Reviews

I loved this. I don’t typically read contemporary fiction/romance so I was pleasantly surprised by how easily I moved through this one! The writing was witty and emotional. The characters were funny, imperfect and vivid.

As others have mentioned, however, it felt less like a romance and more like a complicated exploration of a millennial friend group (with some romance peppered in)

toriestories06's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

rainey_'s review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad tense

5.0

klsy's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

jg34's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

5.0

I most definitely judged this book by its cover. I had heard of Mhairi McFarlane and based on the context and later seeing she has written many books all with cartoon covers, I came to the conclusion that she must write mindless lighthearted romance books. That is what I was in the mood for when I picked this book out but I got way more than I bargained for!

Yes this book ultimately was a romance (very good one at that) but it was much deeper than that. It was a journey of grief and how to navigate life after tragedy and what happens when you learn secrets that change how you see those closest to you. It was poignant and honest. But also very funny!

The main character Eve is what you could call ‘quirky’ but there is a line between unbearably and embarrassingly quirky vs just a bit silly. Eve is the second. Each character in this book had layers and it was so interesting watching everyone interact and learn and grow.

And the romance! So good. I don’t want to give too much away but the way these two character banter and handle each others grief with such grace and brutal honesty was what made me fall in love with this. We love mature adults, no silly miscommunication or anything here. Also no spice! Which I usually prefer an under-seasoned romance myself but idk why I really expected there would be, I guess because I thought this would be more like a Tessa Bailey romance book. It was not do not let the cartoon cover fool you!

I also loved how well everything concluded. There is always room for some ambiguity but I felt every loose end that was important got tied off by the end which is so pleasing. Specifically I really really liked Eve getting to tell another character exactly how she felt after she had been mistreated for years. Maybe it went too well to a point where it was unrealistic but it felt very cathartic to me it’s really refreshing getting to see a character spell out exactly how she feels and for it to be a conversation not a fight. Like I said we are mature adults here!!

Maybe the 5 star rating which I rarely give out is in part due to my admittedly low expectations being blown out of the water, but I stand by it. This was a great book.

Content Warnings

emmybell17's review against another edition

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emotional fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes

4.5

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