📚 𝘽𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙍𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬: The No-Show by Beth O’Leary 📚

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙧𝙚: Romance
𝙁𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙩: 📱
𝙂𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙨 𝙍𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜: This is an ARC, I’m sure Goodreads reviews are coming soon!

𝙁𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙌𝙪𝙤𝙩𝙚: “It’s one of those feelings, happiness. One of the ones you don’t really notice is gone until it comes back..”

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙙:
Multiple POVs
Huge character growth
Interesting timeline
Strong female characters
Addresses mental health for both men and women in a really positive way

𝙍𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬:

Wow, what a journey from start to finish! If you think you have this book figured out, I can promise you that you really don’t 😂 Somehow Beth O’Leary took my least favorite characters and made me love them by the end. It’s a very interesting timeline and clearly well thought out since there are many overlaps and complexities.

One of the best things about this book is how it handles mental health in both men and women. Romances with emotional depth (and not just a lot of spice) are definitely my favorite, and this one definitely checks that box. Overall it’s a great read, and if you loved The Flatshare you’re sure to love this one too!

Thank you to @berkleyromance and @netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review ❤️

Thank you Netgalley and Berkeley Books for the early copy of The No Show.

Let me start off with I’ve read every book the author has written. The Flatshare and The Switch have been my favorite.

The No Show is a very interesting book. It took me some time to start enjoying it and getting invested in it. I think up to about 60% the author was building the story, and at times during those 60% I was getting annoyed, losing patience with the characters, and becoming uninterested in the story. However, the last 40% put everything into prospective and the author started revealing little by little the unexpected conclusion to the book. I honestly didn’t see the twist coming, I didn’t expect it and it took me totally by surprise.

Well done!

Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane are all stood up by the same man on Valentine's day. He comes groveling with apologies to each of them, without a clear explanation of why he was a no-show. Although each of them have a niggling feeling that there is something going on, they ignore the red flags and forgive him. These three women are interconnected in more ways than one and their connection to this one man will forever change the path of each of their lives.

If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be "unexpected". I thought it was going to be a laugh-out-loud rom-com about this weasel of a man playing these three women. Maybe it would be like the movie, The Other Woman, a story about three women teaming up to get revenge on the man that scorned them. This book was nothing like that. It was a bit more serious than the cover and synopsis would imply. Not necessarily a bad thing, just unexpected.

I found myself constantly wondering where this story was going while reading this novel. What was his motivation or end game in dating all these women? How and when was the other shoe going to drop? How would the puzzle of their lives fit together? The way it panned out was entirely unexpected. It was a very unique way to tell a story and the way it came together in the end was completely and utterly satisfying. That's a great feeling when you finish a book that had you questioning so many things!

My favorite thing about this book was AJ. What a yummy and sexy character! I loved his confidence/borderline cockiness and how fun and flirty he was. I was happy when he became a bigger part of the storyline towards the end.

Steam level: 🔥🔥
⚠️: panic attacks, sexual harassment, stalking, miscarriage, dementia, death of a loved one, grief

“Sometimes you just need to let yourself feel something, even if it’s ugly.”

I love romance novels. I love romance novels that explore the human condition. I love romance novels that have mystery and adventure. Beth O’Learys novel, The No-Show, has all of those qualities and more. It has been months since I have read a book that I could not put down but I finished this novel in less than 24 hours because I had to know how it ended. I loved every single character in this book and found them so real and relatable. I love how this story was told through multiple points of view and the inevitability of the conclusion. Fans of her other novel, The Flatshare, will recognize a similar spirit and fans of literally any other novel will recognize some of the greatest story telling I’ve ever read. I honestly have no notes. 5/5 ⭐️


This book is an ARC and was gifted to me by @berkleypub via @netgalley in exchange for an honest review. It comes out April 12, 2022.

This book was great and full of surprises! Every time I thought I had it figured out I was wrong. I really enjoyed the different points of view and I enjoyed it as much as the Flatshare (which is a lot!).

As an anticipated read, I am sad to say I didn’t mesh with this one. There were moments I did like but it was always overshadowed by everything else.

