This is the most heartbreakingly realistic story I have ever read. The best way to describe it is an un-romcom.

Adelaide is a people pleaser, and just wants to be a pillar for everyone. She eventually crashes and burns before she realizes that it’s okay to take time for herself.

The book centers around her year long relationship with Rory, who she falls head over heels in love with on their first date. She devotes everything she has into always being there for him, making his day better, being his support. The problem is that Rory is broken. Sure, he likes Adelaide, appreciates her, and takes her for granted, but he doesn’t quite love her. The relationship is a poster example of “he’s just not that into you.” Texts go unanswered for long periods of time, he can never quite stick to plans, and he sure as hell can’t commit.

This book deals with a lot of real aspects of life including mental illness and coping with death. The entire book will break your heart as you fall more in love with Adelaide, so have the tissues ready.

Adelaide Williams is living her best life in London, working in communications and sharing a flat with her friends. She isn’t the life of the party, but magnetic nonetheless, always willing to get on the dance floor and fiercely loyal to her friends. As a hopeless romantic, her meet cute with Rory Hughes is something out of a fairytale. All seems to be going well, until Adelaide realizes that nine months in Rory continues to push off defining their relationship. Desperate for it to move forward, Adelaide obsessively does anything and everything she can to please Rory, to the detriment of her own mental health.

When a personal tragedy upends Rory’s life, Adelaide gets pushed to the wayside. Quickly this romcom turns real. Author Genevieve Wheeler does not shy from mental health in this story, and I’m grateful. She shows the lengths Adelaide goes through to preserve her rapidly deteriorating relationship with Rory.

Adelaide’s friends and employers in this story are empathetic and loyal; could we all be so lucky. I don’t have many nice things to say about Rory, other than he comes across as a narcissist. I appreciate the “realness” of this relationship especially given Adelaide’s penchant for fairytale romances. Fair warning the book deals with sexual abuse and suicide. Overall, this is a great story about the real trials of finding love in this day and age. My only caveat is—I could have done without the few years later last chapter.

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, and of course Genevieve Wheeler for the advanced copy of the new audiobook. Adelaide is out on April 18th. All opinions are my own.

What a sweet yet heartbreaking story. The mental health struggles in this were super realistic, complex and well done. You really pull for Adelaide who just wants to feel "normal" while not knowing how to fix her inner demons. There is an overarching theme about everyone having a purpose in your journey which I thought was beautiful. I thought the narration was well done and really showed Adelaide's kind heart and vulnerability.

I have a lot of feelings about this title, and I have a feeling they might be unpopular. It reminded me a lot of Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us. I think whatever stance you take on that book is how you'll feel about Adelaide. I fell into the camp of it being overhyped and problematic and I think that stands for this one.

My problems:
-I didn't like Adelaide for most of the book. Its hard to like a book where you dislike the main character, but I definitely didn't trust her either. There were a lot of moments where her character traits were described or her views or actions actually made me cringe.. Also Adelaide grieved and struggled with loss of someone she met one time. I had a really hard time understanding her grief for someone she literally. did. not. know.
-I saw a lot of early reviews with people being frustrated that this was marketed as a love story (and Goodreads or publishers in some places have removed that label!) which I can DEFINETLY see how that would be problematic and give people the wrong impression of what kind of book they were going to be reading. This is NOT a love story. Yes it is a story about a girl grappling WITH love. But it's VERY important to note that the relationships in this book are VERY toxic. And that's where this reminds me a lot of It Ends With Us, another book about toxic relationships, which I don't think I am a fan of reading. I really had that you see SOOO many red flags and warning signs and the character just keeps pushing on and claiming its love. This makes me uncomfortable as a reader and the idea of others reading it and think its love.
-DO be mindful of the trigger warnings in this book. Other reviewers have said that and I have to agree. Anyone who was in a teenage relationship that was not healthy, should avoid this one. Also anyone experienced or know someone with suicidal ideations. I was uncomfortable by how the character justified and idealized suicide and death, especially the "fame" of it.

Sorry, Adelaide. I know others will like this one, but it was not for me!

Loved that it was a dark romance and addressed mental health issues. I was pleasantly surprised this was not a rom-com.

