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lujisa's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Car accident, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Chronic illness and Pregnancy
danajoy's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
3.5 stars. Would've been a happy 4 because I was really enjoying the style of this book up until the final act conflict. The way it all came about really soured this book for me. It all resolved too quickly and I still had heaps of unanswered questions.
I would recommend prospective readers to go into this expecting finding yourself women's fiction over a romance. It's essentially the story of Laurie, 36-year-old lawyer from Manchester, being left by her partner of 18 years and having to reevaluate everything. She is a very flawed character and is really juvenile in regards to romance. I think I forgave how flippant and critical she was of the novel's love interest because this is about her and her personal hang-ups. She wasn't entirely open to experiencing the feelings that for basically her whole adulthood had been reserved for Dan, so she would just doubt them straight away. The whole fake dating plot is ridiculous and benefits her in only self-sabotaging and petty ways. Its an immature call but she doesn't have any experience of breakups from 18+ (we don't even know if she dated at all as a teenager) so she reverts to the dramatic revenge plots we see in cheesy adolescent films.
I found Jamie wonderful, open and kind although he is pretty absent overall considering his status as the love interest.
I was infuriated that the story ends with them deciding to rush into getting married. I like that they're going all in and that sooner rather than later means his dad can be there. However, where do they stand on babies? He said absolutely not and she claimed 50/50 and yet always discussed children as something she was actively interested in. She was planning to go off contraception, she mentioned wanting kids since childhood. This sort of thing was NEVER discussed by the couple again. Also, Laurie claimed to love Jamie and yet had no trust in him. She thought he was a womanizer, which he kept trying to refute, and she never listened to him and got jealous every time he spoke to another woman. He would be genuine with her and then she would separate the vulnerable and caring side of him from the public persona and talk about him like he was a sleaze. It felt like he fell for her and she was in lust with him.
I would recommend prospective readers to go into this expecting finding yourself women's fiction over a romance. It's essentially the story of Laurie, 36-year-old lawyer from Manchester, being left by her partner of 18 years and having to reevaluate everything. She is a very flawed character and is really juvenile in regards to romance. I think I forgave how flippant and critical she was of the novel's love interest because this is about her and her personal hang-ups. She wasn't entirely open to experiencing the feelings that for basically her whole adulthood had been reserved for Dan, so she would just doubt them straight away. The whole fake dating plot is ridiculous and benefits her in only self-sabotaging and petty ways. Its an immature call but she doesn't have any experience of breakups from 18+ (we don't even know if she dated at all as a teenager) so she reverts to the dramatic revenge plots we see in cheesy adolescent films.
I found Jamie wonderful, open and kind although he is pretty absent overall considering his status as the love interest.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Infidelity, and Sexism
Minor: Car accident and Pedophilia
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