Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

This is more about a mother/daughter relationship and learning to move forward. It was a beautiful story, based around a mother who hides in her past and the daughter that helps her break free. All Liv wants to do is learn about her favorite new artist and in doing so, uncovers a love story involving her mother. I loved watching the relationship between Liv and Emily unfold as they learned how to trust each other.

Thank you to the publisher for the e-arc of when we were young.

This was a heartwarming story about love, life after loss and moving forward. I admit I did really struggle with the slow pacing of the book, and it was a struggle to push through, sadly I found it difficult to connect with the characters, I felt that despite the story there was depth lacking to them, and I just wasn’t invested. It felt like the book was going through all the motions of the story, but I found at times a struggle to engage with. I did really enjoy the past and present narratives, and the multiple points of view, but sometimes it did feel like the story was a bit all over the place with the back and forth and the whole story just felt quite flat to me unfortunately

A bit of a whirlwind for me from start to finish. The vibrant colors and male and female silhouettes on the cover drew me straight away. The narration is split into 3 narrators and the chapters between vary to past and present. At first this old lady brain had trouble following who was narrating and where we were in time, but that didn’t last long. I was swept up and invested 100%. Mother and daughter are 2 of the narrators and the relationship dynamic between the two was complicated as is with any mom and teenage girl. But I loved each of their journeys, and they were both on their own individual journeys, but their come together at the end was tear worthy. There are 2 love stories unfolding through time, past and present. I loved, loved, loved this and the feelings it stirred up. The writing and pacing were beautiful and spot on. First published work by author and she’s definitely one I’ll watch for.
Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC copy in exchange for my thoughts.

A poignant and moving story which evoked emotions and also entertained me. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

Heartbreaking, beautifully written books about love, loss and how it shapes us as a person will always get my vote. As someone in her sad girl reading era, this was exactly the kind of story I love to loose myself in.

This is a great look into how our pasts significantly shape our future.
Love and loss bring forth new beginnings and ways to move forward.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

When we were young by Elaine Hastings, her debut novel coming July 17th 2025, thanks you netgalley for giving me the chance to read this book, it represents so much and puts a message that we all need to understand better of each others feeling and self awareness.

The way Elaine wrote so beautiful and sensitively about the love story of Will and Emily's. How they were both trying to navigate their creative careers. Him being a singer songwriter and making work and a rock star ⭐ and her being an artist making her way through university and creating art for exhibitions. Their struggles , communication and obstacles of trying to make their relationship work or whether it could help work. They loved each other so much but sometimes it's not enough or your dreams just don't align with the others.

But the heartbreak 💔 and sense of loss. she takes the blame and guilt on to herself through out the book. It changes her and how she behave like a mum to her daughter. Which I love about this book going into different POV and the timeline from the present to the past. How it shows everyone's thoughts process.

I literally cried so much with this book but also had big smiles on my face with the lighter moments which were needed.

5✨✨✨✨✨
Spiciness 🔥🔥.5

But I loved it more for the mental health representation which was spot on and handled with the upmost care

This was beautiful, poignant, heartfelt and an absolute joy to read.

I was struggling to put into words how this book made me feel, it’s just so well written and incredibly hard to put down.

This story follows Will, a young musician, a promising career ahead of him and Emily, a very talented artist who falls in love with him. But just years later Will is dead and Emily must navigate life without him.

I love how this book is told from different perspectives and also the different time lines. I especially liked hearing from Liv’s point of view.

The characters were just so well written and developed, you really feel you know them. They felt so real and I came to love them all as I understood their thoughts and feelings. The events which they go through are told with sensitivity and care.

It is a beautiful tale of friendships and family, of love and of loss. It shows how passing time doesn’t always heal old wounds and how many people shoulder responsibility that is not theirs to carry.
It shows how things can be misinterpreted, how not knowing all the facts can seriously affect someone’s judgment, even years after an event.

I can’t believe that this is the authors debut novel, the way the story is put together and comes to life is a magical thing.

So in conclusion, read it! I’ve not been pulled so fully into the emotion of a book in a long time and this just resonated with me.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Sweet story, interesting plot, beautiful cover.

I just had a hard time with finding some of the dialogue believable in parts.

When We Were Young is an engaging and thoughtfully written book that offers readers a memorable experience. The story is well-paced, with a clear beginning, middle, and end, and the author does an excellent job developing the characters and setting.

