Between Us is my first Mhairi McFarlane book, so I can’t compare it to her others. However, I absolutely loved the idea that the boyfriend was using their relationship as the inspiration for his show- I thought this was such a smart and interesting hook. This was a fun and easy read!

Between Us by Mhairi McFarlane

Even before Roisin watches the first episode of the television show her long-term boyfriend wrote, she feels that the relationship is coming to an end. But while viewing the show with her boyfriend and their friends, she sees that he has taken extremely private moments from her past and put them in the show without even a check-in. Not only that, other moments and characters seem eerily similar to their real life, leaving Roisin to wonder if it's possible that other aspects on the screen are true as well--like the shameless infidelity that the entire series/character arc is built around.

This book is 100% women's fiction and romance adjacent, but my heart raced from about 30% on as if it were a thriller! I finished the second half in one sitting! Roisin's journey to uncover the truth about the last 10 years between her and deplorable Joe is extremely satisfying. Roisin is a really loveable main character. I love that just because she was a low-maintenance girlfriend/friend did not mean she let anyone walk all over her in this book.

Read this if you like the sound of. . .
• a schoolteacher heroine
• tricky friendship dynamics, *imploding* friend group drama
• British humor and banter between friends. I admit I occasionally felt like I was on the outside of some inside jokes, but it made this friend group feel very real, too.
• Messy relationships - between friends, parent/child, lover, etc. The family situations for both Roisin and Matt were interesting and it was sweet to see them reveal their secrets to each other.
• a heroine who stands up for herself, commits to difficult conversations, and goes on a personal journey you can really root for!
• a secretly pining hero!!!
• I feel like this will make a fantastic audiobook - the friend group conversations can be done so well on audio!

Thanks so much for the opportunity to read this Avon and Netgalley

Four stars for a great book from Mhairi McFarlane! I devoured this book over a weekend, and enjoyed the premise of the story. Roisin is a member of the Brian Club, a group of friends who met years ago working at Waterstones. Throughout the story, Roisin and her boyfriend, Joe, are struggling with their relationship which is exacerbated by the new TV show he is producing.

I found Roisin's journey and character to be both relatable and inviting, which made me want to keep reading and support her choices. Her path of self-discovery and understanding what she wanted in a relationship was also fascinating read. Additionally, the evolution of friendships and exploration of dynamics in this novel really worked for me.

Thanks to NetGalley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for the e-ARC!

I really enjoy Mhairi's work and this book did not disappoint. This was a very creative plot and I think many people will enjoy this novel when it is released.

Another great novel from Mhairi McFarlane.

Roisin and her long time boyfriend Joe meet up with their friends for a weekend away at a country house, to celebrate the new TV show that Joe has written, as well as the engagement of friend Dev and Roisin’s birthday. The group all met working at a bookstore a decade before.
Roisin and Joe’s relationship has been a little off recently, as his recent success has him jetsetting all over the world, while she stays at home teaching at a local school. She feels he doesn’t have time for her anymore.
Long term friendships are examined as one of the group, Dev, has struck it mega-rich while others have not, Gina has always secretly loved Matt, but he brings his famous girlfriend to the event, etc.
While they all eagerly watch Joe’s new TV show, Roisin realizes with a start, that the show is about them. A family secret she shared only with Joe, is revealed early on, and she feels like she has been punched. The main character on the show is a liar and a serial cheater, and Roisin begins to question whether Joe is in fact that person.
Roisin has always had a difficult relationship with her Mum, but she takes some time at her Mum’s pub in her home town to consider her future with Joe while he is travelling. We are privy to her Mum’s unusual behaviors, and Roisin’s attempts to make the relationship work. When Matt comes to help too, life takes an interesting turn for Roisin.
I felt Roisin fell for Matt a little quickly, but enjoyed the second chance they both had, and the insights into the friendship dramas of thirty-somethings, the dysfunctional relationships, the gaslighting of Roisin, and the parent child dynamics.
Many thanks for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review. 4 stars.

Wow. So y’all don’t even know how much it pains me to not have loved this book. Mhairi is my absolute favorite writer of romcoms but this one… it hit different. I can’t even explain why, but this book was a diversion from her usual formula and I didn’t enjoy it as much as I had expected to.

I loved Roisin (how do you even pronounce that name?) and she just might be one of my favorite FMC ever. I also loved (and hated) all of the characters in this book because Mhairi did her usual fantastic job of writing multifaceted, perfectly imperfect people. I also enjoyed the ending of the story but overall, it felt disjointed to me. The prologue didn’t seem to connect to the rest of the story at all and the middle of the book became a bit of a slog for several chapters.

