I'm a fan of Mhairi McFarlane, so I had high hopes for this book. To me, it was just okay. The ending felt predictable and contrived to me. Overall, it was still an enjoyable read, just not as good as I had hoped.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. McFarlane is pretty much an auto-read for me at this point, so I really was thrilled to receive this ARC. This book was quite different from all of her other books and I think she portrayed the inner workings of a relationship with an emotionally abusive gaslighter very well. However, it dragged on a bit in the middle and I wish Roisin would have learned the truth about Joe before starting things with Matt. Something about it all felt very rushed at the end. This isn’t the traditional rom-com that McFarlane usually writes, so I’m not sure how it is going to be received. Overall, I think it was probably a 3.5 star read for me.

I adore Mhairi McFarlane. I have read all of her books. I own both print and e-books, and on a rainy day, they are always the books I will turn to to lift my spirits. Her latest is no different. She has such a unique voice, and I always love her characters. I couldn't put this book down because I was enjoying the story and the chemistry between the characters so much! All you rom-com fans out there, this is your next (and best) fix! TEN STARS! I loved it!

Roisin and Joe have been together for years and find themselves drifting apart. Joe is a successful screenwriter and shares the launch of his new television series with their group of friends at a weekend celebration. Roisin finds herself caught completely off guard when the series mimics something that happened to her in her youth. The problem is she told Joe in confidence and now he is sharing it with the whole world. Roisin is questioning everything about her relationship as she sees the man she loves in a different light. To make matters worse there is some tension among the group of friends and her mom needs her help to run the family pub. Lots of secrets and drama!!

I am a HUGE fan of Mhairi McFarlane but this one was a miss for me. I had a really hard time getting invested in the characters. The story started off slowly but by the end I found myself liking Roisin more. It just took awhile to get there. The end was satisfying but I didn't understand Roisin’s motivation to get to the truth when it just didn't seem to matter any more. This isn’t a deal breaker for me and I will continue to read McFarlane’s books. Sometimes you just don't click with a book, this was one of those instances.

2.5 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

As a fan of several previous Mhairi McFarlane books, I was looking forward to reading this. However, this book was especially hard for me to get into. I did not connect with the story or the characters and thought about not finishing it until about halfway through.

The book follows an unlikely group of friends that each have their own unique character flaws and quirks. The entire story is told by the main character, Roisin, and largely focuses on her relationship with her gaslighting boyfriend, Joe. Without giving any plot points away, I was largely hating the main characters, relationships, and was bored with the story at the beginning and that didn’t really change until the mid-point where I started to feel a little more connected to the characters and the story started to develop. Some of the people in the friend group are largely unnecessary to the story except to corroborate the fact that every person in this book is keeping secrets from each other.

Once I started to connect with and appreciate the characters, I no longer felt like I was wasting my time with the book, but I still feel like it lacked a lot of character development. I do feel there are some important elements in the book highlighting the importance of honesty and healthy relationships, both friendly and romantic, and always appreciate that McFarlane writes about women who have honest and trustworthy friendships.

Mhairi McFarlane is a favorite author of mine and while this isn’t my favorite of hers, I still really enjoyed it. I love the group of friends, their quirkiness, wit and support of each other. This really is a friendship or relationship story more than it is a romance. There’s a lot of relational conflict, particularly regarding Roisin and Joe (that did get a little too drawn out) but there’s also a lot of joy. It didn’t feel like a light read to me with all the conflict and deeper themes revolving around trust, friendship and honesty but it still gets 4 stars.

3.5 stars

I love that Mhairi McFarlane plays with the structures of the traditional romcom and she does so again here with some success - fully half of the novel is set over a weekend in which Roisin, our heroine, realizes that her 10-year relationship with Joe is over.

The second half sees us back on mostly familiar ground as the new love interest emerges from behind his facade of good friend. That it’s done while working at Rosin’s mum’s dowdy pub in rural Cheshire adds to the entertainment.

As has become increasingly important with this author’s more recent novels, friendship and loyalty play a major role. Roisin’s tight group of friends, formed when they were all working at a bookshop in their early 20’s, provides support, insight, and the proverbial found family. They are a nicely drawn group of diverse characters who act as a sounding board for Roisin and as a Greek chorus for moving the plot along.

