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The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne
When your present meets your past, what do you take with you – and what do you leave behind?
Eadie Browne is an odd child with unusual parents, living in a strange house neighbouring the local cemetery. Bullied at school – but protected by her two best friends Celeste and Josh, and her many imaginary friends lying six feet under next door – Eadie muddles her way through.
Arriving in Manchester as a student in the late 1980s, Eadie confronts a busy, gritty Victorian metropolis a far cry from the small Garden City she's left behind. Soon enough she experiences a novel freedom she never imagined and it's seductive. She can be who she wants to be, do as she pleases, and no one back home needs to know. As Manchester embraces the dizzying, colourful euphoria of Rave counterculture, Eadie is swept along, blithely ignoring danger and reality. Until, one night, her past comes hurtling at her with ramifications which will continue into her adult life.
Now, as the new Millennium beckons, Eadie is turning 30 with a marriage in tatters. She must travel back to where she once lived for a funeral she can't quite comprehend. As she journeys from the North to the South, from the present to the past, Eadie contemplates all that was then – and all that is now – in this moving love letter to youth.
Eadie Browne is an odd child with unusual parents, living in a strange house neighbouring the local cemetery. Bullied at school – but protected by her two best friends Celeste and Josh, and her many imaginary friends lying six feet under next door – Eadie muddles her way through.
Arriving in Manchester as a student in the late 1980s, Eadie confronts a busy, gritty Victorian metropolis a far cry from the small Garden City she's left behind. Soon enough she experiences a novel freedom she never imagined and it's seductive. She can be who she wants to be, do as she pleases, and no one back home needs to know. As Manchester embraces the dizzying, colourful euphoria of Rave counterculture, Eadie is swept along, blithely ignoring danger and reality. Until, one night, her past comes hurtling at her with ramifications which will continue into her adult life.
Now, as the new Millennium beckons, Eadie is turning 30 with a marriage in tatters. She must travel back to where she once lived for a funeral she can't quite comprehend. As she journeys from the North to the South, from the present to the past, Eadie contemplates all that was then – and all that is now – in this moving love letter to youth.
448 pages, Hardcover
Published February 1, 2024
123 people are currently reading
1404 people want to read
About the author
Freya North
41 books694 followersFreya North is the author of many bestselling novels which have been translated into numerous languages. She was born in London but lives in rural Hertfordshire, where she writes from a stable in her back garden. A passionate reader since childhood, Freya was originally inspired by Mary Wesley, Rose Tremain and Barbara Trapido: fiction with strong and original characters. To hear about events, competitions and what she’s writing, join her on Facebook, Twitter and her website.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 196 reviews
March 18, 2024
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I really liked this book, not a lot happens because it is really a character study of Eadie Browne and I especially liked reading about Eadie's early life and younger years because it went a long way to explain why she does what she does as an adult. Character-driven stories can be wonderful if done right and Freya North certainly gets how to do it right.
Eadie has some important relationships while growing up and as she matures these relationships evolve. Eadie the child turns into Eadie the university student and becomes Eadie the wife. From 1976 until 1999 we get all iterations of Eadie, we watch her learn and grow as she tries to find herself. I love how she found empathy along the way and opened her eyes and heart.
This book is very emotional but there is nothing saccharine about it, it is very raw and real. Eadie's meet-cute with her husband added a dash of romance and I loved their story; but this book is not romantic in any way, shape or form. I really enjoyed this heartfelt tale and how Eadie decided to deal with her unfinished business. This was such a unique book, I have never read anything like it.
I really liked this book, not a lot happens because it is really a character study of Eadie Browne and I especially liked reading about Eadie's early life and younger years because it went a long way to explain why she does what she does as an adult. Character-driven stories can be wonderful if done right and Freya North certainly gets how to do it right.
Eadie has some important relationships while growing up and as she matures these relationships evolve. Eadie the child turns into Eadie the university student and becomes Eadie the wife. From 1976 until 1999 we get all iterations of Eadie, we watch her learn and grow as she tries to find herself. I love how she found empathy along the way and opened her eyes and heart.
This book is very emotional but there is nothing saccharine about it, it is very raw and real. Eadie's meet-cute with her husband added a dash of romance and I loved their story; but this book is not romantic in any way, shape or form. I really enjoyed this heartfelt tale and how Eadie decided to deal with her unfinished business. This was such a unique book, I have never read anything like it.
July 31, 2024
What a gem that book turned out to be. It started off slow for me but as the story unfolded I found myself completely absorbed and just couldn't put it down.
Emotional, real, nostalgic, with beautiful tender moments, The Unfinished Business Of Eadie Browne is an ode to youth, to friendships made along the way, to life lived and experiences had, to innocence of our childhoods and the power of human connections.
I cried, I laughed and I fell in love with Eadie and all the people she meets on her journey into adulthood.
That book is pure brilliance and I wholeheartedly recommend it.
Emotional, real, nostalgic, with beautiful tender moments, The Unfinished Business Of Eadie Browne is an ode to youth, to friendships made along the way, to life lived and experiences had, to innocence of our childhoods and the power of human connections.
I cried, I laughed and I fell in love with Eadie and all the people she meets on her journey into adulthood.
That book is pure brilliance and I wholeheartedly recommend it.
March 2, 2024
I received a copy of this book to read as part of the readalong hosted by Tandem Collective UK in exchange for an honest review.
The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne is one of the most compassionate, raw, and heartfelt reads I have read in a very long time. I love this book and urge everyone to give it a read as this is truly a book to cherish.
The story follows Eadie from being six years old to the present day via a dual timeline. We meet Eadie, aged six, growing up through school and moving off to Manchester to attend university. The book flits between now (1999) as Eadie drives to a funeral with her husband and tines past as Eadie reminisces on the good and the bad times and the friendships she's made and lost. This was a nostalgic read as I was a child in the 80s and 90s when the book was set. Eadie is just the most remarkable, quirky, and endeering character, and I instantly fell in love with her. I loved not knowing who her husband was until almost 3/4 of the way through the book, too. This book had me staying awake, reading and sobbing into my pillow with a heart filled with happiness, pride, humbleness, and sadness to boot. Warning - you will need tissues for this one! Freya has done an outstanding job with this book from beginning to end, and I can honestly see this being turned into a movie or TV show in the near future.
