Fantastic characters- I loved the very different personalities across the whole family and the way they interacted with each other, from the very calm and composed Norman to the very self centred Felicity and the chaotic and loving Lily.
Cecily's flight to Greece is unexpected by all but Norman and unexplained to the daughters who all react in different ways from supportive to downright rude and selfish.
Written from multiple perspectives the book examines familial relationships and the turmoil caused when a secret comes to light.
I was sad that the outcome was less than perfect for Cecily but loved the journey through the book.

Jacket cover book description and other reviews give great insight into the storyline. After a chapter or two you discover what the big secret is and then begin to see the unraveling of the family and other secrets from past and present. It gets a little slow in parts as it moves from each character 's voice to the next telling only bits of the story as it moves along and I found it hard to stay interested. Overall a good read but would not be a favorite for me.
I was provided an Advanced reader copy of the book and was under no obligation to provide a review.The opinions expressed are my own.
Thanks
to the author,publisher,and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Cecily and Norman Nightingale, and their three adult daughters are living a happy and sometimes frenzied life in Harrogate, England. However, an unexpected letter has propelled Cecily almost two thousand miles away to Greece, without any warning or explanation.
The daughters are gravely perturbed by Cecily’s abrupt move, and start pondering if she would come back to them..
The talented Imogen Clark has beautifully and seamlessly portrayed THE LAST PIECE which is an emotional story about family, differences and many facts of life that would make us who we are. Life is like building a jigsaw puzzle, where one would still have the pleasure of assembling it, and can see what it is even missing the last piece.
Thank you, NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing, for giving me the opportunity to enjoy this heart-rending read.

#NetGalley
#TheLastPiece

The Nightingale family seems to be a typical family, father, mother, three daughters. The daughters are grown, each with their own different lifestyle. Everything seems to be going on as usual with the close-knit family. Suddenly the women find out that their mother has taken an unexpected trip to Greece without their father. Naturally, they have many questions, but their father is not providing any answers. They must wait until their mother comes home. Once Cecily comes home, she reveals her shocking secret to her daughters. Unbeknownst to Cecily, some of her daughters have secrets of their own. The characters were well developed and there were many twists and turns to this story. I found it fascinating.

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Even something well intentioned in the beginning doesn't seem bad at the time, but keeping a secret from your now family is going to seem like the biggest betrayal ever, and it is. That is one Cecily, the mother of three daughters in this book goes though. Little do her daughters know she gave up a child as a teenager because she wanted the child to have a better life.

Yes, there are many books like this out there but not crafted in this way. I thought the ending was going to be predictable and it was the opposite. There were even some other twists that were not expected and this listed as a women's fiction book. This is my first book by this author and it will not be my last.

Highly recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley, Imogen Clark and Amazon Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 7/28/20

This book was a definite emotional rollercoaster full of lots of emotional ups, downs and twists. It starts with the mother suddenly leaving England for a retreat on a Greek island. Her husband knows why, but is not telling their three grown daughters. The oldest and most rigid daughter is deeply upset, but mainly because their mother was to watch her son when the nanny couldn't. The middle daughter, who is a mother of five boys, is just worried about their dad and whether or not he can look after himself until their mother returns. The third daughter, who is a doctor, is worried that something is wrong with their mother's health.
It takes awhile for the reason to become known and I was not sure how much of a spoiler it would be to reveal the reason for the mother's trip, so I decided to err on the side of caution and just say that it was a surprise that I sort of saw coming, but still held a few shocking details. The things that happen at home while the mother is gone to the oldest and third daughter will have you going, "Hmm, wonder how much more can happen" and the ending will have you going, "Didn't see that coming!" The only thing reason that I did not give the fifth star is the fact that I got tired of the mother spending so much time in her head going back and forth and being unable to stick with a decision.
Thanks to the author, Netgalley and Amazon publishing for allowing me to read an ARC of this book. This is my freely given review and all thoughts and opinions are strictly my own.

What an engaging and enlightening story! I completely fell for this family. Written with humor and authenticity. You really feel what life might have been like if you lived back then and had society dictate the decision you were forced to make. I definitely figured out the big "secret" right away - but I love how the story unfolded. The mother's heartbreak was hard to read - and yet, so was the adopted daughter. Highly recommend.

“We would have our babies and then they would be taken away. That was just the rhythm of life there.”

