I actually read this as I was sitting with my mom at the hospital as she's fighting cancer so this really hit close to home. I requested this book from Netgalley without knowing much about it because I am a huge fan of Sophie Kinsella. I have read/own every single one of her books pre-2020 and then once I joined Bookstagram, I got overwhelmed with tons of new books, new authors and recommendations from other bookstgrammers so I was excited to reconnect with Kinsella.

This definitely has her unique voice, which I love. I felt like I was back in the Shopaholic series at the beginning. This is a novella so it was a super quick read. It's a fiction book but draws from her own experience dealing with brain cancer. It was so poignant and definitely heartbreaking as I read what happened. I am thankful she is doing OK now and appreciate her sharing her story, even if its not 100 percent autobiographical.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy. 4.5 stars rounded up.

This beautifully written book is broken up into two parts, the Before and the After. The Before: is about Eve who is an author who is trying to write her seventh book and she is in the middle of being interviewed for the magazine Modern Woman. She is explaining to the interviewer how she has five children, John, Leo, Arthur, Reggie, and Isobel. She also says that her husband Nick is her champion! He has taken the kids to the park for a pick nick while she writes.
After she hangs up she tries to get back to her writing but she just can't seem to concentrate, so she decides that she will go to the coffee shop and get some coffee and see if that will help and maybe she can get some inspiration. Instead she stops at a dress shop to try on this fabulous dress she sees and feels like she really shouldn't be doing this but if she buys it that she will find a reason to wear it. Mean time a story strikes her and she starts writing it down on her phone so she won't forget any of it. This story just flows so smooth through her and she calls it "Hey Big Spender".
It is a huge success and Disney buys the rights to it. She wears the dress to the opening and all of her children are dressed in their suits and Izzy in her darling little dress. It was a great night.

The After:
Eve wakes up in the hospital and she doesn't know what happened to her or why she can't move her head. She doesn't know any of the people around her. She tries to touch her head and finds that there is a thick bandage and is now really wants answers. That's when she hears a familiar voice from behind her inform her of what is happening to her. Eve knew Nicks voice immediately and she felt at least, a bit better. Nick explained to her that she had a brain tumor removed a rather large mass. They are in the process of testing it to find out if it is cancer or not. Mean time they are going to be working with her to reteach her how to walk and to get strong again.

They finally find out that she has a stage four glioblastoma. The long and short of it Eve has stage four cancer that is an aggressive and incurable cancer. She will have to go through Chemo and radiotherapy. Her chances of survival well they won't know until they know how she will respond to the treatments.

This is a really beautifully written book. Sophie Kinsella I really appreciate you telling your story and how you went about it. This is really a true testament to your character. Thank you
Highly Recommend
Happy Reading!!

Eve is a novelist who wakes up in the hospital with no memory why. Slowly she needs to re-learn how to walk and her memory starts coming back remembering the brain tumor that was removed. As she comes to terms with her surgery, cancer diagnosis, memory loss, and the grief that comes along with it all.

This book was heartbreaking and beautiful. I read it in one sitting in between sobs and immediately had another friend read it who felt the exact same. Knowing it was a true story made it even sadder and courageous.

Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book helped me put into words some of the emotions I experienced when I was diagnosed with cancer. Thankfully, my diagnosis was not as severe as Eve's (or Sophie's); I was diagnosed with a very treatable form of breast cancer. Yet, I still found myself relating to many of the thoughts and feelings that Sophie expressed through Eve.

The initial fear of dying was my first reaction to the diagnosis, and Eve's words to Nick captured that emotion perfectly:

"I just need to know that you will be there when I die. I need to hear your voice. Your voice relaxes me. Plus, you need to tell me what to do and where to go. You know me—I haven't got any sense of direction. I'll end up in the wrong place."

Another quote that made me laugh was:
"My brain was the secret of my success when I was writing books. But now my brain's the very thing causing all the problems."

As a lactation consultant, this resonated with me deeply. In my late 20s, breastfeeding my own children sparked the passion that led me to become an IBCLC. The very breasts that fed my four children and paved the way for my career had now become the source of a threat to my life.

Reading this story, I often felt like reaching out to hug Eve, and knowing it’s an autobiographical work made me want to hug Sophie Kinsella, too.

What a brave, personal, and intimate story to share with readers. It’s no wonder Sophie has such a devoted fanbase.

A fictionalized account of what the author herself has been going through, having been diagnosed with incurable glioblastoma in 2022. This is beautiful and poignant and will break your heart. Told in brief anecdotes with Kinsella's charm and wit, again, it will break your heart but there is definite hope as well.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the Dial Press for this e-arc.*

Moving, insightful and heartfelt story about a wife, mother and author diagnosed with cancer. A fast read but it will stay with you for a long time.

Beautiful story and inspiring that it is based on Sophie’s own story. I am a long time fan of Sophie and will always read any book she publishes!

This is a heartbreaking story of an author who is at the height of her career and gets a traumatic cancer diagnosis. It is a touching, heartwarming and heartbreaking read all in one. At the end, Ms. Kinsella gives the revelation that this is her story. A popular podcast that I follow has her as the guest this week and I can't wait to listen to that to find out more of her story.

Sophie Kinsella has been one of my favorite authors for years. She has a unique voice, and a special way of combining heart aching lessons and wit that I so value as a reader.
What Does It Feel Like is the sort of raw tale that has the capacity to resonate far beyond the four walls you will read it within. It's about a woman's journey through life as a wife, mother, writer, and now, cancer patient. I read it in just an hour or two, and yet the pages pack a punch. It left me hopeful, grateful, and feeling bittersweet at Eve's outlook going into the end.
"You hate spoilers in books and films. We both do. But when it comes to this, all we want, above anything else, is a spoiler. We desperately want the doctors to give us the spoiler, but they can't, because they don't know either."