It is hurting my heart to even have to admit there were flaws to this book because it’s not at all a good representation of Mhairi McFarlane’s capabilities as a romcom writer. This was a buddy read with my friend Lori - her first time reading a book by this author - and now I feel it’s my duty to direct her toward some of Mhairi’s better offerings. I encourage anyone else who is trying this author for the first time to please give one of her other books a try. She is really amazing and remains one of my favorites. Because of this, I am still going to give the audiobook a listen once this book is published. I’m hoping I can enjoy it more than the ARC read.

Thank you to NetGalley, and my favorite author for a free copy of the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Content warning for toxic/emotionally abusive relationships.

I’m a fan of Mhairi McFarlane and especially appreciate how crossover her books are. They usually lean more women’s fic/commercial than romance but if I was walking in cold based off the title, cover and blurb…I do wonder if there will be an expectation gap from readers because this book is awesome, quirky, real, and unique in the topics tackled, and structure. Anyway, onto the review

Roisin and Joe have been together nine years. From his struggling writer days to the present when his second, expected to be another smash hit TV show is premiering. They and their friend group—the Brian’s (an inside joke from where they used to work), all trek out to this fabulous country estate for a watch party. But when secrets Roisin told Joe in confidence end up on the small screen she wonders what else is fact and what is fiction. Is he cheating the same as his character? Is he a pathological liar like his character? And can she trust him after this betrayal?

To clear her head she helps her mom out at their pub and their mutual friend Matt comes with and I’m sure you can guess where that’s gonna go.

What I wasn’t expecting and was a total delight was the self discovery Roisin has throughout the story as she must decide what she wants for herself.

At times I felt like I was “watching” a twisty, drama filled prestige television show that I imagine the author intended the atmosphere to feel like which was a fun element.

I am a big Mhairi McFarlane fan and have read all of her books. The thing I love most about her books is the witty dialogue, and in that respect, Between Us did not disappoint. McFarlane's writing is as witty as ever and is entertaining to read. She has also created a good romance story with a solid plot. With that being said, I was a bit disappointed because it felt like some of the plot points were recycled from her other books. I also had trouble caring much about the Brians, the group of friends that are a large part of the main characters' lives. I recognize, though, that I might be unfairly comparing Between Us to some of McFarlane's older books. I still think Between Us was much more entertaining than most of the romance novels on the market.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the advanced reader copy. All of my opinions are my own.

This is one of my favorite fun authors, so I was excited to get this ARC from NetGalley. However, this wasn't one of my favorite novels from her. I felt like the book spent far too much time on the relationship between Roisin and Joe, and Roisin's investigative work to figure out if Joe was lying to her, and not enough time on the relationship that was developing between Roisin and Matt. That was definitely the most satisfying part of the novel and I felt short-changed.

This is one that I could see being adapted for a tv series. As a novel, this one held my interest but felt overwhelmed with the amount of characters at times. Thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mhairi is a must-read author for me, so I was excited to get an advanced e-book of her next release! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the free copy in exchange for my honest review.

I give this book a solid 4 stars. I liked it quite a bit, but didn't love it like I have loved some of her other books. As usual, I think Mhairi wrote a difficult situation very well - Roisin is in a relationship where she eventually realizes she is being gaslit... and more. I think the story captured Roisin's feelings about this well. I liked her friend group a lot as well.

I think my main hold-backs that kept this from love for me were:
1. I felt the book was slow to get started. It is not uncommon for Mhairi to take her time to get a story going, but this one felt really dragged out for me.
2. I think the start-up of the feelings and then relationship with Matt was suuuuper quick. It just felt way too fast for me, especially when Roison had no feelings for him beyond friend before, and she was still healing from being gaslit and cheated on. I just would've liked to see more build-up to their relationship, to give us a chance to get to know Matt before pairing them together.

All in all, I do recommend this one! Not sure if I will ever read it again - I'll probably turn to some of her other books for a re-read instead!

The premise of the book seemed interesting to me, but it was a bit of a slog getting to the main plot of the book. I just didn’t care much for the build-up and too many characters to try and distinguish.

I think the best way to go into this book is to understand that the romance is probably a secondary storyline. Roisin has a group of six friends who met while working at the same bookshop. This group is very close and includes Joe, her decade-long boyfriend. Joe has recently discovered big success as a screenwriter and Roisin is starting to witness a new side to Joe that worries her. This book explores friend dynamics over the years and how that is affected by growing and changing relationships. Joe and Roisin’s relationship is both riveting and stressful as Joe is a master at manipulation and gaslighting, but I think that it is very well done on the pages. There is a romance that is kind of rushed and not absolutely necessary so going into this book hoping solely for that aspect might leave one disappointed. This is the second book that I have read by this author and I enjoy her dimensional characters and plots.

