•Plot: 3/5 (A divorced woman goes on a dating spree in an attempt to save her column.)

•Characters: 3/5 (The male and female lead were fine, I just didn’t think they had much chemistry.)

•Writing: 4/5

•Ending: 4/5

Sophie Cousens is a must read author for me. This one contains all of her trademark banter and wit as well as some of my favorite romcom tropes.

Thanks to the author and publisher for my ARC.

Anna Appleby, a divorced journalist mom, allows her two young children to pick who she asks out on a date. This book is light, funny, and relatable. Coworkers/enemies to lovers.

Sophie Cousens is quickly become a favorite author of mine. She writes in a way that makes you feel as though you're the main character. She is relatable and laugh out loud funny at times!

Docking 1 star (4/5) because this felt a little too similar to her last book, but this is not typical for the books that she writes. I really enjoyed it and will continue reading everything she releases!

I loved this book so much. It was so fun and fresh and gave me all the feels. I binged it pretty quickly and just didn’t want to put it down. I really loved that Anna was an “older” character with kids and learning how to navigate her new life. Her kids were such a fun addition to this story and the fact that she was 8 years older than the MMC made me say “you go girl!” I really enjoyed Wills character as well. He had a lot of substance and was the perfect mix of a “bad boy” and “cinnamon roll.” All the side characters were perfection! This is a perfect book for fans of “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.” I feel like the book could have a different title but that’s just a minor complaint!

📚 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
❤️Workplace Romance
💕Rivals to lovers
🧍🏻‍♀️Divorced Single mom
⏪Reverse age gap
🗣️Witty banter
🛏️One bed
🥰Lovable kids
🍿How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days Movie

❤️𝕄𝕐 ℝ𝔸𝕋𝕀ℕ𝔾❤️
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

💕Q U O T E: “𝐼 𝑔𝓊𝑒𝓈𝓈 𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝒾𝓃 𝓁𝒾𝒻𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝑔𝑒𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝒸𝒽𝑜𝑜𝓈𝑒; 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒸𝒶𝓃'𝓉 𝒸𝒽𝑜𝑜𝓈𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓅𝓁𝑜𝓉, 𝒷𝓊𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒸𝒶𝓃 𝒸𝒽𝑜𝑜𝓈𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝑜𝓊𝓃𝒹𝓉𝓇𝒶𝒸𝓀.”

🙏 Thank you NetGalley, Putnam Books, and Sophie Cousens for this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts. 💕

This was a cute workplace rom-com! The premise was really fun! It follows Anna, a recently divorced mom who is writing about her dates for her magazine column alongside her rival coworker. Instead of a normal dating column, it’s her kids who choose who she should go on dates with. It made for some funny and entertaining moments!

I generally couldn’t relate to Anna so it was hard for me to get fully invested, but I truly loved to see her regain her self-confidence as she heals from the divorce. This took me a long time to finish bc it just wasn’t keeping my interest at times and it was hard for me to get into the romance/MMC as well. I just felt like I barely knew him for most of the book. The story felt really slow, but once the romance started to pick up I did enjoy those moments!! Overall, it wasn’t my favorite but it was a cute, easy read and good palette cleanser! I would still recommend it to anyone looking for this type of read!

This was everything I wanted from a Sophie Cousens novel. I laughed out loud multiple times over Google searches and banter while still loving the connection between Will and Anna. The way the title worked into the plot is actually literary perfection 🤌🏼

A workplace, enemies to lovers, forced proximity age gap?! With a FMC that loves Paul Hollywood more than some people would find normal? (I felt so seen by this)

I mean. Come onnnn.

THE LAST NAME NICKNAME GETS ME EVERY TIME. I am not a nickname fan in so many books - they’re weird and quirky but almost too quirky sometimes? Like to the point where I’m rolling my eyes because it’s such a stretch. Needless to say, that did not happen here. Calling her Appleby had me swooning 🥹🫶🏻

The character growth for just about every character in this book is what made me love it. The kids, the ex husband, the neighbor and even the friends they made along the way. It was so sweet and I’m ready for my own ‘&’ tattoo 😇

Highly recommend if you’re looking for a sweet romcom that brings a smile to your face. Sophie never ceases to make me fall in love with her characters!

This was a DNF for me. I don't think I'm the target audience, as the protagonist is a disheveled divorcee, and I quickly found that this book was ripe with secondhand embarrassment, caricatures (i.e., the dating app portion), and too much quirkiness for my taste. I think this book will find the right home with others, though!