The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne is one of the most compassionate, raw, and heartfelt reads I have read in a very long time. I love this book and urge everyone to give it a read as this is truly a book to cherish.
The story follows Eadie from being six years old to the present day via a dual timeline. We meet Eadie, aged six, growing up through school and moving off to Manchester to attend university. The book flits between now (1999) as Eadie drives to a funeral with her husband and tines past as Eadie reminisces on the good and the bad times and the friendships she's made and lost. This was a nostalgic read as I was a child in the 80s and 90s when the book was set. Eadie is just the most remarkable, quirky, and endeering character, and I instantly fell in love with her. I loved not knowing who her husband was until almost 3/4 of the way through the book, too. This book had me staying awake, reading and sobbing into my pillow with a heart filled with happiness, pride, humbleness, and sadness to boot. Warning - you will need tissues for this one! Freya has done an outstanding job with this book from beginning to end, and I can honestly see this being turned into a movie or TV show in the near future.
December 20, 2023
I honestly don’t know where to start with this review. I don’t think I could ever put into words how much I enjoyed reading Eadie’s story. I lived and breathed this book from the first page to the last and was very sad to reach the end. It certainly left me with one hell of a book hangover.
This is Freya North’s 16th novel. I haven’t read any of her other books. Of those who have, reviewers have said how very different this book is to the others. It is beautifully written and I’m guessing, because that’s how it felt, that it has been written very much from the heart. As it says in the book description “a love letter to youth”.
It is almost a time-slip novel in that small parts are set in Eadie’s present, in 1999. A 30 year old woman on a long drive from North to South to attend a funeral with her husband. We don’t know whose funeral but from the snippets of conversation between Eadie and her husband we can gather that perhaps all is not well between the the two.
As they continue on their long journey, the majority of the book is Eadie looking back on her life so far starting with primary school and the school bully. Written in the first person Eadie is as authentic in her narrative as a 7 year old, as she is later on in the book as an 18/19 year old. It is like watching someone grow through childhood, teenage years, young adult to a young woman speeded up in the space of the week it took me to read it.
There are so many wonderful supporting characters. Her friends through school, her parents the ‘centrists’ 😉, the friends she made at Uni all play a huge part in this story. And Manchester itself in the late 80’s. For anyone who was at Manchester University at this time, this book will be such a nostalgic journey with time and place so evocatively brought to life again.
This book is nostalgic, funny, moving, warm hearted and just a beautiful story that had me absolutely captivated.
This is Freya North’s 16th novel. I haven’t read any of her other books. Of those who have, reviewers have said how very different this book is to the others. It is beautifully written and I’m guessing, because that’s how it felt, that it has been written very much from the heart. As it says in the book description “a love letter to youth”.
It is almost a time-slip novel in that small parts are set in Eadie’s present, in 1999. A 30 year old woman on a long drive from North to South to attend a funeral with her husband. We don’t know whose funeral but from the snippets of conversation between Eadie and her husband we can gather that perhaps all is not well between the the two.
As they continue on their long journey, the majority of the book is Eadie looking back on her life so far starting with primary school and the school bully. Written in the first person Eadie is as authentic in her narrative as a 7 year old, as she is later on in the book as an 18/19 year old. It is like watching someone grow through childhood, teenage years, young adult to a young woman speeded up in the space of the week it took me to read it.
There are so many wonderful supporting characters. Her friends through school, her parents the ‘centrists’ 😉, the friends she made at Uni all play a huge part in this story. And Manchester itself in the late 80’s. For anyone who was at Manchester University at this time, this book will be such a nostalgic journey with time and place so evocatively brought to life again.
This book is nostalgic, funny, moving, warm hearted and just a beautiful story that had me absolutely captivated.
January 14, 2024
As delicately layered as the perfect mille-feuille, this beautiful coming-of-age story dazzles with its prose, perceptiveness, and unforgettable leading lady. It’s a tale of growing up, of finding one’s feet; of friendship, family and the meaning of home. It’s a familiar trope in literature but one Freya North captures with a rare and resonant poignancy.
Six-year-old Eadie Browne steals into your heart as soon as you meet her. Lonely and self-conscious, with a single dimple, crazy hair and odd ‘indoor parents’, she’s the weird kid in class, the one taunted by the bullies. Her ‘friends’ are the gravedigger, the funeral piper, and the people buried in the cemetery next door.
Fast forward twenty-odd years, and here’s grownup Eadie, driving down the motorway in a hire van with her husband, on their way to a funeral. Why a van and not a car? And who has died?
We only get snippets of this journey throughout the book, but the atmosphere is thick with tension and unhappiness and keeps you hungry for an explanation.
We follow younger Eadie through her childhood, teens and eventual escape to university, where she experiences the heady thrill of freedom and independence, sloughs off the shackles of her youth and seeks to reinvent herself as the person she aspires to be.
North’s evocation of time and place — late 1980s, rave-scene Manchester — is bold and visceral. And this phase of Eadie’s journey, the novel experience of living life on one’s own terms, resonated strongly with me.
But it was Eadie’s eventual confrontation with real adulthood that struck the loudest chord. That point where, through the prism of maturity, she comes to view herself, her past and the people in it with a new depth of understanding.
And sets about taking care of ‘unfinished business.’
A triumph of a novel and North’s most assured writing to date.
Six-year-old Eadie Browne steals into your heart as soon as you meet her. Lonely and self-conscious, with a single dimple, crazy hair and odd ‘indoor parents’, she’s the weird kid in class, the one taunted by the bullies. Her ‘friends’ are the gravedigger, the funeral piper, and the people buried in the cemetery next door.
Fast forward twenty-odd years, and here’s grownup Eadie, driving down the motorway in a hire van with her husband, on their way to a funeral. Why a van and not a car? And who has died?
We only get snippets of this journey throughout the book, but the atmosphere is thick with tension and unhappiness and keeps you hungry for an explanation.
