An Ordinary Life is a beautifully written novel about adversity and heartbreaking decisions. Historical fiction is by far my favorite and this one is a solid four stars from me! Molly is such a strong dynamic character who led anything but an ordinary life. The story begins in 2019 where 94 year old Molly decides to write a last letter to her son. From there the story transforms to the 1940s where Molly meets the love of her life and joins the French Resistance. I couldn't put this one down.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Amazon Publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a wonderful book! It follows the life of Molly who is such a lovely person I fell in love with her. Who would have thought that such an “ordinary life” could be so captivating. I was very quickly drawn into Molly’s life and couldn’t put the book down, needing to know how things would end and if she would find the happiness she so deserved. It made me reflect on life in general - I’m sure there are times we all feel we have ordinary lives, even boring at times, but everyone has events that shape their future decisions, everyone has tragedies and triumphs and secrets that others don’t know.
Molly remained brave, kind and selfless throughout what she may have thought was an “ordinary life” but was in fact far from it.
This is another great book by Amanda Prowse and well worth adding to your wish lists. I happily recommend this and rated it a strong 4 stars.

This is a special historical story. We get to relive Molly’s amazing journey through life. And what an amazing life Molly lived. This book had every emotion flowing through me. It is amazing!

Having a perfect memory is both a blessing and a curse. For ninety-four-year-old Molly a fall and a stroke have left her trapped in a hospital bed, unable to communicate but she still has her memories and determination to share them with her son. The reader is taken back in time to London in the 1940s and shares memories of what happened to Molly then and discovers just why this lady has certainly not lived an ordinary life! It explores her experiences of first love, hard decisions and all the emotions you can imagine as Molly remembers them all in this highly emotive read. It is a moving story, a life packed with challenges, a roller coaster emotional ride during which you have to wonder if she'll get to share them as she wishes or will fate deprive her of the opportunity to do so?

Molly is such a strong character, someone who never loses hope despite everything life throws at her. She's an unsung heroine, a quiet and unassuming woman who does incredible things without any expectations and this story celebrates - and commiserates with - her story in a way that makes it easy to empathise with her as her extraordinary life is revealed. Make sure you have the tissues handy for the ending!

My thanks to Amazon / Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for my copy of this book which I have voluntarily read and honestly reviewed.

Once again Amanda Prowse has delivered a wonderful novel of hope against adversity.
Wow what a stunning novel from Amanda Prowse. Molly’s story is anything but ordinary, it’s extraordinary . Her story spans over 70 years and it's breathtaking, emotional, and beautifully written. Molly is such a wonderful character, her story is one of lost love, family ties and a heartbreaking decision. A truly amazing read and the ending is so emotive you would be advised to have a box of tissues to hand.

Molly lives a life that is anything BUT ordinary! The story begins with her in her 90’s and quickly moves to her recollection of her younger years where she experienced love, joy, adventure and loss. I really enjoyed reading this! The author has a gift for storytelling and is able to draw you deeply into the story!

Amanda Prowse writes beautiful, emotional stories with a skill that few have. I have yet to read one of her books that does not leave a lasting impression on me. You will be captured in the first few pages and will read long past "just a few more pages". Guaranteed.

A 94yr old woman sets down to write what she knows will be her last letter to her son. She has so many things she wants him to know about her "ordinary life". So her story begins.....
Told through flashbacks, we start in 1943 when her teenage self volunteers for the war effort. We see through her eyes as she has so many experiences that young women of that era would never know. The only bright spot is the young man who steals her heart. But WWII has few happily ever afters and she will find herself with few options. Her life from that point on is influenced by this one decision. There are so many ups and downs, you find yourself afraid to turn the next page for fear of her fate.
Ms Prowse has written another sigh worthy story.

