If I Never Met You
Ratings73
Average rating3.8
Dnf @ 4%
Look, I won't rate it because I really only read 2 chapters, but wow this writing style is not for me. I'm annoyed with the main character and bored, the pace feels so slow!
Fake dating!? Yes please! A favorite trope to read, when done well, and Mhairi McFarlane did it REALLY well. She actually takes the time and effort to dissect the effects of doing something like this. It's got a psychological toll, it's straight-up lying to people who truly care about you (what is worse than faking it for your parents? Or his? And do you tell your best friends? The more people you tell, the more you risk it all coming out...). The main character's biracial heritage is also tactfully handled, as is the unbearable grief of a breakup you never saw coming—and the rage-inducing revelations of what truly caused it, and what a shit her partner had truly been to her.
I actually liked the love interest, Jamie, from the get go, and enough that despite his comparatively small presence on the page, I found myself siding with him in some of his and Laurie's miscommunication spats. He's got a reputation that he earned, and the more the line between fake and real blurs, the more those preconceived notions become a problem. It's masterfully handled, and I thought truly well done.
However, nearly everything to do with their place of work and the people therein is horrible. I don't mean poorly written or badly done, but just... fucking ridiculous. Sadly I have seen workplaces that behave with similar misogyny and machismo, so I know they actually DO happen, but good lord. The Michaels and Kerrys of this book are the absolute worst, and I surely cannot be the only person who hoped that perhaps Laurie or Jamie would at some point accidently hip-check one of them a little violently by a tall hi-rise window that happened to be poorly affixed to the building. Whoopsiedoodle.
Overall a delightful read, and also, I'm a little salty about the mention of Gregg's there in the middle, because I'm about as far as you can get from a Gregg's geographically speaking, and I have wanted a bacon cheese pasty since I read that line. Damn it all.
There was a moment where the best friend clearly lines out why the whole fake-dating trope is below the protagonist's sense of morals and self-worth and would cause troubles, and I agreed, questioning the whole premises considering the care was taken in setting up the main character. Still, enjoyable, but the ending felt very rushed.
Having a hard time pushing through this. DNF @ 45%
It's pace is so slow, and I'm having trouble following the dialogue. I'm not invested enough to continue
Solid 3 stars. I really enjoyed it but there were two 11th hour conflicts that really annoyed me. I would've preferred if everything went to shit at about the 70% mark and then we get a slower buildup of the couple reconciling and then living happily ever after. Instead we get a massive conflict bomb that drops 4 chapters before the book ends and then everything is hastily tidied up and there's no epilogue. I wanted to see more of Jamie and Laurie living their happily ever after! Their relationship throughout the novel was 95% pinning (which was great) but that left no room for me to see them just being happy together. And we didn't even get a sex scene! I wasn't looking for smut or anything graphic but if the whole book everyone is talking about what a stud Jamie is supposed to be then I would've liked one scene where we actually get to see the bedroom chemistry between Jamie and Laurie! Also, the book has a lot of very British humor and as an American I found a lot of the banter and references were going over my head.
wasted 1.5 hours reading this where i could have read something better?
also i just realized that this book is written by a white author representing a black female character like that is so unnecessary
also, the book is so boring and slow paced. like i get that the author tried to invest us in laurie's previous relationship just as much as she was so we can understand her pain but because of that i no longer cared about the main plot of the book. there was absolutely no chemistry between the main characters in the beginning and that...put me off.
time and time again i am reminded that british authors are not worth my time (maybe except for beth o'leary)
Heel toevallig opgekomen en had zin in een luchtig, romcom achtig iets, maar de flaptekst was toch verrassend misleidend, gezien dit toch vrij zwaar was qua onderwerpen. Dit boek leunt mijns inziens veel meer naar een verhaal over zelfontplooiing dan een zuivere romance.
Ook al was het niet het boek waar ik goesting in had, het hield me wel in zijn greep en ik heb het heel graag gelezen. De opbouw was heel traag en gestaag, het duurt eventjes voor we in de fake boyfriend gedeelte van het boek komen, maar dit stoorde mij totaal niet, gezien het zorgde voor achtergrond en meer voeling met het verhaal en het hoofdpersonage. Er waren een keer geen kieken-zonder-kop beslissing en de communicatie en gesprekken waren van een heel hoog niveau. Ik zal zeker nog van deze auteur lezen!