We follow younger Eadie through her childhood, teens and eventual escape to university, where she experiences the heady thrill of freedom and independence, sloughs off the shackles of her youth and seeks to reinvent herself as the person she aspires to be.
North’s evocation of time and place — late 1980s, rave-scene Manchester — is bold and visceral. And this phase of Eadie’s journey, the novel experience of living life on one’s own terms, resonated strongly with me.
But it was Eadie’s eventual confrontation with real adulthood that struck the loudest chord. That point where, through the prism of maturity, she comes to view herself, her past and the people in it with a new depth of understanding.
And sets about taking care of ‘unfinished business.’
A triumph of a novel and North’s most assured writing to date.
June 4, 2024
This felt a bit of an indulgent reminiscence on the author's time at university, rather than any real story.
It starts well, the childhood Eadie and her friends are an interesting set of characters, but once they all went off to university I found the pace really slowed and dragged. If you went to university in Manchester in the 80's this is probably great, but I wasn't really interested in a girl who just spent her time clubbing and getting depressed instead of doing her course.
The plot just didn't make much sense in the end. Eadie seemed just to live her life in a passive bubble where she expected everyone to look after her and make her decisions for her. I just find it a bit depressing that she can't move beyond her childhood and university years and enjoy her life as an adult instead.
It starts well, the childhood Eadie and her friends are an interesting set of characters, but once they all went off to university I found the pace really slowed and dragged. If you went to university in Manchester in the 80's this is probably great, but I wasn't really interested in a girl who just spent her time clubbing and getting depressed instead of doing her course.
The plot just didn't make much sense in the end. Eadie seemed just to live her life in a passive bubble where she expected everyone to look after her and make her decisions for her. I just find it a bit depressing that she can't move beyond her childhood and university years and enjoy her life as an adult instead.
February 17, 2024
Thank you to Welbeck Publishing UK for granting my wish in getting to read Freya North’s latest book.
I loved this book partly because I could identify with the young girl in the 80’s Eadie was. Eadie wanted her freedom but differently than most teenagers longed for. Be careful what you wish for you just might get it. What Eadie didn’t count on was what her freedom would cost her.
Freya North has created a wonderful birth to death telling of, The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne. I for one am happy to have read it.
There are high moments in Eadie’s adulthood and low moments in her life. What I loved about her character was her tenacity and her fragility. She never lost sight of who she was.
I loved this book partly because I could identify with the young girl in the 80’s Eadie was. Eadie wanted her freedom but differently than most teenagers longed for. Be careful what you wish for you just might get it. What Eadie didn’t count on was what her freedom would cost her.
Freya North has created a wonderful birth to death telling of, The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne. I for one am happy to have read it.
There are high moments in Eadie’s adulthood and low moments in her life. What I loved about her character was her tenacity and her fragility. She never lost sight of who she was.
January 19, 2025
Sometimes timing is everything. The timing of this coincides with something that’s been keeping me awake, but is not mine to fix, nor something within my means. To say more than that would spoiler massively. Eadies unfinished business is sending me to the bath to cry a bit more and contemplate overstepping boundaries.
Initially I thought this was going to be a bit of a dud, it begun very slowly, but my goodness I was so happy to be wrong.
It’s often hard to get such a character centric story just right, you need a wholly formed character to reel you in, and it didn’t take very long for Eadie to worm her way into my heart. A child of eccentric but loving parents Eadie appears to be an odd child, she’s friends with the caretaker of the graveyard adjoining her home, and the piper who plays for the souls of all of Eadies other friends. She spends a lot of time with the dead, and this made her instantly loveable.
We meet Eadies school friends Josh and Celeste, their families, their little world and her nemesis Patrick at the lovely local school, we follow their friendships through to uni days, dancing at the infamous Hacienda, losing her way and finding her love and on the brink of it all falling apart.
A poignant and tender novel, that casts the mind back to the time, I cried often I laughed just as much and I was sad to say goodbye.
Meet Eadie soon you won’t regret it.
All the stars 🌟 #Jorecommends
Initially I thought this was going to be a bit of a dud, it begun very slowly, but my goodness I was so happy to be wrong.
It’s often hard to get such a character centric story just right, you need a wholly formed character to reel you in, and it didn’t take very long for Eadie to worm her way into my heart. A child of eccentric but loving parents Eadie appears to be an odd child, she’s friends with the caretaker of the graveyard adjoining her home, and the piper who plays for the souls of all of Eadies other friends. She spends a lot of time with the dead, and this made her instantly loveable.
We meet Eadies school friends Josh and Celeste, their families, their little world and her nemesis Patrick at the lovely local school, we follow their friendships through to uni days, dancing at the infamous Hacienda, losing her way and finding her love and on the brink of it all falling apart.
A poignant and tender novel, that casts the mind back to the time, I cried often I laughed just as much and I was sad to say goodbye.
Meet Eadie soon you won’t regret it.
All the stars 🌟 #Jorecommends
December 24, 2024
Nope nope nope I am not the right audience for this. I am not criticizing the writing as it was fine but I am not one for cozy reads.
I do occasionally read woman's fiction but then I like my characters spiced with humor or some odd quirkiness.
I do occasionally read woman's fiction but then I like my characters spiced with humor or some odd quirkiness.
May 25, 2024
I really liked Eadie and most of the characters, it was a very slow plodding book and I was glad when it ended
January 16, 2024
We first meet Eadie Browne when she is 6 years old. A pupil at the Three Magnets School, she lives in a house next door to the local cemetery, with her ‘eccentric’ parents.
Eadie has second hand school uniform; imaginary friends lying six feet under next door; and makes up improbable stories about her father being a Russian spy.
With her love of Viennetta, her wild unruly hair, and her one-sided dimple, she immediately captures your heart, taking up residence there, staying long after you have finished the novel. Probably for life.
Inevitably a child as singular as Eadie is bullied at school but Eadie is protected by two equally unusual children, Celeste and Josh. They gravitate towards each other and become the firmest of friends, each other’s tribe. Eventually the trio head off to their separate universities, with Eadie going to Manchester. It is the late 1980s and she finds a vibrant city which is a far cry from the small Garden City of Parkwin that she's left behind.
