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Paperback

Published: 1st February 2012
RRP $24.99
$15.95
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Ella counts as her blessings her wonderful husband, two animated kids and an extended family who regard her as one of their own. Yet when her soulmate Joe tragically drowns, her life is turned upside down without warning, and she finds that the luck, which she had thought would last forever, has run out. When Joe?s beautiful ex-wife, who deserted their children three years earlier, arrives at the funeral, Ella fears the worst. And she may well be right to.

Ella discovers she must struggle with her own grief, while battling to remain with the children and the life which she loves. Questioning her own role as a mother, and trying to do what is right, all she is sure of is that she needs her family to make it through each day. Yet when pushed to the limits of love, Ella must decide whether she is, after all, the best mother for her children.

About the Author

Sere Prince Halverson lives in Northern California and worked as a freelance copywriter for twenty years while she wrote fiction. She and her husband have four grown-up children. She is a stepmum, and grew up with a stepmum.

Reviewed By Toni Whitmont, Booktopia Buzz Editor
To read more reviews by Toni Whitmont, click here to visit the Booktopia Newsletter Archive.

Losing a husband is virtually unbearable. Losing your children to the birth mother who abandoned them is one heartbreak too far. It must not be allowed to happen. If you like Jodi Picoult, you will enjoy The Underside of Joy.

Other Reviews
'The writing in The Underside of Joy is as purely beautiful as the story is emotionally complex. When Ella Beene is wrenched from a state of unexamined happiness into confusion and grief, she finds that her only hope of emerging whole is to face searing and long-buried truths. Ella embarks on a difficult journey, both morally and materially, one that requires her to risk losing everything she most loves. I cheered (sometimes through tears) her every step., Marisa de los Santos 'Halverson,s prose is graceful, beguiling and resonant with emotion-and she poses some difficult questions regarding the nature of family. A fabulous book club choice!, Jennie Tuner-Collins, Joseph-Beth Booksellers

ISBN: 9780007438907
ISBN-10: 0007438907
Audience: General
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Number Of Pages: 384
Published: 1st February 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Dimensions (cm): 23.5 x 15.6  x 2.8
Weight (kg): 0.446