**I borrowed the digital version of this book through the library's Libby app. I was able to listen to the audio version simultaneously via Scribd. I know I'll be getting a physical copy to keep, though, because I absolutely LOVED this book! I don't want to spoil anything so I'll keep this brief. Sometimes there's too much information in book reviews & descriptions and it ruins the story for anyone who hasn't finished it. I'll conclude this by saying I'd love to read a part 2 for this couple or perhaps a book about Emily getting a HEA. **
This is possibly one of my favourite books of the year so far. I love Laurie and Jamie. I love them together so much. I remember thinking when I read [b:Tiny Imperfections 51918673 Tiny Imperfections Alli Frank https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1565887389l/51918673.SX50_SY75.jpg 71683994] earlier this year that it was a book about a black woman written for a specifically white audience. In that certain things about the black female experience were explained in a way that didn't feel organic to the story's narrative because the author felt they had to be explained to her readers. I didn't get that feeling here. Laurie was a biracial heroine whose experiences weren't erased or even written specifically for people who didn't look like her. This is not to say that her characterisation was absolutely flawless, but rather that this is one of the better characters of colour I have seen written by a non-POC author.I loved the romance aspect but more than that there was so much feminist commentary that was snuck in this book that it was a joy to read. I had several laugh-out-loud moments, along with several heartbreaking ones. In short, this book worked for me on multiple levels. I absolutely loved it.
Really enjoyed this, could tell it was worth a full 4 stars when I realized I needed to finish the last few chapters alone in my room so I could thoroughly appreciate them without any interruptions or distractions. I think I was more invested in Laurie's triumph over the office misogyny and her growing awareness of her self-worth than in the romance, but that had its moments too. Very funny and spot-on observations about relationship dynamics. Plus lots of lovely British-isms! I'm heading back to pick up some more of this author's backlist, she really does stand out above the rest of the Brit Chick Lit pack.
nnWhat the ever-loving hell. I was not expecting this level of storytelling. Such utter wit and writing. I'm still reeling from listening to the audiobook. Wow. This was the first time I had full-bellied laughed as I was listening to a book. And mind you, I was in public half the time and at home with my family thinking I was a lunatic.
And the level of discussion into the psyche of breaking up after a long term relationship was so beautifully explained. But this book does so much more than the breakup and revenge as well as the hinted new romance. It made you grow with the character. Help her understand that she was more than a relationship. Experience self-worth and go through come out with a new level of knowledge that I had never seen explored so well in another breakup revenge story.
Mhairi McFarlane I one of the best contemporary romance writers I have read and that a complement that almost always reads romance exclusively. I was not all about the typical rebound sex and a good banging with the help you get over it. Nor was it the passion of first glance, and the sex was phenomenal, so I happen to fall in love with him. This was full-on emotional storytelling, which is no easy fit. It is commendable. It is also praiseworthy that this freaking book made me love it so much that I would write the longest book I could every write. What the hell.
PS. to those who consumed this book as an audiobook you know that northern accent was so enticing that as I am writing it, I am imagining myself speaking instead of speaking with a northern accent :)
I wanted to write this review while it was still fresh. I love Laurie. And I especially love Laurie's story. I like that all the women she interact feel like real people. I like that there is strong female friendship and even growth. It may be a romance novel, but covers several different kinds of love. I finished this book in the space of an afternoon and it was worth it.
Esse livro parecia não ser um feliz #chicklit e eu tava achando bem estranho. A personagem é bem diferente das outras que li da #mhairimcfarlane: 36 anos, mulher, negra e advogada, no decorrer todo do livro há momentos nos quais a gnt vê com clareza a misoginia, racismo e machismo que ela enfrenta como minoria, de forma geralmente bem calma e assertiva. Mas eis que quando eu estava quase desistindo, ele conseguiu unir à tudo isso o elemento de romance que eu amo: o tal romance fingido que vira verdade ❤ Gol de placa! Amei. This book seemed to be very unlike a regular #chicklit and I was wholly dissatisfied at first. The main character was very different from others I've read from #mhairmcfarlane: 36yo, black, a female lawyer who has to face a lot of racism and sexism throughout the story, and who does that in a very calm and dignified way. But when I was almost giving up on the romance part, the book managed to work on that by showing the evolution of the old “let's pretend we are lovers and then fall in love unexpectedly”. So cute!
Excuse me but I LOVED this book. It was so cute and had some laugh out loud moments. It would make a great Netflix movie too.
One thing though, if you're not familiar with British slang and how they talk in general, some things might be confusing or fly over your head.
Also HELLO BLACK LEAD WOW, WE LOVE TO SEE IT.