You Belong with Me is the sequel to Who's that Girl. People who have read the first book will be pleased with this story. Regrettablly I didn't know about the first book until I looked it up after struggling through the first two chapters. I love celebrity romances so I'm sure I would have loved it but do think this story will be more enjoyable to those who have read the first book.

Even without reading the first book I appreciated the story and was able to put together what had happened previously. I liked that it got into the weeds of what happens after the fairytale. Relationships take work. Relationships with a celebrity likely take even more work. The story balances the challenges of celebrity with other sensitive topics making a realistic love story. I did struggle with some of the slang and occasionally found the story slow. For me it's a high 3.5- enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for this eARC!

While Who’s That Girl? wasn’t my first Mhairi McFarlane book, it was the one that introduced me to her. By that I mean I read the summary before it was released and become obsessed, but since it wasn’t out yet, I turned to her backlist first. Anyways, Who’s That Girl? has always been one of my favorite of her works and I have been absolutely begging for a sequel since 2016 (see: my Goodreads review). When the announcement for You Belong With Me dropped, I was on my knees screaming. Unfortunately though, this ended up being a lesson in getting what you want and then realizing what you actually needed.

By no means do I mean that I didn’t like this book because I really, really did! You Belong With Me is honestly one of McFarlane’s funniest books yet; I laughed out loud at so many scenes, and her dialogue was at peak wittiness, which is saying something. Who’s That Girl? has been one of my comfort reads for so long, and I really loved returning to this cast of characters.

The issue here is that You Belong With Me easily could’ve been a novella, an underlying thought I had the entire time I was reading. Romantic sequels are always tricky and rarely well executed because you already had a happy ending; you’re not meant to turn to a new page. And yeah, the ending of the first book wasn’t really a happy ending, but it just felt so repetitive returning to the same problems and issues Edie and Elliot were having in the first book in another full-length book.

Again, I did really enjoy this book; it was just sad for me to admit, at the end, that we didn’t actually need a full-length sequel when it’s been something I’ve been begging for for almost 10 years. I do think it’ll be a book I enjoy a lot more in the second read (which is probably coming up), so who knows, we’ll see. I do think if you enjoy this author’s books in general, you’ll like this one. If you haven’t read the first book, you probably should before diving into this one though. But for readers of Who’s That Girl?, You Belong with Me will be familiar ground, albeit maybe a bit too similar.

It’s Christmas Day, and Edie has just had a knock at the door amidst a heart-wrenching breakup with superstar Elliot Owens. Picking up right where Who’s That Girl? left off, You Belong with Me tackles the struggles of dating a celebrity when you’re a “normal person” and the press simply can’t leave your relationship alone.

Admittedly, when I requested this book, I did not realize that it was a sequel. I am incapable of reading sequels as standalones, so I quickly read Who’s That Girl to prepare for this ARC (and I should add, I really enjoyed that one). While I definitely was unhappy with the cliffhanger that this book immediately picked up on, I don’t think this sequel really needed to happen? I was so content with Edie and Elliot in the last book, and it felt like they spent this entire book looking for reasons to breakup? They were constantly throwing cheap digs at one another, accused the other of being (or thinking of being) unfaithful, and had a massive fight seconds before the book ends with a big old HEA (seriously - the e-book was at 97% and things still felt nasty). Honestly, while the plot line with Edie’s coworker Declan felt massively unresolved, I was rooting for him more than either Edie or Elliot (and especially not their relationship) at the end.

In short, read Who’s That Girl and the first chapter of this one and you will be all set.

Many thanks to Mhairi McFarland, Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This wasn't one of the top books I've read this year, and it wasn't the worse. I was bored most of the time, the relationship was messy when it didn't have to be. I wanted it to be over half way.

I got an e-arc of this book on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

You Belong with Me by Mhairi McFarlane is a continuation of Edie and Elliot’s story from “Who’s That Girl” that left readers a bit heartbroken with its ending. This could be read as a stand alone but is better enjoyed in reading order.

