Stepping Up

**Featured on BBC Radio 4 A Good Read** 
 
'Written with such love and heart. Sarah has done an exceptional job of marrying her trademark comedy with deep and raw emotion. I loved it!' GIOVANNA FLETCHER 
 
FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE UNMUMSY MUM 
 
Beth has never stuck at anything. 
 
She's quit more jobs and relationships than she can remember and she still sleeps in her childhood bedroom. It's not that she hasn't tried to grow up, it's just that so far, the only commitment she's held down is Friday drinks at the village pub. 
 
Then, in the space of a morning, her world changes. 
 
An unspeakable tragedy turns Beth's life upside down, and she finds herself guardian to her teenage niece and toddler nephew, catapulted into an unfamiliar world of bedtime stories, parents' evenings and cuddly elephants. Having never been responsible for anyone - or anything - it's not long before she feels seriously out of her depth. 
 
What if she's simply not up to the job? 
 
With a little help from her best friend Jory (purely platonic, of course ...) and her lovely, lonely next-door neighbour, Albert, Beth is determined that this time she's not giving up. It's time to step up. 
 
This is a story about digging deep for strength you never knew you had and finding magic in things that were there all along. 
 
'STEPPING UP is a heart-blasting triumph of a novel - wise, witty and wonderfully human.' Isabelle Broom 
 
'Stop EVERYTHING and read this! Funny, tender and beautifully observed. Loved, loved, LOVED it!' Cathy Bramley 
 
'A moving and beautifully-told tale of parenthood but not as you know it. I just loved it.' Gillian McAllister 
 
Early readers love STEPPING UP! 
 
***** 'Simply excellent . . . A true emotional rollercoaster.' 
 
***** 'It had me laughing out loud, on a bus no less, crying and laughing. This book is a tonic! I read it in one go. I was rooting for Beth the whole way through!!' 
 
***** 'An emotional rollercoaster to keep you turning the pages. . .Perfect for curling up with; perfect for a bedtime read; perfect for a book group; just perfect.' 
 
***** 'This book needs all the stars! It made me laugh, it made me cry and I just want to start it all over again.' 
 
***** 'Funny, heartbreaking and totally relatable, it makes you feel all the feels!'

Humour and heart are everywhere in this book, and I went from laughter to tears in the turn of a page. Wise, joyful and very, very funny - this is a book to devour, a book to share and a book to savour. I loved it

Katie Marsh, author of UNBREAK YOUR HEART

Stop EVERYTHING and read this! Funny, tender and beautifully observed. Loved, loved, LOVED it!

Heartwarming and heartbreaking. Full of warmth and Turner's perceptive parenting humour. This is a book that will break your heart and make you fall in love all at once! 

Katy Colins, author of THE BEST IS YET TO COME

What a fantastic read - it had me in tears! This book grabbed me by the heartstrings and didn't let go! It has it all - warmth, humour and brilliant observations on love, life and loss. An emotional rollercoaster of a read and one that is well worth taking!

Stepping Up is a heart-blasting triumph of a novel - wise, witty and wonderfully human.

Funny and sad, and everything in between. It had me hooked from the first page. A brilliant book, and one that I'd definitely recommend!

Written with such love and heart. Sarah has done an exceptional job of marrying her trademark comedy with deep and raw emotion. I loved it!

A moving and beautifully-told tale of parenthood but not as you know it. I just loved it.

A glorious novel about family, grief, changing expectations and, ultimately, love

Sarah Turner lives in Devon with her husband, three sons and Frank the cat. 
 
 After graduating with first-class honours in Philosophy from the University of Exeter, she dabbled in careers in finance and higher education before a ‘warts and all’ parenting blog she’d started in order to let off steam gathered unexpected momentum and writing became her full-time job. 
 
 She has since written four Sunday Times bestsellers: The Unmumsy Mum, The Unmumsy Mum Diary, The Unmumsy Mum A-Z and her first novel, Stepping Up, which was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick in 2023. 
 
 Sarah likes bookshops, walks along the river and watching her boys play football. She doesn’t like parking, films with sharks in or writing about herself in the third person. 
 
 You can follow Sarah’s reading, writing and parenting adventures on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@theunmumsymum).

'Stop EVERYTHING and read this! Funny, tender and beautifully observed. Loved, loved, LOVED it!' Cathy Bramley, Sunday Times bestselling author 
 
Beth has never stuck at anything. 
 
She's quit more jobs and relationships than she can remember and she still sleeps in her childhood bedroom. It's not that she hasn't tried to grow up, it's just that so far, the only commitment she's held down is Friday drinks at the village pub. 
 
Then, in the space of a morning, her world changes. 
 
