The Diary Of Harri Foxx

by Sue Lloyd

RAW CONTEMPORARY FICTION SOME PEOPLE ARE JUST OUT OF REACH

Harri Foxx had everything she could wish for in her simple, yet perfect world.

Growing up in Manchester and settling with the love of her life was bliss.

However, life isn’t always kind, is it?

An untimely death and an ”unspeakable event’ tipped Harri over the edge.

Her mind is now a tangle of mental torture.

Outside just isn’t safe anymore.

It wasn’t always like that.

Can Harri find her way to freedom?

She wants to tell her story in the form of a Diary.

It’s honest, raw, and heartbreaking.

Prepare yourself.

Grab your copy today

288 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 27, 2016

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The floor received my pounding from both fists. In my weakness, anger became my strength for a moment, and then I conceded. I lay in the fetal position, wishing to be anywhere else than this existence."....

Set in Manchester, England we open with a diary being written to us, the reader, by Harriet Foxx. She writes of her life, her love, and how she came to be agoraphobic. A person who never leaves her home.

She tells her story in memories of her past life, and her love, her late husband, Cyril. Stories of her good friend, Bobbie, and what life was like before she stopped leaving her home. Her neighbors provide company, entertainment, secrets, and stories for her diary. She is in the care of mental health, who visit her regularly. Just Harri and her cat, Sapphire, living inside the confines of her home.

This contemporary fiction book was interesting, heart breaking, and well written. I was patiently waiting to find out Harri's "unmentionable event," and what brought this women to this point in her life. Sad, as you realize what a depressed state she is in and why.

Emotionally disturbing at times. It will settle under your skin if you've ever suffered a traumatic event, and or depression. Haunting.

Thank you Sue Lloyd

[Sheri McInnis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sue Lloyd’s third novel, The Diary of Harri Foxx, moves from comedy to tragedy in way that builds so deceptively, I’ve never read anything like it before.

It begins with Harri (Harriett) Foxx introducing herself to the reader in the pages of her diary. The voice is immediately charming and original – very British and working class.

Harri tells us she lives in a council house, at 1 Bluebell Road. We hear about the neighborhood, how she met her dear husband Cyril at the Manchester Arms, and how their romance unfolded. Lloyd has a wonderful way of bringing realism to her characters through details and specificity, and her dialogue is spot on.

But Harri is not just any middle-aged woman sharing her story: she confesses she’s agoraphobic. She’s afraid to leave her house. “Through the window, over there, outside, is where the bad stuff happens.” Something terrible has happened to Harri. An ‘unmentionable event.’ The mystery begins to unfold.

We start getting introduced to a staggering assortment of characters, each one of them unique and memorable. Her best friend Bobbie, her ‘curtain-twitching neighbour’ Cathy, her hair dresser and the changing members of the mental health team who assess her – even her cat. The novel often seems comical, the cast quirky. But still, there’s this building darkness.

What happened to Harri?

Because she seemed stubborn at first, if vulnerable – but she’s quickly declining. “If you could touch darkness, it would feel cold and hard, much like the last few weeks, months, and years of my life. Now and then, moments of light have come when my angels gather in to share their bounty.”

As her friends and neighbors come and go, everyone trying to help her, you feel Harri’s insistence on isolating herself. Again, the question resounds: What happened to Harri Foxx?

When that question is finally answered in the later entries of the book, it’s literally one of the saddest and most terrifying sequences I’ve ever read. I haven’t been able to forget it. But it’s only part of the depth to this book. From hilarious scenes where neighbors argue over dented cars, to this ‘unmentionable event,’ Harri’s diary is well written, witty, terribly sad - and unforgettable.