The story starts with a fabulous Christmas surprise when famous actor, Elliot Owen returns to Edie Thompson and wants to have a proper go at a relationship. He says everything she needs to hear and they decide to be together through long distance and all the complexities that their private citizen and famous actor their relationship will bring.
The pair are forced to deal with media scrutiny, family complications, and long distance. I’ll be honest, I was stressing about how this was all going to work out. McFarlane provides her classic witty dialogue, fully fleshed out characters, charm, and side characters that keep the reader emotionally invested.
Mhairi McFarlane is an auto buy author for me and I highly recommend her work to anyone that will listen!

Thank you NetGalley and Avon for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced eARC and an honest review.

I wanted to like this book. I really did. It was just very hard to get into from the very beginning. I will say, I have not read the previous book and did not realize this was a follow-up, but I don’t think that factor led to how this read for me overall.

In general, the story was just flat. I understood the complexities of both Elliot and Edie trying to navigate their on-again relationship given his celebrity status and the distance, but I just don’t know how much he needed to convince her he was all in after EVERYTHING he was already doing. Throwing Declan’s character into the mix felt unnecessary, but I do think it made the last 20% of the book more interesting and engaging as it forced Edie and Elliott to finally talk to each other about their relationship and future.

Finally, my biggest complaint about the book is the heavy use of colloquialisms that I’m assuming makes sense for someone with connections to Nottingham or the region in which they live, but I would imagine that the audience for this book would be a bit more widespread than that and even as an American having lived in London, I had a hard time understanding what they were talking about at times and just had to either rely on context or completely skip over it.

I just have to comment on the ending (and part of the beginning). Mhairi Macfarlane has this amazing way of bringing these deep angsty feelings to the surface. I have a lot of abandonment issues (ie. daddy issues) and it felt like she was reading into my soul. It became overwhelming because I was in a long distance relationship for 5 years and so many of my insecurities were paralleled. It's amazing how much this trauma can transfer onto your relationships. But I leave this review with this quote that deserves the five stars alone:

"Dont let it, whatever it is, trigger the ongoing fear that somehow, someone you love that much will leave."

You Belong with Me by Mhairi McFarlane is a humorous, and entertaining story. I had not read the book that precedes this but I was not at a disadvantage as a great job was done of explaining the past events. This book describes the shaky courtship of two people madly in love, juggling problems that threaten their future together. There are many wonderful conversations that illustrate the give and take two people together must make in a relationship, and McFarlane does a lovely job of allowing both Edie and Elliot the grace to value themselves while also support each other. I was convinced that the characters truly belong together and that the romance is part of the work required to maintain a life-long love.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
#NetGalley #Avon

Despite being the second in a series, I read this book as a standalone. While it was fairly simple to jump in and understand what was going on, I do think reading the first book would have made it much easier to follow and keep up with the first few chapters.

I found this book fairly slow and struggled to stay engaged. The characters basically always are miscommunication and misunderstanding each other, and while they both seem committed to their love, it’s unclear why.

I do appreciate there not being a third act breakup, but they also never resolved their main conflict of what being together looks like? It’s hard to view the HEA as realistic.

Thank you for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

McFarlane always tears out my heart in ways I don't expect, so I was curious if this would be the same. I don't always love celebrity books but I LOVED this one, it felt so realisitic and gritty and real. I was so connected with the FMC that I found myself reading slowly just because I was nodding along and cheering her on. Elliot, is a dream. I was also SO pleased to see Richard, Hannah, Nick, and Fraser drop in again. McFarlane really has me rooting for all these side characters like they are mains!

I am a Mhairi fan through and through and I'm grateful every day Emily Henry rec'd her on her stories so I could find her.

The sequel I didn't know was coming or that I needed! After Who's That Girl, we hope that the knock on the door at Christmas leads to Edie's and Elliot's HEA. But we don't know know for sure But Mhairi McFarlane never disappoints, and this sequel gives the main characters a much fought-for and enduring HEA that we know is true.

