I thought this would be a lighthearted read but it’s actually quite dramatic.
Kate and Daniel fly to Turkey attempting to find their friend Andy.
Kate has continuously struck out on love but has a complicated relationship with both Andy and Daniel.
I thought they both enabled Andy too much.
There are serious themes running through the book, but in the end the right people end up together.

If you love an enemies to lovers with forced proximity this is the one. Two enemies go on holiday together for a shared mission. 

The book explored topics such as sexuality and addiction. 

I found that this book could have been condensed and it would have made it more fast paced. However I loved the storyline.

Book: Not in a Million Years by Sophie Ranald
Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Trope: Enemies to lovers, romantic comedy
Publication: 22nd February 2023

I honestly don’t know where to stay apart from saying I think is book is absolutely delightful as well as truly heartfelt. Kate is such a strong force of nature as the main character who is determined to make it on her own and at her terms, although quirky with the endless amount of baking, she is that friend you always want by your side and she truly is amazing. When her friend Andy finds himself is trouble, Kate drops everything to be with her friend but along tags Daniel who is also Andy’s friend and as late quotes her “worst nightmare”.

This book is very relatable and also so very different despite being a rom-com, enemies to lovers. The way the plot was written and the banter and the angst kept me up all night and I finished this book in one single setting. What a fun quick read. 

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC copy.

Not in a Million Years by Sophie Ranald was a miss for me. I love this author and high expectations.  I was hoping for the happy, laugh out loud rom com but it was anything but. The beginning was so entertaining. I did love the characters as their dynamic was enjoyable. After the first few chapters, it turned into a completely different book and was hard to follow and enjoy. Now this might be great for others, but missed the mark for me.

Oh my god, this is a shitshow. I don't know where to begin...

But I will try anyway. First of all, the cover and synopsis suggests a fun enemies-to-lovers romcom - to be fair the book starts just like that, but after a couple of chapters the whole story starts to fall apart. This story is definitely not the one you would expect based on the first few chapters and the light, funny cover.

It would have been nice to put some trigger warnings somewhere, because the book talks A LOT about drug addiction, living with secrets and alcohol problems -- which is everything but fun, in my opinion.

The characters are funny and likable at the beginning, but as the plot progresses, to be frank everyone becomes unlikable as fuck.

And the story is very slow paced as well. I find it important to emphasize it, because I'm a huge fan of the slowburn trope, but this was just such a drag.

As said, the characters became unlikable, our female main character actually is a bitchy narcissist, who seems to hate Daniel for no apparent reason but just for the sake of it. Splendid. Andy, about who the whole plot is circling, behaves like an awful dog with really bad manners, always on the loose. It's actually pathetic and borderline pitiful. 

Some descriptions are too long and most of the dialogues feel unnecessary. 

As cherry on top the shit-cake, sometimes not just the descriptions are unnecessarily prolonged, but it mentions UK-specific things (some metro station game for example), which is absolutely unenjoyable without having a deep knowledge about UK city structures and cultural things.

I definitely won't read anything else from this author because I legit feel misled. One-star.

It is not the light romance the book cover is hinting at.

It starts quite light and funny. Very "Unhoneymooners" vibes. Dynamic between characters promising high entertainment. But then the book took a very different turn from what I was expecting, and I ended up feeling that I read two very different stories in one book. While both narratives intervened, I think they "ate" each other. In the end, it was neither this nor that. Somewhere between pages the romance got lost, and by the end chapters, I was wondering why the heck these two characters would even want to be together.

There are some weighty topics covered in the story. If you are sensitive towards any, I suggest you check out trigger warnings.

I think I had a different idea of what I thought this book was going to be and it ended up being completely different. But I enjoyed my time reading this!

I wouldn’t say this was funny or even darkly humorous. The story is sad, people trying to cope with a loved one living with addiction and secrets. No real humor implied here. Kate wasn’t exactly a catch, but neither was Daniel or Andy. Kates friends seemed to just be fair weather friends to gossip with instead of people who cared about her.

I adored her baking to help her pass hours during her bouts of insomnia and I can relate to the insomnia and I absolutely loved the cats! I'm a cat person, and I love cats in books. Daniel being handy (woodwork) and being a cat man was delightful. 
The Turkish scenes were stunning and I found Ash to be likable.
Kate and Daniel did have some banter but something was missing.

I do think that most (If not all the characters) acted far younger than they were said to be, and I found Kate quite self centered and vain. Her redeeming quality is that she donated the cakes she bakes to a senior citizen community centre.
She's terrified of everything,  but it could be because her job is a risk assessor. 
Andy was not a likeable character, he was mean, definitely selfish and arrogant. There were lots of toxic scenes and situations with addiction ranging from drugs, alcohol and sex ( I count a certain relationship toxic and addictive.)
The enemies to lovers was never fully explained,  how did they get from being friends to enemies? 
This was not the  light hearted romcom I anticipated, and not quite the book for me.

Perfect amount of wit, cuteness and spice! I loved the characters, I loved the story and I truly couldn't put it down!

