Matt, Dee, and Misa were their own support system in the psych ward where all three were receiving treatment for bipolar disorder. They each provided the others with something that helped outside of their meds, but after Dee was discharged things changed. Now, a year later Dee is flying to Turks and Caicos with her sister Tilley for Matt and Misa’s week long wedding extravaganza. In addition to battling feelings of not being good enough and deep depression, Dee also has to deal with her feelings of love for Matt and her annoyance that Misa is hiding where they met. With the help of Tilley Dee somehow manages to keep things together just enough to get through the week.
I picked this up because the synopsis says it’s hilarious, but I didn’t find anything about this to be funny. Maybe it’s because I don’t have bipolar and felt like I couldn’t relate to any of the characters, but I was bored throughout the entirety of this. I’m giving it 3 stars because I think someone who can relate to the characters would really like this.
I love seeing mental health issues brought up in books because the only way to destigmatize mental health is to keep talking about it. While I didn’t relate, I actually love that all three of the main characters are bipolar and it affects all of them differently. I think Leanne Toshiko Simpson is doing the literary world a real service by bringing bipolar disorder front and center and while I wasn’t a fan of this book, I look forward to seeing what else she writes in the future. Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for an advanced copy of this. Never Been Better hits the shelves on March 5th.

Never Been Better by Leanne Toshiko Simpson
Narrator: Kym Miller
Rating: 4 stars
Pub date: 3/5

Thank you so much to PRH Audio for my complimentary audiobook, and Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for my advanced copy.

Dee, Misa, and Matt met in a psych ward and have been friends ever since. A year after getting out, Matt and Misa are getting married while keeping how they met a secret, and Dee is in love with Matt and has plans to sabotage the wedding. Dee and her sister, Tilly, make the trip to Turks and Caicos for the destination nuptials, but nothing goes according to plan.

This was not what I was expecting when I picked this up, but in a good way! The story is lighthearted while also shining a light on the struggles of people with mental illness. It’s perfectly messy, while also being hilarious, heartwarming and sometimes sad. It’s also a story about friendship, love, and family, that I really enjoyed.

The audiobook narration was done by Kym Miller, who brought all of the characters to life perfectly, and really enhanced my listening experience.

Read if you like:
*mental health rep
*love triangles
*tropical setting
*contemporary fiction

this book was a whole lot of nothing! i appreciated the parts when they looked back at being in the hospital together but it was so hard to get through otherwise. this could have been a novella in 50 pages or less

An offbeat comedy that follows love, friendship and mental health.

Dee is in love with Matt. Except that Matt is engaged to Misa, and the three of them are best friends who met in the psych ward. What could be complicated about that?

Dee attends Matt and Misa’s fancy destination wedding in the Turks and Caicos, along with her sister Tilley, with the intention of stopping the wedding. The story alternates back and forth between the family shenanigans at the over-the-top wedding celebration and Dee, Matt and Misa’s time in the mental hospital in Toronto.

Tilley, Dee’s loudmouthed (sorry, Tilley) and usually drunk sister and self-appointed caretaker, is such a cringey joy and is the comic relief of the story. Nothing can ever get too heavy with Tillie around.

Though the book tackles deep and difficult topics, it does so with such a soft and funny touch and with so much love. I loved this book, and as I’m writing the review I just bumped it up to 5 stars because that’s how much I loved it.
I strongly recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for an advanced copy of this book.

Dee, Misa, and Matt are best friends, bonded by their shared time at a psychiatric hospital a year ago. But lately Dee feels like she is lagging behind in her recovery. She is in unrequited love with Matt, lives rent-free with her quirky sister Tilley, and still has to actively work to keep her mental health on an even keel. But Misa and Matt have, to all appearances moved away from their psychiatric history - and they're getting married in an extended destination event that they urge Dee to attend. She takes Tilley as her guest and embarks on a week of sun, alcohol, and other people's families, imagining that she will take this opportunity to prevent Matt from making what she's convinced is the biggest mistake of their friendship.

Never Been Better is a well-written, interesting, and important book. It presents a side of mental health that is rarely seen in fiction, focusing less on the characters' interior lives than on the social and relational consequences of their illness. Dee feels like she is falling behind in life because she doesn't have a real career and hasn't dated much, Misa struggles to live up to her family's expectations, and Matt avoids vulnerability by maintaining an affable veneer - all of which are relatable and realistic conflicts for twenty-somethings, even those without mental health issues.

