The Girl I Used to Know is an emotionally engaging story of friendship and resilience, proving that we can come through our struggles with hope and love.


The connection between Amanda and Tess is so incredibly raw and captivating that readers will be held spellbound in suspense. We travel alongside these characters on their journey of healing and growth as they find strength in each other and discover their inner courage.

The Girl I Used to Know is an uplifting and beautiful story of healing, of breaking the rules, of standing strong in the face of challenge. A touching read for those seeking comfort and peace.

I am a huge fan of Faith Hogan, she writes the most beautiful and emotional books, stories which capture your heart and stay with you a long time and The Girl I Used to Know is no different!

I have to admit that it has taken me a while to actually write this review, too many books and not enough time to sit and write.

The Girl I Used to Know is a beautiful story, it's all about family and friendships, it's about finding your feet and second chances and finding happiness and proves that you can't judge at first sight, you never know what is happening behind closed doors.

This tells the unhappy and inspiring story of how two women appear to be completely different. They both live in the same old Georgian house; 60-year-old Tess has been living in the basement for her whole life. She hides away, and closes her heart off to all human emotion, especially love. Amanda who now owns the house lives with her awful, cheating pig of a husband. She is nothing more than a walking doormat, she gets treated like dirt on his and their children's shoes. These two women are living a life where on the outside they hate each other but then a cat comes along and builds the bridge that these lonely women are wanting to build a friendship they both need.

Both Amanda and Tess are lonely, unhappy and feeling sad, they have lost all passion for life and tend to just plod along. But with the help of a little furry friend they start bonding, and they relaise that they may have more in common then an address. I love e how they bring each other out of their shell, by becoming friends instead of enemies they see that there is more to life then the one they are currently endruing.

I was completely hooked by both women stories, and was rooting for them both from day one and this is what Faith Hogan does best she write compelling and real people who yu can instantly see yourself in and relate to and you want them to be happy.

Overall, an inspiring, compelling and heartwarming book which will stay with you for a long time!

I adore all of Faith Hogans books and this one is now one of my favorites. I love when she leans into a character just as much as their landscape!! I love reading about the Irish.
#FaithHogan. #Tgiutk #NetGalley

Faith Hogan is an author whose books many women’s fiction readers enjoy. In this long (470 plus page book), she tells the stories of Amanda and Tess. They just happen to live in the same Georgian style house and will get to know one another over the course of the story.

This is fiction about forming friendships and not making assumptions about the lives of others. This Irish set novel draws readers into the characters lives and will be enjoyed by those who read the novels of Cathy Kelly or Marian Keyes.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Aria for this title. All opinions are my own.

Great read! Looking forward to reading more by this author! I highly recommend this book and author to all!

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for the advance copy in return for an honest review. And apologies for taking so long to review it.

This is an absolute treat of novel. Two very different women living separate lives in the same house come to understand how much you need your friends.

Put in a Matt the cat, that and dual time-line back to 1970s Dublin this makes an enjoyable read.

Really enjoyable read. Good characters and a Good story. Well worth a read. Think others will enjoy.

I was given a copy of The Girl I Used to Know by Faith Hogan in exchange for an honest review. The book is about Tess and Amanda both have very different lifes. Tess lives in the basement flat of Amanda's house and have never hot on, then one New year things begin to change. Tess lives alone and has no friends, Amanda is a stay at home mum with teenage children whose husband is always at work. It is set mostly in the present but does have chapters which go back to when Tess first lived in the flat and also back to when Amanda first met her husband. This was a great story, well written I liked how the characters were developed.

This has got to be one of the best books I've ever read. Not the normal fluffy kind of chick lit that I love but something much deeper. Very moving and very real. Off to buy more from this author.

An engaging and emotional story of unlikely friendships and second chances. A book to curl up with and enjoy the intricate personalities, unexpected little gems and a fantastic, happy romantic ending. I really enjoyed this book!

Faith Hogan’s star in the contemporary women’s fiction firmament continues to rise with her latest page-turning novel of friendship, family and the ties that bind: The Girl I Used to Know, a compulsively readable and heartwarming tale that stands shoulder to shoulder with the novels of Maeve Binchy, Patricia Scanlan and Cathy Kelly.

