Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks and LibroFM for the ARC/ALC in exchange for an honest reivew

I adore this series on audiobook, it only adds to the fun of this twist on an amnesia plot. I loved the workplace antics, the bit of bonkerness for the entier situation and the adorable romance

I wanted to like this one so badly. I absolutely loved Boyfriend Material. But this one felt so surface level and lackluster. The dialogue between characters was dry, it felt like there was a lot of filler that could have been cut, and it just could not hold my attention. Originally, I was planning to DNF quite early on but decided to push through with the hope that it would eventually catch my interest, but it just never did.

So I requested this book when I saw the author, and I should have been a bit more cautious. I’m not a big fan of the amnesia trope at all. So that kept me from enjoying it fully. I will say that Hall does a good job with it, and it wasn’t as bad as I expected. Otherwise the book was fun and funny with plenty of character development. I would recommend this book.

I received an ARC from NetGalley. This is my honest review.

It took me a while to warm up to Jonathan (I couldn't get over him calling a lawyer first when Sam got hurt) but eventually I loved how these two softened each other up in different ways. It's a good slow burn. My one major let down was I was hoping there would be a bigger interaction between these characters and the Husband Material folks outside of Jonathan mentioning they went to university together. It feels like a missed opportunity that they didn't interact more.

Alexis Hall does queer romance better than anyone else. An endless sweet and compelling novel filled with laughs and warmth.

As someone who’s read all of Alexis Hall’s other books, I loved this one. This book is a triumph of love, self-discovery, and acceptance. With authentically crafted characters, Hall navigates LGBTQ experiences with heartwarming and thought-provoking storytelling. This impactful narrative celebrates diversity, making it a must-read for those seeking a powerful LGBTQ story that leaves a lasting impression.

I love this author but this book was not one of my favorites. At times, I was very captivated by the relationship between the main character but also the whole premise was just too forced for me. My biggest complaint is actually the character development. I don't know why the author waited so long to reveal the information about Sam's past. At that point in the book, it was less consequential. If that had been revealed and explored earlier in the book, it would have helped the reader better understand the character's motivations. I also felt like Jonathan's back story wasn't enough to justify what a jerk he was. I know going hot and cold is part of the enemy to lover trope, but it felt especially unrealistic for me in this book. Still love Alexis Hall, but won't be recommending this one unfortunately.

“𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒈𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒚𝒐𝒖’𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇.”

Alexis Hall is a must-read author for me, and I couldn’t wait to dive into this spin-off from his London Calling Series.

I loved that Hall picked the character that Oliver described as ‘a mildly unpleasant man’ from Husband Material to feature in this spin-off; Jonathan’s grumpy unpleasantness matches his introduction in the previous book, making this a true ‘grumpy-sunshine’ storyline. The wink to the ‘pompous English student who married a YouTuber’ was a nice Easter egg too. The story is full of classic Hall humour - “𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒎𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈,” and I absolutely thought the fake amnesia trope made for such a good reason for Jonathan and Sam to start over. Gollum, Sam’s cat, adds the right touch of humour (grumpy cats are the best), and helps show another side to both characters in their interactions with him. Between the gang at the Sheffield branch of Splashes & Snuggles to Jonathan’s meddling family, there were plenty of laughs and fully fleshed characters who are flawed in a story that is both slightly absurd and down to earth. Although I could’ve done with more steam and overall romance, I still loved the festive rom-com vibes as a whole.

Ten Things That Never Happened is a story of misconceptions, family relationships, letting go of control, and finding connection. I hope we get a peek of Jonathan and Sam (or at least an Easter egg) in Material World #2. Thank you to SourceBooks and Raincoast Books for the ARC!

This was a cute and funny rom-com and very much felt like it could be the plot of a Hallmark Movie.

"10 Things That Never Happened" by Alexis Hall is a book about different versions of people's lives. The writing is good and makes it easy to feel empathy towards the main character. The story jumps around a lot, showing what could've happened in different situations.

The characters are interesting, and you get to see how they might have turned out in various scenarios. But sometimes, it's a bit hard to follow because the story doesn't go in order. Some parts are really captivating, while others feel like they're missing something.

If you like thinking about love and different paths in life, this book is worth checking out. Just be ready for a bit of a puzzle with the way the story is told. Overall, it's a good read with some bumps along the way.

I previously read Hall's Boyfriend Material and enjoyed it, so this one sounded like a good one to request.

Sam works for a bed and bath store with a ragtag little group of employees. He gets called up to London to see boss Jonathan Forest to discuss how unsuccessful his management techniques are, and during the visit, he falls and suffers a concussion. At the hospital, a misunderstanding leads Jonathan to believe that Sam has amnesia. Seeing an opportunity to pretend that he wasn't just fired and his entire staff fired, Sam plays along, hoping he can figure out how save his branch over the course of pretending to have amnesia. Jonathan, concerned about being sued, takes Sam back to his house to help him recover. It is during this time that Sam learns more about Jonathan as a person, and he takes on the project of planning the company Christmas party in order to prove that he's not as incompetent as Jonathan thinks.

My favorite thing about this book (and the previous one of Hall's that I've read) is the humor. There is some nice quippy banter that makes the dialogue feel fresh, even if the tropes of the story are ones you've read before. This story is mildly outrageous with the whole amnesia plotline, but I still really enjoyed it and thought it was fun to read.

If you like romcoms and have enjoyed Hall's writing in the past, you will definitely like this one!

By now you know this is an Alexis Hall stan account. I am soooo envious of Hall’s clever & creative brain & I wish we could swap. Or maybe be friends?? He’s just brilliant! He’s so fucking brilliant.