She experiences a freedom and independence she never imagined, making new friends, and embracing the Rave scene at the Hacienda nightclub. Eadie is swept along, ignoring danger and reality, until, one night, her past comes hurtling back, with ramifications for her future.
These riveting, propulsive chapters about Eadie’s school and university life are interspersed with those set in her present. It is 1999 and Eadie is turning thirty with a crumbling relationship and a job she doesn’t enjoy. She is travelling back to where she once lived and, as she journeys from the North to the South, from the present to the past, Eadie contemplates all that was then, and all that is now.
The reader wonders what has gone wrong. Why is Eadie travelling back to Parkwin? What has happened in her relationship?
Because we have fallen in love with Eadie and we are desperate to know. Her judgement might sometimes be a little off, and we don’t always endorse her actions, but we have come to know her as if she were one of our friends - we really care about our girl Eadie. The way Freya North cleverly ekes out the clues until the unfinished business of the title is fully revealed, and keeps us completely invested, is nothing short of masterful.
As too is her evocation of time and place: the way she describes Parkwin and Manchester; the student house on Hathersage Road; the halls of residence; the Derbyshire moorland. So vivid and evocative.
As I was reading, my own student years came flooding back - from the notepads on room doors in halls, to the hole in the floor in the kitchen of the student house (except for me it was a flat and the hole was in the ceiling, directly above the loo!) – I remembered it all with such clarity.
The characterisation too is superb. Freya North’s trademark is to create characters that are all supremely well realised and fully rounded. They are written with huge empathy and sensitivity, which in turn elicits the same responses in the reader.
Freya North describes this novel as a ‘love letter to youth, to a time and a place’, and it is very much that. But it’s also about growing up and finding yourself. About being your authentic, true, self rather than conforming to expectations or moderating who you are to please others.
And it is about friendship: those real, true, firm, special friends we make and how we carry these people with us going forward through life. Those relationships which help to form and define us, and which nurture us - so long as we value them and work to keep them, and don’t neglect them - because to do so means we lose some of life’s treasure, and maybe even lose a little of ourselves?
I’ve long been a huge fan of Freya North’s novels, and this emotional and powerful story is without doubt her best yet. When I reviewed Little Wing, I described it as ‘ a novel that touches your soul’, and so does the story Eadie Browne: it touches your soul, and your heart. It makes you laugh and it makes you cry. It makes you feel the whole gamut of emotions and I absolutely loved it. An absolute stunner of a novel and already in contention for one of my books of the year.
Thank you to Freya North and Welbeck Publishing for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
Eadie has second hand school uniform; imaginary friends lying six feet under next door; and makes up improbable stories about her father being a Russian spy.
With her love of Viennetta, her wild unruly hair, and her one-sided dimple, she immediately captures your heart, taking up residence there, staying long after you have finished the novel. Probably for life.
Inevitably a child as singular as Eadie is bullied at school but Eadie is protected by two equally unusual children, Celeste and Josh. They gravitate towards each other and become the firmest of friends, each other’s tribe. Eventually the trio head off to their separate universities, with Eadie going to Manchester. It is the late 1980s and she finds a vibrant city which is a far cry from the small Garden City of Parkwin that she's left behind.
She experiences a freedom and independence she never imagined, making new friends, and embracing the Rave scene at the Hacienda nightclub. Eadie is swept along, ignoring danger and reality, until, one night, her past comes hurtling back, with ramifications for her future.
These riveting, propulsive chapters about Eadie’s school and university life are interspersed with those set in her present. It is 1999 and Eadie is turning thirty with a crumbling relationship and a job she doesn’t enjoy. She is travelling back to where she once lived and, as she journeys from the North to the South, from the present to the past, Eadie contemplates all that was then, and all that is now.
The reader wonders what has gone wrong. Why is Eadie travelling back to Parkwin? What has happened in her relationship?
Because we have fallen in love with Eadie and we are desperate to know. Her judgement might sometimes be a little off, and we don’t always endorse her actions, but we have come to know her as if she were one of our friends - we really care about our girl Eadie. The way Freya North cleverly ekes out the clues until the unfinished business of the title is fully revealed, and keeps us completely invested, is nothing short of masterful.
As too is her evocation of time and place: the way she describes Parkwin and Manchester; the student house on Hathersage Road; the halls of residence; the Derbyshire moorland. So vivid and evocative.
As I was reading, my own student years came flooding back - from the notepads on room doors in halls, to the hole in the floor in the kitchen of the student house (except for me it was a flat and the hole was in the ceiling, directly above the loo!) – I remembered it all with such clarity.
The characterisation too is superb. Freya North’s trademark is to create characters that are all supremely well realised and fully rounded. They are written with huge empathy and sensitivity, which in turn elicits the same responses in the reader.
Freya North describes this novel as a ‘love letter to youth, to a time and a place’, and it is very much that. But it’s also about growing up and finding yourself. About being your authentic, true, self rather than conforming to expectations or moderating who you are to please others.
And it is about friendship: those real, true, firm, special friends we make and how we carry these people with us going forward through life. Those relationships which help to form and define us, and which nurture us - so long as we value them and work to keep them, and don’t neglect them - because to do so means we lose some of life’s treasure, and maybe even lose a little of ourselves?
I’ve long been a huge fan of Freya North’s novels, and this emotional and powerful story is without doubt her best yet. When I reviewed Little Wing, I described it as ‘ a novel that touches your soul’, and so does the story Eadie Browne: it touches your soul, and your heart. It makes you laugh and it makes you cry. It makes you feel the whole gamut of emotions and I absolutely loved it. An absolute stunner of a novel and already in contention for one of my books of the year.
Thank you to Freya North and Welbeck Publishing for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
February 14, 2024
Freya North is an author I read a lot of, way before I became a blogger and I really enjoyed Little Wing that I read a couple of years ago. When Freya reached out to ask if I’d like an advanced copy of her new book, I jumped at the chance and she kindly sent it to me, along with some cake, Starburst and other goodies!
