Sam is a manager at a bed and bath retailer with probably the worst employees ever, but he's faithful to them and will do anything to make sure they keep their jobs. So when there's an accident after the overbearing owner of the company forces him to make the trek to London, Sam sees the opportunity to change his mind by forcing him to spend time with him while pretending to have amnesia. Jonathan Forest sees the world in black and white, with numbers, profits, and key targets being the deciding factors in all his decisions. He's the cause of Sam's accident and finds himself forced to take him into his home while he recuperates. They're opposites in every way but forced closeness makes them see the sides they keep hidden to protect themselves.
Alexis Hall has a way of writing characters that makes them leap off the page and connect with readers. Sam and Jonathan were alive as I read how they opened up and helped each other grow. Their relationship has an unusual beginning based on a lie, but you can tell there are real emotions behind it all. Theirs is a very sweet relationship between two people who are afraid of opening up but do it without realizing it.
The comedy comes mostly from Jonathan's over-the-top family and was a bit hit or miss with me as I understood why Jonathan can love them while still finding them annoying. Not as entertaining as I was hoping it'd be, but an enjoyable read nonetheless because the relationship carries it.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the fun and emotional read!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review.

This is an enemies to lovers, grumpy/sunshine kinda read. However, the two MCs didn’t really click together for me. I liked them as individuals, but their dynamic was kinda…awkward for me. It wasn’t effortless, but more like the author was forcing two incompatible people together. Also, nobody seemed to respect Jonathan's boundaries AT ALL. I spent a lot of the book feeling bad for Jonathan more than anything else. It was worth the read, but it could have definitely been better.

Alexis Hall's newest book might just be my favorite book he's written! 10 Things that Never Happened takes place in the same universe as Boyfriend Material and Husband Material and features a side character from Husband Material.

Sam Becker manages a bed and bath store called Splashes & Snuggles, and he'd enjoy his job more if it weren't for his infuriating, micromanaging boss, Jonathan Forest. Jonathan is frustrated that Sam's Sheffield branch isn't hitting his goals, so he calls Sam down to London--Sam thinks to fire him. After following Jonathan around to learn how to manage correctly, tensions rise, and Sam has a serious accident that gives him a concussion. Some confusion in A&E leaves Jonathan thinking Sam has amnesia, and Sam plays along in hopes of changing Jonathan's mind about Sam and his band of misfit employees.

The pacing of this book was excellent--I binge-read it in one day because I couldn't stop reading. The romance was sweet, though it sometimes took a backseat to the character growth and platonic relationships. This book loosely fits the Grumpy/Sunshine trope, though both characters have their grumpy/sad moments. I really appreciated that the romance had its dramatic moments without the miscommunication trope being used.

Three things I loved about this book:
1. The characters. Jonathan has a large family, and each character is dynamic and loveable. His family is pure chaotic nonsense, and I loved watching them fill the house with anarchy. Their silliness and their connections with each other were amusing and heartwarming.
2. The humor. Jonathan's relatives were quite funny, but so were Sam's employees. Their conversations and tangents were so realistic and nonsensical, too. I laughed-out-loud just about every time Claire, Sam's Assistant Manager, spoke.
3. Sam's past. The mystery of who he was and what happened to him before we meet him lingered throughout most of the book. I liked how that hung in the background and found the unveiling of his past to be quite satisfying. That mystery gave the romance book some depth.

I really enjoyed that this book was more than a quick romance. In fact, I feel it leans more relationship fiction and the romance is bit more background. I loved the character growth and the depth of the book. I laughed, I cried, and I highly recommend 10 Things that Never Happened by Alexis Hall.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca and NetGalley providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this book. Alexis Hall always draws me back in with the novels he writes. I especially adore this series/world of the Boyfriend Material series. It was nice to explore a different relationship with these two main characters. I fake amnesia plot also was really great and made for fun banter. I will definitely be picking up a copy of this book,

I enjoyed this newest work by Alexis Hall quite a bit. I had read "Glitterland" earlier this year and loved it so I was curious to see what Hall could do with a comedy. As it turns out, quite a lot.

I liked both of the main characters, Sam Becker and Jonathan Forest, even though they started off somewhat as caricatures with the situations they found themselves in, Forest the prickly boss and Becker the young slacker. But Hall did a brilliant job of deconstructing the characters and finding their humanity in the middle of some bizarre situations. Pieces of the characters' past are revealed gradually, explaining why they act the way they do, even as the two men find themselves changing each other for the better. So by the end of the book I found myself rooting for both characters to get together.

