Thank you Henry Holt and Macmillan Audio for the ARC and ALC.

What It’s Like In Words reminded me a bit of The Book of George, but from the girlfriend’s perspective. The author did an amazing job portraying what it’s like to be in love with the wrong person. I wanted to just shake some sense into Enola, our protagonist, while simultaneously relating deeply to her experience and the constant making of excuses for the one she loves. It’s a bit triggering and I didn’t particularly ENJOY reading it, but it’s quite well done from a technical literary perspective. It’s got a strong voice, uses evocative language, and portrays multi-dimensions, well-developed characters. I did get a little confused with the timeline, unsure of whether I was in present day or past, but it usually became apparently fairly quickly.

I’d recommend it to lit-fic readers, but I don’t expect it to have strong crossover appeal to romance or mystery readers.

Audio: Victoria Blunt performs the audiobook brilliantly. She’s easy to understand (sometimes an issue for me with British narrators) and brings authentic emotion to her performance that made Enola seem so real to me. A+ audio!

Overall ratings
Exact star rating: 3.94
5-pt star rating: 4

Attribute ratings
Characters: 5
Atmosphere/Setting: 4.5
Writing Style: 5
Plot/Pacing: 3
Intrigue: 3.5
Logic: 4.5
Enjoyment: 3

This book could be triggering for anyone who has been in an emotionally abusive relationship or subject to ongoing gaslighting. The main character lost her father at a young age and feels abandoned by her mother. Now in her mid-20s, she is a writer working on her first novel while working as a barista. She meets and falls for another writer. Drama ensues in which she tests the meaning of love, family, and the role of memory and self-talk. The book’s story is interspersed with chapters from the character’s novel. While confusing at first, it adds a layer of nuance that makes me want to listen to the audiobook again.
My thanks to the author, publisher, producer, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook for review purposes. Publication date: Dec 3, 2024.

This was a really hard book to listen to. We all have been in a relationship or seen a friend go through what Enola is going through and you just want to scream "Get out!" but you know they can't until they see it on their own. There wasn't much of a plot other than the toxic relationship and that got a little repetitive and hard to listen to after a while.

I loovveee when I'm able to get both an advanced print AND audio copy, having both to compare and reference is ideal! So right off the bat a huge thank you to Eliza Moss, Henry Holt & Company, MacMillan Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read early!

Gaslighting meets our (funny I say "our" bc I'm in the US and they weren't but it still fits) patriarchal society meets coming to terms with someone you love having qualities you don't - and the possibility those qualities are their dominant ones meets the dualities of wanting. Written beautifully, it didn't take long for me to get through this book. What felt like a behind the scenes look at being a writer was just a bonus.

FK THIS ONE HURT!
If there is any tinge of pain from an ex, BEWARE(Or am I just projecting? I'm in therapy. This isn't about me)!

This one really got me. Projecting or not, I don't think it will be difficult to identify with Enola. I found it near impossible to not self-reflect. Whether it's as serious as an ex spouse or as simple as an ex crush, if you really think hard enough isn't there <i>someoneee</i> that you find your thoughts wandering with? Were they the one that got away? You were so happy then... You guys always had so much fun together... Why did you end things, anyway? Wonder how they're doing now...
Familiar rabbit hole?
If not, maybe recalling a shitty ex you had will come more easily? Weird how you could have been so mad at him back then, he's so cute. And he's probably changed by now... Plus, I've changed! It'll be different this time.

Specific to the audiobook, I loved her accent! And how she narrated dialogue was flawless. I don't think you'd be missing anything vital that's lent to the story by the audio if you do choose to read print, though.

If you enjoyed this, I'd also suggest Scaffolding by Lauren Elkin, My Husband by Maud Ventura and Liars by Sara Manguso.

Dnf’ed at 32%. This was horrendously painful to read. I know that’s the point. We see the train wreck she can’t, but I can’t drag myself any farther to watch some guy treat Ebola terribly.

I was not a fan of this audiobook. I just could not get into the narration or the writing style. I did not like the main character at all but not even in a way that I hoped she would change or love to hate. She just was blah and immature. The book did a good job of portraying a messed up relationship and getting me to think about relationships though.