Falling in love wasn't in the plan.

Mike Beckett has a plan.

Well… he had one.

Once a freelance writer with a steady girlfriend and a comfortable (if unreliable) Ford Fiesta, Mike suddenly finds himself jobless, single, and desperate for a fresh start. So, he dives into teaching: a year of training, a regular income, and maybe, just maybe, a chance to rewrite his life.

What he doesn’t expect is that secondary school will feel like an alien planet.

Welcome to High Stow, where the Headteacher, Mr Palmer, runs the place as if he’s selling vacuum cleaners instead of shaping young minds, and the English department has become Mike’s accidental family. There’s Mrs Nolan, the battle-hardened leader who’s allergic to nonsense; Mr Grace, whose love of sci-fi outshines his love of marking; Mrs Rogers, the mentor who somehow performs real magic every time she steps into a classroom; and Bright, sharp-witted, green-eyed, and absolutely off-limits… or so Mike keeps telling himself.

Then there’s Mitchell: foul-mouthed, furious at the world, and one skipped lesson away from expulsion. Reaching him might be impossible. But giving up on him feels worse.

As Ofsted inspections loom, lessons unravel, and disastrous dates try to be forgotten, Mike must battle his own awkwardness, the politics of school life, and the quiet fear that he’s in way over his head. Somewhere amidst spilled wine, school trips, and a guitar performance he didn’t mean to agree to, he begins learning the real rules of teaching, of love, and of starting over.

Because sometimes the biggest victories aren’t grades or promotions, they’re the people who believe in you before you believe in yourself.

Heartfelt, funny, and full of hope, Learning the Rules is a story for anyone who’s ever had to rebuild their life from scratch… and found unexpected joy along the way.