Sometimes, I wanted to shake Edie in the book and wondered why she seemed to intent on self-sabotaging but I know the inside of all our brains is a funny place where logic doesn't always rule. Elliot is almost too good to be true but that's why we read these books :) Seeing them go through the up and downs, and finally coming into a relationship that can work for both of them is so satisfying.

Also really enjoyed Edie's improving relationship with Meg and her father as well as how Fraser got his happy ending and proved to be the loyal brother he always was to Elliot.

Mhairi's books are always witty, sharp and smart with great characters, and this one proves to be no different. Thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

You Belong with Me was a cute and fun sequel to Who’s That Girl. One of the worst parts of finishing a great book is that you don’t get to see very much of the couples happily together, I liked that Mhairi McFarlane gave us the ups and downs of what it takes to actually make a relationship work especially when it’s long distance and then the added flair of Elliot being famous. It was fun watching the journey of them trying to figure out how to make everything work while attempting to keep open communication flowing as well.

Declan was fine as a character but I also feel as though he could have had his part in their story tied up a little neater. And if I’m being honest, I never favor a love triangle because we all know she was supposed to get her HEA with Elliot.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and had a fun time reading it. Thank you NetGalley and Avon or Harper Voyager for a copy of the ARC.

Oh, I just LOVE Mhairi's books!

Her writing is truly one of a kind. It's wildly funny, smart, and touches on emotions in such a relevant, human, and meaningfully tender way.

Admittedly, I did not realize before I started this book that it was a follow-up to one of Mhairi's previous books, WHO'S THAT GIRL, and found out when the book starts soon after the HEA of that story. But while I do wish I had had the relevant backstory of the first, my need for a character-catch-up honestly didn't hinder me too much from enjoying this book thoroughly.

And while I'll be the first to say that I generally throw proverbial tomatoes at even the *idea* of sequels, I don't think this follow-up was entirely unwarranted. I think it can be immensely valuable in cases to explore after-the-HEA, and it means a lot to me as a reader to get to see how characters handle challenges together, overcome new obstacles, and cement the firmness of their relationship. I do believe that this--let's say, additional angst--serves the story of these characters well while still allowing us to connect to a world and characters that we (errr, those who read the first in this series) loved the first time around. When done well, it can be a satisfying experience for the reader, and in this case, I think it very much was.

Because it's a "what happens after HEA" story, we get a different story structure, which I enjoyed. Starting with a grand gesture? FUN. We also get more development on these characters, and we get to see them in new situations where they're tested. They fail a lot, but in ways that help them become stronger. That growth felt realistic and relatable.

While some readers might get annoyed with the back-and-forth of the trust issues, I found it refreshingly honest and very meaningful to my own experiences and feelings. And while it's so emotionally dense and thought-provoking, it's also smart, swoony, and so so funny.

TLDR: this book was very well done, laugh-out-loud funny, and emotionally meaningful. Will read anything Mhairi writes!

Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for the e-ARC (and to Avon for the physical ARC) in exchange for my honest, unbiased review. YOU BELONG WITH ME is out 9/3/24.

3.5 ⭐️ rounded up to 4. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC. I didn’t realize this was a second book until I started reading and came here to mark as reading 😂 Stupid on my part. But I still give it four stars after reading! Things that happened in the first book were mentioned multiple times so I didn’t feel like I was missing info. Edie and Elliott were super cute together and I think the complications with them having a relationship were portrayed well. I’m glad for a happy ending for these two! It would be fun to read about some other characters too, maybe Meg or maybe even Elliot’s singer friend could have a love story if the author wanted to write more in this universe. There were a lot of British terms I didn’t know, but it didn’t hinder me from enjoying the story.

A sequel to WHO'S THAT GIRL, this book had my heart throughout!

