Book Review: Three of Us by Cathy Woodman

Three of Us, is a short, inspiring, delectably warm tale of babies, special babies, acceptance and stray pets.

Blurb: The Three of Us is an exclusive short story introducing Zara, the village midwife whose story you can read in Follow Me Home, and bringing us up to date with what's happened to Tessa and Jack from The Village Vet

Tessa and Jack live at the animal sanctuary in Talyton St George. They had been friends for years, but it wasn't until Jack interrupted Tessa's wedding that she discovered his feelings for her were stronger than she ever knew.

Now, a year on, they could not be happier. And when Tessa discovers she's pregnant, it's as if all their dreams have come true.

But a scan shows that there are complications, and suddenly Tessa realises that Jack has always had doubts about having a baby. Supported throughout by Zara, the village midwife, Tessa and Jack have some tough decisions to make. 

However, as the baby's birth draws closer, Tessa and Jack grow further apart. Will he feel differently when the baby is born? Or will having her wonderful child mean losing the man of her dreams?

MY SYNOPSIS

Imagine this: You just tied the knot. You and your husband run an animal shelter. Your responsibilities are, taking care of the stray pets you house in your shelter; making sure they are healthy, clean, well-fed, and if they happen to be a good meal in the bad, bad fox’s diet, you make sure it doesn't have them for dinner. 

Now there’s a baby.

Oh, you might want to go to the hospital regularly for your antenatal, and while you are at it, find out your baby might stand the chance of being labeled special. Your baby has a hole in his heart. Ouch. You are not sure if he might live or die. Or even if he makes it past your womb, would he be, uh, different? This is too much to bear, so you cave in.

Luckily, you husband would be there to help. (Most of the time).

Turns out, who you thought might be your perfect match wants you to euthanize. You can’t tell anyone, even your family, because you are not sure where your loyalty lies. But can you go through this alone? Can you fight off your husband’s claims buying time to convince him you must have this baby? Do you even want to have this baby?

My Review

I loved this book. It had all you needed in a short story. Brilliant. Poignant. And Interesting. We all love chick-lit, that focuses on issues women today face, or the possibility of some serious life-altering circumstance.

I loved that being a follow-up to Cathy Woodman’s Village Vet, it throws light on whether wedding bells at the end of a novel, or at some point in life, mean happily-ever-after. So true-to-life when it portrays marriage as not all glitter and tiara but rocky too. Marriage is not one big, wedding photo with the couple grinning ear-to-ear. It goes beyond the bliss of a wedding, to trials, problems that might steer the marriage into a course of dissolution, but the best marriages yank the steering wheel back to safe ground and progress into bliss again knowing there might be other hurdles to overcome.

I loved the characters. From our lead girl Tessa who handled her crisis well than most women I know would, to Jack the supportive husband you couldn't resist throwing a rock at sometimes, to Aunt Fifi and her blabber mouth, Zara the extremely supportive friend (when Jack had forgotten his responsibilities) and midwife. Oh, for he hadn’t sent a harsh bark my way, I almost forgot Buster, the best companion every chick-lit character must have. (Cats suck, Dogs rock---My campaign to give more chick-lit characters our canine friends than the self-centered milk-draining bitches).  

An amazing ending that leaves you partly fulfilled, partly wanting more. I loved the message of hope this ending carried. Of course in life there are so many unexpected happenings, but where there’s life, there sure is hope.

You can get Three of Us here. If you also want to rewind into discovering what went on before the wedding bells, Village Vet is also here. You can also grab Cathy Woodman’s latest, Follow Me Home, based on the story of Zara the midwife. >

I recommend this book to anyone who wants something short and fulfilling so they could move on to other duties as well. Anyone who wants something true-to-life should pick this. And anyone who’s just a sucker for Cathy Woodman’s inspiring, heart-warming numbers, should grab this.

My work not done here. Off to post my review on Goodreads.