Thank you to #MetGalley and the publisher Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter for sending me an advance digital copy of #EudoraHoneysett. This book was an exceptional read with Eudora, Rose and Stan being such good friends. Exploring the problems of loneliness, old age and guilt this book kept me absorbed from start to finish. I certainly will read more from this author as this book comes highly recommended.

Eudora Honeysett is an elderly lady who lives alone with a grumpy cat called Montgomery. At eighty-five years old she knows that her body is deteriorating and she fears losing her independence and dignity. She contacts a Swiss clinic with the intention of ending her life in a way in which she has full control. That is, however, until she meets ten-year-old next-door neighbour Rose Trewidney.

Rose is lively, articulate and incredibly compassionate. She takes Eudora and widower Stanley under her wing and shows them that life can still be great fun.

The dual timeline story goes back to Eudora’s childhood and earlier life. Through no fault of her own, Eudora experienced complete heartbreak and has since developed a fear of being left alone.

As the friendship progresses Eudora’s prickly exterior is peeled away and she begins to feel happy. Her plans for her death become less important and she looks to the future instead of the past.

Some people may think this is a book about death, it’s not, it’s about learning to live. It’s about how a person can transform when given love, and how we need to feel needed to flourish. Rosie puts the colour back into Eudora’s life, not just with her rainbow outfits but with her personality and sunny outlook.

This book shows how someone’s past can reflect on their lives forever. It is warm, sad at times, but at other times funny and heartwarming. It shows that friendship can develop between the unlikeliest of people, but it can heal and transform lives. The story shows that it is never too late to achieve happiness.

A thought-provoking and joyful read.

Trigger warning - assisted dying.

I really enjoyed this book. It swept me in from the first pages and it was nice to read a book from an older viewpoint for a change, as the story is told through the eyes of 85 year old Eudora.

In the present day Eudora is contemplating assisted dying in Switzerland. She has used logic to decide that she would prefer to end her days at her own convenience rather than end up in hospital alone as her Mother did.

Then 10 year old Rose moves next door with her family and Eudora's life is not the same anymore. With Rose keeping tabs on her every move and introducing her to Pointless and Richard Osman. Joining forces with another new friend she also learns about Pop Master on Radio 2! All very current and relateable.

Maybe now Eudora has new found friends she won't be making that trip to Switzerland afterall...

The story also flips back every so often to Eudora's younger days and we learn about how she got to where she is today. The events in her life right back to her childhood. A sad and poignant read but also some fun moments. The voice of Rose is a great one and she is certainly entertaining.

What a poignant, beautiful story this is. I do have a soft spot for a story about old people. The older generation have a certain attitude towards life that is fantastic. They've been there, done that, so they don't care what they get up to now. Or, who they upset along the way.

Eudora Honeysett, is an 85 year old lady. She lives alone, she's happy yet she's done with life. And, she's ready now to depart this world with dignity. But, she hasn't met Rose, her fashion guru yet. And, when these two meet that's when the real story begins. It's pure magical.

This story deals with the themes of loneliness and is very thought provoking. Here we are living our lives, but do we really know how our elderly neighbours are? Do we truly know what's going on in our grandparents thoughts?

I absolutely loved the friendship that developed between Eudora, Rose and Stanley. They each boosted each other in differing ways. And, helped to overcome their own struggles. It highlights the importance that friendship has on your life. Having a companion or friend is a boost to your happiness.

Thank you to One More Chapter for the gifted digital copy, and for yet another fabulous readalong.

