#MixTape @SandersonJane @randomhouse

About Mix Tape

You never forget the one that got away. But what if ‘what could have been’ is still to come?
Daniel was the first boy to make Alison a mix tape.
But that was years ago and Ali hasn’t thought about him in a very long time. Even if she had, she might not have called him ‘the one that got away’; she’d been the one to run away, after all.

Then Dan’s name pops up on her phone, with a link to a song from their shared past.
For two blissful minutes, Alison is no longer an adult in Adelaide with temperamental daughters; she is sixteen in Sheffield, dancing in her too-tight jeans. She cannot help but respond in kind.

And so begins a new mix tape.

Ali and Dan exchange songs – some new, some old – across oceans and time zones, across a lifetime of different experiences, until one of them breaks the rules and sends a message that will change everything…
Because what if ‘what could have been’ is still to come?

My review of Mix Tape

I'll just start by saying how much I enjoyed reading this book and that I was so very sad to say goodbye to these characters. I found it to be captivating, joyful, poignant and incredibly beautiful. It's a love story for our modern times.

I am old enough to remember mix tapes which is a central theme in this book and to relive the joy of making and sharing them. The fact that a person chooses songs and then painstakingly creates a mix tape of these chosen songs is such a beautiful thing. Songs stir up emotions while creating new ones, and this is perfectly explored in this novel. The nostalgia of music and what it means to these characters.

The story is told from two points of view. We have Alison's story, who now lives in Australia, and Daniel's story who resides in Sheffield. A world apart but connected through the power of twitter, and so the story begins.

I loved this story for its rawness, for its truth and because it explores how our past events shapes our future. The two central  characters  captivated me from the very moment I met them. Alison's vulnerability shone through, even though she is a successful author. As for Daniel, I found him to be thoroughly likable, the boy next door with a good heart. I loved them both.

Mix Tape is a delightful read. It is full of love and hope and joy. It's about living life, taking risks and doing the right thing, even when it scares you. It's a gorgeous book. 


Mix Tape is published at the end of January.

With thanks to the publisher for the early review copy.