Though I have several book reviews scheduled for the coming months, I wanted to prioritize this one, because the story was written by a fellow blogger, Diana Coombes. She’s been reading my blog stories and I really appreciate her support and comments. My hope is for her to receive more readers of this amazing tale. Without further ado, here is my review!

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This is the tale of a survivor. I love transformational journeys and this one was nothing short of amazing. It is a story of how an abused wife takes her power back and heals after years of trauma. Told mostly from the main character’s point of view – Martha – we also see the perspectives of Elizabeth, the other woman, and Laura, Martha’s daughter.

Seemingly diminutive and weak, Martha puts up with years of abuse from her husband, Thomas. Despite how terribly he treats her, he makes her believe that everything is always her fault and she deserves the bad treatment. She loves him dearly, yet she often writers her anger down in a diary since she isn’t allowed to express it verbally (she’s afraid to). It gets so bad that Thomas throws Laura, who’s only eighteen, out of the house and forbids Martha from seeing her own daughter. When he finds out they’re seeing one another secretly, it results in more abuse. Laura is resentful of her mother’s bond with the abusive man, but she won’t ever fully let go, hoping that one day she will finally leave.

(spoiler alert!)

When Thomas meets Elizabeth, he soon makes her believe that he loves her as well and initially, he treats her better, but eventually he starts assaulting her as well. Martha is torn up when she discovers the affair and believes that Elizabeth is more worthy of love and good treatment than she is – but she doesn’t yet know the truth. Thomas is an abuser and he’ll hurt anyone who gets close to him. It’s when he gives little Martha the most brutal beating ever that the tables turn – she’s not having it anymore and she strikes back. After years of emotional and physical trauma, she takes matters into her own hands and ends his abuse (and his life) forever.

After she’s brought to the hospital for her wounds, she immediately grieves and regrets the death of her husband. Even though a part of her hated him and wanted to be free, she’s still under his control. After confessing that she killed him to the court, she goes to jail. Her new strength protects her from the tough gals behind bars and her character growth really impressed me. After being so soft and easily misled in earlier chapters, she’s very tough and shows almost no fear, reminding them that she has the capacity to kill if needed. Though Martha’s content to stay in jail and serve her time, Laura is determined to get her mother a retrial. The court scenes were very interesting Best of all, Martha ends up being freed from every possible shackle after the second trial and in the end she gets her life back. It was a very happy ending for all the innocents involved. I was quite impressed by Coombes’ writing style and the story had me glued to the page.

You should definitely check this out! Fans of suspense, women’s fiction, drama, and crime thrillers will love this story.

You can find out where to buy It Won’t Happen Again here and please give Diana a follow on WordPress and Goodreads! 🙂 Thank you for reading, everyone. Xx