The Best Days of Our Lives: the big-hearted and uplifting new novel from the bestselling author of Anything Could Happen

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This is a story about a fractured family, torn apart by deceit and who, through unimaginable tragedy, learn to appreciate each other as individuals and the roles that they play in each other's lives.

As for Will, the youngest McKenzie, he's in denial, having hopped onto a plane to Thailand days after the funeral. Human flaws and the burden of grief are not hidden away, as we see the impact of Leni passing on her siblings and parents - with every emotion shared. Unfortunately, just a few weeks after this less than successful get together, Leni sadly dies in a tragic bike accident, and the story follows Belinda, Alice, Will and Tony as they navigate their way through their grief and their own personal feelings towards the part that they feel they played in Leni’s life and death.

Although the stories are fiction, they are still someone's imagining of how a situation would play out if they were in the midst of it. When Roisin and Joe join their friends for a weekend at a country house, it’s a triple celebration—a birthday, an engagement, and the launch of Joe’s shiny new TV show. Full of hope and heartache, love and truths, Lucy Diamond's novel is the big-hearted and relatable story of one unforgettable year in the life of the McKenzies. The book centres around how each family member copes with grief after loosing Leni to a tragic accident.

But I found this one to be just ok, I didn’t love it and I didn’t dislike it so I guess I’m somewhere in between. Last few books by this author didn't gel with me so much, but "The Best Days of Our Lives" turned out to be a poignant yet funny, touching story about a family dealing with the worst - with grief. Tony, their dad, who is divorced and remarried, is dealing with the feelings of becoming a father again. The different family dynamics in the book are truly relatable and I was left rooting for them all to resolve their issues together.

Seeing the McKenzies finding their way in this new reality, experiencing happiness again and creating ways to honor the Leni they loved and miss so much in their lives - I think I’m going to water my eyes all over again for each and every one of them.

A brief introduction has the reader meeting Leni as she is about to celebrate her 35th birthday with her family. As you would imagine the whole family have been deeply affected by the loss of their sibling/daughter/friend as each attempts to come to terms with their grief in different ways.Set over the course of one life-changing year, The Best Days of Our Lives is a warm, big-hearted and poignant story, full of hope, heartache and love. But Juliet has also been keeping a secret for over two decades - and she begins to realise it's impossible to move forwards without first looking back. There’s humour, love, excitement and joy in The Best Days of Our Lives too so that, while the reader needs a tissue or two along the way, the overall sensation is of a fabulous, uplifting, and life affirming experience. But when she comes home after yet another soul-sucking day to find an unfamiliar, gorgeous man camped out in her living room, focus is the last thing on her mind.