My One True North: the Top Five Sunday Times bestseller – discover the magic of Milly

by Milly Johnson

A gorgeous read full of hope, warmth and heartfelt emotion from the Sunday Times bestselling author ​

‘The feeling you get when you read a Milly Johnson book should be bottled and made available on the NHS’ Debbie Johnson

Laurie and Pete should never have met.
But fate has pushed them together for a reason.
 
Six months ago, on the same night, Laurie and Pete both lost their partners.
Struggling to manage the grief, they join the same counselling group – and meet each other.
 
From their sadness, Pete and Laurie find happiness growing and they sense a fresh new beginning. 
Except, the more they talk, the more they begin to spot the strange parallels in their stories.
Then Pete discovers a truth that changes everything.
 
But, as surely as a compass points north, some people cannot be kept apart.
 
My One True North is a story of friendship and what love means, of secrets uncovered, teashops on corners and the northern lights.

Praise for My One True North:
'Funny, poignant and so uplifting' Sun
'Reading a Milly Johnson book is like spending time with a best friend - you always end up feeling better about the world. Written with genuine warmth and heart, they're an absolute treat' Lucy Diamond
'A heartfelt novel from one of our favourite authors' Bella
'A heart-warming and engaging read' Woman's Weekly
'Johnson is in a league of her own in the genre…an uplifting story unfolding from hard times, all succinctly nailed with emotional honesty in absorbing prose' The Lady 
'A heartfelt and emotional story . . . It's another wonderful feelgood read from a talented author' Daily Express 
'Milly Johnson brings her trademark warmth, humour and compassion to this tale of love, fate, second chances and the importance of giving your heart time to heal. The perfect read for a rainy day spent under a blanket' Culturefly, 8 of the Best New Books To Read This March ​
'If your March reading list is all about warmth and cosiness, then Milly Johnson’s latest novel should be top of your reading pile. From the writer of The Magnificent Mrs Mayhew (which is fabulous, by the way) My One True North is full of the heartfelt optimism we need at this time of year' Yahoo Book of the Month
'A dazzling, contemporary masterpiece, full of heart, soul and humour' Lancashire Evening Post

• ISBN10: 1471178498
• ISBN13: 9781471178498
• Publish Date: 5 March 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Simon & Schuster Ltd
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 496
• Language: English

Reviews

[Emma (SCR)]

This review was originally posted on Star Crossed Reviews I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Ok, so I have a confession to make. This is the first Milly Johnson book I've read. I know it's scandalous! I am going to be righting that wrong very soon. I've had this on my TBR pile for a few months. During lockdown, my work decided we should start a virtual book and this was the chosen book.

The beginning of this book really hooks you. It draws you in immediately. The two main characters Pete and Laurie have both recently lost someone they loved. They meet at a bereavement group. It's no ordinary group and I think this is why it really works. This book, while it deals with grief, does so in a light way. It's not a book that leaves you feeling horribly depressed. It gives you a feeling of hope. That even when you think everything has gone wrong there is still reason to have hope.

The bereavement group are something special. I really liked this lot. They have all lost someone they loved. Each member brings something different to the group. I loved that as well as the obligatory tears there was also lots of laughter in this group. Oh and cake. We must not forget the cake!

The story switches between Laurie and Pete's lives. What these two don't know yet is that their lives are more entwined than they know! It was quite exciting knowing something they didn't and waiting for them to find out. I felt so much for these two characters. I was really rooting for them to make it work.

Milly did such a good job of writing about these sensitive subjects. This could have been a very depressing story but Milly manages to make it humorous and light without trivialising the feelings. This is a tough thing to do but Milly does it beautifully.

As I said this was my first book by Milly but I know that I'm going to be picking up more of her books very soon.