Sophie Cousens is an autoread for me, so I was excited for Is She Really Going Out With Him?! Columnist Anna Appleby has enough on her plate with her divorce and children to even think about a love life, but when her job is threatened, she needs a refresh on her column—seven dates selected by her kids. But then her work rival Will also has ends up part of her project, and all the lines begin to blur. This one is fun. I laughed with Anna, I cried with Anna, I cringed with Anna. Anna is funny and her growth is amazing. I loved watching her come into her own. Her kids are so sweet, and the arrangement with her ex was so interesting and I loved her finding her voice when he was a jerk. And Will! He’s so charming and smooth and sweet, I swooned with Anna over him. Their workplace rivalry was so fun and engaging. There’s a lot going on in these pages and it’s all so human, the writing so genuine, and these characters are all just so easy to root for!

Is She Really Going Out With Him?
4.25 ⭐️

Sophie Cousens just keeps getting better and better! I immensely enjoy her writing style and heartfelt stories and this book was no different.

Recently divorced journalist Anna takes on a dating writing column where her children help pick the dates she should try. While working through her mourning her past life, Anna builds up her own confidence while having a beautiful relationship with her kids.

This was such a fun romcom for those looking for an age-gap romance. I laughed out loud at parts, like I always do with Sophie. Too cute!

Thanks to @netgalley for this ARC!

This was so cute!!!! I had a good time.
The premise is fun, and I really enjoyed the characters. Anna is very relatable and is just genuinely funny. There is a lot of discussion about divorce and rebuilding your life after one, and how important it is to have things for YOU. I LOVE the chapter headers. This was my first Sophie Cousens but I will definitely be reading more!

I will post a review on my feed @yeahimreading closer to the release date :)

Thank you to Putnam & Netgalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam books for this copy in exchange for my honest review!

I adored this book! This is the 4th Sophie Cousens book I have read and I have enjoyed each one so far.

Anna Appleby is a recently divorced, single mom of two who writes for Bath Living magazine, located in Bath England. The print magazine is struggling and she receives the news that they are being bought out by an investor. Ana feels that her

position is going to be made redudant and doubles down on her efforts to please the new investors.

Will Havers is a colleague who is sexy and confident and someone whom Anna cannot stand. He’s always being swooned over by other colleagues and she feels that Will is going after her job.

The stakes are high so Anna pitches an idea to write about online dating. She’s happy being alone, but she needs something fresh to write about. After some obnoxious dates and an investor that wants more from her, she decides to try dating the old fashioned way and she will let her kids choose who she dates. The boss asks Will to write a complementary column about his online dating. Having to team up on writing assignments has Anna and Will getting to know each other better. The competitiveness between them is so fun and the chemistry is so good!

I really loved watching Anna open up and stop putting herself last. She has a lot of awkward, adventurous and memorable moments as she dates a spectrum of different aged men. She learns who she is outside of being a mother and she has fun!

I could go on and on. This book was heart warming, and funny, and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I love this book. It was so hard to put down. The story is engaging and the characters are warm & funny. I also really appreciated that it’s not just a romance- it’s about getting unstuck after a difficult situation & opening yourself back up to life again. Anna had an enviable openness to listening to other people. And it’s hilarious! So many ridiculous but totally plausible situations. So much love for Anna & Will. Beautifully written.

Love Love Love this book. This book is definitely in my top 5 of this year. The chemistry between Anna and Will were off the charts. Will “Say it” had me in a daze. Anna was such a relatable character asa recent divorce, single working mom, and reluctant to love again:

I thought this book was so good! It was such a real story about dating, kids, and life after divorce. It had a lot of heart and humor and I really enjoyed reading it.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions expressed above are my own.

Oh my word I ADORED this story. I was so excited for a new Sophie Cousins book… and this did not disappoint. In fact it may be my favorite of hers yet!

For starters, I loved that the main character Anna was a 38 yo woman with kids. It was so refreshing for me as a 40 yo mom to read an older FMC! Such a unique concept of her kids picking people for her to take on dates. Some of the shenanigans on her dates 🤣🤣

So many relationships were explored… divorced exes, sisters, neighbors, coworkers, new friends, love interests… it brought a gorgeous found family element having so many diverse characters.

