Firstly, yes they all have some flaws and nuances (except Lilly the dog - she’s perfect) but this adds to their lovableness and realness too.

However, I cannot say that the novel is not without its flaws, and although this is not my usual review style, I want to zoom in on a few specific areas of the book that I keep thinking about. Zijn beste vriendin Denise wil er voor Ted zijn maar heeft haar eigen geheimen, de oude Stanley heeft een mooie en scherpe kijk op het leven, ik snap niet hoe Ted het zo lang heeft uitgehouden met de denigrerende Giles en de Poolse Oskar heeft een belangrijke rol, omdat hij ook een bijzonder en ontroerend verhaal heeft, wat het geheel versterkt. It wasn't funny to me and in some cases felt a bit mean-spirited which diminished my enjoyment as well.Matt's breakthrough work of fiction, The Madonna Of Bolton, became Unbound’s fastest crowdfunded novel ever before it was published in 2018. It's addressed that Oskar has internalised homophobia, but his actions because of it don't feel consistent. At the very least would he not feel guilty and want to assuage his own conscience by being nice to poor Ted? Along with jumping between three character perspectives, the story also flips between present day and the past, slowly giving us more scenes from Ted’s childhood and life with Giles.

But perhaps there is another Ted slowly blossoming now that he’s no longer in Giles’s shadow—funny, sassy, more uninhibited. At forty-three, Ted Ainsworth feels incredibly lucky to be married to enthralling, charismatic Giles, so when, after twenty years together, Giles says it’s over, Ted is understandably devastated.Now whilst there was some plot points I personally didn’t like that much, I do appreciate it as a whole and how they lead to certain things happening and just Awgh I cannot get over how satisfied I was with this book.

These characters challenge the reader to consider their own biases: whether they treat people differently if they speak in 'broken' english, despite likely not knowing any other languages themselves; whether they make an effort to listen and get to know people who they come across that have different backgrounds and experiences in life, and; whether they care enough to truly learn about others, and make them feel welcome in our societies. Massive thank you to NetGalley and Headline publishing house for accepting me as a pre-publication reviewer. And Ted, who has spent nearly twenty years living with, and often for , another person, must reimagine the future he has happily taken for granted. To make matters worse, the flashbacks happen within the narrative, as Ted reflects on the past, taking a look back in time. He is a people pleaser, stuck under the shadow of his parents, the responsibilities of his family business, and the expectations of a husband who doesn't really love him for who he is.

His best friend, the flamboyant Andrea, is determined to help Ted - she hasn't forgotten that he once helped her through her worst time.