Broken Soup Valentine

Rowan's life is much like a bowl of vegetable soup that has crashed to the floor. Jack, beloved brother, son has died in a tragic accidental drowning. This young man impacted profoundly all those who loved him. His mother cannot bear her loss and sinks into depression. His father moves out being unable to bear his mother's helplessness. This leaves Rowan trying to keep whats left of her home together - alone. This includes caring for both her mother and her much younger sister. A trip to a fast food place with Stroma, a chance meeting with a young man touring Europe in what once was an ambulance after he finds a photo negative he assumes is hers, the meeting Bee plans to get back the negative which was actually hers lead to wondrous revelations about other people who also loved Jack and possibly a first love while matters at home spiral completely out of Rowan's control. While this is a weepy story for those who like to cry, its also a gentle life affirming read. I suppose its predictable, but I didn't catch on to what was happening. Its cleverly done. The characters are great. I need great characters to enjoy a book. I enjoyed this book. It is British with some British language but not so much to make understanding the story a struggle. The fact that I know someone who tragically lost a young man such as Jack and know the profound effect it had on her and everyone who loved him, probably made it easy for me to relate to this story. JDW4/10