There is also a dark thread (as there has been in previous MM romcoms) about men gaslighting and mentally/emotionally abusing women. As readers, we only know Joe from the present day - he has become a wildly successful writer for TV and is slightly oily with the fame that has brought, particularly compared to Roisin’s worthy work as a high school English teacher.

The author manages to combine all of this into a coherent novel full of her trademark very specific lines that made me smile and occasionally laugh out loud.

What I didn’t love was the chopping up of the novel into 75 very short chapters which made it hard to get a reading rhythm going: The chapters bled into each other, with no apparent reason for the break.

That aside, this was a most entertaining and enjoyable novel. I appreciate that the author is pushing the bounds of the genre while still keeping a steady core of what we fans love.

Thanks to Avon and Netgalley for the digital review copy.

I didn't love this at the beginning, but I cannot stop thinking about it a few weeks later, so it clearly had some staying power in my brain. I almost DNF’d and really had to slog along to get into it. It took about 60% for me to actually care or get into any real plot. It’s kind of like Happy Place if the main couple hates each other. However, this was incredibly relatable as I have personally experienced a lot of the scenarios in this story, but I think it was a little disjointed in the story. I think this could have been interesting but it honestly felt like two different books - the second one was much more interesting, but getting there was strange. Ultimately I think this is well worth the read, but it is a little clunky.

Between Us is about a woman whose life unravels spectacularly after her screenwriter boyfriend uses their relationship as inspiration for his new television show.

I sat on this review for weeks because I wasn't sure how to articulate my thoughts but its pub date is fast approaching so here goes nothing

-Does Mhairi write the most compelling characters, the best villains and messy relationships? Yes!

-Does she write the best dialogue? Also yes!

-Is this a romance book? Not really, but there is a sweet romance at the tail end of the book!

-Is it a rom-com as the blurb advertises? Although there are funny moments, I wouldn't categorize this book as a rom-com. It is relationship fiction. There is a little bit of a mystery in it.

-Is this book for everyone? I doubt it, I totally get the mixed reviews.

Honestly I cannot tell you more without giving away any spoilers. If you've read any of Mhairi's books you have an idea about what to expect. Just for reference, I'd say this is more Mad About You and less Just Last Night. I think Mhairi has a knack for writing about trauma without making the story melodramatic.

I was glad to see Roisin for standing up for herself.

Based on the description and other reviews, I expected more of a romcom vibe out of this, but honestly it's lacking on both the rom and the com sides. Much of the book is centered around the disintegration of Roisin's existing romantic relationship rather than the development of a new one.

I felt like too much time (nearly a third of the book) was focused on the one weekend where the friend group got together, all the tension and backstory it allowed for certainly gave good insight into the friends and their complex, intertwined relationships, but frankly I found it almost a slog to get through. Things picked up afterwards and the pace felt more even afterwards.

I think I would have enjoyed the book more if I had different expectations going into it than what I had. Expecting a cozy romcom and getting a book more interested in heartbreak and the ways you never truly know someone leads to too much dissonance.

Summary
When Roisin and Joe join their friends for a weekend at a country house, it’s a triple celebration—a birthday, an engagement, and the launch of Joe’s shiny new TV show. But as the weekend unfolds, tensions come to light in the group and Roisin begins to question her own relationship. And as they watch the first episode of Joe’s drama, she realizes that the private things she told him—which should have stayed between them—are right there on the screen.

———-

It took me a hot minute to become vested in this book, but looking back I appreciate the groundwork a bit more.. The story follows Rosin and Joe’s content - albeit sleepy - relationship and the evolution of their friend group.

Joe, Matt and Rosin took center stage and the characters consumed the reader leaving little for the other characters.. I am still undecided if I liked the end as it seemed too perfect given the timeline. Perhaps if there was more time for resolution - or an epilogue to cover that bit - I would have felt happier for the characters.

The portrayal of gaslighting truly shines in this narrative. The depiction of subtle disinterest and nuanced dialogue is brilliant. The reader is left with a sense of unease throughout the book.