And the comedy bits were gold, particularly in the first third of the book with the setup of Sam's "amnesia" and the motley crew of the Sheffield store that Sam manages. It's a rom com with heart, including the supporting character of Gollum, Sam's cat, and Jonathan's family, who welcome Sam into their madcap world. My only quibble with the book was that the family bits dragged on a bit too long, and could have been shortened a bit.

Still, all in all, one of my favorite comedies in quite some time. This is only my second Alexis Hall book but I'm definitely looking forward to now reading some others.

Very enjoyable read, reading this will remind you why you've liked Alexis Hall's books from the start.

This is the story of Sam, a manager of a bath and bedding shop, and his cat Gollum. Sam is doing everything he can to get the owner of his shop to not fire him and/or his staff. This may or may not include faking amnesia so that Jonathan reevaluates his decisions.

Another amnesia plot? Don't worry, that's barely a part of the actual story, and it will be unlike any other amnesia story you've read.

There were times in this book, as Sam and Jonathan fell for each other, that lines were spoken and I actually gasped for the characters.

Definitely a fun read, you won't regret picking it up.

I generally LOVE this authors' stories. While I enjoyed most of it (especially the Scouse because I had a friend in Liverpool and could picture him talking), I didn't see the chemistry between these two at all. The forced proximity might have helped but somehow I just couldn't see Sam falling for Jonathan as hard as he did. It truly felt forced. I absolutely ADORED Jonathan's family because I could actually picture the chaos when they were around. I spent a good amount of time looking things up because of course the vernacular wasn't familiar to me so that slowed the flow as well. 3.5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for allowing me to read this book for an honest review.

This is your typical “enemies to lovers” story, but it’s a popular trope for a reason. Throw in a boss-employee dynamic and a ridiculous amnesia story taking place during the Christmas season, and you’ve got the lay of the land of this book. Though this doesn’t sound like a ringing endorsement, I actually really liked this book. Hall has a way of never over-explaining things but giving you just what you need to fully realize the characters and their personalities. It is a truly enjoyable read that I flew through quickly.

My only gripe is the title. I feel like it’s playing off of “10 Things I Hate About You,” but in that movie there is a direct reference to the title. This book doesn’t point out 10 of anything, let a lone 10 things that never happened. Unless I’ve missed the subtle mention of said 10 things, I really don’t get the book title.

Title aside, I highly recommend this book. Especially if you enjoy British M4M romances set during the holidays with a touch of fake-amnesia (too specific?)!

Sam & Jonathan

I'm rounding this up from 3.5. It was very witty and I liked the banter between Sam and Jonathan but there was something missing from the story that kept me from enjoying it completely.

I really enjoyed this one. I enjoy the way this author writes, packed with plenty of wit and sarcasm. This one didn’t feel as emotional as book one for me but I did binge it in one late night session because I so wanted their HEA.

I was so very happy to get more time with Luc and Oliver but the ending just wasn’t my favourite.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5
Spice: Fade to Black


What to Expect:
Slow Burn✔️
Rom/Com FEELS✔️
Grumpy/Sunshine✔️
Workplace Romance✔️


Disclaimer: this reader is a ✨mood reader✨
& I feel like I should & I NEED to disclose this because sometimes it may really just be the mood I'm in, that affects how much I like a book. .
Also.. I’m very much a PROUD smut reader. BUT I have fell HEAD OVER HEELS in love & literally have OBSESSED over books with 'fade to black' or off page sex. This is to say.. that the 'spice' content had no influence over my rating towards this book.

Now.. let's move on to things I ABSOLUTELY LOVED:
- The Sheffield branch (these side characters had me CACKLING! had me wanting to BE in that store with them and see what CHAOS and MAYHEM they would be up to. & if Brian would spill or break anything)
- Jonathan Forest being such an arsehole! gahhh I love my grumpy MEN! & that streak of gray hair that flops over his forehead?! gahhhh 🥵 JUST LOVE HIM!
- Jonathan's family. Were they too much? NOOOOO they were literally ENOUGH. and BJ?! I swear I feel like she would be my bestie lol.

IMO, this book is LOW angst & I'm all for it a LOW angst/ HIGH romance situation.
Unfortunately, that's not how I felt. I couldn't FEEL any type of connection or sense any type of ROMANTIC chemistry between Jonathan & Sam. & that's my reasoning for a 3/5 rating. Because although I laughed, had a good time, it IS a romance book & I didn't feel it for these two.

