Thanks to NetGalley and Text Publishing for the chance to read an advance copy of this book.

This book is a charming rom-com that has a mix of some familiar tropes--heroine has lots of horrible dates on her way to finding The One, heroine has a big makeover, heroine is taking a new lease on life--and some updates to what you'd usually see in, say, a Hollywood movie. Our heroine is bi and coming out of a long-term relationship with a woman. She has sexual encounters with many different people throughout the book. We learn about her past traumas (content notes at the bottom of this review). And she is not pining for The One, but rather embarking on a pleasure quest of getting all the joy she can out of the places she goes, food she eats, and people she meets. It's pretty cool.

I did take a while to warm up to this book, even if I related hard to the first line about panicking that you forgot what day it was so you didn't put the garbage out. Noni starts out by randomly looking for people to sleep with, regardless of whether there was any physical spark or emotional connection, and I didn't understand where she was coming from and found this hard to read,. In particular, looking up someone from your past, talking to him and discovering that not only are you not attracted to him at all, but he's a terrible person saying off-handedly racist things, and Noni sleeps with him anyway...that was rough. There is also an encounter that comes off as kind of kink-shamey and could have just been reframed as more of a communication issue and talking about things instead of jumping immediately into something and almost treating each other like objects. (This gets subverted later, as Noni and this person have another encounter that involves a lot more discussion and communication).

However, once Noni leaves Australia and starts her world travels you can really sink into the escapism and her travels are very charming and fun to read along. There's jazz clubs, tattoo parlors, boudoir photography, hot men and women, and all kinds of romantic comedy goodness (the end is like trope bingo and I love it).

I found this to be a fun read with a likeable heroine...once I got past some chapters I didn't really like, as mentioned above. Unfortunately, that was around 25%, so you won't see it from the sample, but if you want to read about a 36-year-old heroine living her best life on a 6-month pleasure tour in the UK, buying herself nice lingerie and having a boudoir shoot and saying "Yes" to everything, give this book a try.

Content notes are backstory rather than plot: infertility and miscarriage

This was around a 4.25/4.5 star read so I'm rounding up to the higher number. The story was so well-written: Noni Blake has an amazing character voice that really draws you in her (mis)adventures. I laughed so much while reading it! I don't read a lot of romance but this one was very fun, so I'd love to read some more from the genre and the author. The thing I loved the most is the fact that the story avoids the old cliché of the insecure person (because Noni is very insecure) gaining confidence because she is in a relationship. I also loved the emphasis on Noni's friendships, which see just as important to the narrative as her romantic and sexual experiences

Premise sounded great, exactly like the fun, easy-read, romantic comedy that I was hoping for. However I found myself losing interest in the story and I couldn't connect with the main character much either. Unfortunately, it was not like I had hoped (left me wanting more romance) and was just an 'okay' kind of read for me,
Thanks for allowing me a copy of this ARC to review!

This book looked like a fun romcom with a bisexual lead and it didn’t let me down! I’m an absolute sucker for books that feature Australian characters and books that feature fat leads so I knew going in that this was the book for me. The characters were really enjoyable and the pace was just right, there was no point where I felt it was too fast or too slow. It’s not a favourite but it was an enjoyable read!

Witty, fast-paced, and laugh-out loud funny. I loved following along Noni's journey with learning how to completely love and accept herself. It's steamy, funny, memorable, and I think anyone reading this will find themselves enamored with the characters. I'd love to read more by Claire Christian!

After eighteen months of heartache Noni needs to jump back into her life. Deciding to take a six month sabbatical for work to travel around Europe on a “pleasure quest” seems like the perfect idea.

This is a steamy, feel good, hilarious, heartbreaking novel. It certainly was a pleasure to read... now where do I find Beau?’

Sometimes you just want to read a great easy book that makes you smile! This, my friends, is that book!
It is sexy as hell, and had me chuckling to myself in so many parts, and I loved every character along for the ride - even Callum!
Just a super fun read with a lovely theme of just grabbing life with both hands and doing what makes you happy!
I absolutely loved it!
It sure has been a pleasure, Noni Blake!

Thank you to NetGalley and MIRA for the ARC of this book.

This was a fun, relatable, empowering read. The characters are lovely (well, most of them), there's a fun trip across the UK, and it's great to follow Noni's self-love journey. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I know this is a personal preference, but there's just way too much sex happening for me. By like the fourth hookup, I started to skim those scenes because they added nothing to my reading experience. I would have liked it more if we had gotten to see more of Noni's activities in England/Scotland rather than hearing about all the sex in detail. I also didn't really vibe with the humor; I found it more campy/cringe than funny. Idk, I felt like this is a book I normally would have loved, but it just fell a bit flat for me.

Regardless of my personal experience, I know a lot of people love this book, and I think Claire Christian has done a great job creating a book that resonates with so may people!

This book was such a pleasure to read! The cover is one of my favourites of 2020 so far and the story is just perfect. Steamy, hilarious and there is a hot, tattooed Viking who you can mentally drool over. 🤤

At the end of a 9 year relationship and a series of awkward and hilarious one night stands, Noni wonders what’s next. She decided to travel to Europe to reunite with Molly - the one that got away. Noni’s quest for love begins to morph into something else though, a quest for self love, self care and joy. A ‘pleasure quest’ cantered around herself and what she wants. I did get frustrated by the two lead characters in the last 20%, but it all worked out in the end. 💕

*I was provided with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.*

Noni Blake is a 36 year old bisexual Australian woman who has recently ended a nine year relationship that had a long slow leak; like waking up disoriented on an sunken air mattress at your parent's the day after Thanksgiving and you've practically become one with the hardwood floor. Sensing the need for a big change, she writes up her "should've banged" list and embarks on pleasure-seeking tour of Europe, as one does.

This book was so well written and laugh-out-loud funny. The narrative immediately reminded me of Eat Pray Love but less self-important, or Bridget Jones's Diary but less vapid. The writing style was so Australian that I frequently found myself reading in my head in an Australian accent. I will let you decide for yourself if that is a feature or a bug.

But let me cut right to my main point. I cannot overstate the importance of a fat romance heroine in the year of our lord 2020. Noni has brokered a relatably treacherous balance between confidence and self-doubt when it comes to her body, but what was truly mind-boggling to me was the bold way she sought out sexual partners and the number of times she was referred to as "so fucking hot" (or some variation) by said partners. And not just other fat partners, mind you. People of all body types. Truly wild.

Conventionally attractive bird-boned heroines are literally a dime a dozen in romance. Fat women do not casually get called "so fucking hot" on page. Like ever. More than once I flipped back to Noni's physical description thinking to myself "hm, is she maybe thin but thinks she's fat?," but no, not the case. And that's so important. Fat women do get to have great sex with people that think they're a fucking goddess, and it's long past time for that idea to become mainstream.

Beau, for god's sake, BEAU!! What a cinnamon roll! He's kind and funny and sweet and calls Noni on her bullshit in the most straightforward but gentle way. Noni is quirky as hell and Beau is 👏 here 👏 for 👏 it, which as a fellow quirky girl I adored. I also loved that he didn't pressure her at height of the conflict, but also set the boundary that he needed for his own emotional health. Writing an emotionally intelligent character is an art and I think my girl Claire Christian nailed it. Finally, I'm normally a hard "no thank you" on main characters with kids but the relationship between Beau and Zeppelin was very sweet.

Speaking of Zeppelin, the side characters were well written and there were many. Although some were more fully realized than others, they all served their purpose in moving the narrative along. I especially enjoyed that we got to see some brief glimpses of Lindell's interior life. Lil was also a highlight for me. Noni had all the right building blocks for her journey of pleasure and self-discovery and Lil really helped her mortar a few key pieces together.

The one thing I'll say that seemed truly egregious was Noni's brief tryst with Ben (essentially a throwaway character from the first 10%), a known white supremacist. She appropriately condemns his views but not until after she's slept with him. Always and forever, but especially in light of current events, it just seemed tone deaf. Having him be your garden variety dead end townie would've done just fine. Friends don't let friends sleep with white supremacists.

