Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Book Review: The Things We Need to Say by Rachel Burton



The Things We Need to Say

by Rachel Burton


Amazon US / UK 


Sometimes the things we never say are the most important.

Fran loves Will with all her heart. They had a whirlwind romance, a perfect marriage and a wonderful life. Until everything changed. Now Fran needs to find her way again and teaching a yoga retreat in Spain offers her just that. Leaving behind a broken marriage she has some very important decisions to make.

Will needs his wife, he needs her to open up to him if they’re to ever return to the ways things once were. But he may have damaged any possibility he had of mending their relationship and now Fran is in Spain and Will is alone.

As both Fran and Will begin to let go of a life that could have been, fate may just find a way of bringing them back together.

 Perfect for fans of Katie Marsh, Amanda Prowse and Sheila O’Flanagan



My Rating:





Favorite Quotes:



Midlife crisis? … Couldn’t he have just bought a Porsche or something?


His family were of the traditional British stiff-upper-lip variety; tall and robust with good bone structure – the kind of people who could drink all night without appearing inebriated and still be up at dawn to feed the dogs and shoot the pheasants.


My Review:




I surprised myself with the level of engagement and I experienced with this insightfully written, melancholy, and slowly developing story.  I have no personal interest and typically avoid or don’t relate to the main issues at the foundation of the storyline, but the emotive and well-crafted words chosen and artfully arranged by this talented author required that I stop and reevaluate my opinions.  Most of the characters were facing life-altering transitions and several were living in significant turmoil caused by messes or their own making, yet I couldn’t look away.  I am usually annoyed by the avoidance tactics, extreme waffling, and flight tendencies displayed by the character of Fran, however, Fran was so endearing and making such an effort to put herself back together, I could easily forgive her shortcomings.  The storyline was evocative, unpredictable, and intriguing; I remained engaged and speculative from beginning to end.  Ms. Burton’s writing was superb throughout, and the characters’ inner musings were profoundly insightful, observant, and thoughtfully executed.  This book is a cautionary tale to remind us what happens when people become so entrenched in perfecting and achieving their goals that they lose sight of themselves and everyone/everything around them.  Been there, done that, bought that shirt.  Though thankfully, not the same shirt as these characters.    

Empress DJ


Author Bio 


Rachel Burton has been making up stories since she first learned to talk. After many false starts, she finally made one up that was worth writing down. 

After graduating with a degree in Classics and another in English, she didn't really know what to do when she grew up. She has worked as a waitress, a paralegal, and a yoga teacher.

She has spent most of her life between Cambridge and London but now lives in Leeds with her boyfriend and three cats. The main loves of her life are The Beatles and very tall romantic heroes.

Her debut, The Many Colours of Us, was an Amazon Kindle bestseller. Her second novel, The Things We Need to Say, is released on 11 May 2018. She is currently working on her third novel in which the heroine follows the love of her life to live in a city in northern England. It has no autobiographical elements at all.....maybe.

Find her on Twitter & Instagram as @bookish_yogi or search Facebook for Rachel Burton Author. She is always happy to talk books, writing, music, cats and how the weather in Yorkshire is rubbish. She is mostly dreaming of her next holiday....



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