Half a World Away: The heart-warming, heart-breaking Richard and Judy Book Club selection
About this audiobook
'Emotionally high-voltage' Metro
From the author of The Man I Think I Know
***
Strangers living worlds apart.
Strangers with nothing in common.
But it wasn't always that way...
Kerry Hayes is a single mum, living on a tough south London estate. She provides for her son by cleaning houses she could never hope to afford. Taken into care as a child, Kerry cannot ever forget her past.
Noah Martineau is a successful barrister with a beautiful wife, daughter and home in fashionable Primrose Hill. Adopted as a child, Noah always looks forward, never back.
When Kerry reaches out to the sibling she lost on the day they were torn apart as children, she sets in motion a chain of events that will have life-changing consequences for them both.
By turns funny and moving, Half a World Away is a story that will stay with you long after you read its powerfully emotional, heartbreaking final page.
***
Readers love Half a World Away!
'These are people who matter, situations one can believe. Most readers will find themselves caring very much. A life-affirming read.' Vine
'It isn't easy, it is heart-wrenching, but, oh, is it worth reading. I can't recommend this book highly enough.' Vine
'How have I not read a Mike Gayle book before? I want to give this book all of the starts in the universe. I cried my eyes out at the end. It is touching, heart-wrenching and thought-provoking.' Netgalley
'This story is raw and beautiful and sad. It puts lots of things into perspective and makes you think about what is important in life. Beautifully written, easy to read and will certainly bring tears to your eyes. A must read.' Netgalley
'This is a beautiful, beautiful book. It's about family, about class, about love, about choices and sacrifice. It's about letting go and learning to hold on. It's optimistic and heartbreaking and funny and emotional. It's the kind of book that will stay with you, long after you finish it. Buy it, read it, love it - and hang on to those tissues, you'll need them.' Netgalley
Authors love Half a World Away!
'Mike Gayle has such a talent for delving into hearts, minds and contemporary issues. Half a World Away is supremely poignant, uplifting and heartwarming in equal measure - as well as being a real page-turner.' Sophie Kinsella, author of Surprise Me
'Mike has a prodigious talent for writing completely relatable characters who draw you into their world and tug at your heart strings. Half a World Away is an absolute triumph and a joy to read. Once again Mike tackles complex and thorny issues with a confident and compassionate hand.' Ruth Hogan, author of The Keeper of Lost Things
'Half a World Away is heartbreaking and beautiful, full of poignant moments and characters you fall for from page one. I couldn't put it down.' Libby Page, author of The Lido
(P)2019 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
Ratings and reviews
- Flag inappropriate
About the author
MIKE GAYLE was born and raised in Birmingham. After graduating from Salford University with a degree in Sociology, he moved to London to pursue a career in journalism and worked as a features editor and agony uncle. He has written for a variety of publications including The Sunday Times, the Guardian and Cosmopolitan. Mike became a full-time novelist in 1997 following the publication of his Sunday Times top ten bestseller My Legendary Girlfriend, which was hailed by the Independent as 'full of belly laughs and painfully acute observations', and by The Times as 'a funny, frank account of a hopeless romantic'. Since then he has written eighteen novels, including The Man I Think I Know, selected as a World Book Night title, and Half A World Away, selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club. His books have been translated into more than thirty languages. In 2021, Mike was the recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Romantic Novelists' Association. He lives in Birmingham with his wife, kids and greyhound. You can find him online at mikegayle.co.uk and on Twitter @mikegayle.
