A beautifully written emotional journey with Helen and a bundle of love letters. This story was compelling and the cast of characters were deeply likeable. A lovely gentle read which will warm your heart. Would love to read more by this author.

A very emotional story that follows the paths of two couples at different stages of their lives. Its a lovely romantic story but also brings to life the difficulties we all endure with modern day life. A really enjoyed this book and cannot wait to read another of Anna Mansell's books.

This book hit very close to home. I kind of thought it might so I hesitated on it-but it was absolutely worth it. I would recommend this title.

Loved this story! The ups & downs of a marriage - so emotional I couldn't put it down! I always get in to anything Anna Mansell writes and this was no exception!

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for allowing me to read this.
A truly emotional story both physically and mentally. The ups and downs of marriage and separation of two couples.
I honestly loved it.

Helen is a bus driver who thinks she is happily married to Alex and so is devastated when he walks out saying that he needs space. She has very caring nature however and still feels the need to look after a couple of her regular passengers. James the homeless man and Geoff the elderly man looking after his ill wife. Then she finds a bundle of love letters on the bus and can't resist reading them.... but who do they belong to?

A lovely story with great characters and very emotional storyline, one that stays with you after you have finished reading it

This is a story which will take you through a variety of emotions. It is a well written tale which drew me in immediately. For those looking for action this isn’t the book for you, but for those looking for a nice easy read, then give this a try.

Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for providing a copy.

I Wanted To Tell You was a difficult book to get into, I gave up after trying to persevere with it. Not for me I'm afraid.

When Hannah finds a bundle of love letters signed, ‘the love you wished I could be’, to say she is intrigued and confused would be an understatement..

Her own life is in a bit of a chaos with her husband Alex announcing that he needs some time away from her, Hannah starts reading the letters only to find herself introspecting.

A beautiful book, with such real, believable characters. I loved what the author did here. I'm definitely going to be on the lookout for the next book by Anna Mansell.

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the review copy of this book.

A beautifully honest view of love and relationships at any age. Super sweet and will be a great story to warm up with during the winter.

I liked this book at the end much better than I thought a was going to in the beginning. I am so glad I chose to stick with it. The story was well written and compelling, the characters were well developed. I found it worth the time and I recommend it.

I am in a minority on this book and just couldn't get into the story and gave up. Not for me, I'm afraid, but a lot of other readers enjoyed it

Amazing read! The author wrote a story that was interesting and moved at a pace that kept me engaged. The characters were easy to invest in.

This book started very slowly and I just couldn't get into the story and so gave up on it . Sorry, it's not for me

4.5 rounded to 5 stars

This was a beautifully written story. It was very emotional and I was surprised at how much I loved it.
Helen thought she had a rather successful marriage until her husband of almost two decades walks away without explanations.
Geoff had a wonderful marriage to the woman he loved most for some seventy years. This relationship was however challenged by unexpected illness.
A mysterious notebooks with many love letters depicting a doomed love story always signed as “from the love you wished I could be” fell into the hands of Helen becoming a sort of a guide in the difficult time.
The lives of three different couples intertwined in a beautifully way.

At the beginning I thought I knew where the story of Helen was going and I felt rather disappointed by that feeling of predictability but I was totally mistaken and I loved how that story touched the almost forbidden topic of depression and its repercussions on people. I didn’t always like Helen as a character but I felt for her most of the time.
The story of Geoff and Connie was a whole different thing. It was just amazing and it was the one that brought tears to my eyes.
The letters were a captivating touch, they gave a feeling of mystery to the book. And I tried to see who wrote them, was it a woman to the love of her life or was it the other way around and it was that mystery that kept me reading when the story stalled a bit around the middle.
Overall this was an amazing story, I enjoyed reading it and I definitely recommend it.

I have read, reviewed and loved Anna’s previous books and I couldn’t wait to get hold of her next book. Well the wait is over as ‘I Wanted To Tell You’ was released on 28th November 2018. I couldn’t wait to start reading as I just knew that I would love this book too. I was not to be disappointed. I absolutely loved reading ‘I Wanted To Tell You’ but more about that in a bit.
I have to say that I loved the varied range of characters that appear in this book. First off we have Helen, who is a very compassionate and caring lady, who doesn’t hesitate to help those she considers to be in need of help. She helps a homeless chap called James and she also helps a chap called Geoff, who is caring for his wife as she suffers with a progressive illness. At the same time I couldn’t help but want to jump into the pages of the book just to give Helen a huge hug and to reassure her that things would turn out ok. She seems to care that much about others that she forgets that her own welfare is important too. Geoff is a proud man from an era when wedding vows meant something and he takes the ‘sickness and in health bit’ very seriously. Geoff does what he can and he doesn’t want to admit that he is struggling but he is adamant that he does not want his wife to go into a nursing home or care facility. James is also kind and compassionate but he is also keeping a secret. So three compassionate, kind and caring people, who find each other and support each other.
Oh my goodness me, I needed several tissues whilst reading this book because I felt myself well up on more than one occasion. This book is beautifully and sensitively written and deals with some pretty tough subjects. The author’s writing style is such that you can’t fail to be drawn into the story and you are drawn to the different characters. I genuinely cared about this characters and I had to keep reading to see how things turned out for them. The characters were so well described that I began to feel that I really did know them and I considered them to be friends. Before you know what is happening you are hooked on the book and you simply cannot put the book down. The book is so well written that you don’t realise just how long you have been reading and you don’t realise just how quickly you are getting through the book. That’s what happened to me anyway. The first time I checked to see how much I had read, I was stunned to find that I had cleared 40%. Reading this book really did make me feel as though I had been through the emotional wringer somewhat.
In short I really did enjoy reading ‘I Wanted To Tell You’ even if it did make me want to cry a few times. Anna has another bestseller on her hands. I can’t wait to read what comes next. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 4* out of 5*.

"I Wanted to Tell You" contains two protagonists, Helen an approaching middle-aged woman who drives a bus and is married to an unemployed, but distant husband, and Geoff, a ninety-plus-year-old World War II veteran who is the caretaker of his ailing wife who is slowly forgetting who he is. When you read this book, you will feel various emotions: frustration, happiness, anger, revengeful, sympathetic and of course, sadness. Mansell takes you on a journey of emotions, self-discovery, marital issues and provides insight into mental illness and what the support system of someone suffering from mental illness may endure. With a surprising twist on who the writer is of the heart-bearing notebook, Helen discovers on her bus one day that ends up being a guiding light throughout her turmoils.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this story because of the depth of description about each character the author went into. However, I found that at times, it was hard to pick up again because I was frustrated with Helen's lack of assertiveness and Geoff's stubbornness. But maybe that is exactly what it was intended to do because people in real life don't always do what you want them to do or when you want them to do it? After completing the book, I did walk away with several memorable life lesson quotes. One of my favourites was:

"What gift is hindsight? It comes too late to be of service. It comes with insight that offers us little for the past and a bitter taste for a future we're too late to influence. And yet, there it is, the obvious staring us down."

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for letting me read this book.
Insightful, and thought provoking, this book doesn't hold back. Mental illness is an issue that affects so many and this story unfolds so perfectly, it really hits you hard. I have so much respect for the two main characters, staying true to themselves throughout and being strong. This book definitely opens your eyes to the daily struggles of those affected by mental illness and the people who care for them.

Received a free copy if this book through netgalley.
Oved the characters and how the story centred all sround the three and how in some way they were all linked,helping out and friendship.

Many thanks to Anna Mansell and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and review this book. Such a beautiful read that will touch your heart. This book examines the meaning of love in the unconditional form
Recommend this book to all