Cecily hops on a plane to some Greek Island and her family is left to wonder why and what is going on. The Last Piece by Imogen Clark is a well written novel about the secret that Cecily has been keeping and how life has a way of bringing things to light that have been hidden.

I absolutely love the narrative style: alternating viewpoints between Cecily, her three daughters (Felicity, Julia and Lily) as well as Cecily's perplexed husband, Norman. Imogene Clark certainly has won me over with her writing, plot twists, and deep look at what it means to be a family. Some things are crystal clear and resolved and other things are not as specific (you know, like real life?)

Definitely a book to treasure!! Have you read it? If so, what did you think?

Thank you to NetGalley, Amazon Publishing Company, UK and Imogene Clark for this temporary digital advance review copy for me to read and enjoy. As always, my opinions are my own and my review is voluntary.

This was a great character driven story. Cecily spontaneously up and leaves for a trip, which is out of character for her. This concerns her daughters and they attempt to get answers from her husband, but he is not divulging anything. This journey to reunite with the child she gave away years earlier made Cecily a conflicted and flawed character that you couldn't help but root for. I really enjoyed this one!

A heart warming story of a close know family and how they cope with various family problems. It's a delightful and engaging read full of insight into relationships. So enjoyed this read!

This is a book with a lot of heart and characters you will believe in. It’s both sad and uplifting and Imogen Clarke’s writing of this family is perfectly pitched and empathic. I really enjoyed reading this book and would definitely recommend it. I haven’t read Imogen before, but I will catch up with her books now.

A very interesting read on what transpires when giving a child up for adoption and the subsequent feelings of all involved. The mum, Cecily, is contacted by her first daughter 50 years after giving her up for adoption. It's all very surreal since none of Cecily's other daughters are aware of the first one. This book gives us glimpses into each child's life as well as the mum's teenage years. A quite different outcome than what one expects from the situation but very well done. Lovely characters and great locations.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher and voluntarily chose to review it.

I wish I could do 3.5 stars. I disliked all of the characters but the premise is really interesting. The part in the middle was my favorite and read very well. The last third seemed to just be lamenting what a bitch Marnie was - and they were not wrong.

Thank you Imogen Clark, NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

This story brings up many issues that most of us can't comprehend nor understand how this would happen in today's society. This book focuses on Cecily's former life from her teen years up to current day.

Cecily gets a letter to go to Greece, and she leaves her home, husband and kids to go as quick as she can, and they don't have any idea of what would possess her to leave like that.

I love the emotional twists that the author brings to the book, and how you can relate to not only Cecily, but to her husband. I truly appreciated how the author ended this book, and I can't wait to read more by Imogen Clark.

When their predictable routines are disrupted by their mother flying to Greece without notice or explanation, three sisters are led on a path of discovery that will bring them closer together while learning some hard truths. A traditional family, Dad, Mom, three daughters and lots of grandchildren suddenly become not so traditional in an emotional story of acceptance. Imogen Clark built a community and a family of characters that are true, they care for each other while still hiding a few blemishes that surprise the heck out of the family dynamic. An excellent story that left me a warm fuzzy when the happily ever after showed up.

I had read an earlier novel by this author and recognize her wonderful writing and interesting characters. She recognizes that happy families can still have their differences, problems and secrets, and weaves it into a warm wonderful story.
Cecily Nightingale has a loving husband and three adult daughters, but there is a missing link there, that is apparent from the beginning. When she unexpectedly up and leaves for a short trip to Greece, her family is curious and taken unawares of the sudden absence. She has heard from her first born that she had at sixteen and gave up for adoption, after 50 years of wondering about where she is and if she would ever meet her.
This is a heart rendering story of an unfulfilled Mother, a daughter that never found herself and a family, other than her husband, that was completely unaware of her existence. We experience the desire of a mother to complete her family and a daughter that has no expectations of suddenly finding the family she hoped would be there. The puzzle was completed but the last piece was still gone.
My thanks to the author, Lake Union Publishing, Amazon Books for my ARC. All opinions are my own. This is a strong 4 stars!

This was a very charming and moving book. A story that dealt with a mother's secret and the ability to forgive herself for that long-ago decision. The story was very realistic as were the wonderful characters. I especially loved the father, Norman. He had a great way of looking at things in life and I could feel the love he had for Cecily. This is the first book by Imogen Clark that I've read but I'll soon be reading more of her books. This one was very delightful and enjoyable. And that cover is absolutely beautiful!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy.

The Last Piece left me thinking about the ways a change in family structure affects the relationships of the siblings to one another. A close knit family of two parents and their three adult daughters struggles when the mother reveals a secret she has kept. from her daughters for over fifty years. I loved that the novel depicted a marriage of forty plus years where the couple still cherished each other. This was a very enjoyable quick read. Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for the opportunity to read this early advance in exchange for an honest review.
#TheLastPiece #NetGalley

Cecily has a nice family and home in Harrogate England. But she has been carrying a secret for 50 years that only her husband and parents knew.
Cecily gets a letter sending her off to Greece. She isn't sure what to expect but goes hoping for the best but things don't turn out like she had hoped. With 3 older daughters all going through different seasons of their lives it becomes very complicated.
A great story of love, hurt, betrayal and healing.
#thelastpiece

I have to admit that I hadn’t come across Imogen Clark before, but the summary of this book appealed to me and I really enjoyed it.

