The Overdue Life Of Amy Byler by Kelly Harms

 

Three years ago Amy Byler's life fell apart.  She had what she thought she wanted, marriage, two kids and a house in the suburbs.  But then John, her husband, went overseas to Hong Kong for business and called her to tell her he wasn't coming back.  Suddenly she was left a single mother who hadn't worked in quite a while.

Amy did the best she could.  She found a job at the children's pricey private school which gave her a tuition discount.  She worked, looked after kids, fell into bed exhausted and did it all again the next day.  John not only wasn't there, he wasn't sending money.  

Now, Amy pretty much has things back on track.  She is tired most of the time but the three of them are doing well.  Cori is talented in diving and thinking about full rides on a sports scholarship.  Joe is a science and math brain and Amy knows he will do great at whatever he picks out.  Then she goes to a drugstore and sees John.  He has come back.

John hasn't come back for Amy, but he does want to get to know his children again.  He talks Amy into letting him have the children for the first week of summer vacation.  She signs up for a librarian conference in New York and calls her best friend from college for a place to stay.  When Amy gets there, her friend Tallia has a plan.  She runs a fashion magazine and they want to do a makeover on Amy.  Once they are through, Amy looks years younger and much more chic.  When John asks for the summer with the children, she reluctantly agrees and stays in New York.

Part of the makeover is dating new men and Amy follows through on the plan.  But her interest has already been piqued by Daniel, a man at the conference all the women call the hot librarian.  He is interested in Amy as well and soon Amy has to decide if this new relationship has any chance of working with him living in New York with his daughter and her in Pennsylvania with her children.  Can things work out?

This is my first novel by Kelly Harms but it won't be my last.  Amy is relatable to any woman with kids and a job.  That translates into exhaustion and putting your own needs after those of the children and your husband.  Starting over and recapturing your youthful dreams seems unlikely if not impossible.  Harms was a literary editor before she started writing and she captures the hopes and feelings of mothers everywhere.  This book is recommended for readers of women's literature.