🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟➕

An absolute delight, this middle-grade story is voiced for us by eleven-year old Tig herself, weaving a first person narrative that so rings with authenticity, poignancy and most of all, charm, it is impossible for the reader not to fall completely under her spell.

Heartlessly abandoned by her alcoholic mother and her abusive boyfriend, Tig — accompanied by her only slightly older brother, Peter — with her cheeky mix of bravado, insecurity and wild imagination, hide out in their attic, dumpster-diving for food, and avoiding adult contact for several months. And they almost get away with it, before circumstances conspire to see them ousted, and sent to live with Uncle Scott and his partner Manny, who live nestled in the countryside of Wensleydale, North Yorkshire (an outwardly idyllic location, where racing logs of locally-produced cheese down rolling hills is not as unusual as it may sound).

For Tig and Peter, whose trauma runs deeper than either will let on, trusting anyone (adult or child) comes at a cost they are unwilling (and unable) to pay.

“Families were hard because you always have to worry whether you’re good or bad and you’ll always wonder if someone will leave you even if you’re almost sure they won’t.”

Needless to say, it’s a tough adjustment for all, and the events that follow will certainly test each family member to their absolute limit.

A gorgeous story, rendered with both a lightness and a molten core, Tig’s tale will tug at your heart mercilessly — for this reader, passing the lump-in-the-throat test so seamlessly, it was really never in any doubt at all.

Highly recommended, this huggable book is certain to become a favorite, for adult and young readers alike, and anyone, really, inspired by the healing power of unconditional love, and the journey we may take to get there.

A great big thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.