Cecily and Norman have three adult daughters, plus grandchildren. One day, her children are shocked to find that she’s gone off to Kefalonia, one of the Greek islands, with no explanation, and she doesn’t use her mobile phone so they can’t contact her with all their questions.

She returns at the end of the week and tells her daughters the whole story (her husband already knew), and then it continues back in the UK.

I don’t want to reveal any spoilers other than to say this very same thing happened to me, but the opposite way around. There were a few small inaccuracies, but they would only be known to anyone who’d been in this situation themselves, and didn't detract from the storyline. Apart from these, the book was well-researched and dealt with the subject in a considerate and sympathetic way.

I’ll definitely be reading more books by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.

The Last Piece by Imogene Clark was a heartbreaking story on so many levels. It is about Cecily’s life from her early teen years to her later life. She gets a mystery letter to come to Greece. She abruptly heads there leaving her husband Norman and their three daughters not knowing what is going on. The daughters were Felicity, and twins Lily and Julia. They had six children between Lily and Felicity and Julia was not married but she wanted a child. I loved how she was brave enough to go ahead and do what she had to do to have a child. But what Cecily goes to Greece for is what she be a happy occasion but it is so hard on the whole family. I did love the sneaking around that Norman, Cecily’s husband talked her in to doing! The author wrote this book to where you feel all the emotions so clearly what each one was going through. It was a huge surprise to read how this ended.
I received this as an ARC for an honest review from Netgalley.

Mum Cecily takes off unexpectedly for Greece when she receives a letter related to her past. Her 3 adult daughters are taken aback by this unusual behaviour and make their feelings known to their father, who is calmly waiting at home for his wife to return. When she does return, sun-burnt and hopeful, the contents of the letter are revealed. The impact is far-reaching. How the family reacts to this is the main part of the novel, as well as some moving and well-researched detail about Cecily’s early life.
The relationships between the daughters, all very different and dealing with a range of issues, are very well-written and you can't help but be involved and react to their behaviour. If you want a family tale with a difference, a tale that is split between the present and the 1960s I recommend this book. It left me wanting to read more by Imogen Clark.

A light-hearted book with the more serious subject of adoption at its core. I enjoyed reading it, but felt that the characters were all rather cliched. A good holiday read I think.

An interesting and engaging read and quite emotional at times. Being a similar age to Cecily, the main character and from whose perspective the story is told, I can totally relate to how times have changed in the time frame of the book. Whilst I never found myself in a similar predicament I knew plenty of girls who did, plus some who have dealt with the reappearance of adult children in later year, so this story resonated quite deeply how attitudes have changed and how some still linger beneath the surface. Totally believable scenario and characters throughout with a story sensitively told.

Be ready to be drawn into a lovely family tale, a tale of love, loss and deep family secrets.

This is the first book I have read from this author and she did not disappoint. I was drawn into this story and wanted to keep reading!
What I really loved was how it didn’t just follow one central theme, you followed the separate stories of Cecily and her daughters and their lives, while also bringing everyone together. I also love how one bit, from the past, was told, how you taken back to when it happened and lived through the experiences with the character, told from her point of view at the time, while also including feelings and thoughts from now.

I don’t want to give much away in my review other than this was a fantastic read.
I really loved all the characters and felt that you got to know them throughout the story.
What’s more is that the story isn’t just about happily ever afters, it considers what would actually happen if people were in the situations these characters find themselves in, I think the ending is very well written and although it may not be what a reader would expect I think it really considers the gravity of the events in the book.


Thank you to Netgallery, the publishers and most importantly the author, for the chance to read this book, in exchange for an honest review.

An enjoyable read about adoption and meeting the child for the first time many years later. How these circumstances are difficult and you don’t always get the happy ending that you wish for. Includes visiting Kefalonia, one of my favourite Greek islands. Lovely read, really enjoyed it. Thank you for letting me review this book.

I greatly enjoyed The Last Piece.

Initially I thought I would be annoyed by the ‘big secret’ and did find it slightly strange that Cecily had said absolutely nothing to her daughters, but as the story unfolds, I was drawn in. The characters are each developed with stories of their own I wanted to follow. I particularly liked the emerging relationship between Cecily and her husband Norman – this is marriage as it should be not sickly sweet but thoughtful, supportive, robust when it was needed, and real. The contents of the shed on the lawn made me laugh out loud!

So, while the sudden trip to Kefalonia seemed a little unreal, it opened an interesting story and compelling story from decades ago which has truths behind it that made it engaging and kept me reading as the story switches between history and present day and looks at the emerging narrative from the perspective of Cecily, Norman and each daughter. Imogen keeps her narrative flowing with a continual connection to the main story thread without losing the depth and interest in the stories and lives of all the characters.

A thoroughly enjoyable read over a wet lockdown weekend, dreaming of when we can fly to sunny shores again!

Having read and enjoyed Postcards from a Stranger I was delighted to receive a free, advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased review.