Mine by Clare Empson

I'm delighted to be taking part in the blog tour for this brilliant book. My thanks to Tracy Fenton at Compulsive Readers for the invitation and to the publisher for my review copy. 

The Blurb:

'Who am I? Why am I here? Why did my mother give me away?'

On the surface, Luke and his girlfriend Hannah seem to have a perfect life. He's an A&R man, she's an arts correspondent and they are devoted to their newborn son Samuel.

But beneath the gloss Luke has always felt like an outsider. So when he finds his birth mother Alice, the instant connection with her is a little like falling in love.

When Hannah goes back to work, Luke asks Alice to look after their son. But Alice - fuelled with grief from when her baby was taken from her 27 years ago - starts to fall in love with Samuel. And Luke won't settle for his mother pushing him aside once again...

Mine was published by Orion as an eBook on 22nd August 2019 and in paperback today, and is available from all usual retailers. Why not visit your local independent bookshop? Or online you could try Bert's Books, The Big Green Bookshop, or Hive (which will link to the nearest participating indie bookshop).

My Review:

Oh gosh, where to start! This is my first book by this author but on the strength of this, I think I would enjoy her previous novel. Mine is dark, tense, emotional and heartbreaking. Alternating between dual timelines we see things from Luke's first person point of view now (2000) and Alice's then (1973).

Luke has recently found his birth mother, and the connection between them is immediate. Alice is delighted to meet Luke, his girlfriend Hannah and little baby Samuel. She is brilliant with the wee one. after a few meetings, Luke is thrilled that everything is going so well. So when Hannah goes back to work, Alice offers to look after Samuel and the arrangement suits everyone - Hannah can work, Luke can build a relationship with Alice and she can get to know her baby grandson. Everything igoes great. For a while. But soon Luke feels that Alice only wants to spend time with Samuel and all his efforts to get to know his mother fall flat, causing him a growing sense of unease. 

Meanwhile, back in 1973, Alice is in art school, against her parents' wishes, where she quickly bonds with Rick. Then on a night out they meet the lead singer of an up and coming band, and the encounter changes their lives for ever.

There are so many richly drawn characters here, Luke and Alice particularly. Luke's feeling of not belonging, not fitting in, is acute, but so is his worry about being disloyal to his adopted mother. His fear about meeting Alice for the first time - even I had butterflies in my tummy! Alice that we meet in 2000 wasn't immediately likeable, but my opinion of her changed as I learned more about her. Her younger self that we meet in 1973, I loved. She's nineteen years old, finding her way in life and love and determined to grab them with both hands. But mention must go to Rick, who for me is the unsung hero in this book. Such an important character.  And I loved 70s London and Italy, brought to life here so evocatively.

This is much slower than most psychological thrillers I've read, but tension builds steadily in both storylines as they move towards their respective conclusions, and towards each other. I did feel the denouement was dealt with rather quickly after building up to it through the whole book, but enjoyed it nevertheless.

Empson hasn't been afraid to tackle sensitive and difficult topics, in this case adoption and mental health, and she does so very effectively. She has clearly done her research, and it shows. Yes, this is a thriller, but a character driven one with real heart. And more than that, it's a novel about love, loss, family, grief, identity and belonging. It's an emotional read which might just make you cry. Would happily recommend.

The Author:

Clare Empson is a journalist with a background in national newspapers and has worked as a small business editor, finance correspondent and fashion at the Mail on Sunday and the Daily Express. Clare freelances for The Sunday Telegraph, The Sunday Times, the Evening Standard and Tatler amongst others. She currently works as editor/founder of experiential lifestyle website www.countrycalling.co.uk. Him is her debut novel. Her second novel Mine is an exploration of the fraught relationship between a birth mother and her adopted son set against a backdrop of a passionate love affair in the 70s.


Be sure to check out the other awesome bloggers taking part in the tour! Details above and below.