What can I say, I am a sucker for a female Irish author who takes on quirky and/or non-traditional relationship issues. We love a flawed cast. It's almost a modernized Austen where everything could be solved--or at least addressed--if people actually spoke frankly.

In The Happy Couple, Naoise Dolan delves into the complexities of relationships and the concept of happiness in modern partnerships. The narrative offers a fresh perspective on traditional marriage plots, blending humor with poignant insights about love and connection. Dolan's sharp writing and rich character development keep readers engaged, as they explore the protagonists' journey through emotional landscapes. This thought-provoking exploration of intimacy and fulfillment makes it a compelling read for anyone interested in contemporary relationship dynamics​.

i’m always down for a novel about messy people being messy. it's a different look into the typical marriage plot - will they or won't they? i loved slowly learning about the relationships through the lense of different characters as the story built. would recommend.

For Luke and Celine, a young couple in Dublin, getting engaged seems like the proper next step. It’s clear from the start of the book, however, that marriage might not be in the cards for the two. In one of the first scenes of the book, Luke disappears from the couple’s engagement party and lies to Celine about having gone home. As the march towards the wedding continues, Celine discovers the lie, Luke cheats on Celine secretly, and close friends declare their unyielding love for the groom. Despite these obvious, early red flags, the entirety of The Happy Couple consists of many characters weighing in on the stability of a relationship that any dispassionate observer could easily say shouldn’t end in marriage. I had no qualms with the sentence-level writing of the book, but I thought there was way too much going on for Dolan to dedicate to meaningful character development. Even the most interesting portion of the story - why did Luke leave his engagement party and where did he go - was sacrificed to less interesting plot points down the road.

Like so many others, I see striking resemblances between Dolan and Sally Rooney. She has such a refreshing and thoughtful voice and I'm so eager to read more from her. I didn't always find the plot or characters to be compelling, but I was enraptured by her writing.

I really enjoy Naoise Dolan’s other work, but this book just didn’t do it for me. Was a bit too slow.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

Duplicate review due to approval for both audio and ebook.

No strong feelings either way about this book, it's fine. No one is very likeable.

quirky quirky quirky. Irish writers are quickly becoming my favorite reads for those uncomfortable realties we can't face.

I rarely pass up the chance to read good Irish contemporary fiction, but I didn’t become as immersed with this as I thought I would. Interesting concept here, a couple gets engaged because they’d rather stay together than break up. Hmm. What about happiness? That is not something to be contemplated. What have we here is a modern, quirky story told with wit by a bride and a groom, a bridesmaid and a best man, and a guest. Love and marriage, go together like a horse and carriage. Do they?

I've often heard Naoise Dolan compared to Sally Rooney and while I can understand the reasoning--they both write about Irish millennials grappling with romance, careers and life in general--I think that Dolan deserves to be recognized on her own considerable merits. In "The Happy Couple," she gives us the eponymous Celine and Luke, who in the very first chapter seem to be on the verge of a breakup and instead decide to get married. What follows is their rocky road to the altar, told from the varying points of view of Celine, a concert pianist who isn't fully over her long-term romance with fellow pianist Maria; Phoebe, Celine's sister and Luke's devoted antagonist; Archie, Luke's Oxford classmate who has carried a torch for him forever but is now thrust into the role of best man; and Luke, the ambivalent groom who sees nothing wrong with having a few one night stands along the road to marriage--including with Archie. I loved this polyphonic chorus, peppered with text messages and bristling with arch humor, as each character provides a bit more backstory to the central Celine/Luke relationship and deepens the will-they-or-won't-they suspense. Of course I won't reveal the outcome here, but suffice it to say that Dolan kept me guessing and intrigued until the very end, and I'll be looking for more of her novels in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Ecco/HarperCollins Publishers for providing me with an ARC of this title in return for my honest review.

This was pretty mediocre for me. While it definitely fits into the contemporary millennial marriage cannon, I didn't feel that this said anything particularly compelling or new.

