This was my first Amanda Prowse book and I will read more of her now. The novel is heartbreakingly lovely but is often painful to read as the sorrow Rachel and James are plunged into is harrowing. When their young son suddenly goes missing off their boat in the middle of the night, they are, of course, devastated and have difficulty dealing with it as no body is recovered and questions are unanswered. Rachel holds out hope that he will be found alive, even as James encourages her to deal with the fact that he's probably dead; this tears them apart as tragedies often do. It is only much later and with the help of their nanny--who writes them numerous letters filled with memories--that they see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Be prepared for some ugly crying and sadness with this one!

Well, I went into this book knowing it was going to be sad. How could it not be ? The loss of a child. Break up of a marriage. But it is also hopeful and shows the resiliency of the human spirit. Very well & beautifully written. Grief is a powerful thing / emotion. Amanda Prowse delves into all sides to this and makes you feel what these parents and friends and family members are feeling. You want to help these people. Heartbreaking yet lovely at the same time. This would be a great book for people to read if they have lost a child, or even if they have not. I don't even have children and I was moved by it. Loved, loved, loved the ending !

Amanda Prowse is one of my favourite authors and she hasn’t disappointed me again with this fantastic book.

The title is very apt as the subject of grief can be navigated so differently by everyone involved . I found myself relating to the characters and had my heartstrings pulled throughout. Amanda’s insight into the characters and subject matter is astonishing.

The story is centred on Rachel who has lost her only son in a tragic accident, she is struggling with her grief and guilt and finds it hard to connect with her husband James who is also grief stricken. Their housekeeper Cee Cee is very important to them both and she provides unbiased support to the couple, helping them to move forward in her own gentle understanding way.

The importance of family and taking time to heal is evident throughout the story and the fact that there is no blueprint in dealing with life changing events.

Grab your tissues and read this fantastic book it will definitely test your emotions. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for my chance to read this emotional book.

I've read a lot of books by Amanda Prowse and always enjoy them, despite the often difficult subject matters. This one is no exception as it deals with a missing child. As you might expect, it is an emotional read that is dealt with incredibly well.

One morning while James and Rachel are on their yacht in Bermuda they realise that their seven year old son Oscar isn’t in bed or on the boat. What follows is a frantic search, but Oscar has just disappeared with no sign of an injury or struggle. It appears he has just fallen overboard and drowned.
Rachel and James left together trying to deal with the loss of their son, the guilt because they didn’t know he had gone and the blame of each other for what has happened. How do you move on when there is no body and you never know what has truly happened.?
The only way Rachel can cope is by leaving the island she lives on and therefore leaving her husband James behind before they truly destroy each other.
Running alongside this story is another about Rachel and James housekeeper Cee-Cee, who many years ago lost her own child. Through a series of letters Cee-Cee tries to help Rachel through her heartbreak.

This is a beautifully written book, pulls you in at the beginning and doesn’t let you go until the very last page is turned.

Many thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

One of the aspects that I really enjoyed was the relationship between Rachel and James. I felt the emotions and thoughts they had were raw, and the phases they went through in their relationship seemed realistic. Though, at some point, we don’t spend as much time with James, his presence was always in the background, which was how Rachel felt. Their evolving marriage through this difficult and terrible time were the moments that my heart raced and felt deep sadness, aside from when they couldn’t find Oscar, of course.

I can’t imagine what it is like to lose a child. I’ve lost a sister, and so my parents probably would understand better, but the sense of loss and emptiness of losing someone so young must be one of the worst feelings a person can experience. Reading Rachel’s perspective, I felt I was given a glimpse of what it could feel like for a parent to lose her/his only child.

For most of the book, we get the perspective of Rachel with some parts of Cee-Cee, the Crofts’ housekeeper and friend. I found the pacing in Cee-Cee’s chapters, which mainly consisted of the letters she had written to Rachel, rather slow. Though I can see why these would help Rachel heal, for me, I found them to drag the plot. Rachel’s storytelling was better in a lot of ways. She clearly demonstrated the devastating and heart-wrenching feeling it is to lose a child. However, since this was much of the plot, it did bring the story to a slow crawl as some actions and thoughts were repetitive. Perhaps this was intentional because the healing process of losing a loved one is not instant.

