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‘Cover Story’ is of those rare reads that skillfully combines witty humor with complex themes in a way that is both captivating and thought-provoking. In McFarlane's world of investigative journalism, Connor, a quiet but perceptive intern, and Bel, an experienced reporter with a cut-throat approach, work together to secure a huge story. The curve? To do this, they pose as a couple.

The story is far more complex than the typical fake dating setup, which was a breath of fresh air to me. There is a lot of emotional weight here, particularly when it comes to topics like harassment and abuse of power. While some readers might have hoped for more romantic tension in the beginning, Bel and Connor's relationship develops gradually, and the payoff feels genuine and well-earned. As always, McFarlane's speech is dazzling, and the characters are incredibly flawed and human.

I thought that Bel and Connor’s interactions were refreshing in a way, specifically because of the enemies-to-lovers trope. I hate a lot of angst, and I am not a fan of too much conflict (to the point that both characters set themselves up for failure). McFarland showed this palpable respect these two had for each other in the work setting, even if they aren’t the best of friends. The intentionality behind the writing is the unique storytelling I’ve needed this year.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for the chance to read an early copy!

I wish I liked this more but I felt like the book was doing too much. Also I think the writing style was not for me sadly.

This one was classic Mhairi McFarlane -- snarky and fun!! Plus so many of my fave tropes: Enemies to lovers, fake dating.....need I say more? I also usually hate books about journalist, as a journalist myself, but this one worked. I liked the characters, and the slow burn payoff was worth it.

I really enjoyed this book. i felt like there was a good story line that switched up the romance aspect. I liked Bel, and I loved how her and Connor interacted. their banter was great, and I love that they weren't really enemies but just didnt care for one another. I do wish there was an epilogue.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy

I don’t usually gravitate toward books set in England, but this one was a pleasant surprise. The storyline kept me engaged from start to finish—I genuinely wanted to see how things would unfold for the main characters and how their relationship would come together. It was heartwarming and sweet in all the right ways. I’m giving it 4 stars, mostly because the male lead cried a bit too often for my taste—it felt slightly overdone and pulled me out of the moment at times.

The plot was less rom-com and way more rom-dram, and despite having so many of my favorite tropes, none of them worked well for me because the vibe was off. I also didn't care for Bel and found myself skimming her POV because she frustrated me. The ending is pretty satisfying, so if you trudge through for that, you (hopefully) won't be left wanting.

I love a good rivals to lovers with a fakeout on the road to romance. Connor is the new intern. Bel is working at the paper as an independent podcaster turned columnist. She's trying to break a huge story and, through romcom style hijinks, convinces Connor to be her fake boyfriend. Super cute, definitely worth the read!

I could not get enough of this book! Cover Story by Mhairi McFarlane is an instant favorite, following office rivals - and reluctant undercover accomplices - Bel and Connor. McFarlane has created characters that feel real, vulnerable, and incredibly imperfect, that makes the story so much more enticing. I can't wait for everybody to read this book and fall just as in love with Bel and Conner as I did!

This was such a surprise. It has the appeal of investigation lovers, fake dating (but done really well), enemies to lovers (again, done well and not fueled solely by lust) and an incredibly slow burn romance. A little bit of miscommunication towards the end where you wish they could spit it out, but it felt very realistic and not just for plot. Really liked this one.

I was excited to pick this book up after hearing rave reviews for the author and her previous work but I was sadly disappointed. this book felt extremely slow and I had a very difficult time getting into the story despite the promising plot line. I had to put this book down and pick it back up multiple times in hopes of getting more invested but I felt like the first 25% of the story dragged on and it was hard to continue from there. another thing that I struggled with was the fact that the majority of communication between the two main characters was plagued by miscommunication and thinking that someone felt a certain way through pure assumption or preconceived judgments (especially at the beginning). while I do think this book had potential and could positively received by readers who don't mind a long slow burn, I unfortunately think that this book simply was not for me.

What I enjoy most about McFarlane books, is how character driven and women strong (women centered?) they are. Here latest book, out in the US in October, is no exception.

Bel Macaulay, an award-winning podcaster, has just joined the Manchester office of a national newspaper as an Investigations Editor when she is paired with their latest intern - Connor Adams, a thirty-something career-changer starting over in journalism. When Bel stumbles upon a major scoop involving a powerful politician’s abuse of young women, she’s forced to go undercover—and Connor accidentally gets pulled into the operation via a “fake dating” situation in order to not jeopardize Bel’s lead.

I will say, this book started off a little slow. Both Bel and Connor had initial judgements of each other that took awhile to overcome. There are background subplots of stalker exes, and cheating girlfriends and that, combined with the main story of a politician threatening young women, makes this book a bit heavy than the average romance novel. That said, I've never considered this author's novel mere romcoms so that worked just fine for me. I thought both Bel and Connor were well written, I loved the hysterical cast of friends and family members as background characters and I laughed more than once while reading. While this isn't my favorite McFarlane, it's still quite good. If you've liked her previous books, you will like this one.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC!

I feel really bad but I just can’t get into it. I’m not a huge fan of the characters or how it’s started out. I’m still trying to read it.

