Author: Sara Foster
ISBN: 9781925184785
RRP: $29.99
Sara Foster is the critically acclaimed author of 3 bestselling psychological suspense novels, none of which I have read; her fourth novel is All That Is Lost Beneath Us and I loved it.
The book is set in the atomospheric Lake District of England, where the landscape is lovingly drawn. The Turner family has been in the area for generations and their love of the land is ingrained.
Georgia Turner is a seventeen year old with a secret that she has been carrying for way too long. School holidays are coming to a close and Georgia is desperate to share her news with her best friend, and cousin, Sophia. Unfortunately Sophia is ignoring her for an unknown reason and before she can get to the bottom of it they are involved in a hit and run which leaves Sophia hospitalised.
All That Is Lost Between Us is the story of a family adrift in a complacency that sees them moving further and further apart. Georgia has hit a stage where she just wants to be left alone, she has isolated herself completely from her family and it is really concerning them. Anya is a school counsellor, at Georgia’s school, and struggling with her inability to reach her own daughter when this is what she does for a living.
The novel is written from alternating perspectives to get us inside the heads of the whole family. Georgia, her father Callum and younger brother Zac are written in third person with Anya in first person. I think the four perspectives are all essential because we need to see how things got to where they are and how each of the characters are feeling about the situation.
Knowing Anya is feeling an immense chasm between her husband and herself it would be easy to be sympathetic to her and cast Callum in the role of responsibility, but as we read we learn that Callum is feeling that same distance and wondering about the likelihood of them finding their way back to each other.
It is easy to make assumptions and theorise about situations when you only have one side of the story, learning about all sides can have a major impact on final conclusions.
Suspense and mystery shrouds this story start to finish, there are lots of things going on that we uncover slowly. I wouldn’t say it is a gripping psychological suspense novel but there was certainly a serving of suspenseful family drama as we pieced together all of the secrets and betrayals.
I was engrossed in the story of Georgia’s secret and trying to piece together the clues to see where that would lead. The family dynamic was the element of the story that I most loved. Two people who were so deeply and passionately in love then settle into the routine of married life and parenthood, slowly losing sight of the spontaneity and togetherness they once shared. This is such an everyday issue that many couples will be able to relate to. An issue that could be turned around with some in-depth conversation but the words are hard to find after so long, how do you take that first step?
Much of this story will be easily relatable to those who are married and have teen children, it certainly made me think about what I have to look forward to in the upcoming years.
A novel of family, friendship and the isolation that secrets can bring. Most definitely worth the read and I will look forward to hearing other opinions.
I must say I really felt for Anya, trained to assist teens through their troubles and finding it almost impossible to reach her own daughter when she can recognise an issue; something I’m sure many mothers can empathise with. The love this family felt for one another was palpable even though they had lost a lot of their connection. I couldn’t help but hope that things would start to work out for them.
All That is Lost Between Us is available February 1 through Simon & Schuster and where all good books are sold.
Sara Foster can be reached on Facebook and her Website.
Thanks to Simon & Schuster 30 of our Beauty and Lace Club Members will be reading All That Is Lost Between Us so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
Reading this review really made me want to read tis book. It sounds really exciting. I’ve read Sara before and she’s a great author. Thanks Michelle.
“All That is Lost Between Us” by Sara Foster is a great book to read. The story is set in England’s Lake District where a girl named Georgia is attending her last year in school and is also a champion fell runner. Just before an important race her cousin Sophia becomes victim of a hit & run. In time it becomes evident this may be not an accident but something far more sinister.
An intriguing novel with that entails an array of family drama, love and fear with great characters to match. I found the story to be intriguing with constant suspense that kept me guessing all the way through. A really well written book, filled with some great twists and secrets it was hard to put the book down at times.
This book covered a lot of interesting areas that I think would also suit a younger audience too.
Thank you Beauty and Lace for such a wonderful opportunity. I thoroughly enjoyed reading “All That is Lost Between Us” by Sara Foster.
Family connections and involvement, relationships and… adolescence – that bewildering time of life when you’re eager for independence but still so dependent on your family for care and protection. All this and more is explored by author, Sara Foster in All That is Lost Between Us.
It is a tense and gripping story that captures the difficult relationships, within families, and between parents and their almost adult, but still naive, adolescent children. In All That is Lost Between Us, the strained relationships in the Turner family are made even more poignant by the fact that the main character, young teenager Georgia, has a disturbing secret. A secret her parents know nothing about, and which page by page we start to piece together…
The story is told from the different perspectives of each member of the Turner family. 17 year old Georgia, 14 year old Zac, and father Callum’s views are expressed in the third-person. Mother Anya’s perspective however is written in the first-person, giving her view a special weight – perhaps because she is the lynch-pin, the one who holds this troubled family together.
All That is Lost Between Us is a suspenseful, well written novel that is very relatable in its realistic descriptions of the dynamics within families. It kept my interest from the beginning to the end, and I recommend it.
