Hannah Beckerman writes a n amazing book of family and secrets. The main character Nell is with her father, Bill, on his deathbed when he makes a cryptic remark that leads Nell searching. Her mother , Anne, is slipping into dementia so she can not settle the unease that Nell has about her life. Nell has never been close to her sisters who are much older than she is so she can’t go to them either. Nell needs to find out and what she uncovers shows the destruction of family secrets to the entire family.
Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing an ARC for a review of this book. I will be looking for more Hannah Beckerman books.

Beckerman writes a beautiful novel of the lose and care of an elderly parent and the secrets left behind. “Bill Hardy is on his deathbed when he fixes daughter Nell with a troubled, urgent stare. “You need to know that I’ve always loved you even though you were never really mine to love,” he tells her. His words are the catalyst for Hannah Beckerman’s third novel, a tangled tale in which the unravelling of family secrets exposes dilemmas of startling moral complexity.” This is a beautiful novel written in alternate voices as the main character Nell tries to untangle death bed whisper. The characters are well developed and family conflict feels real and relatable. Highly recommend. Thank you for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Impossible Truths of Love is a poignant book that examines the grief and trauma brought about by an accidental switching of new born infants which apparently only one set of parents is truly privy to. As they grow to love and adore their daughter, all the while knowing that she might some day be taken away, no one believes nor understands the sorrow and fear they have as they are confronted by what seems like a crime they have unwittingly committed. The "then" and "now" presentation of the plot of the lives of the parents and then the daughter who shares no DNA with them contrasts the widespread and deep influence of this horrible mistake with the pride and love the parents have for their daughter. Family, loss, love, and the deep connection the parents have for their child runs vividly through the book and keeps the reader wondering to the last page what the family secret really is.

This was a deeply emotional book, one I could hardly put down. It is a moving story of identity, love, memory, loss, family, and relationships. The format of back and forth, between "then" and "now" worked so well for the narrative. It brought such a tension and a slow reveal of the story, bringing both Annie and Nell's sides of the story together in the end. Well paced and intriguing, the story grabs you from the first chapter. I found the hints along the way kept my attention.

Annie's trauma is so well articulated, with the reader being caught up in her tragedy and her emotional turmoil The reveal of the last few chapters and the realizations she went through hit hard.

This is a book about family, about love, relationships, trauma and tragedy, parenthood. loss and resilience. It packs an emotional punch and there are some parts that left me completely wrung out.

It is an intense read, a story of family and secrets that are revealed. A story about a search for the truth, a story about a family's devastation and the secret they carried forward. A profound study of grief, in its many forms.

The writing is poignant, at times lyrical, at times stark and painful, always riveting.. Nell and Annie's POVs alternate and it is fascinating to see the facets of themselves slowly revealed by the narrative and to see how the pieces we are given as readers come together to solve the puzzle in the end.



This may be a difficult read for some readers. It is stark and pulls no punches on the traumatic events set forth in the narrative.

Four and a half stars. Highly recommended. Be aware of the subject matter as some of the topics may be sensitive for certain readers.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.

“Grief, [Nell] is learning, is love’s echo: it is not possible to have one without the other.” The Impossible Truths of Love takes us on a journey of a mother and daughter’s story, set 35 years apart, intertwining parental love, heartbreak, identity, and secrets that have the potential to tear a family apart but also bind them together. This tender, poignant story will leave you raw with emotions that will touch you on so many different levels.

“I love you… I need you to know that. . . . even if you were never really mine to love.” Nell’s dad makes a death-bed declaration to her that leaves her confused and perplexed, but with her mom having dementia and her memory quickly fading away – and feeling disconnected from her two older sisters, she doesn’t know where to turn. This book is a perfect puzzle, where Hannah Beckerman, chapter by chapter titled “Then” and “Now,” leaves Nell pieces that slowly begin to form into a full picture.

I can’t put into words the thoughts and feelings that I had while reading this heartbreaking novel; the depth of the grief described hits you in a way that is inexplicable. I lost my grandfather to Alzheimer’s when I was 7, and I remember visiting him the very last time. He told me that my grandmother was out grocery shopping and I had just missed her (she died twos prior). I would read a line, a paragraph, a chapter of this book and try to connect the mother, Annie, and my grandfather, Ralph. I would literally put the book down and try to remember the man I never really got to know – where my main memory of him is of him not remembering his life. I wonder if his thoughts and memories were just on the cusp like Annie’s, barely out of reach.

