Pivot it the second novel by British author, Laura Lexx. At fifty-eight, Jackie Douglas is stunned when, after over thirty years of happy marriage, Steve packs a bag and leaves her for someone else. And while her best friend, Rosalyn Mackie is immediately and unfailingly there with support, distractions and encouragement, Jackie is disturbed to realise that her whole life revolved around being a wife.

Her adult sons don’t really need her, and her sweet little granddaughter is fully occupied. But Ros has plenty of ideas. They soon discover that golf is not for them, nor spectating at the rugby, but their regular evenings at their local, The Hawk are always enjoyable, and Ros’s antics bring them to the attention of the young barmaid, Jay, whose London redundancy and return to her childhood home have left her feeling a failure.

It's almost by chance: a mandatory staff health initiative at Ros’s work and a derogatory comment by Steve see Jackie, Ros and Jay scraping together their own netball team. They have the bare minimum, no reserves, and only a few of them actually know how to play. And they’ve attracted the attentions of a local journalist, a bully Jay would rather avoid.

It turns out not to matter that their team, the Hidden Skids loses their first game by a huge margin: just having played gives them a thrill, and they are determined to keep going, for various reasons that include spiting an ex or a bully, getting a break from the kids, having something of their own, and saving the local netball courts from being built over.

But months on, Jackie still avoiding the divorce papers, instead distracting herself with new young friends on their team, somewhat to the chagrin of her friend of forty years. And while she’s not sure she welcomes the attentions of a certain single gent of her own vintage, Ros encourages her encounters with the lovely Duncan.

Lexx gives the reader a tale with plenty of humour that also touches on some interesting themes: life after a break-up, happiness as a single, childless woman, realising your parents are not a static unit but two individuals, as well as love, loyalty, jealousy and friendship. She gives her characters some wise and insightful words: “You’re the main character in your own story so you feel integral to everything.”

Lexx has a talent for character description; larger-than-life Ros almost jumps off the page: “smart, rich, forceful and proactive… Ros was pretty used to being the trailblazer in any group of women because she was in her fifties, a business owner, happily childless and single.”

“A few sips and she’d be telling you an anecdote so entertaining and engrossing that it wasn’t until the end of the story that you realised you were actually there when the event happened and didn’t recognise it because of the extra colours she added to the narrative.”

While the novel’s hilarious opening scene certainly draws the reader in, this is by no means a singular occurrence: the snappy dialogue, coupled with Jackie’s self-deprecating inner monologue and Ros’s whacky ideas, guarantee that virtually every page is entertaining.

Ros’s often comical, slightly erroneous expressions are an added bonus: “can’t even begin to put myself in a mile of your shoes”, “More’s the pity party!”, “Mustn’t jump the gunge”, “before you can say Open Sesame Street”, “It’s not the end of the whirl” and “dire strait-talking from your best friend” are examples.

The reader may think they know exactly where the story is going, but there are a few twists and surprises to keep it interesting. A very enjoyable read.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and John Murray Press.