What a great debut! The writing is phenomenal - precise and emotional. I found myself relating so much to Adelaide and her struggles. I read and enjoyed Tell Me Lies by Carola Lovering earlier this year and Adelaide explored a lot of the same themes: toxic relationships, the lies we tell ourselves to justify staying in those relationships and the mental toll it takes on us.

I was going back in fourth in my mind about giving this book 4.5 to 5 stars. After the epilogue I was like five stars.
How to start?
This book is literary fictional work that deals with some tough issues. One of which is mental health and self love. This story is about Adelaide an American who moves to England and does her masters. She is incredibly smart but her only fault is that she is a people pleaser and doesn’t take time for herself. Adelaide meets this guy named Rory on a dating app. Adelaide goes all in with her emotions for Rory who is an emotionally unavailable jackass. The ups and downs of Adelaide and Rory will infuriate you at times but in your mind you will say I know someone like this. Someone who does everything in a relationship and the other person is only there for the perks. Adelaide does this until she has a mental health breakdown.
This book will move you in various ways but the last six chapters I was cheering for Adelaide. We all know Adelaide’s. The sweet girl who doesn’t know her true worth. The epilogue was everything! I so needed that epilogue. Thank you Genevieve Wheeler for that.
I highly recommend.
Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me this opportunity to experience Adelaide.

Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler

I liked this one right from the start but it wasn’t what I expected! It starts out a bit like a romcom but it definitely isn’t. It’s a beautiful story about feelings, about love and grief and everything in between.

It focuses on one unhealthy relationship, but we get flashbacks from Adelaide’s past and even little sneak peaks of the future which I really loved. It really put sections of life into perspective. This is a thoughtful story, making you feel all the feels!

Adelaide can be frustrating, but her heart consistently won me over and I just wanted to give her a hug.

Thank you to @macmillan.audio for the audiobook! This is out on April 18th.

TW: mental health struggles, abusive relationships, suicidal thoughts.

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Adelaide felt like a friend, and I was sad for this book to end. I would gladly read a follow-up and visit these characters again. Incredible writing throughout, and I loved the story (though I often wanted to punch Rory).

I’m not sure if I can find the right words to explain how hard, but beautiful this was. I loved the audio, and felt so much for Adelaide. Her journey of self love through abusive and toxic relationships was at times very triggering, and my heart was so heavy. Be prepared going in, it will break your heart, then mend it all over again.

Adelaide was not the novel I was expecting when I initially saw it, but it was an intriguing read. For me, I think it is highly important for all readers to read the trigger warnings before beginning as there are a lot of heavy topics in the novel and some of them are mentioned in the first few pages. The story opens with one trigger warning, and it seemed they kept piling up into a giant mountain by the time the story was finished. Another thing to note is that the story may revolve around the romance between Adelaide Williams and Rory Hughes as the synopsis states, but the actual story is more about Adelaide and her emotional journey. It goes through different events in the past and some in the present, so slowly all the pieces of Adelaide’s life are revealed to the reader.

Adelaide is a 26-year-old American from the New York area living in London for graduate school. She’s almost finished with her degree where she is trying to figure out her future career when readers are introduced to Rory. Here, readers follow along from the beginning of their relationship and other bits of Adelaide’s past, including her ex-Emery, are given in flashbacks. The story is reflective and told mainly from Adelaide’s POV, so as she tells the story to readers there is many mentions where she did not know certain elements at the time. This part does get repetitive as the reader is already fully aware of this, so I just wish those sentences were polished more.

As for the narrator, I love Caitlin Kelly, although I usually have listened to her YA fantasy reads. She did an excellent job narrating the story and portraying the different emotions, especially for Adelaide. This main character goes through a lot, but I did find it very difficult at times not to judge her for not taking time for herself years before the main story. I don’t believe a lot of it would be solved this way, but some of her life may have been less stressful. Again, I found it hard not to judge her, yet I still did somewhat. Her story is relatable as elements of Adelaide can either be found in each reader or in someone the reader knows, which brings an excellent tie-in to reality. One rep that was surprising is endometriosis as this is rarely mentioned. While this diagnosis fits in part of the story, I feel the author did not go far enough as there is a lot more to this that could be tied into other elements of the story. Overall, this novel has ups and downs and delivered an excellent range of emotions.