I loved this book so much it was so hard to put it down. This is about Molly’s life and it does come full circle. It starts out with Molly towards the end of her life trying to write a letter to her only son Joe. Molly grew up with a brother named David and he was in the service and was married with one daughter and later had another child. Joyce was Molly’s sister and she was married to Albert and unfortunately they could not have children. Their father had passed away when Molly was younger so she lived with her Mother. They had a volatile relationship to say the least. Her mother was constantly asking Molly where she was going and quoting sayings about what people think. Molly goes to work as a language interpreter for the military during WW2. She would interpret what the Germans were saying. She worked with Geer and they would go out for drinks once in awhile they were best friends. Geer wanted Molly to met her brother Johan (Joe) and they did and it was instant attraction. Molly finds out she is with child and doesn’t have a chance to tell Joe before he is killed. Geer left to be with her family once Johan had been killed and she gave up the friendship she had with Molly because she felt like Johan spent his last few days alive with Molly and not his Mother.
Molly confides in Joyce that she is with child but she’s can’t talk to her Mother because she fears retribution from her. What will people say? So Molly ends up having the child at home and misses so much work therefore she is terminated. She does find another job as a liaison which places Molly in very dangerous positions. Molly knows she needs to put her son with her sister to keep him safe from the war. The struggles Molly goes through to try to keep her head on straight during these times are horrific. As I said earlier this book brings Molly’s life full circle and how everything played out for her. So sad on so many instances but she was a very strong woman and did what she had to do. I so loved the ending with the snow globe.

I received an ARC for free from Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thank you so much Netgalley for a chance to read this book! Great book!

This tells the story of Molly from an 18 year old experiencing her first love affair, during the war, through to when she is a very old lady. The young Molly has to make an enormous decision and it impacts on her whole life and that of her family, will she take the secret with her to the grave?
I really enjoyed this book the characters are believable and the plot is good.
I have read quite a few books by this author and find that each book is completely different whereas sometimes books are so similar in style that you feel you have read it all before. Will continue to look forward to reading more books by Amanda Prowse.

EXCERPT: . . . the memory of her lover's palm running over her back beneath the winter sunshine on a stolen afternoon, as they lay close together on a tartan blanket among the ruins of war was, even now, enough to make her weep like the willow beneath which they had sought shelter. His face, captured in her mind like a picture, a particular smile, lips closed, one side of his mouth raised more than the other, his hair flopping forward, his eyes mid-laugh...It had always been him.

And now, here she was. Lying alone on a trolley in a corridor, unable to imagine whatever might come next, able to think only about what had gone before: each step, each breath and each day that had led up to that point in time. Her body quite useless now, but oh! The miraculous thing it had done: bearing a child, a boy! A beautiful son . . .

She cursed her inability to finish the note she had started, wishing nothing more than to place it in the hand of the boy who had shaped her whole life. She needed to tell him of her history. Her story, her ordinary life, and thus his story, the full truth he'd never known but that she'd promised, finally, to tell him. The truth that now he might never know.

ABOUT 'AN ORDINARY LIFE': Christmas Eve, 2019. Ninety-four-year-old Molly lies in her hospital bed. A stroke and a fall may have broken her body—but her mind is alive with memories.

London, 1940s. Molly is a bright young woman, determined to help the war effort and keep her head up despite it all. Life becomes brighter when she meets and falls in love with a man who makes her forget everything with one dance. But then war forces her to make an unforgettable sacrifice, and when she’s brought to her knees by a daring undercover mission with the French Resistance, only her sister knows the secret weighing heavily on Molly’s heart.

Now, lying in her hospital bed, Molly can’t escape the memories of what she lost all those years ago. But she is not as alone as she thinks.

Will she be able to find peace—and finally understand that what seemed to be an ordinary life was anything but?

MY THOUGHTS: This is a steady-paced but extremely emotional family drama that had me in tears several times during the read. Amanda Prowse is very adept at that.

I adored and admired Molly. She was an extremely strong and courageous woman, but that strength was also her undoing. No matter what befell her, she picked herself up and kept going, until she could go no further.

I didn't think that I would enjoy An Ordinary Life when I first began it. It felt like it was going to be a 'soppy romance.' But I should have known better. Amanda Prowse has never let me down yet, and she certainly didn't this time either. A few twists, and the book went off in an entirely different and unexpected direction.

I enjoyed An Ordinary Life. Molly wormed her way into my heart as I celebrated her successes, cried with her at her heartbreak, held my breath when she was in danger, and took pleasure in her joy.

