Sam may or may not actually enjoy his job as a bed and bath retail manager.. He does care about the people that he works with and worries about what would happen if his uptight boss Jonathan makes the cuts to the workforce that he has been threatening. Jonathan orders Sam to the London office. During a sales mishap Sam trips and hits his head. While in the hospital a panicked Sam accidentally implies that he has amnesia and attempting to avoid potential fallout Jonathan agrees to let Sam stay with him. This situation grows even more complicated as the holidays are right around the corner and Jonathan's family is determined to spend time with him. Sam begins to act as a bridge while also trying to convince Jonathan not to fire people from his staff.

The premise of this book is a little silly but I had an absolute blast reading it! Alex Hall is so great at developing characters that I always fall in love with. Sam is a delightful screwup that has the best heart. Jonathan doesn't trust easily but is yearning to find places.to let people in. All of the side characters are incredible. I really loved Jonathan's family.

Will Watt's narration of the audiobook was stellar. Thank so much to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the ALC.

I received an eARC of this book for review from Dreamscape Media via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.
• The Brief: Samwise, a loyal manager but not necessarily a great leader, goes to extreme lengths to keep his staff on the payroll. This primarily consists of accidently faking amnesia and grudgingly moving in with the owner of the chain of stores he runs. It’s all fine… until Sam starts falling for his distant boss.
• Anyone who enjoyed the good-natured, fast-paced, rumpus romance in Boyfriend Material is bound to enjoy the tone of 10 Things That Never Happened. Good thing too, it isn’t a direct sequel, so you don’t have to read the London Calling series first.
10 Things That Never Happened is a joy to read.

This is a single POV romance featuring forced proximity, caring for injured protagonist, and fake amnesia. I’m don’t particularly like romances featuring lying between the couple or single POV. Still, Hall was able to write a story I loved enough to overlook those preferences. The laugh-out-loud humor provided wonderful reading experience. Almost as important, the narrator, Will Watt, did an impeccable job giving voice to Sam and the entire cast of characters. If you are on the fence, give this one a try! I don’t think you’ll regret it.

This was such a refreshing sweet read. I really enjoyed the amnesia twist on it and made me think how is Sam going to get out of this. I had done 9 years in retail so that aspect on the story really hit home and could think of people I knew who fit those roles that were in here.

Jonathon is such a major grump and I at first was not sure if I would ever like him but duh it’s an Alexis Hall character so of course I would.

I want Jonathon’s family to be my own, so funny and endearing.
I did get to review the audiobook and the narraration by Will Wyatt was fantastic and just loved Sam’s accent. Really got me absorbed into the story.
Thank you to Net Galley, Alexis Hall and Dreamscape Media for this Audio Arc in exchange for my honest review..

I genuinely wanted to love this book as it had potential to be everything that I was looking for, however, it just fell short for me. Sam and Jonathan's entire relationship is built on lies upon lies when there were multiple opportunities for Sam to come clean. I just wanted to shake him sometimes because he was being so silly in not telling Jonathan the truth.

I think the reason that I couldn't really love it was because it was only a single person POV. I was dying for Jonathan's POV and think it would have elevated the story that much more.

While I didn't love this book, I would definitely still read more of the authors work in the future.

The narrator of this book did a great job with the different voices for each character. I didn't find it hard to follow along at all.

Thank you to NetGalley for an opportunity to read in exchange for an honest review.

10 Things That Never Happened is classic Alexis Hall - it's genuinely funny, clever, a bit zaney, and had me rooting for the characters the whole time! It's entertaining and once I started, I didn't want to put it down. You absolutely need to suspend your disbelief for this one but it is well worth it for a genuinely funny story! It's very evocative of the first book I read of Hall's years ago, Boyfriend Material.

Read this for:
- Grumpy/Snarky
- Fake Amnesia
- M/M Romance
- Workplace Romance
- Single POV
- Holiday Romance that isn't Hallmark-y
- Quirky Supporting Characters

Jonathan is the grumpiest grump to ever grump but seeing his softer moments - with Sam's cat in particular but also with Sam himself - was so cute to see! The scene of Sam and Jonathan in the store shopping for holiday decorations was so stinking funny and had me actually kicking my feet.

The narration by Will Watt was FANTASTIC! I do not have a lot of experience with the Liverpool accent and he absolutely knocked it out of the park and brought so much life and hilarity to the story. I had both the eARC and the ALC but I found myself continually wanting to listen to the ALC.