The conflict with Beau at the end had a fairly transparent resolution, so it sort of felt like a non-conflict to me. However there was enough low-level angst throughout that the soft-ball conclusion felt right. The truly satisfying resolution came from Noni's realization that she deserves to be happy.

To conclude, I came in with no pre-concieved notions about this book and I walked away quite charmed. It hit so many of the right notes for me - body positivity, emotionally intelligent main characters, a varied cast of supporting characters, a flawed and relatable heroine, and more. It feels weird to say I gained a new perspective on my own sense of confidence from a romance novel, but I really did, so thanks for that Ms. Christian. I give this book 4/5 stars.

Noni Blake lives her life in shades of beige, she's dependable, steadfast and on the verge of embarking on a pleasure quest throughout Europe. Noni is a formidable woman, we first meet Noni as she's healing from the breakup of her nine year long relationship with Joan, sharing a mortgage and child of the four legged variety. The split was amicable but while Joan has seemingly moved on, Noni uses the opportunity to step out of her beige comfort zone and take life by the balls.

Leaving her fabulously gay best friend behind in Australia, Noni departs for London, a to do list in hand, quite literally. Molly is the one that almost was but neither she or Noni could get their shit together and hook up. So rather than always wonder, Noni plans on making the next six months count.

Sexy times, horrendous sexual encounters, new lingerie, posing nude, drinking, indulging and one incredibly sexy viking later and Noni finds herself the embodiment of female empowerment. The new sexy and confident Noni lives her life to the fullest and I absolutely adored her. She's plump, a bit of a bogan and responsible for her own orgasms. She's bright, outgoing and is learning to embrace her imperfections and find comfort in her own body. I loved Noni's authenticity. She's insecure and vulnerable and completely relatable. She owns her sexuality and after years of teaching and putting others happiness before her own, she's finally finally putting her own needs first.

Noni is bisexual and after her nine year relationship ended, a one night stand prompts her to pack up her life and travel. It's inspirational, not to mention incredibly brave. In much the same way that Marie Kondo asks, does it spark joy, Noni is seeking pleasure through travel, friendships, lovers and finding moments of happiness. Temporary pleasure comes at the hands and mouths of people she meets along her journey, from a female firefighter, high school principal, magician, the one who could have been and the Viking, the gentle and kind tattoo artist Beau. Her sexual misadventures are hilarious, even kinky in some instances but Noni takes each experience in her stride and along with her close circle of friends from home and abroad, is discovering she prefers unbridled, adventurous Noni.

The Viking was delightfully unexpected. On a whim, Noni decides to get herself inked while in London, walking in off the street into small tattoo studio where she meets artist Beau, bearded, burly and gentle and as he marks her skin, she's fantasising about getting on on the table and girl, merry orgasm to you my friend. Beau isn't just a conquest, he could very well be the love of Noni's life but beyond her pleasure quest, her new life of saying yes, of friends and parties and painting the town not quite red because she's still a responsible adult, Noni has her friends, family and career in Australia and Beau seems content to enjoy their fling while it lasts.

Oh how I loved It's Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake! It's fun, flirty and outrageously funny but beneath the surface lies a book about falling in love with yourself. There's a little bit of Noni in all of us.

Thank you for giving my the opportunity to read this book. I am really enjoying this book and so far I would recommend it to others! I will update my review once I am finished the book.

It's Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake follows Noni as she goes through a "too-early-to=be-midlife crisis" after the ending of a long term relationship + a few other things that make Noni realize she's gotten stuck in her life. She embarks on a journey to find her true self, a journey dubbed "the pleasure quest". This book is a romance but it's also about Noni fighting her inner critic, dealing with past trauma and learning more about herself.

While this book wasn't necessarily anything ground breaking for me, there were some things I enjoyed. I loved the casual way Noni's sexuality is treated. It's not a big thing, it's not announced at any point, it just is what it is. I loved a lot of the side characters (Naz, Lil, Lindell, Zeppelin) and thought they were well written and interesting. I adored Beau. I appreciated and related to Noni's anxiety and the way she fought back against the critical voice in her head. Overall, it kept my interest and it had a lot of good bits. That being said, there was one part that I really did not like and that's the reason my rating is 2 stars and not higher.

Early in the book, Noni sleeps with an absolutely terrible person who Noni herself describes as being awful. At one point she finds herself wondering if "he was always this racist". Despite this, Noni still sleeps with him which really did not sit right with me. I also found out through reading another review that the character she sleeps with is a white supremacist, something I hadn't realized because it was insinuated through a comment Noni makes about the character having a Southern Cross tattoo. I didn't know what the Southern Cross was or about the connotations it has so that completely flew past me but even before I knew that, I really didn't like that this was something the author chose to write. I just don't think it was necessary. If the point was to show Noni making a bad decision and sleeping with a terrible person, that could've been done without making that person be a white supremacist.

Trigger Warnings for casual fatphobia, anxiety, minor character death (off page), discussions of miscarriage

You know when a friend, a book friend tells you to read a book, you think ohh this is going to be good.
Wrong.... this is all the way to the moon and back, orbiting somewhere in the galaxy, fantastically good.

Noni is having a melt down, she’s ended her relationship after 9 years with Joan, the one night stand she just rather enjoyed, the fit firefighter tragically dies, and after a deep and meaningful conversation with her two male gay friends she decides to hop it to Europe and in her words go on a ‘pleasure quest’ - what’s that?
It’s doing small things, everyday things, that you really want to do but tell yourself you can’t because... because well because you just can’t bloody do them you’ve got to be sensible and pay bills, go to work, you get the drift and besides what will people think?

You know we all think it, and feel it and if your truly honest, we all have a million conversations in our head each day about what you want to do, wear, think, feel, and how you SHOULD behave...
well, Noni has those conversations. Reading this you are nodding and smiling in agreement as she sets off on a mission, and gets brave and begins her quest of finding out what will make her happy.

Meeting Beau along the way who is an extremely savvy, sexy Viking no messing god of a man helps and if you think this is just another Rom - com and your eyes are now glazing over your wrong. This book is a romance but is also about being true, doing what you totally want, - to eat,✅ drink,✅dye, ✅kiss, ✅fuck✅ (yes there’s a lot of that kinda talk and action in this one) and hell yes getting a tattoo ✅if you think you really should.

This is about Noni taking control of her life, sex with who she wants (that will have some squirming) (and some smiling).

A book that tackles, self love, self care, finally being just you.
Strong language, sex scenes and normal life!
Thank you Claire Christian for making me smile for 300 plus pages and Net galley for this cracker of an advanced copy and Text Publishing you’ve got a hit on your hands here.

5 pleasure quest stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Publishes 29 September in the UK and February for the USA

This is a fun, feel good romantic comedy that I enjoyed reading. It's one of those books that's perfect for when I want a lighthearted read, and I devoured it.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this E-book to review via Netgalley.

When fuck is in the opening lines you know it’s going to be a good book.

You know the feeling when you’re trying to pick and book and nothings scratching that itch. This book was my book, it made me feel all the feels. And made me stay up to midnight because it consumed me.

Noni is in a rut. Her life ended when her partner of 9 years Joan (the house, the dog and the failed ivf) left. Noni struggled to find herself and couldn’t build her confidence back up form a negative value.

The best way to get over someone is to get under someone else right? A sexy firefighter sparks her interest they hit it off and she has a one night stand. Tragically she dies and Noni has a midlife crisis moment and decides she needs a fuck it list of all the people she wish she’d fucked and a plan to begin her pleasurequest.

Noni backs her bags and heads to Europe in search of fulfilment, pleasure and exploration. Then she meets Beau, the hot, tattooed, Vikings that changes the course. Happiness is always the right choice.

Thank you for the early access to this book, you’re crazy if you don’t get your hands on it.

DNF'd at 12%. I picked this up because the premise sounded fun and I'm always down for disaster bisexuals. In the first couple of chapters, I found myself liking a lot of things including the author's voice, the queerness, and the main character's best friend. But then the story started taking a bizarre direction and I was done. I flat out don't want to read a book where the main character has reluctant sex with a white supremacist. There are a myriad number of ways to show a character hitting rock bottom that aren't THAT.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book. The review I'm leaving is being done voluntarily and contains my own thoughts, views, and personal opinions.

I've been on a bit of a rom-com kick lately, and this book fit the bill. I enjoyed the humor, and I liked the MC Noni, but I struggled to connect with her. The narrative didn't dive deep enough to forge an immersive connection, and Noni's story—while enjoyable as a surface tale—just didn't grab me as I so hoped it would.

It might also have to do with a difference in values. I could see where the author was going with trying to "empower" Noni with her journey of sexual exploration, but I find it difficult to go into a romance novel and immediately face the lead doing the dirty with someone other than the person I'm supposed to want to see them with for the rest of eternity. While it definitely wasn't cheating, it just veers far, far aware from where I want my romance to be. Which is between two characters working toward finding each other and themselves... not via random hook-ups with outside characters.

It was okay, but I probably won't recommend this and won't jump out of my skin to read another of this author's tales.

Ich bin hin- und hergerissen, ob ich dieses Buch gut finde oder nicht. Es gibt viele Punkte, die mir wirklich gefallen haben. Aber ich bin einfach nicht mit Noni warm geworden. Über die fast 300 Seiten wurde sie mir nicht sympathisch. Zwar habe ich durchaus mit ihr gelitten, aber nur so, wie ich generell mit anderen Menschen mitfühlen würde.
Super fand ich, dass im Buch sehr offen über Sex geredet wird. Dazu zählt nicht nur, dass Noni überhaupt Sex hat. Beschrieben wird auch, dass Sex nicht immer gut ist. In den meisten Liebesromanen ist der Sex der Protagonisten phänomenal. Das ist hier nicht der Fall. Noni hat schlechten Sex, Sex mit Männern und Frauen, masturbiert, probiert Neues aus.
Im Zusammenhang damit fand ich auch gut, dass mit den unterschiedlichen sexuellen Vorlieben unterschiedlicher Menschen offen umgegangen wird und Noni auch gewillt ist, darauf einzugehen.
So gut ich es fand, wie offen über Sex geredet wird, so wenig hat mir gefallen, dass fast ausschließlich darüber geredet wird. Sex scheint in It’s Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake die Antwort auf alles zu sein. Ich bin kein prüder Mensch und es gibt sicher Menschen, deren Leben und Gedanken Nonis ähneln. Ich war aber stellenweise ein bisschen genervt davon, dass Sex wirklich den allergrößten Teil von Nonis Suche nach einem glücklichen Leben ausmacht.
Alles in allem hat mir trotzdem gut gefallen, dass und wie Noni sich auf die Suche nach Glück macht und versucht, herauszufinden, was sie im Leben will. It’s Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake bringt eine „Moral aus der Geschicht“ mit sich, die mir wirklich zugesagt hat. Menschen neigen oft dazu, sich selbst zurückzustellen. Das Buch vermittelt nicht, dass wir alle egoistisch werden sollten. Sondern dass wir glücklicher, ausgeglichener wären, wenn wir uns hin und wieder mit unseren eigenen Wünschen auseinandersetzen würden. Und das wiederum hilft uns im Umgang mit Anderen.

This book is exactly what I hoped it would be. Noni is a character that carries a good message to her audience on body image and confidence. She shows that it doesn't a super major change in one's life to realize that it is time for a positive change. Her whole life changes, Noni becomes the woman she knew that she could be with a booked trip to Europe. Sometimes you have to remind yourself that you deserve to be happy. Not only was Noni a very likable character with a good message, the "Viking" is a fun love interest I've never seen before.

While this book was not my all time favorite novel, I can tell that there is going to a great audience liking this book with all of it's messages and life lessons.