This is a story of two women from very varying backgrounds and as a result of their eventual meeting the subsequent traumas they have to suffer stemming from this.
In the opening chapter we meet Megan and her daughter who are obviously attending a funeral and we get the inference that Megan has a supposed hatred for the person who has died. This in itself seems to be causing her some unhappiness and her feelings are not as she expected at all.
The second chapter takes us back to Megan's childhood to give us some background on how she has reached that stage in her life. She is the only daughter of fairly affluent parents of middle age. She is idolised and spoilt, but at that stage in life is happy despite finding it difficult to have friends who are female. Her main companion is Phil who, when she is 16, has to leave her to move with his parents abroad.
We then meet Evie who lives in a very poor area of the town with, initially her mother, Pat, who eventually marries a dirty, drunken bloke, Mal. Pat produces two step brothers for Evie but it is Mal who is the threat to her sanity as he starts to make sexual overtures until he abuses her. Evie gets nothing she wants from life.
We follow the girls growing up. Megan goes to teacher training college but goes off the rails before she starts her first job when she finds out she was adopted. She eventually finds herself pregnant with Ray's baby, a bit of a spiv with an eye on the main chance. Because he sees her parents as a source of money he marries her but does not behave like a husband or father, caring nothing for the child, Louise. Megan develops a feeling as if she has been dealt with a bad pack of cards and fills her full of resentment against life. This is to such an extent that she hates herself and develops anorexia.
Evie leaves home as soon as she can to get away from Mal and his abuse. She marries Martin who is very supportive of her and knows of her background. Despite a happy marriage she still gets very little out of life and has to work very hard to keep what they have. She is determined she will not reach the low life of her mother. She has three sons, after getting over her own problems of sexual relationships with her husband.
By chance, Megan, now a headmistress, goes into the school canteen and sees this person who looks just like herself, but in a rougher way. Evie is panicked by this and leaves her job but Megan eventually tracks her down. Megan looks down on Evie because of her rough background but together they concoct a way to find out from Pat why they look so alike. Megan believes they must be distant cousins.
Neither of them had bargained for the truth, despite Megan always feeling she had a twin that is exactly what they are. Pat let one baby be adopted because she could not cope with two. We also learn something of Pat's background and find out she came from Ireland being the daughter of strict Catholic parents who were disgraced by their daughter being an unmarried mum. She was sent to a Catholic home in England to have the babies and both were to be adopted. She escapes and hopes to keep both babies but doesn't achieve this.
Instead of being happy at this news, Megan's resentment builds up because her natural mother picked Evie over her, or that is how she sees it. She gives no consideration to the life style Evie has led in comparison to her own. Seeing Evie so happy with her husband Megan tries to take him off her as she is jealous. This eventually causes a massive falling out, leaving Megan even more bitter.
Ray finally gets arrested for one of his ruthless deals, involving drugs, and eventually commits suicide whilst in prison. Another situation to build Megan's resentment up.
Phil had kept in touch and over the years they have met. He has always loved Megan and being unmarried come back to England to pick the pieces up.
Genre: General Fiction
In the opening chapter we meet Megan and her daughter who are obviously attending a funeral and we get the inference that Megan has a supposed hatred for the person who has died. This in itself seems to be causing her some unhappiness and her feelings are not as she expected at all.
The second chapter takes us back to Megan's childhood to give us some background on how she has reached that stage in her life. She is the only daughter of fairly affluent parents of middle age. She is idolised and spoilt, but at that stage in life is happy despite finding it difficult to have friends who are female. Her main companion is Phil who, when she is 16, has to leave her to move with his parents abroad.
We then meet Evie who lives in a very poor area of the town with, initially her mother, Pat, who eventually marries a dirty, drunken bloke, Mal. Pat produces two step brothers for Evie but it is Mal who is the threat to her sanity as he starts to make sexual overtures until he abuses her. Evie gets nothing she wants from life.
We follow the girls growing up. Megan goes to teacher training college but goes off the rails before she starts her first job when she finds out she was adopted. She eventually finds herself pregnant with Ray's baby, a bit of a spiv with an eye on the main chance. Because he sees her parents as a source of money he marries her but does not behave like a husband or father, caring nothing for the child, Louise. Megan develops a feeling as if she has been dealt with a bad pack of cards and fills her full of resentment against life. This is to such an extent that she hates herself and develops anorexia.
Evie leaves home as soon as she can to get away from Mal and his abuse. She marries Martin who is very supportive of her and knows of her background. Despite a happy marriage she still gets very little out of life and has to work very hard to keep what they have. She is determined she will not reach the low life of her mother. She has three sons, after getting over her own problems of sexual relationships with her husband.
By chance, Megan, now a headmistress, goes into the school canteen and sees this person who looks just like herself, but in a rougher way. Evie is panicked by this and leaves her job but Megan eventually tracks her down. Megan looks down on Evie because of her rough background but together they concoct a way to find out from Pat why they look so alike. Megan believes they must be distant cousins.
Neither of them had bargained for the truth, despite Megan always feeling she had a twin that is exactly what they are. Pat let one baby be adopted because she could not cope with two. We also learn something of Pat's background and find out she came from Ireland being the daughter of strict Catholic parents who were disgraced by their daughter being an unmarried mum. She was sent to a Catholic home in England to have the babies and both were to be adopted. She escapes and hopes to keep both babies but doesn't achieve this.
Instead of being happy at this news, Megan's resentment builds up because her natural mother picked Evie over her, or that is how she sees it. She gives no consideration to the life style Evie has led in comparison to her own. Seeing Evie so happy with her husband Megan tries to take him off her as she is jealous. This eventually causes a massive falling out, leaving Megan even more bitter.
Ray finally gets arrested for one of his ruthless deals, involving drugs, and eventually commits suicide whilst in prison. Another situation to build Megan's resentment up.
Phil had kept in touch and over the years they have met. He has always loved Megan and being unmarried come back to England to pick the pieces up.
Genre: General Fiction
Used availability for Susan Shaw's The Other Half of Me