the hand that first held mine - Maggie O'Farrel

I've finished this book 2 hours ago, and it's already slipping away. Yet i think it's going to stay with me for long, in half tones, close by but inprecise, like an image, a dream. I love Maggie O'Farrel. And yet once again, i haven't been disappointed, not one second through this book.
I bought it last summer, knowing that she would be at Edinburgh's festival - i was hoping to get my copy signed, just like i did for "the vanishing act of Esme Lennox". But it turned out that my friend Danielle decided to get married the day of Maggie O'Farrel's reading at the book festival - so i offered the book and my tickets to the reading to my good friend and ex flatmate Fiona, as she's as much a fan as i am.
And ever since, i have wanted to read this book without doing anything about it. This is therefore the first book that i've bought in an ebook format. And the first book in english that i've read on my new kindle.
Soon enough the season of the "firsts" will be gone, so i'm milking it.
This is all about Ted, and all about motherhood, and all about being a woman, and all about memories, and all about... so much. Of course, in my current broody state, it has hit home like it couldn't have a few years back.
Maggie O'Farrel is so good at painting a story, well 2 stories actually, inter-twinning them untill they reach their unity, untill of course, it was all linked, all one, and all the clues here and there suddenly make sense. But it's not one of those "suspense story", where nothing is clear untill the end, and going through the reading is only worth it because the end is in sight. It's way more than that, the journey of the reading is great, the end just adds this "wow, i knew it !" feeling that stays for a while once the last page was turned.
Elina and Ted, the baby, Innes and Lexie, Felix. How do you choose the names of your characters ? How do you make them seem at the same time totally original yet fitting so well to each other ? How do you take a whole month to name the baby ?

Note for later: re-read and enjoy, and find the clues. There are more than i can remember, i'm sure. Read well what happens to Ted, all those weird bits. Make the links. And enjoy again.