Reading has been my solace during troubling times. Something as simple as reading for even half an hour can help ease my worries or distract me from troubling thoughts. As the world goes through this terrifying pandemic, I’ve been turning to books to escape the negative news and horrifying statistics.
One book that gripped me more than ever was Rebecca Serle’s In Five Years. The cover alone is a thing of beauty, but the story will completely whisk you away. What I loved most about this story is just how original and unexpected it was. The book features one of the most tender and raw portrayals of female friendship that will leave you yearning for your dearest friends, which can be quite overwhelming given the current circumstances.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Manhattan lawyer Dannie Kohan has been in possession of her meticulously crafted answer since she understood the question. On the day that she nails the most important job interview of her career and gets engaged to the perfect man, she’s well on her way to fulfilling her life goals.
But that night Dannie falls asleep, only to wake up in a different apartment with a different ring on her finger, and in the company of a very different man… The TV is on in the background, and she can just make out the date. It’s the same night- December 15th- but 2025, five years in the future.
It was just a dream, she tells herself when she wakes, but it felt so real… Determined to ignore the odd experience, she files it away in the back of her mind. That is, until four and a half years later, when Dannie turns down a street and there, standing on the corner, is the man from her dream…
Serle writes with such honesty and heart that you completely lose yourself in the story. In Five Years was the perfect companion when I was staying up throughout the night to look after my Mam.
It has to be the best book I’ve read in April and you just need to treat yourself to a copy from your local bookshop. It’ll teach you so much about how unexpected life can be and just how valuable our friends are.
Feature Image: Quercus Books
