I enjoyed the first few chapters of The Missing Pieces Of Us and found the concept of the story interesting. Unfortunately, I found the characters odd, I didn’t connect with Robin and Izzie at all and the plot of the story was totally confusing.

The Missing Pieces of Us by Eva Glyn is an interesting book that had elements of suspense, romance, drama, and tragedy. We meet Izzie as a young adult and see the beginnings of her love story with Robin. Unfortunately, they have obstacles preventing them from growing closer. Robin has responsibilities as a caretaker to his invalid mother and Izzie is in an existing relationship. The book then goes many years in the future and we see much has changed but the love Izzie and Robin had appears to be true.

However, they now have new have barriers to developing a healthy relationship. At this point the reader is a bit confused as to what is real and what is imagined. Mental health issues are apparent for both Izzie and Robin. A bright spot in this story is Izzie’s daughter, Claire.

What follows is a redemptive journey where you are hoping izzie and Robin can finally find their own happily ever after, but it is far from guaranteed. The book is told in multiple voices and has several timelines to draw you in further. A bit of the book seems quite disjointed but overall the storytelling largely redeems the flaws.

I was provided a free advance reader copy from Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine Books in exchange for my honest review on Net Galley. The opinions shared in this review are my own.

The writing was to confusing to follow. DNF after a few pages.

**************I received an ARC for my honest opinion from NetGalley.**********************************

The first few chapters were interesting but then it becomes confusing and hard to follow. I really struggled to make it through this book

Izzie meets up with Robin after they have been apart for 20 years. She needs support after the recent sudden death of her husband, can Robin give this even though he abandoned her all those years ago?
This is a real "Marmite" story looking at the reviews, with some loving it and others definitely not. It isn't an easy book, dealing as it does with serious issues such as severe depression, panic attacks and alcoholism, so isn't one to sit down to relax too. It also flits began Izzie's and Robin's viewpoint, which as usual can be a bit more difficult to follow. Taking these into account for me it was worth persevering to follow their story, with plenty of twists and turns giving some surprises on the way. A good insight into the effects of depression, with both highs and lows.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book.

A love story with a difference. Izzie is recently widowed when she comes across some one from her past . He is apparently down on his luck . Gradually the story of their individual pasts comes to light . Slow moving, there are anomalies in the story which only become apparent later on as the story comes together.
I liked the characters, though Izzie has problems and her communication difficulties could have been described better. Robin and Claire were portrayed better. The book felt very much like a story written as an example of a psychological condition, but most of the time it rang true.
Written from the point of view of Izzie and Robin and at different times in their lives, it felt that the story was fragmented at times.
On a practical level, I hated the tiny font which made reading on an e-reader difficult (I know you can expand but you don't get a complete page then)
Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I found the first few chapters confusing & struggled to get to grips with the storyline, then it turned into a bit of a fantasy & I wasn't sure what was going on, hence sadly I gave up on it, not something I am accustomed to doing

The Missing Pieces of Us, Eva Glyn

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: General Fiction (adult), Romance, Women's Fiction.

First, darn, women's fiction Again...Why? Its 2021 not 1821. Men read romance, men write romance..

So, the book. I was really intrigued by the description. I know from reading that actually what we rememeber as The Truth isn't necessarily what happened. There have been many studies around police witnesses to prove this. So I wondered how things would play out in the story. Plus i'm a sucker for second chance romance.

I liked Robin, as a young man and now as someone older. He's been through a lot and has learned so much about himslef, he seems reasonly secure in who he is but...Izzy. She seemed to spend an extrodinary amount of time belittling him, in sublte and not so subtle way, and he just took it. She didn't seem to notice she was doing it. I liked her at the start of the book, and I think that core of her remained inside. Now widowed, suddenly, she's clearly got issues of her own that she's ignoring, and thats affecting those around her. There's still a strong bond between her and Robin but she needs to have more respect for him IMO.
Claire was the star, just 16 but so good with her mum and Robin. Yes she has the teen outburst at times, but thats normal. Considering she's just had her dad die suddenly, her mums old lover/boyfreind turns up on the streets and is now in their home she's amazing.

The theme of memeory and truth is strong here. I didn't really take that in and when I read something Izzy recalled that didn't match what I'd read Robin say I was confused, flipped back to check I'd read it right, and was more confused when I had. It all connects eventually, just go with it.
There were a few times I needed to check who was talking/rememebering/thinking, as it wasn't clear but I assume final edits will sort that.
I enjoyed the story, its not one I'd reread and the romance side was really only a small part of the novel

Stars: Three, I enjoyed it but at times it was a little hard going, and Izzy frustrated me.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

The premise of the book is poignant and emotional - a woman newly widowed bumps into a long, lost love and old emotions surface. The book alternates between Izzie's point of view as a widowed mother, and that of Robin, the man who walked out of her life twenty years ago without a trace. But by the middle of the book, I didn't know if the characters were dealing with mental health issues as I became confused with both believing in their version of what happened long ago - and yet nothing proving either was right or wrong. I felt more lost and abandoned as they came together and then separated over and over.