Sam Becker’s job managing a bed and bath store isn’t exactly glamorous but he likes it well enough and is willing to go to great lengths to save his branch and the rag-tag group of misfits he manages. This is why he finds himself kind of faking amnesia after a minor accident leaves him concussed. His boss, Jonathan Forest, may be an epic grump but when he reluctantly agrees to watch over Sam after his accident, Sam sees this as an opportunity to endear himself to Jonathan in hopes that once he’s miraculously healed Jonathan won’t sack him and his entire staff. What Sam didn’t bank on, however, was discovering that Jonathan actually possessed a softer side, a side that was truly likable. After a few weeks with Jonathan, Sam’s job isn’t the only thing he has to worry about losing when the truth about his amnesia comes out.

This book is a classic Alexis Hall rom-com. It’s a little light on the rom but very heavy on the com and I really enjoyed it. This book is funny, like really funny. I think it might be the funniest of the Alexis Hall books I’ve read. I loved the banter between Sam and Jonathan, particularly because Jonathan was such a grump and Sam loved pushing his buttons. There was also a slew of wacky secondary characters to infuse even more humor into this book. Let’s not forget Gollum, Sam’s cat, who was a fully-rounded character all on his own.

This book also had a lot of heart. A lot of this book was focused on Jonathan’s family. He had a large, quirky family, but their relationship was complicated. Sam was a big part of helping them repair that relationship though and it was really lovely. Especially when you finally understand Sam’s motivations in that regard. As I said, this book was a little light on the romance. There certainly is one and I’m a total Jam shipper, but I would say it was secondary to all the other stuff going on. It was incredibly sweet, though. There’s something really great about seeing the softer side of a character who is typically a bit of a jerk. Jonathan was a complex character but ultimately he had a good heart and I swooned the more and more he let Sam in. Even if I was simultaneously holding my breath waiting for the truth about Sam’s amnesia to come out – I didn’t want to see either character get hurt! But the book had a really lovely ending, including a bit that caught me off guard and left me with tears in my eyes as I finished.

Kept me laughing! I loved watching the MMCs grow and fall together. Perfect light read if you’re looking for accidental MM love.

I wanted to love this one so badly. For me- neither MMC was likeable or endearing, and there wasn’t enough of a redemption arc to make me change my mind. The “villain” was so irritating and crotchety that he needed an entire personality overhaul to make me like him. And it didn’t happen. He was an ass to everyone, including his family. The “hero” also was not all that.

The premise of the story - enemies to lovers/boss/
-employee/forced prox/fake amnesia- was great. I think since I had such a hard time connecting with the characters the plot was a little bit lost on me.

And this is totally on me but I was expecting a bit more romance. Not spice necessarily - but 75% of the book felt more like moderately comedic fiction.

I switched between eyeball reading and listening. I found the narration difficult because of the heavy accent, so I needed to listen at a slower speed than I normally do to make sure I understood and didn’t miss anything (1.4 instead of 1.75-1.8).

All of this being said - I think a lot of readers would enjoy this story. If you can get over detestable and slightly dull characters and enjoy a plot-driven story, give it a shot.

I will read more books by this author- because I am POSITIVE my thoughts on this book were based on just not liking the characters.

Thank you to netgalley and LibroFM for the advanced copies. All opinions are my own.

love love LOVE this book. So fun and touching. Made me laugh and cry. Perfect cozy holiday romance. Another great book from an A++++ author.

This book is adorable. I loved how I felt so many different emotions for both Sam and Johnathan throughout the book. Their banter is very witty and I thought it was beautifully written. The employee’s at Sam’s store were hilarious and I found myself laughing throughout the book.

If you are a fan of the grumpy meets sunshine trope I would recommend this one for sure. This was my first Alexis Hall book, and I am excited to read more.

Thank you to @netgalley and @sourcebookscasa for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Alexis Hall is an auto-buy/ Auto-request author for me since he wrote one of my favourite books “Glitterland”.

Admittedly, not all his works have replicated the brilliance of that aforementioned book but they have, at their core, had great writing and interesting characters.

This book had much of the same. It had great writing, characters that had me invested, a plot that had me locked in and witty ridiculousness which I loved. One thing however that could have been better was the romance aspect.

Don’t get me wrong, as a comedic novel, it was a solid piece of work but as a romance, there was still some work left to be done. Jonathan and Sam had the makings of a great couple but unfortunately, what was shown on page was not enough (in my opinion). It barely scratched the surface of the sheer potential they carried. Had the romance been fully explored, this would’ve been a straight 5-Star read.

