#TimeWillTell by @EvaJordanWriter | #BookReview | @urbanebooks

‘You’ll be fine,
in time,
and I’ll be right behind you…’

[ About the Book ]

Writer, Lizzie Lemalf, and her loving but somewhat dysfunctional family are still grieving over the loss of a much-loved family member. Lizzie is doing her best to keep her family together but why does the recent death of a well-known celebrity have them all in a spin? The police suspect foul play; Lizzie and other family members suspect one another.

Lizzie begins searching for answers only to find herself being dragged back to the past, to 1960’s London to be exact, and to the former life of her father, that up until now she has never been privy to. Every family has its secrets but how can the past hold the key to a present-day celebrity death?

They say the past comes back to haunt you.

Surely the truth will out? Maybe, but only time will tell…

[ My Review ]

Time Will Tell is the third and final book in this wonderful family saga by Eva Jordan. Published by Urbane Publications, Time Will Tell is like reuniting with an old friend, except in this case it is the fictional, but truly inspirational, Lizzie Lemalf. Having read book two, All The Colours In Between I was really excited to find out what happened next to Lizzie and her delightfully dysfunctional and charming family.

It’s Christmas afternoon in the Lemalf home when breaking news arrives on their doorstep. Hunter Black, music impresario, is dead. Cassie, Lizzie’s daughter, is unable to put into words her thoughts about this shocking news. Her feelings toward this man are extremely dark as he was responsible for putting Cassie through some terrible times, with the aftershock of those years still very prevalent today. As the family try to come together to understand this news better, the reader is taken on the most incredible journey, one that started in 1945, the day that Salocin Lemalf, Lizzie’s Dad, was born in London’s East End.

Eva Jordan paints the most amazing description of those years, grabbing the reader with the most captivating narrative of a cinematic quality. The naming of Salocin Lemalf is an example of the natural wit of the writing…picture the scene…

‘Martha, an avid reader with ideas above her station wanted to call him Nicolas. Wilf was having none of it. As long as there was a breath in his body, no son of his would be burdened with such a “pansy, poofter, shirt lifter” of a name. As a joke, Martha simply turned the letters around and convinced her ignorant husband that the name Salocin was synonymous with that of a great ancient warrior.
‘He’s in all of the ‘istory books’, she said. Surely you’ve heard of him?’
Wilf accepted this story and much to Martha’s eternal amusement. their second son was christened Salocin Lemalf or, when spelled backwards, Nicolas Flamel, the name of the famous alchemist supposed to have discovered both how to turn base metals into gold and the secret to immortality.’

Salocin and his older brother, Teddy, survived their youth relatively unscathed but in no part due to their parents, Martha and Wilf. The relationship between the two siblings was cemented in those early years as they looked out for each other and grew into young men. With money very tight, both did whatever was necessary to get by. In time Salocin married Ellie and Teddy married Marie, the two girls being best friends, and together they all faced some very difficult challenges over the years.

Time Will Tell seamlessly moves between the past and present, with Eva Jordan expertly weaving the back story into the tale. All the different characters of Lizzie’s family have a story to tell and at no point does this feel confusing or overwhelming, which is an absolute credit to the writing style of Eva Jordan.

Lizzie Lemalf and her family continue to face challenges as their lives pull them all in, what to appears to be, very different directions but there is a strong theme of strength and loyalty throughout, as they constantly have each other’s backs. The Lemalf family are quite delightfully flawed in many ways with a mix of different generations, in-laws, friends and neighbours all adding to the sense of chaos that abides. There is a sense of belonging with all of them, a sense that though they have many mountains to climb, they will always face it head on and together.

Time Will Tell is a gloriously captivating tale of the darker side of London’s East End in the 60s and 70s, with very vivid portrayals of some of the more unsavoury characters that crossed the paths of Salocin and his family. We journey with Lizzie, in the present day, as the truth of her past is slowly revealed over the many chapters. Her emotions are remarkably captured as, at times, her life seems to crumble at her feet. Eva Jordan has taken the lives of these ordinary people and created a fascinating, and extraordinary tale.

Time Will Tell is a wonderfully depicted story, capturing every emotion, every little detail of the lives of this remarkable family. There is an honesty to this book, an authenticity, reading like a memoir, as opposed to fiction. Full of Eva Jordan’s trademark wit and warmth Time Will Tell is a very touching finale to the lives and loves of the fascinating and lovable Lemalf family.

I will leave you with the words of Salocin Lemalf,
“It’s not a life, it’s an adventure”