Thanks Netgalley, what a wonderful wonderful fabulous book, it made me cry in several parts - loved it loved it

I cried from the first chapter. I wasn't expecting that, and started the book with breakfast one morning. Off I went to work with a tear stained face! Thanks Shari! I've read Shari Low's books from the beginning, although I hadn't seen any for a while until I rediscovered the newer books recently. I found them quite different, in that the while earlier books were more raunchy, the more recent ones are dealing with grittier issues. Always a pleasure to read, with sympathetic characters. As Dee's secrets come out as we go through the book, I must admit I was surprised with some of her goings on, and I was cheering Jen on from the sidelines. I wasn't sure if I wanted her to get together with Luke or if that would be too convenient, but right from the start they seemed more suited to each other. I loved the family set up, and being from Glasgow the characters were so true to life. I'd love to follow their stories further. Dee's mum reacted in such a human way to her daughter's death, and it was interesting to witness her internal struggles as she learned more about the killer's family. All in all another great read - keep them coming!

When Dee is killed, her best friend Jen, is left to cope with her death and adjust to life without the person who has been a best friend, and like a sister to her. It sounds like it might make for a very depressing read but it certainly isn't.
It's touching and sad at times, but there's also humour, and an interesting story that develops after Dee's death.
The story is told from several people's perspective; her best friend Jen, her mother, Val, and her husband, Luke. It took me a while to get used to the change of narrator with each chapter, but once I got used to it, I enjoyed the different perspectives. They had each lost her, but they were affected differently, and coped in different ways.
We get a real sense of what Dee was like, even though she is gone before the story really begins. The people she left behind all tell us the sort of person she was. She was so well loved, but of course had her flaws, some of which don't come to light until after her death.
I will be reading more of this author's books, her storytelling is captivating and realistic.

Imagine you find a scrunched up piece of paper that obviously has some sort of picture printed on it.

You think you know what it is from the small bits you can see but it is only as you carefully unfold it and iron out each crease that the full, detailed image becomes clear.

That’s exactly what reading A Life Without You, Shari Low’s brilliant new book, felt like to me.

Each gripping chapter revealed just a little bit more - with a fair few surprises along the way.

Here’s the blurb:

Dee and Jen have been best friends since their days of teenage crushes, bad 90's make-up and huge hair.

They’ve passed every milestone of their lives together and now in their thirties own a successful boutique, sharing a bond that is as strong as the closest of sisters.

Until one day everything changes.

Dee is gone, killed by a reckless driver, leaving Jen to face the harsh reality of a world without her.

Jen vows to honour Dee’s dreams and take care of everything and everyone she loved.

Until she realises that sometimes the only way forward is to let go of the past.

The book starts off at a cracking pace and never really lets up. Part of that is because, while it’s written in the first person, it switches between Jen, Luke (Dee’s husband) and Val (Dee’s mum) and that helps give it its energy – not to mention makes it nearly impossible to put down.

There are so many heartbreaking moments but also lots of heartwarming ones too.

An experienced author, it’s clear Shari Low is a talented writer who obviously puts a lot of work into her characters as they all seemed very 3D – so much so I wanted to reach out and hug them all at different points.

It is a great, very true to life, tale – one which deserves all the praise I’ve already seen being heaped upon it.

Format: Kindle.

Price: £2.48.

My rating: Five stars.

With thanks to publishers Aria (via NetGalley) for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Jen and Dee have been best friends since they were twelve, they do everything together until one Sunday evening Dee goes to get her phone from her car and is killed by a reckless driver while trying to save a young boy.

On the night of Dee’s funeral, Jen discovers her boyfriend of fifteen year Pete is leaving her without any explanation, within the span of a couple weeks she has lost the two people closest to her. With Pete gone, Jen tries to help Dee’s husband Luke through the grieving process.

Jen and Dee run a business which includes overseas travel which Dee used to do and it is decided that Jen will take on Dee’s travels. While Jen is travelling she discovers things about Dee that shock her as they were supposed to know everything about each other. Jen has to decide whether to keep these secrets to herself or to let Luke and Dee’s family know.

I love Shari Low’s books and this book was no exception. The beginning was heartbreaking and the secrets of Dee’s life that unravelled were unexpected. This was an excellent book and I would highly recommend it.

After reading The Story of Our Life by Shari Low i was super keen to read her next book A Life without You and all i can say is wow.

Shari Low's writing style is just amazing.
From the moment you pick up the book and start reading you can't help but be captivated. Her books are always touching, bittersweet and will pull at your heartstrings. If you lucky like me you may even shed a tear!

