A lovely story and a delightful lead character! Emotional and easy to read! I could relate to Missy as being someone in my life.

Loved this book. I found this book to be very good. It had me hooked from the beginning.. Was a great read. It would definitely be a book I would recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Australia for an electronic copy of this book in exchange for a review.
I requested this as there was something that stood out to me, something along the lines of character development and touching female relationships as seen in Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine.
Despite the age difference between me as a reader and Missy, I understood her loneliness, and the ways we unknowingly reach out to strangers who then become friends. This was a heartwarming, poignant novel that is worth reading for both the tender moments and the smiles.

Such a lovely story about an aging woman, reminising about her life so far, over events that shaped her present. Missy was a great character, very likeable and realistic and very mobile for an 89 year old! Thanks Netgalley.

Thank you to netgalley and HarperCollins for allowing me the chance to read this for my honest review. It was bittersweet and touching. I really enjoyed reading this and it was a wonderful step away from my regular genres.

Saving Missy was an enjoyable read, though it took me until part 2 to really get into the book, up until then, I really wasn't a big fan of Missy, so if you feel the same way, I advise you to persevere. 

Missy has had a life that wasn't what I would call a great one, she married 'the love of her life', but I really didn't like her husband at all, he seemed to me, from what Missy tells us, to be a pretty self-centred man. She has two adult children, one whom she doesn't have the best relationship with, and we explore this as the story progresses, and the other lives on the other side of the world, but it is him she dotes on. 

Missy isn't a very likable character when we first meet her, but I did feel very sorry for her, she was a lonely soul, who thought nobody would be interested in truly being her friend.

One day while on a walk in the park, she meets Angela and her son Otis, this is a catalyst for all that is about to happen in Missy's life. She also meets Sylvie, who is a force to be reckoned with. Between the two of them, and Otis, along with a dog called Bobby, Missy learns all about what true friendship is and these friendships change MIssy in ways she never expected at her age. 

There were a couple of mysteries of sorts, which meant I had to keep reading to find out what was what, and there was an unexpected reveal near the end of the novel which I wasn't expecting.

This was an easy read and an interesting exploration of expectations, life choices, and friendships, as well as motherhood. 

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Australia for a digital copy of this novel in return for an honest review.

"I received this copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review"

Missy Carmichael’s life has become small.
Grieving for a family she has lost or lost touch with, she’s haunted by the echoes of her footsteps in her empty home; the sound of the radio in the dark; the tick-tick-tick of the watching clock.
Spiky and defensive, Missy knows that her loneliness is all her own fault. She deserves no more than this; not after what she’s done. But a chance encounter in the park with two very different women opens the door to something new.
Another life beckons for Missy, if only she can be brave enough to grasp the opportunity. But seventy-nine is too late for a second chance. Isn’t it?

This book was such a heart warming read. I loved the idea that no matter what age you have a second chance at getting things right and becoming the person you wish you where. I don't know what I was expecting when I started but I am so glad I read it because it was exactly what I needed to read when I picked it up.

I loved the characters where all flawed in their own way but created their own little family and excepted each other warts and all. I didn't see some of the things coming and I was shocked but it added an extra element to the story.

I ended up rating it 3.75 out of 5 stars. The only reason it wasn't higher was because for a bit I was confused on what was happening to start with, but like I said this is a heart warming read and would suggest anyone to read.

An amazing book! I loved all the characters in this extremely well written and well plotted book. OK yes, the ending might be ever so slightly predictable, but not in any way to the detriment of the book. A story about the power of community, and about how a family isn’t always made up of who you expect it to be. Heartwarming and uplifting, I actually believe this will be one of the big sellers for 2020. Missy Carmichael and her story are just what the world needs right now. Read this book, I promise you will not be disappointed! Oh and what a cute cover too.

A beautiful book about a 79 year old woman, who is living alone and desperately lonely. It is a heartwarming story of her being reintroduced socially, making new friends and finding herself! Friendship is a major aspect here and you find yourself not wanting the book to end.

I had moments of tears and moments of total happiness as I fell in love with the main characters. A bunch of quirky but loveable and loyal misfits!

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy!

I've seen a lot of people say that if you enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine you'll love Saving Missy and it was absolutely true in my case. A bittersweet, charming novel with that will warm your heart.

Saving Missy is a heartwarming debut novel by Beth Morrey. A range of emotions are evoked from pity and dislike to admiration for Millicent Carmichael - Missy- who is a 79 year old widow living in a large empty house in London. Her children have busy lives and Missy has become bitter and dwell on her past mistakes in life.
The story goes on to tell how Missy becomes part of the local community and back in to a life of her own with the help of Sylvie, Angela and a dog named Bob whom provides companionship and unconditional love. The story is delightful and uplifting showing us that age is not a barrier to enjoying life. I truly enjoyed this engaging and thoughtful novel.
Thank you to #netgalley and Beth Morrey for providing me with an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Missy Carmichael is a woman in her late seventies, rattling around in a big house with nobody for company. Her beloved son has moved to Australia and lives there with the grandson she dotes on, and she is estranged from her daughter in Cambridge. She has no friends, no interests and little point left to a long life spent as a mother and home-maker.

A chance encounter with some dog owners in the local park leads to them being determined to drag her out of her shell. Step one is to get her to baby-sit a dog for a woman who has had to take refuge from an abusive husband. She does this most reluctantly, but gradually finds that the dog, Bobbie, begins to change her life, and brings her into a circle of people who welcome her and decide to help her get joy back into her life.

This book is quite reminiscent of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, although Missy is a lot older, so the issues it covers are somewhat different. It is sad in parts, but also uplifting, and presents a realistic portrayal of the struggles of older people in our society and the issues that they face.