Thank you to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 10 Things That Never Happened publishes October 17th and was a 4.5 star read for me! Highly recommend checking it out.

4.5/5*s

Super charming, Very trope-y. Surprisingly Christmasy- kinda surprised that isn't clearer on the cover. Sam was super loveable, which made it easy to forgive him for getting caught up in his amnesia story. Jonathan was a dick with Hidden Depths, and I maybe would have liked if there was more character development there.

A good pick if you like: found family, sunshine/grump, and regional accents. Great for a nice cozy read.

The audiobook (read by Will Watt) was excellent. Love the variety of accents and voices he did, including a goofy but not over the top kitty cat voice. Highly recommend.

Very grateful to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for early access.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the gifted eARC in exchange for my honest review.

While the banter was good and the premise of the story was intriguing, ultimately this book fell a little flat for me. For a novel that's being marketed as a romance...it really didn't feel like a romance. The sexual chemistry was non-existent, and our first bit of intimate interaction is a random kiss about halfway through the book. And it was so quick that if you weren't paying the utmost attention, you'd miss it.

I also wasn't crazy about the narrator and found myself tuning out quite a few times, which is also probably because the story wasn't engaging enough to keep me fully invested.

This is the first title I've read by this author and I've heard great things about their backlog of titles, so maybe this book was just a fluke. Ultimately, it was just fine to me. Not a story I'd go back and revisit, but not the worst book I've read, either.

A workplace enemies to lovers rom-com, with realistic opposites that actually made me chuckle? This was mint, particularly great in audiobook format. I loved their slow burn. They had sufficient time stuck together to learn what each of them was really about and when they got there the chemistry was real

Sublime audiobook! Will Watt does a fantastic job narrating - creates very distinctive voices for Sam and Jonathan and the cast of secondary characters, even giving the cat Gollum an excellent inner cat voice. An excellent audiobook that enhanced everything that I loved about the book - funny scenes are funnier, the beautiful emotional scenes felt so effective - and I wanted to listen to it again immediately. SO GOOD!

I may be a bit obsessed with the way he says "fella" in Sam's Scouse accent.

Print ARC review:

Absolutely delightful holiday themed romcom! In 10 Things, Alexis Hall has created a wonderful enemies-to-lovers, fake amnesia, grumpy/sunshine Christmassy romance featuring an uber grump Jonathan Forest and outwardly sunshine Sam Becker. Sam works for Jonathan in the Sheffield branch of Splashes & Snuggles (a bath and bedroom superstore). With his underperforming branch under threat, Sam travels to London for a very awkward meeting with Jonathan. An accident, concussion, and a false but helpful assumption of amnesia might be the rescue plan Sam needs. Forced to spend time together, Sam uncovers a sliver of a soft side in Jonathan and begins to develop real feelings for him. Hall always writes well crafted secondary characters and in 10 Things we have Jonathan’s loud, hilarious, overbearing family; and Sam’s messy, endearing, and loyal work colleagues. I absolutely love a grump and Jonathan is honestly terrible. He’s extremely prickly, high-handed, controlling, and workaholic. And described as wolfish. A LOT. And Sam’s outwardly positive and easygoing personality protects his own private sadness that is is revealed very slowly and sensitively.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an ARC, all views are my own.

I already had read an ARC of the ebook and can say I absolutely loved the audiobook too. I adored this book, the MC Sam Becker and surly love interest Jonathan Forest. The narrator was amazing and brought the characters to life. It was filled with humor and I was laughing out loud in public when listening this. If you like the London Calling series, you will love this. All the characters were exceptional with Hall really making the side characters essential to the plot, humor and just overall story. And one cannot forget the cat, Gollum.

This is definitely grumpy sunshine, but you do discover throughout the story that there are things in Sam Becker‘s past that definitely are not happy. There is underlying sadness that you are slowly seeing and as you unravel it, it leaves you feeling all the emotions. 5 star read for me, it hit all the boxes of a well rounded romance. I know this audiobook will be one of my comfort reread listens.

