Review: The Idea of You by Robinne Lee

EVERYONE IN THE WORLD KNOWS HIS NAME.

BUT IT'S YOU HE WANTS.

At thirty-nine, Solène Marchand is a devoted mother, a dedicated colleague and a considerate ex-wife.

But it's a long time since she's felt like herself.

So when someone comes along who seems to see her - to want her - for who she really is, the attraction is instant. And so begins a jet-setting, earth-shattering secret love affair.

But what if that someone is world-famous sex symbol Hayes Campbell? Captivating frontman of boy band of the moment August Moon - whose face is everywhere. Including Solène's teenage daughter's bedroom wall.

Can Solène allow herself to fall for the boy the whole world wants?

Or will she have to make a devastating choice?

A pop star in his prime and a divorcée mother approaching forty. An all consuming love affair. When Solene Marchand takes her teenage daughter and friends to a meet and greet concert with their idols, British boyband August Moon, she has no idea how that evening with alter the course of her life. When Hayes Campbell, the ‘pin up’ member of the band shows an interest in her she laughs it off. But as the sparks begin to fly and he starts pursuing not only a fling but a full blown relationship with her she doesn’t know what to think. She can’t allow herself to fall for a guy half her age. Can she?

As you may have gathered from the description, there is no mistaking the fact that August Moon bear a striking resemblance to the most famous British boyband of recent years. Hayes even has the curly dark hair and dimples of its most famous member. But once I got past this I was completely swept away in Solene’s story. The romance, the excitement, the exotic locations. (To anyone who’s missing their holidays abroad this year this is definitely a book for you!) Beneath the glamour and sparkling banter lies a constant thread of tension. The threat of what happens when Solene and Hayes’ relationship leaves the hotel rooms and enters the real world. The stark reality of an older woman with a younger, very eligible, man in the media spotlight. 

I feel like the issue of the age-gap will be perceived very differently by readers depending on their own age, and will prove a really interesting point of debate. Personally, I fall exactly between Hayes and Solene age wise, and whilst I felt a little uncomfortable with their relationship at first I soon berated myself for feeling this way. As Hayes says in the book, if the genders were reversed no one would bat an eyelid. Plenty of ageing rockstars and actors have wives half their age, and yet an older woman is branded a cougar, a cradle snatcher taking advantage of an innocent boy. This story just goes to show how wrong, and damaging public perceptions can be.

On the surface a hot summer beach read, The Idea of You is a compelling, thought provoking story. I couldn’t put it down!