"I don't think we were meant to be," Edie said. That suggests we could simply wait. I didn't wait for you, Elliot Owen. I was bust finding myself-- at the same time I found you. Then you chose me, and I chose you."

My gosh, my precious Edie & Elliot can't catch a break & live in peace, can they? I loved how beautifully this book starts with where the previous left off. Now, Edie & Elliot are madly in love and do their best to keep the long-distance relationship working while they are torn down by the media, ex-flames, etc.

As I keep saying, their relationship was too precious, heartwarming, & wholesome to begin with. I loved how both of them got together so perfectly despite the hindrances.

Elliot was such a simp and proved again and again how committed he was to Edie. He was man IN LOVE & he never did shy away from that. Edie was a brilliantly strong character & life wasn't easy on her. A lot of the time, you'll feel as if Elliot is the one trying the most but wait till the end!

The humor and dialogues were amazing in this book! I loved Fraser so much & how he added charm to the story. It was painful to watch Edie & Elliot grow apart even for a minute. But everything happened for a reason & they came out stronger than ever.

<i>Thank you Netgalley & Publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.<i>

Thank you to Avon, Harper Voyager US, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

You Belong With Me is the follow-up to McFarlane’s 2016 Who’s That Girl, which had ended with a cliffhanger. This is an extremely satisfying, heartfelt and hilarious sequel. McFarlane’s witty dialogue has always made me laugh, but it’s truly impressive in this one. Some moments I literally shook my head in awe at the effortlessness of it all. I cared so much about seeing these two through the drama of this story and I cannot recommend it enough.

This was my first Mhairi McFarlane book, and I had no idea going in that it was a sequel. It took a few chapters to understand what was going on and the characters that had already been introduced in the previous book, but I was able to follow along fine and figure out the gist of what had happened previously. I think this book can be read as a stand alone, but I would advise reading the other book first to avoid any confusion and give better context to the story. That being said, I really enjoyed this one and found all the characters to be really likable. I can’t relate to dating a celebrity, but I still felt like all of Edie’s and Elliot’s struggles were totally understandable, and I was rooting for them throughout. My only complaint is that there were so many British phrases and terms that I had never heard before, even having read many authors from the UK, so there were times (especially during dialogue between characters) where I felt like I needed a translation to understand them. I plan to read the first book in this duet now because I was really intrigued by the story I gleaned, and I also am looking forward to reading Mhairi McFarlane’s backlist as well.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this follow-up to "Who's That Girl"! The readers of that book who were disappointed with the ending will be excited to read the continuation of Edie and Elliot's love story. Edie is such a wonderful, well-rounded character, and I was glad for the opportunity to spend more time with her! Her life is in a much better place, and things are really looking up when she opens the door on Christmas to find Elliot there, eager to rekindle their romance. Of course, things don't always go smoothly, but it was so much fun to follow along on their journey. You don't need to read the first book to enjoy this one, but you definitely should, because all Mhairi McFarlane books are amazing. :-)

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This title is a sequel to "Who's That Girl?" by Mhairi McFarlane. (I did not read that title, and you don't need to to enjoy reading this newest title.) Edie is a copywriter who, in the previous novel, was asked to be a ghost writer for a popular young male star, Eliot. They had a romance, but broke it off because Edie couldn't deal with Eliot's fame apparently.

This book opens with Edie hosting a holiday dinner for friends and family. Eliot arrives at her front door, declaring his love and asking to try again, Edie has to deal with a long distance relationship, as Eliot is off in the States filming a new series, and she is asked to set up a new office for her agency, paired with a handsome newcomer to the firm. We follow Edie's difficulties with dealing with the press, and as details of Eliot's and Edie's relationship become public, who can you trust?

Publishing date for "You Belong with Me" is September 3, 2024. Special Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advanced Reader Copy of this fun read!

Thank you net galley and publisher for this ARC. I didn’t realize this was a sequel. After reading other reviews I’m going to read the first book before this one.