I read this book at night while my two year was sleeping next to me. He is the youngest of three, 4 years younger than my middle child. A perfect baby, at day 16 he slowly entered into a coma and was diagnosed with hypothermia and with no active mental state (I live in south Florida). You know it’s a bad sign when the ER doctors already start offering you condolences in their own way to begin to prepare you for the worst. However, after over a week in the NICU and every test imaginable, he pulled through and we never found out what was wrong. When we were checking out of the hospital, a doctor pulled me aside and said that if that happened in the middle of the night we would have woke up to a deceased child and it would have just been listed as SIDS. “Just,” like it was no big deal and how lucky we were. I am overprotective of him, more so than my two older boys. When your heart is on the verge of breaking, there is a hole left that you constantly seek to fill. Life changed that day for my husband and I, and “we were the lucky ones.” I can’t even imagine the what-ifs.

This book reminds you that there isn’t one shape of grief; grief is not a puzzle piece that can easily fit into the same picture. This in turn, suggests that we do not always know what others are feeling or going through, and that maybe we shouldn’t be quick to judge. Likewise, this book teaches you that love is a journey, and it’s not a straight line. How far would you go for the people you love? What would you do to protect them? If you lie to protect someone, is that still unacceptable? I don’t think I even contemplated how close the line is between love and grief before.

Maybe there are some impossible truths in life that aren’t ours to question. In law school one of my favorite Professors always used to quote Sherlock Holmes: “When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.” It’s hard to believe that the truth sometimes isn’t black or white – sometimes the reasonings for our actions lie within the gray area in between. For parents Annie and Bill, numerous impossible truths define and shape their family, leaving the reader captivated by the events and their shocking outcomes.

I do warn, this is not a book to get lost in and escape – this is a thought-provoking novel meant more for a good cry and introspection than an escape into a different world. I thank NetGalley for allowing me to read this novel in return for my honest opinions, while are all mine!

Thank you to Net Galley and Lake Union Publishing for the chance to read and review this book. The opinions expressed are my own.

This is a wonderful story about family secrets. As her father is dying, he says something really strange to his daughter Nell. This makes her start to question her identity and where she came from. She tries to talk to her mother Annie, but her mother is suffering from dementia. Slowly, Nell begins to find out the answers and discovers the secret her mother has been hiding all these years. The book was very well written, with very believable characters. I really liked the ending because the author let the reader know what Nell was planning to do, but not how it turned out. I recommend this book. It is a good story!

Thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Publishers for this I corrected proof for me to read and review.
Having loved ‘If Only I Could Tell You’ I was so excited to read this newest release. I immediately got drawn in by Nell’s fathers comment ‘you were never really mine to love’ and this was made even more intriguing by the mystery surrounding Annie’s hospital stay. It had me turning the pages and reading well into the night.
My heart broke reading about Annie’s grief for Danny, I can’t express how beautifully this was written. I found the story moving and it is one that will stay with me for a long time.

Kindle Unlimited subscribers, please listen up. If you’re in the mood for an intense, emotional, and extremely powerful family drama, I have just the book recommendation for you. The Impossible Truths of Love by Hannah Berkerman is told from two points of view: Nell in present day, and her mother, Annie from thirty-five years earlier. Nell is curious about, and suspicious of some events from her past. As Nell tries to put the puzzle pieces of her childhood together, Annie tells us her side of the story, and the mystery begins to unravel for the reader. The secrets, lies, multiple twists and surprises in this novel had me absolutely floored. Beckerman describes Annie’s experience as a mother in the most raw and realistic way. Prepare to be completely shocked, and constantly guessing. The topics covered in this remarkable story are so important. There’s strong themes of motherhood, sisterhood, trauma, depression, identity, loss, and grief. There’s a major trigger warning involving the loss of a child, so please keep that in mind. Feel free to DM me for more details. I’ll be recommending this new release for many months to come. 4.5/5 stars for The Impossible Truths of Love!

A very honest and moving story regarding families, secrets and how we cope with grief
I think that though it deals with very raw and deep subjects, this book is truly a tribute to love

‘The Impossible Truths of Love’ is a novel to be savoured. Hannah Beckerman writes sensitively about the most painful events and, in doing so, acknowledges the importance of family. As the novel’s central character, Nell, a scientist in her mid-30s, mourns the death of her father and the loss of her mother to dementia, she learns that, ‘Grief…is love’s echo. It is not possible to have one without the other.’
So, this is a story about death but, likewise, it is a story of birth, of a mother’s love for her children, and of a father’s determination to keep his family together. Whilst at the heart of her tale lie harrowing events, Beckerman also writes convincingly about everyday family life - daily habits, friendly neighbours, playground outings, affectionate gestures, sibling rivalry.
This is a moving and thought-provoking story, prompting the reader to consider many facets of love. Nell recognises that her parents’ ‘…love for her was at once the greatest truth and the most profound lie. An act of infinite kindness and acute selfishness.’ This paradox is at the centre of the novel and reminds the reader just how complex longstanding relationships often are.
My thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK, Lake Union Publishing for a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Publishers for this uncorrected proof for me to read, review and comment.

