I am a Mhairi McFarlane fan for sure, so this was an immediate yes please oh please request for me.

I have to say it was entirely a surprise for me as it does not feel like a romance novel, Just Last Night instead feels like a delightful meditation on friendships, love, and the bonds of family the ones we are born into and the ones we make for ourselves.

There definitely is a sweet romance in this book (zero spice in this one really), but it was not at all what I was focused on while reading.

Loved Susie, Ed, and Fin but felt that Justin was a bit under developed and more of a punchline than a true character. Beyond the look at relationships, Just Last Night also reminded me we don’t really know anyone completely and even our closets friends can have their own secrets.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #WilliamMorrowBooks for the opportunity to read this release early in exchange for an honest review!

I have read a couple books by Mhairi McFarlane in the past, and I don't know why I'm always surprised at the emotional roller coaster she takes you on in her novels. This book was no different, and immediately became my favorite of hers.

I picked up Just Last Night expecting a lighthearted romance between old lovers, but instead, I was taken on a journey through grief, abuse, and self-discovery. McFarlane does an incredible job of balancing the serious and sad with humor and romance, so it never felt too heavy or uncomfortable. Which, with all the content warnings this book carries, is a tremendous feat.

Having lost someone very close to me suddenly, there were many moments when I found myself saying, 'YES. that is exactly what it is like.' And to feel seen in that way is always refreshing, to know you are not alone. McFarlane captured that peculiar feeling of loss perfectly.

I picked up this book because of the author, but I stayed for the dialogue, the sweet romance, and the emotions evoked. I highly recommend if you are looking for an emotional but heartwarming novel.

This book broke my heart and then slowly stitched it back together again. It is such a beautiful story of loss and grief; and finding love through it all. This is also a story of friendship, the importance of friends, but also the trials and tribulations of those relationships as well.
I really enjoyed Eve as the main character, and I loved Finlay as well. The love story was great, but I think my favorite may have been Eve's friend Justin (and his pup of course). I would have liked to see a little more of Eve and Finlay's relationship once they got together, but sometimes the magic is also in the not knowing.

To be honest, I added this to my pre-order list before I even knew what it was about – then when I spotted it on NetGalley and the opportunity to read it early I immediately requested it. Luckily for me – I was granted my wish. I love Mhairi McFarlane, and this book was no exception. It impressed me in a variety of ways – one, it finally helped me break out of my reading slump! I read the whole book in the past day and a half. Two, it delivered the Romance I was looking for – but also so much more.

I am often guilty (especially with my go to authors) of failing to read the full synopsis. This one was no exception, so I went in expecting a Contemporary Romance – and it was, but it definitely had a good Women’s Fiction book too. The story itself follows Eve – and a look at her life as a single, thirty something with a solid friend group from when they were teenagers. She and her three best friends (Susie, Justin and Ed) have met up for a usual pub quiz get together. Then as the book promises “in an instant, their lives are changed forever…” A life changing event occurs, secrets are revealed, and we get to see some of that fall out / process.
I’m definitely not doing the book justice with my description here – I could not put it down. It was moving, emotional, nostalgic and yet still managed to have the lightness and romance I was looking for. I loved seeing all the characters (flaws and all) and unraveling the stories / impressions / secrets. I wanted a copy on audio so I could read on the go to – I really did not want to stop.

I loved it. The characters, the friendships, the relationships – all that goes said and unsaid it was just wonderful. If you are looking for a relatable, compelling story with a dash of romance – I would say pick this one up ASAP. Ms. McFarlane has done it again – I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next!

Thank you to #NetGalley and #WilliamMorrowBooks for the opportunity to read this release early in exchange for an honest review!

