One Good Thing: From the bestselling author of Confessions of a 40 something F##k Up

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I don’t want to write this review. Because then I have to admit I’ve actually finished this book, and have finished reading the intertwined stories of Liv, Ben, Valentine, Stanley and Maya. Oh and Harry! Who could forget Harry! I loved how such a mish mash of characters all ended up becoming so important to one another. A divorced woman, a single dad, a child on the spectrum, a wayward teenager, and a grumpy old man. It was just the perfect mix of characters, and it melted my heart how they all got their happiness in the end, with a few bumps in the road, but they all got there. Liv the protagonist was wonderfully relatable as I have been in her position and it’s not easy but as mentioned in the prologue “life happens at the edge of your comfort zone”. In der ganzen Geschichte herrscht so eine angenehme Atmosphäre, was es mir fast unmöglich machte, das Buch aus der Hand zu legen.

Someone Great is best watched casually, perhaps with a pile of laundry at your feet or while you complete some other mundane house chore. Like Set It Up and the rest of the Netflix rom-com set, it’s compulsively watchable, with a plot that gets better the less you think about it. Jenny, Blair, and Erin’s chemistry is breezy, and the film is at its best when it relies on their friendship for cheap laughs. Case in point: The clothing montage — a staple of early aughts rom-coms — feels like a natural extension of a night out as the trio takes shots and swaps outfits while rapping along to “The Jump Off” by Lil’ Kim. This wonderfully heartfelt story about new beginnings, community and companionship was the perfect uplifting, life affirming and fairly wholesome read that I utterly enjoyed and Harry (the dog) was just the sweetest (and cheekiest) I couldn’t help but love him! The latter plotline is what makes Someone Great the perfect late ( or early, depending on who you ask) pandemic watch. If I had to guess, we’re all emerging from these last 17 months a little worse for wear. Co-quarantining killed relationships we thought would last forever, and the routine of work-sleep-repeat has us leaving careers we thought we’d have forever. In other words, life probably still feels shitty and uncertain to most people, and it’s reassuring to watch someone fictional come to terms with that as imperfectly as the rest of us. I loved every character we encounter but Valentine, Ben, Stanley, Maya and Liv were my absolute faves and I loved that we encounter POV chapters for four of them, which really added much needed insight into their emotions and thought processes. Though I have to admit, the star was definitely old Harry who’s presence really managed to light up the entire village.Neviem, čím to je, ale autorka (zasa raz) aj bez rozsiahlych popisov prostredia a prírody vie vierohodne vtiahnuť a nadchnúť čitateľa pre lokalitu tak, že mám chuť okamžite kúpiť letenku a odcestovať na tie miesta, aby som mohla byť ich súčasťou. Znovu dýchať ten vzduch, vidieť tie výhľady, počuť, cítiť… Das war mein erstes Buch von Alexandra Potter und ich habe mich sofort in ihren wundervollen Schreibstil verliebt, der mir ganz besonders schöne Lesestunden beschert hat. Can we also talk Harry, oh my what a beautiful dog, a rescue dog which makes it more of a loving story for me, I am all for adopting and helping animals. Having rescued four cats myself. Harry was just so friendly and it is surprising how a dog can impact on so many different people and bring them through their struggles. I have pictured my cat Alfie with the book because he reminded me of Harry in the way he is so friendly and will always be at my front door to welcome people. Je to úžasný príbeh o láske v rôznych podobách, o priateľstve, o strate, o živote. O tom, ako žiť ďalej, keď sa vám rozpadne život. O tom, že niekedy stačí jedna dobrá vec, aby vám spravila deň krásnym. O veľkej podpore v komunite. I don’t think my words can’t really do justice to this wholesome, emotional and utterly endearing contemporary romance. So, if your looking for something sweet and uplifting for your next read then look no further, you won’t be disappointed!

All four are at different, but equally difficult, crossroads in their lives. They make an unlikely bunch, but brought together by Harry, the four of them forge a beautiful alliance that sees them finding a shared path forward. And the icing on the cake? A delicious and unexpected romance for Liv. The story revolves around Liv, a middle-aged divorcée, who abandons her home and teaching career in London, and heads off to the Yorkshire Dales to reinvent herself. Liv is bruised, lonely and adrift, and struggling to adjust to her new circumstances, when she adopts aging rescue dog, Harry. And it’s Harry that turns out to be her ‘one good thing’. Die Charaktere habe ich tatsächlich fast alle ins Herz geschlossen, etwas was ich nach dem Klappentext gar nicht gedacht hätte. Besonders toll ist natürlich Harry, der es eigentlich war, der sie alle zusammengeführt hat. Ein Hoch auf tolle tierische Begleiter in Büchern (und natürlich auch im echten Leben). Liv wird nach und nach klar, was sie eigentlich möchte und schafft es nach und nach auch wieder andern Mitmenschen mehr zu vertrauen. Valentine... oh man, sehr emotionale Geschichte. Über Ben habe ich gerne gelesen - vielleicht hätte ich sogar gerne noch mehr über ihn gelesen. Und dann wären da natürlich auch noch all die anderen Personen im Dorf, die doch irgendwie alle eine wichtige Rolle gespielt haben.Das Buch hat es auf Platz 1 meiner Bestenliste geschafft und ich habe mir sofort das andere Werk der Autorin gekauft.

One Good Thing is a highly engaging and heartwarming story of starting over, finding that 'one good thing' in your life that keeps you going everyday. That reason to get out of bed and face each new day. But Liv discovers she’s not the only one looking for a new beginning in her walks with Harry, meets some incredible people: Valentine (an old man suffering from loneliness), Stanley (a little boy who’s scared of everyone) and Maya (a rebellious teen mad at the world). But slowly, with Harry’s help things start to change for the better… I’d had my eye on this book for a while and was so happy when my copy arrived from Waterstones. I loved everything about it, the characters were just wonderful, I loved how the layout of the book was set out, the unique chapter headings, how the chapters focused on the different characters and being able to get to know them. Je to príbeh, v ktorom si každý môže niečo nájsť. Je to príbeh, ktorý môžete čítať vtedy, keď cítite beznádej zo života a potrebujete povzbudiť, pretože toto je proste krásne a heartwarming. Tak trochu mi to pripomínalo Oveho tým, ako spája spolu rôznorodých ľudí, ktorí navonok spolu nič spoločné nemajú.But Liv soon discovers she isn’t the only one in need of a new beginning. On their daily walks around the village, they meet Valentine, an old man who suffers from loneliness who sits by the window and Stanley, a little boy who is scared of everyone, hides behind the garden gate and Maya, a teenager who is angry at everyone and everything. But slowly things start to change… This was a gifted book in exchange for my honest review. With gifted books, I always feel such a pressure to ‘like’ them, because if I don’t, I feel ungrateful. There was none of that with this book. I genuinely loved it, I didn’t want to stop reading, but I also didn’t want to read it too fast because I didn’t want it to end! If I could rate it higher than five stars I honestly would. It was such a feel good book, about starting again, and I just honestly loved it so much.