Review: What Was Mine

Lucy is desperate to have a baby.  So desperate, it broke up her marriage.  Her ex-husband gets remarried and has children of his own, so the problem is obviously Lucy.  She considers using a sperm donor but her sister convinces her that’s a bad idea and, as a single mother, she’s unable to adopt.  She’s ready, though – she even has a nursery in her home.

One day when she’s out shopping, Lucy sees a baby unattended in a shopping cart and can’t resist the urge to take her.  At first she can’t believe what she’s done and tries to figure out a way to return the baby she’s named Mia but, after a while, she concocts a web full of lies and raises her as her own.   Her lies eventually catch up with her and Lucy is forced to come to terms with them.

What Was Mine by Helen Klein Ross is an engrossing read!  It’s easy to understand Lucy’s desire for a child but it’s hard to understand her solution to it.  Ross writes her character in such a way, though, that it’s easy to empathize with her.  She acts rashly, only thinking of herself, but it’s done out of love rather than hate.

What really made this book unique is the fact that it’s told from multiple points of view, including Lucy, her ex-husband, Mia’s biological mother, Mia’s nanny, and Mia herself, giving readers a great overview of the story.  The writing and character development are terrific and I was hooked on this book from the start.  If you enjoy women’s fiction, you’ll want to pick this book up!

The audio version of What Was Mine is read by a full cast including Cassandra Cambell, Julia Whelan, Amanda Carlin, Rebekkah Ross, and Jonathan Todd Ross.  I thought they all did a terrific job and I never had trouble keeping track of the characters.

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