Stepping Up: the joyful and emotional Sunday Times bestseller and Richard and Judy Book Club pick 2023. Adored by readers

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Beth is now 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. I would have liked to have known what happens to Emmy, and how their lives continued. I want to know more of Albert and Mavis when they were younger (I loved him!).

The storyline. It was just so well written. The book covers some heavy themes but it was done really well & just felt so heartbreakingly real 💔 It’s a story about grief, family, friendship, working things out and love. It’s incredibly emotional but at the same time a breeze to read.This book is one of the best I've read in a long time! I have never read any of the 'Unmumsy Mum' but Sarah Turner's novel 'Stepping Up' is really fresh and engaging and made me laugh out loud and cry in equal measure. How can a book be both heart-warming and gut-wrenching at the same time? Surely it's impossible to have an impact on several internal organs at once?

STEPPING UP is a heart-blasting triumph of a novel - wise, witty and wonderfully human.' Isabelle Broom, author of A YEAR AND A DAY

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But then an unspeakable tragedy turns her life upside down and she finds herself guardian to her teenage niece and toddler nephew. She's out of her depth and everyone's expecting her to fail, but with the stakes so high and people relying on her for the first time in her life she has to step up rather than give up.

I loved the characters, so likeable and full of life. Beth was absolutely wonderful throughout, she made me laugh and she also made me just want to give her a great big hug. I feel like so many people could relate to her one way or another. She was great throughout, dealt with the difficult moments with her niece, Polly, so very well. There was also a mysterious theme throughout that I enjoyed because it added a unique flair to the story✨ Life is full of unexpected challenges but Beth has always avoided anything resembling responsibility. That is until the unthinkable happens. Emmy, Beth's sister and her husband Doug have been in a tragic car accident and it's time for Beth to step up. Overnight Beth becomes guardian for her teenage niece and toddler nephew and her own mother is hellbent on reminding her of her own shortcomings. Is this a step too far for notoriously flighty Beth? After all, up until now the only commitment she's ever held down is Friday drinks at the village pub.

As a parent, it was difficult to read about Ted and Polly as they grieved for their parents, and I struggled in some parts to carry on. (I would definitely recommend a box of tissues) With her trademark wit and natural flair for a story, Sarah Turner has proved to her thousands of followers (and herself) that she absolutely belongs in the commercial fiction world. I cannot wait to see her novel-writing career unfold. After graduating with first-class honours in Philosophy from The University of Exeter, she dabbled in careers in finance then higher education before a ‘warts and all’ parenting blog she’d started to let off steam gathered unexpected momentum and writing became her full-time job.