Hands down this book is the most uplifting, sweet and lovely book I have read this year. I adored this beautiful story!!
I can’t say enough how sweet this book is!! I feel like I read the entire thing with a smile on my face. I absolutely fell in love with the characters, especially darling little Rose and of course Eudora. I feel so happy to have read such an uplifting and delightful book, this is one I would read again.
If you’re feeling like a lighthearted, stunning, beautiful read that is unputdownable, please read this. To me, this is an even sweeter version of books like A Man Called Ove or Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.
Read this book, you will LOVE it!! There is no way this book could be read without a smile :-)

Thank you for allowing me a review copy and also to take part in the read along. I did thoroughly enjoy this book which is unlike any book I have read before. Eudora Honeysett is 85 and feels that she would like to end her life rather than become a burden on society. Alone in the world Eudora calls a clinic in Switzerland and starts the process for assisted suicide. That is until one day ten year old Rose bounds into her life and changes things for the better. This book has a dual timeline which gives an insight to Eudora’s past. However I found the chapters too long as they averaged 25-35 minutes which left me struggling to find an appropriate place to put the book down without losing my place and having to re read the last few pages. That was my only negative issue with the book. I loved the ending and also loved Rose’s enthusiasm and bubbly nature. Highly recommended

Eudora Honeysett – 85 years old and increasingly troubled by the usual ailments, vulnerabilities, and indignities of old age. Eudora has never been married and still lives in the London house she grew up in – her only company is a cantankerous black cat named Montgomery. She feels like she is ready to meet death ‘head on’ and she has no fear of its mysteries. Alone, with neither family or friends, Eudora feels that she is done with life. She despairs of the modern way of life with lack of manners, its technology, and public displays of affection.

“It’s such a nuisance that elderly people have to look so old. This shrunken, prune-like appearance, as if someone is slowly deflating them, is most unprepossessing.”

Rose Trewidney – a 10 year old, precocious, talkative, relentlessly cheerful girl with a colorful and often ill-advised dress sense. She has just moved in to the house next door to Eudora, and she makes it her mission in life to ease Eudora’s loneliness and become her best friend.

Though Eudora tries to resist Rose’s persistent attempts at forming a friendship, she realizes quickly that Rose is a ‘force of nature‘ who is impossible to resist.

Stanley Marcham – an elderly widower who lives near Eudora. Though he is very gregarious, he too is lonely, and grieving his beloved wife. He lives with two King Charles Cavalier spaniels who he walks regularly on Eudora’s street. When he comes on Rose’s radar, she adopts him as another of her ‘best friends‘.

“Life is precious and as long as we have a reason to continue,
we should follow that path.”

MY THOUGHTS

The unusual trio of Eudora, Stanley and Rose become true friends and their journey together is a joy to read. The importance of inter-generational relationships between the very young and the very old are showcased in an absorbing way.

The narrative switches from the present day to frequent flashbacks of Eudora’s life throughout the years. This gave the reader a comprehensive understanding of Eudora and her way of thinking.

The book discusses death, a topic that is usually avoided at all costs. It approaches this often taboo subject with empathy, compassion and levelheadedness. Also stressed in this novel is the paramount importance of being kind to others.

This lovely novel engenders all the emotions with its straight-forward Eudora and her dry humour. It is a book that I think everyone should read, regardless of their age as it clearly describes how it feels to get old – a state that is often neglected and ignored by society at large.

While reading Eudora’s story I was strongly reminded of Fredrik Backman’s “A Man Called Ove“. Fans of that book will surely love this one as well.

A heart-warming, life-affirming novel of intergenerational friendships. I laughed – I cried. It was a book that you feel like hugging at the end. ‘Uplit‘ at its finest! All the stars!

Absolutely loved it! Reminded me a little of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. Rose was the star of the show!

Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well, Thank You was heart-warming women’s fiction that revolved around 85 years old Eudora and her unlikely friendship with Rose and Stanley. It was about multigenerational relationship, importance of a good death and living life fullest till it lasts, family, friendship, and letting go of past and guilt.

Writing was excellent, emotive and medium paced. Story was written in third person narrative from Eudora’s POV in dual timeline, past and present. Past was from 1940 to 2005 telling her life story from her childhood to present life. Plot was simple and lovely.

It started with Eudora’s annoyance towards modern world, deteriorating health, and slow pace, how she wished to end her life on her own terms without suffering old age or being stuck in hospital, so she called to clinic in Switzerland for assisted death and was looking forward to their approval but then her new neighbours arrived with cheery 10 year old Rose who brought colours, adventure and friendship along with her. I was curious to find out what Eudora will decide at the end and if meeting Rose and Stanley will change her decision or not.