A Life without You follows the story of two best friends Dee and Jen. They have been friends since high school and are practically like sisters.
In a tragic turn of events Jen witnesses a terrible accident where Dee is struck down by a drug induced motorist and dies in Jen's arms.
The day of the funeral, Jen's boyfriend Pete of 15 years decides to up and leave without and explanation and Jen is left to deal with her grief.
She finds solace with Dee's husband who is trying to come to terms with the death of his wife and together they try their hardest to move forward with their lives and learn to live a life without Dee in it.
Along the way Jen discovers some secrets about her best friend and is faced with possibly giving up her own happiness for the sake of her late friend. Jen has a lot of soul searching to do and some very tough decisions to make. Can she move forward and forget the past?

I just loved everything about this book! I was hooked from the very first page and really love how in Shari Low's books most of the action so to speak happens within the first paragraph. definitely my favorite read of 2017 and Shari Low is fast becoming one of my favorite authors.

If you like Dani Atkins then i think you would enjoy this book too.

A huge thankyou to Netgalley and Aria for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Set in Glasgow focusing on the lives of two friends since they were five years old, Dee and Jen.

They run a business together now all week except Sunday's or probable party day considering when we meet them!

However, a crime on the doorstep and a one in a million accident sees us watch as Dee tries to save little Archie a young child from a car hitting him, thus instead we see Dee through Jen's horrified eyes and how she comes to term with what she's not just witnessed but just whom she has now lost.
We see Jen go through the motions of grief and the support she has from everyone including Pete, her boyfriend as well as seeing Dee's family including her husband coming to terms with their sudden tragic loss.
But then Jen's life is changed once again only this time on the day of her best friends funeral in a way she didn't see coming.

The romances in the book and the actions of our characters display all the usual chick lit traits and I also enjoyed the a split perspectives amongst the group of friends and family around Jen and Dee.

This was a great book from a lovely new author to me, I can't wait for more to come in the future from Shari.
Thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

I always love Shari Low's books. They are always breezy and yet moving, but this one was a little more on the sad side. I read it while I was laying on the beach, and I have to admit that I shed a few tears, and became increasingly angry with Dee, even though I knew she was dead. It made me stop and think, how when you die, your life gets opened up for everyone to pick through and judge.

Jen is heartbroken without her best friend, who she grew up with and now runs a successful business with. She isn't sure how to move on without her other half, but she finds comfort in Dee's parents, husband and brother. However, as she starts trying to keep the travel appointments in Dee's calendar, she is forced to confront the facts - her best friend had another life that she knew nothing about.

As Jen tries to wrap her mind around this information, and keep it from Dee's family, Dee's mom has some secrets of her own. She's currently stalking the man who hit her daughter with a car, and her stalking even extends to his mother.

Meanwhile, Jen is developing feelings for her best friend's widower, and wondering how that will change her relationship with 'Dee's family. And Dee's mom's nocturnal activities are escalating.

How do you let go of the past in order to move on with the future? What can you forgive when someone is already dead? There were lots of interesting ethical questions in this book - and I was riveted until the end.

Really dramatic and heart-wrenching read. It does a great job of portraying grief and regret. When a very loved person dies far too young, those left behind all have different ways of dealing with it. Dee, who died tragically in her early thirties, was an amazing woman. Her huge smile and big personality charmed everyone she met. She was beautiful, successful, and very loved.

Jen and Dee were not only business partners, but best friends since they were children. The women and their significant others had a great friendship with each other. Jen's boyfriend is similar to Dee... energetic, health-conscious, and always down for the next big adventure. Dee's husband Luke, like Jen, is more content to sit on the couch and relax. They all spend a lot of time together and everyone seems happy. With Dee gone, there's a gigantic missing space in their lives for all of them. What happens when a woman that was larger than life is taken from it? The story deals with how those she loved the most deal with her death, including her family. Jen thinks she knew Dee like the back of her own hand, but some secrets about her best friend come to light that she has difficulty dealing with... along with managing the business they created together.

This book isn't all tragedy and loss. There are some really funny moments in it too, and you really get attached to the characters and feel for them.

I received a copy of this book from Net Galley and Aria, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.

I loved this book, the subject should be depressing as it tell of the aftermath of the central characters death, however it is written with such honesty and humour that ultimately it is a really uplifting book. The story is told from the viewpoint of the family and friends of Dee who dies early in the story. The different characters all fall apart in different ways before they can then start to rebuild their lives. There are lots of plot twists which you don't see coming and things you expect to happen which don't! My personal favourite character is Josie and I think she still has more of a story to be told if the author has a sequel or prequel in mind!

