This book explored what happens when we dive too deep into the online presence of someone we just met. It was very relatable; we all search for someone we met on social media. However, this book showed how that can be destructive if you take it too far. I really enjoyed reading about Ana's search into the background of a new man she was dating. She started to find out about his ex-girlfriend and piece together how this past relationship may have affected Evan, the man she started dating. However, I felt myself cringe for Ana as she took things a little too far and started to insert herself into parts of Evan's ex-girlfriend's life, by meeting her friends and going to places that she had gone. Ana discovers that Evan's ex died, which leads her to make a lot of assumptions, which ultimately hurt her relationship with Evan. Ana knew a lot about Evan's life, without actually talking to him directly about it. She also seemed to almost become obsessed with knowing about his ex. While I did really appreciate reading about how searching online for people has become so normal, it can also be a problem. I did not really connect with Ana's character, and felt the depth of the relationships in this book was a bit shallow and lacking in something. I also, personally, didn't really like the casual way that sex was referenced, especially in a way that did not really add to the story.

The concept of Search History is one that anyone who's tried dating in the modern age can relate to. With a wealth of information at our fingertips, is it a given that we look up anyone who we meet online?

The book follows a woman named Ana who flees her hometown of Perth to move to Melbourne after a particularly bad breakup. She meets a man named Evan and quickly becomes obsessed with his ex after she finds through social media stalking that his last girlfriend suddenly died.

Although billed as Rebecca meets Fleabag, I can't say I see much of Rebecca's inspiration on this book. However, I will say that Taylor does a great job of making Ana feel relatable, someone we can empathize with, even as she makes self-destructive decisions chapter after chapter -- not unlike Fleabag.

In a way, this novel is a coming of age of a woman who's already 29-years-old. However, I'd say we probably need more of those types of books - bildungsroman shouldn't be limited to high schoolers! Everyone's just figuring life out, and Search History is about just that.

For fans of A Novel Obsession, this one is for you! Thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

Clever, funny and realistic. A very solid debut. Search History explores something a little darker, someone a little darker. I loved the way romantic, platonic and familial relationships were written here. I think I needed something to tie it all together more cohesively but I enjoyed it very much.

Loved the title -Search History epitomizes everything about this novel: checking out a perspective employer or date's social media standing as a background check, looking up their ex-partners, obsessing over what they may or may not have posted about you, etc.
The first half of the book did not grab me as much as I had hoped. Ana, the protagonist, seemed a little insecure, but otherwise ordinary and her relationship with Evan proceeded a little boringly.
I wasn't sure whether the narrative would take a turn to the bizarre or continue to some point where they broke up & got back together. Evan's friends could have been more fleshed out, especially Nadia, to add more drama. The ending was satisfying and spot on, though!

I liked this book. The characters were extremely relatable and likeable. Where it missed the mark for me is how Ana obsessed so often about Evan's ex. It was extremely unhealthy but not surprising given her past and upbringing.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book for an honest review!

Thanks Netgalley for the ARC.

This book is a fun debut from this Australian author. Dating and breaking up in the social media internet age can spiral into obsession. This book was funny, sincere and a great romcom. Looking forward to what the author writes next!

"Search History" is a fun and relatable debut from Amy Taylor. Break ups are inherently painful, but social media can cause them to be even more so. Readers will root for Amy and have empathy for her obsession. Recommended for those who enjoy Chick Lit/Women's fiction. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Search History
A Novel
by Amy Taylor
A woman's obsession with her new boyfriend's dead ex fuels this sharp and honest debut novel, a send-up of modern dating and love.
Ana is in search, using her browser to search for Evan on her phone. She is of course not happy with what she discovers. Which is our “true” self—the one we show to the world online, or the one we keep to ourselves? Ever questioning and becoming crazy obsessed in her search for the truth.

I really enjoyed this novel and am excited to see what the author does next. Ana’s choices sometimes made me wince with secondhand embarrassment, but she was never so over the top or out there that I couldn’t relate - I think that I, too, would want to know all the details of my new boyfriend’s dead ex-girlfriend, as shameful as that may seem. It captured social media in a way that seemed very true to life, and I raced through it because I couldn’t wait to find out what would happen to Ana and Evan.

What a journey! Search History is often hilarious, terrifying at times, and totally enjoyable. A sharp and cheeky look at modern dating and how the ability to look everything up is shaping (or ruining?!) our lives.

Ana just moved to Melbourne to escape her former life and ex-boyfriend. When she meets a handsome stranger at a bar and not on a dating app, she is delighted. As she gets to know him in real life, she may or may not spend even more time looking him (and his ex-girlfriend) up online…

I thought Ana was a hoot and enjoyed reading about her inner thoughts and questionable decisions. What could have been a surface level comedy about internet stalking instead is a deeper look at what it can feel like to live alone as a young woman in a big city while you are still trying to figure out what you want to do with your life.

Thank you very much to Random House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

Very cute girly book with a deeper message that hits you in the feels. I really liked the protagonist even when I thought she was a little unhinged. Young women will devour this one.

I always google people and could identify with the main character's desire to look into her dates and new boyfriend! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for the purpose of this review. I'm rating it three stars. I liked the themes and the characters but the writing was a bit off at times for me. Taylor did a good job with the idea of the book though.