Today it's my turn on the BlogTour Knowing You by Samantha Tonge. It's a story about mental health, body image, self-esteem and confidence.
About the Author
Samantha Tonge lives in Manchester UK and her passion, second to spending time with her husband and children, is writing. She studied German and French at university and has worked abroad, including a stint at Disneyland Paris. She has travelled widely.
When not writing she passes her days cycling, baking and drinking coffee. Samantha has sold many dozens of short stories to women’s magazines.
In 2013, she landed a publishing deal for romantic comedy fiction with HQDigital at HarperCollins and in 2014, her bestselling debut novel, Doubting Abbey, was shortlisted for the Festival of Romantic Fiction best Ebook award. In 2015 her summer novel, Game of Scones, hit #5 in the UK Kindle chart and won the Love Stories Awards Best Romantic Ebook category.
Follow @SamTongeWriter @canelo_co on Twitter, on Facebook
Visit samanthatonge.co.uk
About the book
An abrupt change; a new friendship; a dark secret...
Kind-hearted Violet has never fitted in, but despite being bullied at school is now content. She is dating ambitious Lenny, has her dream job in publishing and runs a book club at the local retirement home.
However, when her relationship with Lenny begins to falter, Violet, hurt and alone, seeks the advice of her new flatmate, Bella. She changes her image and with her head held high aims to show that she doesn’t need Lenny in her life to be happy and successful.
Her long-term friends Mable and Farah worry about Bella’s influence and slowly Violet starts to distance herself from them. When she was a child, her closest confidant and companion was a boy called Flint. Her mother didn’t approve of their closeness and he suffered a terrible end. She won’t let the same thing happen to Bella, no matter what anyone says...
Violet shares the love of a good story with her boyfriend. With her as a junior editor and Lenny working his way up to fully-fledged agent, they both enjoy finding the kind of book that will intrigue the masses. When she finds out Lenny is cheating she is distraught and feels as if she isn't good enough for anyone.
She decides she has to change her image and become more like other women to catch the eye of someone worth the change she puts herself through.
It's interesting how Violet is aware of the external change she has undergone, and yet appears to be completely unaware of her own physical body image. Her body dysmorphia is kept so well hidden that even she seems to be confused by the changes.
As the world around her starts to acknowledge the changes she has made, Violet confuses concern for criticism and becomes defensive when her colleagues try to step in and tell her that old Violet was enough.
What starts out as a story about betrayal and jealousy slowly melds into one about a young woman who still hides a frightened and traumatised little girl inside her. A young girl who finds the wrong kind of friends to support her, as a child and now again as an adult. The yay sayers, who condone her more manipulative actions and coerce her into being more pushy, are driving their own agenda. Young troublemaker Flint when she was a child and now the subtle and determined Bella.
It's a story about mental health, body image, self-esteem and confidence. I liked the way the author begins on a completely different note and then uses one storyline to almost hide the second one, which is exactly what happens in real life. The furtiveness, the denial and need to hide her emotions and insecurities become almost like a second person living right inside her.
Buy Knowing You at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Canelo; pub date 14 Mar. 2019 Buy Knowing You at Amazon com, Buy at Itunes, Google Play, Kobo,
Read my review Forgive Me Not by Samantha Tonge.