I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I have really come to enjoy books by this author – in part, because of how she writes groups of friends and their interactions. This book is no different! I also am a sucker for the UK settings. :) Between us was a solid 4, maybe a 4.5, for me. The main character, Roisin (pronounced Ro-sheen, I think, based on one character singing Jolene to her?) has a douchy boyfriend and some serious baggage with her mom. After her boyfriend writes a successful tv show, she notices some creepy similarities with their real life and embarks on a journey to discover the truth.

The book drew me in and kept my attention from the beginning. As i said, I really enjoyed it - particularly the female friendships. My only complaints are that I felt the romance moved too quickly - could’ve had more time spent on the backstory - and I would’ve liked to see the douchy bf get more comeuppance. But still, a fun read.

3.5 STARS

“Can success really change a person, though?
she wondered. Maybe it only brings elements that were always there to the fore?”

Between Us was my first Mhairi McFarlane book. And let me tell you, this book will give you all the feels! Drama, emotional roller coaster, and plenty of laugh out loud moments.

The book opens with Rosin’s group of friends, “The Brian Club, going away for the weekend to celebrate an engagement, a birthday, and Rosin’s boyfriend, Joe’s, TV premiere. But, when the TV premiere turns out to be eerily similar to Rosin’s own life, is this the beginning of the end of Rosin and Joe?

Now while I loved the witty banter, it did take me awhile to get into this book. I kept putting it down, and picking it up; however, once the story picked up, I was hooked (so maybe this was a me problem).

I really enjoyed Rosin’s story outside “The Brian Club”. Her interactions with her eccentric mum and the ever doting Matt at the Mallory, her family’s business, were by far my favorite! (Hang in there for the second half!)

Does Rosin find a happily ever after? Pick up Between Us to find out.

I enjoyed this buddy read with @kansasreadsalot.

Thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

All opinions are my own.

I found the first part of this book rather difficult to follow. I couldn’t focus on the characters as so many of them flitted across the pages.
Finally a rhythm emerged halfway and it was easier to follow.
I thought Roisin didn’t give herself enough time to downshift before jumping into something new.
Joe is such a dirtbag.
It’s a decent read.

Pros: I’ve been eager to read a book by Mhairi McFarlane after hearing friends and book podcasters rave about her books. I can see why she is so popular with people whose tastes I trust! I enjoyed her writing style and plan to read more of her books.

Cons: It felt like the action in this book did not start until 30% in. Although I liked getting to know all the friends in the friend group during that first 30%, it seemed like too much set up once the book got going.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the opportunity to read this book.

WOW. I was not expecting this book to hit me as hard as it did, but sitting here after finishing it, I need to reevaluate my expectations. I think the romance storyline was a little jarring, but between the premise of the book and the fabulous characterizations, I found myself really enjoying it. This book takes you through a rollercoaster of emotions and leaves you feeling a little out of breath — but in a good way. I don’t know that I loved this as much as the other books I’ve read by McFarlane, but it was time well spent and on re-read, I think I’ll enjoy it even more. This book starts pretty slow, but really does pick up quite a bit and suddenly, you’re hurtling towards the ending and you aren’t quite sure how you’ve reached it. I love when a book does that, and this was no exception. This definitely encouraged me to check out some more of McFarlane’s catalog.

At the end, I liked this book. There were a few misspelled words not surprising in an ARC. I recommend reading this book in 1 day otherwise it’s hard to care about the characters starting off. The ending was great and satisfying but it took me too long to care about the characters. Also, it’s all boyfriend and husband - are they married? Maybe it’s a cultural thing that I can’t navigate my reading around but when the main characters have an unknowable relationship, it’s weird. Glad I received this one but understand that some people will loooove it and others will DNF in the first 1-2 hours.

McFarlane's brilliance returns in this latest jewel of her collection, Between Us. Mhairi McFarlane's writing style will always stand out from the crowd but with this novel, the inspiring arc of self-growth reminiscent of women's fiction themes completely captured my heart. In a strikingly relatable nature, McFarlane has written a story of Roisin and each of her complicated relationships- from her toxic ex, to fractured friendships, and dysfunctional family- has her surprisingly relying on the last person she expected to understand her. Nate, the reformed playboy of their former friend group, suddenly starts showing up and keeps supporting her throughout this tumultuous period of her life. As the moments between them parallel the vulnerable moments between Rosie and her ex, she slowly realizes why Nate is different than Joe, what makes this dynamic so special, and sees how far she's come since that naive girl before. With her impeccable writing and this beautiful story of self-growth and light romance, prepare your hearts for the magic that is Mhairi McFarlane's latest novel, Between Us!