a traffic accident back in 1992. She has lived wirh the guilt ever since. Now she lives alone in a bungalow in Lincoln after the death of her husband. She lives a lonely existance, the only things that spark joy are the birds outside her window.

Being from Lincoln myself it was quite jarring to see it mentioned casually so frequently within the text. It made me realise how few books I have read which mention it.

"Once upon a time there was an old woman who rarely left her bungalow, except to see the doctor, help at the charity shop, or visit the cemetary. She didn't garden any more. The grass was overgrown, and the flowerbeds were full of weeds. She did her weekly shopping. She lived in the Midlands, Lincoln, Lincolnshire. The same orange-bricked market town that she had stayed in - apart from a brief stint at Hull Ubiversity centuries ago - all her adult life.

You know the place.

And it wasn't so bad, but it's streets were less welcoming than they used to be. It was hard to see her fond memories covered in chipboard and ripped posters."

A change comes in her life when a colleague she once showed kindness to leaves her a villa in Ibiza , once there a change comes over her and Grace learns what it means to trully live.

I enjoyed the ecological slant to this speculative fiction and the different light in which Matt Haig showed this susposed party island.

For me this was a curate's egg of a book. Parts are wonderful and a delight to read, other elements less so.

A huge positive is having an older central character - Grace aged 72, a retired maths teacher who is neither patronised nor imbued with excessive wisdom, two things that are often the case for older characters in novels. She is a pragmatic flawed individual, sent by grief into a state of anhedonia, unable to feel much of anything. She is gifted a house in Ibiza in unusual circumstances and there is touched by La Presencia which gives her hyper appreciation and feeling. This much, along with the central message of appreciating and living with nature, is a delight. But the plot veers into alien life visiting earth, I don't want to give spoilers so I will leave it at that, but for me this and other supernatural forces just began to make the novel feel rather ridiculous and rather spoiled the joys of nature hitherto described.

I can see from other reviews that I'm a bit of an outlier and I still enjoyed reading it. Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a review copy.

An act of kindness in the past, leads to retired maths teacher, Grace, inheriting a house in Greece. She is emailed by a former student asking for help - the answer he receives is not what he expected as she shares how she has achieved peace through other-worldly experiences.
As ever, Matt Haig pushes the boundaries of belief whilst exploring grief, hope, the need to belong and to protect the world in which we live through characters who come to life on the page. This is a book that leaves you feeling warm and connected.

An email from a former pupil prompts retired math teacher Grace Winters to reply with her experiences.
At first you think: what kind of wacky baccy has this level-headed woman been on? When, being at a personal low, she inherited a ramshackle house on Ibiza from an ex-colleague she barely knew, she goes there on a whim. Once there, weird things start to happen and weird encounters threaten her ruler-straight beliefs, in fact turn her every thought inside out.
At times, this book was a bit too esoteric/tin foil hat for me, at other times I enjoyed the “unwrapping” of Grace.
The vague pseudo-scientific waffle was a bit annoying, though:
“And the bioluminescent photons of La Presencia interact with the bioluminescent photons within us, because light gets through and inside everything. And, via the triggering of a stunningly complex hormonal response and a kind of biological information transfer, these new photons untap our potential.” Oh, my…
Even the bits leading up to the truly “out there” bits were hardly logical and the eco message permanently rammed down the reader’s throat was both patronising and tiresome: “She sparkled, thanks to the eco-friendly biodegradable body glitter on her cheeks.”
Sweeping generalisations galore: Developers are evil, eco warriors are to be idolised, politicians are corrupt.
And: This is NOT general fiction, but fantasy.

The Life Impossible is a strange and mystical read from author Matt Haig. I loved The Midnight Library so I've been really looking forward to this one. My thanks to Netgalley and Canongate Books for providing me with an ARC for review purposes.

Grace is a retired maths teacher. She is also widowed and her life is filled with sadness and regret. Then out of the blue Grace inherits a house from an old friend she hasn't seen for years. With her curiosity piqued, Grace books a one way ticket to Ibiza to investigate her new house. She is completely unaware that the island will change her in the most profound way.