Readers who enjoyed Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler and The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary will want to add this book to their stack.

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon and Netgalley for the advance reader copy.

Between Us
by Mhairi McFarlane
Pub Date 08 Aug 2023
Avon and Harper Voyager, Avon

It was a little slow for my taste. While I enjoyed that she stood up for her gut feeling and the author does a great job painting a picture of what is going on and the FMC is feeling the last 30% was were the juicy stuff happens!

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Between Us is the first book I read by Mhairi McFarlane. I have heard nothing but positive things about this author but, unfortunately, I did not enjoy this one at all. I really had to push myself to finish it. The pacing was really slow and did not keep my attention. The writing style was not for me either, I feel like there were scenes that didn’t add anything to the story were included and the dialogue (way too many parenthesis) was off.

First off, thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Between Us is my first read by McFarlane and I desperately wanted to love it so much! I have heard nothing but positive things about this author. Unfortunately, it fell flat for me and I struggled to finish it. The pacing was extremely slow and I found the characters to be irritating. Honestly, it was the most boring book I have ever read. Sadly, I do not recommend this book. ⭐️⭐️

TW: Mention of abortion

I love the relationships Mhairi McFarlane explores in her books! Be it romantic, family, or friends, the dynamics always feel layered and real. McFarlane is officially an auto-read author for me for this reason, and this book continued to show why.

I especially felt for Roisin in this book, as she sorts through the mess and untruths of a failing relationship with her scriptwriter boyfriend, Joe. The premise that he used some of their relationship as inspiration for his new TV show was interesting, and it was hard to put the book down, waiting for Roisin to put all the puzzle pieces together.

When she finds herself falling for someone who is truly supportive of her, it was such a giddy feeling. I LOVED the romance that blooms in the last half of the book, and didn’t want the book to end.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC. This is my honest review.

Between Us had a very great premise, the writing was also good. Unfortunately the pacing at the first half was way too slow. The romance plot between Roisin and Matt was also too insta love and underdeveloped for me. But I really enjoyed reading the friendship group, the author had a great job describing each character.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the chemistry between the characters. It was a fun, fast-paced story with tension of all kinds all around. It's got the messy relationships grown messier by the weekend away and then Matt comes in and just changes all kinds of things. It's a good book for a fun read.

I am always excited for a new novel from McFarlane and consider her one of my very favorite authors! I read her first book back in 2014, so I've been falling in love with her stories for almost a decade now. When I pick up one of her books, I always know that I can expect: a story that centers around the heroine's personal growth, a memorable cast of secondary characters, witty humor, a subtle romance, and a scenario that makes me reflect and reexamine my own assumptions or experiences. And all of that was true in this one, too!

However, it pains to me admit that Between Us wasn't my favorite. The repeated use of a long-term relationship ending only for the heroine to immediately fall into something new is getting a little old for me. I know it's often realistic, but I'm just begging for a little variety. I'm often so moved by the way McFarlane explores unhealthy relationship patterns, gaslighting, and other important topics in such a nuanced and thoughtful way. But here, I just found myself wishing for something a little different. Maybe I brought my own personal feelings too much into this one -- or maybe re-reading three of her most recent works before starting this one made the similarities stand out more clearly -- but I just couldn't quite get myself fully invested in this one.

Overall, I So Enjoyed It and will eagerly anticipate McFarlane's next release. Because honestly, even my least favorite McFarlane is better than so much of what I read.

I devoured this book in one day - every time I put it down, I couldn’t wait to pick it up. I will say, the beginning felt a little chaotic and hard to get into, but I quickly got pulled in. Some of the constant dialogue (especially when all the characters were together) just felt a bit busy. However, I love the way McFarlane writes non-perfect characters. Everyone has flaws, make mistakes, and while there may be clear “bad guys” there is a lot of humanity portrayed. I don’t think this will appeal to the typical romance reader, as really this is more of a friendship love, self growth type of women’s fiction. I loved it! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to provide my honest review.

This book was so much more than I even imagined! I loved that the romance was almost a side story to Roisin's development. Seeing her character growth was incredibly powerful. My only complaint is that the end felt rushed and I just wanted more of Roisin and Matt!