This was my first Imogen Clark novel, and it didn’t disappoint. If anything, it surprised me. And in a very good way.

I picked it up as a ‘light read’, needing a palate cleanser after a couple of particularly heavy, but enjoyable, literary fiction titles. Scanning the blurb, I was expecting an engrossing but innocuous family drama. A quarter way through, and I found myself down a rabbit hole of discomfort, sorrow and indignation.

Cecily Nightingale is in her mid-sixties when, out of the blue, she’s contacted by the daughter she gave up for adoption 50 years ago. Marnie wants to meet her birth mother. Cecily longs for a reconciliation … and to introduce her three other daughters to the half-sister they never knew they had.

There are two ways you can go with a story like this, and Clark chooses the more difficult. It makes for uncomfortable reading at times. Marnie is prickly, distant and downright offensive. Cecily is crippled with guilt and divided loyalties, her family thrown into stunned disarray.

Clark’s description of life in a 1960s mother and baby home is chillingly authentic. Her depiction of Marnie, the shunned daughter, unflinching in its harshness; there is no softness to her, no redeeming features. All the reader’s compassion is reserved for Cecily and her heroic attempts to build bridges and smooth the ruffled feathers of her family.

I was convinced I knew where the narrative was going. How could it not? Then came the revelation that knocked me off my feet, closely followed by THAT ending.

Kudos to Clark for her brave finale, for taking a complex, emotional topic and raising some genuinely thought-provoking questions. Is there such a thing as an invisible cord? Does Nature trump nurture or vice versa? These are nagging away at me like a tongue prodding a sore tooth. And that, for me, is the sign of a very good book.

This book starts out kind of like a mystery. You find out the Cecily the mother in this books has gone off a holiday, all by herself last minute. This was extra confusing for one of her three adult daughters Julia, Lily and Felicity, as she was going to watch her grandson for the day. The three sisters try to get their questions answered by their dad Norman to no avail, His response just was that she would be back and she could explain.

The book jumps back and forth between what Cecily herself is going through while in Greece, and past experiences with her family and thing they are going through. I was hooked by part 2, there are 6 parts in all. I think it was well written, although you do have to be able to keep up with the jumping around. There was only one little swear word in the first pet of the book.

While I originally noticed that the book mentioned it was a Amazon UK publishing book, I was not expecting things like 8.00 pm would be how times were written. Here in the US it would be 8 pm, or 8:00 pm. Things like that threw me for a loop.

Imogen Clark's writing is peaceful and heartwarming, and The Last Piece is a beautiful book to sit back and absorb with a cup of tea and a warm blanket! The story begins with Cecily, mom of 3 adult girls, leaving on a sudden and unexpected trip to Greece after receiving a letter. Her family supports her but is a little worried, and secrets gradually emerge from both Cecily and other characters in the book. I don't want to say any more and spoil any of the story's surprises, but I loved the way they navigated all the unexpected things that come up in life, as well as the way the story came together in the end. Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I'm happy to have been introduced to Imogen Clark's writing and would like to read some of her other books too!

I received this book as an ARC. What a great story spun through the years. The back and forth was perfect to follow.
What would you do if someone from your past sent you a message to come and see them. Someone you thought you would never see again. Would you go? That is the preface of the story of Cecily - a woman in her late 60's who receives a mysterious letter stating to come to Greece and stay in a resort, free of charge.
While Cecily leaves her home for this adventure, her 3 grown daughters are trying to cope with their own lives and worried about their mother. This is totally unlike her and dad is not saying a word.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will be looking to read others by this author.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the arc, which I have enjoyed reading.
This was a fascinating look at family life from the late 1960’s onwards and takes us through Cecily’s life as a wife, mother and grandmother. Her marriage to Norman resulted in three girls, all of whom then have children of their own.
The Last Piece by Imogen Clark is an enjoyable read and is an interesting look at families today in all there different formats.
Highly recommended.

I just finished reading The Last Piece by Imogen Clark through NetGalley. Here is the review that I posted: What a range of emotions I had from reading this book. Curiosity, anger, sympathy that switched from one character to another, joy - a real roller coaster ride. The basic story is about a woman (Cecily) who is married with 3 daughters and 5 grandsons who receives a letter containing an invitation that causes her to drop everything and fly off to Greece from her home in the UK on a mission that she keeps secret from everyone except her husband. And he's not telling either. The book goes on to describe her week in Greece, who she meets there and how the meeting went. She comes back home to the UK and drops some bombshell news on her family and the book goes on to describe how they deal with her news and how they handle meeting the person Cecily flew to Greece to meet. It is an interesting look at family dynamics and the glue that holds them together or not. The ending certainly wasn't what I expected but in hind sight was the right ending for this particular family and situation. I would highly recommend this book.