As the book begins, it is 1976 and Eadie lives with her parents in Parkwin Garden City in a house next to a cemetery. Her parents are creative types and slightly odd and Eadie is pretty much left to her own devices. She is being tormented at school by Patrick, a boy who has it in for her and she finds solace amongst the dead and with the people who work in the graveyard. She eventually makes friends at school with Josh and new girl Celeste and things get easier as they stand up to Patrick and the three are inseparable. The story continues as Eadie grows up and eventually goes to university in Manchester. She grows away from her childhood friends as they all go to separate universities and to start with she finds it hard making new friends. She finds her people and they live a fun life at Uni discovering the Haçienda nightclub, dancing the night away, a big part of their nights out revolving around Ecstasy.
After a disturbing night out, Eadie starts floundering. It looks like her new friends will all be going their separate ways from their beloved student house, and she starts missing deadlines on her course and gets close to being kicked off. I loved the scene especially where Eadie returns to her primary school at the period of her life where she doesn’t know where to turn and her old headteacher is still there and full of wisdom for her.
As well as looking back to Eadie’s childhood and life in Manchester, we also meet Eadie again in 1999 when she is in her early 30s – she is married and they have hired a van and are taking a trip to a funeral, one that Eadie is desperate not to be late for. Eadie knows her marriage is in trouble but she is struggling to make moves to reach out to her husband to makes things better.
This was such a great read! Being a similar age to Eadie, her university experience held such nostalgia for me! I remember feeling so lonely, waiting for letters from friends (in the days before mobile phones and email) before I found my new friends. The joy of going out with those friends and eventually living together in a shared house with all it’s quirks reminded me so much of my experiences and they were some of the best years of my life, shaping me into the person I am today.
There are so many elements to this book – it is a coming of age story and the overwhelming theme is friendship. Freya North herself was at Manchester University during this period and The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne, feels like a love letter to that time. A great set of characters, surrounding Eadie as a captivating leading lady, one that you couldn’t help route for despite her mistakes. I loved this story and it made me hanker back to my Uni days.
As the book begins, it is 1976 and Eadie lives with her parents in Parkwin Garden City in a house next to a cemetery. Her parents are creative types and slightly odd and Eadie is pretty much left to her own devices. She is being tormented at school by Patrick, a boy who has it in for her and she finds solace amongst the dead and with the people who work in the graveyard. She eventually makes friends at school with Josh and new girl Celeste and things get easier as they stand up to Patrick and the three are inseparable. The story continues as Eadie grows up and eventually goes to university in Manchester. She grows away from her childhood friends as they all go to separate universities and to start with she finds it hard making new friends. She finds her people and they live a fun life at Uni discovering the Haçienda nightclub, dancing the night away, a big part of their nights out revolving around Ecstasy.
After a disturbing night out, Eadie starts floundering. It looks like her new friends will all be going their separate ways from their beloved student house, and she starts missing deadlines on her course and gets close to being kicked off. I loved the scene especially where Eadie returns to her primary school at the period of her life where she doesn’t know where to turn and her old headteacher is still there and full of wisdom for her.
As well as looking back to Eadie’s childhood and life in Manchester, we also meet Eadie again in 1999 when she is in her early 30s – she is married and they have hired a van and are taking a trip to a funeral, one that Eadie is desperate not to be late for. Eadie knows her marriage is in trouble but she is struggling to make moves to reach out to her husband to makes things better.
This was such a great read! Being a similar age to Eadie, her university experience held such nostalgia for me! I remember feeling so lonely, waiting for letters from friends (in the days before mobile phones and email) before I found my new friends. The joy of going out with those friends and eventually living together in a shared house with all it’s quirks reminded me so much of my experiences and they were some of the best years of my life, shaping me into the person I am today.
There are so many elements to this book – it is a coming of age story and the overwhelming theme is friendship. Freya North herself was at Manchester University during this period and The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne, feels like a love letter to that time. A great set of characters, surrounding Eadie as a captivating leading lady, one that you couldn’t help route for despite her mistakes. I loved this story and it made me hanker back to my Uni days.
June 30, 2025
I already know I will miss Eadie Browne! 5⭐
August 12, 2025
4.5 ★ rounded down because the service station scene is traumatising if you know max verstappen
March 4, 2024
I loved seeing Eadie discover herself and found out who she wants to be, as well as seeing if friendships would stand the test of time. Overall a beautiful, heartfelt story.
April 26, 2024
This book is an overwhelming story about friendship and love. It is a story I could identify with as I too grew up in the 70’s
I was captivated by Eadies story from when she was a little girl to adulthood
The book is Beautifully written - my first by Freya North
I listened on audible and the narrator Amanda Abbington has a lovely voice that made the story so captivating - i will certainly be looking for more audible books that she narrates as is my favourite so far
I was captivated by Eadies story from when she was a little girl to adulthood
The book is Beautifully written - my first by Freya North
I listened on audible and the narrator Amanda Abbington has a lovely voice that made the story so captivating - i will certainly be looking for more audible books that she narrates as is my favourite so far
September 2, 2024
Eadie is growing up.
The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne is just wonderful. It’s an absolute love song to who we are as humans, to our frailties, our hopes, our fears and our dreams. I loved it.
In essence, the plot is relatively gentle as the story travels through Eadie’s childhood memories whilst she’s on a journey with her husband in 1999. I loved the gradual unfurling of why Eadie is making that journey and how her past life has led her to this point. It adds a little mystery that is engaging and interesting.
What is so utterly beautiful and moving about how Freya North writes is the way she manages to depict with absolute perfection the different stages of Eadie’s life. Eadie’s home might be somewhat unconventional, but her early childhood and teenage school years are absolutely those anyone can recognise. As a result it feels as if we’re reading about a much loved and missed friend from our own past. I thought the exploration of her marriage was emotionally exquisite. The depth of love, and the ease with which life can intervene and make us neglect those we care for most, is conveyed by Freya North with tenderness and reality.
Eadie is intricately drawn. Her self-delusion, the selfishness and uncertainty of her youth, her gradual maturity and the realisation of what constitutes friendship, belonging and home, all combine into a character whose vivid personality leaps from the page. And through Eadie and her reactions we come to know and understand her parents Terry and Jill and her other friends. Each one feels true to life.
