It's chick-lit, kinda predictable but that's ok cause it's fun.

It starts with Laurie having her world torn apart when her long-term boyfriend leaves her because he doesn't want kids, marriage, etc only to immediately get his new girlfriend pregnant.

She agrees to a fake date with Jaime, the office hot guy. He needs to improve his work cred. She wants to make her ex jealous. Of course they fall for each other.

One thing that is different is Jaime is not a main fixture of the book. It focuses instead on Laurie and I liked that.

A fun fake dating turns into true love romance! This was such a heartwarming and emotional story of heartbreak, healing and love. I really loved that this one was about an older couple (in their 30s) and both were well established in their careers. Laurie was pretty badass and I really enjoyed her strong character. Jamie was absolutely adorable and they were so much fun together. I love how McFarlane’s books always focus on self discovery and healing. It’s a theme she writes well!

This was a very enjoyable fauxmance to actual romance story! I enjoyed the characters interactions and found it to be a light hearted and enjoyable read.

I adored the love story, it is charming, cute and hilarious! the characters are all lovable and their chemistry is spot on!

This book was fun for me. I usually am a die-hard thriller fan but every now and then I go through phases of changing things up to a little more heartfelt. Laurie is the type of character I’m sure many of us women have experienced in ourselves feeling defeated, used, and unappreciated to the point someone else rips out the rug from under our feet. The whole fake relationship turning into not so fake is a classic storyline that can be told in many ways to keep it spiced up and this one did not disappoint! I love the rom-com that has such great humor, and keep you entertained and in the whirlwind thoughts of romance. Thank you Netgalley for the copy to rate and review, and The Book Club Girl for getting my attention to this rom-com delight!

A fun office rom-com set in England. Laurie fresh off a sudden break up by her long term boyfriend, engages in a fake relationship with Jamie to make her ex jealous and help him get a promotion.
Typical rom-com. Nothing surprising here

I love a good fake romance trope!

Although this one was a bit predictable, I really loved the characters and their banter, and it was a cute story that was both entertaining and also had a second chance romance type feel - which I love as well!

When Laurie's long term boyfriend (who she thinks is meant to be forever) surprisingly dumps her, she thinks she is doomed to be alone forever. Worst part ... she still has to see Dan every day at work. But when she gets stuck in an elevator with office playboy Jamie, they concoct a plan to fake date. Jamie, to be taken more seriously by his employer, and Laurie, to stick it to Dan. But is it still a fauxmance if you start to fall for the hot fake boyfriend?

My favorite part was seeing Laurie shine when she realizes what a jerk Dan was, and how she is just fine on her own! Maybe not exactly your stereotypical second chance romance, but a second chance to realize your own potential and awesomeness ... Is just as good!

An overall cute fun read to get lost in, laugh at, and fall in love with love again,

When pretend turns real, good things can happen.

When Dan announces to Laurie that he want to breakup after eighteen years together, she’s understandably upset. The more she learns about Dan’s life after their split, the more depressed she becomes. Then, she gets stuck into an elevator with a coworker, and life takes a curve.

This was an okay romance. The characters started off as dislikable, and there was a lot of crude language. Then, suddenly, it turned into a sweet and touching love story. It’s like it was two different books – beginning and end—joined together.

This book is filled with crude language, whiney characters, obscure British slang, and lots of pop music references. Much of the slang and the music references were obscure to me.

As I said, it was an okay read, but nothing special that hasn’t been approached in one way or another many times. I don’t think I’d recommend this book to a friend, but maybe to an enemy.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley. I thank them for their generosity, but it had no effect on this review. All opinions in this review reflect my true and honest reactions to reading this book.

I love me a good fake romance to real romance story. Supper cute. Would recommend to fellow romcom lovers.

This book is about a female, biracial, lawyer, Laura, who lives in the UK. Laura is in a relationship with Dan, a man working at the same law firm, for almost 20 years. One day Laura's & Dan's relationship changes; but is it for better or for worse? That is the question asked all around the office, as part of the gossip chain. Of course, there is more to the story. Especially when a female attorney from a competitive law firm and a young male attorney at Laura's and Dan's firm come into the picture.
I give the book a 3-star rating because while I enjoyed the book and the story, the British terms made it difficult to understand the communication references and interrupted the liquidity of the story..
The author did a great job developing the main characters, including historical background details to assist with understanding the character conflicts.
Overall I recommend the book, especially for those readers who enjoy British storylines, For myself It allowed me a glimpse into another culture and lifestyle.

If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane is a love story that starts off as anything but. Laurie was out with her friends. Dan seemed anxious that she come home, but she was having a good time. When she got home, he had news for her: he was leaving. The eighteen years they had been together was not doing it for him anymore and he needed more excitement. This book is the story of how she got over him, and maybe, how he didn't get over her.

What a terrific story McFarlane has told. IN the modern world, many people think that monogamy for a lifetime is passé. Maybe they are correct. Laurie didn't feel that way and she missed Dan and their life together. She was frightened she would lose her home (their home) because she couldn't afford it by herself. They were both lawyers working for the same law firm. Would it become awkward? They managed to keep it a secret for a while, not lying, just not discussing it. Of course, that didn't work. Laurie was a fabulous character. Determined not to show her emotions in public despite the fact she had plenty. What a different way to look at a situation too many of us have lived through. She made it, despite it being a difficult journey and it was fun to be with her during it. She had interesting friends, and a clever boss. She knew who to put her trust in and she came out on top. I enjoyed this book and encourage you to give it a try. Women's fiction at its best!

I was invited to read a free ARC of If I Never Met You by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. #netgalley #ifinevermetyou

This is a cute British rom com by a new author for me. I think we can all relate to something happening in this book. Laurie and Jamie pretend a romance which of course turns into one. Maybe a touch predictable but some funny and heart-warming moments. I liked the characters.

I thought it was really good. Laurie has been dating her one and only boyfriend Dan for 18 years and now at 36, Dan wants out. Not less than two months later, he is not only dating someone else but she is pregnant. Laurie is devastated and still has to see Dan every day since they work at the same law firm. Laurie and the firm's playboy Jamie are stuck in the elevator and have to make small talk to pass the time until they are rescued and they hatch a scheme to benefit both Laurie and Jamie. Turns out everything Laurie thought she knew about Jamie through the office grapevine has some truth, but she learns a whole other side to Jamie. He is fascinated not by just Laurie's looks and her legal mind, but they have a playful connection and understand one another and really become friends who then start to notice the other. Through family time and work events, Jamie's reasoning for the way he acts and Laurie show that both have been damaged by events as kids. It ended well, but I expected so much more. I wanted to see Laurie and Jamie at his parents house and for the two to decide to start their own firm, oh well.

Thanks to Net Galley for an ARC of this book. I thought the story was interesting but not compelling and felt the main character was too whiny. I can’t say I would recommend this book.

3.5 stars
This was a cute, quick, easy read.
I loved the relationship that Laurie had with her girlfriends and Emily was a great character. I also liked that even after Laurie and Jamie got together, Laurie was still grieving over her loss of Dan. She didn't just magically get over him.
While the book was predictable from about 25 percent of the way on, I did like that little things continued to happen in the book to keep it moving.
My only beef was the book was how predictable it was and the office scenes often seemed childish and over-the-top.
Thank you to Netgalley for giving me this book for me honest opinion.

I had a hard time reading this book. The characters Laurie and Jaime were not relatable and I did not find the story interesting as I thought it dragged on forever. Useful for nightlife in England but so boring.

I was in the mood for a light easy read and this book definitely fell into that category, and I really enjoyed it. It is a British romcom, whose main character, Laurie, a lawyer in her late 30’s grows in confidence and self discovery. It also involves an arranged fake dating office romance and what can go right and wrong with that. It dealt with judging people based on office rumors which reminds us to do better with that. Overall a fun read to help escape when needed. Thank you Net Galley for this ARC.

This book was so entertaining. I was drawn into the story from the beginning and was involved until the end. The characters were complex and interesting. I found the story to be well paced and engrossing throughout the whole book. I was invested in the couple throughout the book and felt all the emotions through both the highs and lows of the story. If you want an entertaining and well written book this is it for you.

This is a fun, romantic office romp. If you enjoy contemporary romance where it looks like the chips are down and then you watch as through funny circumstances good shines through.

How well do you really know your significant other? If you had asked Laurie that she would have said pretty good, especially after dating him for over a decade. But when he up and leaves her, she is left blindsided. The ending of their relationship is bad enough, but she also has to see him everyday at work, and pretend everything is ok.

But after one broken down elevator ride with Jamie Carter, with the office playboy, Laurie leaves with a little more knowledge of who Jamie is, and a proposition too good to pass up. Fake dating. Jamie needs a new image and Laurie wants to make her ex jealous, so they join together to help each other out.

If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane was a cute British romcom and a great read. I loved that Laurie was older than Jamie and that Jamie was not the typical playboy character. He may have seemed that way to others in their office, but that was just because they didn’t know him. I loved how both Laurie and Jamie were both insecure and had a hard time confronting the past, but were able to open up to each other. They really became friends.

So although predictable, they was such a cute read, and I cannot wait to read more of McFarlane’s books. Thank you NetGalley for the eARC copy to read and review.