An unspeakable tragedy turns Beth's life upside down, and she finds herself guardian to her teenage niece and toddler nephew, catapulted into an unfamiliar world of bedtime stories, parents' evenings and cuddly elephants. Having never been responsible for anyone - or anything - it's not long before she feels seriously out of her depth. 
 
What if she's simply not up to the job? 
 
With a little help from her best friend Jory (purely platonic, of course ...) and her lovely, lonely next-door neighbour, Albert, Beth is determined that this time she's not giving up. It's time to step up. 
 
This is a story about digging deep for strength you never knew you had and finding magic in things that were there all along.

Sarah Turner

Sarah writes so well and creates characters that jump off the page, and On The Edge had me laughing and crying in all the best ways

Clare Mackintosh, bestselling author of THE LAST PARTY

On The Edge is warm, funny and truthful about the complexities of families. It’s bursting with positivity, and full of characters the reader can root for. Sarah is great at observing the detail of what makes relationships tick, and how the smallest things can have the biggest impact.

Sarah Turner writes family like no one else. With her trademark humour and insight, Turner creates a colourful world of family secrets and misunderstandings, of arguments and avoidance, while also revealing the love that lies beneath. On the Edge is a funny, pacy, big-hearted love letter to family, about accepting our roots and opening our hearts to the people who know us better than we know ourselves. It made me laugh, swear, gasp and cry and the ending is so compelling I hid in the garage to finish it. I loved it.

A warm, wise, hug of a novel, I adored it and will be recommending it to all my friends

One of the most beautifully tender and brilliantly funny books I’ve read. I felt I made friends from the first page. Sarah is a real talent in the women’s fiction genre and goes from strength to strength

On the Edge is a clever, riotous and funny story about reconciliations and self-discovery. With standout characterisation and lively humour, this had me hooked from the very first page.

Hazel Prior, bestselling author of AWAY WITH THE PENGUINS

A warm, witty read which I devoured in a few days. Sarah writes so well about family and family dynamics, by the end I felt I was part of this one, and was sorry to say goodbye to the characters

Sophie Cousens, bestselling author of THIS TIME NEXT YEAR

A family drama that mixes humour and poignancy

Good Housekeeping, 'Best Books to Take on Holiday’

The author of The Unmumsy Mum always writes with such humour.

Sarah Turner is pure joy . . . On the Edge is [a] laugh out loud novel that creeps up on you, until you're invested and feeling all the feels

What a brilliant storyteller Sarah is . . . as well as laughing out loud, I also cried A LOT

Jennie Godfrey, bestselling author of THE LIST OF SUSPICIOUS THINGS

You'll burst with laughter and cry in equal measure . . . It's wonderful!

Sometimes, in order to move forward, you need to go back. 
 
Joni’s always felt like an outsider in her blended family, and as an adult she’s done all she can to avoid them. The only person she’s remained close to is her beloved Nana. 
When Nana dies, she leaves behind something unexpected: an itinerary of pre-arranged activities for the whole family to complete over the course of a week. After years of trying but failing to bring Joni back into the fold, this appears to be Nana’s parting shot. After all, nothing says ‘family bonding’ quite like abseiling and ballroom dancing. 
With marriage and kids on the horizon, the life Joni’s always dreamed of is finally within touching distance. The last thing she wants to do is revisit the past. 
But Joni’s about to discover that a lot can happen in seven days. Nana’s Week of Fun is about to change everything…

Sarah Turner

Praise for On The Edge

Sarah writes so well and creates characters that jump off the page, and On The Edge had me laughing and crying in all the best ways

On The Edge is warm, funny and truthful about the complexities of families. It’s bursting with positivity, and full of characters the reader can root for. Sarah is great at observing the detail of what makes ...

Sarah Turner writes family like no one else. With her trademark humour and insight, Turner creates a colourful world of family secrets and misunderstandings, of arguments and avoidance, while also revealing the love ...

Sarah writes so well and creates characters that jump off the page, and On The Edge had me laughing and crying in all the best ways

On The Edge is warm, funny and truthful about the complexities of families. It’s bursting with positivity, and full of characters the reader can root for. Sarah is great at observing the detail of what makes ...

Sarah Turner writes family like no one else. With her trademark humour and insight, Turner creates a colourful world of family secrets and misunderstandings, of arguments and avoidance, while also revealing the love ...

Sarah writes so well and creates characters that jump off the page, and On The Edge had me laughing and crying in all the best ways

On The Edge is warm, funny and truthful about the complexities of families. It’s bursting with positivity, and full of characters the reader can root for. Sarah is great at observing the detail of what makes ...

Sarah Turner writes family like no one else. With her trademark humour and insight, Turner creates a colourful world of family secrets and misunderstandings, of arguments and avoidance, while also revealing the love ...

Books by Sarah Turner

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