Most of The Coordinates of Loss had an undertone of sadness. It could almost be compared to a lingering black cloud. It isn’t until the end do we see a bit of sunshine. I would then give a fair warning to those sensitive to sad stories.

Overall, the author’s message and resolution was clear. With some improvement with plot flow, this could be an even better read. I would recommend this to those who would like to read an emotional story about healing and those who don’t mind a bit of a slower plot.

I found this book to be quite enjoyable and I could imagine myself there as everything was happening.

The Coordinates of Loss tells the story of James and Rachel Croft. The Crofts believe they have everything they’ve ever dreamed of; a beautiful home over looking the ocean on the island of Bermuda, a small sailing boat for weekend trips and a gorgeous son who is the centre of their world. Then one morning they wake up on their boat and life will never be the same again.

Once again Amanda Prowse has written a beautiful book that touches your heart. The story is told mainly through Rachel’s voice. Overwhelmed by grief, she returns alone to her home in Bristol . As Rachel tries to move forward she receives letters from her housekeeper CeeCee. An elderly lady who ‘came’ with their home.Through these letters we learn about Cecilly’s life and her own experience of grief.

This is an incredible book that pulls on your heartstrings like no other novel will.. Loss of a loved one is never an easy topic to talk about and touches people in such different ways. Amanda has taken this complex emotion and written a heartwrenching tale that doesn't hide from the enormity of dealing with the death of a loved one. The Coordinates of Loss in is another incredible read from this amazing writer.
Thankyou for giving me the opportunity to read it prior to publication

My 5* review for The Coordinates of Loss, another glorious book by Amanda Prowse. From the lovely cover with the lonely boat adrift and unmoored in a beautiful blue sea, I knew I was in for a summer treat. This book tells the story of Rachel who is leading a charmed life on the beautiful island of Bermuda with a happy marriage, a beloved son, a wonderful house overlooking the ocean, complete with housekeeper and appears to have it all. However, just around the corner is a tragedy that threatens to destroy it all in the blink of an eye, when she wakes up one morning with her husband on the boat and cannot find Oscar her 7 year old son.

Amanda Prowse does not shy away from dragging us through the dark and desperate days that follow while Rachel struggles to navigate her way through the many stages of her grief. And while her husband, James, wants them to face the tragedy together, everytime they look at each other they are reminded of their loss and there is an undercurrent of guilt and blame for the loss of Oscar too. Rachel feels that the life they once shared is over, and the wonderfully comforting and wise housekeeper Cee-Cee seems to be the only one that can reach her while she wanders like a lost lamb and navigates her way through the worst thing that can happen to any mother. Cee-Cee has faced a similar loss many many years before and confides in Rachel that when she got sad she explained it to herself with the following phrase "I am sad, sadder than sad, and I won't stop til I see my baby son again in heaven". Rachel realises that she is overwhelmed with grief and unable to function in Bermuda and needs some distance and perspective, so goes home to Bristol, to the soothing arms of her parents and best friend Vicky. The biggest and wonderful surprise I got in this book was Amanda mentioning that Rachel's parents actually lived in Yate, my home town and she mentions lots of Bristol landmarks which always makes a book extra special to me.

Only when she starts receiving letters from her housekeeper in Bermuda, does light begin to return to Rachel’s soul. Cee-Cee, over a period of months, with eagerly anticipated letters, tells her own story about first love and her own loss of a young son, which help Rachel understand the housekeeper better and she begins to realise that everyone has a story to tell, and is reminded that time will eventually heal.

She and James, who has felt abandoned in Bermuda and has lost his way too, both want and need to learn to love and live again and only by going home can Rachel and James find out if they have a future together and whether they can find their way back to each other.

When I had finished the book at 1.42 a.m. (because once Rachel got on the flight back to Bermuda near the end of the book, there was no way I could let her to take that trip on her own, I needed to go with her, she was my friend too now) and I was desperate to finish the book because I was so emotionally invested in them all.

The various characters in the book are all completely different but necessary in their own way, from Rachel's solid dad and his 7 mile walks of an evening, to her mum who holds it all together until she finally erupts at the dinner table with sadness and emotion, her friend Vicky who reminds Rachel that life goes on, and Glen who runs the lovely coffee shop called "rewer"!