Two things about this book frustrated me. The first - probably not the author's fault - is that it's categorized as a romance novel on Goodreads, and it isn't. (I will here omit my rant about how books can be about women, and include romantic relationships, without being romance novels.) My second quibble is with the main character's sister, Tilley. This is a matter of taste, but I found her so obnoxious that I just didn't want to read about her. Fortunately, there are plenty of other interesting characters - Misa's sweet, wise grandmother and unflappable nonbinary cousin; Matt's warm mother and handsome, kind best friends - and even Tilley experienced some character growth by the end of the book.

The end of the book, by the way, was excellent; it was hard for me to imagine, as I was reading, what conclusion would not feel melodramatic or trite, but the author did an excellent job. All the primary characters reckoned with their roles in the dysfunctional friendship trio, and everyone came away with both less and more than they started with, and although the story started with one guy and two women who loved him - bound to end badly for somebody - it ended in a way that felt promising for everyone without betraying the story's tone and themes by providing a fairytale resolution.

4.5 stars.

I really enjoyed the discussion within this book. Three friends surviving and coping with suicidal thoughts is great to me and I'm always down for mental health talk. I just didn't feel that the writing was for me.

I'm torn in writing this review. It is a tale of what was promised versus what was delivered.

Never Been Better was described as a rom-com in a tropical paradise. While there was a definite unrequited love angle between Dee and Matt, the rom-com elements were overshadowed by the mental health focus. As a rom-com, this book did not deliver for me. However, and this is a big HOWEVER, this book was well done as an examination of mental illness and its affects on the patient and their family and friends. It is powerful and authentic with plenty of comedic moments.

I truly felt for Dee and her struggles trying to balance her illness and recovery with the desire to have a life where mental illness was not a driving force. Her relationships with Matt, Misa, and Tilley were raw and complex. The author did a fantastic job of putting us inside the mind and heart of Dee; making her a sympathetic character. Had my expectations been framed against this backdrop, my reaction to the book would be different.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, and G.P. Putnam Sons for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC of this book. All opinions in my review are my own.

I really enjoyed this one a lot and found the topic super interesting. The books follows Dee and her two friends Misa and Matt. All three of them have recently been released from an in patient psyciatric hospital due to suicide attempts and bipolar disorder. They have formed a bond with each other due to their shared traumatic experience and learning to navigate life with mental illness. When Misa and Matt get engaged, Dee feels lefts behind in her recovery. The book has so many up and downs for all of the main characters and truly was beautifully written. I don't personally struggle with mental illness but I felt like the author wrote about it in a way that was both relatable and easy to grasp. I would read other books by this author in the future. Thanks for the opportunity to review it.

Never Been Better, follows the lives of 3 friends who met in a psychiatric hospital. Misa and Matt, meet, have a whirlwind romance, get engaged and plan a wedding all in the matter of months. Dee, is invited, but terrified to go on vacation etc. Dee also harbors feelings for Matt.

The book really focuses on mental health struggles and how society views this as well. Overall, I enjoyed the book and reading about how to get "there" from different perspectives.

This was the story of Matt, Misa and Dee - who met in the psych ward and became friends. Dee thought she loved Matt, but Matt and Misa were getting married. They were all out in the real world but they were all experiencing issues. Dee's sister Tilley helped her, but Misa and Matt helped each other. Dee and Tilley went to the wedding anyway so she could put it behind her. The story went back and forth between present day and when they were in the hospital. It was a good story, but I felt bad for all they all went through.

I got this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

Never Been Better was just ok for me. Maybe I’d have enjoyed it more, if I had read it poolside.

A lot of the story was all too convenient and really just super unbelievable. All these people who are near strangers are having super-deep, emotionally driven, heart-to-hearts while on a tropical island resort?!

Dee is struggling with life out of the psychiatric ward, where she formed some super codependent friendships. Her recovery attempt is derailed when those 2 friends get engaged. Dee and her sister fly to an island resort to attend the wedding. The story is basically Dee’s journey to find herself…and there was SO much potential with the plot and location. But for me, it just fell short. I felt the whole first 75% was laying the backstory… for what? A slow burn that fizzled out.

The chapters had clever song names… but they were also long AF. There were decent spaces/stopping points throughout, though!

Like I said, a fluffy read with “feel good” summer, poolside potential.

This one for me started slow, and heavy. It was advertised as a rom com, and to be honest I was so weighed down with the mental health aspect it was hard for me to see.

What I liked: it's unique, the raw mental health and how the characters share this information with those they care about, the choices at the end that are made to a healthier path.

What I didn't like-- honestly the book was good! But I don't think it was advertised correctly.