I wanted to love this one so much, but I think I’ve come to the conclusion that McFarlane books aren’t for me. I’m not a fan of the writing style and find her books very slow

Bel Macaulay, a sharp-tongued, award-winning podcaster, has just joined the Manchester office of a national newspaper as an Investigations Editor, is pared with Connor Adams, a thirty-something career-changer from finance who’s starting over in journalism.
When Bel stumbles upon a major scoop involving a powerful politician’s abuse of young women, she’s forced to go undercover—and Connor accidentally gets pulled into the operation.

To protect the story and their sources, Bel and Connor must pretend to be a couple. A couple deeply in love. What could go wrong, right?

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for this ARC!

So I did really enjoy this book BUT it’s not the book I was expecting given the marketing -like at all. Personally, I didn’t get rom-com vibes and I certainly didn’t get ‘Mr and Mrs Smith’ meets ‘The Hating Game’ -I cannot remotely see either comparison… however, it’s a good read! It’s much more of a women’s fiction novel (the term needs to be retired frankly, but you know what I mean) with a not-too-prevalent romance subplot.
It’s about a journalist, Bel, breaking a me-too style story about a local politician, and going undercover to access sources -with the unintended guise of a colleague as her boyfriend. The main subplots are the FMC’s stalker and the romance that grows from the fake dating scenario. I realise the content described sounds heavy, but the tone is very light, it’s a relaxing read.
Honestly it’s just a really pleasant read that doesn’t ask too much of you. This is my first time reading McFarlane but I imagine she’s the sort of author you’d be able to reliably reach for with each new novel.
I think what kept this from being a five star read for me personally was it felt slightly lacking -I wanted more of characters like Shilpa and the relatives and less time in the office.
If a story about a woman who’s learnt who she is and is determined to get the job done sounds like what you’re in the mood for, this would be a good book. And in my own lingo -this is a fab option for a train book.

Review set to post online: the week beginning 14th September

Thank you Net Galley for providing me with the opportunity to read this advanced e-copy!!

Mhairi McFarlane has a way of making me sit on the edge of my seat feeling emotions I did not know I had. This book had so many different elements that all seemed to work. My only caveat on this book is my strong dislike of the miscommunication trope. It had me on edge while also frustrated with the two main characters. It tied in well to the story as it is enemies to lovers but it also had me wanting to shake both the characters and just tell them to spit it out.

The title of the book was very accurate and I feel that the book could have been longer should Mhairi McFarlane wanted it to with the appearance of a trouble character. I will say, I was waiting for that character to make another appearance, but I am glad the story ended as it did.

Sometimes we find love and partnership in odd and traumatizing ways.

Cover Story 🏢👔👗
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Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to receive this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I unfortunately could not get into this book. I found the two main characters very dull and this book was wanting to be like The Hating Game.

One of my favorite romance tropes is frenemies to lovers especially in an office setting, but I felt like the characters lacked that spark and energy.

I’ve read a few other books by this author and was very excited to read this book, but her writing style was hard to follow at times and seemed very drawn out.

I apologize for the bluntness of this book but it was just not my cup of tea.

I loved this & gobbled it up quick as I could. I do love McFarlane’s contemporary romances and the investing/unique couples that populate them. I thought this was totally different from past works - slightly more serious and somber (which I liked), and I found myself leaning into the experiences of Connor - being new, knowing your an outsider, feeling paranoid - and that’s new for me not to find myself in the females shoes. I have no issues with slow burn and I quite enjoy waiting for two duh-mmies to figure things out. This isn’t my favorite McFarlane - and that would be hard to choose anyway, but as per usual, I will also pick this up in audio and plan to enjoy it all over again. Um, I didn’t love Bella.

I've been a huge fan of Mhairi McFarlane's prior works - she has a way of exploring characters’ complex emotional growth in light of traumatic past relationships wrapped up in unique, crisp and funny writing. The same holds true here, just not as strong as what I was expecting.

Bel is an investigative journalist who is chasing a lead surrounding a corrupt mayor, and new intern to her Manchester office, Connor, gets wrapped up in the situation as they both have to go undercover as a couple. Connor has quit his job in Finance to start fresh as a journalist, and Bel and Connor get off on the wrong foot when they meet, but we get to see their relationship grow as the investigation unfolds.

Similar to McFarlane's prior works, this story is layered and tackles both Bel and Connor overcoming troublesome past relationships. I appreciated the emotional growth both characters demonstrated, but I felt that I didn’t connect with Bel and Connor as much I anticipated. I don’t usually expect a large romantic plot or subplot in McFarlane's books - they tend to lean more women’s fiction with the romance taking the back seat - but the dual POV made me second-guess this notion going into the book. I expected to feel more from Bel and Connor, but the pacing of the book made it difficult. I appreciated that the focus of most of the book was on the investigation element, only tilting heavily towards their relationship once that portion was largely resolved. However, I expected more out of the ending and felt things wrapped up too cleanly and quickly across their relationship and all of the side plots. There were many misunderstandings between the two main characters - and though we get to see the same situation unfold by both Bel and Connor with an understanding to the reader of why they acted the way they did, it didn’t really pack an emotional punch.

Overall, I thought this was an enjoyable read that I finished fairly quickly. Despite not wholly connecting with the characters, I would still pick this one up if you’re missing McFarlane's writing!

4 stars! This book has it all it’s the perfect romcom. It’s funny and emotional. It caught my attention right from the start ! The perfect slow burn enemies to lovers