“It was hard to imagine having nothing when it felt like I had everything. And when I had nothing, it was just as hard to imagine having everything. Now I sit in purgatory, somewhere between the two. With something - a desire, an urge - but not what I ultimately desire.”

These Pictures of Us by Tommy Cotton is a book of 1000 emotions. A book about love, trauma, acceptance, desire, anger, hope and forgiveness.

This book follows Cody, a successful fashion photographer in NYC who is in love with Isobel. An amazing, fun, passionate relationship full of love. They have their whole lives ahead of them. A passion and love story like no other.

“Never forget the passion, Isobel”
”I never will, Cody. Never”

Skip forward, Cody is now a quadriplegic. With absolutely no love for his life, no passion for anything, especially for Isobel. After pushing Isobel (his also carer) away, telling her to move on and find someone else, she does exactly that. Only when a new man enters Isobel’s life, does Cody start to feel again. How far will he go to win back the love of his life?

A story also about friendship and friendship in the most unexpected of people. A range of strong characters all with big stories. Viktor and Sophie, who live at the home where Cody visits are an example of loveable characters who I can picture so so well!

I can’t explain how heartbreakingly beautiful this story is. I could not put it down and devoured it in two sittings. I have now read two of Tommy Cotton’s books and I have to say, the thing I love most about both of them is the raw, unapologetic honest thoughts his characters have. It is so refreshing to read. Most books don’t touch at the ugly side of our thoughts, but Tommy is clearly unafraid of it. He really bridges his imagination with realistic issues and the feelings that come with them.

If you’re a lover of romance, drama, trauma and real life issues, do yourself a favour and grab yourself a copy. A beautiful love story, oh, and also very sexy! (no PG rated love scenes in this one!)