Zara and Jim lived in two separate worlds until.....Zara packed up her life and impulsively moves to Liverpool for a man she's never met in person.  She's lived all over the world but her most recent stop at her father's house in Dubai didn't feel like home.  Jim's lived a small life and when he wins a BMW, he's thrilled.  He's got plans to sell the car and use the proceeds for, well lot of things.  When these two crash into one another, all their plans change.  You can guess where this is going to go but that's ok because Doyle has written some great characters (not just these two but also others who pop in and out) you will root for.  She's a good storyteller.  Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.  Pick this one to take your mind off current events!

I would like to thank Avon for sending me a copy of the book (including props) and to be apart of the blog tour.  
I was  intrigued by the blurb on the back and excited by the cover which is really lovely. This story follows two people who meet by chance, fate brings them together but at the same time keeps them apart. Each chapter is told by either Zara or Jim and by alternating between the two you gain a real insight into what each character is thinking which is integral to the story and is written in such a way that the words just flow and you cannot help but be brought into the story as it unfolds.
Zara believes in love, despite unsuccessful relationships and a difficult upbringing and makes an epic decision to move from Dubai to Liverpool to be with the one she loves. Jim on the other hand is stuck in a rut after loosing his dad and has lost himself, his life hasn't planned out how he wanted it to but things change and a chain of events leads to these two meeting and an epic journey begins. 
Jim and Zara are brilliant characters and I really enjoyed getting to know them, both are different but at the same time the same and it makes for a really interesting read.  So many emotions fly out at you during this epic read, I found myself laughing one minute then shaking the book in frustration to crying. Just what you want in a heart warming and beautifully real love story.  
I would love to hear more from these two characters.

I’d like to thank Avon Books UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Never Saw You Coming’ by Hayley Doyle in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

When Zara Khoury leaves her home in Dubai to travel to Liverpool in search of love little does she realise that a collision between her aging Peugeot and Jim Glover’s brand new BMW is going to result in an unexpected romance.    

‘Never Saw You Coming’ has been well-written with likeable characters and an interesting plot but I got the impression it was for a younger reader than myself and I found it difficult to get into.  It won’t stop me looking for another novel by this author but I’m afraid this one just wasn’t for me.

After reading so many high reviews, I feel bad for not enjoying it more. "Never Saw You Coming" was just not for me.

"Never Saw You Coming" focuses on Zara and Jim, two unlikable characters that don't have much chemistry with each other. Zara and Jim are pushed together in increasingly unlikely situations-their actions with each other don't really make sense since neither of them are doing much more than small talk. Zara constantly wonders why Jim is acting bi-polar and gets frustrated that he does not open up to her at all. Jim mentions how annoying Zara is by talking about herself and making stupid choices. Zara instantly falls in love with every man she meets. So boom. Romance. I just didn't get it and felt that these two characters didn't really make much sense. 

I did give this book two stars because I found the secondary characters cute. They were about as believable as the romance, but they were fun to read.

This has been tagged as an "unlikely" romance. As most of the book takes place in one day, I agree that it is unlikely. On a positive note, it is an easy and short read. Thank you Avon Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

25% of the way in and I really don't care about either character or what happens to them. There is a lot of information that is bogging the plot down and secondary characters that I couldn't care less about. 

I am not connecting to the writing style at all which is making this feel like a chore to get through. This is unfortunately going to be a DNF for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Down to earth and downright funny. Jim is a train wreck waiting to happen but he’s just so human and made me laugh. The story is light hearted and so easy to read. I loved our two main characters; stumbling through a day of utter chaos. 
It just felt like the sort of thing that could happen between two young people trying to find their way in life and maybe not even aware of that fact. 
Maybe the story was telling us to reach out and grab what we want from life and to be open to change. As perhaps, what we think we want might not be what we want after all. At least, not yet. 
Great story. Loved it.

I really enjoyed this heartwarming tale, full of memorable characters. The descriptions of both Liverpool and Dubai make me want to visit as they are both beautifully described. Would make a brilliant film.

I couldn’t love this book more! Super quick read, mainly because you’re desperate to see what’s coming next. Highly recommend

I really wanted to like this but it’s a huge disservice to list this originally as a romance when it is clearly women’s fiction. They’ve since changed it. I’m sure those who enjoy women’s fiction will like this story. But for a romance reader to get to an ending like that - I’m so disappointed.

