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A review by theespressoedition
If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This could have been really cute if it hadn't taken forever. A contemporary romance audiobook usually takes me 4 days maximum to listen to - sometimes I can breeze through one in a day. This took me nearly a week... and it was almost entirely because I was bored out of my mind and had no desire to listen!
1) I had a really hard time understanding the narrator. I realize that's 100% to do with the fact that I am American and do not at all understand the slang or phrases that were in the book, but the narrator spoke them so quickly (even when I slowed down the audio) that I couldn't understand what they were referring to. This leads me to think if I was actually reading the physical book, I would've been just as confused.
2) It was a fake dating trope, which I freaking love! Buuuut there was very little chemistry between the characters and there was such a slow burn that never led anywhere? I mean, there was no steam or anything... despite a "sharing the bed" moment and plenty of other opportunities for something really romantic or spicy. It felt like a letdown.
3) There was a ton of additional information that felt unnecessary. Work politics and drama - but not just for the sake of the plot: entire scenes of just coworkers talking about nonsense. It felt forced for the sake of adding substance to the book. But it took away from the story.
Overall, I desperately wanted more from this. The concept was cute but the overall product fell short. Bummer.
1) I had a really hard time understanding the narrator. I realize that's 100% to do with the fact that I am American and do not at all understand the slang or phrases that were in the book, but the narrator spoke them so quickly (even when I slowed down the audio) that I couldn't understand what they were referring to. This leads me to think if I was actually reading the physical book, I would've been just as confused.
2) It was a fake dating trope, which I freaking love! Buuuut there was very little chemistry between the characters and there was such a slow burn that never led anywhere? I mean, there was no steam or anything... despite a "sharing the bed" moment and plenty of other opportunities for something really romantic or spicy. It felt like a letdown.
3) There was a ton of additional information that felt unnecessary. Work politics and drama - but not just for the sake of the plot: entire scenes of just coworkers talking about nonsense. It felt forced for the sake of adding substance to the book. But it took away from the story.
Overall, I desperately wanted more from this. The concept was cute but the overall product fell short. Bummer.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Minor: Racism