Thank you NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for this eCopy to review


Life Begins follows Jessica, Robin, and Laura. Jessica and Robin have been best friends since university, and for Robin's fortieth birthday, Jessica plans an elaborate surprise trip to Italy with his closest friends and family. Jessica has always harboured feelings for Robin, but it seems like everyone knows except Robin himself.

Laura, Robin's wife, is a successful deputy headteacher with two beautiful children and a stylish home in London. However, she has been keeping a secret for many years, and during the trip, the truth finally comes out. Robin, an actor, is looking forward to being the centre of attention during the getaway, but as long-simmering desires and tensions rise to the surface, he begins to question if life can really begin again at forty.

I thoroughly enjoyed Life Begins. The characters were well-developed and relatable, each with their own secrets. The setting in the Italian countryside added a beautiful and escapist location. The alternating viewpoints in each chapter provided a deeper understanding of the characters' emotions and motivations. Full of twists and turns, I was kept hooked until the very end.

Overall, it's a heart warming and thought-provoking and emotional read that explores the themes of friendship, love, and second chances.

Love, love, LOVED this one!

Jessica and Robin have been friends since university; with his fortieth birthday approaching, Jessica arranges a suprise Italian holiday for friends and family. They have a successful union, with a fabulous London, two gorgeous children and while Jessica has a thriving career as a headteacher, Robin is an actor - although parts are few and far between as he gets older. Sometimes, Jessica thinks that everyone knows how much she loves Robin - except Robin himself. Away from home, emotions and secret begin to rise to the surface . . .

Having read another of Kate Eberlen's books, I quickly recalled why I enjoyed her writing so much (must catch up on the ones I haven't read) and let myself sink into this story. This is so beautifully written; the characters were beautifully crafted and the storyline entirely believable. I found it very hard to set my kindle aside as I became so invested in Jessica and Robin's relationship. A fantastic read, one which I highly recommend and, as such, give five sparkling stars.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley.

Life Begins tells the story of a birthday trip that has unexpected but far-reaching consequences.

Jessica organises a belated 40th birthday trip - delayed by two years due to Covid - as a surprise for best friend Robin. Jessica has had a crush on Robin since they met at university though that seems to have passed him by. He is married and on the trip are his wife and their two children, as well as a friend of their daughter, Robin’s two brothers and their families and his good friend Tim.

Set over the week they all spend in Italy, the story is told from 3 points of view - Jessica, Robin and his wife Laura. There are tensions among the group from the off, and as we get to know them long held feelings and some major secrets begin to surface - and the trip turns out to be rather different from the one Jessica planned.

With an interesting, if not always entirely likeable, cast of characters, and a glorious Italian setting that made me want to jump on a plane, this is an emotional story of people learning to be true to themselves - and a reminder that it’s never too late to make the most of life.

Jessica and Robin have been friends since university and Jessica has always been in love with him, although Robin seems oblivious. They are now in their early forties and to belatedly celebrate Robin’s 40th, which took place two years earlier during Covid lockdown, Jessica has arranged a surprise trip to a luxury property in Italy. Jessica has her own hospitality business and Robin is an actor/house husband married to deputy head teacher Laura. The book is told from the POV’s of these three main characters.

Briefly, the three main characters are joined by Robin and Laura’s children, Robin’s two brothers and their families and Robin’s other best friend, Tim. From the start there are tensions.

Told over the space of a week this is a character driven relationship drama with some interesting twists and turns, one of which I should have seen coming earlier than I did - how did I miss it? There are secrets that have been hidden for years which, had they come out sooner might have saved years of unhappiness. I loved the descriptions of the different towns and villages, they were well done and made me feel totally immersed in the story. A story of unrequited love, second chances and family relationships. An enjoyable and entertaining read.

life begins at 40. well, a few year later because of covid in this case...

this story is told from our three main characters point of view. i do like a dual pov book. you really get to see how differing personalities or view points,even of a same situation mean differing outcomes or takes on things.
i found this book a bit tricky at first. we have our Jessica who is in love with her long time best friend Robin....but hes married! i was immediately heartbroken for Jessica and judgmentally mad at Robin because how can you NOT know something like this if its been clear to everyone for so many years.
this books is characters driven. and its done so well. we are getting so much from it being so intermate in setting. a whole family and friends go off to italy to celebrate Robins 40th birthday. and everyone has their secrets. or their untold feelings. and they definitely do not all stay under the surface. and there is alot to unpack with this lot.
a great read. i always enjoy books like this and this didnt disappoint at all.

I really wanted to enjoy my first book by Kate but I just couldn't get into it. The characters were boring, the story just didn't just grab my attention. Maybe for someone else they will but sadly for me they didn't.

I loved Kate Eberlen’s other books and was looking forward to reading this one. Unfortunately I only reached 25% and didn’t finish the book. I’m sorry to say I didn’t relate to or particularly like any of the characters and so I wasn’t invested in their story. I’m sure this is simply a case of the wrong book at the wrong time and that other readers will love it.

This is my first book by this author and I really enjoyed the story which is set in Italy.
Jessica organises a surprise birthday trip for her best friend Robin and his family and friends and what follows is an unexpected emotional drama packed trip for all.
The characters are well written, I loved Jessica and I just found Robin an irritating character although towards the end I felt I understood him more.
I also liked the way the story was told through the three main characters viewpoints as I really felt this added to the book.
A great read with an unexpected ending which I would definitely recommend.
Thanks to NetGalley, Orion Publishing Group and Kate Eberlen for an advance copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

This was very much a character read, told from the viewpoints of Jessica, her long time best friend Robin and his wife Laura. This takes place over 1 week during a holiday to Italy to belated commemorate Robin’s 40th birthday, the celebration of which had been delayed by two years due to covid. On holiday with them are Robins children, his other best friend and Robins brothers and their families and there’s quite a few complexities within the different relationships. The action in this book very much takes place amongst these various relationships rather than events during the holiday itself and there’s quite a lot of soul searching in amongst more uplifting moments. Although some parts of this felt like a natural transition others felt more contrived, I could see the direction Robin’s story was probably heading but it concluded insanely quickly especially taking his family into account. There’s some good characters in this and strong storylines but I think for me personally it would have worked better over a longer time frame but it’s still a decent read.

Life begins at 49, or in this case 42 due to COVID interruptions. This is the story of a group of ‘friends’ and family who go to Italy for a holiday/birthday celebration, it’s really well written and each chapter is told from one of the main 3characters’ perspectives, which makes it especially interesting and readable.
I would never have guessed at the beginning how the story unfolded and who ended up with whom, but it all worked out surprisingly well. There are some funny and some sad parts to the story and the author has captured the feel of Italy really well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and send my thanks to net galley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an unbiased review.