Characters were realistic, developed and lovable. It was easy to empathize with Eudora. Her life, situation, and feeling made me sad. At first she was grumpy, world-weary, unhappy and lonely but refused to accept it. The more I read about her past the more I felt for her. Her kindness, loyalty and love towards her family was admirable. It was heart breaking to read how people and her own family failed her, was being ungrateful and unloving even after all her sacrifices. She didn’t take a chance to happiness and love for them, it wasn’t her fault and yet she felt guilty for what happened to them. She didn’t believe in sharing emotions but once she met Rose and Stanley, her views changed.

Stanley was old man, a bit younger than Eudora and her polar opposite. He was surrounded by loving family, lived happy life, everyone loved him for his lively nature, shared his emotions easily but he felt down and sad whenever he missed his wife. When he met Rose and Eudora, he found strength in their friendship.

Rose was gem. I loved her immediately. She was ray of sunshine, full of life, funny, adorable, understanding and wise for her age. She brought back colours in Eudora and Stanley’s life with her quirky dressing and adventure. She was truly inspiring and infectious. It was sad to see such lovely child was bullied in school and girls were being mean to her. It made me think like Eudora about the world. She was amazing daughter, sister and friend. I loved how she learned all positive things and spread the positivity and love around her.

Best part of the book was past narration and multigenerational relationship. Past helped in understanding Eudora and her life better. I had question in the beginning why she was alone, what happened to her family and friends, and how it led to present life. It was like puzzle and I got the answers as each pieces of puzzle were revealed in each chapter. Rose, Stanley, and Eudora were more than friends by the end of the book. Both Rose and Eudora found something missing in their life through this relationship. I loved how Eudora came out of her uptight shell, loneliness, found peace and happiness she was looking for all her life, how Stanley found activities he loved and met new people, made new friends, and how Rose became braver, wiser, more confident, and made new friends in her school.

Topic of death was handled amazingly. I didn’t know about death doula until I read this book. Nobody wants to die alone, in hospital or suffer the old age. This story beautifully showed how important a good death is and at the same time also showed the importance of living life at fullest till it last, grabbing the life and happiness whenever it knocks the door.

Climax was tense and surprising. Even though I supported her decision, I didn’t like what Eudora was doing as it felt like she was rejecting happiness she finally found. I loved how Eudora finally opened the gate of her feeling and how Stanley helped her make the right choice. All chapters between climax to end was wonderful. End was perfectly satisfying.

Overall, Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well, Thank You was moving, heart-warming and emotional women’s fiction with amazing characters and concept.

Amazing, beautiful and heartfealt, Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well Thank You is a book I heard about quite by chance because the publisher emailed me some while ago about a readalong event they were doing this week.

I naturally accepted and waited with baited breath until the readalong was here, or tried to, to start the eARC. I must admit that I failed in my attemopt to wait and devoured the first few chapters before the readalong because I was so desperate to start the book.

Eudora Honeysett is an 85 year old from London who is, well, fed up with life. Not depressed, she will assure anyone who enquires. She does not have friends or family nearby. She thinks the best thing she can do is take a trip to Switzerland where she will finally be free.

I have to say, I felt like asking Eudora, are you really sure? I was concerned about her from the outset and wanted to have a good chat with her. I didn't need to, because Rose rang on her doorbell.

Oh, Rose, what a sweet, sweet girl! Just 10 years old, she is anything but shy. Curious, she wants to know what's troubling Eudora and how she can help. Reluctant at first, Eudora lets her in, literally. We, and Eudora, are in for a thrill ride with Rose. Lover of purple, glitter unicorns and gold, she is forward-thinking, unafraid, colourful and caring and there's a role reversal as she takes Eudora under her wing.

Eudora is not the only one in need of help. Stanley is a lonely polite elderly man who Rose wants to help too. And when she introduces them they form an inspiring group.

Rose's parents Rob and Maggie adore their daughter and are glad to meet Eudora and with time they welcome her into their home. Rose is a great lover of fun times and balances out Eudora's cautioness until she, Eudora and Stanley have fun at the fair (literally) and Stanley and Eudora have time together.