Saving Missy is a wonderful, heartwarming story about creating your own family and community. The characters were so real and relatable, and I was surprised by a few plot points, particularly towards the end. Definitely a book I'm recommending to friends and family.

3★
“And it was still hard, being in the park, without remembering Leo. He was a great believer in a constitutional; enjoyed belittling self-important joggers and jovially berating cyclists.”

Millicent Carmichael is a lonely old lady who’s been feeling sorry for herself and sticking pretty much to her own company. But she’s making a bit of an effort to get out of the house, and what do you know? Someone strikes up a conversation and invites her to join them for a coffee.

“I still didn’t have much to write to Alistair about, but at least I’d been invited for a coffee and went, in a way. Baby steps. Old lady steps. Even if I wasn’t quite sure where I was going.”

Alistair is her son, her golden boy, the special child and father of her golden grandson, Arthur, but they aren’t nearby. Melanie is his older sister and lives closer, but Missy’s always clashed with her and frequently refers to her unforgiveable fight with her.

So if she’s not going to waste away home alone, she needs to take those baby steps or old lady steps herself. Her mother was an activist, marcher, protestor, volunteer, and someone who stood up for herself and others. Not Missy.

“Mama would never have given up a career to run a household. She marched to the beat of her own drum, whereas I seemed to listen out for everyone else’s. Mainly Leo’s.”

Missy tells this in the first person, and at 78, when the book opens, she has plenty of looking back to think about and figures she’s got very little to look forward to. She tells it today and then reminisces about the past, particularly when she goes through things in the attic or photograph albums.

She has stripped her rooms of knick-knacks and pared back the furniture to the minimum she needs for daily living. It’s an almost spartan life – certainly a dull, depressing one.

About halfway through, I wasn’t sure how I felt about this. It was pleasant enough, but that was all, though I kept reading, hoping it would touch a nerve or develop into something insightful. This is about someone trying to learn independence late in life, an interesting premise. And there are some delightful turns of phrase.

"He slept like he’d fallen out of an aeroplane, on his front, star-shaped, dark eyelashes fanning his cheeks, thumb in his mouth.”

Lovely. Unfortunately, the characters seemed made to order to move Missy's story along. I didn’t like being told more than once, in what I imagine were supposed to be mysterious undertones, about her run-in with Melanie.

“I blinked to banish the image of my daughter Melanie, wide-eyed in my kitchen, backing away. The guilt gnawed away at me, as it had since that terrible day. Whenever I tried to weed it out, it just took a deeper root.”

A little later:

“. . . it wasn’t like she ever visited any more – not since that terrible afternoon.”

Later again

“Our first meeting since those terrible words in my kitchen. . . “

Again

“There was always the residue of that terrible day, that terrible fight …”

I’ll stop there, at just over a third of the way through, but there are more. We hear similar thoughts about her guilt over some dreadful thing she did in the past. If I had cared about her at first, I no longer did, because it felt like a writer’s ploy to keep me hooked.

I like books with prickly people who can be softened up, but this seemed a convenient set-up. There were rather a lot of coffees and jolly walks and wonderful smells wafting from someone’s kitchen. Add a small child and a dog, and what else do we need? There was only one surprise for me, near the end, but even that just felt like a writer's trick.

I expect Olive Kitteridge has spoiled me for irritable, depressed old ladies who love and miss their sons. But Olive is definitely a one-off, so I shouldn’t hold that against everybody else, should I?

I appreciate the preview copy from NetGalley and HarperCollins, and I know there will be plenty of hearts warmed by this one, just not mine.

Just the kind of book i needed to read in this moment of my life! what a great fun read and brilliant debut novel by Beth Morrey! I look forward to seeing what other brilliant work she has in store for us all!

This book had an excellent beginning that very much hooked me, but as the book went on, I began to lose more and more interest in the story itself. This particular fact was very saddening as I thought this read would be a new favourite. I guess it just didn't fully click with my reading tastes in the end. I would, however, be possibly interested in reading something else from this author.

Saving Missy by Beth Morrey is a brilliant debut. Many people are comparing Missy to ‘Eleanor Oliphant’, however I also found it reminding me of Joanna Cannon’s Three Things About Elsie, which I loved. Both authors show such empathy and understanding of older women in their day-to-day lives and in the ways they try to make sense of the past.
As we meet Missy, she is reading the obituaries, something she finds herself doing a lot, David Bowie has died.
Missy is sad and alone, her husband is no longer with her, she has fallen out with her daughter, and her sone is in Australia. Attending a bizarre fish electrocution event at her local park, she starts to make new friends. It’s not going to be easy, she puts up a lot of barriers and she is wrestling with some huge problems.
I really liked the way in which Beth Morrey has disguised some key truths about Missy, and leads the reader to make some assumptions about recent events In Missy’s life. It’s cleverly done and means we find out Missy's secrets at the same time as her new friends, Sylvia and Angela.
When I finished it, I went back to the start. I loved Missy and her journey.
I look forward to Beth Morrey’s future novels.

78 year old Missy is lonely and isn’t sure how to make friends after all this time. While walking in the park she meets two women who gradually change her life.

This is a beautiful story about finding yourself when you believe everything to be lost.

A tale of what happens when you've been insular and a bit bitter all of your life and then you're left all alone. I enjoyed this book a lot. I was invested in all of the characters and liked finding out what happened to them. Not a complicated read per se but one where there are lots of things going on (which I find enjoyable) so you do have to pause to reengage with the character especially in the early pages. The story soon sucks you in and you care about the characters very quickly.

A beautiful story that speaks about loss and love from the perspective of the elderly. A heart wrenching tale that will cut you to bone and leave you pondering the lessons in this beautiful novel. Thanks tot he publisher and netgalley for the arc.