The Pieces of Us

by Caroline Montague

The Pieces of Us was my most anticipated read of 2023 and I absolutely loved it!

The fact that it is set in the Potteries makes it even more special to me.

When we meet Marina and Hugh they are drowning in grief after losing their infant daughter. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain they must be suffering. At a time they need each other the most they are no longer communicating, and Marina feels that moving back to Hugh’s family home, Thorncliffe Hall, might be the only way their marriage will survive such a devastating loss. She seems to be both overwhelmed and underwhelmed with Thorncliffe Hall though.

However, finding a beautiful coffee pot on a trip to London gives Marina a new distraction. She soon finds herself determined to find those who designed and created it.

This is a dual-timeline story and I found myself completely swept up in Marina’s investigations as she discovers the links between the potters of the past and her husband’s family.

It is an emotional and captivating tale featuring places very familiar to me. I love it when I can picture exactly where the characters are! Characters who have been carefully thought out. It is clear how much the author cares about them. There are clever connections between the past and present, and a respectful insight into the history of the potteries.

It very much reminded me (in part) of the film, The Colour Room, which tells the story of Clarice Cliff.

It is the most beautifully written novel. I cannot recommend it highly enough!

Blurb

Marina and Hugh were once madly in love. But after the loss of their beautiful little daughter, grief has created a distance between them that feels impossible to bridge. Marina knows leaving Italy is the only way they will be able to move on, but Thorncliffe Hall, Hugh’s family home in England, is so grey and unwelcoming.

Just when life feels like it may never regain colour, Marina and Hugh come across a striking china coffee pot in a London shop window, adorned with a fox flying through the night sky. The coffee pot comes attached with a mystery, one that is connected with Hugh’s own family many years ago.

By digging into the past, Marina is about to discover a story far beyond her wildest dreams. But will the past help her heal the present?