There’s just something about books with people struggling with anxiety that gets to me. The Missing Piece is one of those.
The Missing Piece
Broken Heart Syndrome: A sudden and acute form of heart failure, brought on by emotional or physical distress.
After years of studying cardiac medicine, thirty-one-year-old Keisha knows the heart inside out. She knows the average heartrate for each age group, she can name every valve, and she can tell you exactly how much blood it pumps daily.
The one thing she doesn’t know is how to fall in love. And nor does she want to. The secret her tattoo covers is a reminder that the best way to protect a heart is to never let it feel in the first place…
Seventy-nine-year-old Clive is Subject Five in Keisha’s latest research project. He’s been in love since he was seventeen, ever since he met Nancy at a tea dance. But last night, his beloved wife was killed. Suddenly, he has no one to waltz with. He has woken up in hospital, a widower diagnosed with Broken Heart Syndrome.
These strangers, brought together by a broken heart, must face up to the truth of their pasts. Can Clive teach his new friend that until you’ve loved, you haven’t lived? And can Keisha help him see that it’s never too late for a second chance?
For anyone who has ever felt the pang of heartbreak and feared you might never heal again, this beautiful tale teaches us how to dust ourselves off and seek happiness again. Fans of Jojo Moyes, Josie Silver and Rosie Walsh will love this moving and uplifting story.
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My review
This is a truly moving story as we witness through the lenses of Keisha and Clive just how badly anxiety and loss can take hold of people’s life.
Keisha is researching how heartbreak can cause heart illness. I love that the book was written in four parts – with each of them beginning with a little note to tell about a chamber of the heart!
The way Keisha and Clive form an unlikely bond and give each other encouragement and support makes for a heartwarming read. The other characters, Lucy, George and Tess too play great supporting roles in this very unique story.
The story, the pace, the characters and the writing made this a lovely read.
In the end, this story underlines that each of us is imperfectly perfect and how, to paraphrase Ram Das, we are called to walk each other home!
Meet The Author
When Catherine Miller became a mum to twins, she decided her hands weren’t full enough so wrote a novel with every spare moment she managed to find. By the time the twins were two, Catherine had a two-book deal with Carina UK. Her debut novel, Waiting For You, came out in March 2016.
Catherine was a NHS physiotherapist, but for health reasons she retired early from this career. As she loved her physiotherapy job, she decided if she couldn’t do that she would pursue her writing dream. It took a few years and a couple of babies, but in 2015 she won the Katie Fforde bursary, was a finalist in the London Book Fair Write Stuff Competition and highly commended in Woman magazine’s writing competition. Since then she’s had four novels published.
Connect with Catherine on Twitter.
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I received an ARC of the book from the publisher, Bookouture, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.