After all I’ve said above, will I recommend this? Yes, I will for the reading experience.

I would also recommend it if you are in the mood for a solidly written novel full of wit, banter and memorable fleshed-out characters that get stuck in your brain(in the best of ways lol).

This story has Hall's signature wit and humor with several romance tropes that evoke drama and eventually, epiphanies.

This story started strong and the humor and interactions were on point. I am not a huge fan of amnesia plots, but this worked for a while. Unfortunately, the romantic elements of the story felt diluted by the cast of characters that made up Jonathan's family and all of the chaos and drama they brought to the table. I found myself wanting to skip those parts and just see Sam and Jonathan's interactions.

When I did see Jonathan and Sam together there were some nice moments where Jonathan's grumpy demeanor relays a more tender and caring individual. I had a harder time getting a read on Sam. The book is entirely in Sam's viewpoint, yet I felt that I didn't really know him, even when he reveals more about himself at the end; it just felt a little too late in the story to make any impact.

Overall, this story seemed to lack the character growth I am used to seeing in Hall's work and the lack of growth or change left me feeling a bit fatigued with the story by the conclusion. Yet, the few moments that revealed the tenderness between the main protagonists were the highlight of the story and kept me holding out hope until the end.

Thank you Sourcebooks Casablanca via NetGalley for allowing me to respond to this book with my honest opinions.

2.5✨'s

10 Things That Never Happened is a hilariously amusing romance between Jonathan Forest, the head of a bed and bathroom store and his employee, Samwise Becker, who happens to be faking some memory loss issues. From the first sentence, this book reeled me in and took me on a whirlwind adventure full of showroom mishaps, a grumpy cat, an even grumpier love interest, all with some joyous Christmassy goodness to round it all off.

This book isn't a traditional holiday romance, but it's not not a holiday romance either. We've got Christmas parties, tree decorating and chaotic family gatherings that really give you a feel for the holidays. But you also have all sorts of fake-amnesia induced shenanigans, meddling family members and some really in-depth conversations about bed and bathroom fixtures that have me questioning my own choices in that area. But all of it made me laugh-out-loud multiple times and the underlying emotions even made me shed a few tears at the end.

The romance itself kind of snuck up on me. Though the book is about Sam and Jonathan, their relationship was built on so subtly that by the time they actually got to the kissing and the loving, it just felt inevitable that they'd end up there. But there were so many moments on the road to that end that I really adored. From Jonathan's relationship with Sam's cat, the shopping for Christmas decor, the multiple times they cooked each other a chicken (even if it went horribly wrong), and all the other small moments that brought them together were so wonderful and I adored them all so much.

Alexis Hall also has a knack for writing the most unique characters in the simplest of settings. Add in the ability to make readers care for even the smallest of characters with a single interaction and I found myself rooting for every one of them, even if their goals were completely contradictory. All of Sam's employees and Jonathan's family members really helped to bring this book to life and I just wanted them to get along and be happy, just like Sam and Jonathan at the end of this book.

This forced proximity, grumpy/sunshine, fake amnesia romance did not go the way I expected it to, but I enjoyed every second of it. I'll admit it was the slight connection to London Calling that drew me in at first, but this book stands out on its own as a charming holiday romance and I can't wait to see what else this series has in store for us!

GREAT SIDE CHARACTERS BUT A FLAT ROMANCE

Alexis Hall has been a real hit or miss reading experience for me. This one fall somewhere in between. The plot was fun, but the romance was not to my liking.

👍 What I Liked 👍

Plot: Though the whole amnesia thing has been done before, I still felt like the plot was fresh and fun. Super quirky and interesting. It worked for me.

Side characters: So many adorable side characters to fall in love with, I especially liked Claire, Gollum and Des. They were each very much their own characters and completely stole every scene they were in. They created a lot of humor and levity.

👎 What I Disliked 👎

Romance: Honestly, I just didn't feel the chemistry between Jonathan and Sam. There weren't enough romantic get-to-know-you encounters between them for me to actually feel like they were developing true feeling for one another. And too often they were both being sort of jerks, which made it even harder to believe that they were fall for each other.

Side characters: Yes, I absolutely loved the side characters. Often they were my favourite part of this book. But there were just too many of them. About half of them did not need to be there. They didn't contribute to the story or the characters' arcs. It made it a bit confusing at times, trying to keep everyone straight. A bit of editing here would have done wonders.