Member Reviews

It's about a million degrees in New York right now, so reading about a sweltering London was easy to do. Set over a weekend in 2019, Evenings and Weekends. is a tight story about people at changing points.

Ed and Maggie are a couple who are expecting a child soon. Maggie secretly dreams of a life as a full-time artist, while Ed is questioning his past and his sexuality.

Phil is Maggie's best friend, and in a weird relationship or "Situationship" (as the kids say) with one of his roommates, Carl. Carl is in a non-monogamous relationship with Louis.

Phil's mother, Rosaleen, has been diagnosed with cancer. She is worried about both of her sons, while also being haunted by her past. Her other son, Callum, is a drug dealer and about to marry his girlfriend, Holly.

There's ALSO a beached whale on a beach that has been rescued by a Princess Diana lookalike and newly crowned queer icon.

While there are many, many characters, and a tight-timeline for these stories, this book is full of humor, love, growth and heartache. It captures that time period that everything happens all at once, and you think you'll never be able to move forward.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

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A very honest, sometimes painfully honest, book about sexuality and growing up. I always found the characters relatable, even when I didn’t particularly like them. This book will meet with anyone who knows what it is to be young, and those of us remember.

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Delicious, sexy, and truly compelling, this is the type of summer novel that makes a person feel alive.

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This made a great literary summer read. It was fast-paced and was full of drama! I think this is a great choice for Sally Rooney fans to pick up while they are eagerly awaiting her next novel; it was full of some of the same emotional intensity in her books.

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Evenings and Weekends is a heartfelt, sexually charged, and darkly comic exploration of young adulthood in the city. It’s a mesmerizing dive into the soul of London, examining the hurdles faced by young people trying to build their lives in a rapidly changing world.

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All the smart, moody books written in the wake of Sally Rooney wish they could be as good as EVENINGS & WEEKENDS, a new book that holds its weight among other millennial-core titles. This story has immense heart, and McKenna writes with piercing emotional clarity. One of my top recommendations for this summer.

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Wow wow wow!!!

This exquisitely written novel is the slice-of-life queer undoing I needed. As I turn 27 next week, these novels about reaching your thirties are hitting a little too close to home. 😭

But it’s so beautiful to feel represented by the joys and traumas of queer lit.

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This was a brilliant and wonderful debut! I really enjoyed reading this and will be looking out for Oisin's next book. I am a fan!

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I wanted to like this book. It has some funny moments, and it has some sharp lines of writing here and there that really catch attention, but it feels like those exist in contrast to rather predictable characters and setting. I will be curious to read what McKenna writes next, but this one wasn't quite for me.

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This book is set in London in 2019 and follows two families who are intricately linked. Callum and Phil are brothers and their neighbor is Ed. Ed is engaged to another friend, Maggie, and they are expecting a baby. Callum is also getting married. All of these characters are struggling, though. They are all somewhat adrift, and Ed, in particular, is struggling with his identity. Phil and Callum are also contending with an ill mother. Tied into the story is a whale that becomes stranded during a heat wave in London. This is a character-driven novel, not much in terms of plot but we do slowly learn about the character and struggles of each person in this book. I felt somewhat ambivalent about them but the story did move along and kept my interest. Thank you, NetGalley, for the advanced copy.

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I enjoyed this book. It was witty, nuanced, fun—and at some points— very serious. The story centers around an interconnected group of friends and their families that grew up in suburban England but now are struggling to stay afloat in London in the midst of a heatwave. The sense of place was grounded and believable, which helped to connect me to the story. I could feel the heat of the story while reading it—both the heatwave and the tension between characters. The tension that builds between Maggie, Ed, and Phil is incredibly well-developed and made me want to keep reading.

One of my favorite things in this book is the whale stuck in the Thames. The whale appeared to be a metaphor for all the big, heavy things that were stuck in the lives of the characters in this book. I don't want to give spoilers about it, but her fate felt fitting to the story. I loved the references to the whale and even the news anchor who may or may not look like Princess Diana.

I do wish we got to know Joan and Callum a bit better. These characters were fairly important to the story, but not as fully developed as the others.

This book deals with some pertinent issues and handles them with care, but also is not afraid to confront them. Mckenna wrote a timely and beautiful novel, perfect for summertime!

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Oisin McKenna's EVENINGS AND WEEKENDS (publishes July 16, 2024) is a strong debut.

In this novel, we have several characters that are navigating their late 20s. Maggie is in her first trimester pregnant with Ed's baby, and they have decided to move back to their hometown to save money. Phil is Maggie's gay best friend, and he's also been harboring a secret from Maggie for many years, and Callum is Phil's brother and he's going to get married. Phil and Callum's mother also is keeping a secret from Phil. These secrets are big and involve pivotal life issues. Set in the summer, you get a lot of London summer vibes in this novel.

I really liked the writing style of this one! I would say this has some similar vibes to Sally Rooney's books with less witty banter and more internal thoughts. Now, this isn't a slam because I'm not a fan of Sally Rooney. Hers have too much banter for me. So I thought this debut was a more elevated Sally Rooney. I liked learning about Phil from the various other characters, as well as from his own voice. I also enjoyed the end of Maggie's arc in the book as well as Rosaleen's.

