Great book about discovering the limits of friendship and what it means to find and be loved. Great beach or pool read

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

That's what She Said combines Romantic Comedy elements with a traditional Literary Fiction story structure. This book will appeal to a wide variety of readers as it has great elements of both. It also features a great crash course on learning about the Ace spectrum. I love that more books are talking about the Asexual spectrum and including characters. As a demisexual myself, I thought the representation in Beth was done very well. I like that it talked about her uncertainty and you really see her growth throughout the book. At the end she learns to accept herself and not be afraid of how she identifies. I also appreciated that in the end she finds someone who loves and accepts this part of her as well. This is all wrapped up in a heartfelt but funny package that made That's What She Said a great read! In addition to a great story, this was a great audiobook experience. The narrator had clear and distinct voices for both of our main characters. This made the POV switches feel very clear and defined. The narrator also had great comedic timing. Since there was such a story comedic element to this book I thought that this read especially well on audio. I think that this is a great audiobook for summer beach reading!

It was good, but I wouldn't say I loved it... It got a wee confusing towards the end, but I may not have been as invested as I should have been :/

I was intrigued by a romance that featured a main character on the ace spectrum. Unfortunately, I think this book does what it's main character doesn't want: boils people down into stereotypes of either a slut or a virgin. The best moments were between Serena and Beth, and their friendship was characterized best in moments where one's confidence or bravery was not boiled down to how attractive they perceived themselves to be. The two friends genuinely meshed but in other parts it seemed a bit too heavy on the trope of fun, popular girl and nerdy, shy best friend, even though shy Beth is the "main character."

Some humor was also too specific for me with name drops of things like Imagine Dragons, Lord of the Rings, Tom Hiddleston, etc. I find that this can distance readers who don't like those fan-specific things.

I think romance fans will still find enough conflict resolution and character growth, and satisfying if too-neatly-tied-up love matches to enjoy this lighthearted read. Overall, not for me but fans of the genre will have enough to hold onto.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio Adult for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

What I really loved about this book was that we got dual POV which really helped flesh out the friendship / platonic relationship between our two FMCs, Beth and Serena. I appreciated that this book focused on platonic love with your best friend and the growing pains that come with it.

The focus on Beth's virginity irked me, which perhaps was the point because of all the crap wrapped up in women's sexuality/purity etc within our society. I'm glad that Beth finally found her voice and confidence in her identity as a demisexual woman, but wow, did I yell "YOU'RE PERFECT THE WAY YOU ARE! THAT'S THE PATRIARCHY TALKING, BETH!" at my phone when listening to this book far too many times. Additionally, Serena made me want to pull my hair out. She's a great character- I can see so much of myself (I'm the 'sexual' friend of the group!) and other friends (some great... some not so great) in her which made her a very interesting person to hang out with in this book, but wow did her actions annoy me. Despite claiming to be a sex-positive person, there are many moments in this book where her opinions and behaviour towards Beth made me want to scream. That being said, I'm glad we got the ending we did, or else I would have broken my phone in anger.

In all this is a good book if you're needing a book that reflects difficult friendships between women and the strength that can come from loving each other enough to evolve.

The narrators were great!! I even had to look up if someone else was playing Evan, because I was so convinced by their characterization. Pros!

I was really excited to read this book, however this book is just not the one for me. I was all here for this book that is about a demisexual finding love in life, but found it was overly sexual. However, I read a lot of smutt and spice, these bordered cringey, which could've been from the MC being a virgin and still figuring out her as a person. It just wasn't for me as when I was listening to this book i kept getting secondhand embracement about things that had happened.

One positive thing about this was that the narrator was very good and her accent brought the character to fruition.

Thank you NetGalley for this ALC in exchange for my honest review.

as usual, i'm entertained by ell potter's narration (and as what i've said at the pre-review part, potter became my one of my favorite narrators when i first listen to emily wilde series [first two books only, though i haven't listened to the third one]). but robyn holdaway however, i was impressed at her narration. her accent is so addicted to hear (especially delphi's since it's one of my fave voices i've heard).

for the book content, it has a mix of comedy and drama. i appreciate the friendship between beth and serena. but i'm slightly disappointed at serena's actions at the last 50%. all in all, i got laughed too hard because of their humor

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio Adult for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

That's What She Said follows best friends Beth and Serena. Beth is a demisexual woman and, with the encouragement and help of Serena, starts her 'sexual odyssey.' This story focuses on these friends and their personal struggles.

Beth and Serena's relationship was the best part of this book. I enjoyed seeing their relationship, as you can tell they truly love each other and see each other as their soulmate, even if they go through rough patches. It very much felt like a platonic romance story for them.

As well, I really enjoyed the voice actors for this audiobook. There were two voice actors, one for Beth and one for Serena. The voice actors really helped to get me into the story and I could feel the emotion from them. And the accents they both had, helped me to figure out their characters.