I had convinced myself I was wrong about who the love interest was a few times… but I’m so glad I wasn’t. The romance was so SWOONY! The banter, the tension, and oyyy the finale of declaring feelings!! I was SQUEALING. It was a literal, actual Jane Austen moment and will never be over it. The romance on page was ‘door- cracked’ vs. open door… vague, but oh so hot… very well done.

I didn’t want the book to be over! I wanted more! But I will console myself rereading the sweet bits at the end a few more times.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the chance to review an advance copy.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC of this book. All opinions shared are completely my own.

In true Sophie Cousens form, she had me giggling out loud. I love the way she portrays her characters. Her witty banter is unmatched. A 5-star read for me is a book that is entertaining, gives food for thought, and contains witty banter. I think this book captured all of those for me. I could not put it down! Enemies to lovers, workplace romance, forced proximity–this book has it all. I fell in love with Anna, Jess, Ethan, Lottie, and Will. I felt big feelings about Sylvie and Dan. Every character was beautifully articulated, even the minor roles I appreciated.

The romance between Anna and Will had lots of miscommunication and fell flat for me following the weekend in Hay. However, once I thought about the nuance of Anna and Dan’s miscommunication in their marriage it gave me a better perspective. All of the real world vs. online dating allowed for their relationship to blossom. I enjoyed the dates far too much! What a gem this book is to read!

I cannot wait to listen to this on audio when it releases to enjoy the British experience.

P.S. Not to be a Will Havers, but there are two type-o errors in Chapter 22. It is supposed to be "her* jeans" not he jeans and "the fire makes* you bare your soul."

"Because true love does not cower in the shadows; it roars, loud and proud, until it has given its all."

This was so cute! Books about divorce are not my usual cup of tea, but this cover was too adorable to pass up. Although this book is about a recently divorced woman learning how to move on in whatever way that looks like, I still felt she was very relatable. The premise of her children picking out her dates from people in the "real world" was hilarious and I loved every bit of it. The people they chose and how those dates turned out was a delight to read. The bicycle-hating dad got me and so did the annoying neighbor. I can't imagine how mortifying dating people you would see again would be, but Anna handled it with such grace. I honestly didn't mind the conversations about divorce and how her and her husband reconciled and I loved seeing her grow into being the strong, capable woman she is! This was my first Sophie Cousens book and I enjoyed it so much - will definitely pick up another book by her in the future.

Read If You Like
- Moving On From Divorce
- Reverse Age Gap
- Cute Kids

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

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

I've found that I either love this author's books, or they're just ok. I was expecting the former on this one and got the latter. Great premise not executed as well as I was hoping. I wasn't invested at all in the character of Anna. She seemed immature and whiny. I did like Will, more towards the second half of the book, but didn't get a sense of chemistry between the two of them. Maybe that was because it was closed door. And again with the miscommunication, which I could do without for the rest of time. Yeesh. I also liked the character of Michael, and wish we had gotten a lot more of Neil, especially considering he's Anna neighbor. Can't say I'd recommend this one.

This book was so cute! I loved reading about all the different dates Anna went on. They were cringy and also entertaining. I loved reading the relationship between her and Will slowly start to develop. It was slow burn which sometimes had me wanting to yell at my kindle for them to just get too it already. I loved how Anna's kids were so supportive of her dating, I feel like sometimes this isn't how it is projected kid's can be towards their parents. This was a sweet book filled with heartwarming moments and great banter.

Sophie has become an auto-read author for me. There is just something about her books that I gravitate towards. In her latest, columnist Anna Appleby is coming off of a painful divorce, and the idea of dating is far from the top of her mind until a work rival starts vying for her column, so she comes up with the idea to go on seven dates - without a data app and chosen by her children. I loved the premise and the cringy dates- a great read! Thank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was so pleasantly surprised by this one! I wasn't a huge fan of The Good Part but that was my first book by Cousens so I wanted to give her a second chance and I'm glad I did because I really really enjoyed this one!

I loved spending time with Anna Appleby and Will Havers - this was sort of enemies to lovers but it wasn't over the top. I appreciated her take on divorce even though I don't have experience with that, I thought she handled the subject pretty well.

I liked the kids, I liked the side characters, I liked the chemistry without getting too detailed and spicy. Heartwarming and funny, if you like well done rom-com's, this one is a must!