[Réal Laplaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Diary of Harri Foxx by author Sue Lloyd is a haunting tale, one that strikes a cord deep inside any human being who could become a victim to this dark and ominous beast. It is a tragically sad, and yet, ironically humorous story in some ways, told in the first person by its main character, a middle-aged woman by the name of Harri Foxx who is battling depression after two life-changing events. As one reads, one is drawn forward with an unrelenting desire to find out what happens to Harri and what it is that has shattered her life so badly as to leave her in the maws of deep depression. One cannot help but ask, "Could this ever happen to me?" The dark nature of the story is filled with touches of witticism, enough to salt it with levity. The author elevates the somberness of its theme with prose that graces it to something higher, suggesting that death is not so much about an end, but a new beginning. Such lines as, "My principles from the past often leak forward into my new self in a vain attempt to vanquish the flame of fear that imprinted on my soul." Or, "As the days go on, the visions of the past become faded versions of the original. They're now an old black and white photograph." The story also shows the depth of humanity and empathy of those around Harri who faithfully and tirelessly work to help her battle the storm. The Diary of Harri Foxx is a worthy and touching read.

[Harmony Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book. Harri grabbed hold of me from her first words and didn't let me go even long after finishing this read. She tells her story in the form of a journal and often enters into dialogue with the reader. While it is a difficult read in places, it is also heartwarming and thoroughly entertaining. It takes skill to write a book so strongly slanted from one character like this, from inside her head, and this author has done an admirable job. This is one of my best reads of 2016 and I cannot recommend it highly enough. I shall be checking out Sue Lloyd's other books for sure.

[Blossom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

This book brings to light how quickly mental illness can spiral. I loved the sense of community, showing how good neighbors and friends can be and getting to read it through the perspective of a diary.

[Breanna Eichhorn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Harri lives in a cul de sac with thirteen houses, she lives on the left corner and she is by no means superstitious, but she does believe in fate and karma. Harri gets checked up on by her friend Bobbie as much as time allows. If it wasn't for Trace and Harmony, Harri would starve, they make sure that there is always filled.
Harriett goes by Harri, she is agoraphobic, she lost her husband. Married to Cyril. Bobbie, Trace and Harmony's friend. Bobbie is Married to Titch, could never be a nurse. Cares very deeply about Harri. Trace is Harri's neighbor, Harmony's mother. Harmony is Harri's friend, Trace's daughter.
This is my first book by Sue Lloyd and I can honestly say that this book will not be my last. This book took me awhile to get into but once I did, I couldn't put it down. I loved that I felt very connected to the characters.

[Lexi Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: The Diary of Harri Foxx
Author: Sue Lloyd
5 STARS

My Summary: The Diary of Harri Foxx opens with a warm introduction for Harri Fox sharing private words from her diary. Within a few short moments we meet a few new friends from the cul-de-sac and immediately, like the likes of a reality TV show, intriguing happenings begin to unfold around Harri Foxx. While the world of Harri Foxx marches on, will Harri be able to resolve a challenge that haunts her?

Overall 3 words to describe this novel: Mysterious, Disturbing, and Honest

Have you ever wanted to sneak a peek at someone’s diary? You know, to know exactly what someone is thinking without a mask and deep within their unguarded thoughts. Come on, be honest, because I know that I have. Sue Lloyd invites us behind the curtain into the very layered and challenging life of Harri Foxx.

I found it easy to connect with The Diary of Harri Foxx, especially Harri, from the start because Harri straightaway introduces herself directly to you. The more Harri talked to me the more I felt like one of her friends within the book entrusted with the gift of her friendship. Instantly you realize why everyone likes her and you want to hug her too.

I don’t admit this often—so you are sworn to secrecy with a secret handshake and everything—but I love to indulge in reality TV when it is interesting. You know the kind that grips you and you don’t even realized that time has passed. This book is like that and delivers. It satisfied my nosey streak all while flawlessly telling a really great, intense, and well-thought out story.

Sue puts us at the heart of the story with her clever and bold choice of telling the story from Harri’s direct Point Of View via the diary entries that feel more like conversations. I cannot begin to tell you the dimensions and the depth that it adds to the story from the start until it is finished.