It's funny, some people said if you have a mental struggle this is the book for you-- I disagree I think this is for those with or without mental struggles to empathize and understand, as well as to not feel alone if you are struggling. It was very well done, and the characters were a lot but likeable. If you have a loved on with bipolar I think this really has a lot of moments to learn with the characters

Thank you netgalley for the chance to read this.
This was a really touching, deep, interesting story on mental health, found family, friendships, and a love "triangle". I did really enjoy it, and thought it was super unique to set the scene in a mental hospital. It has moments that are actually laugh out loud funny (which is rare for me), great character development, and a lighthearted tone despite the very real 'heavy' bits about psychology and trauma.
The only thing I think that's really critical ahead of pub day: this is shelved as a romance and it really truly isn't. I hope they move it because I think thats super misleading.

Wonderful story, great character development, great writing! Highly recommend this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it

This book was a unique twist on contemporary romance novels. Starting from the perspective of 3 individuals who met and fell in love at a mental institution after attempting suicide, the book takes this subject, which could be quite dark, and turns it into a sometimes funny, sometimes emotional tale of a destination wedding and the personal journeys to get there.

I would read another book by this author as I found it to be entertaining which really surprised me given the foundation of the story.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book, but my opinions are my own.

This was a beautiful story about friendships and having a support system.

This story touches on mental health ALOT and I highly recommend checking the trigger warning before reading as the 3 main characters meet at a psych ward and their journeys of recovery are talked about throughout the whole book.

Parts of this book had be laughing others had me in deep thought.

overall I liked the 3 main characters ( Dee, Misha, and Matt), and while I feel they all need to work on their communication skills I think that was also the point of the story. To show people you have to communicate with others in order for them to support you and you support them in the way that you all need .

I wasn't a big fan of Tilly(Dee's sister) and found her to be a little annoying.

I think this book does a good job showing the importance of friendships, healthy support systems and boundaries.

I loved every second of this novel. Never Been Better follows a group of three friends who meet in a psychiatric hospital dealing with their mental illnesses. At some point, Dee falls in love with Matt, and Matt falls in love with Misa. Later on, Dee finds out they got engaged and her world breaks down. She remains secretly in love and starts ignoring them both, despite being close friends. When she is invited to their destination wedding, Dee runs out of excuses and finally decide to attend.

This book obviously talks a lot of mental health, the struggles and appareances they have to put up to and how it really depends on the day regarding their progress. Despite the seriousness of the topics, it was also very funny and cute. This would make an excellent beach read.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publishers for letting me be an early reader.

It took me a little bit to get into this story. The depth of the mental health issues the characters are dealing with was not what I was expecting. I'm glad I stuck with the story. The author (Leanne Toshiko Simpson) gives a great glimpse into the life of people suffering from bipolar issues. The misadventures and relationships of these friends and family are thoroughly entertaining with all their quirks. I would definitely read the next novel from this new author. Thank you Putnam Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read #NeverBeenBetter.

Never Been Better revolves around a trio of friends, Dee, Misa and Matt, who met as patients in a psychiatric hospital. When Dee is invited to the wedding of her two friends, she is thrown into turmoil—she has been in love with Matt since they were in the hospital, and besides deciding if she’s even strong enough to go to the wedding—is she strong enough to confess her feelings to Matt? There are some very tender moments in this book, along with some offbeat humor. What fascinated me the most, though, was watching as all of the complicated, messy relationships in this book unfolded. There is a lot of love between them, but there is also a lot of hurt, deception, and misunderstandings. The author does an amazing job of making this relationships feel real, as emotions surface. Dee, Matt, and Misa are written with a delicate but honest and raw touch, as they come to terms with their illness, how it affects their own lives along with everyone around them. Congratulations to the author on her debut novel, for giving a voice to those who are often lost and misunderstood.

How often have you answered "Never been better!" to a generic inquiry as to your well-being? Chances are quite a few too many times, I'm guessing, And more significantly, how often have you responded in this way when those three little words couldn't have been further from the truth?

Well, now, imagine having to live the falsity of those three little throw away words, while also dealing with the internalized and oft-times purposefully concealed yet devastating effects of mental illness? Of suicidal ideation and suicide? Of voluntary and involuntary hospitalizations?

Not only does Toshiko Simpson reveal just these things in her debut novel, but manages to do so with grace, humor, and dignity! Three things that all people could use more of in their lives, but most decidedly those folks whose mental illness steals so much of those very things from them on a daily basis.

"Never Been Better" is Leanne Toshiko Simpson's debut novel and enjoys a publish date of March 5, 2024. A romantic comedy (bet you didn't see that coming!) that also takes an unflinchingly honest approach to the decidedly important issues of identifying, managing, and living your best life alongside mental illness is a book that I didn't know I needed to read. But now that I have, I truly can say that I have never been better!