Space Hopper - Helen Fisher

So happy to be on the blog tour for this brilliant book today.

Description

They say those we love never truly leave us, and I’ve found that to be true. But not in the way you might expect. In fact, none of this is what you’d expect. 

I’ve been visiting my mother who died when I was eight. And I’m talking about flesh and blood, tea-and-biscuits-on-the-table visiting here. 

Right now, you probably think I’m going mad. Let me explain… 

Although Faye is happy with her life, the loss of her mother as a child weighs on her mind even more now that she is a mother herself. So she is amazed when, in an extraordinary turn of events, she finds herself back in her childhood home in the 1970s. Faced with the chance to finally seek answers to her questions – but away from her own family – how much is she willing to give up for another moment with her mother? 

For fans of The Time Traveler’s Wife comes an original and heartwarming story about bittersweet memories, how the past shapes the future, and a love so strong it makes you do things that are slightly bonkers.

Review

I love time travel books - I've read so many, and this is up there amongst the greatest plots of them all.

Faye finds a Space Hopper box from her childhood - it turns out it's a "time machine" and she can travel back to the 1970s - not only that but, she can see her Mum who died when she was young and who she never really got to know. 

Faye works at the RNIB and Louis who also works there is blind. Of course this is part of the plot device as you will discover, but it was also so well written and sensitive to the life of someone who cannot see. I loved how colours were described to him in terms of feelings. 

One of the things about this book is that it's written as if  Faye is actually talking to you, the reader. You get addressed directly by her and the style of the writing is just that of a chatty friend.  I really liked the feeling that we were in this together. Hence #JumpWithMe. It's not just light hearted though, there is some real world life advice within these pages and such tender writing.

I had mixed feelings about Faye travelling in time, what about the "butterfly effect"? and her life and family in the present day? Around half way the book took an almost mystery style plot and I finished the rest of the book in one sitting, totally absorbed in what was happening. 

The ending was so beautiful! I keep thinking about it now - it's just genius. One of those books that until you reach the end and reflect back, you just don't realise how good it was.

I'm giving a very solid 5 stars to this book. My thanks to Random Things tours for a copy of the book to review.

Author

Helen Fisher spent her early life in America, but grew up mainly in Suffolk where she now lives with her two children. She studied Psychology at Westminster University and Ergonomics at UCL and worked as a senior evaluator in research at RNIB. Space Hopper is her first novel.