The Choice

Penny Hancock

21 July 2022
9781509867905
304 pages

Synopsis

For fans of Jodi Picoult and If Only I Could Tell You, Penny Hancock's The Choice is an engrossing, thought-provoking novel about family secrets and the way that even the smallest decisions can sometimes have far-reaching consequences.

An estranged daughter. A missing grandson. A mother faced with an impossible choice . . .

Renee Gulliver appears to have it all: a beautiful house overlooking a scenic estuary on England’s East Coast, a successful career as a relationship therapist, three grown-up children, and a beloved grandson, Xavier. But then Xavier vanishes after Renee fails to pick him up from school, and the repercussions are manifold.

Renee is wracked with remorse; the local community question her priorities, clients abandon her; and, as long-held grievances surface, her daughter Mia offers her a heartbreaking ultimatum.

Amid recriminations, misunderstandings and lies, can Renee find a way to reunite her family?

A perfect evocation of the complex modern family . . . I found myself holding my breath while reading it, hoping that Xavier would be found unhurt, and identifying with the beautifully drawn characters, as past mistakes come home to roost . . . A real tour de force
A hugely readable, carefully perceptive story of family dynamics tough and tender. Rife with entrenched positions, assumptions and gut-wrenching mistakes, it is ultimately loving and redemptive
The Choice is an emotional and thought-provoking novel which explores the nature of love and guilt, and the impact of the decisions we make on others and ourselves, through compelling characters and sensitive and absorbing prose