But this is a tale about more than just Eadie, marvellous as she is. It’s a warm, sensitive and totally absorbing example of life. The Patricks and Rosses of the world can be found in any location and through reading about them we learn humanity and compassion, even as we are entertained. Freya North weaves the strands that bind the characters together with themes of trust, family, education, friendship, crime, poverty and society in such a rich tapestry that it feels as if the people and events in The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne could happen in any school, town, nightclub or university. And it isn’t just the imaginative aspects of the book that are so convincing. Also woven in are historical and geographical strands, from music to national and international events, that add reality, depth and authenticity.
I’ve long loved Freya North’s writing and it has been far too long since I read her. The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne has proven just what I’ve been missing. I thought this narrative was utterly brilliant. It has earned a place on my list of books of the year because it is a book about Eadie Browne, but also one about you and me. Eadie might be looking for her place in the world but she helped me find my place too. Don’t miss this one.
The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne is just wonderful. It’s an absolute love song to who we are as humans, to our frailties, our hopes, our fears and our dreams. I loved it.
In essence, the plot is relatively gentle as the story travels through Eadie’s childhood memories whilst she’s on a journey with her husband in 1999. I loved the gradual unfurling of why Eadie is making that journey and how her past life has led her to this point. It adds a little mystery that is engaging and interesting.
What is so utterly beautiful and moving about how Freya North writes is the way she manages to depict with absolute perfection the different stages of Eadie’s life. Eadie’s home might be somewhat unconventional, but her early childhood and teenage school years are absolutely those anyone can recognise. As a result it feels as if we’re reading about a much loved and missed friend from our own past. I thought the exploration of her marriage was emotionally exquisite. The depth of love, and the ease with which life can intervene and make us neglect those we care for most, is conveyed by Freya North with tenderness and reality.
Eadie is intricately drawn. Her self-delusion, the selfishness and uncertainty of her youth, her gradual maturity and the realisation of what constitutes friendship, belonging and home, all combine into a character whose vivid personality leaps from the page. And through Eadie and her reactions we come to know and understand her parents Terry and Jill and her other friends. Each one feels true to life.
But this is a tale about more than just Eadie, marvellous as she is. It’s a warm, sensitive and totally absorbing example of life. The Patricks and Rosses of the world can be found in any location and through reading about them we learn humanity and compassion, even as we are entertained. Freya North weaves the strands that bind the characters together with themes of trust, family, education, friendship, crime, poverty and society in such a rich tapestry that it feels as if the people and events in The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne could happen in any school, town, nightclub or university. And it isn’t just the imaginative aspects of the book that are so convincing. Also woven in are historical and geographical strands, from music to national and international events, that add reality, depth and authenticity.
I’ve long loved Freya North’s writing and it has been far too long since I read her. The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne has proven just what I’ve been missing. I thought this narrative was utterly brilliant. It has earned a place on my list of books of the year because it is a book about Eadie Browne, but also one about you and me. Eadie might be looking for her place in the world but she helped me find my place too. Don’t miss this one.
May 10, 2024
Not a bad book!
July 19, 2024
A pleasant, character-driven story focussing on Eadie’s life growing up. You could tell large parts were based on what were clearly happy memories of the author’s own life.
December 5, 2024
Eadie was six at the start of the book and in her thirties towards the end. It was a wonderful journey with her, moving, compassionate, as she made different friends along the way. You must read it - it will have you laughing or maybe in tears but every page is a joy.
July 28, 2025
I’m struggling to find the right words to review this.
Eadie is travelling to a funeral with her husband. We don’t know whose funeral and we know nothing about her husband, other than that their relationship is strained, until much later in the book. While they are travelling Eadie reflects on her life, the people and events that have shaped her. We start with Eadie as a child of six, we see her grow through high school and on to university. We witness her relationships evolve, fade and return as she finds her way back to the childhood she spent years running away from.
Eadie was so easy to relate to, there was so much compassion, the characters were real, the emotion was raw and deep, and I can shamelessly admit that I spent the majority of the last few chapters in tears.
Eadie is travelling to a funeral with her husband. We don’t know whose funeral and we know nothing about her husband, other than that their relationship is strained, until much later in the book. While they are travelling Eadie reflects on her life, the people and events that have shaped her. We start with Eadie as a child of six, we see her grow through high school and on to university. We witness her relationships evolve, fade and return as she finds her way back to the childhood she spent years running away from.
Eadie was so easy to relate to, there was so much compassion, the characters were real, the emotion was raw and deep, and I can shamelessly admit that I spent the majority of the last few chapters in tears.
January 27, 2024
I adored following Eadie throughout her life. We meet her first at school with her best friends Celeste and Josh, then follow her to university in Manchester where new friendships are formed. We also accompany Eadie and her husband in 1999 as they undertake an significant and emotional journey.
Being pretty much the same age as Eadie, there was so much about her life which resonated with me. Reading the book was a real trip down memory lane for me with mentions of Findus crispy pancakes, Viennetta, Opal Fruits and mix-tapes among others. And talking of music, do check out the Spotify playlist put together by the author and inspired by the novel: Eadie Browne playlist. Certain significant dates in the book, coincidentally, were also significant for me and made me feel an even deeper connection with Eadie.
Whether this book brings back memories for you or not will depend on your age of course. However, everyone has the same kind of formative relationships growing up and that’s what makes this book so relatable. Every one will have had friends so close that you couldn’t imagine that friendship ever changing, although often it does. No matter how momentous particular times of your life might seem, as Eadie comes to realise “the things you think will last forever actually might not.”.
Once again, I found Freya North’s writing to be beautifully compelling and I savoured my time reading about Eadie. Every single one of the characters was just so perfectly drawn. A real coming of age story, Eadie comes to realise that all the versions of her earlier self have made her the adult she has become. All the people, all the experiences good or bad made her, just as they make each one of us. This is when she can look back at people in her past with a new depth of understanding and empathy.
This book is evocative, moving, insightful and a beautiful story that had captivated and charmed me. The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne is another Freya North book I will be recommending highly.
