As someone who has lost two of the most precious people in my life in the last few months, I find myself reaching for books like Harriet Hodgson's Winning: A Story of Grief and Renewal in the hope that they will provide me with some measure of solace.

Reading about others who have experienced profound and brutal grief, and found their way through it, is the only thing that gives you hope that you will get through it too.

When it feels as if one is drowning in sadness, books published by psychology experts are all very well, but advice that's grounded in personal experience is far more meaningful. And the techniques, tips and practical strategies - as Harriet Hodgson provides aplenty in this book - are lifesavers.

I've read a few books about grief and was pleased to have had the chance to read Harriet's. It was very good! I enjoyed her raw and honest explanations of grief. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Reading this was like reading my life, my symptoms and things that have happened to me. I lost my husband in 2019 and my mum in 2021. Grief brain, forgetfulness, struggling to get through days, wondering how to get through days, hearing the "you’re so strong" platitudes when all you want to do is yell about how people don’t see you crying into your pillow.

Grief is a tough path to walk. Friends and family very often think that you will ‘move on’ and do not understand that grief is not fixable. You’ll always have the pain of that person. The gap where they stood with you.

This book fills the gap in that it explains everything so well. Not from a "textbook management to grief" but from a real life "here’s what happened to me" approach.

Thank you for your honesty, integrity and for the rawness of the read. This subject needed it.