I picked this book up and could barely think of anything else until I finished it. It was equal parts funny, emotional, heart breaking, cheering for the characters, and utterly compelling. I have loved Mhairi's last two books immensely so I am delighted that this one was such a huge hit for me too. I love how she takes a character who needs just a little bit more self-confidence and transforms them throughout the book. I love how her characters are quirky, often have wonderful friend groups, and are so wonderfully British :)

This story follows Eve, Ed, Justin, and Susie - a foursome who met in high school & have been together through thick and thin for years and years. Without spoiling much, one night of tragedy changes all of their lives forever and some secrets come out in the aftermath that shift their little group for the rest of their lives. I loved our main protagonist, Eve (Evelyn), and everything she went through in the book. Mhairi's writing is so addicting and you feel all of the feelings the characters are experiencing.

I'd highly recommend this book that falls firmly into women's fiction, but is not as light as you might expect.

Content warnings: death of a friend, domestic abuse, early dementia in a parent

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow and Custom House for an e-ARC of this book!

This unfortunately did not work for me. I think the largest reason is I went into this with the misconception that this was more of a romance, when really it's more women's contemporary fiction. The first 60% of this story is quite heavy and sad, which I was not really expecting, and then I felt like the happy ending was a little rushed - I would have liked a little more development here.

Overall, if contemporary fiction is your thing, I think you'll enjoy this! For me, it's just not something I typically gravitate towards so this was just not a read for me. I'm also a mood reader and I was not in an emotional state to read this, so I think that heavily impacted my reading experience.

Rating: 2.5 stars

TW: Loss of a love one, physical abuse.

I really liked this book. The dialogue was very inventive which is something that I have come to expect from this author's writing. I have often heard her writing being compared to the dialogue of Gilmore Girls which is one of my favorite shows.
This is a beautiful story about love betrayal and loss. The characters are wonderfully written and very relatable. I liked that each character had their flaws and their strengths. Often the characters are so perfect in books that I can't relate to them. That was not the case here.
This book caught my attention from the beginning and I didn't want to put it down.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Just Last Night was nothing like I expected but just what I needed. I went into this blind expecting romance, but it was so much more than that. ⁣
⁣
Eve is 34, single, considers herself a goth, and has a circle of 3 best friends- Susie her soulmate, Justin, and Ed, who she has also had “love” feelings for, for years; except he’s been with his girlfriend for years. We also meet Finlay, Susie’s distant brother, who has more depth than most characters I’ve read about.⁣
⁣
Tragedy strikes and causes Eve to question everything she’s ever known. Mhairi discusses difficult topics of losing a friend and emotional and physical abuse people go through. ⁣
⁣
You also read these deep, beautiful, meaningful, insightful conversations between characters. These characters are so charismatically developed and growing over the course of the story. She reiterates how important it is to get to know people before judging them based off of hearsay. ⁣
⁣
This also included wonderful, witty British banter, and I’m always here for it.⁣
⁣
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⁣
Thank you @williammorrowbooks for an ARC for my honest review. #netgalley #justlastnight #bookstagram #books

The publisher’s blurb for Just Last Night is extremely vague in describing the contents of what is a captivating and heartfelt tale about grief and how we deal with the inevitable secrets that are revealed when a loved one dies. As per AAR policy, I have given an overview of the first third of the book, without revealing any crucial information that would spoil the story. Those not wanting even those scant details should take the letter grade as my endorsement and stop reading here.

They’ve known each other forever. Ed, Eve, Justin and Susie met during their early teens and are still the best of friends in their thirties. It’s not unusual for them to gather in a pub of an evening to play games and get a bit tipsy but it is unheard of for the same night to go from bad to heartbreaking. That’s exactly what happens when Ed, Eve’s not-so-secret crush, gets engaged to Hester in a big romantic scene while they are all at the bar, and at night’s end Susie gets hit by a car while walking home.

