A review by kaulhilo
The No-Show by Beth O'Leary

5.0

so i've been, very rudely, told i don't review books enough. which is fine, i love constructive criticism. i love it even more if i have a carrot to fling at your head while you give it to me.

so, the no-show; i honestly don't really know what to say about the book, i know i read it yesterday but well: brain overwhelmed, no thoughts, just awe.
the premise of this book sounds typical enough, if a little enticing; some guy maybe(?) standing up 3(!) of his girlfriends because..? he has a fourth girlfriend? he's rushing from one date to another so he's late? he forgot what time to show up to each date? all the dates are at the same time, and he had a meltdown deciding which one to show up to? there was a lot of guesswork going into starting this book, and i was excited about all of it: i really wanted to know how the author would take a presumably irredeemable situation, and turn it into romance, with again, a presumed happy ending.
i think i've read all of beth o'leary's work; her first, the flatshare was nice enough on its own- yet her others have never quite felt up to the mark for me. her last, the road trip left me hugely disappointed, and honestly a little angry, there's justification for ill humor sometimes in rom-com books, but tasteless and maybe ignorant humor will always fall short. i think it would be safe to say i wasn't expecting much starting the the no-show then, for obvious reasons.

and yet, this book surprised me pleasantly and warmly. it had characters you couldn't help but love and root for, even if sometimes rooting for one felt very much like a betrayal to another; they were real, and so properly fleshed out, and their situations that made me reread several paragraphs and pages at least twice, simply to absorb it all. this was a book that, the second i finished, i wanted to go back and reread; to soak up everything i had "missed" the first time. the plot, while predictable, had that edge when you know something's about to happen, but you're waiting with bated breath for it to happen anyway. i think, if not for the mystery, o'leary definitely deserves something for this book, in terms of an excellent (and excellently executed) plot concept. there were moments where i cried (like really, clutching my pillow, big tears sort of cried) and moments where i was so giddily happy, so unbelievably happy it felt like believing in love all over again. (barring spoilers, the ending for this book.. might be my favorite book ending, purely for sentimental reasons!)

it's emotional, it's invoking, it's about the second chances in life and how to accept them unflinchingly and truly if we're lucky enough to get them. it's about accepting yourself, and what you deserve, and more than anything: trusting yourself before you trust anyone else. this is beth o'leary at her finest (for me), and i'm so glad i got to read this book because of it. i won't be lying if i say i've had some (favorite) books that go poof from my mind in a few months or years; i'll look back on a "read" book sometimes, and i'll have no idea what it's about. but the the no-show in, all its ingenuity and creativity, it's heartbreaking-ness and tenderness, is if nothing else, completely unforgettable.

thank you to berkley for the arc.