Firstly, thank you to bookouture and netgalley for this e-ARC. It was such a great little romance, perfect for this time of year 💘

I found myself gravitating towards this book, always wanting to pick it up and it was such an easy read 🤩

I really enjoyed Kate and Daniel’s story, it was an enemies to lovers but with a bit of a difference which was a nice change from the usual 🌷

It was funny, it was spicy, it was everything you’d want from a romance 💕

I was unsure where this book was going at the start and it took a little whilst for me to get into but in the end I really enjoyed it. I wish there was more of Daniel and Kate though, and maybe less of Andy (not a big fan of him 😂).

There seems to be a disconnect in this and Sophie Ranald's last book in what the subject matter is vs. how they are designed and presented. This wasn't what I was expecting, though I liked the insomniac baking scene. I might persist with it but with so many other good options out there, it's likelier that this will be a DNF.

I chose to DNF this book at 10%, because I honestly didn't feel invested in the story. I could also tell that the plot was going to be different than I expected going into it. I'm choosing to give 2 stars just because I like British characters and the friend group dynamic.

The beginning of this started out cute- if not a little long winded. Enemies to lovers is always a fun trope and Daniel and Kate had some good banter and chemistry. I thought I was getting a fun filled enemies to lovers rom-com vacation romp and instead it took a turn in to some darker territory- which is fine, just not what I was expecting or really looking for. The ending felt rushed like perhaps several chapters were condensed down too much. Overall, the book wasn’t what I was expecting, but it was ok. 
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

5 stars for Sophie Ranald's, Not in a Million Years! The ultimate enemy/love story with a twist of how addiction (or rather a friend's addiction) affects all involved differently. It was riveting and a total page turner! I only wish there was more or a follow up to where everyone is today.

The cover and description do not match the story. I thought Not in a Million Years was a light-hearted holiday romance, but it turned out to be something quite different. That said, Ranald has created an interesting character in Kate. She has an impressive job and a good standard of living. When she cannot sleep, she bakes cakes and donates them to a non-profit café to be shared with lonely people. I think she has empathy with the café's clients, because she appears to be very lonely. A lot is made of what wonderful girlfriends Kate has, but they seem distant from her and they mostly communicate through WhatsApp. Kate sleeps around and avoids serious relationships, but she has become fixated on Andy, a drug addicted narcissist, and his best friend Daniel. The plot is mostly about Andy's disappearance and the efforts Kate and Daniel make to rescue him, but Andy is such a despicable character that I could not feel much sympathy for him. Ranald writes dialogue very well, so the parts of the novel which are about being on an enforced holiday with Daniel are relatable and entertaining. However, I feel as if I have read two books spliced together - one a lighthearted comedy and one a dark exploration of the effects of addiction. I was nIot entirely convinced by the ending. Also, I thought the bedroom scene was far too explicit, in view of the way the book is being marketed.

This was so entertaining in the begininning!! I loved the characters, their dynamic and everything! But it just went downhill after the first couple chapters.. Honestly, it to a certain extent it felt like a whole entirely different book after a while!

I went into reading NOT IN A MILLION YEARS thinking it was a laugh-out-loud rom-com, but found the storyline much darker as the story progressed. The author addresses drug and alcohol addiction and how it can affect those closest to the one struggling. I appreciate the author sprinkling in humor and some banter throughout, otherwise it would be quite a heavy read. The relationships among Kate, Daniel and Andy are rather complex and Kate and Daniel's seems to revolve around Andy's addiction, spanning well over a decade.. Luckily, that changes when they gain some understanding of each other and realize they don't really hate each other after all. 

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC.

This book was very different to what I was expecting but in a refreshing way. A classic enemies to lovers trope with dual timelines to establish the relationships between Kate and Andy and Daniel. Rather than just being a fun, cutesy romcom, the story deals with some bigger themes which I feel gave the characters substance and made them more relatable whilst still having a spattering of laugh out loud moments.

Many thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sophie Ranald tackles the aftermath of drug addiction and mental health through the eyes of loved ones in 'Not in a Million Years'.

Single Kate has been in a dry spell for many years, however she's happy with a group of friends (featured in previous Ranald books, such as 'P.S. I Hate You'), and has finally worked her way up the property ladder to buy her dream home.

After her best friend Andy goes missing, she is forced to travel abroad with Andy's other best friend Daniel to find him. Kate and Daniel have an antigonistic relationship as Kate blames Daniel for enabling Andy during his drug addiction where he stole from friends Abbie and Matt (as covered in 'P.S. I Hate You').

Kate is a protagonist who has to go through a huge journey after learning Daniel's point of view regarding her perception of his actions. However the most emotional parts of this book are Kate coming to grips with her relationship with Andy and the how she clinged desperately to a one-sided friendship at the expense of finding herself true love. At times this hits some raw nerves, as who can't relate to clinging onto a friendship or relationship (or murky mixture) out of love, while not facing up to how bad it is for you?

This book is heartbreaking, poignant an ultimately uplifting. Ranald tackles serious issues with care for her characters. 

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC.