The Girl I Was Before

By: Izzy Bayliss

Narrated by: Aoife McMahon

When Lily McDermott walks in to find her husband of just three months in bed with a famous actress, life as she knows it is over. Lily thinks things can't get any worse when she sees photos of her husband and his new lover splashed across the glossy magazine pages, but when she loses her job, too, she is at her lowest ebb and turns to baking to soothe her soul. 

Wounded and broken, she has to try to pick herself up again with the help of her best friend, Frankie. With her encouragement, Lily decides to turn her hobby into a business and sets up Baked with Love. However, whatever Lily does, it seems disaster soon ensues....

When a handsome stranger comes to her rescue, Lily isn't quite ready to turn her back on her marriage. Can she risk opening her heart again, or is she destined to allow Marc to overshadow her life forever?

©2016 Izzy Bayliss (P)2018 W. F. Howes Ltd

Good narration

The main character, Lily, was the most spineless pushover female character ever. I groaned every time she failed to stand up for herself. It was hard to listen to.

Loved the story

I really liked this story. I found it because I had listened to The Cormac Reilly Series by Dervla McTiernan which was narrated by Aoife McMahon as well. I really enjoyed her narration so I searched for other books she has narrated. I came across this one and gave it a try. Turned out to be a great story! At first I was getting frustrated with the main character but then grew to like her. You just feel for her so much! And of course, The narration was fantastic 👏

Too much whining

I thought I could get through this story. But the first 6-7 chapters are just someone whining and crying over and over. I kept thinking she would move on…

The FMC made me lose my patience too much

Lily is sweet but she’s such a pushover and there’s hardly any character development to make her more likable TO ME. It’s not a dish to the author or anything like that, just this wasn’t for me.

Pushover

It took till 1 hr 43 mins left in the book for Lilly to finally stand up to her sister, and then it was short lived. I liked the narrator but it was hard listening to Lilly doubt herself and let everyone treat her badly throughout the whole story.