Her life is not one she would have picked for herself—a dead husband, a missing son, an imminent eviction—but Angie Watts cannot give up. She desperately wants to make ends meet and settle into a new normal, whatever that may be, but obstacle after obstacle stands in her way.

Home Truths conveys this challenging experience with ease. Though there are points in the book where nothing seems to be happening, I still could not stop reading. I just wanted something to go right for Angie and her family. They deal with problem after problem after problem, and it seems like there is little hope—but there is always love.

If you love stories of family and hard times, Home Truths by Susan Lewis is for you.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own. ( )

Home Truths by Susan Lewis is a poignant and sometimes bleak novel about a mother's financial struggles following a tragedy.

In her early forties, Angie Watts is a widow who is trying to keep her family afloat following the murder of her beloved husband, Steve. She is also very worried about her oldest son, Liam, whose involvement in gangs and drug use tore their family apart. Angie deeply regrets lashing out at her son while angry and grieving. Liam left and never returned home but she continues searching for him. Currently, her search for him takes a backseat to her fruitless attempts to prevent her landlord from evicting her, thirteen year old Grace and seven year old Zac. Angie is also swimming in a sea of debt and despite juggling numerous jobs, she is becoming more desperate with each passing day. With the help of her sister Emma, Angie is hanging on by a thread when their precarious situation begins to collapse. And unbeknownst to Angie, troubling is brewing with Grace as she tries to help her mum. Will Angie's efforts to save her family be successful?

Angie is shocked at how quickly her financial situation spiraled out of control. But her reaction to the crisis is not exactly healthy as she ignores her increasingly fraught circumstances. She is very lucky to have Emma to count on for moral support and help with Zac and Grace. Unfortunately Emma is not able to provide much financial assistance since she is a single mum of two sons. Angie has managed to hide just how dire her circumstances have become, but it soon becomes impossible to keep her secrets.

Grace is well aware of their financial difficulties and she desperately wants to help. She is mature for her age, but she does not fully comprehend the risks she is taking on social media. Grace and her best friend Lois brainstorm ideas to raise money and when a solution presents itself, they keep their plans to themselves. With Angie distracted, Grace makes a decision that could culminate with tragic results.

Home Truths is a hard-hitting novel that deals with real life topics such as gang activity, homelessness, human trafficking, debt and poverty. The storyline is sometimes heavy and occasionally depressing, but it is impossible not to become invested in Angie's efforts to provide for her family. Susan Lewis brings this thought-provoking and engrossing novel to a surprisingly uplifting and heartwarming conclusion. A true to life, realistic portrayal of topical issues that I recommend to readers of the genre. ( )

This is an emotional novel about how quickly life can change. One minute you can be part of a happy family and by a twist of fate, you become a single mother on the edge of eviction from your family home and depending on handouts for the food to feed your children. The main character is a mother who will do anything she can to protect and take care of her children.

This novel alternates between two time lines - Angie as a young mother, getting married and with Liam as a happy child and Angie in present day trying to keep her two children in their family home. Angie is a brave woman and tries to do everything on her own - she doesn't like to ask for help and by the time she does, her life is pretty hopeless. She is a loving mother whose main concern is her two children at home even as she yearns to find out what happened to her oldest son. I found it amazing how quickly life could go from middle class to extreme poverty and not having money to pay rent or buy food. Even though Angie worked several jobs, she still struggled with money. This is a dark and gritty book that deals with homelessness, drugs, human trafficking and prostitution and it will make you hope for the best for Angie and her family, and, yes, cry some tears for them too.

Angie and her family definitely deserve a happily ever after ending but will they be able to find their way out of their current circumstances and find happiness? or will life continue to keep them down? How far will a mother go to protect her family that she loves? This emotional book by Susan Lewis will keep you turning pages while you hope for a better life for this family.

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own. ( )

I feel slightly robbed. The opening pages of this book are hard-hitting, brutal, and lead one to believe they are going to get a gritty novel. Sadly, the rest of the book never quite lives up to the prologue.

Angie Watts’ life is irreversibly changed when her son, Liam, is groomed by a County Line gang, setting of a course of events that lead to the brutal murder of her husband (that’s not a spoiler, just a summary of the prologue). We’re then taken through Angie’s struggles due to her cruel landlord, changes to the benefit system, insensitive council departments, and so on. There’s much to be said on this topic, and it would be the basis of a great book, if handled well. Unfortunately, this book isn’t it. It felt trite, I didn’t really feel engaged with any of the characters, there’s too much “telling” and not enough “showing”. - tell the story to lead me to my own conclusions, don’t give me paragraphs of the main character’s inner monologue explaining the themes of the book.

What most annoyed me was the relationship between Angie and Martin. It didn’t feel at all realistic. Both still apparently pining for their former partners, yet Martin is prepared to go out of his way to help one woman because he’s got the hots for her. It all turned out just far too trite.

The book is overly long, and too sentimental. I really wanted to like this book but overall I felt disappointed.

With thanks to Readers First who provided a free copy of this book in exchange for an open and honest review. ( )

Susan Lewis has really mastered the art of taking a topical subject relevant in today's society and making a good story from it without going overboard. Home Truths is a well written, emotionally-charged story, but it was not what I was expecting.

In this book some very sensitive and real subjects are explored such as debt and potential homelessness. Angie has lost her husband to drug related gang violence and her eldest son has vanished. Her debts have spiralled out of control and she is at risk of losing their rented family home. Grace, her thirteen-year-old daughter, tries to find ways of helping her mother but has chosen the darker path of social media and before she realises what is happening, she finds herself in a terrifying predicament that has awful consequences for everyone. Fortunately for Angie, it is not long before she can see a light on the horizon that could lift her out of her family's disastrous circumstances.

Home Truths was gritty, emotionally gripping and the story built very nicely, however, there were parts that I really struggled to read. Susan Lewis portrayed a series of events that are all too real for many people who find themselves in a position they could never have imagined would be possible. I love to completely lose myself in a novel and this one was a little too close to home for me in this current modern world.

Although this was not my favourite novel by Susan Lewis, it was still an extremely worthwhile read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from HarperCollins UK via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion. ( )