I am pleased to be welcoming Amanda Brookfield to Novel Kicks. She’s here with the blog tour for her novel, The Split.

Two decades on from a passionate courtship and marriage, Lucas and Esther are getting divorced.

For Esther, it’s proving hard not to feel bitter watching Lucas enjoying his successful career, not to mention the attentions of his gorgeous, intelligent, and predictably younger lover. She meanwhile is struggling to forge a new life for herself, navigating the pitfalls of modern dating, while trying not to despair at the cost of living as a single woman of a certain age.

Then Lucas faces a shattering accusation at the same time as their children Dylan and Lily, start to implode.  When Dylan runs away, and as his father fights to save his reputation, Lucas and Esther find themselves back in each other’s lives, whether they like it or not.

Has too much water passed under the bridge, or will long-forgotten loyalties and feelings bring the family back together, just when they need each other the most?

*****

After a twenty year marriage, Esther and Lucas are divorced. They, and the two children they share, now have to adjust to the new normal.

Esther is finding it difficult to witness her ex-husband’s new life. With a great job and a fiancée, he’s flying high. She knows that she has to find her new place in the world.

However, when Lucas’s life is derailed and their son, Dylan runs away, Lucas and Esther have to communicate, whether they want to or not.

Having previously not read any of Amanda Brookfield’s previous books, I didn’t know what type of novel this was going to be.

The Spilt is a slow burner and it did take me a while to get into it. To begin with, I wasn’t sure I was going to like it. I was very pleased I persevered. What I found was that this was a very interesting and detailed look into relationships between ordinary people. There are many twists and turns. Sometimes I loved the characters, other times I disliked their behaviour but as I progressed through the book, I became invested in them. Oh, and I want to adopt the cat.

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