I've loved Amanda Prowse since first reading Poppy Day. The girl in the Corner does not disappoint. Rae-Valentine will stay with me for a long time. A must read

Amazing heartwarming and emotional story. The authorauthoraways delivers a fantastic story with lovable characters

This was an entertaining, well-written book. Rae-Valentine is celebrating her 25th wedding anniversary when her husband reveals a shocking secret. Instead of going on his anniversary gift of a trip to Antigua with him, she takes her best friend, his sister. Now she has a chance to step back and re-evaluate the direction her life is taken, and maybe make some changes. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more books by this author.

Rae-Valentine and Howard were childhood sweethearts. They have shared twenty five years together since they were brought together by Howard’s sister Dolly. On the night of their wedding anniversary Howard makes a shocking confession which leaves Rae-Valentine feeling betrayed. Heartbroken, she takes Dolly on her anniversary trip to Antigua and Rae starts to realise that all her choices have always been made for her and she starts to question her marriage and her friendships. When Howard comes looking for reconciliation she has a choice to make, keep the peace or finally put herself first for once.

A beautifully written book with out loud laughter at times, however I also found it very a very emotional read and I admit I was in tears at times too. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing Uk for an advanced copy of the e-book for my honest review.

A 5* again for Amanda Prowse's new book The Girl In The Corner, which although I have the paperback on pre-order for 20th December, I could not wait to read it and so have downloaded it via NetGalley and read it already.

"Rae-Valentine and Howard were childhood sweethearts. They’ve shared twenty-five peaceful years since they were brought together by Dolly, Howard’s larger-than-life sister. But now, on the night of their wedding anniversary, Howard reveals a shocking betrayal that leaves Rae reeling. When Howard comes looking for reconciliation, Rae has a choice to make: keep the peace, as she always has, or put herself first for once and find out who she really is.".

This is an absolutely delightful tale of truth for all those women who have never got over the fact that they were 'the girl in the corner' at every school disco, birthday party, family event or even just being the quiet middle child in their own family home, and I can actually identify and empathise with all of the above situations. In fact Amanda has once again written this book and aimed it straight at my heart. Oh my goodness Rae-Valentine could have been me desperately searching the room looking for someone, in fact just anyone, to approach her and make her feel as if she can be seen.

There are plenty of laughs along the way, mostly from Dolly who I would love to be my friend for an evening (anymore than that and I am sure I would die from laughing or embarrassment!). My favourite moments were at the check-in desk and I still giggle to myself now sometimes about her insistence on "What flavour pizza was it?!). However, Dolly was first and foremost Howard's sister and this irritated the hell out of me because she literally was the only friend Rae-Valentine had and was wavering over where her loyalties lay.

The family characters that plump out the story were great and I wanted to shake Rae-Valentine's parents and make them wake up and see her and TELL her how clever and smart they thought she was and that they knew she was special, knock her sister Debbie-Jo off her pedestal especially as she had started her self-doubt by telling her that if you are not the star who stands out in the middle of the room you might as well be like furniture, the girl in the corner, hug her children Hannah and George for being so lovely, but don't get me started on Howard!!! I changed my mind along the way of what advice to give Rae-Valentine if I was her friend, but my over-riding thought was don't settle for "this will do" because life is short so you need to live it to the fullest and take chances. She craved a title that was more than daughter, wife, mother, auntie,dogsbody, she wanted to be defined by something other than her relationships, she wanted a title that was hers and that she had earned, not acquired, like traveller or chef.

I can always empathise with the characters in Amanda's books but Rae-Valentine really got to me and this could have been my story in places, I howled in places and re-read several of the pages/chapters because I could see myself in her so much. It reminded me of the moment I knew my own marriage was over 15 years ago, it wasn't the fact he wasn't 'making me happy' anymore that was the problem, it was the fact living with him was 'making me unhappy'.

The Girl In The Corner is a story of how someone can find themselves at any age and it is never too late to be the person you were always meant to be before life, love, loss and loyalty came and tripped you up. "Before that I was just a girl in the corner, faded into the background, and it wasn't nice; no one wants to be like that, like furniture!" The ending was superb, another Mandy Masterpiece.

As I have come to expect from Amanda Prowse, this book is character driven and as you read, you really do feel that the characters are living, breathing people that you completely relate to. The women are particularly vivid in their portrayal and I was quick to identify the Rae Valentine and Dolly in my own family.
This book raises questions how much of ourselves we give to our relationships and, on occasion, how much we give up for them and how much we find ourselves hiding behind them.
Every family has its own dynamics and this novel perfectly explores how that molds who we become, whether or not it is the same as who we thought we would be. It is seemingly a gentle read but raises some thought-provoking issues.

I could certainly relate to Rae - a middle aged woman who’s got many roles in her life and fulfills them all at the expense of her own personal dreams and happiness.
She’s a daughter, a sister, a best friend, a wife, a mother and that’s just on her side of the family.
She’s the person that everyone turns to knowing that she’ll always be there to drop everything and run to their side.
It take a wake up call from her husband to make her evaluate her life and look at what she really wants.
Well written with a balance of humour and sadness.
A must read for anyone of a certain age whose struggling to be everything to everyone.

