Really enjoyed this book. Very readable, with well-defined realistic characters. Some lovely heart-warming people in here. Cathy Kelly is always a great author, her work can be counted on to be good. Another hit for Kelly. Love this. ( )

I was hoping to find another author like Cecelia Ahern but am not sure if Cathy Kelly is up to the task. The book was a good read but not as complex or multi-layered as I wanted. I won't give up, though, and plan to read a few more before deciding for sure. ( )

Once in a Lifetime by Cathy Kelly is about a wife grieving for her husband and learning some uncomfortable secrets he had kept from. It's also about that sisterly bond that all women apparently feel and how Celtic spirituality helps bring Ingrid and her kith and kin together.

The novel is set in Ardagh, Ireland. David has been running Kenny's, the local department store and crown jewel of the High street. His plans to turn the store into a chic boutique are cut short by his sudden death and the revelation that he might not have been as perfect a husband as his TV presenter wife thinks.

Oh if only the book had focused more on the troubles of running the store and less on the grieving and womanly spirituality! The promise of a diverse cast of women was cut short by how obsessively focused they were on David. Men, no matter how well loved and respected they are, are not the be all and end all of women. The idea too, that women turn to other women when the patriarch is not available, also strikes me more as alien and less as affirming or heartwarming. ( )

I received this book from the Amazon vine program. I would never have picked it up on my own for two reasons. One is the cover..terrible chic lit that says keep away! The title is another. There are many books with this title, and it too shouts chic lit. There is nothing wrong with fluff, chic lit etc. I do pic it up on purpose now and then. Most of the time, I just don't as it is not a favorite. I do like to keep fluffy books around for days when I need a fluffy read.

Is this chic lit? Yes and No. It certainly has all of the aspects of chic lit. Girls, divorce, make up , shopping and so on. But the characters are much richer, and the story is much richer than some of the chic lit I have read.

This is a story of women who live in a small town in Ireland. Small town all have one thing in common, it seems. Everyone either knows or knows about everyone else in town. I think what drew me in most was the character of Star. She felt like a kindred spirit.

I liked Charlie Fallon. She is one of those women who it would be very easy to dismiss as a young woman with little substance. She works in the make-up department of the Kenny department store.
We find out just how wise and gentle this character really is when she grows a little and feels more comfortable in her own skin.

Kenny's is the basically the heart of the book. Many of the characters are involved in some way with the store or the family. David Kenny inherited the stre from his parents and is struggling to keep it going during difficult financial times. His employees are like extended family and he knows how difficult it would be for them if he lost his battle to keep the store as is.

Ingrid is Davids wife. He has a son and a daughter, and they have friends and lives of their own that figure into this story. I enjoyed this story. I liked most of the characters and cared what happened to them. I also liked the way that acceptance was both a reality and a lesson.

If you are looking for a good story with likeable characters, this is a book for you. I will be happy to read more from this writer. I also plan to gift copies to at least two people I know who will enoy the story, and perhaps learn about acceptance.

Good read for a relaxing afternoon. ( )

I'm really not sure about this one. I've liked some Cathy Kelly books, but others I've thrown across the room for their simple, childish indulgence. This is the world where bad things happen but there's always a happy ending.

This book touches on Issues (yes, I did capitalise that on purpose)- we read about infidelity, sexual abuse and alcoholism but it's all in rather a light manner. Why skim over so many 'Issues' without tackling them in the face?

Another thing is the sex. We hear about women in their late 40s and 50s having sex. Yes, that's great to mention that sexual drive continues through the ages, but I really don't need that much detail please!

Now that I've got off my high horse, I should discuss the plot. Well, there's Ingrid in her 50s who has a nasty shock. She recovers. There's Ingrid's daughter's friend, who is upset because she knows nothing about her mum. She recovers. Then there's Ingrid's husband's employee who has a difficult relationship with her mum- oddly enough, she recovers. And then there's the woman who knew Ingrid's daughter's friend's mum, Ingrid's husband's employee's mum and went out with Ingrid's husband. She helps them to recover. (These people who know or are related in Ingrid have names. I've just tried to know you the six degrees of separation of this book, which unfortunately doesn't really seem to gel the way Maeve Binchy does it.)

I feel that as Ms Kelly gets older, she's raising the age of her characters. Nothing wrong with that. But unfortunately I think she will lose her younger readers- but gain their nanna.

If you're under 40, please give some of her earlier works a go. They're a lot more fun. Otherwise, buy your nanna this one and you'll be loved forever. ( )