I must say that every word has a purpose and ties the story together. I found Sue Lloyd’s characters to be nicely developed, layered, and people that all of us have met. They range from refreshing, despicable, hot-headed, and humorously blunt. What I loved most about what Sue did with the book is the underlying sense of caring for your neighbor. These people are just people you like and feel are the definition of friendship, love, and a good family even though they are not blood. Their connectivity is beautiful and inspiring.

Back to the story, there is a secret that floats throughout the story that drives the intrigue so fiercely that for me it delivered as a thriller. I kept turning page after page to quench my curiosity. I will not go in detail as far as how it ends, but I will say that I cannot wait to read anything by Sue Lloyd in the future. This book is a truthful look inside Harri’s life: love, rumors, quotes, friendship, and mystery.

I definitely give The Diary of Harri Foxx 5 STARS. This book was well written and most definitely pulls at the heartstrings.

Thank you Sue for writing this eye-opening one because you spoke for Harri in such a way that I will be forever changed by this book.

Lexi Miles

[Marcee Corn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harri Foxx will remain in my heart and mind for a long time to come!

So sad, so soulful, so desperate.

Sometimes, life hands us circumstances that are out of our control. So is the life of Harri Foxx in the Diary of Harri Foxx by Sue Lloyd.

When a terrible tragedy strikes, Harri retreats into her mind and travels into her private world where the only person she allows in is the reader. She permits us access into her intimate thoughts through the words of her heartfelt and very personal diary.

Harri watches the world go by from behind her curtains. And from there the reader meets her caring and loving neighbors and friends.

I was desperate to help Harri and my heart hurt for her. I wanted to be her friend. Which is impossible of course. But because Sue Lloyd beautifully encapsulates the thoughts and mind of this tormented woman in the pages of this soulful book, you really feel that you know her. And because this story is so well written by the author, I became totally amerced and could not put this incredible book down.

This book is at times funny, but overwhelming sad. I laughed and I cried. Sue Lloyd gives us an insightful, true-life story of love and tragedy. I can’t imagine how very difficult Harri’s story was to write, but Ms. Lloyd does so beautifully and with such heart.


We all want ‘happy ever after’ endings in books and in life. Sometimes though, that doesn’t happen. Are we stronger people for experiencing some unhappy endings? I believe so.

Harri Foxx will remain in my mind and heart for a long time to come as it finds its home on my shelf of ‘favorites’. I hope you will read and experience Harri Foxx because this is a story that needs to be felt as well as read.

[Entrada Book Review · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very deep book, dealing with serious subjects. I will not explain its driving event, but within two chapters, any experienced fiction reader will know. I get the impression that the subject is very near to the author’s heart, in one way or another, and I give her credit for writing about it.

The diary form can be difficult to get into, and the mundane feeling of the larger events can be wearing. Some of those events resemble a soap opera, but the story becomes more compelling and you realize that these external conflicts are not the main plot of the story—they are incidental, emphasizing the narrator’s increasing distance from others. The narrator’s depression is a looming presence, like the monster lurking in a horror movie. “I’m hollow” is the constant refrain and it grows more painful all the time.

“The Diary of Harri Fox” is fairly heavy in a certain British dialect that gives the work charm. It is very much a novel about a place and social class. The main character seems a lot older than a woman in her forties, though her condition could contribute to this. One of the last scenes of the book is truly horrific, graphic in painful, roundabout way. This is not something for the faint of heart.

If you want to read a book about a subject rarely touched upon, with the air of horror movie, read “The Diary of Harri Fox.” I wish the author the best, because this must have been intensely painful to write.

[Julie Whitley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story drew me into Harri's world and wouldn't let me go until the last page. My throat is still tight from holding back tears. Harri was a young widow, just beginning to recover from her loss when a horrific violation closed off her world forever. Living with Harri through her last weeks as she wrote in her diary laid bare the unendurable pain she carried. PTSD can be devastating and so hard to understand. The Diary of Harri Foxx most certainly brings light and compassion into the darkness of this subject.

[Judy Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was very interesting. It show that you don't know anything about people that are suffering. I really enjoyed it.
I thank the author for letting me read the book.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review coming soon