Review – The Things We Keep by Sally Hepworth

The Things We Keep by Sally Hepworth
Narrated by Barrie Kreinik, Therese Plummer
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press / Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: January 16, 2016
Date Read: February 7, 2019
Length: 338 pages / 9 hours 49 minutes
Source: NetGalley / Library
★★★★☆

Anna Forster is only thirty-eight years old, but her mind is slowly slipping away from her. Armed only with her keen wit and sharp-eyed determination, she knows that her family is doing what they believe to be best when they take her to Rosalind House, an assisted living facility. But Anna has a secret: she does not plan on staying. She also knows there’s just one another resident who is her age, Luke. What she does not expect is the love that blossoms between her and Luke even as she resists her new life. As her disease steals more and more of her memory, Anna fights to hold on to what she knows, including her relationship with Luke.

Eve Bennett, suddenly thrust into the role of single mother to her bright and vivacious seven-year-old daugher, finds herself putting her culinary training to use at Rosalind house. When she meets Anna and Luke, she is moved by the bond the pair has forged. But when a tragic incident leads Anna’s and Luke’s families to separate them, Eve finds herself questioning what she is willing to risk to help them. Eve has her own secrets, and her own desperate circumstances that raise the stakes even higher.

With huge heart, humor, and a compassionate understanding of human nature, Sally Hepworth delivers a page-turning novel about the power of love to grow and endure even when faced with the most devastating of obstacles. You won’t forget The Things We Keep.

Amazon | Audible | BAM! | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound | Kobo

This book was wonderful. The story that it told is my worst nightmare in so many ways. Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease can change so much about a person as the disease takes away memories. Early-onset Alzheimer’s disease seems like an even crueler fate since the individuals being affected haven’t had the chance to live a full life yet. I think that this book did a fantastic job of really making me think and more importantly making me feel.

Anna is in her late thirties and has early onset Alzheimer’s disease. She has reached the stage where she and her family realize that a care facility is the best place for her so they find a facility with another patient dealing with early onset dementia. The author did a fabulous job of really getting into Anna’s head and she is dealing with her memory loss. Anna’s decline over the course of the story was also handled very well.

This book also tells a love story. Anna meets Luke at the care facility. Both are dealing with dementia at a very young age and they are drawn to each other. I really thought that they were so good for each other and it pained me that they didn’t find each other until after they were experiencing memory loss. Anna never could seem to remember Luke’s name but she always knew who he was and his presence seemed to bring her peace.

This book also deals with people trying to make the best decisions for those that they love. Anna’s brother was put in the position of having to make decisions for Anna. There is no doubt that he loved his sister and wanted to do what was best for her. Unfortunately, Anna couldn’t always share what that was.

We also get to learn Eve and her daughter Clem’s story. Eve has just taken the position of cook at Anna and Luke’s care facility. Eve hasn’t worked for quite a while but is willing to do what it takes to care for her daughter. They have been through a lot after a scandal hit their family. I thought that their story was well done and interesting and I loved the way that Eve fought to help Anna get what she needed.

The narrators did a wonderful job with this book. I have listened to Therese Plummer quite a few times in the past and love her work but this was the first time that I have had the chance to listen to Barrie Kreinik’s narration. There were three distinct points of view in the book and I really liked the use of multiple narrators to perform the story. I thought that they both brought a lot of emotion into the story and were very pleasant to listen to for hours at a time. I am glad that I decided to listen to this book.

I would highly recommend this book to others. I thought it was a really well-done story that I found very thought provoking. I would not hesitate to read more of this author’s work in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this book from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley and borrowed a copy of the audiobook from my local library.

About the Author

Sally Hepworth is a former Event Planner and HR professional. A graduate of Monash University, Melbourne, Australia, Sally started writing novels after the birth of her first child. She is the author of The Secrets of Midwives as well as Love Like The French, published by Random House Germany. Sally has lived around the world, spending extended periods in Singapore, the U.K., and Canada. She now writes full-time from her home in Melbourne, where she lives with her husband and two young children.

Author Links: Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

Related Posts