So I enjoyed my time with this story, except for a certain portion that is somewhat specific to me, and I'll go into that. This definitely has Hall's trademark wit, humor, banter, wacky situations, and heartfelt moments. Watching Jonathan and Sam grow closer and have character growth and have some really really amazingly sweet moments was amazing. I loved Jonathan's family too. I laughed out loud a lot and there were lines that just made me gasp from how perfectly sweet they were.
My issue is that I apparently have no ability to suspend my disbelief when working in retail comes into play. There is zero chance that Jonathan actually would have ever hired Sam, much less let his branch underperform for 2 years in the way that it was. Plus, I'm sorry, Brian would not have made it long. Brian was like the combination of hapless and clueless that Hugh Grant's roommate and shop assistant were in Notting Hill. Like combine those characters and you have Brian. I think though if you've never worked retail, none of this would bother you and you'd probably brush over this part and enjoy the book easily.
So, come for the humor and sweet romance, and you will definitely enjoy yourselves1
Also, the narrator was fantastic for the audiobook. I really loved him!

This ends up at just under 4 stars for me, so I'm rounding up.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a requested copy to review. All opinions are my own.

Audio ARC received from NetGalley, thanks!

Rating upgraded to 5 stars

Oh, good lord, this audiobook is so good. Will Watt does such an amazing job, I will be on the lookout for his name on other audiobooks. The emotion comes through in his voice so well, and that’s what caused me to increase my rating. It made the funny bits funnier, it made the sad bits sadder, it just added a whole nother layer to the characters and to the story.

I can’t wait for this book to be out in the world in just one more month!!!

_____
Received from Edelweiss, thanks!

STRONG 4.5 stars

*VERY MILD SPOILERS AHEAD!*

I really enjoyed this book! I have been so excited for it, and it did not disappoint. After very briefly meeting Jonathan in Husband Material and then the little snippets AJH has shared with us, I couldn’t wait to really meet the characters and see what he did with them.

I swear, Jonathan might be the grumpiest grump I’ve ever read. He really is quite terrible. And, in true AJH fashion, Jonathan was still a grumpy grump at the end, though maybe with his edges worn slightly down. I think that’s one of the things I love so much about AJH’s books: he writes very flawed characters who still have those flaws at the end of the book, but they’ve found a someone who can compliment them and who accepts them and loves them, and it is just the best.

So, at the start of the book we have Sam, who is running a branch of Jonathan’s successful bed and bath superstores. Sam is pretty laid back, Jonathan absolutely is not, and these incompatible management styles leads to Jonathan threatening to fire Sam and Sam faking amnesia to avoid being fired (and hopefully keep the rest of his staff from also being fired). Forced proximity and everything that goes with that ensues.

There is a lot of semi-heavy family stuff in this book, for both characters. Throughout the book it’s quite clear how family has impacted on the decisions made by both Jonathan and Sam.

Overall, this is a book about how two very lonely people find each other due to a set of rather absurd circumstances. It’s also technically a holiday book, but it didn’t really feel like a holiday book. I think the reason it didn’t feel like a holiday book is because, yes, it’s taking place over Christmas, and that does play a role, but it doesn’t feel as prominent as most holiday books that I’ve read? I don’t know if that makes sense? 😅

Also, also, Gollum and Jonathan are basically the best, I love everything about that, it is fucking adorable.

I was truly surprised with how much I loved this book. I have loved pretty much every single thing I’ve read by Alexis Hall, but the “deception/hidden identity” trope (or in this case, faked amnesia trope) typically ruins books for me! It’s hard for me to invest in the relationship characters are developing when it’s built on lies - but in this case the lie really just serves to push them into forced proximity.

I loved that neither character was particularly likeable for a good portion of the book. It made me all the more invested in their growth/development stories. And they both truly do grow, as individuals and in their friendship and eventual relationship. This book is set in the Boyfriend Material universe but is the start of a new unrelated series. I’m very excited for the next books!

Alexis Hall's Boyfriend Material is one of my all time favorite books, so when his newest, 10 Things That Never Happened, became available on Netgalley, I hit "Request" so fast.

Sam is the manager of one of three branches of a bed-and-bath retailer. His co-workers are a bunch of misfits, and to be honest, his store is a bit of a disaster. Jonathan is the owner and Sam's boss, and he realizes that hiring Sam, who is too sentimental for his own good, was probably a mistake. He asks Sam to come down to London for a chat, intending to fire him, but Sam trips and hits his head, and then accidentally implies he can't remember anything. When Jonathan assumes Sam has amnesia, Sam just...doesn't correct him. Since Sam requires supervision, Jonathan takes him home with him, and the plot just gets more ridiculous from there.