I loved the inclusion of the Tic Tac box of sand and shells, because that resonated with me as a memory of my own from years ago, and although the book was full of sadness and grief I finished it with a watery smile through my tears. Amanda includes in the book something I am familiar with which is the question "if you knew in advance you could only get 7 years of happiness, but could choose NOT to have your son and spare yourself this heartache, would you choose that?" Of course not, children are are a gift from heaven and every day is precious with them. I just wanted to hug my own children, and think how lucky I am they are safe and alive and loved when I finished the book. Another wonderful emotional story of life, love and loss from Amanda.

This book was incredibly sad. It's beautifully written, but so heartbreaking. This book deals with losing a child and trying to piece your life back together and finding a way to live with the grief.

While living in Bermuda, Rachel and James discover their seven year old son, Oscar, is missing from their boat. From that moment on their life is forever changed. They have no idea what exactly happened, except that he is gone. Rachel and James grieve differently. Rachel has a hard time coping with Oscar's death and believes he may be alive somewhere. Perhaps with the help of kelpies, mermaids or giant sea turtles. Rachel blames James and decides to go home to England to work through her grief. With the help of their housekeeper, Cee-Cee, James and Rachel start to heal. Cee-Cee understands the pain they are going through since she experienced something similar in her younger years.

I enjoyed the story, writing style and most of the characters. I loved Cee-Cee and reading about her younger years. I wouldn't have minded reading more about her. Rachel was a different story. The book pretty much focused on her and how she dealt with Oscars death. I understand you never know how you will react in such a horrible situation, but I just didn't care for Rachel. She pretty much abandons her husband to grieve by herself for her son, not their son. Rachel's brother and sister-in-law were awful and I would hate to imagine people would act that way to someone who recently lost a child. I had a feeling what would happen in the end, I even guessed how they would honor Cee-Cee.

I did enjoy the book and recommend it. I can't wait to read more books by the author.

Thanks to NetGalley, Amazon Publishing UK and the author, Amanda Prowse, for a free electronic ARC of this novel

I would like to thank Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Co-ordinates of Loss’ by Amanda Prowse in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Rachel and James Croft and their seven-year-old son Oscar live an idyllic life in Bermuda with their elderly housekeeper Cee-Cee. One day they take their boat out and when they awake the following morning Oscar has disappeared. Rachel and James both struggle to come to terms with the loss of their much-loved son especially as his body hasn’t been found. James wants them to face the tragedy together but Rachel feels the only way she can cope with her loss is to move back to Bristol to be near family and friends. During her first year away from James, Rachel receives letters from Cee-Cee who describes her own life and the death of her son Willard Junior when only eight weeks old, and it’s these letters that help Rachel navigate through the fog of her own grief. Can Rachel and James’s marriage survive the loss of their son and their separation?
Amanda Prowse has long been a favourite author of mine and ‘The Co-ordinates Of Loss’ does not disappoint. It’s a beautifully written and compassionate account of how parents learn to cope with a grief beyond anyone’s comprehension. Cee-Cee’s letters to Rachel merge into the story seamlessly adding another dimension to her character. I found the description of Rachel attempting to end her own life heart-wrenching, and her return to Bermuda for Cee-Cee’s funeral brought tears to my eyes. I’m so pleased there was a happy ending to this novel which was a joy to read, and I’d like to thank Amanda for writing it.

I have seen alot of Amanda Prowse books around and I have never gotten around to reading any. The Coordinates Of Loss was my first and I am now on a mission to read Amanda's whole catalogue.
The book pulled at my heart strings and right throughout I just wanted to take Rachel and James' pain away after their life was shattered when their seven year old boy fell over board from their boat whilst on a family trip.
The book tells of Rachel and James' journey of loss and how a friend blossomed with the family's housekeeper Cee Cee.
Cee Cee put pen to paper and writes letters to Rachel documenting her own loss and heartache from 55 years ago.

Amanda Prowse you have broken me once more. The Coordinates of Love is one of the most heartbreaking, raw and emotional books I have read since... well probably since your last book! You never fail to grip me. Looking forward to posting the full review on The Glass House for you later this week.
If anyone has this on their TBR pile, pull it to the top. It’s worth every single tear.

