This book is the story of three generations of women. It was difficult to follow in the beginning but the second half was easier to read. I found that I didn’t enjoy the storyline. This family did not learn from the mistakes of their other family members.

This one definitely started out slow. The writing and cadence was different. Three generations of women, spanning from WWII to 1991, affected by the times and society. Aoife, mother to three daughters. Rosaleen, eldest daughter, free spirit and pregnant with a married man’s child. Kate, wife and mother to a young daughter, searching for answers to her past and unhappy in her marriage. Much of the story is heartbreaking. Once I got past the slow and somewhat confusing beginning, I didn’t want to put it down. Everything seems to be intertwined yet separate. My desire for a happy resolution and even some payback may not have been completely satisfied but this was still a lovely read and worth recommending.

A sweeping family drama, I Couldn't Love You More, tells the story of Aoife Kelly, her husband and daughters. Stirring and nostalgic at moments, visceral and propulsive at others, I Couldn’t Love You More is a tender, candid portrait of love, sex, motherhood, and the enduring ties of family.

*Special thanks to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for this early e-galley of this novel.*

This book theoretically checks all the boxes for me. It is a multi-generational novel about women that touches on love, relationships, and self-identity. The writing style is artistic and soft around the edges like watercolor -- reminiscent of The Dutch House or Bel Canto by Ann Patchett.

However, I found this book difficult to follow and generally unsatisfying to read. The main theme we discuss is the act of history repeating itself. This cyclical, saddening, theme was not something I found enjoyable this time around. However, this may be what you're looking for if you're in the right headspace. If you enjoyed books like Pachinko in the past, this book may be worth a shot. I will be on the lookout for more from Freud, when I am more open to such an emotional story.

This was a heartbreaking book. This is a multigenerational story of three women Aoife, Rosaleen, and Kate. All three women face extreme sadness and hardship in their lives, and are deceived and treated horribly by the men who are supposed to love them. It was a very well written story, but so heartbreaking, with little hope in it. For that reason. I found it difficult to read. But it was very interesting, and a fast read. I received an ARC from netgalley, and this is my honest review.

This is a multi-generational novel set in Ireland and London about three women. A convent also plays an important role. It was a slow start at first, but then became quite intriguing.
This is recommended for readers who enjoy generational sagas full of secrets.

4.5/5⭐️

This is not a lighthearted read, but it is wonderful. While it started a bit slow for me, and I had to adjust to the author’s style, it was worth it. And it’s one of those stories that will stay with me awhile.

Told in alternating chapters featuring 3 interrelated women: Aiofe (WW2 London); Rosaleen (1960s Ireland); and Kate (1990s Ireland). There are so many themes/issues here: being bound by society’s/church’s standards; love, but at what price to self; and the strength and resilience of WOMEN in desperate/despairing circumstances…and in these instances, those circumstances were brought on by the men in their lives.

Both profound and poignant, as well as heart rendering sad and insightful, it also touches on the randomness of meetings in this life and missed opportunities.

Recommended (as well as tissues).

My sincere thanks to #NetGalley and #Ecco for providing me the free early arc for review. The opinions are strictly my own.

This book follows three different women in three generations. Unfortunately, the story skipped around so much without any description of what happened in between and led me to be confused and unable to follow the story. I often became frustrated because there was definite potential, but the author tried too hard to make the story work. I’m thankful to NetGalley and Ecco publishing for allowing me an opportunity to read. This review is my own opinion.

If you like convoluted depressing novels, this is one for you. Hard to rate by stars. First third would be 1 star, middle would be 2-3 stars and last part would be 4 stars.

I agree with other reviewers, the first 1/3rd is very confusing. There’s too many points-of-view, even switching within the same chapter from 3rd person to 1st person. Time periods also seem to switch both between and within chapters. Character names without explanations of who they are and they barely show up later.Its very hard to follow. Second 3rd didn’t keep my interest. I could have set it down and not come back. It was mundane. Teenage pregnancy, jerk husbands…ok, but why do I care about THESE specific characters, who were so confusingly portrayed in the first 3rd of the book? Last third was more straight-forward and had more emotional ups and downs. Get tissues ready. I know some people like depressing books, so they might like this one, if they can get through the first half of the book. Pacing is haphazard, stilted at times and other times I had to re-read paragraphs to figure out what happened. Themes are loss, loss and redemption.
It was similar to watching layers of watercolor, slowly, slowly being added and you remain confused about the picture for a while. If you are able to be patient and re-read paragraphs, and you like using tissues when you read…go for it.