I just finished Never Saw You Coming by Hayley Doyle and I loved it. 

Jim & Zara are two completely different people on two completely different paths in life. When they bump (literally) into each other their lives become entwined for a short amount of time that changes everything.

This book had so many little twists and turns I didn't expect - it was a hell of a ride! Amazing, 4* from me, well written, well paced, great story and great characters - all of them! 

I would love a book 2 of this as I feel like I could follow these characters forever!

This book is fantastic! I couldn’t get enough.

This was a story I never saw coming, but I’m so glad I read it. The story is so engaging, and I was so in love with every single moment. Zara is wonderful and I just adore all of the wonderful moments in this story. It made me laugh and made me cry. I love this story so badly, and I can’t wait to delve more into the writing of Hayley Doyle. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon Books UK. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book made me smile and gave me the 'feel good factor'. This is a love story with a twist. It explores many different relationships between family and friends.  You need to enjoy the ride....I did!

An engaging nearly-romance.

I'm not quite sure how to categorise this book. I wouldn't call it an out and out romance, and the character Jim is a big enough presence that it's not women's fic/chick-lit. Commercial fiction generally - hmm, not sure it has the weight. Okay, that aside, what's it about?

Dubai-resident Zara travels to Liverpool to see the man she loves (and has been in a virtual relationship with for months), only to find that the life she envisaged doesn't even exist.

Scouser Jim is living in a rut, working in a toll booth and generally down on his luck. Briefly, that changes when he wins a flashy car on the radio - until someone called Zara smashes into him.

They change the course of each other's life. At first they're immensely wound up by one another, but Zara needs help getting to the airport and Jim, busy life aside, is a good sort who wants to help. Or at least feels obliged to assist.

Hijinks ensue.

This is a tale of getting to know each other and working out what you really want in life. There's no falling in love in chapter two and then figuring out their internal conflicts. Instead they battle their conflict as they're getting to know each other, figuring out if they mean anything to each other, and what, if anything, they should do with that. Depending on your expectations, it could be a little frustrating.

But the characters are well-drawn which helps you enjoy their journey. I'm from Merseyside and so familiar with Liverpool and I enjoyed Jim traipsing around the city. Made me feel at home!

This was a nice easy read modern romance book, which I enjoyed.  I could picture the main characters Zara and Jim in my minds eye quite clearly from the beginning of the story.  I wished the story would move on a little quicker, but overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who wants something light hearted to read.

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for the ARC in exchange of an honest review. 
This book was a little slower getting going and the accent was hard to get at first but once I got into it I enjoyed it. 
It was a cute book about missed opportunities and love and finding where we belong.

A story told from two perspectives with two entirely different people. Zara is a butterfly – flitting from one place to another and currently moving from Dubai to Liverpool to surprise her ‘long-term internet boyfriend’ for his birthday.  Jim is born and bred in Liverpool, never left and even with his degree is stagnant and working at the toll booths and living above a chip shop. The only one of his parents three children to stay nearby, he watches out for his mother, spends time with his friends, works and reads. Always with a book to hand.  Both are searching for something: Jim to make life easier for his mother, hoping to get her to America to meet her grandchildren and spend time with her daughters. Zara is looking for love. A series of bad choices, a tendency to overthink, and being shuffled from place to place since childhood left her rootless and feeling invisible. Dubai and the Ex-Pat community is great for a party, but she’s got no real, solid friendships or ties.  Believing that Nick in Liverpool was her “one” she packs everything, arranges to buy a little car on landing at Heathrow, and heads off. 

This was an interesting tale as we get to know both Jim and Zara through their own retelling of their concerns, histories, and the point where their lives collide, literally and they are thrown together for a journey of a few days, many miles and plenty of time to talk, think and perhaps even form a connection.  Both are desperately seeking something: with world-views and perspectives that are miles apart, they couldn’t be more different: but there’s something in Jim that settles Zara: she feels cared about, if not always comfortably.  And Jim’s natural go-to is pessimism: not expecting much and therefore not seeking it.  Together the two find revelations about themselves that were always there, but unseen, and until circumstances tear them apart, a connection that both will think on for a while. 