The book is told from three point-of-views. Each one is a different woman but they all correlate together by one man named Joseph Carter. I thought that it was very interesting to have the focal point be this one man. I don’t think I have ever read a book like that before. It’s one reason that I stayed intrigued. I felt that two of the women were more interesting than the other but, I don’t think there was enough development from any of the characters in this book. They all felt a bit lackluster and this very well may have to do with the format of the book. There just wasn’t enough time to really get to know them.

Out of all of the characters, I liked one of the women, Miranda, the most. I really wish we would have been given more for her and AJ. I seriously would have taken a whole book about them! The banter was nice and they meshed really well together.

As for the plot, it wasn’t what I expected at all and maybe that is why I didn’t like it as much. There were also hints of things going one way and then later down the road we find out that everything isn’t how it appears. It makes you dislike one of the characters more than you should because of it. It also left for a rather confusing read. This could honestly just be a me thing. I’m not entirely sure, lol.

Overall, this just didn’t do much for me. I liked the moments between Miranda and AJ. I liked that it was unique. Sadly, I didn’t love the book as much as I wanted to.

Rating: 2.5 stars

4.6 - oh my wooooooooooooooord. Beth O'Leary, you know how to positively write a novel and kill me at the same time. When the twist finally happened, I gasped like at THAT moment in Gone Girl. How do you manage to blend such serious issues and trauma with love, humor, friendship, & happiness? I JUST DON'T KNOW. I positively fell for everything and had no idea on all those twists and turns. I'm still processing! ANYWAY - great book. My only only caveat, with all of hers really, is that I want more of the ending. It ends so soon when I want MOAR! I can't speak to much without giving much away, but such a clever idea to write a book like this about Valentine's Day and not showing up. Such fantastic writing. I will read everything she writes!

The No-Show is a story about three women who were stood up by the same man on Valentine's Day. I thought it was more drama than romance and I found it hard to really love this book, although I enjoyed The Flat Share and Switch very much. Once I got into the middle of the story, The No-Show caught my attention and I wanted to see how it turned out. I was surprised at the unexpected twist toward the end. If you like Beth O'Leary, I recommend it. If you like drama with a bit of romance and a plot twist, this would fit the bill. I give it three and a half stars.

15,000 stars for this one. My best read of January… Hands. Down.

I am blown away by this book. Are RomCom Thrillers a thing? Because I kinda think we found our first one if not.

Bravo. Bravo. Bravo.

three women are stood up on Valentine's Day by the same man. Why did he do it? They believe he is a good guy so why would he hurt them. How are 3 such different woman connected to the same man? Did he love any of them?

Ah, I went into this book thinking it would follow along the lines of The Other Woman but turns out it was a little more Definitely, Maybe.

In comparison to O’Leary’s previous works, The Switch-Off reads as a mature departure from her usual romance-heavy novels. While the love stories are certainly compelling enough, the narrative structure (and its twists!) are exactly what will keep the readers interested. Joseph’s relationships with all three women are jarringly different and I think it’s important that the ‘strength’ between all the protagonists are presented in distinct ways.

The only letdown, however, is in the choice to have so many characters (I know, it’s only four!). While it was certainly necessary for the plot, I just didn’t feel like I got to spend enough time with the women (and certainly not Joseph!). While O’Leary writes in a way that kept me engaged throughout and maintains a solid pace, I never got the chance to be fully invested in any particular character or the relationships that developed. Either way, this was a great read before Valentine’s Day!

This was such a great book! I have read all of Beth O’Leary’s work and loved it all, but this is probably my favorite. A heartbreaking and heartwarming love story all at the same time. I was a bit confused at the beginning and felt there were a lot of characters to keep track of, but the way it all fell together was perfect. Read this book! Thank you to NetGalley for the early read!

I love this author and was really excited for this book. But it fell kind of flat for me. Partially because most of the book I was confused as to what was going on- who was what and when and it was all over the place. I really think that having dates added to chapters would help because once I did find out that one part of the story was from years ago I felt like I needed to go back and reread. Once you really get to hear Joseph’s story though the book became heartwarming and sweet. The ending was pretty special too. Bumped up to 3.5 stars.

It starts off slow and kind of dense, but once the action begins, it's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. It reads as a true epic, one that makes you feel the world really has been reshaped as you read it. Would recommend.

