Welcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Distorted Days by Louise Worthington. Do check out the posts of my tour buddies, Julie at A Little Book Problem and Gina at Insatiable Readers. My thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me to participate in the tour and to the author for my review copy.
About the Book
“If she could speak to them, she would say they have exploded her heart, released firecrackers through her senses. She wishes she could call the police, the ambulance, the fire brigade, to arrest and anaesthetise and waterboard the bastards.”
So what happens when your husband runs off with your best friend? When you discover the dead body of an old man halfway through your delivery round? When your house is burgled and you get beaten up? Doris, Andy and Colleen are about to find out. They’re also about to discover that you can find friendship and support in the oddest of places…
Heart-rending, humorous and above all authentic, Distorted Days is an exquisitely written account of the ways in which life can knock you off our feet – and how you can pick yourself up again. If you’ve experienced the fickleness of fortune, this is a book that you’ll never forget.
Format: ebook (164 pages) Publisher: PublishNation
Publication date: 28th November 2019 Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Find Distorted Days on Goodreads
Purchase links*
Amazon.co.uk | Amazon.com
*links provided for convenience, not as part of any affiliate programme
My Review
In Distorted Days the reader follows the fortunes (or misfortunes) of a series of characters connected in one way or another: working in the same place, shopping in the same supermarket, living in the same street.
Given some of the subject matter, I can’t say Distorted Days is laugh out loud funny – with the notable exception of Doris’s rude nicknames for her husband, John, and (former) best friend, Lisa! However, there are certainly moments of – at times, black – humour and some acute observations about how people interact in real life, such as Doris’s preparations for her telephone calls with her mother.
The writing has some quirky touches such as the repetition several times of certain paragraphs in those chapters written from the point of view of Doris. At least, I’m assuming that was deliberate on the author’s part and not just an error with my copy!
As the characters encounter unexpected challenges in their lives – infidelity, bereavement, unemployment, depression, addiction – the interest comes from seeing how they face up to them and how the social connections they’ve made grow from passing contacts to something deeper and more valuable.
In three words: Poignant, insightful, quirky
Try something similar: The Widow’s Mite by Allie Cresswell
About the Author
Louise is the author of Distorted Days and Rachel’s Garden of Rooms. The Entrepreneur will be available later in 2020. ‘The Thief’, a short story published by Park Publications, is available to download from her website.
Before writing full time, Louise worked mainly as an English teacher after getting a degree in Literature and later, studying business and psychology at Masters level. Louise grew up in Cheshire and now resides in Shropshire.
Connect with Louise
Website | Twitter | Facebook
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