by Allison Winn Scotch
Published August 1, 2020
328 pages
I highly recommend this book. A fun fast read as well as a serious book with something interesting to say.
Editors often say to prospective authors, “Send me something different – but the same”. This book fits that description. The story is fresh and new but has enough familiar elements to appeal to a wide range of readers.
The main character is feisty but likable. She’s an ambitious senator running for president as a single mother with a few skeletons in her closet. The campaign is going well until a childhood friend writes an op-ed with just seven words, “Cleo McDougal is not a good person”. The piece goes viral and threatens to derail Cleo’s plans for the future.
After being quoted as ‘having no regrets’ Cleo’s chief of staff learns that she actually has a written list of regrets, currently at 233 and counting. She persuades Cleo to use the top ten regrets as part of a media ploy to make amends and repair her reputation.
Cleo’s top regrets involve decisions and actions that have broken important relationships in her life. As she makes peace with her past, she becomes more empowered to take on the world than ever before.