Plot: A divorced journalist jumps back into dating to avoid losing her magazine column to a charming workplace rival. Hoping to avoid the pitfalls of online dating, she decides to let her kids choose the people she dates from the pool of people they know in real life.

Themes: loving yourself, being content alone, friendship, moving on

Characters: It's really hard to not love Anna and Will. They have great chemistry and funny banter. I also think Anna's kids were written really well. Sometimes kids come across as annoying, but I think they added good personality to the story. I also like the care that was given to the writing of the men picked for Anna's dates. It would be easy to write them as caricatures to add humor to bad dates, but each of them seemed to teach Anna something about herself. Overall, I think the supporting characters were really well done.

Writing: Sophie Cousens books are so charming and enjoyable to read. I found myself laughing out loud often. One of my favorite things about this book was that while it is fun, it was also somewhat realistic. None of these characters are sacrificing their own pursuits for anyone else. I think readers who don't love overly graphic romances will really love how this book is written. It is a closed door romance but still gives slow burn and enemies to lovers.

This is my fourth Sophie Cousens novel and I always know that I’m going to have a good time when I open one of her stories! Is She Really Going Out with Him? follows Anna, a recently divorced mother of two who works as a journalist for Bath Living. When a new investor takes over the magazine, the office must adapt and Anna finds herself writing a dating column with her office rival, Will, whom Anna finds entirely annoying with his unsolicited feedback and monogrammed articles of clothing. Will focuses on online dating whereas Anna’s kids select her dates from people they know in real life. I really enjoyed this story! It was equal measures funny and romantic in all the right places. I personally liked that the build up of the romance was slightly more of a slow burn. What I appreciated most was also how realistic this novel felt. The characters all felt like people you might actually meet or know. I highly recommend Is She Really Going Out With Him? (along with Sophie Cousens’ other novels)! Thank you NetGalley and Putnam for the ARC of this novel!

I loooved the Good Part so I’m super excited for this one!

This one releases 11/19/24 and I can’t believe I was lucky enough to get early access!

News flash, I loved this book too! I think I’m adding Sophie to my auto-buy authors.

Enemies to lovers one of my favorite tropes. But also loved the age gap trope here too. Anna is such a relatable character. Single mom, navigating divorce, wage gap at her job and the possibility of losing her job, and also trying to get back out there.

I liked how the author handled a lot of these subjects but also loved the humor too. I laughed out loud quite a few times and just felt ooey gooey inside reading some of this!

Thank you sooo much NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for early access to this one!!

Well this was a silly & sweet, though slightly cringy, dive into post-divorce dating life.

Anna’s journey back into the dating world, with her kids choosing her dates, has its cute moments. My issue was the chemistry with Will wasn’t quite right. He was really sweet and she was just kinda mean?

It’s a decent single POV, closed-door romance with a few laughs.

3 ✨


Thank you NetGalley & Penguin Group Putnam for an eARC of this book for an honest review.

This is my second Sophie Cousens book. Both of her books I’ve won an ARC of & I can’t wait to dig more into her books!
Anna Appleby, has recently gone through it all, divorce and seeing her ex-husband date a significantly younger woman. Anna decided dating at her age isn’t something that necessarily even sounds fun or that she wants to do, but when keeping her job depends on it..Anna dates. The only kicker is her dates have to be picked out by her kids & they can’t go to a pub for a drink.
Anna finds herself writing this dating column, but what puts a kink in it is that she has to write it with her coworker, Will, that always tries to steal her thunder & gets under her skin.
Will Anna find love in the most unexpected place?
This book is full of fun banter, spontaneous adventure, & self discovery. It’s a 5 star for me!
Thank you to NetGalley & G.P. Putnam sons an ARC for my honest review of this book.

This book was so fun! Perfect for fans of Sophie Kinsella, there was plenty of silliness mixed in with the real life drama of adult responsibilities and relationships. I loved the men Anna’s children chose for her, and that Dan wasn’t made out to be an exaggerated villain, they all felt like real people. My one complaint is that it took me such a long time to like Will, his character was hard for me to accept as Anna’s love interest because I found him so frustrating until most of the way through the story.
Overall a great read!

Surprised by the DNF’ers - I had to know where Anna’s story went! Literally finished this book in less than 24 hours.

Newly divorced, Anna finds herself as a single parent while navigating big changes at work. I really loved all of the characters, each unique and some totally over the top. Anna, Will, Noah, Loretta, and the twenty-two year old were my favorites.

4.5⭐️ rounded up!

This book was a lot of fun to read! Just ask my husband, he heard me laughing my head off the entire time. I found Cousens writing to be witty, sharp, and really gosh dang funny. Character development and overall pacing felt perfect. It was just a really fun ride!

As it turns out, I guess I love these types of stories - books with mature FMC moms who are sort of in a new stage of life asking what now. I find the characters feel more grown up and realistic. Throughout Anna’s dating process she ended up building a new community for herself post-divorce. It was fun to witness her trying new things and really come into herself in this season of life.

The relationship between the FMC and MMC was playful, flirtatious, and full of banter. They had a little office rivalry that didn’t feel immature, rather full of tension and hilarious. I found Will to be charming and a great match for Anna. Their romance was swoooooony.

Read if you like workplace rivals, fade to black romances, age gaps (8 years - she’s older), mature FMCs, mom FMCs, books set in England, only one bed, and quirky and endearing side characters.