I love the authors writing style and I found myself easily swept away to the magical island of Ibiza. The plot is reflective and thought provoking and has definitely left a lasting impact.

I normally love Matt Haig's books and to start with I thought this was going to follow suit but I was disappointed. The, what do I call it? Magical, mystical element just didn't fit with me and I like fantasy books!
I liked Grace Winters the protagonist of the story and felt for her in the beginning but then it just started to get a bit unbelievable.

Uplifting usual Haig weirdness

At the age of seventy-three, retired maths teacher Grace Winters is stuck. Recently widowed, longtime bereft of her beloved son, and facing a boring, far too certain future, she is suddenly given the gift of a house on Ibiza by a woman she knew once, but not someone Grace would have ever called a friend. If she goes to Ibiza (for the first time) at the age of seventy-three, how might her life change? Taking the plunge, the house is a disappointment, but not so much a *SPOILER* mysterious glowing olive jar.

I like how Matt Haig uses incredibly relatable characters and accessible writing to explain big ideas. In this new novel, he takes the idea of first contact and mixes it with Ibiza to create something that works in a relatively domestic setting but with cosmological consequences. The only bit that might have needed more development was the antagonist, but the sheer delight in heroine Grace's newfound lust for life more than covers for the missed opportunities.

Written in the form of one long novelistic letter to one of Grace's former students, it's told almost entirely from her point of view, and her incredulity at the strangenesses happening to her and her growing realisation of her steadily opening future are the heart of the novel. The hand-wave-y science fantasy conceit is barely touched on, which is a good thing, so the book isn't really about logic as it is about possibility, about human potential and ecological conservation.

A solid four stars.

The midnight library is one of my favourite books ever, so this one was a must read. It didn’t disappoint, I absolutely loved every moment I spent reading the life impossible by Matt Haig!

This is my first time reading this author’s adult fiction work. I really enjoy how he uses a fictional story to convey a meaningful message and challenge the reader to think about how they surprising their lives.

I enjoyed reading about our main character who had to challenge her own judgement and opinions to be able to open her life to impossible opportunities and ideas.

The concept behind the book is a clever one , the chapters are short and the writing flows well which made this and enjoyable reading experience. You have to have an open mind as a reader for the story as some of the plot is a bit mad but to be honest, I found it fun.

I had a good time reading this book , in some ways it’s completely bonkers but I just didn’t care.

An absolutely absorbing read I could not put down. So well written with brilliant characters in a fantasy/ real world.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Loved this very different tale from the Mediterranean island of Ibiza. Enticing, interesting, life affirming and inspiring.
This is the story of Grace Winters, retired Maths teacher and widow, locked into a grey world of limitations and grief in her bungalow in Lincoln. When she gets the news she has been left a house in Ibiza from an old friend from her youth, Grace feels encouraged to fly over to see what life is like. With an open ticket and a mathematical enquiring nature and mind, the adventures find her as her world opens up with hope and positivity for her future.
Written in an unusual style of short chapters and of a story being sent to an old pupil, you are soon lost to the beauty of the island, immersed in the heat and enraptured by where you will be taken to next. The details of the nature reserves flora and wildlife are beautiful.
I really enjoyed this book and would entirely recommend as a very different and inspiring read!
Thank you NetGalley and Canongate books for the early read totally loved it!!

Some real beauty in this story but it veered between profound and cliche almost from page to page.

A tired and depressed Brit is left a surprise legacy of a house on Ibiza and decides to go and see what a new life could hold. Along the way she meets a varied cast of characters including an astrophysicist, a diver, a goat and an extra-terrestial entity in the sea.

Another fabulous book by Matt Haig! I am in awe of this authors writing. He manages to execute magical realism perfectly! I loved the setting of this book, how beautifully descriptive it was and how it offered a bit of everything! There were heartwarming moments as well as pulling at much deeper emotions! I just love his work and this was another masterpiece! Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this ARC it’s very very much appreciated.