There's more surprises in store for Rose (unicorns and all!) and along the way there are happy, sad and desperate times.

Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well Thank You made me smile, laugh cry and go on a journey I will never forget. You MUST read this! It's a gem of a book which challenges what we think of the elderly, young people, adults death and life. It will have you wanting to squeeze every drop out of every minute you spend witnessing the life of Eudora, Rose Stanley and all the characters.

I was sad when it ended but I also felt warm and fuzzy inside at having found a new favourite novel and author. Annie Lyons does an amazing job of representing life from all angles and I think many people will identify with this book.


Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well Thank You is a celebration of love and life in all its purest forms.

My hope is that it will make those who sometimes think negatively banish their bad thoughts and that it will help positive people to celebrate life even more.

If ever there was a poignant novel for a pandemic, Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well Thank You is it. It is an uplifting breath of fresh air and utter magic.

For those who have recently lost a loved one like I have, the book will help you grieve. It will lift you up and make you celebrate all your loved one was. For anyone who has parents, grandparents, daughters and sons it will drive home the importance of family, whether you have different views to those close to you or not. It challenges our notions of death and dying and turn them round.

In short, Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well Thank You is one of the best feelgood books of the year and it is daring in that taboo topics become normal again.

Author Annie Lyons writes in such a way that you identify with the characters' lives, struggles hopes and dreams and it lets you dream with them.

I am so glad I came across this novel because it was a wild ride and I really enjoyed the readalong.

Huge thanks to Annie Lyons, One More Chapter Harper Collins and United Books for my eARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. The book sparkles just as much as Rose's glitter-encrusted Memory Box.

Speaking of memories, the novel has left me with some very sweet ones and will do for years to come. I cannot recommend this book enough, I would give it more than 5 stars because it is iconic.

A brilliant book,I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The relationship between Rose and Eudora is so special and heartwarming. There are so many twists and turns in this story and I have to say that I really didn’t know how it was going to end. The author takes us on a very exciting journey which I thoroughly enjoyed. I’m looking forward to reading many more books by this author. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This was a nice book, the premise was quite similar to A Man Called Ove. I liked the flashbacks to see Eudora growing up and how she became like she was. I really liked seeing how we never stop growing, even after 80 years old!

Eudora Honeysett is quite well thank you. Annie Lyons
Pub date 17 sept 2020
May contain spoilers
Deals with grieve and friendship
This book is just amazing the story line on how it represents now and the past and how she feels about life.
Eudora is an 85 year old lady and is struggling in life she feel like she had enough of life her time is write she got no mum dad left really no family just herself and a cat who she love deeply. She phone a clinic in Switzerland and ask them two help her two die she says it will take time and they let her no a discussion soon. Eudora was thrilled she felt more at ease at least she can die at her own wish and dignity now. Eudora love swimming so she go every morning with out fail and when she get back she realises new neighbour are next door and wondered if they were nice people or not like the sale man who knock and disturb her all the time that why she keep a chain lock on the door as they dry rude and doesn’t like people much. Eudora is a very bitter woman she doesn’t like people so much and blame her parents for how her life turned out. In till she meet rose a ten year girl who live next door and they seem two get on great rose treats Eudora like a best friend and they go swimming and places together Eudora would never thought she have that relationship with anyone else again. Eudora enjoyed rose company allot she like the family life her mothers and then she met Stanley who ended up being a great friend she met him in hospital and he introduced her two his son and his family and they went dancing and went different places with rose and enjoyed each other company she loved the family being with them she never had that with her family she could never have. We learnt allot about Eudora family back in the past I enjoyed putting the puzzles together and how she lost love and her relationship with her mum and sister and how her dad left them. Eudora had a hard life. After meeting these wonderful people in her life she decided not two go two the clinics has Stanley change her mind so rose was happy two sea her again has she told them she was going away on holidays. Eudora was glad she change her mind she had a lovely time with her neighbours she would look forward two rose coming home from school with lovely chats and how her day went and her mum would come in and look after her in the day and Stanley would has well she enjoyed everybody company till the end .
I gave this book five stars it was amazing it tells you allot about life very moving book.