This is a beautiful and emotional read. It will have a special place in the hearts of parents who have experienced the pain and grief at the death of a child.

The read follows two time zones, that of Nell in the present with aging parents, mother Annie now with dementia and father Bill ill in hospital. It's during a visit to see him that he quietly makes a strange remark to her which sets about gradual wheels of discovery in motion for Nell.

The past revolves around the young wife and mother Annie, in a normal village environment indicative of so many everyday people. Annie's life is wrapped up in her family and Bill, a furniture maker of ordinary standards. Both are not risk takers, with Europe so close to their shores only one trip has ever been made.

An unexpected pregnancy occurs for which Annie has mixed feelings, insecurities about a new baby in the house, her two daughters Clare and Laura are now of an age that they are pretty independant, going to school, friends and activities for which she simply has to shuffle them around. However this pregnancy has thrown her a curve ball and at the same time, Bill has put on an assistant, a young woman, Elsa for which adds to Annie's insecurity, why such a young woman? All these insecurities of course fall away with the new baby at home, a son, Danny.

Annie's life changes with this new baby boy, she is revitalised, he becomes the centre of her life. The baby smell is so intoxicating, the clothes and linen all become heavy with baby scent which forms part of the bonding for mother and child. One morning Annie wakes to find that she has overslept, anxious that Danny hasn't woken for a feed she goes to check on him. An ambulance is called and he is rushed to the hospital.

From here on Annie's world falls apart, her grief is beyond redemption, so deep, she leaves her normal world. Unable to function, she only moves from her bedroom to that of the nursery when she is alone in the house and retreats there to spend her day with the scent of her baby still there.

Back in the present Bill dies leaving his daughters to arrange for the care of Annie. Nell, much younger than her two sisters, has a difficult relationship with them. She is the only one to have gone to university and with her work has needed to move away. While she has tried to assist her ageing parents, most of the responsibility has fallen to Clare and Laura for which there is resentment from Clare. Without consulting her the house has been sold and a suitable place for their mother has been found. In the meantime, packing has to be done and for the immediate weekend Nell stays with her mother. During this time, Annie's disjointed memories are revealed and without much sense, fragments being voiced. Nell discovers a large amount of newspaper cuttings and photo albums but unlike the photos of her older sisters there are none of her as a baby.

The past, Annie's life does not change even with Bill suggesting adoption, she is adamant, she couldn't love another person's baby. Finally she does fall pregnant again. There are issues with the birth of this baby girl and the stay in hospital is longer than normal. Annie once again finds herself on an emotional precipice, she denies the baby given to her to feed, adamant it's the wrong baby. Checks are made again and again. There hasn't been any mix up with the baby wristbands. The baby girl, Nell is brought home and soon life returns to a sort of normal but Annie becomes overly protective of Nell and even objects to her going to the workshop to be with her father, Nell finds a real friend in Elsa, the young assistant.

The present, Nell, while in the midst of packing discovers details of Danny, a child she never knew existed. Her question is why was he never mentioned and why was it kept as a secret from her. Elsa is the only person she feels comfortable asking, who was Danny? From here on Nell's life becomes a journey of discovery.

This is a terrific family mystery. Nell's visiting her dying father when he says something mysterious that catches her by surprise, and before she has a chance to ask him more about it, he passes away. She keeps that information in the back of her mind as she helps her two older sisters clear their parents' house in preparation for moving their mother (who suffers from dementia) into a nursing facility. The story is told from two eras - then and now - and the author did a terrific job of keeping both story lines going. There were several times during my reading when I thought I knew just what had happened, only to be surprised that everything wasn't what I thought. This would have been a 5-star read for me, except the ending of the book was drawn-out too long for me - and then ended rather abruptly. But even so, I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoys family sagas or mysteries. Many thanks to Net Galley, Lake Union Publishing, and Ms. Beckerman for the ARC of this book.

Wonderfully written novel of family relationships. Very heartbreaking and authentic in so many ways.

Great read!

Hannah Beckerman’s The Impossible Truths of Love is about identity, memory, secrets and what makes a family. The emotionally engaging novel carries the reader on a rollercoaster of mystery, keeping you guessing as it twists and turns, as it works its way to the end.

