This book is such a fun, workplace romantic comedy.

I loved the searches that were used openers for the chapters. A purely comedic way to close out the previous chapter and begin the next. I love a good book with chapters titles, but this did it for me. They drew me in, and kept me wanting to read “just one more chapter”.

I loved the plot of the newly divorced mom. This book can definitely be a hit amongst the ladies.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read this book prior to publication in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so cute! A recent divorcée gets back in the game by letting her kids choose dates for her. The premise is fun and well-executed. There’s a great sense of place with Bath as the setting. The chemistry between Anna and Will was hot — there’s a window scene that will live rent-free in my mind 🔥 There were also several truly funny moments, so it lives up the the romcom name.

My favorite quote: “We can’t call emergency services because we only have one bed.”

Thanks so much to Putnam and NetGalley for the ARC!

I honestly went into this book with pretty low expectations, I’ve read This Time Next Year by her as well- and I went into that with high expectations, and was ultimately disappointed. But I LOVED this book! I could not put it down, I stayed up until 3 am finishing it. I loved that it was an older FMC, and when she’d say things that were corny it made sense based on her age and wasn’t ever one of those lines that made me want to cringe and made 0 sense. I thought the MMC was so sweet, I think one of my main complaints was I wish they were together longer and not just over a few weeks for the ending and its emotions to make more sense. Her kids also cracked me up, and I felt for Jess and her situation. I’d kind of like more information on Sophie, I couldn’t tell if she was actually kind of mean and jealous, or if it was just that Anna was our narrator and she wasn’t a huge fan of Sophie. I also wish Dan got put in his place and apologized, I feel like they just had a nice conversation and moved on instead of discussing how awful he treated Anna after their separation and divorce. But this was a fun read. While sex occurs- it is not smut, there are not detailed scenes in this book, it cuts away! I definitely recommend!

This is another charming, heartwarming tale from Sophie Cousens. It’s told from the POV of Anna Appleby, a recently divorced, 38-year-old journalist, with two children: Jess, 12; and Ethan, 7. She’s a feature writer for Bath Living, an established lifestyle magazine.

It’s about 18 months after her divorce, and just as Anna is starting to get her bearings personally, her professional life gets upended as well. A new investor is bringing a fresh perspective to the publication, emphasizing the digital version and more personalized writing. To prove her value as a potential columnist, Anna agrees to write a dating column where her dates are selected by her son or daughter, rather than chosen via an app. Her office rival, Will Havers, a relatively new addition who already writes a food and dining column, will write a similar column but focus on online dating.

Will is younger, popular with everyone in the office, including the new investor, whom he helped to recruit, and annoys Anna by offering unsolicited feedback on her articles. With the possibility of cutbacks looming, she feels that they are in competition with one another, so is wary when he makes friendly gestures towards her.

Anna goes on dates – some amusing, some disconcerting— with a range of men in a variety of venues, including the father of her son’s friend (fishing), a 22-year-old waiter (house party), a well-known actor (private club), her postman (tea at the Jane Austen society) and her grumpy neighbor (the Roman Baths). In addition to writing columns about these interactions, she has to collaborate with Will on a couple of projects: a local event where Will is moderating a panel discussion, and a trip to an off-the-grid retreat. Through time spent together, they learn each other’s back story, and clear up some misconceptions. Anna finds out that Will is more than a pretty face, and they begin to build a meaningful connection. They are at different points in their personal and professional lives, leading Anna to question whether a significant relationship is even possible for them.

In addition to these relationships, Anna is also dealing with her ex-husband’s new girlfriend, her daughter’s unhappiness at school and the death of the family cat.

#IsSheReallyGoingOutwithHim is a pleasure to read! It is well paced with snappy dialogue, relatable situations, and appealing characters. As a couple, Anna and Will are easy to root for; and there are a number of laugh-out loud scenes, among some more serious moments. The story strikes a great balance between Anna’s romantic, family and professional worlds.

Thanks to #NetGalley and Penguin Group of @PutnamBooks for the ARC.

* I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. All thoughts are my own.

Sophie Cousens has been pretty hit or miss for me but her last two books were hits! I really loved how real the characters are in this book and each have their own piece of “baggage” that they’re working through. I feel like it was also a found family type book. Anna befriends many eccentric people during her time writing this dating column and it’s just so sweet how they all come together.

Would recommend!

I have a list of authors that I will always read because their writing is the equivalent of a warm, friendly hug. I know I’m going to get a great, swoony story.

Sophie Cousens is one of these authors and Is She Really Going Out with Him? strikes the perfect notes for exactly this. Throw in funny, too.

Anna Appleby is recently divorced with two kids. Her ex is moving on with his Norwegian model girlfriend. Her job as a reporter is in trouble and her rival is pushing in. Something’s gotta give.

She agrees to start dating again to write about it for her column. She eventually decides the best way forward is meeting her dates organically rather than on the dating apps. Her rival, Will Havers, pitches his counterpoint to date via the apps and we’re off.