Being pretty much the same age as Eadie, there was so much about her life which resonated with me. Reading the book was a real trip down memory lane for me with mentions of Findus crispy pancakes, Viennetta, Opal Fruits and mix-tapes among others. And talking of music, do check out the Spotify playlist put together by the author and inspired by the novel: Eadie Browne playlist. Certain significant dates in the book, coincidentally, were also significant for me and made me feel an even deeper connection with Eadie.
Whether this book brings back memories for you or not will depend on your age of course. However, everyone has the same kind of formative relationships growing up and that’s what makes this book so relatable. Every one will have had friends so close that you couldn’t imagine that friendship ever changing, although often it does. No matter how momentous particular times of your life might seem, as Eadie comes to realise “the things you think will last forever actually might not.”.
Once again, I found Freya North’s writing to be beautifully compelling and I savoured my time reading about Eadie. Every single one of the characters was just so perfectly drawn. A real coming of age story, Eadie comes to realise that all the versions of her earlier self have made her the adult she has become. All the people, all the experiences good or bad made her, just as they make each one of us. This is when she can look back at people in her past with a new depth of understanding and empathy.
This book is evocative, moving, insightful and a beautiful story that had captivated and charmed me. The Unfinished Business of Eadie Browne is another Freya North book I will be recommending highly.
February 1, 2024
This book is stunning. A beautifully nostalgic story with plenty I could identify with (& remember first hand!). Written across the 70’s/80’s and a concurrent timeline of 1999 (a time when I was reading Freya North’s wonderful early novels), about friendship in its various forms, success & failure, love and family. The main character and her cast of supporting members were all realistic, and there were many unexpected twists in the story which had me gripped from start to finish.
I am so grateful to have been given an early copy of this to read and urge everyone to make it a must read of 2024.
I am so grateful to have been given an early copy of this to read and urge everyone to make it a must read of 2024.
March 5, 2024
I’ve said before how much I loved the last book of Freya North’s I read; Little Wing was one of my favourite reads of 2022. I often go into a new book by the same author hoping I will love it as much, but with this one, I undoubtedly loved it more.
I’ll start by saying that I felt a huge affection for Eadie Browne as a character. She is my favourite type of protagonist: kind, warm-hearted and a little quirky. By the end of the book, she felt like a friend, and I still feel sad that she’s no longer with me. As I said in one of my stories, she is one of the best characters I have ever had the pleasure to meet in a book.
We follow Eadie on her journey through life: as she struggles with the class bully in school, the gorgeous friendships she then makes, the journey through her teens, her uni life and finally, the beginnings of her adult life. This book was brilliantly nostalgic for me, being a child of the 80s myself. But the thing that felt so very very special was the setting. Mentions of Letchworth Garden City, Welwyn, The Three Magnets (this is, or was, actually a pub that I spent lots of time in!), Hitchin: all areas that I know very well as I used to live in the area during my teenage years and my twenties, it just brought it all back to me and reading this book felt like home.
A coming-of-age story. With all the highs and lows that life brings. And a moment of jaw-dropping shock that just made me love Eadie even more!
Freya is a wonderful storyteller. Each sentence is beautiful. To me this book was perfect. A book that I will have fond memories of reading and I just know it will be in my top reads for this year. I massively recommend it, please just read it and find out for yourself.
I’ll start by saying that I felt a huge affection for Eadie Browne as a character. She is my favourite type of protagonist: kind, warm-hearted and a little quirky. By the end of the book, she felt like a friend, and I still feel sad that she’s no longer with me. As I said in one of my stories, she is one of the best characters I have ever had the pleasure to meet in a book.
We follow Eadie on her journey through life: as she struggles with the class bully in school, the gorgeous friendships she then makes, the journey through her teens, her uni life and finally, the beginnings of her adult life. This book was brilliantly nostalgic for me, being a child of the 80s myself. But the thing that felt so very very special was the setting. Mentions of Letchworth Garden City, Welwyn, The Three Magnets (this is, or was, actually a pub that I spent lots of time in!), Hitchin: all areas that I know very well as I used to live in the area during my teenage years and my twenties, it just brought it all back to me and reading this book felt like home.
A coming-of-age story. With all the highs and lows that life brings. And a moment of jaw-dropping shock that just made me love Eadie even more!
Freya is a wonderful storyteller. Each sentence is beautiful. To me this book was perfect. A book that I will have fond memories of reading and I just know it will be in my top reads for this year. I massively recommend it, please just read it and find out for yourself.
March 3, 2024
I've read a couple of Freya North books and really loved them. This one was very different. A simple story really about growing up, family, friendships and finding your place in the world.
It started well and I was really engaged with Eadie and her friends. The part where she goes to uni dragged for me. It was repetitive and not all that interesting. I found myself skim reading to get to the next part. This was about a funeral Eadie and her husband are travelling to and was also dragged out to the extreme. Just lots of driving down the motorway with zero going on. The ending was also dull and to be honest I was glad to get the book done. A shame as I'd love her other books so much. This one won't put me off though.
It started well and I was really engaged with Eadie and her friends. The part where she goes to uni dragged for me. It was repetitive and not all that interesting. I found myself skim reading to get to the next part. This was about a funeral Eadie and her husband are travelling to and was also dragged out to the extreme. Just lots of driving down the motorway with zero going on. The ending was also dull and to be honest I was glad to get the book done. A shame as I'd love her other books so much. This one won't put me off though.
May 26, 2025
This book drags.....I would have said it's long but It isn't really It just feels that way. It reads like an autobiography of someone that not enough happened in their life. Eadie is there as stuff happens but I felt like she was a casual observer. I should have found so much in common with Eadie having grown up odd and attended my fair share of raves but both story lines seemed to be missing the substance.
I didn't find the main character lovable I found her annoying which I guess in a coming of ages story is normal but I didn't feel like she had the redemption arch that might of helped me get over it.
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I didn't find the main character lovable I found her annoying which I guess in a coming of ages story is normal but I didn't feel like she had the redemption arch that might of helped me get over it.