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read this enjoyable novel. The opinions expressed are completely my own.**

In spite of what she thinks, Adelaide is an entirely lovable character. I loved her and her friends immensely.

I listened to this book rather than reading it, and I wonder if it would have felt like a more cohesive experience if I was holding a print copy. I got a little lost with the timeline that bounced around a bit, the foreshadowing, the way that the narrator would pointedly mention things that Adelaide didn't yet know... At times, I felt immersed in the story and at times it felt a little like I was floating above the story listening to a lecture. It just felt uneven to me.

Adelaide's primary relationship in this novel is her amazing friends, but her romantic relationship was so incredibly full of red flags that it was hard to read about. Not abusive, but also not healthy in many ways.

Anyway, thanks so much to NetGalley for early access to this audiobook. I enjoyed living in Adelaide's world for a few days!

Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler is a book that will give you all of the feels. There are a lot of emotions in this one and many triggers. This is not a lovey-dovey love story so beware. My heart broke for Adelaide and I was rooting for her throughout the book. Adelaide's emotions are raw and real and that part of the story seemed very relatable. I really enjoyed this story but it was definitely not what I expected.

Caitlin Kelly did a wonderful job with the audiobook and I really felt like I was in Adelaide's world.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars for this romance read!

This was definitely a different kind of read for me. It did not scream "romance novel" but more of a deep and interesting read more about struggling and finding oneself.

It was good, but not necessarily what I thought I was expecting. If you like reads that have complex, struggling characters this may be of more interest to you. It had its good points and not so good points, but was more complex than a typical romance or romcom.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook ARC!

As a fellow fixer in her late 20s, I could relate so deeply to the emotions Adelaide feels despite being in a totally different place in life. It was like being in Adelaide’s mind while reading and I went through every feeling right along with her. Her mental health struggles and her reactions to every situation felt real. I adored her strong female friendships. I understood the way that she was composed of all of her experiences. I hated the boys and men who caused her such immense pain over the years. I loved the character and the book. I could not put this one down. This tandem read with my Book of the Month copy that arrived today and the audiobook, which was narrated beautifully, was perfect. Thank you to NetGalley for the audio ARC!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for my copy of Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler in exchange for an honest review. It publishes April 18, 2023.
First off, I felt the narration was very well-done in this book. However, I struggled with this book, it was much more vulgar than I had expected, and found myself skipping passed parts. I did not really enjoy this book, and found both Adelaide and Rory to be annoying.
I did love the setting in London!

Adelaide has a seemingly carefree, fun young adult life until a break-up sends her over the edge. A lot of us have been there. Rock bottom. Thinking the only way out is through another person’s love. While I appreciate the focus on mental health, unhealthy relationships, and personal growth, I struggled to connect with her the whole book. I am concerned for Adelaide and Rory individually, let alone together when the relationship is clearly unhealthy. Honestly, the last 10% was really the only bit I truly enjoyed. It just wasn’t my cup of tea and check the TW before you dive in. There are plenty.

I would recommend this book to fans of Sally Rooney. This was slightly more entertaining than her books, which most people love, but they are also not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and author Genevieve Wheeler for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

DNF @ 53%

This is not a "love story" it's extremely raw and not an easy read at all. If you're a fan of Normal People by Sally Rooney you will like this; I actually think Adelaide is much better. It's almost too real and too relatable in a way that made me both love and hate it at the same time.

In the end, I probably would have loved this at a different point in my life. But, that part of my life isn't what I care to drag up by reading a novel right now.

I ended up not finishing this audiobook. I struggled with the themes of suicide and mental health. I think just because of life currently. I think the story itself is interesting, but I just struggled with this one unfortunately. Thank you for the arc audiobook.

One of my favorite books so far this year. Incredibly raw and so relatable. (Trigger warning: grief, thoughts of suicide, sexual assault, mental health)

Adelaide is a young American living in London. While much of the story stays on that timeline while she’s living across the pond, some go back/forward in time, and some come from the perspectives of others in the book. Without giving too much away, this really hit home with modern dating and learning to love yourself. Found myself laughing or crying through many parts.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ARC of the audiobook! Great variations in the narration.