Nell’s father, when dying, tells Nell that he loves her, even though she was never really his to love. Those words are “like a bruise on her memory that will not heal”. This hint of a secret, Nell feels, might explain why she has felt separate from her family, particularly her two sisters and her mother. Nell’s search for the meaning behind her father’s words is complicated as her mother Annie is losing her memory to dementia and starts making mysterious comments of her own.

The story switches between the past and the present, giving you just enough information at each turn, but leaving you desperate to find out what happened and will happen.

The past is Annie’s story which is a series of traumatic events, all of which scarred her and made her make decisions which would otherwise be incomprehensible. Beckerman portrays Annie’s mental illness with compassion and veracity. The writing is raw, visceral and moving. Annie’s feelings are described so vividly that you feel the emotions personally. As Annie realises, “Grief […] is love’s echo: it is not possible to have one without the other.” Grief and love define Annie.

Nell’s story is about the present and coming to terms with the death of her father and the virtual loss of her mother. It is about her relationships with family, friends, her boyfriend, and with herself. The cryptic hints of a secret made her feel that “[I]n her mind, the tapestry of her family history begins to unstitch, the fabric loosening at the seams.”, a past that doesn’t reconcile with her memories. Memories are malleable, they play us false. Do we remember what we choose rather than what is real? Nell considers the strangeness between the imagined identity of little Nell and the reality of Nell as an adult. Are they the same or are they different?

Nell’s experience of her mother’s dementia is described with tenderness and puzzlement, and a sense of mourning even though Annie is still alive. Nell has conflicted feelings about her mother which makes for an interesting analysis of the mother/daughter bond.

This is a story of “…a quartet of lives shattered by a momentary mistake …” with ongoing repercussions. It explores big themes, handled sensitively and it is also an enthralling mystery which keeps on challenging the reader. I loved it.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #LakeUnionPublishing for the eARC.

A cryptic death-bed comment by a father to his daughter, and the beginning of a wonderfully written mystery. My first Hannah Beckerman novel and definately not my last. Love, family and life all evolve in this emotional and heartwarming story. Thank you #NetGalley for the advanced opportunity

My second book by Hannah and it did not disappoint.
Nell heads home to spend time with her poorly father and dementia-afflicted mother, when her father lets slip a sentence that has Nell questioning all that she knows to be true about her family life.
In s dual timeline, the life of Nell’s mum is told from her much younger days and the trauma that has affected her life from that point forward.
I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it. Thank you NetGalley for my review copy.

When Nell’s father makes a mysterious deathbed declaration it reignites her long-held feelings of not belonging within her family. Grappling with the death of her father and the slow loss of her mother, Annie, before her eyes from dementia, Nell searches for the truth behind her father’s compassion while also trying to dampen her feelings of being an outsider. In a second timeline, we go back thirty-five years to when Annie’s world was turned upside down by a series of traumatic events.

This is a beautifully written dual timeline novel about love, family, memory, long-held secrets, and self-discovery, this book takes you on an emotional rollercoaster from beginning to end. The author has chosen to explore some of the most traumatic and devastating events that a family can go through in this book such as the loss of a child, dementia, the sudden death of a parent and decades-old family secrets.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

A really beautiful book. The writing is just wonderful - so emotional and poignant. The characters are so well written and I really enjoyed the 2 different time lines and seeing the story develop. Just lovely.

Netgalley review
This is a beautifully crafted book, telling the incredibly real story of Nell, following a cryptic revelation on her father’s deathbed. Nell is much younger than her sisters, with an acute awareness that she has always been over protected by her mother and slightly resented by her siblings for being the favourite. The Then story is told in parallel 35 years earlier following Annie’s struggles with loss and Bill’s attempts to support her, whilst caring for his daughters. The Now story is an empathetic journey of coping with elderly parents passing away and cognitive decline. Nell eventually discovers the truth, bringing an overwhelming understanding of her family’s narrative but is she willing to share her parents secret. A truly gripping book.

Having loved Beckerman's previous novel I have been itching to read this one since I saw it was due and it very quickly jumped to the top of my tbr pile once I was approved for a copy.

On his death bed Nell's father's last coherent statement works its way into Nell's consciousness and leads to the discovery of long hidden family secrets.
Beckerman's skill in this book for me was that although I got a sense of the mystery surrounding Nell I discovered it along with her rather than guessing the plot early on.

There's a *lot* of issues covered in this book and I think that it isn't a book to pick up as a feel good read. That said every theme was sensitively handled and as it was more of a mystery than a character study I didn't thing any was glossed over too quickly.
You're likely to need tissues but after a run of less than stellar novels this one was a pleasure to read, and one that I had to stay up late just to find out who/what/where/when and of course why!