The Impossible Truths of Love

Written by Hannah Beckerman

Narrated by Kristin Atherton

From bestselling author Hannah Beckerman comes a moving story about memory, secrets, and what it really means to feel that you’re one of the family.

“WONDERFUL. I read [it] in one gulp.” —Marian Keyes

“I LOVED this book and will be recommending it to everyone.” —Ruth Jones

“Hannah Beckerman is the real deal.” —Alex Michaelides

When Nell’s father makes a deathbed declaration that hints at a long-held secret, it reignites feelings of isolation that have plagued her for years. Her suspicions about the family’s past only deepen when her mother, Annie, who is losing her memories to dementia, starts making cryptic comments of her own.

Thirty-five years earlier, Annie’s life was upended by a series of traumas—one shock after another that she buried deep in her heart. The decisions she made at the time were motivated by love, but she knew even then that nobody could ever understand—let alone forgive—what she did.

As the two women’s stories unravel, a generation apart, Nell finally discovers the devastating truth about her mother’s past, and her own.

In this beautifully observed and emotionally powerful story of identity, memory and the nature of family, Hannah Beckerman asks: To what lengths would you go to protect the ones you love?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Oct 5, 2021
• ISBN: 9781713602095

Hannah Beckerman

Hannah Beckerman studied English at King's College (London) for her undergraduate degree, and at Queen Mary  and Westfield (London) for her master's degree. She spent twelve years working in television, first as a producer for the BBC and subsequently as a commissioning editor for arts and documentaries at Channel 4 and the Discovery Channel USA. She lived in Bangladesh for two years, working for the BBC World Service Trust. She is now a full-time author and journalist as well as a book critic and features writer for the Observer, the FT Weekend Magazine and the Sunday Express. She is also a regular chair at literary festivals and events and has been a judge for numerous book prizes including the Costa Book Awards. If Only I Could Tell You is Hannah's second novel. She lives in London with her husband and daughter.  

Reviews for The Impossible Truths of Love

[nicx27 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"Grief, she is learning, is love's echo: it is not possible to have one without the other."The Impossible Truths of Love is a beautifully written family drama, steeped in emotion and intense feelings. Told in alternating chapters 'then' and 'now', we discover the secrets of the past and how they have rippled down over the years. The book opens with Nell's beloved father seriously ill in hospital. Something that he says to her triggers something in her mind, a feeling of never having quite slotted into her place in her family. The story in the past focuses on Nell's mother, Annie, and the two stories unfold gradually and to great effect. As Annie now has dementia this has an added impact on Nell and her ability to discover the meaning behind her father's words.Hannah Beckerman expertly led me down blind alleys and threw several curveballs at me in this story. Just when I thought I knew what was going to happen she turned it on its head. The plotting is superb and the way the strands come together is sublime. Although I've come across some of the themes (or what I thought were the themes!) before, this book felt so fresh and far from formulaic. The writing is extremely emotive, looking at family dynamics and the effects of grief. It asks the reader to imagine how they would respond, how they would deal with the most unexpected traumas, and how they would protect those they love the most. I was particularly intrigued by the relationship between Nell and her older sisters and the way their upbringing had shaped the rest of their lives. Beckerman is an adept writer of human emotions and of the myriad ups and downs of family life. The Impossible Truths of Love is an absorbing read full of unexpected turns in the road and one which I enjoyed very much.