" ... and they all lived happily ever after". We are all familiar with the endline to so many of our childhood fairytales and stories. In ‘About Us’, author Sinéad Moriarty focuses on life after our protoganists have achieved their happy ending.

We have three interconnected couples, who are all visiting a therapist for help. First up, we have Ann and Ken, an older couple who are facing difficulties as Ann has realised how stagnant she finds their marriage. Ken has been happy to continue along in the same view, staying at home, not travelling, not trying new events or classes but Ann needs a chance and the couple struggle to find common ground. Alice and Niall have four very lively young children and as they primary carer, Alice is feeling underpressure and unappreciated. Meanwhile, Niall believes that Alice no longer loves him and he comes second to their family. Finally, we have Orla who faces physical and psychically problems as a direct result of her traumatic upbringing.
Each person is seeking love and comfort, they wish to find that happiness that they have dreamed about for years. The characters are well written and it is easy to relate to elements of each one as they talk of their daily lives and struggles. An enjoyable read.

Ann, in her sixties, is finding her marriage stagnant and suffocating. Alice is struggling with four children and a husband whose demands she’s just too tired for. And Orla’s tragic past is affecting her present relationships in ways she finds distressing. All end up, for various reasons, in the consulting room of Maggie, a sex therapist.

This was an enjoyable read although I wasn’t that interested in the “therapy” aspect. The focus is very much on the three women and we never really learn anything about Maggie outside of her professional role.

There are loose connections between the women - Orla teaches Alice’s children and is flatmates with Ann’s daughter - but their stories are basically separate. I could understand Ann’s frustration with her life, and Alice’s family life and the children’s behaviour was very realistic.

While I liked Orla’s character and sympathised with her situation, I did find it difficult to relate to her extreme feelings about it - her obsession with penetrative sex as the be-all and end-all of relationships, and that she was somehow not a “real woman”, was incomprehensible to me, although I appreciate that that was how she felt about it. Her constant berating of herself as a “freak” and “abnormal” became wearying to read after a while.

I enjoyed the book though I didn’t find the therapy sessions all that interesting to read about - all the advice Maggie gave seemed fairly obvious to anyone who’s ever read a women’s magazine. I did appreciate that the subject was taken seriously and not played for laughs, as is often the case in fiction.

Not mind blowing but a pleasant read.

About Us is a perfect curl up on the sofa book, with a blanket and a warm drink. It's a book that you will lose yourself in for hours.

The three main female characters all visit a therapist's couch to solve their problems.
Ann and Ken - Ken is heading for retirement, he has helped his wife Ann bring up their children, he is ready for more time in his comfy chair and the home comfort,. Whereas Ann despairs of the future and is aching to dance the tango in distant climes.

Orla - a young school teacher who has an issue that doesn't allow her to be intimate with her new found love, Paul

Alice (my favorite character) and Niall are parents of 4 young children, Alice is exhausted and dreams of a 24-hour spa break - alone - but Niall wishes his wife wasn't so tired all of the time and made more of an effort in the bedroom.

A lovely read, I look forward to reading more of Sinead Moriaty's work.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of "About Us". I raced through this book! It's full of heart and warmth and I was really rooting for the characters - if you like chick-lit or Sinead's other books you'll love this.

Couples’ therapy is a very complex topic, since every marriage is unique and so are its challenges. The stories that are presented in this wonderful novel really made me think about what it means to be there for one another, and how a seemingly minor issue can topple a relationship.

I forgot how much I loved books by Sinead Moriarty ... great characters real life storyline a great read from start to finish . Ann and Ken - Niall and Alice - and Orla all navigating life and reflecting on their relationships with one main topic ... sex . All for different reasons they seek counselling with Maggie who try’s to help them uncover what really matters . A real insight which I am sure many readers will relate to in different ways .

This book is about 3 different couples who all end up on the therapists couch for different reasons. Telling their different stories, we are reminded that problems come at all ages of life - the choice we have is now we deal with them. A very honest book which had me hooked straight away.
Very enjoyable.

An incisive and intimate look at relationships through the lives of three couples - very different ages and stages of life but all unhappy with how things are between them. Enter one straight-talking sex therapist and you have an absolutely addictive, no holds barred tale that's impossible to put down. I loved it - though it will be a long time before I can look at a banana in quite the same way.

I absolutely adore Sinead s books.
Read all of them.
There's always a bit of everything in there.
Best book so far this year

I've been a big fan of Sinead for ages & was so excited to read this book. It was as always a fantastic read Sineads an amazing writer, and you instantly fall in love with all the characters .You want Ann, Alice & Orla to be happy & you can relate to them so much. A great read & I'm hoping for a sequel!

I always enjoy a Sinead Moriarty novel and this did not disappoint. The situations that the key couples find themselves experiencing are different due to stages of life but very familiar. The way these are explored during the counselling sessions do make you think afresh about both sides and how we often do not listen or understand each other. The issue about the sexual dysfunction is one that is not often explored but again demonstrates that it is not insurmountable in a relationship.

I really enjoyed this book - I like how it took people from different points in their life and showed that we can all have issues which often stem from the same place but manifest themselves differently depending where we are in our path.

It's been a while since we’ve had a new book by this author and it certainly lived up to expectations.

Ken and Ann have been married for years and with Ken about to retire, Ann feels that their lives are going in different directions but Ken doesn’t agree. Naill and Alice have a busy family life. Naill thinks that their marriage is in trouble whereas Alice feels worn down and worn out and wants to be left alone. And then there is Orla who just wants to be normal, she’s fallen in love with Paul but it’s complicated. Can therapist Maggie help them to resolve their relationship issues?

Great book. Great characters. A brilliant read from start to finish.

Loved this! Alice is a mother of four and constantly exhausted; Anne is in her 70’s and thinking there must be more to life; and Orla has a secret thats stopping her moving forwards with her love life. All three seek the support of therapist Maggie to help turn their lives around. I found I really wanted a happy ending for each of the three characters, and read this book in two days.

I loved this book and couldn’t put it down. Three stories about different aged people, all needing some help and support. It was very relatable and an enjoyable read. I would highly recommend this book this summer.

What an absolute page turner. I'm going to put it right out there so there aren't any little shocks. There are quite a few sexual conversations within the story, so not a book for anybody who finds that type of thing uncomfortable reading, but it is part of what helps to tell the journey of these people. Three couples embark on seeing a therapist in order to try to solve their relationship issues. We have the 20 something starting out in a new relationship, a forty something couple with 4 kids and a soon to be retired couple in their sixties. Each of them see completely different versions of the life they are living & the one they hope to live or thought they would live. I think there is so much about this story that a lot of readers will totally identify with. Definitely a book to add to your TBR pile.