Synopsis

Sherice is a new mother, a sonographer, quilter, and wife; an overworked young woman whose elderly mother is slipping away from her.

Sylvie is a newlywed and recent immigrant, unemployed and virtually penniless. Her husband’s paycheck can’t even cover prenatal care, let alone a baby, and her due date is only drawing nearer…

Joanne’s unconventional pregnancy turns her world upside down, redefining her career and relationships, and even bringing to the surface long-buried demons from her past.

Payton is seventeen, pregnant, and on the run. She flees to her uncle in Georgia with the hope of making a fresh start, but discovers making it on her own is harder than she could ever have imagined.

Gloria is trapped in an unhappy marriage; in love with someone else. Her life is falling apart. With a baby on the way, would it be selfish to flee?

Five women, once strangers, form bonds. Set in modern day Georgia, this is the story of friendship that blossoms in the land of country music, sweet tea, and secrets kept locked tight behind closed doors. Moving, funny, and at times heartbreaking, The Thread That Binds is a lesson in empathy, strength, and the beauty of love.

Review

This is a story of 5 women (Joanne, Payton, Sherice, Sylvia and Gloria) that come into each others lives – primarily through meeting Sherice – that become good friends and shared a sisterhood that many of us can only hope to have with other women. And of course these are Southern women (Georgia no less) and there is something to be said for Southern women!

There is a line at the end of the book that stood out to me – “I’m just thinking about the people here. What about them? Just about how they show you should always be kind to strangers; or how you never know what someone is dealing with.” This is so very true in our everyday lives. We don’t know what someone is dealing with and a little kindness goes a long way.

That line was very true in this book – each woman had their own demons and issues, but having each other for support was their saving grace. And no one situation was the same, but the stories melded together. And the ages of the women spanned several decades, with the youngest being 17 and the oldest closer to 40, which brought an interesting twist in how the different generations interacted with each other.

The whole book takes place over about a year, but it reads quickly, in fact I woke up around 5:30 am and couldn’t go back to sleep and read for about 2 hours, and even then it was hard for me to put down.

The only portion that didn’t seem to flow was how Gloria was introduced and at another point when the story is told from her viewpoint and she mentions being close to Payton, but I don’t recall that sort of buildup of their relationship with each other in previous chapters. But it eventually smoothed out and was more cohesive.

Overall though I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.  We give it 5 paws up!

About the Author

Originally from Winchester, England, Alice’s plans to read law at a British university were disrupted when she fell deeply in love with Georgia, USA, while studying abroad. After moving all over Georgia, Alice has finally settled in Athens and has no plans to go anywhere else.

She is a single mother to a three-year-old girl and a 65 lb hound dog. She likes coffee, wine, and anything edible with the words ‘salted caramel’ in its description.

At the time of publication, Alice is a 24-year-old history student working full time in a law office, and writing fiction at every stolen moment. She hasn’t slept in approximately two years. Her first published novel, The Thread That Binds won third place in World’s Best Story contest.

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