Love Forms

A Novel

By: Claire Adam

Narrated by: Melanie La Barrie

BOOKER PRIZE LONGLIST • “A vibrant, heartstrings-tugging novel” (People) about a mother’s love, in all its forms, as a woman searches for the daughter she gave up for adoption, from the prize-winning author of Golden Child

“A beautiful story . . . explores what it means to be a woman and what it means to love.”—Amanda Peters, author of The Berry Pickers

“Reads like a Claire Keegan story expanded by Elizabeth Strout.”—The Times, “Best Books to Take on Holiday This Summer”

AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

For much of her life, Dawn has felt as if something is missing. Now, at the age of fifty-eight, with a divorce behind her and her two grown-up sons busy with their own lives, she should be trying to settle into a new future for herself. But she keeps returning to the past and to the secret she’s kept all these years. At just sixteen, Dawn found herself pregnant, and—as was common in Trinidad back then—her parents sent her away to have the baby and give her up for adoption.

More than forty years later, Dawn yearns to reconnect with her lost daughter. But tracking down her child is not as easy as she had thought. It’s an emotional journey that leads Dawn to retrace her steps—from Trinidad to Venezuela and then to London—and to question not only that fateful decision she’d made as a teenager but every turn in the road of her life since.

Love Forms is a powerfully moving story of a woman in search of herself—a novel that rings with heartfelt empathy through the passages of a mother’s life, depicting the enduring bonds of love, family, and home.

5 stars to the narrator

I thought this book was fantastic. The author is a great storyteller but the icing on the cake was the narrator. In fact, I don’t know that the book would’ve been the same without her telling the story.

Real Sweet Listening Experience

I listened to Love Forms on Audible, narrated by the phenomenal Melanie La Barrie, and she truly elevated the entire experience. Melanie brought every bit of Claire Adam’s written dialogue to life with an authentic Trinidadian accent, effortlessly distinguishing the voices of both the Caribbean and English characters. It felt like I was right there, hearing the rhythms of home and the nuances of each character’s world. Honestly, the narration added a whole new layer of depth, making the story even more immersive. If you’re considering this book, I’d highly recommend the audiobook edition. It’s a five-star listening experience for sure.

Heart wrenching and beautiful.

Beautifully written story of how early decisions can follow us through life, and profoundly affect us.