Blog Tour Review: It Was Only Ever You by Kate Kerrigan

It Was Only Ever You by Kate Kerrigan

Published: 13th July 2017 (PB)

Publisher: Head of Zeus

Pages: 448

Available in Paperback and on Kindle

Order now from Amazon

Rating: 4/5

Blurb

Set in late 1950s Ireland and New York, the story of three women and the charismatic man with whom their lives are interwoven.

Set, like Maeve Binchy's early bestsellers, in late 1950s Ireland and New York, this is the story of three women and the charismatic man with whom their lives are interwoven.

Patrick Murphy has charm to burn and a singing voice to die for. Many people will recognise his talent. Many women will love him. Rose, the sweetheart he leaves behind in Ireland, can never forget him and will move heaven and earth to find him again, long after he has married another woman. Ava, the heiress with no self-confidence except on the dance floor, falls under his spell. And tough Sheila Klein, orphaned by the Holocaust and hungry for success as a music manager, she will be ruthless in her determination to unlock his extraordinary star quality.

But in the end, Patrick Murphy's heart belongs to only one of them. Which one will it be?

Review

It Was Only Ever You is the latest novel by Kate Kerrigan. Set in the 1950s in both County Mayo, Ireland and New York City it tells the tale of Patrick Murphy, a young charismatic man with a fantastic singing voice whose life becomes entwined with three different women.

In County Mayo young Rose Hopkins the doctor’s daughter and Patrick Murphy a farmer’s son have to keep their love affair a secret for fear their parents will keep them apart. Sadly this is what happens and Patrick is offered the chance to start a new life in America where his dreams of a singing career could become a reality.

After he meets Ava Brogan and Shelia Klein, Patrick’s life changes and all thoughts of Rose and Ireland are left behind, until one day Rose decides she wants her man back and heads to New York to get him. This turns Patrick’s world upside down as he tries to decide which women really has his heart.

I loved the setting for this novel, Kate Kerrigan has perfectly captured the excitement and glitz of the emerging music scene in the 1950s particularly the start of the Rock and Roll era. A lot of the drama is centred on The Emerald Rooms which holds a special place in the hearts of three of our main characters and is the place where many life-changing moments happen.

Patrick is the main male voice in this book and I really wanted to love him. He’s charismatic, he’s handsome and he has an amazing voice and I was longing for him to be a hero for one of these women. Sadly he let me down, not once but twice does he have the chance to fight for the women he loves but instead he just walks away leaving her heartbroken and for me that made him weak and spineless. If he really loved any of them then nothing at all should stand in the way of that love, instead he’s just worried about furthering his career.

I found Rose incredibly spoilt, immature and selfish. She follows Patrick to America on a complete whim not caring about anyone but herself. She doesn’t even stop to question if he even wants her there or not or the consequences of her actions and I just wish she’d stayed in Ireland.

Ava was by far my favourite character in this book. She’s rather plain to look at, a little too tall, intelligent and loves dancing and is finding that all the men around her find her just a little bit too intimidating to date. Which is hard for Ava as all she really wants is too fall in love and live happily ever after. Sadly life doesn’t work like that and Ava has her share of disappointment before she finds her prince.

There are a large number of other characters in this book all slightly linked together, some which add to the story and some which don’t. I think a few less characters and more romance would for me have made this an even more enjoyable read.

It Was Only Ever You is a compelling story of one man and three women, it’s a story of first loves, true loves and passions. It’s a book which I really enjoyed and one which I can recommend for people who want their romances to have a few ups and downs. It’s beautifully written and perfectly captures the essence of the era.

Thank you to Head of Zeus for sending me a copy to review and for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.