So I have a lot of feelings about this book. (Spoilers ahead!) In my opinion, it could have been a great story if it was executed a little better. It took me a little over halfway through the book to feel invested in what happened next. I found the timeline quite confusing and jumping between 3 POVs made it difficult to keep characters/plot straight. I also found the main male character to be highly unlikeable (him constantly crying became almost manipulative at several points). I really enjoyed the scenes with AJ and Miranda and I found them well suited to one another. I think the way it was written and having the male MC framed as a cheater for most of the book left me predisposed to disliking him so once that was resolved, the feelings of dislike stuck around. I also found the pacing to be a little off, I almost wish the story was focused on one POV only, although seeing how they all interconnected at the end made it make a little more sense.

I have mixed feelings on this one. I really enjoyed the direction the first chapter started in but then with the slowness and the mix of switching between multiple characters, I struggled to keep interest. I know I am in the minority on this one. I might need to try the audio version instead.

Per the publisher's request:

My honest review of The No-Show will be publicly available on April 19th, 2022 on my blog, GiaReadsBooks. You will be able to find it with this link: www.giareadsbooks.com/book-reviews/the-no-show. On average, I have between 750-1,000 unique visitors per month, which stem from Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and Goodreads.

Genre: Romance
Rating: 5 Stars
Spice Rating: 1 Star*
**There are no explicit scenes in this novel, though there is some mention of sexual harassment/abuse. Some mentions of death and a miscarriage but neither is a main theme.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group, Beth O’Leary, and NetGalley for sending me a copy of The No-Show in exchange for an honest review.


Review:

The No-Show follows three women – Jane, Siobhan, and Miranda – as they navigate their relationships and romantic lives after being stood up on Valentine’s Day. Jane is a quiet, schedule-ridden bookworm who refuses to face her haunting past. Siobhan is the “it” girl, working as a corporate life coach and essentially killing it at everything, except, of course, relationships. Miranda is an adrenaline junkie with a job that requires her to climb 50-foot trees on the daily. What do they all have in common, you ask? Well, they were all stood up by the same man on Valentine’s Day. Where was Joseph Carter on V-Day, and why is he so secretive about his past? Will Jane, Siobhan, and Miranda ever really know Joseph Carter?

I’ve never read Beth O’Leary before, and I’m realizing now that that was probably a mistake. While The No-Show's pacing felt a bit slow at the beginning, the buildup to the end was phenomenal. It took me nearly 3 days to get through the first 50% of this novel, but I binged the second half in a single night! O’Leary seriously has a way with words. She managed to make me root for all three of these complicated relationships, even though I wanted to punch Joseph in the face every time he showed up! In all honesty, I think I really just wanted to see Jane, Siobhan, and Miranda happy, and that made it so much harder to hate Joseph.

I really dislike making comparisons when it comes to authors, but for recommendation's sake, I got Colleen Hoover vibes from this book. O’Leary tasked herself with building not one, but FOUR main characters throughout this book, which is incredibly difficult to pull off. She managed it, though. She managed it so hard. The No-Show is an incredibly well-written novel that focuses not only on the romantic lives of these characters, but also their emotional journeys towards self-love. It was raw and real and amazing. I’m begging any and all romance readers to get their hands on this novel as soon as they possibly can.

Beth O’Leary’s newest page turner follows three women, each of them being stood up on Valentine’s Day. One for breakfast, one for lunch, and one for a dinner date. The problem is that is seems they’re all being stood up by the same man.

Another beautifully written romance by the author of The Flatshare, The Switch, and The Roadship. This one will keep you up all night.

I'm not sure what exactly I was expecting with THE NO-SHOW but it was not this! Beth O'Leary's fourth novel is her most ambitious, unique, and complex, yet. The story interweaves the lives of three women-- Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane-- who are all involved in one way or another with Joseph Carter. That's all I knew going in and this book ended up being one of the most unexpected (seriously, I am usually very good at predicting where plots are going but I didn't see this one coming at all) heartfelt, sad and sweet novels I've read in quite some time. Since THE FLATSHARE jumped right into my top favorite books ever I have eagerly anticipated every new release from O'Leary and will continue to do so, but I'm especially interested to see what she does next!

I really enjoyed the first 30% of the book and learning about tree surgeons but once I hit about 30-40% of the way through I had a hard time picking it back up. I do think many people will enjoy this book.