Will is undeniably attractive, eight years younger than Anna, and a giant pain in her life…until being forced to work together allows her to know him as more than a monogrammed ladder climber.

This book is sweet and cheeky and delightfully fraught with sexual tension. I loved it and I suspect you will too. Go preorder now!

I received a copy from #netgalley and @putnambooks. All thoughts are mine alone.

#romance #contemporaryromance #britishromcom #romcom #workplaceromance #arc #sophiecousens #isshereallygoingoutwithhim

Thank you Net Galley & Publishers for the ARC of this novel!

Make sure you check out this book in mid-November if you love romcoms! This one was 5 stars fun, so so good! This is a top 5 romcom for me featuring excellent character arches, great banter, (mostly) closed door spice and likable characters and subplots.

Anna, a newly divorced woman is a journalist at a struggling magazine. In order to keep her job, she puts her personal life on display via a dating column with dates chosen by none other than her children.

The cover drew me in to this book. Then I read the description and wasn't sure but it sounded cute. and it was! I love reading romance and love stories that aren't about people in high school and they actually have families and lives. This book checked all the boxes for me. SO good.

This book was a huge surprise for me. I loved Sophie’s last book, but I’m not usually a big fan of ones where the main character has kids or been divorced. I needn’t have worried, because this was so good.

Anna has retreated into herself post-divorce as she focuses on raising her two children and balance that with her career as a journalist. Her job security is at risk though with a new investor at the magazine she’s employed by. There also happens to be Will, a co-worker that she is not fond of.

To save her column and job, Anna lets her children pick out suitors for her and write about those dates. Will mirrors her column with his own take. In the midst of it all, she realizes a lot of her pre-conceived notions about Will are wrong.

Anna and Will had such good chemistry! I loved all of their interactions so much. And I’m hoping side character Noah gets his own book.

Thanks as always to NetGalley for the ARC.

Sophie Cousens continues the streak of being one of my favorite writers. Quite frankly, her books have more heart than an Emily Henry book anyday. of the week.

Is She Really Going Out With Him, sounds like a more fun rom-com, but in actuality, it's about a divorced single mom, Anna Appleby finding her way in the world, both professionally and in her personal life. Anna lives in Bath, England with her two kids Jess and Ethan, who were fun characters (I often find that young kids can be depressing in books like these). Anna has a broken relationship with her ex, and is navigating being single and attempting to move on from her failed marriage. She is a talented writer for a small local magazine, which is being bought out by a larger corporation. In order to save her job, she needs to write articles about her single dating life (with dates hand picked by her kids), which will appeal to her demographic and gain a steady following.

Anna sets out to find dates, and write articles about them. She joins alongside Will another writer at the company, a typical enemy to lovers trope occurs, and while the book is naturally predictable, we are taken on a ride with Anna, unique characters, new friends, and a new lifestyle. I really love how Sophie blends humor, growth, professional life, and love all in one without being too cheesy and with unexpected plot lines. The book is truly about finding oneself after divorce, and being brave enough to take the next steps in her life.

I'm so glad I was able to receive this ARC from Netgalley and Penguin!

Thank you netgalley for the chance to read this!
I adored this. I think its becoming more and more obvious to me that I love messy, mom characters. Maybe because thats where I am in my life right now, .but Anna is just so real on the page: working as a journalist, struggling with finding herself post divorce, trying to balance her children and what they do/don't need from her, fighting attraction to her workplace nemesis, and ultimately having her children pick her dates as an attempt to rekindle a 'spark' thats missing in her writing. It's all very layered and creates such a great backdrop for the romance thats the driving trope.
The tension between Will and Anna is palpable from the start and their dialogue is snappy and fun: theres so much humor in this that had me giggling to myself. Will is such a great male lead: you can tell right from the get-go there is more to him, but I love that it's given in bits and pieces. I also LOVE that he falls first. The chemistry is so intense, particularly at the retreat (side note: an electronics-free retreat set up like this sounds just magical), and yet I don't find myself missing the steamy scenes at all! This is the example of how closed door romance can be done incredibly well.
I found myself flying through this. I loved that the divorce was never used as a plot point other than frustration, the third act break up felt real (haven't we all put someone else ahead of our own needs?), and while the hijinks with the dates were fun it never felt fake.
Cousens is quickly becoming an auto-buy for me!

Thank you, NetGalley, Penguin Group and Sophie Cousens for this ARC.

I have read other Sophie Cousens books and enjoyed them enough to give them 5 starts, but this one is a 3 for me. It had it's cute moments, but it wasn't what I expected. Based on the description, I expected Anna to go on a lot of fun and quirky dates . There were a couple but not that many. Most of it was her fighting/flirting with her coworker. There was also a lot of miscommunication between the two that it got to be old. There were times that I would think this would be a Hallmark movie but then there were times that I would think that there was too much sex for it to be a Hallmark movie. Just an FYI, I didn't think the sex scenes were graphic but there was talk about it. I don't remember her other books being that way.

