Review: Make or Break

Make or Break by Catherine Bennetto
 
Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Romantic Comedy
Page Length: 496 Pages
Publication Date: 12 July 2018 (Paperback)
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
 
Stars:  4 out of 5
 
Link: AMAZON (UK)

 
ABOUT MAKE OR BREAK
 
Jess, a 29-year-old Londoner with a Kate Beckett fringe and a tendency for dramatics, gets taken on a surprise trip by her long-term boyfriend, Pete, to attend her best friend’s last-minute wedding in South Africa. Jess imagines sun, sand, wine and safaris. And returning to London with an ethically mined diamond on her left hand...
 
But this holiday isn’t set to be quite the fairy tale Jess has planned... Suddenly she finds her world tilting on its axis, and things are only set to get worse when Jess returns home…

My Review:

The story opens with Jess promising to help her sister look after her two young children whilst Jess' mother and their grandmother looks for respite at a health retreat. Next, Jess is whisked away to South Africa for a friend's wedding. It's not quite the seven year itch for Jess and Pete (it's only six years for starters), but the cracks are there and it's telling in how realistic the dialogue is; awkward, barbed, and full of compromise.
 
When Jess spots her father, she phones him, and there is that awkward moment where he lies where he is. Jess' relationship woes intertwined with extensive family side-tangents keep you occupied and entertained. I was Team Jess the entire time (and I couldn't wait for Pete to fall from a great height. Spoiler: he was at no point in any danger, such a shame!).

It feels that as Jess' story is coming to an end - there is still another third of the book to go. When Jess returns to London, her life is even more complicated.

A lovely woven tale of love (new, old, and familial).
 
A life affirming romantic comedy – it leaves you thinking life is too short to not swim, even if that happens to be with sharks, rather than dolphins.
 
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
 
Having been to South Africa I was envious that my own travels didn't make it to Cape Town – Catherine describes the it as a wonderful and beautiful destination.

Thank you so much the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary electronic copy in return for an honest review.