This was a tough read in that I frequently did not know which character I was reading about. It changes point of view quickly and without context so it was often difficult to infer which of the three characters were speaking. If you can move beyond that, you have a warm and thought provoking story about relationships, heartache, difficult choices, and an intense glimpse into a time/society that contemporary women will not recognize but may have heard about from their own mothers/grandmothers. Ireland was basically a theocratic society and there was no greater shame than that of an unwed mother. These women paid heavily for "their sin." There are more interesting and engaging books on this topic such as Joanne Spain's "With Their Blessing." I think this would be okay for a general purchase for a public library.

After the initial pages, I found myself not connecting with the story or characters, so I decided to pass on this book. Did not finish

The story begins in 1960 where independent, fiery Rosaleen begins an affair with a famous sculptor twice her age. She finds herself pregnant, evicted from her flat, dismissed from her job, and desperate to hide her pregnancy from her family. In dire need of help, Rosaleen turns to the sisters of Sacred Hearts for shelter and safety. What Rosaleen doesn’t know is the safety of the sisters comes with a price, is it worth it?

Flash forward to present-day London, Kate lives with her daughter and husband, she sees her biological mother in every woman she meets. She struggles to find herself in the midst of an unhappy relationship. She’s lost and sets out to track down her birth mother.

This book was hard to get into, it flashes from past to present so quickly it gives you whiplash. Oftentimes I found I didn’t know what time period I was reading about. The characters got confusing, many of them not developing at all. After reading the first few chapters I almost put down the book, but I abhor DNFing a book! I kept pushing and started to grow to love Kate. Kate is strong because she has to be, for her daughter, all the while internally struggling to find herself.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a slow-burn mystery unfolding. I suggest if you do pick this one up, be patient, this book gets very interesting towards the end and you will find yourself turning the pages to see how the main characters' lives unfold and connect.

I Couldn't Love You More
By Esther Freud

This is a multi-generational story set in England and Ireland about the effect of an out-of-wedlock birth and how it blights the family in many ways. There have been several books – and even movies – in the past several years concerning homes run by catholic nuns and the cruelties inflicted on both the unwed mothers and their babies.

This book is indeed another retelling of this sad situation. Unfortunately, the story jumps back and forth and all over the place in such a way that I found it hard to follow. It took until almost the end to figure out who was who and what time frame we were in. So much so, that in losing the thread of the narrative, I found myself not able to build any strong sympathy for any of the women involved. I also was put off by the men they were involved with – none were very honorable and some were downright abusive.

This is not a book I would recommend for readers wanting a clear picture of the horrific goings on in what was purported to be homes run by good religious, but were in fact baby mills.

The Kelly women make poor choices in men. Three generations search for personal peace and recognition, only experiencing disappointment. Aoife, the first generation and mother of three, works hard side by side with her husband yet never feels acknowledged as his equal. Kate, Aoife’s grandchild, adopted as a baby, has a troubled marriage and yearns to find her birth mother. Rosaleen, Aoife’s daughter and biological mother to Kate, is abandoned by her shamed parents, left on her own, pregnant, jobless, homeless with no one to turn to for support. No one except a cold-hearted, sadistic group of nuns who condemn her “sinfulness” and humiliate and make suffer all the women taken into their home for wayward women. Through each of the three viewpoints Esther Freud portrays their lives and their dreams, inviting the reader to accompany their search for freedom and truth. At times a bit confusing, close attention must be paid to each chapter.

