Lessons in Heartbreak

This book is probably "chick-lit", a genre I don't read very often. However, I liked this book much more than I expected to. The story starts out with Izzie, a 39-year-old single woman living in New York City and working in a model agency. Izzie was born in a small town in Ireland near Waterford. Her mother died when she was quite young and she was virtually raised by her grandmother, Lily. Izzie, who has fallen in love with Joe, a married man who told her he was separated from his wife, is called home to Ireland when her grandmother has a stroke. At home she finds out her aunt, Anneliese, has been left by her husband for her aunt's best friend. Anneliese has struggled with depression all her life and she is finding herself in another show more depressive episode. Izzie realizes that her affair with Joe is sure to have effects on Joe's wife and children. Another thread of the story is Lily's life during the war when she went to London to train as a nurse. Lily also fell in love with a married man. These three women, who are strong characters, must learn about love in similar, yet distinctive, ways.

I much preferred the portions of the book set in Ireland. They seemed more genuine and I suspect that is because the author lives in Ireland herself. I was also very impressed with the depiction of depression in this book. Anneliese, despite her long-standing condition, has managed to raise a daughter, hold down a job, volunteer and until recently have a successful marriage. If Cathy Kelly doesn't suffer from depression herself she must know someone who does very well. show less

Lessons in Heartbreak by Cathy Kelly

This is a novel of lessons, of what it feels like to be the betrayed and be the betrayer. This is about how you have no choice in who you fall in love with, but you do have a choice in how it turns out. You just need to find the strength within your self.

The novel starts with Izzie Silver, a nearly 40-year-old woman who works for a New York modeling agency but has dreams of opening her own “plus” sized agency. She falls for Joe Hansen mega rich and supposedly ’separated’ from his wife of many years. There is Izzie’s Aunt Anneliese, a woman who is suffering from severe depression and the betrayal of he husband with her best friend. Then there is Lily - the family’s matriarch, a show more nonagenarian that has her own deep secrets to keep.

What I adored about this novel is it did not really paint anyone as truly ‘the bad guy’ or overly naïve. The author did not try make us overly sympathetic with the person making the poor choices. Ms Kelly kept these actions clear to us that they were not the characters best choices and she did not try to ply us with the “love” card. Ms Kelly never once glossed over anything that might make us uncomfortable, nor did she beat us over the head with any kind of message. You did leave the book knowing that there was a message but it was a gentle ‘take it or leave it’ sort of message.

Oh and I want to warn you…you may, as I did, need a handful of tissues during some parts of this book. HOWEVER, the last 60 or so pages I dare you to read without shedding a tear or two! ( or like I did, outright sobbing). show less

Dit boek hoort precies thuis tussen de andere boeken. Het is een echt vrouwenboek, vanuit het perspectief van meerdere (vrouwelijke) hoofdpersonen geschreven. Er zit veel warmte en gevoel in, waardoor je het gevoel krijgt dat je de hoofdpersonen persoonlijk kent.

Het verhaal begint bij Izzie. Izzie werkt bij een groot modellenbureau. Ze heeft er moeite mee dat de modellen allemaal graatmager moeten zijn. Zelf heeft ze ook maat 42, maar ze is evengoed een erg knappe vrouw.

Dit alles is nu naturlijk erg actueel, daar steeds meer mensen kritiek op de anorexiamodellen in de bladen hebben en de wat vollere modellen wat meer in raken. Dat actuele aspect van deze roman vindt ik erg leuk.

Izzie is van oorsprong een Ierse. Wanneer haar oma een show more beroerte krijgt en ik coma raakt, vliegt ze zonder aarzelend terug naar Ierland om bij haar oma te kunnen zijn. show less

Not as good as some of her previous novels. There were gaps in some of characters stories and this affected the flow of the story for me. Feel it tried to cover too much ground, not all of it in enough detail.

Good but not great, this book feels like a really long outline of what could be a great book that you couldn't put down. Even though the ending was bittersweet, I felt too many plotlines were left unfinished or tied up too neatly. Ms Kelly should also check her medical facts too- 'benzodiazepam' doesn't exist- it's either benzodiazepines or diazepam.

Izzie is in a relationship with a married man with the understanding and expectation that he will leave his wife for her. She works for a New York modelling agency and has ambitions to open her own agency where the models are not stick thin.