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jnordgren's review against another edition
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
mbos's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-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? Yes
4.75
karenadamson's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.0
meggie82461's review
5.0
✨Five enthusiastic stars!!✨
This is an excellent book. It is extremely funny and also so very sad, and let’s be honest: I’m a sucker for stories that take my emotions on a roller coaster ride. They have to be done right, of course, but when they are, it’s a beautiful thing. And this one? Definitely perfect. I’m only mad that I’ll never be able to read it for the first time again. (Fair warning: this is a very British book. I had to read the first two chapters twice to really get into the flow of things, because I had to look up a few words. But after that, I couldn’t put it down. Honestly, I have two kids under 2, so it really means something that I stayed up late to finish this).
We are told the story from Evelyn’s POV. She is 34 and in a tight-knit friend group that has lasted 16 years and includes herself, Ed, Justin, and Susie. Eve is also in love with Ed and has been all along. Ed has been with his girlfriend Hester all along, too. One night, everything changes. Evelyn is dealt a huge blow… which is nothing in comparison to what happens just a couple hours later. The rest of the book deals with the fallout from this night. It is filled with tragedy and grief, but also friendship as well as secrets and betrayal. And yes, there is romance, it just happens when and where you’d least expect it. And with whom you’d least expect it, of course. (Well, with whom Evelyn least expected it. I was cheering for him all along!)
I’m going to be honest: at first, I didn’t love Evelyn. She came across as… well, she came across as pathetic. I couldn’t wrap my head around pining for someone for 16 goddam years! She wasted such a good chunk of her life on Ed, and all because of a misunderstanding from when they were high schoolers. I just wanted to shake her and tell her “He has had 16 years to choose you, yet HE. NEVER. HAS. He just throws you bread crumbs along the way to keep you close!” But, oh my gosh, the GROWTH of Evelyn was really something amazing. She really did the work to push through her grief and discover that someone doesn’t have to be perfect to be worthy of love. Evelyn lived in a bit of a fairy-tale world before the rug was yanked out from under her, and I could sympathize with that.
As far as the friends, who were main characters as well: Susie was interesting, Justin was hilarious, and Ed was the definition of The Nice Guy. I did not like Ed, but I will admit that he did redeem himself a bit. Which is the point of the story, really: none of us are perfect. We all make mistakes, every single day. And almost all of the time, we don’t mean to hurt our loved ones. And betrayal hurts, of course, but why does it always matter so much more than the years of good things a person has done for us? Why is the hurt so much more important than the joy, the unconditional love? The truth is, most of the time, we won’t get answers for why someone hurt us because the person probably doesn’t know why they themselves did it. Sometimes there is no answer, and that’s okay. There isn’t a rule that someone has to be perfect to love them, after all.
This is an excellent book. It is extremely funny and also so very sad, and let’s be honest: I’m a sucker for stories that take my emotions on a roller coaster ride. They have to be done right, of course, but when they are, it’s a beautiful thing. And this one? Definitely perfect. I’m only mad that I’ll never be able to read it for the first time again. (Fair warning: this is a very British book. I had to read the first two chapters twice to really get into the flow of things, because I had to look up a few words. But after that, I couldn’t put it down. Honestly, I have two kids under 2, so it really means something that I stayed up late to finish this).
We are told the story from Evelyn’s POV. She is 34 and in a tight-knit friend group that has lasted 16 years and includes herself, Ed, Justin, and Susie. Eve is also in love with Ed and has been all along. Ed has been with his girlfriend Hester all along, too. One night, everything changes. Evelyn is dealt a huge blow… which is nothing in comparison to what happens just a couple hours later. The rest of the book deals with the fallout from this night. It is filled with tragedy and grief, but also friendship as well as secrets and betrayal. And yes, there is romance, it just happens when and where you’d least expect it. And with whom you’d least expect it, of course. (Well, with whom Evelyn least expected it. I was cheering for him all along!)
I’m going to be honest: at first, I didn’t love Evelyn. She came across as… well, she came across as pathetic. I couldn’t wrap my head around pining for someone for 16 goddam years! She wasted such a good chunk of her life on Ed, and all because of a misunderstanding from when they were high schoolers. I just wanted to shake her and tell her “He has had 16 years to choose you, yet HE. NEVER. HAS. He just throws you bread crumbs along the way to keep you close!” But, oh my gosh, the GROWTH of Evelyn was really something amazing. She really did the work to push through her grief and discover that someone doesn’t have to be perfect to be worthy of love. Evelyn lived in a bit of a fairy-tale world before the rug was yanked out from under her, and I could sympathize with that.
As far as the friends, who were main characters as well: Susie was interesting, Justin was hilarious, and Ed was the definition of The Nice Guy. I did not like Ed, but I will admit that he did redeem himself a bit. Which is the point of the story, really: none of us are perfect. We all make mistakes, every single day. And almost all of the time, we don’t mean to hurt our loved ones. And betrayal hurts, of course, but why does it always matter so much more than the years of good things a person has done for us? Why is the hurt so much more important than the joy, the unconditional love? The truth is, most of the time, we won’t get answers for why someone hurt us because the person probably doesn’t know why they themselves did it. Sometimes there is no answer, and that’s okay. There isn’t a rule that someone has to be perfect to love them, after all.
bookmel's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
fast-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? No
5.0
michellechien930's review against another edition
5.0
I thought about Just Last Night a lot after reading it, read through the quotes again and again and decided to give it 5 stars. It is definitely my favorite Mhairi McFarlane novel to date, and I've read most of her books. Just Last Night is categorized as romance, but romance takes a backseat to all of the issues that the author discusses thoughtfully: grief, loss, friendship and love. I felt like the relationship between the four characters was fragile and touching, mostly the friendship between Eve and Susie, the messy triangle between Ed, Eve, and Susie. I thought mostly about Ed and Eve, their supposed unrequited love, soulmates that would eventually end up together, and the self-projected romanticism that doesn't amount to anything. When I was a teenager, I was obsessed with books like Love Rosie, One Day and Something Borrowed, where the two best friends are in love for years and find their way back to each other. All of the main characters in these books are in relationships with other people, but they purposely hurt these people for their supposed grandeur love for each other that transcends all else. It's now that I see clearly how hurtful, how selfish this is, and Ed exemplifies this:
"We were each other’s soulmate, separated by circumstance. The truth is, you didn’t choose me. That’s it.” I shrug. “That’s the whole story of Ed Cooper and Evelyn Harris. You didn’t want me enough, when choosing me became harder. You didn’t even risk a phone call, or wait a term, to check why I didn’t write back."
I felt like Just Last Night was more truthful than any other books depicting this sort of relationship, more nuanced in its description of the jealousy between friends, the kind of love that is taken for granted, and the kind that is earned. Really really loved this book, it spoke to my heart.
"We were each other’s soulmate, separated by circumstance. The truth is, you didn’t choose me. That’s it.” I shrug. “That’s the whole story of Ed Cooper and Evelyn Harris. You didn’t want me enough, when choosing me became harder. You didn’t even risk a phone call, or wait a term, to check why I didn’t write back."
I felt like Just Last Night was more truthful than any other books depicting this sort of relationship, more nuanced in its description of the jealousy between friends, the kind of love that is taken for granted, and the kind that is earned. Really really loved this book, it spoke to my heart.
jaxness's review against another edition
5.0
"There's shock and then there's grief, and there's the simple tiring unending chore of life afterwards. These are all different things, I've learned. "
chloeamcmahon's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
cadeyladey's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
melmar's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0