At 85 Eudora Honeysett is tired, tired of being lonely, tired of the constant medical appointments, just generally tired of life. So begins her journey of applying to end her life with dignity and on her own terms in Switzerland. Her plan is going well, until, a new family move next door and 10 year old Rose decides Eudora is to be her new best friend. Showing Eudora what it’s like to live and enjoy her life again.

This is such an amazing novel, I loved every word. I laughed at Rose’s no filter humour and cried buckets over the fragility of life.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

DNF 20%

I was looking forward to starting this book which drew me in from the synopsis. Unfortunately I just couldn’t take to Eudora, I found her quite rigid and fairly unforgiving. I struggled to see how Rose would gravitate to an elderly lady that came across as quite rude. Maybe this is just the eyes of a 10 year old and the will to see the good in people.

I wanted to love this story of inter-generational friendship but I didn’t like Eudora enough to continue. Against popular opinion I also found the alternating storyline a little unnecessary.

It’s going to be very difficult to do this book justice in my review without giving away any spoilers because what I would really like to do is gush endlessly about how marvellous every word of the novel is and tell you in excruciating detail exactly why. However, this blog is, and always will be, guaranteed spoiler-free, so I’ll do my best by the book in more limited terminology.

Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well, Thank You is one of those gems of a book that comes along quite quietly, without huge fanfare, but when you discover it you are torn between wanting to tell everyone you meet that they must read it immediately and hugging it to yourself as a cosy little secret. But since I am a kind and generous book blogger, I am going to share the secret with all of you. Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well, Thank You is going to be one of my books of the year, without a shadow of a doubt. I absolutely loved it, have already bought the paperback, want to tell everyone I ever meet about it and am telling you that you absolutely must, must read it at once.

This is a story about loneliness and friendship and family and disappointment and giving up and not giving up and intergenerational relationships and death and all kinds of love and how life isn’t over until it’s over. It has a dual timeline, amazing characters and every single emotion you can think of ranging through it. It will make you laugh and possibly cry (don’t read it at bedtime unless you want to have to sleep on a soggy pillow) and, as soon as you have turned the last page, want to immediately go back to the beginning and start all over again.

Annie Lyons has created a superb character in Eudora Honeysett. She goes on one of the most transformative journeys of any fictional character I have come across in fiction this year. The Eudora I met in the first chapter of this book is a totally different person to the one I left on the last page. The author’s deftness in peeling back the layers of Eudora’s back story over the course of the book at the same time as showing her emotional journey in the present is a thing of joy to behold and I am full of awe and admiration for her skill in playing with the reader’s emotions in this way. Despite being a very prickly character when we first meet her, she is totally sympathetic and, by the end of the book I was completely and irrevocably in love with her as if she were real and a member of my own family. Anyone who loved Eleanor Oliphant, Susan Green from The Cactus or Ruth Hogan’s The Keeper of Lost Things is going to adore Eudora Honeysett.

But Eudora doesn’t go through this transformation in isolation. All changes need a catalyst, and Eudora’s comes in the form of a tiny, rainbow tornado of a next door neighbour who shakes up Eudora’s ordered but sterile life, completely against Eudora’s will. Rose is a bright force of nature and a more delightful character has never been written. She represents all that is good and pure and positive in this cynical world and is the perfect antidote to all the stress and worry and loneliness that we are currently experiencing. This book could not have come along at a more opportune time for all of us and, if you are looking for a cheering, uplifting, escapist read that addresses a lot of issues that we are all currently facing, look no further.

There are a host of other fantastic characters to support these two, including the adorable Stanley ,who everyone must want as their grandad, Rose’s mum and baby sister, and Montgomery, a cat full of personality. The plot is unique and thought-provoking. It really made me think about getting older, loneliness and what it must be like to contemplate your death in old age. The author does an impeccable job of capturing the unique perspectives of the different generations and their individual concerns. Every word of this book is believable and informative and reading it was an enriching experience, as well as being fun and emotionally moving. Quite an accomplishment.