Anna is divorced and seems to be rediscovering herself. It appears that she married young and really didn't get much dating experience which made her dates more fun. The awkwardness made them more realistic. Anyone who leaves a long term relationship can relate. We forget what it entails and what it is like to be with someone new. I just wish this book had more dates.

I enjoyed that seemed to get a long with her ex-husband, Dan. I didn't like his new girlfriend, I felt both of them should have put her in her place at times. They both seemed to have given her power over Anna's children. It is great that she is building a relationship but there are boundaries. And both Dan and Sylvie can't be the fun parents while Anna is the bad guy by being the responsible one. I enjoyed reading about her relationship with her sister, Lottie too. She is such a great support system for Anna as she navigates through dating.

I did enjoy reading it, so I won't say that I regret reading it but I wish that there had been more to it It just wasn't what I expected.

This was such a cute read. After The Good Part, I was so excited to receive another Sophie Cousens book! I really enjoyed the way the FMC was written and watching her character growth post-divorce was so satisfying. I also DEEPLY appreciated how socially positive the dating scene was written in such a negative-dating era. It was so refreshing and has me wanting real-life set ups!

Thank you to The Penguin Group and NetGalley for this ARC. I absolutely adored this book!
Anna is a divorced mother of 2 trying to hold on to her journalism job while dealing with her ex-husband and his new, younger, live-in girlfriend. Anna winds up being paired with the younger, hot, perfect, annoying, nit-picking grammar checking co-worker, Will, for a new column. Anna needs to go on dates with men picked by her children (less creepy weird then it sounds- LOL!), as opposed to the now popular on-line dating scene. Will in turn picks dates from on-line dating sites that somewhat line up to Anna’s dates such as age discrepancies, sudo-celebrities, etc. Of course while working this closely they wind up flirting and going on one of the “dates” together which is a weekend retreat with no technology allowed. I don’t do spoilers but I will tell you there is plenty of witty banter and a cast of fun characters (Loretta!) as well as some moments that made me tear up a little and moments that I was literally smiling to myself while reading. I highly recommend this fun, light, lovely book!

This book sucked me in from the very beginning and was a quick read! Great book to cuddle up on a cozy fall day and read

This was a really sweet and funny book! Cousens has a way of asking her characters seem so real and down to earth.

Once again, Sophie Cousens has exceeded my expectations and created yet another perfect rom-com. “The Good Part” was my favorite read of 2023, so I wasn’t sure if anything could live up to it, but this book blew me away. I absolutely adored everything about it, from the relatable main characters to the quirky plot to the picturesque setting (Attending the Jane Austen Festival in Bath is officially on my bucket list!). I had so much fun reading this book and could not stop laughing out loud. My only complaint is that I didn’t want it to end. I highly recommend this sweet and hilarious romance!

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Is She Really Going Out with Him? by Sophie Cousens

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐ (5/5)

I absolutely loved this book! It’s such an easy read, with banter that keeps things light, even when dealing with heavier topics.

This is my first time reading a divorcee romance, and I found it incredibly relatable. Sophie Cousens does a great job of capturing that journey of rediscovering yourself after being part of a "we" for so long. From learning not to compromise who you are anymore to navigating the tricky waters of co-parenting and new relationships, the book hits so many authentic moments.

One unique twist I enjoyed was the kids having a say in their parent's dating life. It added a fun and dynamic element, making for some eccentric but lovable characters who form this quirky group of friends.

For those interested in the romance, expect a closed-door enemies-to-lovers story with an age gap where the woman is older. It’s a romcom at heart, keeping me thoroughly entertained throughout.

Highly recommend if you're looking for a fun, heartfelt read! 🌟

Sophie Cousens is always a delight! Maybe it is my age (mid40s) and many of my friends are going through similar relationship changes (divorce with kids, etc) or maybe the charge between the main characters is compelling but I couldn't put this book down. Anna Appleby has two kids and an ex-husband who has gone through a midlife crisis and found his salvation in cycling and a young Swede. Her character is so very relatable, losing sight of herself in her duties as a mom, a wife, and a (quite good) journalist. There is a shake up at work and she is thrust into dating for the sake of her column. Online dating immediately sucks so she ends up dating whomever her kids pick out for her and writing about the ups and downs of dating in a non-digital way. Her counterpart coworker manages to swing a parallel assignment to do digital dating and tries to find ways to mirror or compliment her dating activities. She sees him as a threat - competition for work at a downsizing company - but Will Havers may not see it that way at all. He respects her. He encourages her. He actually has his sights on something different professionally. By doing this together they find out that sometimes there is a way for things to work out when all the options look like a dead end.
This was a great book with fully developed characters. No one is one dimensional (even the ex-husband's new girlfriend).
Loved it. (Will probably be rereading this when it comes out).
Thanks so much for the ARC!

5 stars
Honestly I'm not surprised that this was another 5-star banger from Sophie Cousens. I love all her books so much and she's most definitely and autobuy author for me.