4.0/5.0

This was a very powerful and moving book. Super quick read but one that will stay with me. I am in awe of what the author went through and her bravery in sharing her story.

"What Does it Feel Like" is a touching story that is both heartbreaking and heartwarming. Although the book is fiction, it is inspired by Sophie’s own experience. I can only imagine how tough it must have been for her to live through something like that and then write about it.
The story can be sad, but it is also funny and hopeful. It’s a bittersweet read, and if you've enjoyed Sophie’s previous books, you definitely cannot miss this one. I laughed and cried reading Eve’s story, and I wish the best for Sophie.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the opportunity to review this book. I have been battling a TBI since a car accident over four years ago, so this story got me curious. Eve's battle is very similar to some of the things I have been working on from healing. This is an autobiographical novel that explains why Eve's interiority is riveting. I had yet to read a book where I could relate to it so much. This is the best book I have read in a long time. Also, I finished this in one sitting with tea. I wish the author healing strength, and many thanks for writing this novel.

In writing this book, the author wrote such a personal and heartbreaking story! This is unlike her earlier books. Here, she portrays a woman who has an incurable brain cancer. It was not until the end that I realized the author wrote this story to actually tell her own story. It is such a sad story, but emphasizes the strength and love of her family. Wow!

Wow.

I have been reading Sophie Kinsella's books since I was a teen. I fell in love with her Shopaholic series and then found new love in all of her standalone novels. I loved her quirky characters, sense of humor, and the fact that her novels often made me laugh out loud and forget about the difficulties of life.

When I recently found out that Sophie Kinsella was diagnosed in 2022 with an incurable brain cancer, I was heartbroken. Then, I learned this novella was autobiographical. While this was a tough read, imagining one of my favorite authors of all time dealing with such a difficult and scary diagnosis, I absolutely loved it.

This novella takes a different form than most of her previous works. This is written in shorter snippets, almost like diary entries of sorts. I really liked the fact that she took new risks with style. It also helped to bring to life the real whirlwind that the main character, Eve, experiences from her up and coming "stardom" to her cancer diagnosis and beyond.

Reading this brought me to tears on several occasions, especially considering that I am also a mom and I hate the idea of the main character showing Sophie's real life fears and suffering. While there were some lighthearted moments too, this was definitely the most sobering and serious of Kinsella's works.

Upon finishing, I can only hope that Sophie Kinsella gets her true happy ending -- health and a long life to share with her beautiful family. I also hope she will continue to write the quirky, fun books that I have loved for so long. Definitely pick this up if you are looking for a short, but powerful read about life, illness, fears, and positivity.

Thank you Netgalley for an advanced look at this book in exchange for an honest review!

I must confess, I did forget this was a novella so as my percent completed bar was ticking, I was like.....WHAT IS HAPPENING? But then I finished it, and I read the author's note, and I was completely blow away.

One think about Sophie's writing style is that she can pack a lot of feeling in a small punch. I felt that infinitely with this book. An autobiographical work in so many ways. As someone who fears getting sick and having cancer (and needing to have that conversation with my daughter), Eve's story made me weep. I was rooting for Eve and in turn, I was rooting for Sophie.

Sophie says it best when she says: “Why did I write such a personal book? I have always processed my life through writing. Hiding behind my fictional characters, I have always turned my own life into a narrative. It is my version of therapy, maybe. Writing is my happy place, and writing this book, although tough going at times, was immensely satisfying and therapeutic for me.”

Thank you so much for this ARC!

As many other readers have already commented, I was totally unaware that Sophie Kinsella experienced this. This writing was a complete 180 from her typical style. The writing was raw, honest and vulnerable. She is beyond talented and as a forever fan, I appreciated the story and update on her life.

Lots of love and well wishes to Sophie.

Oh Sophie.. this is a tough one. An autobiography disguised as a fictional novel. Short, quick read that will stay with you for a lot longer. It is so interesting to get the behind the scenes of someone with cancer. I feel honored to have read this book and especially before many others. Thinking of Sophie and her family always.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What Does It Feel Like? is a heart breaking novella by Sophie Kinsella, based on her own brain cancer diagnosis. The book was so beautifully written. It follows Eve, a writer diagnosed with grade 4 glioblastoma
This was such a tough, emotional read.
Thank you to netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

What Does It Feel Like? by Sophie Kinsella is a tearjerker of a novella. The author wrote this semi-autobiographical story after receiving her own brain cancer diagnosis. This book walks us through a slightly fictionalized version of what the author experienced after her own diagnosis. It's a brilliant way for the reader to understand what someone might be enduring both physically and mentally as they tackle the biggest hurdle they've ever undergone. Read and learn.

I've been reading Sophie Kinsella books since "Confessions of a Shopaholic" in 2001. I've looked forward to her new releases, and read the Madeleine Wickham books in between when I needed a go-to book to make me laugh and cry. "What Does it Feel Like" is a little different, tackling the most serious of subject matters, but still has her signature light-hearted humor infused. This novella was deeply moving, telling the first person story of a woman whose brain has betrayed her. I'm having a hard time articulating just how deeply this story moved me- as a mom, a bookish nerd, and a Kinsella fan (maybe that last part is the parasocial relationship talking, I've followed her on social media for years). This story is a must read.