The Forgotten Woman by Angela Marsons #Review

Book Description

Two ordinary women. Two damaged lives. One friendship that would save them both

Kit Mason has lived a life of unimaginable pain. An ex-prostitute, she has fled the clutches of an abusive pimp and now finds herself living hand to mouth in a new city, without anyone to help her.

Frances Thornton seems to be living the perfect life. A lawyer from a privileged background, her perfect façade hides the painful secrets that still haunt her.

Brought together by their attempts to conquer their addictions in an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, the two women strike up an unlikely friendship.

But can they find strength in each other – or will the demons of their past catch up with them?

A compelling, moving and ultimately uplifting novel about overcoming the very worst life can throw at you and starting over. The perfect read for fans of Jodi Picoult and Amanda Prowse.

Previously published as My Name Is

I’m a huge fan of Angela Marsons crime thrillers so imagine my delight when I found out Bookouture had re-released Angela’s earlier books. If I’m being totally honest I wasn’t sure The Forgotten Woman would be my cup of tea, considering I’m a huge crime thriller fan at heart. Forgotten Women is the complete opposite of her crime thrillers, “chalk and cheese” spring to mind when I compare this book to the authors crime thrillers. The Forgotten Women introduce the reader to two very different women, Kit an ex-prostitute who grew up in poverty, and Fran a lawyer from a privileged background, despite their very different backgrounds they have one thing in common they are both alcoholics determined to beat their addiction. As an unlikely friendship begins both women gain strength from each other, they both realise to have a future they must first deal with their pasts.

The Forgotten Women is most definitely a character driven story, it explores how a shared condition and fighting a battle can unite people, despite them coming from very different backgrounds. Both characters were very well developed and their plight as addicts was very credible. Angela Marsons has created two very different but believable characters, and as their friendship grew I found myself becoming very attached to them. As they begin to share their troubled past with each other, you can not help feeling empathy for the two women who had never been shown love, at times the pain and guilt that Fran and Kit felt were tangible. I also found myself experiencing many emotions as the author explores the issues that drove the two women to seek solace in alcohol. Both characters were complex and had very realistic flaws, their battle was alcoholism was very believable, but the author dealt with this issue in a sensitive manner.

This book really is very different from any of the authors crime thrillers, it’s one of those books that explores real life issues at a gentle pace, whilst untangling the threads of Fran and Kits life’s and delivering an emotional tale. I’m glad to say Angela Marsons didn’t tie up The Forgotten Women in a “happy ever after” which I half expected, I think the way she ended the book was far more fitting to the story. I found The Forgotten Women to be a moving and yet an uplifting read, and despite my preference for a good crime thriller I exactly enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would. If you are expecting a thrill a minute novel then this book definitely isn’t for you, but if you are looking for a compelling and emotive tale, with complex characters then I would highly recommend you get yourself a copy of this book.

My thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review

4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️out of 5

Print Length: 286 pages

Publisher: Bookouture (4 Oct. 2013)

Amazon UK