At sixty-six years of age, Tess Cuffe already feels as if her life is over. As a girl, she had been full of so many hopes and dreams for the future. Having been determined to make it as a professional singer and to shake off the dust of her small village, Tess had once thought that she could conquer the world, however, fate had other ideas in store for her. Rather than showing off her vocal talent on stages all across the world and being the one standing in the spotlight, she has spent her adult life hiding in the shadows eking out a living doing a variety of temping jobs all across the city, with no friends and nobody to care for or care about. She lives in a basement flat in a beautiful Georgian square in Dublin, much to the chagrin of Amanda and Richard King, who live on the top floors of their shared house. The Kings are sophisticated professionals who have even gone through the courts to evict Tess, but to no avail. Naturally their is no love lost between the two parties, but little do Tess and Amanda realise that they’ve got more in common than they originally thought…

Amanda seems to be leading a life most people would give their right arm for. She lives in a beautiful house in one of Dublin’s most desirable post codes, has two beautiful children and the perfect husband, but scratch beneath the middle-class surface and you’ll find a woman living in a soulless house with two kids growing increasingly independent and a husband with no respect for his marriage vows. Amanda spends her days drinking coffee with the girls and feeling increasingly listless and restless. She cannot help but feel that the girl she had once been has been lost and been replaced with an empty husk who idles her days away. Tess Cuffe with her unfashionable clothes and lack of sophistication couldn’t be more different from Amanda, yet as the two lonely women find themselves striking a hesitant friendship, they realise that they might be able to help one another to find the spark within which circumstance and fear had extinguished a long time ago.

Can Tess and Amanda find the courage to let go of the past and forge forward into the future? Or will they continue to let themselves be held hostage by their own fears?

The Girl I Used to Know is a feel-good, life-affirming and wonderfully poignant tale that I struggled to put down. I was drawn in by Faith Hogan’s brilliant tale from the very first page and I simply could not put the book down. Tess and Amanda are two fascinating, interesting and believable characters readers will relate to, empathize with and be inspired by. The Girl I Used to Know is a fantastic read that proves that you are never too old to be happy and one which will make you laugh and cry in equal measures.

A stellar read from a writer who keeps on getting better and better, The Girl I Used to Know is another must-read from the brilliant Faith Hogan!

I love dipping my toes into different genres as you never quite know what you might find, and occasionally you find a beautiful little gem and that is what I found right here.

Two stories are told, Tess’ story spanning forty-eight years and Amanda’s spanning twenty-two years. Both women are on a journey, heartaches and pain, love and loss both trying to return to The Girl (They) used to know. Both women looking past the facade of life and finally seeing each other for who they truly are, not who they pretend to be. Knocking down walls that have been placed there by other people and their disapprovals.

I warmed to both women quickly. Both are headstrong and determined women and until a man comes into their lives and things change. Tess suffers betrayal and heartache and struggles to move on. I mean if I went through what she did I think I would spiral out of control. She was poised but she shut herself off and became bitter. Slowly but surely, in cahoots with Amanda’s daughter Robyn, looking after a cat brings her out her shells and forms bonds with both Robyn and Amanda.

Amanda, at face level, has it all, perfect house, marriage, kids, husband going to get the all-important promotion. Somewhere in life, Amanda lost herself, and through stupid behaviour of her husband, she starts to see how cocooned her life is. I did feel satisfied with Amanda when she started smashing up glass ornaments!!

I really did love this story of second chances. Watching two women grow and realise that they have so much more to give and to live for. It’s definitely a book for anyone who has been wondering if life has passed you by without saying hi. It hasn’t! This book literally tells you it does not matter how old you are, you deserve your dreams and happiness and I love a book that gives you the warm and fuzzies. I have watched these two women take a look at their lives and demand more. It gives you the strength to review your life the same.

I loved this book, I sat there smiling and chuckling a lot. It made my heart soar for them both as I watched them grow. It just shows you how much negativity in your life can seriously damage not just you but to everyone around you. When you smile they smile.