Unfortunately, for me, this book just didn't have the same joie de vivre as Boyfriend Material. The amnesia plot was farcical. Sam struggles to keep up the ruse while simultaneously planning both the company holiday party and Jonathan's family celebration. Like all of Hall's books, the absurd is front and center, and the supporting cast steals the show. My favorite part of the entire story was his grumpy cat who falls in love with grumpy Jonathan.

When Sam and Jonathan kind of fall into a romantic relationship, Sam knows he needs to fess up, but the timing is just never right., and then loose lips sink their ship. Of COURSE Jonathan reacts badly when Sam finally confesses he was faking it the entire time. Although--to be honest--the third act breakup was a lot shorter and less dramatic than I expected it to be.

The narrator Will Watt delivered a wonderful performance--switching between Jonathan's posh accent and Sam's scouse (Liverpool) accent. This distinction really helped clarify the distinction between the two main characters.

If you're a fan of While You Were Sleeping (the old Sandra Bullock movie) and Hall's other books, you'll probably really enjoy 10 Things That Never Happened.

✨ Review ✨ 10 Things That Never Happened by Alexis Hall; Narrated by Will Watt

This is book 1 in the Material World series -- and while the cover looks just like the Boyfriend Material Series, it's only peripherally connected (apparently one of the MC's appears briefly in the prior series).

Sam works as the manager of a bed and bath super store, and we quickly find out how much he loves his seemingly mediocre employees. When he's called to the main store in reprimand by his boss Jonathan, things go off the rails quickly when Jonathan fires him, Sam trips, gets a concussion, and sort of accidentally feigns amnesia. Jonathan brings him home to watch over him to ensure he doesn't get sued, and the two cohabitate while Jonathan ensures Sam doesn't die and Sam tries to work out a way to save the jobs of him and his staff.

This is the ultimate slow burn grumpy/sunshine and I loved it for all that. And when I say slow burn, I mean SLOWWW BURN. Lying/miscommunication are not my jam and so that soured this a little, as well as that sometimes Jonathan erred toward just straight up MEANness which went beyond typical grump vibes. Overall, however, I really enjoyed the coziness of this. It just was really satisfying and enjoyable.

I also loved the role that Sam's store family and Jonathan's actual family played in this, and I was seriously giggling at points. The Christmas Tree! The tilted bed! Clumsy Brian! So many funny funny things. The POV of Sam was really delightful, and I'd read a whole book just about Sam, Jonathan, and Jonathan's family cooped up together I think!

The audio was delightful - I loved the narrator, and would listen to more books he narrates!

It might not be my favorite of Hall's books, but it was solidly enjoyable and full of holiday spirit! A perfect read for the December cozies!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: contemporary m/m romance
Setting: London / Sheffield
Reminds me of: Boyfriend Material
Pub Date: 17 Oct 2023

Read this if you like:
⭕️ holiday romances that don't overdo the holiday part
⭕️ sunshine/grumpiness
⭕️ over-the-top families

Thanks to Sourcebooks Casablanca, Dreamscape Media, and #netgalley for an advanced e-copy of this book!

Boyfriend Material & Husband Material are a couple of my all time favorite rom-coms. They made me instant fans of Alexis Hall, and seeing that there would be a companion story, even one completely separate from Luc and Oliver, made me ridiculously happy.

Lucky for me, what I really adored about the initial two stories was the contemporary UK setting, the dry British humor, and the ensemble friend group. All of that was well done in this book too. Of course, I could never replace Boyfriend Material in my heart. Still, it was so lovely to have all of that again in a brand new story.

This is a workplace romance with some forced proximity and fake amnesia. In my opinion amnesia is a trope I’m ready to see make a comeback. Sam and Jonathan are very different characters from Oliver and Luc, but the tension in the ‘not-quite-enemies-but-definitely-not-friends to lovers’ setup had just as much tension to it. Few books really capture to movie-esque slice of life comedy style of British romcoms. This definitely does though. I for one am definitely not disappointed in this story, as a companion or as a complete standalone. I’ll be rereading this one with out a doubt, and I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if this grows on me even more on the reread!

Audio 5/5 - I had a wonderful time listening to this. Outside of being well paced as an audiobook, the actor does an excellent job voicing the narrative, creating character voices, and managing all the accents. Very well done!