An Ordinary Life is proof that Prowse can turn her hand to any genre, successfully. Every book she writes is different, yet every book stirs my emotions.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.3

#AnOrdinaryLife #NetGalley @MrsAmandaProwse

#familydrama #historicalfiction #mentalhealth #romance #WWII

THE AUTHOR: Amanda Prowse was a management consultant for ten years before realising that she was born to write. Amanda lives in the West Country with her husband and their two teenage sons.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Amazon Publishing UK, Lake Union Publishing via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of An Ordinary Life by Amanda Prowse for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

The story of Molly’s life as told my Molly. It starts with Molly being home, in her house writing a letter to Joe. Continues with her having a stroke and reliving her life through WWII and love and loss. The life she lives, the things she sees, the love she feels all shape her into the amazing woman she has become.

I love WWII stories and An Ordinary Life is no exception. What I especially loved about this book is how I could see how Molly was now and as she told her life story, I was able to see why she is this way. I loved the glimpses back into the life of women in WWII. Their part in the war is not always as well known as the men’s part but they were just as important to the end of Hitler’s reign. The strength and bravery that Molly had is still evident in her at age 94.

The relationship between sisters, Molly and Joyce, is the way sisters should be. Even when things do not necessarily go as planned, they stick together, they protect each other, they love each other, and they keep each other’s secrets. They understand that they are family, no matter what else is happening in the world, they must stick together.

Amanda Prowse wrote an amazing historical fiction book. I recommend picking up your own copy as soon as you can. It is a book that I could not put down.

When you first start reading the book thee is an air of predictably,. However, just as you think you have things sorted the storyline takes an unexpected turn. With a mid point in the book where I audibly gasped ‘oh no’ and she’d a teat.
A lovely read by an exceptional author and not the ending the majority of we readers would expect.

An Ordinary Life by Amanda Prowse was a beautifully written book I didn’t want to end. I have read a few other books by her and enjoyed each one in it’s own way. This one had a whole different flavor for me.

The story starts out at the end of Molly’s life, goes back to her late teens and progresses back to the end. It was poignant, heartbreaking and deliciously satisfying. It is centered in England and partially takes place during World War II. I love Historical Fiction and this was a plus. Her characters were dealing with War on their home front, recovery after the war and difficulties in relationships during that time period. I loved Molly and her siblings they were warm and loved each other. I didn’t like her mother. Not one bit!

Amanda Prowse always has something for us to look at in a new way in her books and An Ordinary Life was not different. Her books always draw me in, make me sympathize with the characters and give me a new understanding at the end. I don’t have to read a synopsis of her book too know if I want to read it. If it is written by Amanda Prowse, I want to read it!

This book releases February 9, 2021. If you love Historical Fiction or family drama, I’m sure you’re gonna love this novel.

I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher and Netgalley for a fair and honest review

I normally do not read this kind of book but I am really glad I did. Marvelous Molly, which she is, had such a struggle from the early age of 19. War is a horrible thing and it is especially horrible when you lose the love of your life to it. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger and Molly becomes a strong woman with a purpose. The heartbreak from war, lost love, lost family (how could a mother be so mean) and lost friends leaves readers with a lot of wet tissues. Such a great story with lovely characters (well, most). I would definitely recommend this book. Once you start reading it, it is hard to put down.

Thank you #LakeUnionPublishing, #netgalley and @amandaProwse for an ARC of this beautiful book.

An Ordinary Life by Amanda Prowse is, as always when a book appears written by Amanda no ordinary book or life! An historical fiction story told straight from the heart, a woman with a secret that has been kept for seventy years.
A touching and emotional tale,told over two timelines, of Molly. We first meet her in 2019 at 94 years of age, on Christmas Eve, after having a stroke and a fall. Lying there with her body broken but her mind bright and alive with memories.
We are taken back to the 1940s and Molly is a young 19 year old who is doing, as a lot did then, her bit for the war that Britain was in the midst of. She meets and falls in love with a man after just one unforgetable dance. It is a meeting that she will never forget, ever. This story follows her work for the French Resistance and the sacrifices one woman made for the war, including keeping her promise to her sister.
Once again Amanda Prowse has written a story that has the power to transport you back in time and feel like you are a part of Molly's story. Such a heartbreaking time for everyone during the Second World War. There was hardly anyone who could claim to be left untouched by this cruel and horrific war. Amanda has created characters whose emotions are so real and vivid. A book of love, loss, adversity and most of all hope. I knew I would be at the very least, almost reduced to tears while reading this. Amanda has a poignancy to her writing that is unique to her and this book is no exception.
Thanks to Rachel's Random Resources, NetGalley and Amanda Prowse for my place on the tour and the copy of the book

At 94 years old, Molly is confined to a hospital bed after suffering a fall and a stroke, she should be thinking only of herself and her recovery, but there is one thing she needs to do, something that she has put off for many years.
What a beautiful and extraordinary woman Molly is. However, when faced with the most difficult decision of her life she takes the hardest most unselfish route in order to protect those she loves. But did she make the right choice?