Like any AH novel, Ten Things That Never Happened is hilarious and beautiful and addictive and FUN. It may also be the saddest Hall book I’ve read. And maybe the first Christmas book? (Does Boyfriend Material have Christmas in it?). The premise is very wacky; it’s like When You Were Sleeping but weirder and more unethical. The MCs are boss & employee. Boss is a grumpy asshole who fires Employee (who isn’t great at his job, but whatever, something something praxis) and then causes him to fall & get a concussion. Boss then assumes Employee has amnesia, and Employee just kind of…goes with it to save his job. Boss then has to take care of Employee while he’s recovering. And yes, it’s a terrible plan, but they fall in love, so it works out?? This book has the slowest burn, and a deeply grumpy/depressed pairing. It’s both insane and perfect.

That said, I wish the novel had been longer. I feel like it just needed a beat more, though I remember having the same thought when I first read BF Material, which turned out to be a series. Maybe this will also be a series? I just wanted to see our MCs happy together for a bit longer, and I wanted to see Jonathan’s friends, and also check in on the folks from the store. I also think it’s confusing how similar the cover is to BF Material. Was anyone else confused?

Anyway, stream Alexis Hall. Right now I’m reading Mortal Follies, which is so different, and I’m excited to see where it goes, and what Hall has planned next!

10 Things That Never Happened
by Alexis Hall

Brilliant
Hilarious
Perfect Holiday Read

I absolutely adored this book - I enjoyed it tremendously and laughed til I cried. So happy to read a first book in a series by Alexis Hall, and what is a great romcom has in its essence are very important themes I absolutely enjoyed reading about.

10 Things That Never Happened is the story of Sam and Jonathan. Sam is the store manager of Splashes and Snuggles (similar to Bed, Bath and Beyond) - of which Jonathan is the owner - however, his store is not meeting their goals. When Jonathan schedules a meeting with Sam to discuss the possibility of letting his employees go, Sam tries to come up with a plan to save his work family. However, his plan ends up with him being under the care of Jonathan after an accident leaves Sam with “amnesia” - or so he claims. While Jonathan seems to be a workaholic with no emotions, there’s much to uncover under his cold hard exterior, and Sam is just the man the break down those barriers. But what happens when Jonathan finds out Sam’s been faking his memory lost all along?

This book had me laughing in every chapter and the narrations are perfect in the audiobook. From Sam’s humor to his work family and Jonathan’s family - this book was a lot of fun to listen to. Overall, this was an enjoyable read and would recommend to those that love rom-com!

Unfortunately I did not love this. I loved the cast of characters in the shop for sure, but the premise made me feel sort of icky

I have a love/hate relationship with this book. Did it make me laugh out loud and awe? Yes. Did it drag on at times that I wanted to kick the MCs and yell, "Get it together?" Also, yes.

It has Alexis Hall's typical writing and wit, which I appreciate, but unlike one of my favorite books of all time, BOYFRIEND MATERIAL, in which the banter and pacing are perfect, 10 THINGS THAT NEVER HAPPENED falls short. The characters were great as always, but the banter and pacing were like a roller coaster - never quite hitting the pace. And the end, it took me by surprise because it took soooo long to get there. But it was a nice ending.

My first Alexis Hall read. Boyfriend Material and Husband Material are sitting on my physical TBR shelf. The story started very entertaining but about midway through, it just dragged on. I give it 3 stars. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Oh Sam and Jonathan...you two are the freakin cutest! I cannot explain how much I laughed and smiled during this one. Sam is the guy you want as your best friend. He is funny, lovely, and fiercely loyal to those he cares for. And Jonathan...seemingly grumpy and materialistic, Jonathan. What a pair they made. I wanted the pages to go on forever, and I wish I could hang out with Jonathan's family every holiday. I love when a book makes me fall in love with the characters to the point where I wish they were a constant in my life. Lovely job, Alexis Hall.

10 Things That Never Happened - a Christmastime Alexis Hall 90s-style rom-com with fake amnesia - supposedly set in the "London Calling" universe (but aside from being in London - this seemed like an unnecessary promo description).

I liked it - better than I initially thought I would. Age-gap and fake amnesia just don't appeal to me. But Hall's rom-com antics and smooth writing won out the day to make this an enjoyable holiday read in the end.

Sam and Jonathan took a while for me to warm up to as likable characters and then as a couple (they softened, but I’m still not sure I totally like them, but I liked them enough). I actually put this book down for a while, but glad I picked it back up to give it another chance.

Thanks to @sourcebookscasa, @sourcebooks and @netgalley for a chance to early review this story in exchange for an honest review.

As an avid reader of Alexis Hall i was not disappointed by this book. It took me a while to get into it, but that might as well have been because of the circumstances under which i started reading it, but as soon as i was 20% in i was hooked! It was incredibly funny and i did like the characters a lot even though i didn’t think i would.

You don’t have to read Boyfriend Material to read this one, but it definitely makes the this book funnier in my opinion.

The characters in this book are undeniably interesting, but a notable aspect drew mixed feelings. The author attempts to capture a Liverpool accent in the dialogue, mentioning it at the start of the book. However, the implementation falls short, with only occasional variations like 'yez' thrown in. Personally, I found this approach more distracting than immersive. If an author chooses to incorporate an accent, it might be more effective to fully commit, embracing the nuances and differences rather than sporadically sprinkling one word. The limited use of dialect felt off-putting initially and progressively annoying.

Despite this hiccup, the overall quality of the book is commendable. It serves as a reminder that handling dialects in writing requires a thoughtful approach—either fully represent them or opt for a more straightforward narrative style. Beyond this particular aspect, the story itself is engaging and well-crafted.