‘ANYTHING FOR LOVE’ by Sarah Webb
Sarah Webb’s new novel introduces us to single mum Alice Devine, who is struggling to get back on her feet after her return from London, where she broke up with the father of her young son Adam.
Never lucky in love, she brings home with her low self-esteem and a lack of direction in her life. Luckily for her, her big sister Grace is on hand to step in and help her back on her feet– quite literally– beginning with exaggerating her CV and helping her get the job of fund raiser at St. Jude’s Maternity Hospital.
This brings Alice and subsequently the reader into contact with a wide range of wild and eccentric characters and offers Alice the first chance of romance she’s had for a long long time in the form of her boss, the tall, dark and mysterious Jack Wiseheart.
Seemingly shy and bashful, Jack takes an instant liking to Alice at her interview and they bond instantly but it’s not until they embark on a work journey together that sparks begin to fly between them.
By that time he has opened up to her about his tragic past and she has told him about her failed relationships. Together they share a kiss… but then work colleague Koo puts a spanner in the works.
Central to the story is the snobby Maud Hamilton O’Connor, chief fundraiser at the hospital who took an instant dislike to Alice and never wanted her for the position. As soon as Alice is firmly ensconced in St. Jude’s she realises that her job involves being general dogsbody to this middle-aged, cold lady and she finds herself doing her ironing and picking up her dry cleaning and getting no thanks for it, no matter how hard she tries to warm to her.
But soon she learns that Maud has every reason to be sad and lonely and that she herself is a victim of a loveless and sad marriage and has secrets that have contributed to shaping her to be the woman she is today.
A novel of love, rows, disappointments and loneliness– if you are up for that you will find it a good read.
‘Anything for Love’ by Sarah Webb is published now by Macmillan.