I have been a fan of Faith’s work for a while now. I love the way in which she writes stories that tackle the difficult subjects but in a compassionate and sensitive way. I read the synopsis for ‘The Girl I Used To Know’ and it certainly sounded like just my kind of read. I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘The Girl I Used To Know’ but more about that in a bit.
The story is centred around two ladies called Amanda King and Tess Cuffe. Amanda seems to have the perfect lifestyle, the perfect house, the perfect social life and well you get the picture. However appearances can be deceptive and really she is rather lonely. Her house doesn’t have any sort of personality, her husband keeps being unfaithful and Amanda feels rather lonely. Tess lives in the basement of the house and to be honest she is an unwanted tenant. Tess has shut herself away from most things and she has shut her heart to love. If you were to go by appearances and first impressions you might think that the two ladies would have nothing in common, but this book shows that you can overcome the past and that friendships can be formed in the most unlikely of circumstances.
‘The Girl I Used To Know’ is certainly addictive reading. As soon as I began to read the first page that was it, I just knew that I would find it extremely difficult to prise the book out of my hands and so it proved to be. I binge read the book over the course of a couple of days but I was having that much fun reading the book that I failed to notice just how quickly the time was passing or how quickly the pages were turning. I would sit down, only intending to read for half an hour and I would still be sat reading over an hour later.
‘The Girl I used To Know’ is brilliantly written but then I wouldn’t expect anything else from Faith Hogan. Faith writes beautifully and she really does get to the heart of the matter. Faith knows how to draw you into the book from the first word onwards and she reels you in, much as a fisherman would reel in a catch. Once she has your attention, she doesn’t let it go until long after you have finished the book. Even after having finished reading the book, I still find myself thinking about the story and the characters. Faith writes so realistically and uses such powerful descriptions that I really did feel as though I was part of the story myself. I felt in tune with the characters and whatever emotion they were feeling, I felt too. I didn’t cry during the story but there were certainly times when I developed a lump in my throat.
In short, I absolutely adored ‘The Girl I Used To Know’. I would most definitely recommend Faith and her books to other readers. I can’t wait to read what Faith comes up with next. Here’s hoping that we don’t have too long to wait. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

This book tells the tale of two different women - Tess and Amanda - who don't like each other very much. They both suffer massive betrayals many years apart and it takes time to heal those wounds. Perhaps they will have to rely on each other to make sure the past is the past?

I loved the characters of Amanda and Tess. You could see why they rubbed each other up the wrong way but you could tell they were true and genuine too. Both had dulled their light for a man, even if that man didn't truly appreciate them, and had become quite bitter and judgemental as they got older.

With some shock revelations, the introduction of some interesting characters and finding some new hobbies for themselves, can the ladies become who they are truly meant to be?

This was a fantastic read. I was fully on their side throughout - I think both betrayals are of equal shock factor - and I liked how the novel ended, a happy ending for some characters whilst perhaps not so for others. I'd certainly recommend this for a summer holiday read.

Chick lit at it's best, i thoroughly enjoyed reading this light hearted romance in the garden this summer.

It's always a welcomed endeavour to dive into a Faith Hogan story and this one did not disappoint in the slightest. The story invited me in with warmth and love and I felt at ease immediately with the tale that played out before my eyes.

Life is a turbulent venture and the roads we take can lead to unknown places of loneliness. Two women, two different stories but two journeys with many similarities entwine together in this heartfelt plot that had me hooked from the start.

Amanda is surrounded by family and fairweather friends yet still feels a keen sense of loneliness. Tess's struggles has led her to a life alone and yearns for love and forgiveness to drown out the deafening sound of emptiness. Together they forge an unlikely friendship in order to rebuild their life and reclaim happiness.

The writing is engaging and ebbs and flows with heartfelt and poignant emotion. I developed an infinity bond with the difficult and belligerent Tess who's empty life left me bereft and sad....her shattered dreams and tortured love life was a rollercoaster of feelings that still haunt me.

The Girl I Used to Know is a frank look at life and love. It's filled with a keen observation of the consequences of letting life pass before your eyes and is a strong reminder to live each day to the best of our ability and put happiness and real love to the forefront of all that you do. If you have yet to read this stunning story then waste no more time and dive in today.....it's a decision you will not regret.

This story kinda reminds of when I inhaled Patricia Scanlons books. I absolutely loved this story. The Girl I Used to Know is a refreshing and captivating story that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Amanda and Tess. Two completely different characters living under the same roof. I love how their story was told.


This was a great story. A well written story ideal as a beach read.

The first half of the book was slow where the author laid down the foundations of both the main characters. 35 year old Amanda with her husband and kids had a great, well-settled life where the 66 year old Tess, her tenant at the basement, was the only thorn on her side. The women lived in the same house but hated each other with a vengeance. Life was good and moving like a well-oiled machine.