Also posted review on Amazon, Goodreads and numerous reading pages on Facebook

I had never read any novels by Imogen Clark and I was lucky to receive an ARC of her latest novel, The Last Piece from NetGalley. I will be reading more of her books. I really enjoyed the book and the characters. This novel tells the story of a woman who gave her baby up for adoption when she was just sixteen. When the story opens, the mother of three girls and grandmother is on her way to a retreat in Greece at the invitation of her long-lost daughter, born some 50 years ago. The characters in the family are very well-drawn and the book is compelling. I love surprise endings and I didn’t see this one coming. Highly recommended.

This book is about the story of Cecily, a happily married woman in her sixties, and her three daughters. She is a very caring person who celebrates her family every day, still in love with her husband of forty years, a dotting parent to her three girls and a very proud grandmother. Her life seems to be all lined up until she receives a letter from the past. A past the is not by any chance forgotten but that has been kept secret. Marnie, her firstborn given in adoption, is asking for an encounter after fifty years. All in a sudden, Cecily's world will be susceptible to change. Will it be for the better? What will her daughters feel once they know? What will Marnie feel?
This was a heartbreaking book, written with all the care one could ask for a very sad experience. I loved it right from the first page and it didn't disappoint me until the last one. The characters were masterfully developed and the plot, even not a strictly original one, felt real and was very well thought to still surprise the readers in the end. Definitely, it's a book to be treasured.

This is not the first book I read from this author and it will definitely not be the last.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Cecily is married to Norman, and they have 3 daughters Felicity and twins Lily and Julia who know mom is always home to help whether it is with daycare for grandsons or just to sit and have tea with her. Then one day she is not there and Norman says she has gone to Greece for a few days. Huh? Their mum doesn't do things like this, let alone take off without telling them. They and we the readers have no idea why, but Norman doesn't appear concerned. Next part of the book is Cecily going to Greece and arriving, wondering what is in store for her. It actually gets a bit frustrating that we don't know why she is doing this for so long into the story, but no spoilers here.

It was an interesting story, from a viewpoint I had not read about before. I'd give it 3 stars. I wanted to know how it ended and hoped for a good ending for Cecily, but I could not put myself in her shoes to feel the story the way she lived it. Not a bad story, but not something I couldn't put down, either.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

This was an emotional family drama that searched deep down into the hidden depths and feelings. It tells a story depicting love lost and the later implications in a very poignantly bitter sweet way., I had never thought about this topic and it made me think very deeply of the effects that can occur later after some decision making. This was not my usual read as. I like historical, true or psychological murder stories! This was none of those but was a real page turner none the less.
The way that the story built up was perfect keeping the reader In some concerns as to what was going to happen next. I fell in love with all the Nightingale family as all of them were so well described and all had such different personalities that it was easy to believe in them all. My emotions towards Marnie varied from Love to hate very easily although she was not a nice character it was easy to understand her emotions.
The ending was so sad but beautifully written.

To be honest I don’t like books that jump around, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It’s characters are well thought out and I could envisage the hotel/island. The jumps were obvious and well signposted. This is a great book to sit in the sun with.

A lovely story about families and their secrets and how this can work out. Not always offering a nice shiny ending makes a refreshing change in similar books.

This book starts with 3 sisters, Felicity, Julia and Lily, wondering why their mother, Cecily, has suddenly gone to Greece. It’s not somewhere she has ever been before or ever expressed a desire to go. They realise that their father knows more than he is revealing. When she returns home and tells the family why, their lives are upended and will never be the same again.

The characters and their motivations are believable, and the writing style is gentle with an emphasis on dialogue. Overall, is it a nice gentle “summer read” but it lacked something to really grip me – I was waiting for something to happen throughout but despite the “big secret” it just didn’t feel exciting.

Disclosure: I received an advance copy of this book free from the publisher via NetGalley. Whilst thanks go to the publisher & author for the opportunity to read it, all opinions are my own.