Breakaway Books

Authored by Sophie Cousens; Published September 2023; Fantasy, kind of?

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🏖️

The plot of The Good Part, on its face, does not seem too exciting. Like the classics 13 Going on 30 and Freaky Friday, magic pushes a 26-year old into her future self to experience life as a married wife and mom. The heroine, Lucy, discovers that she has achieved her career ambitions and married a frankly dreamy man.

At first glance, it doesn’t seem like there is a lot of excitement or tension here. Yet, facing the loss of nearly two decades of her life is tough for Lucy to wrestle with. The author brilliantly describes the pain that Lucy causes and experiences in her marriage, the unexpected losses she uncovers, and the insanity of suddenly having to parent two children. 

She very effectively put me in Lucy’s shoes, pondering: would it be better to stay, married to a wonderful man and successful, but knowing that I have missed so much of life? Or should I try to go back, to experience even those less than joyful moments?

I spent much of the novel wondering—if she knows all this, how can she possibly go back? How can she continue her life from her twenties knowing what happens? Of course, magic has its loophole solutions, but it did not keep me from pondering this possibility throughout the book, and feeling as though the way it was wrapped up was a little too convenient.

The simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking moments of the novel—the best ones, truly—are with Lucy’s family and friends. While it is encouraging to see that Lucy’s career has progressed as she desired, it just doesn’t seem quite as compelling as the rest of her life. Her personal life is where her conflicting emotions felt the most real and the most touching.

In the end, The Good Part had me nearly in tears and feeling appreciative of all the wonderful elements of my life right now. It’s a great novel to make you feel gratitude for wherever you are in life.