The Unfinished Symphony of You and Me Review

The Unfinished Symphony of You and Me by Lucy Robinson




Synopsis

Sally is an incredible singer but she sings only in her wardrobe where nobody can hear her. She'd rather join a nudist colony than sing in public.

That is until she ventures to New York where a wild and heady summer of love and loss changes her forever. No longer able to hide in the shadows, Sally must return home to London to fulfill a promise she cannot break - to share her voice.

But just as she's about to embark on her new life, a beautiful man turns up on Sally's doorstep bearing a sheepish smile and a mysterious hand-written message.

How did he find her? Why is he here? Does he hold the truth to what happened back in New York? And, with him back on the scene, will she still have the courage to step into the spotlight?



Lisa's Review - 5 out of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for the review copy of The Unfinished Symphony of You and Me.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, as I can honestly say that I know absolutely nothing about opera music, so I was a little worried that there would be a lot that I didn't understand, but this was not the case. Although opera features very heavily throughout the book, it is done so in a way that makes it completely understandable to even people with no knowledge of it like me!

Sally develops a love of opera at a young age, but due to a horrific first on stage experience at school, as well as unsupportive parents and her crazy, out of control cousin, becomes afraid of singing in front of everyone and takes to only ever singing in her wardrobe. This is something she continues doing well into her adult life.

The Unfinished Symphony of You and Me is written out like the script of an on stage performance - instead of chapters it is filled with acts and scenes. These then jump between Sally and Fionas earlier years, right up to the current day, and throughout we enjoy seeing Sally become a stronger person, we also get to delve into her past and see how hard times were especially with her cousin Fiona.

As well as some beautiful and hilarious moments throughout, there is a darker side to this story when it comes to Fiona, which led to a real twist that I never saw coming but found deeply moving and a great addition to the story. There are some real hard moments to read mixed in so well to Sallys story.

There was such a great mix of delightful and colourful characters throughout the book, and every one was a joy to read, my favourite being the slightly mad Hungarian Jan who gives some rip roaring hilarity at times.

Of course there is an ongoing love story throughout between Sally and Julian, and I really loved it and rooted for Julian to be a good guy. I wont give away the ending but it is a good one!

A brilliantly written book with a great mix of funny, sweet, loving and deeply dark saddening moments, I really enjoyed the first book of Lucy Robinsons that I have read and will look out for more.

Links

Goodreads       Lucy Robinson

Purchase Links

Amazon UK    KOBO