Thank you to Net Galley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

There are a lot of good elements of Naoise Dolan's second novel. However, those parts didn't come together in a way that made for an enjoyable reading experience. At least not for me. After DNF'ing Exciting Times, I think I've determined I'm just not a fan of this particular writing style. So many people compare her to Sally Rooney, given they're both female Irish authors and feature commentary on the complexity of modern romance. But I find their delivery to be wildly different.

The story has a really solid premise -- Celine and Luke are a young couple headed towards marriage. We are offered a fragmented glimpse into the dynamic between them (sometimes through their eyes, sometimes through others). And what we discover is that their situation is complicated by a slew of different issues: a reluctance to commit, differing priorities, and (in Luke's case) repeated infidelity.

As the wedding day approaches, they're forced to reckon with whether the good outweighs the bad. Are they getting married for the right reasons? Or would it be in their best interest to cancel?

I liked this premise. I think that had it been approached differently, my view of the book could have been different. I appreciated Dolan's commentary on misogyny/gender norms within the society. Luke, specifically, was a wholly unlikeable character to read about (though I suppose that was kind of the point). Chronically leading on the people he cares about is not something that felt particularly endearing. I did not understand why so many people in this book were in love with him.

That said, I respect and appreciate that Dolan normalized queerness. It is a mere fact of life that both Celine and Luke are queer. I think more authors can (and will!) steer towards this sort of narrative. I also believe that some of what I didn't like about Luke was meant to represent a sort of natural aversion to monogamy/commitment.

My qualms with this have less to do with the ideas and concepts represented and more to do with how they were conveyed. I found the writing to be a bit tedious. But I imagine others might absolutely latch onto material like this. So, truly, take my view of it with a grain of salt.

A unique story of a couple leading up to their wedding day, deciding if they should go through with their nuptials. I would have enjoyed this one if it wasn’t so on the nose - it’s like the author was hoping to show just how progressive they are by having every character be bisexual and have a laissez faire attitude.

An enthralling piece of lit fiction that follows an engaged couple, their family, and their exes as the wedding looms nearer and the reality of their relationship and who they truly are becomes impossible to ignore.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5

It took me awhile to pick this up, but when I did, I couldn’t put it down!!! I was hooked!

This book follows an engaged couple, Celine and Luke, and three friends of theirs. The sister of the bride, the best man, and a wedding guest. Each chapter is their pic leading up to the wedding day.

This was such an interesting concept for a book! I loved the originality of it! I felt that the writer captured each character’s pov in such a perfect way! I loved this book and look forward to reading more from Naoise Dolan!

📘: The Happy Couple by Naoise Dolan
🗓️: November 7, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley, Naoise Dolan, and ECCO for this ARC!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*Reviewed on NetGalley and Goodreads.

I really the unique narrative style that this book was told in. Felt like I was reading a play manuscript. However, I felt like we worked towards a throwaway ending.

I understand that this is more character driven than plot driven which I do normally love, but I just wish I had someone to root for. All of the characters were kind of terrible in their own ways, which I guess could make them seem more real BECAUSE they are flawed?

I don't know why this didn’t work for me, but I just didn’t love it.

Really great book with amazing characters and a great plot. Was easy to get into and it was very engaging. This is a book that I can see a lot of people in lit fic enjoy.

This was innovative and interesting! I loved the format as it's told in five sections from various members of the wedding party and a guest. The characters are not lovable but pretty realistic and endearing. The writing is funny and sharp while also making profound and moving points about ambitions, love, community, and marriage/relationships. Totally appreciated this novel!

Celine and Luke are the eponymous soon to be married happy couple, but will they? And, perhaps more importantly, should they? This book has a cast of mostly unlikeable and pretentious characters who never to seem to communicate (or perhaps even know) what they really want from each other. The beginning and ending both dragged for me with the middle somehow hitting just the right pacing to pull me in. There are aspects that are like watching a trainwreck, which has a certain appeal, but overall I found this fair-to-middling.