An interesting read about race, identity, marriage, family and relationships and what makes us connect. Pressures from in-laws are always the worst! Well written and easy to get drawn into the story.

Lives Like Mine follows Monica, a Black mum of three married to Dan, a white man. One day, she serendipitously connects with Joe, another parent at her children's school. He's a catalyst for change for Monica, who's trapped in her domestic life and fed up with her in-laws' intolerance towards her and her husband's indifference. Meeting Joe allows her to face up to long-held secrets and therefore look forward to the future.

Monica is a flawed character and I disagreed with a lot of her actions (although she had good intentions). However, Verde expertly told the book through her point of view, so you can't help but root for her in the end. Lives Like Mine also covers a lot of topics, like fidelity, racism, interracial marriage and complex family dynamics.

With complex characters and a heavy dose of family drama, this is a great debut from Verde and I look forward to seeing what she writes next.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for this honest review.

Amazing - I just loved this book. I couldn't put it down. Monica is such an engaging and loveable character. Beautiful writing and a wonderful plot. Highly recommended!

I find it easy to relate to stories about mothers and parenting, and juggling it all, but this story was heartfelt and touched on topics I don't have experience with - in particular the issues the main character faced around racism and her inlaws. It was moving, and rich. Poignant.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Narrated by Monica, a bored housewife, mother to three children and a wife to Dan, who unfortunately comes with a horrible family. I enjoyed reading about Monica's relationships and how she struggles with self acceptance in a story of deceit, regret and bigotry. The messiness of her life, her flaws and passions are told in such a way this book is easy to consume.

3,5 stars for me.

this book hurt to read in many ways, hearing the reality of the racism inflicted throughout daily life. it really helped to open my eyes to the experiences of Black people an the subtle and not-so-subtle ways they face discrimination. I don't know how I feel with the ending of this novel....do things change for the better or has she gone back to the same miserable life? I did enjoy the story on the whole and was hooked to know where it would go.