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January 12, 2024
For me this book was a slow burner. However, I loved the descriptions eg; “the motorway is ribboning ahead” and “Ross is playing Amazing Grace and it bubbles every nerve ending”.
I’m not sure if I enjoyed the ‘navel gazing’ of which there’s a lot. Also I felt quite depressed when reading this book, even through the happy parts, like when they are hiking in beautiful scenery or dancing with abandon in the Hacienda, I felt a hopelessness.
I will say again about the descriptions though as they are what made me keep reading until the end.
I’m not sure if I enjoyed the ‘navel gazing’ of which there’s a lot. Also I felt quite depressed when reading this book, even through the happy parts, like when they are hiking in beautiful scenery or dancing with abandon in the Hacienda, I felt a hopelessness.
I will say again about the descriptions though as they are what made me keep reading until the end.
July 23, 2025
Finished reading: July 23rd 2025
"Grief, it seemed to me, united people - it was indistinguishable between one set of mourners and another."
REVIEW
WARNING: it's another unpopular opinion!!
September 20, 2025
A journey of life, discovery, friendship and difficulty
Eadie Browne is a strange child with an eccentric upbringing. This story follows Eadie, her friends and her school bully from childhood into adulthood.
Being honest, I have found this book difficult to review. It was written with beautiful prose, albeit in a rambling way with flashbacks and strange decisions to understand. Trying to understand Eadie is a pivotal part of the story and she is a character not easy to connect with in many ways. As a reader though, you cannot help feeling empathy towards her and her situation and wonder how much was due to her childhood and how much due to her, likely, special needs.
For me the university section in Manchester was when the story really got going and Eadie started to discover herself. It was interesting to read about some of Manchester’s history, particularly with The Hacienda, the drugs scene, gangs and later the Manchester bombing by the IRA. Here enough information was included, without being too graphic and a good understanding was had.
I found connection with her friend, Josh, difficult, but did appreciate that his treatment of her was covered towards the end of the book. Also, I will be honest that I did not get the whole connection with Patrick, but did like how the conclusion of the story came together, however unbelievable it was.
Of note, Kip, was a saint and his patience was next level. Their quirky romance, I enjoyed and his character showed the difference between the two personalities. Celeste, was well written and her secret and how this was initially dealt with by Eadie, was well covered and thought provoking.
It was good to see the updates of the friends, answer outstanding questions and see how life was to evolve in the future in the final section too. I enjoyed the middle and end sections more, and appreciated the life affirming message that resonated in that final quarter.
Recommended, for those that like to read about life.
Eadie Browne is a strange child with an eccentric upbringing. This story follows Eadie, her friends and her school bully from childhood into adulthood.
Being honest, I have found this book difficult to review. It was written with beautiful prose, albeit in a rambling way with flashbacks and strange decisions to understand. Trying to understand Eadie is a pivotal part of the story and she is a character not easy to connect with in many ways. As a reader though, you cannot help feeling empathy towards her and her situation and wonder how much was due to her childhood and how much due to her, likely, special needs.
For me the university section in Manchester was when the story really got going and Eadie started to discover herself. It was interesting to read about some of Manchester’s history, particularly with The Hacienda, the drugs scene, gangs and later the Manchester bombing by the IRA. Here enough information was included, without being too graphic and a good understanding was had.
I found connection with her friend, Josh, difficult, but did appreciate that his treatment of her was covered towards the end of the book. Also, I will be honest that I did not get the whole connection with Patrick, but did like how the conclusion of the story came together, however unbelievable it was.
Of note, Kip, was a saint and his patience was next level. Their quirky romance, I enjoyed and his character showed the difference between the two personalities. Celeste, was well written and her secret and how this was initially dealt with by Eadie, was well covered and thought provoking.
It was good to see the updates of the friends, answer outstanding questions and see how life was to evolve in the future in the final section too. I enjoyed the middle and end sections more, and appreciated the life affirming message that resonated in that final quarter.
Recommended, for those that like to read about life.
March 11, 2024
I'm honestly struggling to find the right words to express how much I loved Eadie's story. From start to finish, I was hooked, and saying goodbye to the book left me with a serious book hangover.
The writing is beautiful, and it feels like it's straight from the heart, just like it says in the book blurb – it's basically a love letter to youth.
The story jumps between the present timeline in 1999 and Eadie's past, from her school days to her time at university. Written in first-person, it feels like we're growing up right alongside her, which was amazing. Eadie's narrative in her younger years is so authentic and real – it's like she's speaking directly to us from the pages of her diary.
It works well in contrast with the present day, where we see Eadie and her husband on a road trip to a funeral - we don’t know who’s it is or what’s happened, but the tension is real. It really added extra depth to the story, as we catch glimpses of their relationship and the challenges they're facing.
The supporting characters are fantastic, especially during Eadie's uni days – they're so real and vibrant. And if you were a teen in the late 80s, this book will hit you right in the nostalgia feels. These parts were wholeheartedly my favourite. They're so vivid and lifelike – the vibes, the atmosphere, all of it was so good.
Overall, it's a funny, moving, and heartwarming story that kept me totally captivated from start to finish. Massive recommendation from me, I loved every moment.
The writing is beautiful, and it feels like it's straight from the heart, just like it says in the book blurb – it's basically a love letter to youth.
The story jumps between the present timeline in 1999 and Eadie's past, from her school days to her time at university. Written in first-person, it feels like we're growing up right alongside her, which was amazing. Eadie's narrative in her younger years is so authentic and real – it's like she's speaking directly to us from the pages of her diary.
It works well in contrast with the present day, where we see Eadie and her husband on a road trip to a funeral - we don’t know who’s it is or what’s happened, but the tension is real. It really added extra depth to the story, as we catch glimpses of their relationship and the challenges they're facing.
The supporting characters are fantastic, especially during Eadie's uni days – they're so real and vibrant. And if you were a teen in the late 80s, this book will hit you right in the nostalgia feels. These parts were wholeheartedly my favourite. They're so vivid and lifelike – the vibes, the atmosphere, all of it was so good.
Overall, it's a funny, moving, and heartwarming story that kept me totally captivated from start to finish. Massive recommendation from me, I loved every moment.
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