We All Live Here by Jojo Moyes

 

Lila Kennedy's life is in turmoil. Her house is falling down around her, her teenage daughter has reached the rebellious phase, her agent is pestering her for the book she hasn't even started writing, and each day she has to face the woman her husband abandoned his family for at the school gates. The last thing she needs is her estranged father turning up on her doorstep.

I've read the odd book by Jojo Moyes in the past but I wouldn't call myself a "fan". I've mentioned in a previous post that I sickened myself with chic lit thirty years ago and Jojo Moyes always seemed to sit firmly in that category as far as I was concerned. The synopsis for We All Live Here grabbed my attention and has completely changed my opinion of the author's writing.

I loved every word of this tale of the messy lives of a blended family. Lila is struggling to cope. She's still not come to terms with the death of her mother or the fact that her husband, Dan, has left her for another woman. Shortly before Dan left the couple bought a large house with the intention of doing it up, unfortunately, it's turned into a money pit. To make matters worse finances have become a problem. The money from her best-selling self-help book, ironically about reinvigorating a stale marriage, has just about gone and Lila's struggling to even start her next book. Added to this misery is the fact that Lila has to see the other woman every day at the primary school gates.

The couple have joint custody of their daughters. Violet is a precocious child with an obsession for x-rated rap lyrics and poo. As you would expect Violet has no filter. Celia is sixteen and has reached that moody and rebellious phase where all adults are the enemy and parents are the absolute worst.

And then there's Bill, her stepfather. Bill has been there for most of her life after her real father, Gene, abandoned Lila and her mother for a life of fame. Bill has been lost since his wife died and has moved in to "support" Lila. 

The sudden appearance of Gene is a catalyst for everyone. There is immediate friction between Bill and Gene, to the extent that Lila compares it to having two toddlers to deal with. Gene is self-centred and flaky, you immediately dislike him, but as the story progresses you begin to realise that he's unselfish, bighearted and altruistic. 

Each character is so well written that as the story focuses on them and the issues they are dealing with you feel every emotion, particularly for Lila who is trying to hold everything together, striving for perfection instead of accepting "good enough". I cared deeply about what happened to everyone, especially when Jojo Moyes avoided a series of saccharin-coated plot points and threw in a couple of anguishing moments. The story reminds us that life isn't perfect, it's chaotic, challenging and unexpected. We need to learn to enjoy what we have and embrace the imperfections. 

We All Live Here by Jojo Moyes will be published on 11th February 2025 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for a review copy.

Author Details

Jojo Moyes is a novelist and screenwriter. Her books include the bestsellers Me Before You, After You and Still Me, The One Plus One, The Giver of Stars, Someone Else's Shoes and her short story collection Paris for One and Other Stories. Jojo's novels have been translated into forty-six languages, have hit the number one spot in twelve countries and have sold over fifty-seven million copies worldwide. Me Before You has now sold over fourteen million copies worldwide and was adapted into a major film starring Sam Claflin and Emilia Clarke. In 2023, Jojo joined BBC Maestro’s online platform of world-class experts with her course, Writing Love Stories, which is available now. Jojo lives in the UK.