The Life We Almost Had By Amelia Henley

‘The Life We Almost Had’ is the latest book by Amelia Henley.

Anna wasn’t looking for love when Adam swept her off her feet but there was no denying their connection, and she believed they would be together forever. Years later, cracks have appeared in their relationship. Anna is questioning whether their love can really be eternal when a cruel twist of fate delivers a crushing blow, and Anna and Adam are completely lost to one another. Now, Anna needs Adam more than ever, but the way back to him has life-changing consequences. Is a second chance at first love really worth the sacrifice? Anna needs to decide and time is running out…

If you like books that tug at your heartstrings with relatable characters and life situations, then ‘The Life We Almost Had’ is just for you.

The story is seen through the narrative of couple Anna and Adam. At 24 years of age, Anna was dumped by her cheating husband to be, with the honeymoon paid for, Anna takes her best friend Nell to the Spanish island of Alircia to heal her wounds. It’s there that she meets Adam and their love for each other begins, as they struggle with long distance relationships when they return home before getting married. Now married, they want to create a baby and struggle to conceive which causes distance and resentment between the pair of them as they both long for the same thing but it seems to be out of their reach. To try to make things better for them, Adam thoughtfully surprises Anna with a return trip to Alircia hoping to reignite their love for each other. But on this trip which should be a joyful occasion tragedy strikes when Adam is injured in the an accident that leaves him in a coma with only 3% survival. As days passes by with Anna alone in a strange country, she’s approached by Oliver, a neurologist who wants to use Adam for his therapy that is able to tune to people’s consciousness although Anna is opposed to the idea she then decides to go along with it, so she once be with Adam in his dreams.

OK, this book is a heartbreaker, is a story of love and loss that makes for tender and frustrated reading, as the couple finally get their happy ever after only for it to pulled away. The main characters are relatable and for this, I was really able to connect with them. Anna has low self esteem after being dumped and Adam quickly becomes besotted with her and really lifts her mood and confidence. They are perfect for each other but you can really feel the dynamics changing between them as the struggle for a baby becomes harder and Anna pulls away from her best friend Nell who unexpectedly becomes pregnant. Anna hates that she feels jealous and resentment to the person that’s been there for you, so she pulls back from the friendship. I really liked Adam, he was always such a giving character and he gave up his dreams to travel the world to be with Anna and I thought that was such considerate thing to do.

The story is written in alternating chapters between Adam and Anna and it’s interesting to read the different insights on the relationship and the struggles between them, as they both deal with the complexities of the relationship. As Anna vows never to give up on the relationship and hope for the Adam to return to her, we see her regain her love for Adam and the commitment for each other. It’s heartbreaking to join Anna as she goes inside Adam’s consciousness, as he’s carrying on with life unaware of what’s going on outside in the real world.

There are plenty of magical moments in the story, from the interactions between Adam and Anna to the 50p coin that they exchange instead of words. The coin dates back to Anna’s grandfather when he first played ‘Love Me Tender’ on the jukebox to get her to dance with him, so the song has sentimental value. Oliver was also an interesting character who threw himself into his work to help distract him from the death of his wife Clem.

‘The Life We Almost Had’ is the first romantic novel from Amelia Henley who’s really psychological thriller author Louise Jensen and this is a stunning debut from the author which is thoroughly researched and gave an fascinating insight into how the brain works.

Tenderly written and injected with love and hope, ‘The Life We Almost Had’ is an emotional rollercoaster of a story that tugs on your heartstrings from the first page.

You can buy ‘The Life We Almost Had’ is available to buy from Amazon