I really cannot sing the praises of this book highly enough. If you haven’t realised by now, I adored it and think everyone should read it. I hope it gets a lot of attention, because it really deserves it. I know it is a book I will continue to think about long after I’ve finished it and will return to again. The pinnacle of uplit and the perfect book for a lockdown lift.

The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett (US)
Eudora Honeysett is Quite Well, Thank You (UK)
By: Annie Lyons

This is one of my best reads this year and will rank as one of my top three books of 2020.

Eudora Honeysett is 85 years old and is so done with the world - the noise, anger, disrespect from others she has found herself having lived a full life and want to exit the world with dignity having no family or friends left. She will not pass away as her own mother did, with multiple hospital visits being poked and prodded only to die alone and miserable. Eudora wants to take control of her own death and exactly when she decides it to happen and has set up with a clinic in Switzerland.

While she is waiting for her affairs to be put in order, a family moves in next door and she meets an incredible ten year old Rose Trewidney, and an unlikely friendship blossomed - and with that, Eudora is opened up to meeting people in her neighborhood including a recently widowed gentleman named Stanley, and having trips to the mall, afternoon teas, shopping sprees and birthday parties.

What I loved about this is the way we learn about Eurdora's life through flashbacks in each chapter as we glean into what shaped her, her relationship with her family and friends, her love life and the many happy moments along with disappointments and hardships she has lived through.

This was such a tender and heartwarming story I enjoyed for the detailed character development, the brilliant writing, and the beautiful message of the story about life and friends as chosen families.

Eudora Honeysett is 85 years old and lives in Cornwall alone with her cat Montgomery. She has had a long life but now she is ready to die on her own terms. She has contacted a clinic in Switzerland to discuss ending her life. She has had enough of life and wants to end it peacefully without any fuss. Not in a hospital where there is a lot of strangers hooked up to a machine. Nobody will miss her. Her family a long-ago dead and she only has acquaintances not actually friends.

One day a young family move in next door. They have a little girl Rosa. A bright and bubbly girl. Who is completely different to her? So, when the family introduces themselves to Eudora and cat Montgomery it changes Eudora’s life forever. As Eudora spends time with Rosa, for the first time in her life she has hope. As she has had no kids of her own, Eudora experiences new things and this is all happening because Rosa has come into her life and vice versa. She also meets Stanley and they become great friends. She is enjoying life for once. Not feeling guilty for what happened in the past. This is a great book. I highly recommend it.

Octogenarian Eudora is tired, she’s tired of her aches and pains and her loneliness and life generally. Fed up of feeling this way, she decides to take control of the rest of her life...by requesting to a Swiss clinic that she be euthanised.

Whilst waiting for her assessment approval, Eudora meets two people who have a significant impact on her latter months - fellow pensioner and recently-widowed Stanley and 10 year-old neighbour Rose.

Eudora finds Rose and Stanley irritating and nosy and wishes they’d just leave her alone. However, she soon finds that she’s enjoying their company more and more and looks forward to time with them. This makes her question her euthanasia decision.

The book moves fluidly between past and present, giving an informative account of Eudora’s young-life growing up, her loves and losses. The author is extremely skilled at making the transition between now and then.

I felt very sad for Eudora. Throughout her life, she put everyone else’s needs before her own until ultimately, she lived a life alone. Everyone that she cared for had left her so that she was forced to build a wall around herself to protect her heart. I found it ironic that living through a life of heartbreak, she finally finds happiness and contentment and then suffers from heart problems.

This is a gentle and predictable read. Not much of a story but it seemed a long one! Nice and sweet, I rate it 3 stars 🌟🌟🌟

Thank you to the author and publishers HarperCollins UK for an ARC in exchange for an independent review.

A poignant, heartwarming, life affirming and well written story that made me smile and moved me to tears.
Eudora and Rose are two great characters, I loved their friendship and I love them.
It's a story that can make you smile but will also make you think as it deals with issues like getting old, the right to decide of our life.
It's sad at times but also full of tender moments full of love and friendship.
An excellent story that I will surely re-read, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine