Beth Bailey thought she and her husband were working through the problems in their marriage. Simon, however, was wondering whether they even had a future together. When Simon starts an affair with the alluring Harriet, suddenly there’s no way back. Beth and Simon’s adorable and highly imaginative children are caught up in their parent’s fighting and find their own creative solutions to some of the family’s problems…

Love Lose Live is a window on divorce and family breakdown in our time. It is the mad, sad, bad and hilarious story of the Bailey family’s separation. We witness the grief, but also the recovery and moving on to new lives.

In a thought-provoking Afterword, Mary Banham-Hall explains with clarity and insight the different stages of loss and grief which follow separation. As a highly experienced family lawyer and mediator, she advocates resolution processes which focus on the needs of the whole family.

‘I have read every word of the book and greatly enjoyed it. Mary has an ear well attuned to natural dialogue. The book exposes much more than the downward spiral of a failed relationship. There is, for example, a very sensitive portrayal of the feelings of the children. There is also an acute analysis of the development of the wife’s affair; the wait for its ultimate consummation is - well almost - as frustrating for the reader as it is for the boyfriend. [It is a] wonderful advertisement for family mediation.’

Lord Wilson, Justice of the UK Supreme Court

‘A rather racy tale of a marriage on the rocks in the spirit of Joanna Trollope.’

Helen Rumbelow, The Times