I loved this book. The amount of research that must have gone into it was phenomenal. It was beautifully written and a well crafted story. I was drawn in from the beginning and enjoyed how the characters came to life. An amazing read.

⭐️⭐️ This story tells of a reconnected love between Robin and Izzie. Torn apart by tragedy then finding each other again years later by chance, the book takes you down the path of rediscovering a lost love and how to reconcile what caused the two characters to lose touch.

The Missing Pieces of Us started strong, but somewhere in the middle crumbled. I pushed myself to finish the last 40 pages because of the gaps in the story. I think my confusion in parts would have been clarified if each chapter had the name of the character instead of every 3-4 chapters. If I stopped in the middle of Robin’s chapters, I had to scroll to find who was narrating at that point.

#netgalley #themissingpiecesofus

I enjoyed this book. It's quite emotional. Izzie was widowed and then was reconnected with a past love. Both have their issues from the past and they need to sort these out before they can move on. It's my first book by Eva Glyn and I was impressed.

Lots in this story to keep you guessing and wondering if everyone is as they seem. The story is great and really gripping throughout.

The first few chapters were interesting but then it becomes so muddled and the fantasy part was a bit weird, did not know who was telling what truth.

I loved this book...first novel I've read by Eva Glyn and I will seek out more. Izzie is at sea after losing her husband and bumps in to Robin from her past...who has had a chequered life since their relationship ended a long time ago. There is still.a spark and Izzie rekindles her relationship with Robin. Her daughter Claire sees him to be a positive force in their lives. All is not straightforward and there are a lot of truths to be sought and emotions to be smoothed. I just loved all the characters and the insights into their pasts and emotions.

This beautifully written novel is a poignant exploration of grief and love and the way in which our emotions can often overwhelm us. The two main characters are both carrying burdens bought about by loss which then go on to impact their actions and dramatically shape their lives. It speaks to how hope, faith and trust can and do help us to heal even when we ourselves may think we are past redemption. Whilst the story does have romance at its core it is about love in many forms and the power that has within our lives, whether it be familial, platonic or romantic. Eva Glyn writes powerful descriptive insightful prose that takes us on a journey with Robin and Izzie as they both try and come to terms with their past to enable them to carve out a future. Overall this is a novel that speaks to the power of hope and human connection and as such is well worth a read. Highly recommended.

The kindle copy of this book had words running into other words was quite annoying.
The blurb says his version,her version and the truth. Well I have no idea what the truth was. Izzie, Isabella or Bella ( who is called three versions of their name) came across as being unhinged all through the book and it wasn't a surprise when we found out the reason . Was it supposed to surprise us?
Robin wasn't much better as character who I still didn't understand at the end.
I didn't really see the point of this book it was really miserable all the way through and if it hadn't been a copy for review I would have given up early in the story but I did read it through to the end and now I need a couple of painkillers for the sore head it gave me.

**The Missing Pieces of Us has a story buried somewhere in the worst unedited ARC this reader has ever received from NetGalley. Words run together, spaces are ignored and sometimes it’s difficult to know who is speaking. The book blurb describes this as her story, his story and asks who is right. It follows the relationship between two young lovers as life takes them in different directions before finally bringing them back into each other’s spheres. The characters are easily forgotten as will be this book that I am voluntarily reviewing.

A fair read at best. I only really felt any sort of connection to the daughter, Claire- she was bubbly and had a good personality. Too bad she wasn't a main character! The two main characters were pretty boring, and the story of their lives didn't seem to matter at all in the end. I saw one of the main character's big issue right away but it took forever for the author to acknowledge it. Not great.

I received an ARC copy of The Missing Pieces of Us courtesy of #netgalley, Eva Glyn and the publishers.

In all honesty, I'm going to be upfront and tell you that I am not an appreciative audience for this book. I didn't like it in the slightest and so I have little positivity to add.

The first major issue I had with the text was the broken words and line breaks where there shouldn't be. No spaces after full stops, or between frequent words. The poor structure made it really hard to continue reading. It frequently broke the flow of reading and made you lose track of the story, which wasn't difficult in the first instance.

The story was a forgettable plot about a forgettable bunch of characters where half the main cast have a memory problem. Errrgh. I found it to be a lost dull and dreary read and can't think who I would recommend this to. My advice would be to check out other reviews before casting your judgement. I fear I may be a tough crowd to please in this instance.