This is an emotional thriller set in the Lake District in England. It focuses on an “ordinary” family trying to deal with their own personal problems and issues when they really should be trying to unite. It’s about gaps that grow when families don’t talk and dealing with situations you don’t know how to get out of.
It is written in a modern way, even using mobile phone conversation to enhance the plot giving it a fresh edge. Told from multiple character’s perspective the reader is able to get a more rounded view and understanding of the motives of each family member.
There’s a hit and run mystery, a secret begging to be told and the reader left hoping a estrangement will be resolved in time to save the family. It really leave you begging for more and you won’t be able to put it down!
A very readable novel that will appeal to young women, who will empathise with Georgia’s situation.
All That Is Lost Between Us is the second novel I have read by Sara Foster (I have also read Beneath The Shadows), and I have to say that even though I enjoyed her other book more out of the two, this one is still worth a read.
The landscape of England’s Lake District is beautifully captured and written about in detail, as the story follows Georgia and her family, including mother Anya, dad Callum, brother Zac, and her cousin and best friend Sophia.
The story has secrets throughout – some took longer than others to be revealed, and the drama keeps the storyline interesting enough to keep you turning the pages.
As a mother of three, I found myself questioning how I’d handle the situations Anya faced as a mother if I were in her predicament.
I liked how the characters had flaws as it made them more real and believable, and I was keen to see how the characters tried to rectify those flaws towards the end of the story.
I was a bit thrown by the character of Danny,as I didn’t quite get the role he was meant to play in the story, apart from Georgia’s friend/mild love interest, as I felt he potentially could have been a more prominent character in the story. He showed up in random scenes throughout the book, which I didn’t like.
Overall, I would recommend this book, even though I wouldn’t call it a thriller as is depicted on the back cover, I would say that it does keep your attention with its mysterious storyline.
And just a quick mention that I love the front cover of the book!
All that is lost between us is a real down to earth book about an ordinary working class family from the Lake District in England the two kids are typically teenagers that I could relate to as I think we all can, the family members were all busy doing their own thing once again I can relate to this, the description of the fells was incredible I felt like I was walking / climbing them, they sound incredible, each chapter focused on an individual family member but the book flowed, was hard for me to put this book down as it was so well written, was quite suprised as to who the culprit was who ran the kids down but once Sophia’s secret came out it all added up to me as to who was to blame, thank you for allowing me to read this book I really enjoyed it
I found this book, ‘All that is lost between us’ frustrating to read, but I guess Sara Foster got what she wanted because she had me hook, line and sinker! I was frustrated because I didn’t know what the ‘big issue’ in the story was and that made me keep reading until the end. There were all sorts of little teasers, but nothing had me prepared for what actually happened.
I felt for everyone in that Georgia’s family and it made me think about the things that I would try to do differently with my children and husband so that the lines of communication are never closed down.
When I reached the end of the story and everything fell into place, I was able to reflect on how much I actually had enjoyed the story and I will be looking for Sara’s other book/s to read now too.
Thank you Beauty and Lace for another great book >:o)
An absolutely gripping story from the amazing Sara Foster. I have looked forward to Sara’s new book and it absolutely does not disappoint.
The book is set in the English Lake District a part of the world I find fascinating.
The relationships in this book are complex but navigated in a really interesting way using different perspectives. Few novelists can manage this style with such ease.
All that is lost between us is thought provoking and absolutely engrossing. I tend to read this type of book REALLY quickly – it can not be put down!
All That Is Lost Between Us by Sara Foster is a complex but gripping read.
Intertwining characters whose stories are told in multiple perspectives , are both intriguing and appealing.
I certainly at times wanted to put down the book but was too intrigued to find out what happened next.
Set in the beautiful Lakes District in England we are taken into the world of 17 year old Georgia , who has a secret she is holding onto, and her family and friends .The story is told in the third person and therefore gave lots of different perspectives into how keeping secrets can effect both family and friends and of course what it does to yourself .
I must say there are lots of interesting twists and turns which I personally like in a suspense novel and I would certainly recommend “All That Is Lost Between Us” both for an adult and older teen audience of readers.
Thanks so much Beauty and Lace for the Opportunity to read and review yet another wonderful novel.
First I would like to say that it normally takes me two weeks to finish a book, but I actually finished this one in one week.
All That Is Lost Between Us by Sara Foster is one of those books that you just cant put down, I was literally staying awake at night to read more as I was intrigued.
The book is about a family in England that is just as dysfunctional as a lot of families going through this stage in their lives.
Mum and Dad or Anya and Callum have drifted apart over the years, each throwing themselves in to their respective jobs, whilst conveniently pushing each other away.
Daughter and son or Georgia and Zac are 17 and 14 respectively and are going through teenage angst and rebellion against their parents.
The story is told by each character with an insight into each of their thoughts and feelings. There are secrets galore in this family, and the journey with them is quite intriguing, and shown from each perspective.
There is a hit and run, affairs, angst, rebellion, unstable stalkers, accidents and a lot of angst and heartache.
You too will love this book.