The Legacy of Eve - Natasha Boydell

Author: Natasha Boydell

Genre: Contemporary Family Drama, Mystery

Rating: 4 stars.

In a Nutshell: An interesting family drama with a bit of mystery thrown in. I didn’t expect to go “Whoa!” while reading the book, but I did.

Story Synopsis:

Annie is living an enviable life – a caring partner, a loving dad, a job she is passionate about, great work colleagues, best friends close by,… Now, a long-awaited dream has also come true – she is finally pregnant. But with this new happiness comes a new worry. Annie’s mum died while giving birth to her thirty five years ago, and a couple of casual statements by the midwife during a check-up has Annie worrying that she too might suffer the same fate. When Annie begins digging into her mother’s case, she finds nothing but frustration. Someone is covering up something, and she doesn’t know who or why. Why is there just a limited information about her mother? Are there any secrets being kept from Annie?

The story is written in a limited third person perspective.

Where the book worked for me:

😍 I love books that hit the right note with their prologue without cheating the readers. The perfect prologue acts as a teaser that not just sparks curiosity without revealing much but also fits into the main narrative smoothly. The prologue of this book gets a 10/10.

😍 The experiences of pregnancy, childbirth and motherhood from the pov of various characters ring very true. The book stays practical in this respect without going over the top.

😍 The relationships in the book are also very realistically depicted. Annie’s connections with her dad Mike, her partner Gabe, her boss Lil, her colleague Brian, and her best friend Cas are portrayed distinctively and with the right balance of fun rapport and genuine caring.

😍 Mike’s hands-on parenting gets brownie points. It’s been a long time since I have seen a dad character being written in such an impactful way. There are single dads who do an amazing job of raising their little girls, but they are hardly represented in fiction. Loved this!

😍 I was reading this primarily as a drama about motherhood. I don’t expects surprises or shocks in this genre. So when these come my way, plus points to the book.

😍 The writing is very quick-paced. Had I not been suffering from a hangover of the Fredrik Backman book I was reading prior to this one, I could have completed this easily within a day.

😍 There were some scenes where I couldn’t understand why a specific character was suddenly behaving differently. This point could have very easily turned into a negative, but the author handled it well and all the reasoning is established very clearly by the time the book comes to a close.

😍 Without going into spoilers, the only way I can word this final positive feedback point is thus: I loved how a particular character didn’t reveal what he/she/they could have revealed, choosing instead to hope. Again, so realistic! Not every thread needs to be tied neatly at the end of a fictional narrative, leaving readers with enough to look forward to in their imagination.

😍 The title is perfect for the story.

Where the book could have worked better for me:

☹ There is a fair amount of info-dumping in the latter half in the narrative of one of the characters and towards the end. The backstory of this character goes somewhat OTT.

☹ After a while, Annie’s response and actions begin getting repetitive. The middle section of the book could have been a lot tighter.

The negatives are thus far minor than the positives. Overall, I am very satisfied with this read. It is a story that is typical in so many ways, and yet within its content, it offers enough of novelty. This is definitely a writer I would like to read more of.

My thanks to Bloodhound Books for a complimentary copy of “The Legacy of Eve”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.