After reading the first two books in this series I couldn't wait to get stuck into this one. I wasn't disappointed.
It's difficult to review this without giving anything away but so many unanswered questions from the first two books have now been resolved and the HUGE 'Josh thing' is finally revealed.
Dan, who in my head is a cross between Action Man and that Australian bloke who wrestles crocodiles has a brush with his own mortality and there's the strangest honeymoon ever in which a hot tub and a Labrador play a leading role (not at the same time I hasten to add).
If I was forced to choose out of the 3 books, this one would definitely be my favourite. I get bored very quickly but there's so much going on that I didn't even notice the page turns.
The release date has been set for March 2013 so there's plenty of time for you all to get stuck into 'Hiding Behind The Couch' and 'No Time Like The Present' before this one. It works well on its own but the back story from the previous two will further enhance your enjoyment.
I'd honestly give this 6 stars if goodreads would let me.
I absolutely adore this book. in fact I adore the series. I really feel like I know the characters of these books and even when a new character is introduced somehow they feel familiar. I was torn with this book because I couldn't wait to get to the end to find out how my 'friends' got on, but then I didn't want it to end either. plenty of comedy moments along with tense moments I would highly recommend this book in fact why not treat yourself to the series. my final word is FABULOUS!
Quite simply, I have a love-hate relationship with Debbie McGowan's Hiding Behind the Couch Series. I love to read them, I HATE it when they're over.
The Harder They Fall is no exception to this. Once again Debbie McGowan has written a novel that sparkles and comes to life in your imagination unlike any other series I have read. These characters are so well written that they are long-lost friends that I love to catch up with and find out what they've been upto. If I'd have read the holiday scenes in the bath, I'd have felt like I was right there in the hot-tub with them!
The remarkable characterisation in these novels is what makes them for me; after all, it's a series about 'The Circle', a friendship group and the plights, dramas and interconnections associated with it. I can't accurately describe what makes it stand out, you simply have to read it for yourself and see what I mean. I will stake my life on it that you won't be disappointed.
While you're waiting for this one to be released, if you haven't already, I'd recommend you check out Book 1: Hiding Behind The Couch, and then Book 2:No Time Like The Present; like me, by the time you've got through these little gems, you'll be absolutely chomping at the bit for the next book to become available!!
So this is book 3 of the Hiding Behind The Couch series, and writing it was a strange journey. It began with a couple of readers asking if I was going to turn this into a series (to which the answer obviously became 'yes'), along with a song that I'd chosen for a video trailer of the series. The song, "Listen to Me" by Brett Mikels, inadvertently became a major inspiration for this story.
The thing is I'd written books 1 (Hiding Behind The Couch) and 2 (No Time Like The Present), and I knew Josh had a secret. Eleanor hints at it, when in book one she reflects that, "There were plenty of people who would happily have paired up with Josh, for anything from one night to the rest of his life, but he either didn't see it, or just wouldn't let it happen. The maddening thing was that he seemed quite content to live that way."
By the end of book 2 I was starting to sense what it was, but still not quite 'listening to him', and that's one of the aspects of writing Hiding Behind The Couch that I'm a little reluctant to confess to. These characters have become very real to me, but there are things that even I, as their creator, do not yet know about them, because they haven't 'told' me yet.
Like all good friendships, there are ups and downs, and I wanted to explore these, but I also didn't want to home in on particular characters, even though by this point in a series they are well established, so more time can be spent on the plot and less on broader characterisation. Thus, I could write entire novels focusing on just one or two characters at a time.
The outcome of combining all of this is The Harder They Fall - my favourite book in the series so far (I've finished the first 5 books and 5 novellas/short stories), because I finally started to properly understand the characters. I finally listened to Josh. His secret is dark and devastating. He survived to tell his story. Others - in the real world - are not so lucky.
The third installment of the HIDING BEHIND THE COUCH saga is...well, what can I add? Emotional? Yeah, that's been said before...but I can't help it...the whole gamut rocked me throughout the book! The airplane scenes were riveting! I was in tears! And the romance? I absolutely love Josh & George! But most of all...letters written to each member of the circle were deeply touching. Few authors have explored the depths of longtime friends within a group, or "circle" the way Debbie McGowan has! We don't get as many books of this kind as we need, so when one comes along, it is such a treat! Looking forward to the next offering from this extraordinary series!