Amanda Prowse, I am in awe of how your words seem to form a hand which reached out for mine and then took me on an emotional and heart wrenching journey.

I truly could not put this book down.

This was such a lovely and poignant story that I couldn't put it down. Molly is my favorite character so far this year. Her life definitely was not ordinary as she made a sacrifice that was not easy and yet she survived and made the best of an impossible situation.

An Ordinary Life by Amanda Prowse is a story that made me weep...and I am not a crier. It proves that you cannot tell what is going on with a person by looking. Even Molly thought she had had an ordinary life. To begin with, if you live to 94, your life is far from ordinary. Molly fell in love when she was 19 years old. It took just a moment. She had only seen him three times when he was killed in a freak accident, rehearsing for D-Day. One of those days they had spent in the country on a tartan blanket making love, and making a baby. She hid that baby from her co-workers and her mother. It was born and she swore she would do her best for it, but at this time, World War II, people were not kind to women that had babies out of wedlock. She needed to work. Her mother, who she had hope would come around, did not. She had to give Joe to her sister and brother-in-law...just until she got situated...a few months. That sadly did not work out and they kept him. Wartime is so difficult. She lost her co-worker to suicide...she had not realized. She had a nervous breakdown but after a few months in an institution she got better...no thanks to the institution. Life went on.

No life is ordinary. This is something Molly never realized, even as she lived it. She did extraordinary things: she loved. So many things were not exactly as she believed, as is life. This was an amazing, wonderful story. Kudos, Amanda Prowse. This could not be more beautifully written. The plotline was interesting. The characterizations were sharp. The pacing was smooth and believable. All-in-all, it was a book difficult to put down and difficult be finished with. It will stay with the read for a while. Please read it.

I was invited to read a free ARC of An Ordinary Life by Netgalley. All opinions contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #anordinarylife

You know what I love about Amanda Prowse’s books? She makes me feel as though I’m sitting across from her in a comfy armchair while she tells me a story. In this case, one that’s compelling, heart-warming and heart-breaking. She’s that kind of writer. Her characters are those everyday people we all know, which makes her stories utterly accessible and relatable.
An Ordinary Life is no exception. As Molly (94) lies in hospital following a fall, we’re given a glimpse into her life. We get to know her as a young woman, courageous and energetic, living in London during the war (WW11) years. She’s ambitious and dedicated, working by day and volunteering for the fire service at night. One evening she’s persuaded by her best friend to go out for a drink. It is an outing that changes the course of her life.
An Ordinary Life is a quick read, yet one that really drew me in. Molly’s is definitely not an ordinary life. Christened Marvellous Molly, or M, by the love of her life, she is called upon to do much more than most of us during her ninety-plus years. I adored her. No-nonsense Molly faces life full on. During the worst of times she manages to dig deep and stand tall. And when things all get too much, she isn’t afraid to ask for help.
I was devastated when she’s forced to make a brave, yet absolutely heart-breaking, decision. This is a story about family, relationships, love and sacrifice, all beautifully told in Prowse’s flowing writing style, and with her trademark wit. (She uses her modern day knowledge to slip in some really humorous asides, for example, about The Mousetrap’s stage run.)

An exceptional novel spanning several decades, 30’s to 2019 regarding one woman’s life. All her trials and tribulations are revealed with intimate detail. This is a WW2 novel through modern times detailing the changing morals, dress, and historical information. Molly is a woman who finds love, loses love, expresses anger, during the war is a spy in order to support her son,, endures hardship and survives. This book is both encouraging and sad. I cried throughout the end of the story. Molly thinks her life is ordinary but the reader thinks her life is extraordinary and inspirational. The characters are well developed and interesting, each having their own problems or secrets.