Expected release date for The Dilemma is 9 January, 2020.

It’s the morning of Livia’s long awaited 40th birthday party. On the surface, this perhaps doesn’t sound like too monumental an occasion, except perhaps for the ‘Oh no, I’m FORTY’ wobbles, but this is different. Over 20 years ago, when Livia met her now-husband, Adam and fell pregnant, her parents did not approve and refused to have any part in their relationship, meaning Livia never got the big, white wedding she’d longed for since she was a little girl. So, ever since, she’s planned this party. And it has to be perfect. Everyone she loves is going to be there, except her daughter Marnie, who is studying in Hong Kong. Livia is sad that Marnie won’t be there as they have a very strong bond, but she’s also relieved because she recently found something out about her daughter that threatens to blow their relationship, and potentially their family, apart.

Adam, on the other hand, is busily arranging for Marnie to arrive in secret and appear as a ‘SURPRISE’ for Livia. When he’s out and about getting the last bits ready for Livia’s big day, he learns something that could potentially devastate all of their lives forever. Sick with the knowledge, he has to tell Livia what he knows because it affects her directly too – but he doesn’t know for certain if it’s true. Should he tell her now or wait until the party is over? He knows how long she’s been waiting for this day, and if the worst does happen, her life will never been the same again. Does he let her have this one night of happiness before tragedy strikes her?

This book seriously got inside my head. I know you often hear ‘I couldn’t put it down’, and every now and again I say it, but honestly – I couldn’t put it down. I had to go and do some errands one day while reading it and I genuinely could not stop thinking about it while I was out and about. It’s beautifully drawn out, the characters are likeable and you understand why they do the things they do, even when they know it’s not the right thing to do. You get it. The threads that run through the story intertwine beautifully and lead to a moment of utterly tragic confusion as they finally come together, leaving our protagonists utterly devastated and bewildered.

I can’t say any more without giving away at least one of the major plot points, so I won’t. Suffice to say that I enjoyed this book immensely – it’s breathtaking, it’s heartbreaking, it’s exquisitely clever and it’s gone straight into my upcoming ‘favourite reads of 2019’ blog post.

So no surprises, I’m giving it a big fat FIVE STAR review.