Always love Amanda prowse novels and this did not disappoint!
Loved rae to bits, really connected with her as a busy mum trying to make everybody else happy never putting herself first. Have laughed and cried while reading this, five stars.

"Before that I was just a girl in the corner, faded into the background, and it wasn't nice; no one wants to be like that, like furniture!"
A well written story about family, loss, and finding your way no matter how old you might be.
Rae was always the "go to girl". She had the ideal life, family and best friend.
But... something went wrong on the night of her twenty fifth anniversary party. Rae finds out from her husband that her life hasn't been as perfect or as pure as she has thought.
Rae needs to find herself and break out of "the corner"!
Will she? Can she?
I truly enjoyed this novel and love Amanda's books!

Starts off with 16 year old main character at college induction nervous about introducing herself to strangers. I couldn't feel connection with main character from beginning.

I have read and enjoyed nearly all Amanda's books but this one didn't hit the spot for me. It is a good easy read but not one of my favourites although I did enjoy reading about Rae-Valentine and Dolly and how their friendship developed.

No where near as good as her previous book Co-ordinates of Loss in my opinion and I don't think I would recommend this one and overall I liked it but didn't love it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

An easy read but sadly Amanda’s novels have become rather predictable.

I found the characters irritating and all a bit Shirley Valentine.

Amanda Prowse never let's her readers down. This book had me hooked from the first page until the very end.
The characters are so realistic and I warmed to them instantly. I could instantly relate to Rae; never really sticking up for myself and allowing others to dictate how my life choices.
Throughout the book we read about Rae; her life, her dreams and the family around her.
As you travel through the book, you travel through her life to find out if she'll always be the 'girl in the corner.'

I loved this book. I devoured it over three sittings and was caught up in the emotions of it. It is a lovely story of love, loss and trust and whether a relationship can withstand a breach of trust. It shows that you need to live your life to its full, in your way and be happy.

I liked Rae and her larger than life friend, Dolly. It was interesting to think about what makes a good friend and what value a friendship should have when times get tough.

Good luck to Rae - I would like to hear more about her adventures.

I received a copy of this book through netgalley.
A well written storyline,characters are real life,and you have the feeling it can happen to anyone,you can associate with the characters.

Amanda's books always have characters you can relate to. They have conversations you want to join in with and problems all women are familiar with. You feel you'd recognise them in the street.

At sixteen, Rae was the girl in the corner, shy and lacking in confidence. Then she meets loud and blowsy Dolly and falls for her quieter brother, Howard, marrying him in a cloud of romance. Fast forward twenty-five years and she has a contented life, a comfortable home and is the heart of the family, though sometimes feeling like the family gopher. Then Howard drops a bombshell.....

How will Rae cope with this devastating news? Can she forgive her husband? Will Rae and Dolly's friendship survive? Beautifully descriptive writing about everything from Rae's feelings to the sights, sounds and heat of glorious Antigua, make this a book to savour.

Love the piece at the start of the book about women supporting women. Without our friends and family, where would we be? A book for any woman who has been that girl in the corner. Enjoy!

I loved the first chapter of this book when quiet, unassuming Rae-Valentine meets Dolly - loud, confident and soon to be Rae's best friend. They meet at college and become inseparable: giddy teenagers laughing their way through life and finding everything 'hilaire'. I was sorry not to read more about this part of Rae's life but the book moves quickly from here to Rae's 25th wedding anniversary and the revelation which is to shake her life.

It took me a good while to get back into the book., possibly as I found it painful reading about Rae's heartache. She finds herself in a situation that many of us could experience, in that she has defined herself as a wife and mother, as well as a fixer for the family business, and in her 40s she is suddenly left wondering what happened to her dreams and aspirations. So while she wouldn't change anything as she loves her family to bits, she is starting to get a niggling feeling that she missed the boat somewhere along the line. Can she be an individual as well as part of a family?

After the crisis has hit, Rae and Dolly find themselves on a holiday of a lifetime in Antigua, and it is here that Rae hopes to find the space she needs to clear her mind. There are some lovely lighter moments often provided by Dolly. I was sorry not to 'see' a bit more of Antigua, but other than a brief shopping trip the girls don't seem to get beyond the beach and I guess what Rae needed was somewhere to unwind. So, finding herself in paradise, the question is, will Rae decide that her home life is actually very blessed, or will she do a Shirley Valentine?

If you enjoy a book which explores a personal journey, this is a book for you.

It took me a while to get into this book but when I did I couldn't put it down and as always I was an emotional wreck at the end.

Loved this book as with all her books. Love the writing style, characters. Would highly recommend this book to anyone.

Loved this book! I always enjoy Amanda Prowse's books and avidly want for her next release. This did not disappoint at all. I loved the characters and was hugely entertained. A great contrast of emotions while reading, from laughter to being on the verge of tears! Her books always feel as though you could step right into them as the characters and plots are so realistic.