Forcing yourself out of your comfort zone and pushing beyond the fears and insecurities is the upshot of the story: with Zara returning to Liverpool to find Jim whilst Jim has (with much pressure from friends) headed to Dubai to find her brings the story to an unexpected twist, not the ‘happily ever after’ that Zara sought from day one, and not quite the ‘stagnant and same old” life that Jim knew – providing opportunity for more and left to the reader’s imagination.  One moment, a chance circumstance and a few hours of together managed to change two lives in ways unexpected – and made for an intriguing read that had you empathizing with the characters, cheering them on and wanting them to find “it all”.  A very promising start for a new author – sure to bring many loyal readers to her corner. 

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility. 

Review first appeared at <a href=” https://wp.me/p3OmRo-aER/”> <a> I am, Indeed </a>

✨Never Saw You Coming by Hayley Doyle✨

I had no idea what to expect from this book. My thoughts going into it was that it was just going to be a nice generic romcom but it definitely wasn’t generic. It really took me by surprise with how much I enjoyed it and where the story went too.

Here is a little bit from the blurb...
✨”Zara Khoury believes in love – so much so that she flies from Dubai to Liverpool to be with a man she barely knows. It’s a risk, but she’s certain that uprooting her life for Nick is the new start she needs. 
Jim Glover is stuck. Since his Dad died, he’s put his dreams aside and stayed at home in Liverpool to care for his mum. Trapped in a dead-end job, he’s going nowhere – that is, until he gets a phone call that just might change his life.. Zara and Jim aren’t supposed to meet. But then fate steps in, and when their worlds – and cars! – collide, the real journey begins…”✨ I really, really felt connected to these characters, especially Jim. Anyone from Liverpool real or fictional I’m always all in for anyway but Jim was just a really fantastic character.

If you read my review yesterday of the movie I posted about, you’ll have saw that I said my favourite stories are ones that involve two people walking around a city, well this is two people driving around a city. Same idea and works just as good. 
I felt this was a lot different to other romcom type books i read and to be honest I can’t put my finger on why but I think it was probably to with it feeling realistic. The author Hayley does such a great job at painting two characters in a way that makes me feel like they are real, their decisions feel authentic to what would happen in real life and the scenario, as strange as it may seem at first, feels like it could, given the right circumstances happen in real life too.

I have A LOT of thoughts about the ending, so I need y’all to read it so I can then discuss it without giving spoilers 😂

This really is a great book and I got so invested in it, I think it’s going to be one that really connects with people this year too!

It’s out on April 2nd and it’s only 99p on kindle preorder right now ✨
Advanced copy from NetGalley

A light hearted fun read. Jim wins a car and Zara comes to Blighty to be with Nick and turns out not to be the person she thought. Set in Liverpool, this is a good read. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me review this book.

Thank you to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really wanted to like this book. The premise was good, the characters were well-drawn - although I found myself intensely disliking Zara at various points throughout - but it was just too slow and too long for what it was.  I think my problem stemmed from the fact that I liked the two main characters more as individuals than as a potential couple. I did like the ending, which was a pleasant surprise, but felt the story could have been told in a lot less time/pages.

My favourite type of story is a love story and this is certainly that when Zara travels all the way to Liverpool from Dubai which is a long way to go to meet what you think is the love of your life. But all is not what it seems with Nick. A chance meeting with Jim however is dramatic and to watch their friendship blossom through the chapters of this book has been such a pleasure. It’s definitely not a smooth journey for both Zara and Jim as they are polar opposites but what do they say about opposites attracting!? 

I loved how the story was told by both Zara and Jim and the alternating chapters between these characters are lovely. It has been hilarious to meet Jim’s mates who only have his best interests at heart. They are there for him when he needs them. The same though can’t be said for Zara where she doesn’t feel like she belongs anywhere. 

What a great debut by an author which I’m going to keep my eye on for Hayley’s future work. Her writing is so easy to get lost in from the very first page. ‘Never Saw You Coming’ is a story about friendship and about never giving up on what you want in life ❤️ I give ‘Never Saw You Coming’ 4*/5* 😊

Thank you to Avon for an advanced copy of this book via Netgalley.