The Two Lives of Lydia Bird by Josie Silver

Do you enjoy romantic stories? Crying during the romcoms on TV? Books that make your heart sigh? Then The Two Lives of Lydia Bird is the next book for you.

I got this book in my Book of the Month box for March. I don't normally pick up romance because most times I find it too cheesy or I get a bit bored. But, I decided to give this one a try and I am so glad that I did.

Synopsis:

Lydia Bird and Freddie Hunter have been together for 14 years. They are engaged to be married and are looking forward to the many years they’ll spend together in the future. But, on Lydia's 28th birthday, Freddie dies in a car accident.

Struggling to move on, Lydia embarks on a journey of rediscovering herself in her waking world, while enjoying dates, planning her wedding, and continuing her romance in her dreams where Freddie is still alive. The desire to see Freddie causes her to plan her waking life around her sleeping life, hurting the people trying to look out for her.

The lines get pulled further and further apart as the lives in her two worlds become drastically different. Will she find herself again in her waking world? Or will she become stuck in grief and stay asleep?

Review:

I saw some instagram reviews for this book before I picked it up that made me both excited and a little nervous. Some people loved it and others were not enthused. Regardless, I stepped outside of my comfort zone and I dove right in.

I was thoroughly engaged throughout the entire book. There were times when it was a teensy predictable, but I kept wondering how it would end the entire time I was reading. I had ideas but nothing super concrete. The ending itself (no spoilers, promise) was just the right amount of hope and love that you want to see and I believe it tied up the story in the right way.

The plot moves at a very good pace. I think Josie Silver did a good job of adding details and expanding on Lydia's relationships with her family and friends. This really helped round out the entire story and without the background knowledge this book had the potential to fall flat. It was great that her friends and family were able to come alive and play such major roles in her life. These people are great reminders of the players that act in our own waking lives.

One of my favorite parts about the writing was that it was smooth and changed on me just when I needed it to. The writing changed in the sense that something new would happen, or it would transition from awake to asleep, heart broken to happy. The character is constantly facing challenges and roadblocks and all of these end up helping her on her journey of grief.

My heart ached and I was almost moved to tears so many times. I could not imagine how I would feel if I lost my fiancee. That real factor and raw emotion that Josie Silver was able to bring to her writing was what I believe made this book a winner.

Happy reading!