Rules Of The Road By Ciara Geraghty

‘Rules Of The Road’ is the latest book by Irish author, Ciara Geraghty.

Tuesday morning starts like any other – until Terry discovers her best friend Iris has gone missing. Finding her takes Terry, Iris and Terry’s confused father Eugene, into an extraordinary journey – one that will change all of their lives. And, along the way, what should be the worst six days of Terry’s life turn into the best. Because friendship teaches us all to be brave. And, sometimes, the rules are made to be broken.

It’s been a while since I read one of Ciara’s book and her latest story is turbulent journey of friendship, loss and sheer determination.

On the day that Terry Shepherd has to take dad from his nursing home due to a rats infestation, her best friend, Iris disappears. Iris unable to live with her progressive MS decides to travel to Switzerland for assisted suicide. But Terry being the friend that she is, is unable to leave her friend to deal with it alone and more importantly try to talk her out of it. So, begins an unlikely journey across Europe as Terry, Iris and Terry’s father Eugene accompany Iris on her final destination.

I absolutely adored this story, it’s written with warmth, wit and sensitivity. All the characters are wonderful, Terry is a sensible character and it’s only on the unexpected adventure with Iris that she begins to see a different side of life, she loses her sensible clothes and embraces new textures and begins to think of her herself. She reflects on her life and how taken for granted she feels by her husband and family. Her dad Eugene has been effected by dementia but has never lost his driving skills from being a taxi driver and is always there in the back ground with driving tips and stories of famous passengers, he injected an air of innocence and fragility into the story, which was heart-warming and heart-breaking at the same time. Iris was a strong character, but the MS has taken away her independence and freedom of life and it’s understandable that she wants to take back the control.

This book is a beautiful story but be warned, it’s a heartbreaker. Touching on the cruelties of both dementia and MS, the illness and how it affects not only the sufferer but those around them. The trio make for entertaining reading, bouncing from poignant moments to humour, helping the reader get through the life affirming story.

Beautifully written with relatable characters and situations, ‘Rules of the Road’ is a modern day ‘Thelma and Louise’ adventure. A story about friendships, life and relationships, this book is an emotional roller-coaster that will you crying and giggling throughout with genuine characters that you hope will never reach their final destination

You can buy ‘Rules Of The Road’ from Amazon and will be available to buy from good bookshops.