Who loves uplifting reads? If you’re nodding or shouting yes, this book needs to be added to your list!
Set in London, this is Sylvia’s story, and quite frankly, she’s struggling. With a new baby, a demanding toddler, her job in jeopardy, a frustrating neighbour and a partner who doesn’t step up and help… her arms are full, she’s juggling more than she can handle.
Something needs to change. Syl thinks if they move house, things will be better but will it?
Told solely from Syl’s perspective, each chapter follows the highs and lows of her life as she tries to find harmony within herself of what she really wants.
The first word that pops into my mind to describe this book is “witty”. O’Keeffe has captured the unique randomness of children so perfectly in this story, Larkin (the toddler) had a constant stream of light hearted dialogue that had me giggling away throughout! This cheekiness added a lightness to the plot and ensured that even through Syl’s low moments, the overall vibe of this book was uplifting, cheerful and feel good.
With her neighbour keeping her up most nights with banging noises and loud music, Syl’s need to vacate their building grows more every day. In fact, she’s even complained to the council about it and keeps a record of the anti social behaviour, which she keeps Bill up to date with! Bill is her anti-social behaviour liaison, who has become more of an agony aunt to Syl. He is such a sweetheart whilst also managing to be practical and reassuring; possibly, my favourite character in this story!
All set to leave her “hell hole”, Syl learns that developers are going to tear down the flat block. Something sparks within her, urging her to help the community before she goes, and in doing so, she learns a lot more about her neighbours…
I devoured this story, it has such a wonderful level of realism to it and was highly relatable. Syl’s road to rediscovering herself hit all the emotional notes and I admired how she learnt from the mistakes she made along her journey.
O’Keeffe’s writing style is sharp and honest with a heavy dash of humour in it. She has created a heartfelt story about new beginnings, supportive love, and being at peace with yourself.
I LOVED IT. It has the most perfect blend of charm, emotion and humour, if you love this genre, this has to be your next read!
On The Up is out NOW in hardback and eBook versions from Coronet.
Jenny very kindly gifted me a copy of the book for this tour, if you’d like to read more about this story from other bloggers, here’s a summary of the dates and when the posts will be up:
Until next time, Chloé x
Reviews by Chloé 