Dee and Jen's friendship was one of a kind; the storyline made that extremely clear from the very beginning. Witnessing how close they were, even for such a short space of time, was such a joy to see. But out of the blue, a nervous feeling started to come over me and as I hadn't read the blurb beforehand, I had no idea what I was nervous about as I didn't know what would happen. Just as I was trying to ignore the nervous feeling....

BAM!

All of a sudden, the storyline felt like it was unfolding in slow motion. The sheer horror, the pain, the distressing circumstances; every little detail was written with precision and intense clarity. I could see the event unfolding in my head. I could hear the screams. I could hear the sound of Jen's heart breaking into millions of pieces. I wanted to cry but I couldn't; I was numb.

Those events will forever be etched in my mind as they were so vivid! What a mighty good way to start the novel though, eh! If I could go through such a range of emotions in a chapter or two, then my hopes would be soaring for the rest of the storyline. Considering that Shari Low began the novel with such a belter of situation, she managed to keep the momentum going through the rest of the novel. Of course I was a bit concerned that the following chapters wouldn't live up to what I read first, but I needn't have worried.

My heart went out to Jen, and Dee's family as reading about the aftermath was quite emotional and extremely heart breaking. It must have been quite a difficult subject to write about, yet Shari Low kept it realistic without adding any unnecessary outlandish features. Very sensitively written. It made a change to read a storyline containing the topic of death, whose characters didn't just 'get over it' the next day. I really did appreciate how realistic the grieving time-frame was written into the storyline, as well as lightly touching upon individual characters grief.

The more that the storyline unfolded, the more skeletons came out of the closet which made for rather entertaining reading. Well, it also meant that I got rather annoyed with a character or two, but you can't have everything though haha.

I have seen Shari Low's novels on Amazon previously, but they have always been under the 'oh I must read that soon' heading. I am really glad that I got an AriaAddict kick up my tooshmanoosh to read one of her books; Shari is a phenomenal story-teller!

Shari's words seemed effortlessly written, and flawlessly projected through such a heart-warming, emotional and intense storyline. If that's not a description of a literary genius and an outstanding novel, then I have no idea what is.

From the bottom of my heart, 'A Life Without You' is a truly beautiful read which showcases Shari Low's incredible literary talent, as well as her ability to trickle emotion through each and every chapter like a mini waterfall. Outstanding.

Thanks Aria.

Dee and Jen have been best friends since school and so when Dee is killed by a druggie motorist she is absolutely devastated - the biggest part of her life has just gone. To make matters worse her own boyfriend of 15 years ups and leaves her as well.

Totally lost Jen turns more and more to Dee's husband as they try and console each other over the huge gap in their lives - but as Jen learns some secrets she has to make a decision about her own future.

A lovely bittersweet book, very emotional but with laughs along the way and a book that stays with you after you have finished reading it

I started reading Shari Low’s A Life Without You before going to bed thinking that I was going to be reading a couple of chapters – but before I knew it, it was two o’clock in the morning and I had devoured the entire book! An outstanding tale of friendship, the ties that bind and second chances, A Life Without You is a must-read!

30 year old Dee Harper leads a life most people would envy: her husband Luke worships the ground she walks on, her parents adore her and she runs a thriving business with her best friend, Jen. But Dee’s perfect life comes to a tragic and sudden end when she is killed by a reckless driver. Her grief-stricken friends and family are left to pick up the pieces and nurse their grief, but they soon discover that Dee’s death has not merely left them feeling hollow and broken, but it also makes them ask some serious questions about their lives, their relationships and themselves.

Jen is already devastated by her dear friend’s unexpected death, so she is left reeling when her boyfriend informs her that he is calling time on their relationship. Jen had thought that the man she had hoped she was going to be spending the rest of her life with would offer a shoulder to cry on – she certainly never expected that she’d be left out in the cold by someone she loved. Jen, however, knows that she must honour Dee’s memory and ensure that their business continues to thrive, but as secrets from her best friend’s life come to a shocking light, Jen finds herself at a crossroads – should she tell her family and friends the truth about Dee? Or should some secrets stay buried with her beloved best friend?

A compulsively readable tale you will not be able to put down, A Life Without You is a gripping, thought-provoking, heart-wrenching yet uplifting novel fans of Jojo Moyes and Lisa Jewell are going to love. Packed with recognisable characters, realistic scenarios and a heart-racing plot that will keep you eagerly turning the pages, A Life Without You is a captivating tale that packs plenty of emotional punch.

A compelling and provocative read you will struggle to put down, A Life Without You will have you rushing to your favourite book store and buying Shari Low’s entire back list!