The writing style is accessible yet expressive, pulling readers into the world of the story. Whether you're looking for emotional depth, intriguing plot twists, or vivid world-building, this book has something to offer. While there may be a few minor flaws—perhaps some slow sections or underdeveloped subplots—they don't significantly detract from the overall enjoyment.

Great story of love and loss. Emotional and touching read. My first book by this author and I enjoyed it. Short chapters and easy read. 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and author for an advanced copy of this book, When We Were Young by Elaine Hastings.
This was heartbreakingly beautiful. A story of love and how life complicates it. The unfolding of the story captured me and held me the entire book. While I knew about the death, almost from the beginning, I kept hoping it wouldn’t happen. This story broke my heart, I know I won’t stop thinking about Will and his life and death for some time.
I enjoyed the dual timelines and multi point of view.
4.25⭐️

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from Netgalley. I loved this book. Hastings completely drew me into the characters' world. The perspectives of Liv, Emily, and Will, and switches between past and present, were done skillfully, and the characters were believable and engaging. I was utterly invested in this emotive, captivating story.

Five Stars
I fell in love with Liv and Emily and Matty and Rue and Will and Scott and Magda and Miranda. These characters were so well written that I felt like I knew them- or I wanted to know them. The way author builds tension between Emily and Liv is perfect- exactly how a teen daughter and mother go through hard times. And Mary's love for Will- the way she wanted what was best for him even in the end. I must admit I cried. The author did a fantastic job on a sensitive topic. She wrote with rawness but with a delicacy that made it easier to read. I think the way she left it- the not knowing for sure why- was beautiful and exactly how it should be. Engaging and beautifully written.

My Goodreads review link is posted below. These are my unpublished few thoughts and thanks :-)
I LOVED this book. Absolutely adored. 100% recommend.
Thank you to so much, Avon UK, for allowing me this incredible opportunity.

I really enjoyed this book, it perfectly encapsulated the love and loss that we will all experience and I loved the duel timeline.

However, as this book is pitched to fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid, I constantly found myself comparing this book to “Forever, Interupted” another duel timeline story of love and grief in the same genre. I’m not saying this was a bad thing, I enjoyed both books, but I think this removed some of the originality from When we were Young.

I loved the characters and world building and will definitely be recommending, it definitely has a slower pace and takes some time to fully delve into the story but I still really enjoyed this book.

When We Were Young is a dual timeline romance, bouncing between 1994 and 2016. In 2016 Emily’s daughter is obsessed with a musician from the 90’s. She discovers her “boring” mother had a relationship with said musician. The two spent an amazing summer together when then student Emily and then busker Will met and Emily went on tour with Will’s band sometime later. For fans of “Daisy Jones and the Six”, this is a story of the past, the present, love, loss and music. This is not what I would call a “contemporary romance” as some of it is set in the past and its has more of a golden hour love and loss vibe compared to more the popular romance novels today. This book was a far cry from what I usually prefer to read so it did take some time to hook me into the story.

This is a story about a woman coming to terms with her past, love, family (Child/Parent Relationship), and friendship. The daughter brings up a name from her mother’s past, which sets this story in motion. The story goes back and forth between the daughter looking into her mom’s past, the mom reflecting on the past, the father figuring out his part and the past. Part of what I enjoyed about this book is the portrayal of an ordinary every day mom and the daughter discovering her mother’s relationship with a lead singer of a famous band. We sometimes forget parents lived full lives before us. I also liked how the story had a couple love stories in it but didn’t diminish the feelings involved in either relation- the love stories shared similarities and differences and it did not portray either love right or wrong, just different.

I gave it four stars because it was a great book but I reserve five stars for books I think have a more general mass appeal or really touch me to the core. This was a really good book in it’s genre.

For anyone who has ever loved deeply and lost, this novel will resonate in ways that feel both heartbreaking and healing. It’s a gorgeous read that explores how we carry our pasts with us and how those we love whether they’re still with us or not continue to set us free.

Interweaving dual timelines, When We Were Young explores what it means to have loved and lost, and reminds you that the ones you love can set you free. Pick up this gorgeous hug of a book and get transported to a beautiful place wraps itself round you like a cosy blanket. It has warmth, charm, laugh-out-loud moments and a wistful nostalgia. I absolutely loved it.