Susie’s family struggles to deal with the aftermath. Her estranged brother Finlay lives in America, and  plans to return to Nottingham as soon as possible but asks that Eve begin planning the funeral since his father has Alzheimer’s and is in no condition to do so. Trying to respect and represent who Susie was in a ceremony celebrating her life while also dealing with the reality of Susie’s death is extremely hard for Eve. It’s equally hard to have to work with Ed, who insists on being part of the preparations. While they are ironing out the details of the requiem, and sharing remembrances of Susie, they have an epiphany.  Susie had a secretive side and a very bad relationship with her brother; realizing Finlay will now have access to all his sister’s possessions, the two determine to clean Susie’s flat before he arrives and abscond with anything Susie wouldn’t have wanted him to see. Which is how Eve winds up carrying home a box of diaries and letters Susie had had sitting in her wardrobe. Eve had no plans to read any of it – until a stray note slips from an envelope and she sees her name. What she finds inside hurts, horrifies and enrages her ,but with the commemoration taking place the next day she has no choice but to pretend that nothing has changed.

Of course, that is easier said than done and the letter will prove to be a catalyst, sending Eve on an unexpected journey to find answers to questions she never knew she needed to ask, and providing her with the possibility of a future brighter than any she’d ever dared to imagine.

Ms. McFarlane excels at writing charming, endearing novels which resonate with genuine, rich emotion. Here she perfectly captures the joy and angst of deep friendships and the dangers of all the things we leave unsaid between ourselves and those we are closest to. Eve thought Susie shared everything with her and realizing that Susie had kept one very big secret is shocking and painful for her. Eve had also thought she’d done an excellent job of hiding her ove for Ed, and learning that Ed, Susie and Justin all knew about it and yet none of them  ever spoke of it leaves her both embarrassed and pensive. Embarrassed because she feels she’s made a bit of a spectacle of herself but also because it forces her to really think about what this close group of mates never discusses with each other and why.

While she’s pondering that rather weighty question, she finds herself renewing her relationships with Finlay and his and Susie’s father, Ian.  Finlay has been forced to extend his stay in England to deal with his father’s worsening illness, and spending time with them proves to be an eye-opening experience for Eve. Susie’s family, with their beautiful, well-maintained home and carefree, welcoming manner had always seemed perfect to her.  She knew something had happened to drive a wedge between Finlay and the rest of the clan but had no idea just how dysfunctional everything about that estrangement was.

It also forces Eve to view Susie as a fully realized human being and resist the urge to either demonize her friend, who is no longer there to provide answers to questions raised by her past behaviors, or to sanctify Susie, attempting to sugarcoat every act the all too fallible Susie performed in order to provide a perfect past for her flawed friend. This is a surprisingly touching and lovely experience to read about, and I was utterly delighted with how the author infuses this very real grieving process with wit and humor. I also loved how Susie remains an active character throughout the novel, with everyone talking and thinking about what she would do or say in certain situations.

How hard Eve, Ed and Justin have to work to reframe their interactions with Susie no longer being a part of their group is satisfyingly realistic. Adding stress to the tentative reestablishment of their dynamic is Ed’s fiancé. Hester feels Ed is spending too much time reminiscing with his friends about their past escapades with Susie and too little time focused on the future they should be planning as an engaged couple. Hester lets that be known as early as the funeral and I found it perfect that this story of friendship dealt with not just the loss of a cohort but how adding significant others can change the balance of these relationships.

A psychologist, Finlay helps Eve work through a lot of her emotional baggage via conversations over the wine, coffees and dinners they have while managing Ian’s care. Unsurprisingly, it proves to be an extremely cathartic and enlightening experience for him as well.

I did have one problem with the book which is this: while it delves realistically into every aspect of the emotional lives of the characters, there is a portion which is completely unbelievable. Throughout the story Ian’s illness is treated more as a plot contrivance than an actual disorder, and the deus ex machina of the Alzheimer’s is at times so overt that it’s comically obvious Ian is just there to move the story in the direction the author needs it to go.  However, the narrative was so delightful in every other respect, that it didn’t affect my overall enjoyment of the novel.

There is a romance in this book, but it doesn’t take place until after the halfway point. The author provides a couple possible Romeos for Eve’s Juliet, so all I will say on this subject is that I loved the guy and love story Eve winds up with.