Thank you so much, Putnam Books, NetGalley, and Sophie Cousens for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Loved this new book my Sophie Cousens. Anna is recently divorced, and in an attempt to make her journalism job more relevant, starts a dating column opposite her coworker Will. The only catch? Her children have to pick her dates. Hilarious hi-jinks ensue while the chemistry between Anna and Will grows. A great romantic comedy!

I received a copy o this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

From the beginning were Anna Appleby is reading a story in her sons classroom then get an e-mail stating her divorce is final. She is now divorced. How she handled the news (she lost it, completely) was so funny. The relationship with her lister Lottie is what everyone wants their relationship to be like with their sister. The witty banter between Anna and her coworker Will Cousens is what rom-comes aspire to be. Will is 8 years younger than Anna, always perfectly dressed. Monogramed initials on his shirts. He appears to be so put together and seems to be taking over Ann's column at the Bath Living Magazine. When Anna suggests an article about dating and has an eye opening experience to on line dating; she is somehow talked into writing about dating men her children choose. As you can imagine there is a variety of funny, strange and no connection dates. Reading all of her dating experiences and what is happening in her life is funny, sad, and realistically hectic. I enjoyed this novel. found myself laughing out loud and tearing up at all the appropriate times. Rom com funny, a must read if this is your genre, Thank you NetGalley for the advance copy.

Thanks NetGalley for an ARC. First book by this author but won’t be the last. Cute story. Dating after divorce is hard and having your kids pick out your dates can be a recipe for disaster. An office romance doesn’t always work but in this case was positive.

Sophie Cousens is an auto buy author for me. I’ve enjoyed the majority of her books and this one was no exception . I loved all the characters in this book, especially will! It was fun to see the MC go on various dates and most be a disaster lolol such a cute and funny read.

Um, how cute is this? This contemporary romance has an older (ok, 40s) heroine, so avoids all the New Adult tropes that are saturating the genre right now. Although the ultimate pairing is pretty obvious, the story is still sweet and authentic. Not 5-stars for me, because I don't connect to rivals-to-lovers matches, but this seems like a sure thing for anyone who does.

This reminded me a bit of Just Like You, probably because of the age gap, setting, and divorced single mom. The tone is different enough that it didn't feel like a warmed-over retelling, though.

Highly recommended for contemporary romance readers! eARC from NetGalley.

I devoured this book. I’m usually more disconnected from a book if it involves divorce because i cannot relate, but this one i couldn’t put down. The enemy to lovers trope was *chefs kids* and I loved it all!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy!

I've been a fan of Sophie Cousens for a long time and was so thrilled to be approved for her latest novel! This book tells the story of Anna, a divorced mom of two who needs a creative article idea to keep her job at a struggling magazine. She decides to let her kids help decide who she goes on date with from real life interactions (think another parent at school, the mailman, a waiter, etc.) and then Anna writes about her experience. Along the way she learns about herself, forms unique new friendships, and finds love with someone she least expected. I enjoyed this book as it features some of Cousen's traditional humor and writing style, but it wasn't my favorite of hers. I definitely recommend it to anyone who needs a fun quick read with a sweet love story throughout its pages!

This was such a funny and entertaining rom-com! I was rooting for Anna from the first page. Navigating life, kids, jobs and all the rest is hard enough. Having the kids pick her dates was such a fun twist! Highly recommend!

this was a cute one. will is the definition of perfect. him and anna work so well together. towards 60% i felt a tiny bit bored but still enjoyed it and highly recommend it.

This book centers around Anna who is a mother of 2 kids. She is also divorced from a lengthy marriage and unable and unwilling to put herself out there. So within this she throws herself into her kids and work while not really believing in herself. The paper she works for is also on the brink of going under so to secure her job she decides to give in and do a dating column piece that brings her out of her comfort zone.

Anna is pretty strong. I loved her character. What I loved even more was her character development. The transformation from Anna at the beginning to Anna at the end was honestly awe inspiring, even as a fictional character. I think what made her development hit me so hard was the small changes she made were realistic and that its not one big shift needed but tiny things that make up a larger picture of change. As she went on these dates her perception of herself and the people around her changed. She didn't keep her world so narrow. It was honestly beautiful.

The side characters each had their own charm. I loved her kids. They were funny and full of spirit. Even Noah, her neighbor. Once you find out his background its hard not to fall for him. Even the less consistent characters had charm and personality. Not gonna lie though, at the beginning I sincerely wanted to punch her ex in the face but even he grew on me.

The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was for its predictability. Not too long into the story you already get a feel of who the love interest is and how it will play out. But, even with that I enjoyed the ride so much I was basically kicking my feet with joy.

Highly recommend this book. It's got serious Emily Henry vibes.

UMM WHERE DO I BEGIN?
This has got to be THE best rom com I have read in a long time. I found myself cooking dinner while staring down at my phone to read because I just couldn’t put it down. Is She Really Going Out With Him is a rivals to lovers workplace romance following a single mom working for a newspaper. For her column, her children get to pick who she goes out with. This assignment sparks a journey of self discovery, found family, and Love. I found myself laughing aloud at the google searches, a unique and funny addition to head the chapters(and they were all too relatable at that). I love love LOVE Will’s character. He has so much personality and such depth to him that I was giggling and kicking my feet at all of his charming remarks. Anna’s story is such a beautiful one as well. Seeing her grow into who she wants to be, as well as her character development was incredibly heartwarming. If you’re a fan of the movie How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days then this book is perfect for you! Suddenly I’m wishing I was a journalist with a rivaling coworker.

Thank you net galley and publisher for this ARC. This was a cute story, I really enjoyed the journey and how everything came together at the end.