Deceit has a certain allure when your life doesn’t match up to the ideal of what it means to be a modern man.
Tom’s lost his job and now he’s been labelled ‘spermless’. He doesn’t exactly feel like a modern man, although his double life helps. Yet when his secret identity threatens to unravel, he starts to lose the plot and comes perilously close to the edge.
All the while Adam has his own duplicity, albeit for very different reasons, reasons which will blow the family’s future out of the water.
If they can’t be honest with themselves, and everyone else, then things are going to get a whole lot more complicated.
This book tackles hard issues such as male depression, dysfunctional families and degenerative diseases in an honest, life-affirming and often humorous way. It focuses particularly on the challenges of being male in today’s world and explores how our silence on these big issues can help push men to the brink.
My review
This is a book that is both challenging and rewarding. The author deals with sensitive issues concerned with physical and mental health: topics that aren’t often the subject of a novel. They are somewhat dark and heavy, and yet there are moments of humour and lightness in the story, displaying how versatile the author is. It’s clear the author is passionate about what she’s writing and that gives great energy to it.
Our protagonists, Tom and Adam, are portrayed from inside and out which adds great richness to the novel. Neither of them are what they seem, both to others and themselves. At times this goes against the natural flow of the writing and it takes a little concentration, but I don’t think it hurts to give readers a bit of work to do!
You’ll experience a variety of emotions as you read this thought-provoking, interesting and ultimately life-affirming story, and it’s one which will stay with you for a while.
Purchase Links
https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/48660416-surviving-me
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Surviving-Me-Jo-Johnson/dp/1789650615
https://www.amazon.com/Surviving-Me-Jo-Johnson/dp/1789650615
Author bio
“The novel is about male minds and what pushes a regular man to the edge. The novel combines all the themes I can write about with authenticity.
I qualified as a clinical psychologist in 1992 and initially worked with people with learning disabilities before moving into the field of neurology in 1996. I worked in the NHS until 2008 when i left to write and explore new projects.
I now work as an independent clinical psychologist in West Sussex.”
Jo speaks and writes for several national neurology charities including Headway and the MS Trust. Client and family related publications include, “Talking to your kids about MS”, “My mum makes the best cakes” and “Shrinking the Smirch”.
In the last few years Jo has been offering psychological intervention using the acceptance and commitment therapeutic model (ACT) which is the most up to date version of CBT. She is now using THE ACT model in a range of organisations such as the police to help employees protect their minds in order to avoid symptoms of stress and work related burnout.
Social Media Links –
https://en-gb.facebook.com/shrinkingthesmirch/
Giveaway to Win two signed copies of Surviving Me & five Surviving Me fridge magnets (Open INT)
1st Prize – 2 winners each winning a signed copy of Surviving Me
5 Runners Up – each winning a Surviving Me Fridge Magnet
*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/33c69494358/
This is a fascinating, traumatic novel that makes for a challenging but rewarding read. Based on disturbing fact, the author adds a rich and compelling mystery and some engrossing characters to the mix.
Isobel Blackthorn is an award-winning author of unique and engaging fiction. She writes dark psychological thrillers, mysteries, and contemporary and literary fiction. Isobel was shortlisted for the Ada Cambridge Prose Prize 2019 for her biographical short story, ‘Nothing to Declare’. The Legacy of Old Gran Parks is the winner of the Raven Awards 2019. Isobel holds a PhD from the University of Western Sydney, for her research on the works of Theosophist Alice A. Bailey, the ‘Mother of the New Age.’ She is the author of The Unlikely Occultist: a biographical novel of Alice A. Bailey.
This book is a lot of fun, rich with comedy, community spirit and optimism. It’s not without a sprinkling of darker issues, such as bullying, office – or rather school board – politics and relationship failures. These are well handled and add to the overall enjoyment of the book in that it keeps its feet in reality.
Lisa Swift is a romance author from West Yorkshire in the UK. She is represented by Laura Longrigg at 
If you love quirky then you’ll adore this very different, witty, poignant, clever book.
Tim Ewins has enjoyed an eight-year stand-up career alongside his accidental career in finance.
Jules Hayes lives in Berkshire with her husband, daughter and a dog. She has a degree in modern history and holds a particular interest in events and characters from the early 20th century. As a former physiotherapist and trainer – old habits die hard – when not writing Jules likes to run. She also loves to watch films, read good novels and is a voracious consumer of non-fiction too, particularly biographies.
We’ve all come across people to whom we’ve taken an instant dislike, but fortunately it’s not too often that we’ve found ourselves having to work closely with them, as do Winter and Logan in this story. So long as this is happening to someone else, this scenario is scintillating! There’s so much tension and gritted-teeth just-about-tolerance to enjoy.
Here’s another warm, enticing quick read from this prolific and talented author.
It’s wonderful to meet Hattie, a character from Caroline James’s ‘The Best Boomerville Hotel’, again, but even if it’s your first encounter with her, you’ll still love her! She’s lively, indomitable, likeable and a brings a gale of fresh air into the village of Hollywood.
Best-selling author of women’s fiction, Caroline James has owned and run businesses encompassing all aspects of the hospitality industry, a subject that often features in her novels. She is based in the UK but has a great fondness for travel and escapes whenever she can. A public speaker, which includes talks and lectures on cruise ships world-wide, Caroline is also a consultant and food writer. She is a member of the Romantic Novelist’s Association, the Society of Women’s Writer’s & Journalists and the Society of Authors and writes articles and short stories, contributing to many publications. In her spare time, Caroline can be found trekking up a mountain or relaxing with her head in a book and hand in a box of chocolates.
Be in with a chance to win Drake, Hattie’s faithful pet duck! Tall Drake & Handsome