Well hello to you my reader chums! I’ve seen the book ‘My Policeman’ everywhere especially as it was made into a film last year and I wanted to see what the hype was about.

If you’re looking for a book about forbidden love, here’s my full review of My Policeman by Bethan Roberts.

Set in 1950s Brighton, the plot follows Marion when she first meets Tom and is completely smitten, convinced their love will be enough for both of them. A few years later, Patrick meets Tom and is in awe of him straight away. Tom is their policeman and in the time of the 1950s, it’s safer for Tom to marry Marion. The two lovers have to share him until someone breaks and their lives are destroyed.

The plot is told from Marion's and Patrick’s perspectives, flipping between the two helping you understand their true feelings.

Marion is a strong-willed woman with set opinions and an intelligent mind, and I love her attitude. Working as a school teacher and with the ambition to thrive in her career, she’s already defying the odds of what a woman should be like in the 1950s. Her love for Tom is precious, endearing and obsessive. She falls in love with him from the first minute she sees him and it grows with time as she develops into a woman. I enjoyed how Marion describes her everyday life including her relationship with honesty, making her more relatable and likeable as a character.

Patrick is a unique character with a sophisticated flare and an obsessive attitude toward love. He’s an artist and has that stereotypical personality of a creative, liking the finer things in life, and being cultured in the way of art, opera, literature and music. His prestigious personality is intriguing with the need and wants to understand him better. Patrick is also brave, sticking to being who he is in a time when such things are forbidden.

Tom as a character is misunderstood, and weighed down by caring more for others' opinions than living a life he knows he truly wants, even if it’s forbidden. He’s loyal with a hard-working attitude and needs to impress those around him. My heart went out to Tom as I could see how much he would have loved to live his truth and couldn’t.

The relationships in this book are intense for different reasons. Marion and Tom’s because essentially, it’s a lie. Marion’s love carries that relationship and she adores every inch of him that her desperation hides Tom’s true feelings. Patrick and Tom’s relationship, on the other hand, are mutually passionate and obsessive, however, Patrick more than Tom in a sense, is more open to the risky side of their being together. Patrick and Marion’s relationship grows to be intense once she understands what’s really going on.

Overall, I liked this book and can see why it’s raved about by many. Initially, it took me a while to get into it and understand whose perspective was being told. However, once I was hooked on the characters and their story, I was intrigued and also saddened. It’s heartbreaking reading a story of forbidden love due to societal views in what seems to be a modern time.

The book overall is eye-opening, heartbreaking and insightful of what love can mean in a time when it isn’t allowed to be expressed.

As the book went on, I wasn’t exactly sure how it was going to end, there weren’t any hints or expectations. However, the ending to the book was a content one, with a heartbreaking feel like the rest of the novel.

I hope you enjoyed this review. What are you currently reading?

Thank you for reading <3