beth o'leary once again shows that her romances are go far deeper than the surface. "the no-show" starts out as a story based on bad timing and missed dates, but becomes a layered insight on love, grief, and life-changing people. siobhan, miranda and jane are each very different leading ladies, but they all captured my attention immediately. it was impossible not to root for them. joseph, while he definitely doesn't start off in the best light, is given the time and space to be understood, and although i didn't love him as a character or a male lead, beth o'leary is amazingly talented at writing about loss, heartbreak and trauma. as expected, the story has plenty of twists and turns, and i have to say, i really didn't see the big one coming. it adds so many layers to the story and makes the emotions so much bigger. while i loved each lead, miranda was absolutely my favorite (i'm also a huge fan of AJ, too) and i enjoyed how each storyline was tied together in the end, although more attention to that would have made the ending even more satisfying. o'leary is phenomenal in her fourth novel -- it's a perfect showcase for her skills in writing love, loss and humor all while captivating her reader.

One man dating three different women—it’s been done before, notably in Farrah Rochon’s The Boyfriend Project. I thought I knew what to expect from The No-Show, but Beth O’Leary (author of The Switch) upended my presumptions.

Joseph Carter stands up a trio of dates on Valentine’s Day, including coffee with Siobhan, his no-strings-attached fling; lunch with tree surgeon Miranda; and a dinner party with Jane, a charity shop volunteer whose friends all assume she’s made up this boyfriend none of them have ever met. Where is Joseph? Is he a cad? A creep? Or is there something else going on?

O’Leary makes it plausible that three women would be willing to put up with a lot in order to enjoy his company: “If he were in an American high school drama, Joseph wold be the one football player who talks to the nerds; if he were in a disaster movie, he’d be the guy who goes back for the minor character we’re not even fussed about. Glasses on and he’s sexy and grown-up; glasses off and you notice his charming, boyish grin, the way his quick, smart eyes catch yours and don’t let them go.”

The chapters alternate between Siobhan, Miranda and Jane’s points of view, as we get to know Joseph through their eyes. The author keeps us guessing until the end, so those who find romances too predictable may want to give The No-Show a try—chances are you won’t have any idea where this one is going, and O’Leary makes it worth the trip.

Don’t let the rom-com vibes of its cover fool you, Beth O’Leary’s new novel The No-Show is no rom-com. While the story did make me smile at times, it also made me shed a tear or two because it’s such an emotional journey for some of the characters. The story also took a huge unexpected turn that I don’t want to spoil so I’m going to be a bit vague with what I enjoyed about this book.

The No-Show follows three women who only have one thing in common – they were all stood up by the same man, Joseph Carter, on Valentine’s Day. Siobhan is a life coach whose life is so over-booked that she doesn’t have time or the desire for a relationship. Since her past relationships haven’t been great, she has decided that booty calls are the way to go, with Joseph Carter being her go-to when she’s in the mood. Then there’s Miranda, a tree surgeon, the only woman on an all-male crew. She’s okay with being treated like one of the guys but she gets defensive when her crew makes fun of her boyfriend, Joseph Carter, because he’s so different from her that they don’t seem like they should be compatible. Lastly, there’s Jane, a young woman who volunteers at a charity job and who has decided, after a disastrous romance at her former workplace, that she will no longer date. To keep everyone she knows off her case about finding herself a man, she has a friend that she fake-dates whenever she has a function to attend. That is, until she realizes she actually has feelings for him. That man is, you guessed it, Joseph Carter.

Aside from the mystery of how this guy manages to keep up relationships with all three of these women but somehow manages to stand them all up on the most romantic day of the year, what really fascinated me were these women’s reactions to being stood up and the fact that all three of them actually forgive him and let him back into their lives. In that sense, the story focuses much more on the emotional and personal journeys of Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane than it focuses on Carter. I loved how well-developed and fleshed out all three of the women were. Their voices and experiences were each unique, as was their path forward after being stood up. I loved watching the other relationships they cultivated that in many ways were more important than their relationships with Carter. I loved the friends Jane made through the charity shop and how they supported her and boosted her confidence, and I loved Miranda’s teammates who, although they razzed her at times, ended up being a pretty great support system for her as well.

Solving the enigma of Joseph Carter and wondering if one of these women was going to end up kicking his butt also had me very invested in the story. I was so ready to hate this guy, and that’s when the entire story gets turned on its end and takes a direction I was not even remotely expecting. I’m used to this kind of huge twist in thrillers, so it really caught me off guard here. Beth O’Leary is sneaky here and I mean that in the best possible way.

I don’t want to say anything else because you really need to meet Joseph Carter and follow the women in his life yourself to get the full experience. If you’re in the mood for a beautifully crafted story of love, friendship, and how to move forward when life doesn’t turn out the way you thought it would, you’ll want to check out Beth O’Leary’s new novel, The No-Show.

A story about love, friendship, grief, and more, The No-Show follows three women who have been stood up by the same man on Valentine’s Day. As Miranda, Siobhan, and Jane each face their conflicting feelings for Joseph Carter, they learn that there is much more to this man than meets the eye.

Miranda, Jane, and Siobhan are all deftly developed protagonists, and I like that the chapters alternate between their points of view. They are unique with distinct voices, and I enjoyed all of their stories. Each goes through so much over the course of the novel, including mental health struggles, sexual harassment, family illness, career stress, relationship troubles, and more, and it was interesting to see how each dealt with the problems they faced. Of course, the one issue that they share is their relationship with Joseph Carter, since he is dating Miranda and Siobhan and fake-dating and friends with Jane.

Carter is also well-developed, though he is a bit of an enigma for a good amount of the book. A goofy, charming, handsome, nerd, Carter’s relationships with Siobhan, Jane, and Miranda are at the forefront of the novel, but you slowly learn bits and pieces about him as the story unfolds.

I have to say, this book surprised me. I felt one way about a particular character, and then a surprise revelation changed all of my feelings. It made me stop and reexamine everything I thought about the characters and their situations. I found it deeply moving, emotional, and powerful, and it really made me think about things from a different perspective, which I loved.

Beth O’Leary has a gift for storytelling, and though this is my first book by the author, it certainly won’t be my last. The writing is fantastic, the pacing is great, the characters are relatable and dynamically developed, and the plot is engaging and unpredictable. Overall, I thought this was an enjoyable read, romantic, moving, emotional, and much more poignant than I anticipated.

Special thanks to Berkley Books for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

This is, hands-down, my favorite adult fiction book so far this year, and I've read some excellent ones. I requested the eGalley copy from NetGalley thinking I was getting a rom-com, and while there definitely is romance as well as some humor, this book took me on an emotional journey I was not expecting, and I could not bear to put it down.

The first half of the book is character-driven, focusing on the three women Joseph Carter stands up on Valentine's Day: Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane. We get to know Siobhan's over-scheduled world as a life coach with past relationship grief. We learn about Miranda's life as the only woman on a tree surgeon crew (a.k.a. arborist). And we wonder exactly what trauma caused Jane to flee corporate London for a volunteer job as the youngest member on staff at a charity shop in Winchester. Their lives intersect in only one way: their relationship with the same man.

The second half of the book (or maybe the last 3rd? eGalleys have wonky formatting) is hard to talk about without giving anything away. The pace intensifies, the story taking unexpected twists and turns. I anticipated loathing Joseph, yet he defied all my expectations, and I honestly couldn't decide what outcome I wanted...none of which mattered in the end because O'Leary is a genius.

For readers' advisors: character and story doorways are both VERY strong. The setting is England and Ireland. Some profanity and mild sexual content. One scene with accidental violence. Discussion or mention of grief, death of loved one, depression, dementia, stalking, sexual harassment, self harm, miscarriage, and panic attacks. LGBTQIA+ secondary characters.

I'm not sure why this book is packaged as a rom com. It's neither a romance nor a comedy. It's bittersweet women's fiction that should come with a content warning. It's a brilliant story, but not one I would have chosen to read had I not been misled.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

"Timing is everything"

At a first glance, the story of Siobhan, Miranda and Jane all revolve on the same man, Joseph, standing them up on a Valentine's Day date. As we continue to understand the story of Joseph and why he was missing on Valentines, things become more complicated. And that's all I'll say about the plot without spoiling it.

Joseph was a character that had confused me in the beginning. I was a bit frustrated with him because how can someone be seeing three amazing women. He was hard not to like, his charisma and attitude towards all three girls was amazing. I couldn't decide who I wanted him to end up with. But it all works out!

To say the least, I was frustrated in the beginning but as I continued to read and delve into the story, I became hooked. The heart break in this book broke me. I still can't stop thinking about this book!

It was beautifully written and I honestly cannot stop talking about it. Do yourself a favour and read this amazing book because you will not regret it.

Another fantastic read from Beth O'Leary. Three women are stood up on Valentine's Day, at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Eventually, we realize they were all stood up by the same man. - but that's not the end of the tale. O'Leary does an excellent job developing the characters in this book and leading us to care about them all. A great read.

My friends all loved it.
I had zero clue of what to expect going into it.
I texted someone at 15% and said "Im going to stay up until I finish this, aren't I?
I did just that.

I can't say a lot without spoiling things, but not knowing what to expect or what was coming was the best part of the reading experience for the No-Show. This story of three women who get stood up is sweet and devastating. It's compelling and emotional. It's deeper and more complex than you could ever expect. While I left unsure of how romantic it is (it is. It's just again, unexpected) I knew that the skill and talent that it takes to write a book like this is a testament to how wonderful Beth O'Leary truly is. This is one that will stay in my brain and heart for a long time. I am sure you will hear me talking about it for ages now.

Note: I read with my eyes, but immediately said that I bet the audio is fantastic. I am likely to try it as well.

I adored The Flat Share by this same author, but this title didn't really work for me, unfortunately. I didn't really care about the characters (although I did appreciate their cunning in some places). I really wanted to like it, but I jut didn't.

I've had a love-hate relationship with Beth O' Leary. After loving "The Flatshare" and marking it as one of my all-time favourite romances ever, I was disappointed in her later books. This book, though - "The No-Show" made up for the ones I didn't like.

Three Women.
One Man.
...and he didn't show up on his Valentine's Day date with any of these.

Piqued your interest?

It certainly did mine, and let me tell you, "The No-Show" is such a great example of a brilliantly written book, and to the phrase - "There is more than what meets the eye."

"The No-Show" is one of those rom-com books which are more like contemporary fiction with a hint of romance and mystery in them. I love that romance authors are expanding their writing horizons to offer more to their readers. Without spoiling anything, all I'd say is that the book keeps you on edge all the time.

Developed characters with distinct voices, superb storyline and brilliant storytelling, Beth parked this one out of the park. It is an entertaining and heartwarming read which is heart-breaking at times.

I highly recommend this brilliant book about dating, waiting, and the hypothesis that everyone processes grief differently.

This was a pretty good story surrounding the lives of three women who were all stood up on Valentine's Day. Each woman is dating a guy that they like and enjoy spending time with, but when they are stood up, will they forgive him? What they don't know is that they have each been stood up by the same guy!

The chapters alternate between the three POVs. There's Siobhan, a super-busy life coach with a no-nonsense attitude. Then there is Miranda, a tree surgeon, and my personal favorite of this story. Finally, there is Jane, a woman working in a charity shop who you want to just force to see how special she is. The chapters go from one POV to the next, and I liked seeing each woman's story, but I didn't like the POV aspect. For some reason it pulled me out of the story with each chapter transition. I got over it, but it didn't make the reading of this one as smooth as I wanted.

Overall, I enjoyed this story. The situation and the plot were interesting, and I found myself more invested in what was happening as I got into the second half of the book.

So far I've read all of O'Leary's books and I wondered what interesting situation she would come up with next. So when I saw her latest, I knew I wanted to read it, however, I was a little hesitant about the subject: one man dating three women... But, having read her other books where her male main characters have never been two-timers, but men worthy of their heroines, I decided to put my reservations aside and gave this one a go.

Well, this book turned out to be quite a surprise, deeply affecting and with some good unexpected twists. If you're basing the plot on the book description, it's not what it seems even though it's accurate. The plot is quite brilliant and O'Leary pulls it off. It kept me turning the pages because I wanted to solve the mystery of Joseph and his three women. But I won't discuss the plot because it's one of those books where you have to savor the Oh! moment as you are reading it.

I liked Joseph from the very beginning even if I was trying to figure out if he was a cheater. The three women, Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane are all different and unique. They each learn about themselves and grow in character through their relationship with Joseph. Character development is strong, a trademark of O'Leary's books. However, I wouldn't categorize this as a rom-com. It reads more like contemporary romance or women's fiction. As in all of O'Leary's books, she tackles mental health issues, toxic relationships, and strong friendships.

There are many swoony romantic scenes in this book, not too explicit. And there is some language (some f-bombs) but not as many as in her last book The Road Trip (thank goodness). If you're looking for a different kind of romantic read, with a good twist ending, this one could be it.

I think this is my favorite Beth O'Leary? It's so different than anything else she's written yet feels exactly like something she would write.

There's also no way to review without spoiling!

I was completely shocked while reading. Maybe this is how people feel reading thrillers?

This is definitely not for everyone, and isn't very romance heavy, but if you like a messy, weird books that take you on a journey and then spit you out somewhere else, this is for you!

4.5 stars

Wow. I'm not even sure where to begin with this review. I could not put this one down. I needed to know where the story was going and how everything fit together and ended up reading this in one sitting. The No-Show was not what I was expecting (a fun romcom) and I think once I recalibrated my expectations, the book flowed really well for me. It is a romance and does have funny moments, but the emotional journey is a heavy one at times. There are so many working pieces and characters that I really did not see how it was all going to come together. I enjoyed all of the different POV's (Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane) and each story had me hooked. Special shoutout to AJ who always brought a smile to my face and ride or die Fiona for being the friend we all hope to have. The big reveal left me stunned and reexamining everything I had read from a new perspective. I don't want to spoil anything, but just know that Beth O'Leary has crafted such a beautiful novel about love, friendship, heartbreak, resilience, joy, and hope. All of the characters are flawed and finding their way, but through the heartache, there's beauty too. Definitely a book that will stay with me.

CW: grief, death of loved one, dementia, stalking, sexual harassment, discussion and mention of self harm, miscarriage, panic attacks.

*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*

I can't get over just how much I absolutely loved this book. I never quite knew which direction would take and the character development was top-notch.

“Every day is a good day, if you look hard enough.”

It feels like it’s been AGES since I’ve been active on here!! My reading has been SLOW lately because I’ve been sooo busy! But 🤞🏻 I should have reading time again soon!

In The No-Show three very different women are involved with the same man. The other thing they have in common? They’ve all been stood up on the worst day to be stood up - Valentine’s Day. Y’ALLL! This book took me by SURPRISE! As soon as I started it, within 3 chapters, I thought I had it all sorted out. A romance can’t be that surprising, can it? Apparently, it can. I can’t say much about it because I want everyone to read it without knowledge the way I did, but what I can say is it was so full of heart. It handled mental health beautifully, the characters were lovable and full of depth, it was creative, the women were all badass in their own ways, and it made me emoootional! Seriously, I read this on my flights and kept having to put it down and turn to my friend and audibly say “what?!” because my brain couldn’t wrap my head around it.

I’ve rated it all 5⭐️s - I loved it! I couldn’t put it down or read it fast enough. These characters all have my heart. It’s one of the more original romances I’ve ever read, but it featured much more than just romance.

Really loved the twist in this book and how the twist was slowly unraveled throughout the story. I loved how different all 3 of the characters were and the story came together so well at the end. Nice mix of a little bit of mystery and romance.

I went into this book thinking it was going to be a story about a guy who stood up 3 women on Valentine’s Day. It seems to start out that way and I decided I didn’t like this guy one bit, what a jerk.
But I continue reading and decide to give him a chance.

Then it takes a strange turn and I swear I told my husband at least 3x “I am so confused. This book is so weird”. Finally, about 3/4 into the book I think “OH It’s a time travel book. Uh no that’s not it. Then I finally see something that doesn’t compute, and I need to flip back a few a pages and OH. But still no. That’s not it. And then BOOM a party. They are all going to happen to be at the same party together and he’s going to get busted.
STILL NO. What the heck ????

And finally we get to the promised land and all is revealed.
So to make a long story short
I loved the book and you should totally read it and see if you can figure it out before I did.

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley and Penguin Random House for the eArc of this book.
All thoughts and opinions are my own

Who is the No-Show? Siobhan is stood up for her Valentine's Day breakfast date by her regular hookup. Miranda is stood up for her Valentine's lunch date by her boyfriend Carter. And Jane is stood up for an engagement party by her friend and fake boyfriend, Joseph.

This is such a fascinating set-up. The chapters switch perspectives among the three women. It took me a bit to learn who everyone is, though less for the main characters than for their friends. I didn't find the women equally likeable at the beginning, but they all grew on me by the midpoint.

I found the book extremely difficult to put down, as I wanted to unravel several mysteries. And I really wanted to know how it would end. I can't recall the last time I wanted to flip ahead to the last chapter while reading. I didn't, but it took a lot of restraint for this book. This book is unique and wowed me and made me cry and smile. Beth O'Leary is again a powerful storyteller. I would classify this as fiction (or women's fiction if we have to specify), rather than as romance.

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

4.5 stars rounded up