by Tess Woods
I love you with my whole heart my loving, hilarious and spunky husband, Paul. Thank you for not leaving me, honey! To my children, Tommy and Lara, witnessing your kindness towards others, your integrity, your innately joyful spirits and your confidence to always be who you really are, has been the greatest blessing in my life. I love you to the moon, you excellent humans! To my precious baby, Lachy, born sleeping, I’ll always love you.
This story was written to honour my father-in-law, Alan, one of the most wonderful men I have ever known and who took on Parkinson’s disease with enormous grace, resilience and his trademark wit. We love you and miss you so very much, Dad. You would be mighty proud of how your grandkids turned out!
The character of Jess was named for my gorgeous sunshiney friend whose gentle nature, baskets of fruits and flowers, contagious laugh and knee-high rainbow socks I’ll never stop missing.
I recently read this: Suicide doesn’t end the pain, it just passes it on to those who love you. If you’re reading this and feeling at risk, please ask for help and spare your loved ones the pain of missing you.
Lifeline: 13 11 14
Finally, to you, my readers. Thank you for giving me a reason to tell stories and for being the most important part of this whole gig. I treasure your emails and messages (except for the letters that tell me I’m a hack, obviously). I hope you enjoyed this story and I wish each and every one of you great happiness in your lives, because you’ve brought it to mine.
Much love,
T xx
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
TESS WOODS is a physiotherapist who lives in Perth, Australia with one husband, one son, one daughter, one dog, and one cat who rules over them all. Her debut novel, Love at First Flight, received acclaim from readers around the world and won Book of the Year in the AusRom Today Readers Choice Award in 2015. Her second novel, Beautiful Messy Love, was listed in the best books of 2017 by Readings Books, Booktopia and Better Reading. When she isn’t working or being a personal assistant to her kids, Tess enjoys reading and all kinds of grannyish pleasures like knitting, baking, drinking tea and tending to the veggie patch. Tess loves connecting with her readers on Facebook and Instagram (look for Tess Woods Author) or you can contact her via her website:
www.tesswoods.com.au
PRAISE FOR TESS WOODS
Praise for Love at First Flight
‘I thought this was terrific — passionate, sexy and wise, with a continual ebb and flow of emotion and utterly persuasive characters. I loved it’ — Rosie de Courcy, UK editor of celebrated author Maeve Binchy
‘an entertaining read . . . The main characters are believable and well-rounded and the plot both entertaining and engaging’ — Weekly Times
‘Love at First Flight is no light romp in the hay. It’s a mature, finely drawn effort that examines the emotions and motives behind an affair — and, ultimately, its ramifications. I dare you to resist’ — Jennifer Ammoscato, author of Dear Internet: It’s Me, Avery
‘A powerful story of love and lust, agony and ecstasy. The characters are real and complicated and a little foolish. The storyline smart, brave, believable and a little tragic’ — Jenn J McLeod, author of House for All Seasons
‘Very raw, very emotional and it reads very true’ — Lily Malone, author of So Far Into You
‘Very reminiscent of Jane Green with a nod to Joanna Trollope, so if you enjoy stories of grown-up relationships with the promise of sexy love scenes and a moral dilemma, this is definitely worth a read. There is a lot in this story that could provide the basis for great book group discussions’ — Rowena Holloway, author of Pieces of a Lie
‘Real, honest, deep — freaking amazing’ — Chick Lit Plus
‘Every once in a while a book comes along to completely captivate you — Love at First Flight is that book’ — Jersey Girl Book Reviews
‘Unforgettable, compelling, powerful, heartbreaking’ — A Tattered Copy
‘Beautiful, real, relatable, wonderful’ — Book Muster Down Under
‘A powerful story that will stir your emotions — a fantastic read’ — Sharon’s Book Nook
‘WOW!! This novel is an amazing study in human nature’ — Theresa Smith Writes
Praise for Beautiful Messy Love
‘. . . a smart, emotional, witty book, which squeezes at your heart and demands that you keep reading until you know exactly how it’s all going to turn out . . . A stunning exploration of cultural prejudices, religious divides, grief, compassion, love and lust, Beautiful Messy Love is a gorgeously enthralling read’ — Nicola Moriarty
‘Beautiful Messy Love is a truly stunning read that not only delivers delightful tales of love and romance but also breathes life into cultural conversations that deserve attention . . . Not since Melina Marchetta’s Looking for Alibrandi has an Australian author presented the cross-cultural challenges of new Australians quite so beautifully’ — AusRomToday
‘I have literally spent a whole day locked in an intense relationship with the four main characters from Beautiful Messy Love . . . This book was completely addictive, compulsive and all-encompassing’ — Amanda, Mrs B’s Book Reviews
‘Beautiful Messy Love is an outstanding novel, as it manages to be relevant, funny, occasionally sad, and overall it made for an enthralling read’ — Bianca, Goodreads
‘A compelling story of messy modern love’ — West Australian
‘Beautiful Messy Love is warm and uplifting. But it’s more than just boy-meets-girl; Tess Woods has written a compelling and complex book that really makes us think about what matters’ — Better Reading
‘A warm uplifting story that also tackles some hard hitting issues’ — Readings Books
‘This is the real Australia and Tess Woods has captured it perfectly’ — Author Zoo
‘Clear the day if you’re going to start this one and be prepared to be a little breathless. Tess Woods is about to grab your heart and squeeze it until you’ve read the last page’ — Melissa Sargent, Love That Book
‘Beautiful Messy Love is charming, enthralling and thought provoking, and it looks set to cement Tess Woods’ place among the most sought after writers of Australian Contemporary Fiction’ — Maureen Eppen Reviews
COPYRIGHT
HarperCollinsPublishers
First published in Australia in 2019
by HarperCollinsPublishers Australia Pty Limited
ABN 36 009 913 517
harpercollins.com.au
Copyright © Tess Woods 2019
The right of Tess Woods to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000.
This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced, copied, scanned, stored in a retrieval system, recorded, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
HarperCollinsPublishers
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ISBN 978 1 4607 5694 2 (paperback)
ISBN 978 1 4607 1072 2 (ebook)
ISBN 978 1 4607 9093 9 (audio book)
A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of Australia
Cover design by George Saad, HarperCollins Design Studio
Cover image by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
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