A Perfect Year? by Ruth Foster #APerfectYear #RuthFoster #BookReview

 

1990s England. Ali and Caroline are neighbours but not friends in leafy Upley Rising. Ali battles with money troubles and multiple children while Caroline has rock star connections and always gets what she wants. Then there’s respectable Robert, the third neighbour, whose life takes an unexpected turn.

Every December Ali, Caroline and Robert write up their year’s news into cheery round robin newsletters for everyone they know. What a wonderful year it’s been: Charles has been promoted twice, Max is the school orchestra’s top tuba player and Clementine’s child modelling career progression is meteoric. But what about the longstanding local murder mystery? Or the strange goings on at Upley Rising’s 300 year-old summer festival?

Whose letters can you really believe?

A Perfect Year? by Ruth Foster was published on 17 October 2024 by Ollerford Publishing. My thanks to the author who sent my copy for review. 

I read this one whilst on holiday in Rhodes last month and it was the perfect sun bed companion. It's an easy, entertaining read, well written with humour and style.

I've always been fond of stories told in the form of letters and Ruth Foster does this particularly well. I have never written or sent a Christmas Round Robin letter, but have received a few over the years. I've always found the whole concept of updating people about your family, once a year, quite strange. I think it is similar to those people who insist on showing you all 276 of their holiday photos! 

The three characters; Ali, Caroline and Robert, all live in the same area but they don't associate with one another, they are completely different in their family set up, their outlook and their social standing. However, because they live near each other, they all relate stories about the same things in their letters and it is fascinating to see the differing points of view of each writer. 

This is a novel for those of us who are nosey!  Those of us who are interested in ordinary people and their lives. The characters are great and the writing really flows so well. I enjoyed this and would recommend. 

Ruth Foster is from London. She studied law and qualified as a barrister, before
branching into publishing and communications. She has spent her working life creating successful books and published works. She writes plays, articles and short stories.

A Perfect Year? is her first novel. She was inspired to write it by the round robin letters she still receives every year, and the stories they tell about all our lives.

She has two grown-up children, and lives on a smallholding in Devon with her husband, two hens and cat.

www.ruthfosterauthor.com

Instagram @ruthfosterauthor