Beth enlists the help of her best friend Serena on her journey to losing her virginity, but the friends couldn’t be more different. Beth is demisexual and hasn’t had much luck with men and is failing in her freelance marketing career while Serena is thriving in both her sex life and her journaling career. They decide that Beth will try new things and Serena will use the information for an article. Things start to get a little bumpy when Serena doesnt take things as seriously as Beth thinks she should and their friendship is on the line.

We get two very different perspectives with the two characters in this book. We have Beth who being demisexual is waiting to find find that connection with someone or honestly just not have a man run away when she tells them that she’s Demi and needs time before she just jumps in bed with someone. Then we have Serena, who is very confident and aware of herself and has multiple sex partners throughout the story.

I really enjoyed following Beth’s story and learning more about demisexuality and the different things she needed to feel comfortable with someone. Serena’s storyline wasn’t as relatable to me and I didn’t really enjoy her character as much but in the end I was happy for both of them.

Thank you, NetGalley and HarperAudio for an arc of this audiobook in return for an honest review.

Just finished That's What She Said by Eleanor Pilcher, and I couldn’t put it down! This book is a refreshing, witty, and empowering read that had me laughing, nodding in agreement, and even reflecting on so many relatable moments.

Eleanor Pilcher’s sharp sense of humor and clever storytelling make this book an absolute standout. The characters are bold, the dialogue is spot-on, and the themes of confidence, self-discovery, and finding your voice are woven beautifully throughout.

If you’re looking for a book that’s equal parts entertaining and inspiring, this one’s for you. It’s smart, funny, and leaves you feeling ready to take on the world. Highly recommend!

A good story that could have benefited from a bit of editing and more subtle dialogue. Spots of the writing felt a little forced and like the author was trying to prove a point. Overall, I really liked the story and characters but felt the whole thing could have used one more pass for editing and tone.

That’s What She Said by Eleanor Pilcher is a very messy story that explores sexual identity and the complexities of maintaining friendship in your twenties. I was genuinely so excited for this story hoping to gain a better understanding of what it means to be demisexual, but this story fell flat.

Don’t get me wrong I did get a better understanding of that identity and it did help me understand my own journey a little bit better, but this wasn’t an enjoyable story to read. It was refreshing to read a story focused on friendship rather than romantic love, but both characters were so insufferable in their own ways I could barely enjoy the moments when their relationship was in a good spot. They were both so immature in their own ways and you would think at their age they would have learned how to efficiently communicate their feelings a little bit, but that was not the case. Serena was a very selfish character and it was hard for me to care for her plot line. Beth was less annoying, but her inability to stand up for herself over and over again got really frustrating.

While I did enjoy certain aspects of this story like the short comical moments, both love interests in general, and Beth’s journey with her sexuality, which helped me further understand my own, this was not as enjoyable as I initially anticipated.

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶

What a wonderful way to kick off June reading! I had the pleasure of listening to this book via audio. This story centers around two best friends and their lives. Beth is a demi sexual wanting to explore her sexuality. Serena is a lesbian who is looking at her sex friend as more than just a friend. This reads like an early 2000s romcom and ate it up. I absolutely loved Beth and Serena's story! I look forward to future novels from this author. If this sounds up your alley then check it out!

the story was fine but if you can't stand uppity british accents then would definitely recommend avoiding the audiobook for this one. I've never felt so repulsed listening to two girls natter before and it really stopped me from engaging with the story.

I’m realizing that fake dating tropes are not something that I’m the biggest fan of. I’ll always read (or in this case listen to) queer books because there should be more queer literature.

This was a women’s lit fic. It was a decent story but I didn’t find myself a little confused by some of the slang since I’m not in the UK and hadn’t heard the terms before. I’d say this is great for a summer time read though. Just a slice of life story.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio for access to the audio version of “That’s What She Said” by Eleanor Pilcher. I was immediately brought back to the times of living with female roommates and how basically no one knows you better than your best friend. I was also brought back to that so familiar anxiety of when close becomes too close, and you both know that it is time to give each other space to grow separately. I laughed while listening quite a bit. The book was so relatable, and I enjoyed reading it – nothing overtly WOWed me, but I was enchanted by each of our female protagonists and was fully invested in the decisions they would make for the next step in their adult-coming-of-age journey.

3🌟

Thank you netgalley for this arc!

This story and the characters fell flat for me. They were mostly 2 dimensional and the character development was slim at best. I could not connect with these characters and found myself not caring what happened to either of them, I loved the queer representation, but felt so much more could've been done with both the characters and the plot. It was cringeworthy and embarrassing to read. It felt juvenile despite being about women who are almost 30. I love a good cringey book every now and then, but this was not it for me.

This book had a unique story and interesting perspective. I love reading diverse stories and appreciated the authors including demisexual representation. The women in this story would be relatable to a woman in her twenties that is going through their own self discovery. It is definitely worth a read!

“That’s What She Said” is a book of self - reflection and healing.
Although the story is told full of comical moments and moments of true sadness it’s also a story of learning.
Learning self , learning friendships and romantic relationships.
I’ve never read a book like this before and can’t help but look for more.