Reviews with content warning for Sexism - If I Never Met You

Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane

30 reviews

writtenontheflyleaves's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted 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

3.5

If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane 💼
🌟🌟🌟✨
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🥀 The plot: When Laurie’s boyfriend of 18 years breaks up with her, it feels like her life is over, and to make matters worse, they still have to work together. But when a lift breaks down and traps her with the office lothario, Jamie, the two hatch a plan: fake a relationship to help her get her ex back and him get ahead in the firm. What could go wrong?
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Listen, I LOVE the fake dating trope. It’s a classic for a reason! The most charged moments in any rom com are always those sudden jolts of intimacy that make you question where you stand, and fake dating makes those obligatory from the get-go. However, this one didn’t quiiiite stick the landing for me.
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To start with the stuff I loved: a lot of the relationships and social scenarios in this book felt so real. The breakup in particular was painful because it was so lifelike - I was internally screaming at Laurie’s ex that he was a wanker while also understanding why he was being one. The way sexism played out in a competitive office also felt very well-observed, albeit kicked up to a melodramatic note at points. I didn’t think there was a lot of romantic tension building up as I was reading, but for most of the book I didn’t care because I identified so much with Laurie and was so invested in her life!
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However, as I got closer to the end, it started to nosedive a bit. Jamie’s love for Laurie came a little out of the blue. I couldn’t really feel them FALLING, you know? And that’s half the fun! It felt rushed, with the dialogue doing a lot of heavy lifting to move the narrative along, and the sharp 180 that Jamie does at the end of the novel didn’t make sense to me. Things fall apart so spectacularly and then just rapidly reassemble. It felt messy!
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❤️‍🩹 Read it if you’re not super bothered about a romance, but are looking for a sharp, funny story about healing from heartbreak, that’s set in the UK but not in London!! Huzzah!
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🚫 Avoid it if you’re looking for a sexy romance (whether tension or sex scenes, there’s none of the latter and imo little of the former) - Laurie’s growth is the star of this book, rather than the love story.

Content Warnings

teacupsandfirereads's review against another edition

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hopeful lighthearted reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

This story was very slow as well as the book being much longer than it needed to be. Take it as you will. I just felt so meh about this book, but somehow got through it. Really, most of it was a big eye roll and a laugh. I wouldn't be able to tll you much about it, which I wish I could. The stereotypes felt strong in this one. Also the trope of fake relationship was underdeveloped and surface level. But others really seemed to enjoy it. So was most likely just not for me.

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zombiezami's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted 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

4.5

This book was written in a charming way. I typically hate the third act conflict in romance novels since you always know they're going to end up together in the end, but I actually thought it was well-done here. I also thought it was a good choice to just focus on one protagonist's perspective. The book was predictable, but in a comforting way.

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samkcs's review against another edition

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lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

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

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danajoy's review against another edition

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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.

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kates_books's review against another edition

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slow-paced

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

2.0

Honestly 2 stars feel generous. I absolutely LOVE romcoms and was excited to read this one but it was so slow and dull. I'm happy to read cliche romances but this one fell so flat. It felt like the author had a list of tropes she wanted to include and was just checking them off that list without really fitting them into the plot.

(Spoiler and next sentence may be triggering) For example, her dad's negligence as a child almost lead to her being molested by a pedophile and the only outcome from this was her being comforted by the love interest and played a small (!!!) part in her decision to end her relationship with her father eventually. And there was the scene when the love interest saves the day when this guy passes out from cutting his arm.

Like it wasn't relevant AT ALL! Not only that, but these trope-y cliche scenes didn't even add any spice or drama or excitement or swoon-worthy moments. Additionally, I feel like the author was trying to include a message about female friendships which I usually LOVE having in books but it wasn't developed enough and her best friend didn't feel like a complex enough character. Moreover, the main character also at times felt unlikable and didn't seem to have the highest EQ. There was some character growth but not really.

ALSO at the end the love interests decide to get married and it is done so flippantly, does not fit either of the characters' personalities, and was so boring even though that should have been the feeling of "wow happily ever after"

. Finally, the main character is a Black woman and the author is not. I am all for having diverse characters, but it definitely did not feel authentic nor did I always feel like it was a great story of representation. It had the cliche "Oh where are you ~really~ from" and "can I touch your hair" moments but didn't go deeper than that, even though these micro-aggressions were something that main character seemed to struggle with. Overall, that aspect just felt very surface-level. All in all, it was a very disappointing read and I kept waiting for something to kick in, but it never happened. Ok, rant over.

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drewlessard's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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aliceloyallaleon's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Amazing book. Modern and diverse. I loved how the main character was mixed race and it showed her experience of micro aggression. Also loved how the character was in her mid thirties and a successful woman! Male characters are flawed and I liked how it showed men could be vulnerable too.

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nemaria's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

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reocalabra's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

Content Warnings

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