I’m not usually one for using a personal situation for gain.  However.  When my newly famous author friend Elizabeth landed a box of her books, “Amy Cole is losing her mind”, I quickly told her that I absolutely needed a copy to keep me distracted at the hospital while I was waiting for dad to come out of surgery.

Thankfully I didn’t need to tug on her heart strings too much – she caved quickly – not so much out of sympathy, but moreso just to shut me up, cause she knows I can be annoyingly persistent.

In the interest of full disclosure? I’ve known Liz for a very a long time.  Neither of us can remember quite how long we have known each other, or, at what point we became actual friends – as opposed to two people who know of each other – though Facebook (un)reliably tells me it’s been seven years.  We weren’t even in the same year at school, but, I’ve known her for as long as I can remember.

Liz breached my inner circle (she informs me it was after she stalked my blog), made herself at home and I’d absolutely consider her one of my very bestest friends – just, behind her back, cause she doesn’t “do” warm and fuzzy, or acknowledgment of affection.  Plus? She knows WAY too much.

Despite not being a hugger, and me being ALL about dem hugs, our friendship works.  She’s one of a small smattering of people who have kept me around in their lives after two international moves.  Something that I can’t say I’ve found to be a very common occurrence in my expat journey.  She checks in regularly, listens to my woes, introduces me to people as her “exotic friend” which makes me sound WAY more interesting than I actually am, and, until recently, she was my Friar Tucks buddy every time I came back to Northern Ireland – but now she only eats fru-fru vegetables n’ shiz! 😉  She’s as good as gold – but, again, we don’t tell people…mostly cause they wouldn’t believe her!

So, who is this woman I’m fan-girling over and why am I writing a blog post about her?

Well.  In passing one day? She’s all like,

“Here Lasairiona, I’m gonna write a book”,

and I’m like “yeah, yeah, that’s cool, you’re a great writer, you totally should, you have fun with that”.

Then, what feels like the next day, she’s like “So, I’m Publishing my book”

and I’m like :O

and here we are.

Ok, so maybe that was the streamlined version, but in a nutshell that’s what happened.

Her book is released and available on Amazon – how freakin’ cool is that? GO BUY IT.  Here, I’ll even save you from having to go look for it!

For the book, book, click here.

For the e-book, click here.

Did you buy it yet? No? Don’t wait!

GO BUY IT.

I’m not sure that I’ve ever been quite as proud of one of my friends as I am of her.  I don’t normally gush about Liz.  In actual fact, we operate in insults, sarcasm (but obviously as terms of endearment and signs of affection) and wine, cause, well, wine.  I told her that if her book was shite that I’d say as much, and I’ve been coming up with “alternate” uses for her book if I hated it (a door stop, or fire kindling, for example).

Anyways, sob story about the hospital delivered to Liz, I got a copy from her freshly-delivered stash and opened it right away.  I really didn’t put it down – it was an absolutely hysterical page-turner!  In my Amazon review, I said that “Amy Cole is every, single, ‘regular’ wife, mother, daughter and survivor out there.  She’s just faced with slightly different challenges, on different days – but she’s you, she’s me, she’s all of us”, and, she really is.

I don’t wanna give too much of the plot away, but, at the same time, I need to give you enough to actually WANT to read the thing, so, here goes – Amy Cole is an entirely relatable wife and stay at home mother of two boys, who suffers from depression.  Amy found herself at such a low point in her life that she attempted suicide and embarks on a journey of healing and self re-discovery.  She’s a realistic mum, who makes you feel like your highly-strung, overwhelming, crazy days are normal.  She’s sarcastic, she’s occasionally dishevelled and she makes you feel like its TOTALLY ‘ok’ to be the not-fun parent, because she is too!  Her adventures with her mom-friend Elle, are laugh-out-loud funny, and will make you wish you’d done all those pelvic floor exercises that everyone yaps at you about doing.