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The Choice

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The Choice

By: Penny Hancock
Narrated by: Katherine Press, Lucy Scott
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About this listen

For fans of Jodi Picoult and If Only I Could Tell You, Penny Hancock's The Choice is an engrossing, thought-provoking novel about family secrets and the way that even the smallest decisions can sometimes have far-reaching consequences.

An estranged daughter. A missing grandson. A mother faced with an impossible choice . . .

Renee Gulliver appears to have it all: a beautiful house overlooking a scenic estuary on England’s East Coast, a successful career as a relationship therapist, three grown-up children, and a beloved grandson, Xavier. But then Xavier vanishes after Renee fails to pick him up from school, and the repercussions are manifold.

Renee is wracked with remorse; the local community question her priorities, clients abandon her; and, as long-held grievances surface, her daughter Mia offers her a heartbreaking ultimatum.

Amid recriminations, misunderstandings and lies, can Renee find a way to reunite her family?

 Domestic Thrillers Family Life Genre Fiction Psychological Thriller & Suspense Fiction Thriller

Critic reviews

A perfect evocation of the complex modern family . . . I found myself holding my breath while reading it, hoping that Xavier would be found unhurt, and identifying with the beautifully drawn characters, as past mistakes come home to roost . . . A real tour de force (Kate Rhodes)
A hugely readable, carefully perceptive story of family dynamics tough and tender. Rife with entrenched positions, assumptions and gut-wrenching mistakes, it is ultimately loving and redemptive (Louise Foxcroft)
The Choice is an emotional and thought-provoking novel which explores the nature of love and guilt, and the impact of the decisions we make on others and ourselves, through compelling characters and sensitive and absorbing prose (Jenny Quintana)
A gut-wrenching story about the power of our decisions
Beautifully written, thought-provoking, and brimming with powerful and recognisable emotions, Hancock’s superbly wrought story speaks straight from the heart
All stars
Most relevant
Penny ‘s best so far. Thought provoking without being sentimental. The constant presence of the sea is an added bonus to her books. To this one , especially.

Food for thought

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