⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Review – How To Save A Life by Clare Swatman #HowToSaveALife
This was a gorgeous, heart-wrenching story of two people whose paths cross when they’re both at their own rock bottom. When Annie stops an unknown man’s suicide attempt on Waterloo Bridge, she doesn’t realise the impact she has had on him. Likewise, when Ted’s talked down from the brink by a small, blonde girl in a fairy costume, he doesn’t know that that one moment will skew both of their trajectories in life. The book is about their journeys to self-improvement, healing and relationships after that fateful meeting, as their paths cross just enough that you can connect the dots but they never quite meet.
I loved reading this book, it was unexpected, raw and emotional, but I couldn’t put it down. I loved reading about Ted and Annie’s stories, though them nearly crossing paths half a dozen times while pining for each other, but never actually meeting until years later was frustrating in the best way. Reading this novel showed me the impact of one action, and how the things that could be meant for us sometimes pass us by until the right moment when they are meant for us.
I think this book says a lot, more than you’d expect at first glance. It’s about human connections, expectations of what life should be like and how life itself throws that off-course. Ted and Annie will stay with me for a long time, I can tell. They have been living in my head rent-free for the past two weeks since I finished this novel and I can’t bear to part with them yet.
If you’re looking for an honest look into the human condition, like a bit of fate mixed in, and love a wild cast of characters that all have an important part in bringing them together, this is the book for you.
This review has been made possible thanks to @NetGalley and @BookandTonic for providing me with an Advance Reader’s Copy in exchange for an honest review as part of this blog tour!
Eliza Burmistre 