Book Review: The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger by Suzanne Fortin*

The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger by Suzanne Fortin is published by Aria, an imprint of award-winning independent publishers Head of Zeus. The book centres on the title character and his granddaughter Maddy & great-granddaughter Esther, who move to live with and look after him.

As Arthur’s memories tangle, stories emerge about his two most treasured possessions – a handkerchief embroidered ‘M’ for Maryse and a scrapbook of photos. Maddy wants to help Arthur remember more about the items, possibly hoping it will distract her from the real reasons behind moving from her flat and trying to leave part of her own story behind.

One of the ‘real reasons’ is Joe – who’s unfortunately also the best person to help Maddy unravel Arthur’s tangled recollections. Joe and Maddy may have moved on, but their friends can’t see why. When Esther makes her great-grandfather an unwitting YouTube star, Joe’s friends push him to help the girl in her search for Maryse and the stories from the scrapbook. They are led to France and the role of the French Resistance during World War Two. Along the way, they meet some people who are reluctant to talk and others who are relieved to share their memories with those who will really listen and try to understand.

“When the only way to move forward is to look back, will this family finally be able to?”

What I thought of the book

The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger is a really successful mix of contemporary family drama,  historical novel and romance. The book is dual timeline – alternating between Arthur’s present-day as an elderly gentleman and the years of World War Two – and takes place in England and France. At the heart of the story are some of Arthur’s memories which are locked up by his dementia, and attempts by Maddy and Esther (his granddaughter and great-granddaughter) to unlock them to bring Arthur peace and happiness.

The dual timeline and setting mean that there are lots of characters who are important in this novel, as there would be in the life of a 96-year-old man. Similar to many of the books I most enjoy, these characters and the relationships between them are the real strength of this story for me. Suzanne Fortin writes a cast of believable, relatable characters across five generations, without any of them becoming stereotypes. They feel mostly authentic to the timeline or location of their part of the story. Even the less likeable minor characters have backstories that partly explain their actions, without being intrusive to the main plot. However, it is the honesty, bravery and warmth of the main cast which makes this book such an enjoyable read. In contrast to the sometimes cynical world of modern fiction, every character here acts from friendship and a desire to help others. During the wartime scenes, this desire could literally be the difference between life and death, but the importance of having someone you can trust and who’s got your back in everyday life is not overlooked.

I can imagine that a book switching between the present day and the sometimes fleeting, partial memories of a character could have become disorientating for the reader in the hands of another author. Suzanne Fortin constructs this story so that it is clear and easy to follow, without the splits between the timelines seeming forced. While I was reading the ‘memory’ sections of the story, I felt I was reading a really good, well researched, historical novel and at other times I was immersed in a heart-warming modern-day drama. Arthur’s present-day story has a steady pace and mostly takes place over several months. This is contrasted with the chapters recounting the six years of the war, which are filled with fast-paced drama and intense emotion. I really felt that the balance between the two provided a great contrast in the novel as a whole and hooked me into both parts of the tale.

Throughout the book, Arthur’s dementia, the confusion it can bring and his frailty due to his age are handled extremely sensitively. Arthur is aware that he has problems with his memory but is not treated as an unreliable narrator. Instead, he is given true agency to tell his own story, both through commenting on his lived experience of dementia and by re-counting the memories and feelings that he can recall. He has friends, enjoyment and passion of his own and forges his own relationships with the other characters.

Arthur made me smile and brought a tear to my eye. He is at the centre of the love and respect which radiate from this book. The characters feel it for each other, the present feels it for the past, I get the feeling the author feels it for her characters – and so did I.

How much is the book and how can you buy it?

The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger retails for £7.37 in paperback. The Kindle eBook is available for 99p. You can buy a copy of either format via this link.

About the Author

Suzanne Fortin is a USA Today and Amazon UK & USA best selling author, with The Girl Who Lied and Sister Sister both reaching #1 in the Amazon UK Kindle chart in 2016 and 2017 respectively. She also writes as Sue Fortin and her books have sold over a million copies and translation rights for her novels have been sold worldwide. Sue writes women’s fiction, mystery and suspense. She is a member of The Romantic Novelists’ Association and the International Thriller Writers. She was born in Hertfordshire but had a nomadic childhood, moving often with her family, before eventually settling in West Sussex where she now lives with her husband, grandchildren and family.

About the book

Title: The Forgotten Life of Arthur Pettinger
Author: Suzanne Fortin
Publisher: Aria, an imprint of Head of Zeus
ISBN: 978-1800243767
Pages: 464

Review by: Sharon Corbally

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* We were given a copy of the book in return for a feature. All opinions are our own.