Just Last Night is a wonderful tale of friendship, the complexities of adult relationships and the joy of discovering who you are meant to be and whom you are meant to be with. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a well-crafted book that is emotionally rich and satisfying.

Buy it at: Amazon, Audible, or your local independent retailer
Visit our Amazon Storefront

I really enjoy the writing of Mhairi McFarlane, and this book was no different.

The characters in this book are at a similar stage of life as myself, and though the novel was beautiful and addicting, the grief was very real. The novel covers the time following a tragedy that happened to one of them 'just last night.' There is obviously more to the story, however, the grief was really strong and overtook me in this one.

If you have enjoyed another McFarlane novel, and you would like a book that explores some of the deeper and more difficult parts of life, this is definitely for you.

Just Last Night: A unique story of two old friends finding each other again after navigating the grief from a loss.

Eve has been friends with Justin, Susie, and Ed since high school. Now, the four are in their thirties and stay close while continuing their trivia tradition. Eve has secretly been in love with Ed for over a decade, but feels she’s missed her chance when Ed’s long term girlfriend proposes at trivia night. The news comes as a shock, but not nearly as shocking as finding out, the next morning, one of the group mates has suddenly died. The tragedy brings the remaining friends closer and secrets begin to unfold. A mysterious person from Eve’s past shows up for the funeral and he may hold some answers. As her perception of others changes, Eve begins to question who her real friends are.

I assumed the book would be about Eve trying to break up Ed’s relationship (where are my My Best Friends Wedding fans at?!). Hester, his girlfriend, was so wrong for him and Ed seemed to still have feelings for Eve despite being engaged. That aspect turns out to only be a piece to the puzzle of this plot. Just Last Night was about so much more than “he belongs with me”. It’s about missed opportunities, learning to live without your best friend, and how you may not know someone as well as you think. I really liked the group’s dynamic, how they all complemented each other. Eve was such a unique character by having a sort of goth vibe; dark eyeliner and black docker boots. Finaly ended up being my favorite character. I’m not going to say who he is in relation to the group (because that would contain a spoiler!), but I loved how his broodiness was only hiding the compassionate and noble man underneath.

What a wonderful, emotional surprise Just Last Night is! Mhairi McFarlane's last two novels have been fairly romance-centric but this novel is much more than that. It's about friendship, loss and how we deal with our grief, the families we create and how they change, as well as love (platonic with a smidge of romance). Reading about the depth of loss one experiences when a friend is gone and how rebuilding your life and yourself isn't an easy, feel-good read, but it was honest and sad and sweet and very, very moving. This should definitely broaden Mhari McFarlane's fanbase beyond romance and I definitely recommend this to fans of contemporary women's fiction, especially as it is perfect for those looking for a summer read that's thoughtful and wise.

The depth with which you learn about these characters is incredible! This story makes the sad, meaningful; the mundane, beautiful. It’s not my usual escapist romance novel, but it was a pleasure to read and walk along side the main character as she processes her life ... after.

Secrets that surface when someone dies unexpectedly!

Eve, Susie, Justin, and Ed have been friends forever, through different girlfriends and boyfriends and professions but after a group night out at the pub everything changed when Susie is killed in an accident.

Just Last Night is all about four friends dealing with the aftermath of feelings and some guilt when they find out the secrets that some of them have been keeping from each other. I would have read the book straight through, but it was bringing back some memories of dealing with a death in the family, but I loved how Eve dealt with finding out everything that has been kept secret from her.

Just Last Night is interesting and different with a little romance, but you should really read Mhairi McFarlane right now!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Just Last Night By Mhairi McFarlane
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: May 4 2021

I received an EARC from the publisher and @Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

I did not know what I was going into when I started this! I was expecting a sweet romance, a love story that got put on pause but was now coming together due to possible unlikely events. What I received was laughter by chapter 3, tears by chapter 8, and an emotional ping pong to the end. I love, love stories, but what I love more is a love letter to friendship dressed in the package of a sweet romantic tale.
This story was so raw, so heart breaking, and so damn sweet in the center! It was a sour patch kid. I adored Eve and her beautiful banter filled friendship with Justin, Susie, and Ed. You can’t help but root for her. She’s at that wonderful and terrifying age where you feel you need to have everything figured out. You know you can’t lean on your friends forever, you have to make choices that will change everything, and the idea of change can be so terrifying!
This story touched on so many topics there is just no way to even get it out with out ruining this book and I won’t because you should read it!