This book broke my heart. I was totally caught up in the raw emotions in this book. The grief of losing a child would be unimaginable. Amanda Prowse as always has written a beautiful memorable book. The pain of loss has been captured perfectly in this story. Everything is described beautifully and sympathetically. I would definitely recommend this book. I would also recommend any book by Amanda Prowse.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Oh Amanda Prowse, you always manage to make me cry and The Coordinates of Loss was no different! I usually shy away from stories about grief but knew that Mrs Prowse would deal with this in a real and sensitive way and i was right. Another five star novel and I thoroughly recommend it. Grab your tissues.

Beautiful book about love and loss. What started off as a heartbreaking novel of morning turned into a novel of hope and love interwoven with a story about a past love and loss. You will cry and you will smile in equal measure. Ultimately having love and loosing it is still better than no love at all.

I don't know how Amanda Prowse does it with each book she writes, but by page 3 of The Coordinates of Loss, I wasn't just reading it, I was inhaling it, and living it !
Based in Bermuda, and also in Bristol, the story tells of a young family, and their heartbreak, and the different ways in which they deal with their loss.
Not wanting to give any spoilers, I will just say that I wish I could have sat on the porch with the very wise house keeper Cee Cee, whose stories based around her own life, and the sorrow and happy times that she encountered, drew me to her instantly!
The story shows how people cope / deal with such sorrow, and everyone who reads this book, will all wish that they had had a Cee Cee at some time in their life for themselves also.
I have never been to Bermuda, but the descriptive writing of Amanda Prowse makes me feel as though I know it inside out!
I wish I could have given more than 5 stars for this book, because it is another amazing story, by an amazing author.
My thanks to the author, Net galley and Lake Union for my Arc copy, for an honest review.

Another brilliant book from Amanda Prowse. It was a real rollercoaster read dealing with the most horrendous grief imaginable with the loss of your child. It was written beautifully and shows how the loss not only affects the parents but close friends and family and all those who loved your child. Just a warning you may need to have tissues to hand. I recommend all Amanda’s books highly.

This book is a sheer delight, a mixture of heartbreak, loss and hope that takes you on a roller coaster ride. The writing is flawless as in all Amanda Prowses books. 5* Highly recommended.

I was randomly searching on NetGalley one day when I saw The Coordinates of Loss show up in my feed for recommended books. I'm a big fan of Amanda Prowse, but she has so many previous novels that I hadn't been paying attention to new releases. Since it was on NetGalley, and the publisher had auto-approved me, I downloaded the book and put it in my queue. I wanted an author I could count on this week and began the read assured it would be the perfect choice. It delivered and I'm very happy with Prowse's latest story.

Rachel Croft and her husband James are sleeping on their boat in the Caribbean when they discover one morning that their young son, Oscar, isn't in his bed. They search and search, but he's gone. No one saw any boats nearby and there's no sign of any struggle or injury. He had fallen overboard and likely drowned. With no body, how does a family move on? There's always the question of "what happened" and "could he be somewhere else" and this is what haunts the young couple. Another story about CeCe, their housekeeper, parallels the Croft family pain. CeCe lost a child years ago, too. Through a series of letters, CeCe tries to help Rachel get through the pain. The story chronicles a few years in everyone's life ultimately culminating in what happens to the family years later after all the pain and struggle seems to come to a head between Rachel and James over who's at fault.

Prowse is killer when it comes to packing gut-punching emotion. At many points in the story, a rip current tore through me wondering how I'd handle such a situation. While it was powerful and painful, I didn't feel the normal devastation I've previously felt when reading a Prowse novel in the past. It's not to say say the book isn't great, as it really is. I devoured it in two days, but parts were less emotional and more matter of fact. At times, Rachel seemed too spoiled and independent, pulling away from James. I got angry with her for not turning to her husband, but then again, it's a phenomenal author who can make readers angry at good characters for some of their decisions.

All in all, it's a prime example of why Prowse's books always impact me. I will finish them all, but I'm glad to know even her most current ones are still strong contenders for favorite stories each year. A solid 4 stars with a beautiful balance and tone.