This story, told in the alternating voices of three generations of Kelly women, tells the hardship and heartbreak of marriage and motherhood. Aoife Kelly runs a tavern in London with controlling husband Cash. They want a good education for their girls so they move to Ireland to run a farm and send the girls to Catholic boarding school. Rosaleen escapes back to London as soon as possible to stay with family and start her new job and an affair with a much older man. Felix, a married man and brooding artist, at first appears happy with Rosaleen's unexpected pregnancy, but when tragedy strikes, he abandons her and she is left with no home, no job, and afraid to return home to her strict Catholic family. She goes to a Catholic mother and baby home, not realizing she would be forced to give up her child. Kate is in a troubled marriage to an alcoholic. She has struggled with her identity ever since her parents told her she was adopted. She decides to try and find her birth mother and faces a hard struggle with the Catholic facility to find out the truth.
I had a little trouble at first with the many characters described by each woman, but then the story just started to flow. I could really understand the emotions of each woman and the struggle they faced.
I received an advance reader copy of this book and my review is given voluntarily

Thank you Netgalley and Ecco for inviting me to read this book! I wish I had loved more of the characters, but Rosaleen was the only one I actually cared about. The different timelines were confusing because at first the narratives were dated, but then the dates stopped. I thought the book got really interesting about halfway through, but as I said, I never connected to the other two narrators.

It’s kind of hard to love I Couldn’t Love You More. The premise is good, but the execution falters in several ways. The story is told by three generations of women, Aoife, Rosaleen and Kate, from the same family, all of whom fall in love with a man they shouldn’t. While the three different point of views provide perspective, they also tend to feel disruptive. The story also alternates back in forth between first and third person perspectives and slips back and forth in time within several of the POVs, which makes it difficult to follow. There’s also very little context and transition provided, making the life transitions of the women feel abrupt and disconnected. The writing is atmospheric and romantic, and this could be a good story about how the daughters are doomed to repeat the mistakes of the mother, but can find happiness if they’re willing to walk away. The reader has to work too hard to find that narrative in a story that meanders when it shouldn’t, doesn’t fill in the gaps when it should, and focuses the story on characters that are slow to learn how to make the right choices for themselves – if they ever do.

I Couldn’t Love You More by Esther Freud is a wonderful, lush, moving book. It was a little hard to follow at first, but once I got into the rhythm it was hard to put it down. It tells the story of Aoife, her daughter Rosaleen and her daughter Kate. Aoife lives on a farm in Ireland with her husband Cash after having been the managers of a pub in London.

Their daughter, Rosaleen goes off and is seduced by and falls in love with an artist, Felix, who gets her pregnant and after a stroke, abandons her. Her fuller body is his muse and he sculpts her likeness for an upcoming gallery show. When he has a stroke, Rosaleen goes to the hospital and finds out that not only is he married but he has a son.

With nowhere else to turn, Rosaleen goes to a convent where she will give birth and her baby be given up for adoption. This is a struggle as obviously sex and pregnancy outside of marriage is a sin so the nuns are not kind to the young women who have come there in their desperation. Rosaleen hopes to leave with her child but when she gives birth the child is adopted 10 days later. She names her child Isabelle Felicia after her own grandmother and Felix. Rosaleen writes to her father and he sends money so she can leave the convent but she knows she can never see her parents again.

We meet Kate, Rosaleen’s daughter. She lives in London and has a young daughter of her own. She works with people with disabilities doing art projects; clearly the talent of her father has been passed down. Her husband Matt is an alcoholic and Kate decides to search for her birth mother. The rest of the story is the outcome.

I felt that it has a slow buildup but was really good overall. It was a little tough getting to know the different characters. I think the beginning had years associated with the different chapters and that would have helped further along in the book.

I received this ARC from #Netgalley in return for an honest review.

Freud is always an empathetic writer but this novel has the feel of a retread. Illegitimate babies, punitive Irish nuns, lives of regret and longing... we’ve been here before. It’s a well written saga but the characters aren’t special, nor the story arc. One of this author ‘s less memorable works.

A stunning, resonant novel about the love, hate, promises and betrayals that link there generations of women in a haunting, powerful narrative. Women of all ages will recognize themselves in these brilliantly observed characters because the emotions, if not the context or situation, are so authentically rendered .