Thank you again to NetGalley and William Morrow for letting me read this!

❤️

I haven't connected with Mhairi McFarlane's previous two books so I wasn't sure if I should give this one a try. I am SO GLAD I DID!

JUST LAST NIGHT is a heartbreakingly beautiful look at grief and friendship. Love and loss. Family secrets and making peace with your past.

Every relationship in this story (whether familial, friendly, or romantic) is written with perfect complexity and truth. Even as these relationships change over the course of the book, they always seem real and honest. Not everything is easily tied up with a bow and it is beautiful to read.

This book will make you feel ALL THE FEELS. It's an emotional read that will make you cry, think about your own life, and which also includes many, MANY, laugh-out-loud moments. These characters are so flawed and yet so freaking lovable. This book felt like complicated, messy, real life on the page that includes an HEA that will leave you grinning.

JUST LAST NIGHT is paced in line with my experiences with Brit Lit. Meaning, it may read slow to American readers. But I find that these slower paced stories have the opportunity, when written well, to give characters depth and make the book that much more meaningful. JUST LAST NIGHT definitely delivers on that meaningful writing that will make this book stay with you long after you finish it.

Although it is a bit light on romance and leans more towards Women's Fiction, you should absolutely read this book.

Just last night … everything changed.

I’ll be honest – I didn’t really start enjoying this one until about halfway through. It almost felt like two completely different books to me, but I personally enjoyed the second half far more.

The story begins with four best friends in England (the British phrases are heavy in this one!) having a good time when they all disperse, going their own ways. Only after that they later find out one of them was killed on their way home by a car accident.

The first half of the book captures the trauma and pain of losing a best friend. But when one of the friends is in love with another friend who has a long-term girlfriend now fiancée, a lot of the issues that arise seem dramatic in light of their new loss – but that’s just my personal opinion. While the trauma was well covered, I feel like a lot of the events were overly dramatized.

Then the halfway point came (give or take a bit) and the focus shifts. The main character, Eve, isn’t only looking at herself as a victim of loss (both friend and long-lost-love). Instead, she’s challenging judgments she’s lived with most of her life, questioning intentions and reputations, and putting herself out there to help people. The second half is was redeemed this book for me … the first half had a decent plot but the execution missed its mark in my opinion.

Just like her other titles, "Just Last Night" has hilarious banter between characters, and many laugh out loud moments. It has a wonderful romance and deals deftly with serious issues. (Grief in this one.) There doesn't seem to be a book McFarlane writes that I don't like. She is consistently just so good!!

I loved this book so much, I couldn’t put it down. Just Last Night is so well-written with amazing characters and lots of plot twists. I didn’t realize what it was about going into it and probably wouldn’t have picked it up if I had, but I am SO glad that I did. The book follows Eve as she deals with the death of a loved one and her longtime feelings towards her best friend, Ed. It is very emotional and there is a lot of grief in this book, but I loved the way that the characters supported each other through it. There isn’t much romance until the ending, but the slow burn of it added to the story even more. This was my first book by Mhairi McFarlane but it definitely won’t be my last.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC!

*Sigh*, I just love Mhairi’s books. They’re always so unabashedly British and her quirky, clever sense of humor and knowledge of pop culture always makes me feel at home. This book was definitely a slow burn like her others that I’ve read, but her character development and dialogue are always worth it to me. The common theme in her novels I’m noticing is the journey of self discovery for her female leads after a long period of settling for less and I am here for it. Her writing is breezy, sardonic, and self-analyzing and makes for such a cozy experience as a reader.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this copy to review!