There is an analogy/symbolism with a stuck whale. It was a little too forced for me to wholly appreciate. Also, it took me a long time to get all the male characters figured out. Could be a "me" problem. While some characters are very well-formed, like Phil, I feel others could have been more developed.

Strong debut, and I wouldn't hesitate to read another novel from this author in the future!

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Turns out I don't like novels with multiple points-of-view. There were so many characters, it was extremely hard to keep track of them. Also, the story was a little too corny for me. It's basically about friendships and toxic relationships. Very boring and cliche-ridden. Nothing unique or special.

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Evenings and Weekends is a charming gem of a debut novel. Over a swelteringly hot weekend in London, we follow several linked characters as they navigate secrets, their careers, and their futures.

Maggie is thirty, pregnant, and uncertain of her path forward. Ed is her boyfriend, and he is barely making ends meet and is struggling with his identity. Phil is Maggie's best friend, and he knows things about Ed that no one else does.

There were several other characters, and I was pleasantly surprised by how seamless the story moved from one person to the next. It was also somewhat addictive because I always looked forward to reading how these storylines connected. Overall, this was a fun, unique new novel.

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Evenings and Weekends takes place in the heat of a London summer, where a whale has been stranded in the Thames, causing a media sensation. Overlapping this event are the intersections of young adults in the city, whose lives are all reaching a critical change point. Maggie and Ed have known each other since school and are living together in an expensive London apartment that is causing Ed's asthma to flare up due to all the mold. Maggie is in the early weeks of pregnancy and they are coming to a realization that a move to their hometown in the suburbs, Basildon may be needed. They will be able to live more comfortably and their families will be close by. Maggie is nervous to tell her friend Phil about her pregnancy as she thinks he will judge her- how could she leave the city for the town she fled? Phil also has never been warm to Ed either. Why is that the case? Phil also finds himself in a situation where he is seeing Keith who is in an open relationship. Phil has a difficult time figuring out where he stands in the relationship, and should he tell Maggie about his history with Ed?

Overlap Maddie, Ed, and Phil's lives is a look into Basildon, where their parents live and are dealing also with major changes in their lives. Phil's mother Pauline is struggling to divulge to him a recent cancer diagnosis. As she thinks about death, she looks back on her childhood friendship, which was maybe more with Rosalee. Across the street is Joan, Ed's mother who is still deep in grief after the death of her husband. There's also Phil's brother Callum who is not taking his mother's diagnosis well and is distancing himself from his fiancé with their wedding approaching.

It is hard to capture all of the plot lines in this book, and I felt like it probably would be better served emphasizing the older generation or the younger generation, as many of the characters I would have liked more time with. It just is capturing a lot of interesting emotions- grief, secrecy, confidence, love, self-reflection, and I would have liked a more a deep dive with less characters. I still would recommend this book though as the read was quite enjoyable and kept me engaged.

Thank you to Mariner Books via NetGalley for the advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.

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Oh I really liked this one. I think it would benefit from a re-read because I was so wrapped up in what was going to happen with these interpersonal dynamics that I skimmed some of the more descriptive parts, but they were well done too! I loved all the relationships and appreciate that it was intergenerational.

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This is a book for 30 somethings who left suburban life for the big city in their 20s, but now feel confused about what’s next and guilty about leaving their aging parents — so basically me and all of my friends 😌

I really liked this book! I loved the variety of perspectives, and feel like every character was fully fleshed out. It explores heavier topics in a way that’s realistic but not pessimistic. I enjoyed the descriptions of London in the summer. The writing is also quite witty — the Princess of Whales bit was great.

I can definitely see this being the chic book to be seen reading this summer. I’ll be recommending to my fellow 30 somethings for sure.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

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If you love a web of characters that interweave in unexpected and profound ways, this book is a must-read. With a gorgeous cover and a stellar few paragraphs, I inhaled this book over 2 days. Taking place over 1 London summer weekend, the characters lives and relationships are shaken up by revelations, secrets, confessions (and non-confessions). It is multi-POV with queer characters, differing ages, and a few surprising twists. I wasn't completely enamored with the book, so only 4 stars, but I still really enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it.

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Evenings and Weekends follows the many interconnected lives of a diverse cast of characters. With the use of her provocative writing style, McKenna's characters drive this story. We have the privilege of getting a glimpse into their lives over the course of a few weeks, and although it isn't action packed with many events, McKenna allows you to feel so invested in their lives that you're sucked right in from the beginning and can't help but root for them. There are few topics she leaves untouched throughout her debut novel. Religion, politics, gender and sexual identity, family dynamics, nothing is off the table for these 352 pages. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read this ARC!

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This is a book about complicated relationships and the things we will do to protect our loved ones. I really enjoyed the writing styleI recommend this book for fans of Sally Rooney, character driven novels, and messy relationships. Thank you to the publisher for my e-copy.

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