“Truly a joy to read.” Book Review Crew
“Can I just say, that I loved this book!” Handwritten Girl
“I really enjoyed this book and found it difficult to put down. I think Alexandra is a character that will stay with me for quite some time.” Ceri’s Lil Blog
“Mo Fanning has cleverly crafted this complex environment for Allie and I was enthralled watching the ups and downs of her everyday life within this environment. I was forever guessing what she would do or say next. I couldn’t put the book down.” Rachel Barnard
“A romantic fanciful novel of love, loss and unexpected newfound love. What transpires provides a backdrop of greed, dishonesty and betrayal—with a surprise ending that warms the heart.” The International Review of Books
Alexandra Small is almost seven years sober and married to one of Britain’s Ten Hottest Footballing Hunks. They live in gorgeous Brighton, where she has a fabulous job.
Allie has it all. Until one dreadful day, when she very publicly doesn’t.
A gloriously quirky and life affirming story of hope
When her perfect world crumbles, a face appears from Allie’s drunken past, hell bent on revenge.
Can she rebuild her life before a stranger destroys it forever?
When push comes to shove, how far will Allie go?
And should she spend three weeks in an overheated shed having colonic irrigation with daytime TV’s Megan Macmillan?
Review from the International Review of Books
Life is Big
Ahhh love and romance. Mix in deceitful friends and meddling family and you have the recipe for an intriguing novel. Married but not in love, it’s nevertheless a shock when Alexandra’s wealthy and hot husband looks elsewhere for what he’s not getting at home.
A romantic fanciful novel of love, loss and unexpected newfound love. Married to a successful and wealthy man, Alexandra feels diminished professionally as well as personally since she is unable to give her husband a child.
What transpires during the story provides a backdrop of greed, dishonesty and betrayal—with a surprise ending that warms the heart. Truly touching and oftentimes sad, but the delicious ending makes it all worthwhile.
I enjoyed this novel. I like books where I am not inundated with different characters who I constantly have to keep track of so I can remember who they are and their part in the novel. The flashbacks were interesting and provided the backdrop on the main character-Alexandra-and offers insight into why she acts the way she does. Her confusion as to is trying to destroy her reputation was interesting and pretty much a shock when she (and the reader) discovered the truth.
Notes for book clubs
Rebuilding Alexandra Small is set during a surge in what the media calls ‘cancel culture‘. Allie finds herself being pushed to agree to do things she might otherwise not consider or face a public shaming/cancellation. In Allie’s position, would you give in? What did she have to lose? Who would be hurt if she stood her ground?
A key theme to Rebuilding Alexandra Small is recovery. Although Allie has an enviable lifestyle, when she loses everything, she rails against trying to rebuild something new that matches what went before. She questions why she needed to conform.
Does recovery involve some element of revenge?
How much of what happens to Allie is ‘her fault’?
Another area that might spark discussion, touches on sexist and inappropriate behaviour within the entertainment industry. We see TV presenter Megan Macmillan suffer a career slowdown based on the actions of her husband – while he escapes seemingly scot-free. How justified is Megan in the action she takes?