But every bright picture had a darker tinge if you looked closely. One day, Amanda too looked closely into her husband’s pockets and came out knowing a fact which shattered her. Tess tripped on a cat, and with a fractured hand, came to know how lonely she was. Slowly, Amanda’s daughter Robyn became her friend along with the doctor who treated her. Amanda too had to take some important decisions regarding her life.

Approximately, at the mid-half of the book, the story took a deep breath and settled down over me, enveloping me like a warm, cozy blanket as if these characters were a part of my life. I saw myself in them. I saw my fears reflected in their stories. Their dreams had been lost like mine. Their loneliness seemed exactly like the one in my heart.

Faith’s writing took me to a place deep into myself where my wishes had once taken flight. Her portrayal of these brave women who forged a tentative friendship, then became each other’s staunchest support, saw my courage seeping into me. Their determination to live their lives on their terms made me believe in mine. Their emotions simply became mine. Such was the power of Faith’s words.

Told in two time-lines over forty years apart.

Over forty years ago:

This lovely story begins with two sisters from rural Ireland. On the cusp of adulthood, they travel together to Dublin where one sister will attend Trinity College's prestigious College of Music, and the other sister will attend secretarial school. Tess Cuffe, the more passionate and vibrant of the two, is a singer. Nancy is more demure and wants the traditional life of husband and children, preferably back in Ballycove, the small Irish village she grew up in. Full of hopeful ambition and joie de vivre, the sisters embark on a new life in the city.

Just a short time after they move into their Dublin basement flat, Tess falls in love with Douglas Buckley. This will profoundly change her life forever.

"It was a love that cost too much in the end."

Present day:

Amanda and Richard King live at 4 Swift Square, Dublin. This is a prestigious address as befits the ambitious banker that Richard is. They have two teenage children. They bought the Georgian house years ago and have since totally remodeled it to the show-home condition it is today. There has only ever been one drawback... when they bought the house it had a sitting tenant in the basement flat. A tenant who will not be moved through bribery or any other means. Her name is Tess Cuffe and she is now sixty-six years of age.

Bitter, regretful, and lonelier than she ever could have imagined, Tess Cuffe hasn't one friend to call her own. Still working, she temps at various offices around the city of Dublin. When a neighbour's cat gets under her feet, she had a fall which broke her wrist. This event will begin what is a drastic turnabout to Tess's lot in life. For starters, she becomes friends with the doctor who treats her injury, as well as the King's teenage daughter Robyn, AND, at first reluctantly, she takes in the troublesome cat which she names Matt.

"Amanda had signed up for happy ever after
and suddenly it was being snatched from her."

Forty-six year old Amanda King is lonely also. Her husband is distant and constantly critical. He works longer and longer hours. Her children are uncommunicative. Her female 'friends' are not really friends, rather they are catty, duplicitous socialites. She turns to high carb foods for comfort and gains weight. When her 'perfect' life turns sour, Amanda takes stock of her miserable situation and finds herself wondering just where is "the girl she used to know"...

MY THOUGHTS

A prime example of 'women's fiction', "The girl I used to know" was a joy to read. Just the tonic a reader craves after a reading slump, or, as a genre palate cleanser. The strong characterization makes you form a bond with the strong and resilient women at its core.

The novel explores the themes of loneliness, betrayal, second chances, and, most importantly, female friendship. The overriding message of the book is summed up in the following quote:

"It's never too late to be happy."


I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel from Aria (a digital imprint of Head of Zeus) via NetGalley. I chose to review it because I thoroughly enjoyed another of her novels.

I received a copy of this from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book documents the lives and respective turning points of 2 very different women. One delves in the hopeful and shiny life of Tess at least 40 years in the past when she first started going to school in Dublin for singing. Over the course of the book, you find out what happened in the past to make her like she is in the present. It's both tragic and heartwarming. The other woman, Amanda, who happens to live in the house above Tess, is married to the overbearing and narcissistic Richard. When we are first introduced to the couple, they are both very much at odds with their current tenant, Tess. Richard wants nothing more than to have her move out, while Tess has other plans. At first it appears, Amanda is Richard's lapdog; she doesn't really have any personality of her own, and she does what a typical rich housewife usually does. We are introduced to a completely different Amanda 20 or so years prior, who was an aspiring artist, and had big big dreams.
This book is about heartbreak, finding one's self, forgiveness, strength, and trust. It's got some romance and some feel good parts as well. I really enjoyed it and I will be checking out more books by this author.