27 April 2020

The Cows


By Dawn O'Porter
Contemporary Fiction | Women's Fiction | Humour

My Review





The Cows tells the story of three seemingly unconnected women living in London with contrasting lifestyles and careers — Tara, Stella and Cam.

Tara is a television documentary maker and single mother to six-year-old Annie. Stella, desperate for a baby, is struggling to cope with the deaths of her mother and twin sister. Cam, a highly successful online blogger, is the 'voice of childless women'.

Tara's life is turned upside down when she's filmed on a train doing something... er... rather 'intimate'! She becomes an overnight media sensation, but not in a good way. Stella carries the BRCA gene and has an 85% chance of developing cancer. Needing a double mastectomy and her ovaries removed, she knows time is running out to conceive a baby. Cam is in a 'friends with benefits' sexual relationship with a much younger man and doesn't want commitment or children. Her life appears to be successful, happy and fulfilled.

This book really is a rollercoaster of emotions. There are genuinely funny moments followed by periods of frustration and great sadness. It's a book aimed at women about women. The writing is crude and sexual but it's also real and honest. Although the characters are believable, the situations are less so. It was a little off the beaten track from what I'd normally read but very enjoyable.

Book Source: Purchased copy
My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins (6th April 2017)

The Blurb


COW [n.]
/kaʊ/


A piece of meat; born to breed; past its sell-by-date; one of the herd.

Three women. A whole world of judgement.

Tara, Cam and Stella are very different women. Yet in a society that sets the agenda, there’s something about being a woman that ties invisible bonds between us.

When one extraordinary event rockets Tara to online infamy, their three worlds collide in ways they could never imagine – and they discover that one woman’s catastrophe might just be another’s inspiration.

Through friendship and conflict, difference and likeness, they’ll learn to find their own voices.

Because sometimes it’s OK not to follow the herd.

The Author



DAWN O'PORTER lives in Los Angeles with her husband Chris, her two boys Art and Valentine, and her cat Lilu and dog Potato.

Dawn started out in TV production but quickly landed in front of the camera, making numerous documentaries that included immersive investigations of Polygamy, Size Zero, Childbirth, Free Love, Breast Cancer and the movie Dirty Dancing. Further TV work included This Old Thing, a prime-time Channel 4 show celebrating the wonders of vintage clothing.

Dawn's journalism has appeared in multiple publications and she was the monthly columnist for Glamour magazine. She is now a full-time writer of six books - although she would probably have written sixteen if it weren't for her addiction to Instagram Stories.

Most recently, Dawn has written the script for Especially for You, a jukebox musical using the infamous Stock Aitken and Waterman back catalogue. The show will open with a national tour in early 2020.

No comments: