3 Stars
This was a very different type of book for me, I usually never read anything that has multiple characters all fighting for the same love interest. This had its moments, was written well, but for me, I had a little difficulty connecting.
I did read until the end because i did want to know how it was going to end, and the ending was satisfying.

After really loving O'Leary's previous books I had really high hopes for this one and while it did let me down a little, there is such a coziness to her books that is hard to match.

This book centres around three individuals Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane and their love affairs, however they are all in love with the same man. Worse than that, they have all been stood up on Valentine's Day. Join them as they navigate their own lives and try and untangle the web surrounding him.

I felt this book was a bit confusing and although the chapters were named I found myself getting mixed up between the characters and didn't find ones I immediately fell in love with. Although I was more invested by the time the book came to a close I felt like it took a bit too long to get there. I liked the mystery surrounding the main man and enjoyed as the web came all together at the end.

The No-Show
by Beth O'Leary
Pub Date: April 12, 2022
Berkely
Thanks to the author, Berkely, and NetGalley for the ARC of this great book! I went into this book blindly which I think is the best way to read it. I'm so glad I didn't know the twist and did not figure it out until it was revealed to me. I feel this is more of a romantic mystery rather than a rom-com which made this book even more enjoyable for me. None of the three women deserved to be jilted by the same man but the ending left me very satisfied.
Good Book!~
4 stars

Thank you @berkleyromance @netgalley for a copy of The No-Show. I feel duped by this book but I a good way. A book about 3 women jilted on Valentine's Day by the same man.

This book isn't a romance but we get to see Joseph's relationship with each of these women. I wasn't sure where it was going and the twist surprised me and the ending left me satisfied.

I really enjoyed this read from Beth O’Leary, and it’s probably my favourite from her so far. Watching the characters grow throughout the book, with the mixture of tough topics in their stories, I found this book to be a relatable read. I’ve suggested it to customers already!

If slow reveals irritate you, this is not the book for you. While I love O'Leary's writing, I also spent most of the novel fuming at the titular no-show, thinking he was a scumbag for stringing along all of these women. Once the twist is revealed 70% of the way through the book, though, everything clicked for me. There are hints throughout the novel, but I truly didn't expect it--it's a clever bit of plotting.

O'Leary's signature coziness and emotional depth shine here. I didn't enjoy this as much as The Flatshare, but it's a close second.

In The No-Show, Beth O'Leary weaves a story between the three jilted women and the one complicated man who connects them.

I'm not usually one to enjoy my hero being in love with multiple heroines, but Beth O'Leary tells their story in such a convincing way that you inevitably end up rooting for them all.

Then, just when you can't figure out how she will ever pull off the requisite HEA, she hits you with a twist that you never saw coming.

This is a confounding, heartbreaking, romantic, and achingly sweet story that manages to provide redemption for every character while never turning them into caricatures.

Thank you to Berkeley for the ARC to read and review.

I am very disappointed in this book. It was way to similar to another contemporary book with the same trope of a man dating three women. DNF.

Another great read! I went into this one with different expectations, and was pleasantly surprised! Beth O'Leary will be an automatic read for me now, for sure! I absolutely loved Joseph by the end of the book and of course Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane were the best. Looking forward to seeing what we get from O'Leary in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC!

Beth O’Leary is back in the best possible way! However, I’d like to get something straight—there are so many people out there saying that this is a rom-com, and expecting it to be a rom-com, and I truly would not classify it that way. This book HURT. It had twists and turns I was not mentally or emotionally prepared for. It was GOOD, and definitely recommended, but not for my cartoon cover romantic comedy pals who read the genre for its comforting predictability. I think if you’ve ever enjoyed a single book that is housed on the “women’s fiction” shelf, this is a great choice for you. If you’re into multiple POVs, this is also for you. If you enjoyed any of O’Leary’s other books, this is also for you. If you’re looking for a simple romance with some comedic elements, this is not for you.

Welp, this one had me in the feels. It’s impossible to talk about much without giving it away. And honestly it’s best not to know anything (I will share some CW below).

Basically I did not see the twist coming and was legitimately shocked. I really liked seeing how everything came together.

Basically I would definitely recommend.






[cw - depression/anxiety, disassociation; stalking, emotional abuse/inappropriate sexual relationship]

Miranda, Siobhan, and Jane all know Joseph Carter by a different name, and at first glance, he is dating–and playing–all three. The novel opens on Valentine’s Day with each woman waiting for Joseph to show up for their respective breakfast, lunch and dinner dates. The author would like you to believe he’s a cad… and then you think, maybe he’s hurt…?

Life coach Siobhan is doesn’t want to let anyone in, thanks to her last failed relationship, so her same-time-next-month with Joseph suits her lifestyle perfectly. Arborist Miranda might like more with Carter but uses him to keep AJ, a co-worker who makes no secret of his interest, at arm’s length. And Jane is in hiding from something and takes pleasure in simplicity and routine, and her friendship and two-person book club is just what she needs in her life right now. The narrative advances in chapters that alternate from each of the women, with multiple vulnerable, heart-breaking moments and a very satisfying ending.

Through superb plotting, it turns out that all three ladies have more than just Joseph in common, and things are definitely not what they seem. Strong in plot, setting and character, with a wonderful twist, the only thing that marred the narrative for me was an outdated notion that a guy should push after a lady says she doesn’t want to date him. Several references to AJ’s pushiness with Miranda left a sour taste in my mouth and prevented this 3-star book from being a four-star book.

I received an advance reader's review copy of #TheNoShow via #NetGalley.

I absolutely loved this one. When I first started reading, I kept having to stop myself from flipping ahead to see how it was going to get resolved. I didn’t want to spoil it for myself though, so I gathered up every ounce of my willpower and did not skip ahead. And I’m so glad I didn’t.

The chapters alternate between the three points of view of the women (Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane), but you’ll have no trouble keeping things straight as each character is so unique and individual. I was equally interested in each of their stories and could have read an entire book just focused on each of them alone. There was so much underneath the surface with Joseph, and I wanted to peel back each of his layers until his story was unearthed. (It is eventually! Don’t fret.)

I wasn’t sure how O’Leary was going to put all the puzzle pieces together – although I did try to guess along the way. I think if you’re an avid reader and/or watcher of tv and movies, you will eventually see what’s coming – although at a couple points I tried to deny that’s how it was going to play out. But the beauty in O’Leary’s writing is even if you think you know how it’s going to go, you don’t know for certain until it actually happens.

This is such a surprising read full of depth and complexity, and thankfully also some laughs. It packs a big punch, and I found myself sobbing reading late into the night one weekend, but I couldn’t stop until I had finished the very last page. I stayed up way past my bedtime, and it was worth every minute.

Beth O’Leary has successfully stolen my heart with her previous “rom-dram-coms.” The No-Show has a slightly different spin with three POV’s of women who have all been stood up by the same man on Valentine’s Day. Each woman’s story slowly intertwines as they learn what really happened that day.

The story is bittersweet with a few twists and turns. Fans of One Day or The Two Lives of Lydia Bird will enjoy this book. Due to the multiple perspectives there are certain ends that aren’t tied up as well as I would have hoped, but other than that the story is enjoyable.

My thanks to NetGalley for making an eARC of this book available to me.

Well written, but didn't appeal to me enough in the end. Three different women, each with a very different professional background, having a relationship with the same man, their stories told in rotating chapters. The book had a bit too much involved in dysfunctional lives/personalities, and a bit of humor would have gone a long way to make this a more enjoyable read. The reader is well kept in suspense about what is really happening until about 3/4 of the way into the book, so kudos to the author for that. I had enjoyed the author's previous books, and I will most likely read her next one as well.

This was an excellent adult book! It took a twist I did predict at all. I would definitely recommend having a tissue or two nearby, because I think you will cry at least once (likely more than once) during this book. Overall, I would recommend it to anyone who thinks it sounds interesting!

I received an e-ARC from the publisher.

This was not the best contemporary book I have read. It's about three girls who don't know each other but are all dating the same guy who stood them up. At first I have to say that the story was good and I was really into the plot of the story. But then it just went downhill. The storyline kind of stopped making sense until the last 75 pages of the book where there is a plot twist. The plot twist was a great surprise but the overall story needed to be better. The pacing was all over the place with the setting not being really descriptive.

There are 3 povs in this book from Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane. I really enjoyed these amazing women as they have experienced trauma or are going through something and are looking for a good life. They had great character development and enjoyed their stories in some way. Joseph was the one all over the place. He was honestly confusing me with his tactics that I started to get lost in the story. There are also some side characters in the book but they weren't mainly involved with the story. The romance was bland and I wish I had more of this one couple because I totally ship them.

By the time I got to the ending, I kind of rushed into it because I wanted to finish the book and start a new one. I felt that so many things could have been written differently or could have gone through a different direction. The characters and the plot twist were still amazing but other than that this book was not for me.

3.5 Stars

3 women stood up on Valentine’s day by the same man….need I say more. The plot of this story sounded so fresh and so unique. I had to pick up this book and see what the fuss was about.

The No-Show follows the story of Joesph and the three women he’s seeing. None of them know about each other and are stood up on Valentine’s Day for reasons yet to be revealed. This story is told from the points of view of the three women in Joesph’s life. To me, this was really intriguing. I thought it helped the reader connect to the characters and it made you want to know more about Joesph and the reasons behind his actions. Could he be redeemed for his behavior/actions?? You’ll have to read for yourself to find out….

The No-Show was a completely unexpected read. I went into this book thinking it was a rom-com and was a bit disappointed that it was not in fact a romantic comedy. Sure there were some humorous moments, but this book read more like women’s fiction than a romantic comedy, in my opinion. Despite that, I did find this story to be written well and very intriguing. I really enjoyed the characters and was curious how everything would come together in the end. The plot twist definitely caught me by surprise and connected all the missing dots for this reader.

While I enjoyed this book, for the most part, it wasn’t without its share of issues. I touched briefly on the categorization of this book genre-wise. I still feel that this book should be classified as women’s fiction. My other issues with the story were the pacing and overall timeline. Let’s start with the pacing. For me, this book started off rather slow and took me a while to get into. Don’t get me wrong, the story was very interesting, it just took a while to get into the flow. But, once I did get into the story, I found myself hooked and wanting to know more. Now, for the timeline. The timeline was a bit confusing to me. The chapters were broken up by character name instead of the number and didn’t indicate whether or not we were in the past or present. I think including “past” or “present” with each chapter heading would have made things a lot easier to understand and follow.

Overall, I thought this book was an ok read. It has been on my radar for a while and despite the issues I had, I’m certainly glad I checked it out. This is my first book by this author and I look forward to discovering more from her in the future.

I'm not sure why Beth O'Leary's books are classified as rom-coms. They do include romance and humor, but they're really stories about people learning to cope with some of the hard things in life. This books had more twists than her previous books, and while I somehow figured them all out pretty early on I still liked it. It was an emotional read at times, but one with a satisfying and hope-filled ending.

I adore The Flatshare, by this author, but have sadly not enjoyed her other books, including this one.