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    If I Never Met You: A Novel
    If I Never Met You: A Novel
    If I Never Met You: A Novel
    Audiobook11 hours

    If I Never Met You: A Novel

    Written by Mhairi McFarlane

    Narrated by Sara Novak

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Bestselling author Mhairi McFarlane returns with another heartfelt romantic comedy perfect for fans of Josie Silver, Sophie Kinsella, or Sally Thorne.

    If faking love is this easy... how do you know when it’s real?

    When her partner of over a decade suddenly ends things, Laurie is left reeling—not only because they work at the same law firm and she has to see him every day. Her once perfect life is in shambles and the thought of dating again in the age of Tinder is nothing short of horrifying. When news of her ex’s pregnant girlfriend hits the office grapevine, taking the humiliation lying down is not an option. Then a chance encounter in a broken-down elevator with the office playboy opens up a new possibility.

    Jamie Carter doesn’t believe in love, but he needs a respectable, steady girlfriend to impress their bosses. Laurie wants a hot new man to give the rumor mill something else to talk about. It’s the perfect proposition: a fauxmance played out on social media, with strategically staged photographs and a specific end date in mind. With the plan hatched, Laurie and Jamie begin to flaunt their new couple status, to the astonishment—and jealousy—of their friends and colleagues. But there’s a fine line between pretending to be in love and actually falling for your charming, handsome fake boyfriend...

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateMar 24, 2020
    ISBN9780062958518
    If I Never Met You: A Novel
    Author

    Mhairi McFarlane

    Sunday Times bestselling author Mhairi McFarlane was born in Scotland, and her unnecessarily confusing name is pronounced Vah-Ree. After some efforts at journalism, she started writing fiction and her first book, You Had Me At Hello, was an instant success. She's now written ten novels, and she lives in Nottingham with a man and a cat.

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    Reviews for If I Never Met You

    4/5

    598 ratings28 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      4.75 Stars!
      My first McFarlane story and I am dizzy in love.

      Laurie and her fierce intelligence - Wow! I loved her. Even while she questioned her self-worth and dealt with the insecurities over her ex, it made her real. She was never a doormat.

      Jamie was self-assured, intuitive, and smart, but he also had a history that he didn't feel the need to clarify to unimportant people. This made him a target for manipulations of the truth that pulled at my heartstrings. I also liked that he respected other peoples choices in life and didn't give much credence to what others thought of him. Except for Laurie.

      This was a slow-burn fake relationship story, but it became so much more than that as the story progressed. It dragged up the darker side of office politics, sexism, and racism. And through it all, it highlighted the strength and steadfastness of the main characters. Characters that had an endearing friendship before it turned into more. In addition to that, the representation of women's friendships were some of the best. I was reduced to near-tears at how moving Laurie and her closest girlfriends were in their support of each other.

      This book covered a lot of bases, but it all worked and I was surprised at how deeply I enjoyed it. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was due to a little blip at the very end that I wasn't keen on. So minor that it almost wasn't worth mentioning, but it did take away from what could have been perfection for me.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      Nice story, maybe too gullible. I didn't like narrators interpretation of Laurie's voice, she made her sound like a bully...

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      I struggled to get through those first chapters, Laurie seemed pathetic and completely unfair and ridiculous to Dan. However, after rolling my eyes through half of the book it picked up. Jamie is a great character and the second half of the book is delightful and has some true insights into sexual harassment and male entitlement in the workplace which I found fantastic. In the end it is a book about self love and self value which we can all relate to.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      I enjoyed the self-discovery in this story more than the actual romance. I actually loved these characters together, I just wish the author included more of their “couple-ness” once they finally came together! The ending fell verrry rushed and I’m a girl who thoroughly enjoys my smut. This was definitely G-rated.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      captivating light-hearted romance with British voices. no worry of graphic sexual scenes

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      Super cute with lots of growth for both the female and male MC's fake dating trope so definitely misunderstanding and humor were involved.
    • 4/5
      A fun and predictable read. The author does a good job at intertwining real substance and frivolous romance. Definitely the kind of book that’s easy listening to make the time pass.
    • 5/5
      Quite liked it tho the last like paragraph was a little silly
    • 1/5
      I was half way through and I had to stop. I really tried to finish it. Too much dialogue and not much description of places or how the characters felt or their thoughts. TOOOOO much chatting.....all that chit chatting made the book boring.
    • 5/5
      Very fun and a good read, loved the accent in the audiobook.
    • 3/5
      Gosh, the narrator was annoying... I did like Jamie very much though
    • 4/5
      Cute story that could make an even cuter movie, I just felt like the ending was rushed. It went from like 0 to 100 real quick.
    • 5/5
      This book had me from the start. So so good
    • 5/5
      Funny and expertly written. Loved it (and Prince)! Definitely recommend.
    • 5/5
      Beautiful, absolutely wow. I enjoyed every single part of it and how it went from a romantic book, to a book dealing with issues that should be spoken out loud. This book gave me strength to grow and speak what I have never spoken before. 10/10 for me.
    • 4/5
      So I'm quite surprised that I really really enjoyed this book! it actually made me cry a couple of times and was very well written. If I could do it over I'd probably just read it because the audio narrator's voice is kind of intense ?also, it's important to note the romance is absolutely not the focus of the story so much as the main character finding herself after a long term relationship ends abruptly. the love interest is not really in this story for I'd say about at least half of it. So that side could have been fleshed or better, and as the romance is never the focus of the story after all that build-up we don't even get any steamy moment. but he was very sweet. A little rushed at the end but I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will probably be more from the author.
    • 3/5
      Good story but the dialect wasn’t always clear to my Midwestern ear. Very fast and many references to things I think must be common in the UK but unfortunately, not in my location or experiences.
    • 5/5
      Such a cute book! Looking forward to reading another from this author
    • 5/5
      I love the build up of the story, as well as the sweetness of the romance mixed with friendship. Smashing rom-com!
    • 3/5
      Lovely slow burn, good chemistry between the love interests. I’m just not personally a fan of closed door romance. If this is your thing, then this book is for you! Still a solid good read for me.
    • 5/5
      My kind of book nice love it ,,,,,,,,,,,v good feel good
    • 5/5
      Great book. I would highly recommend listening to this book.
    • 3/5
      When Dan tells Laurie, his partner for 18 years that he is not happy and ends their relationship, Laurie struggles to figure out what went wrong. She spends weeks dissecting their past, and she can't seem to move on. After Dan tells Laurie that he is seeing someone else and that she is pregnant, Laurie decides to take Jamie up on his plan to fake date her, in order to improve his chances of making partner in the firm where they both work. At the same time, Laurie will hopefully make Dan jealous and show him that she can stand on her own.

      There are things that I like about If I Never Met You, but there are just as many things that I don't. Laurie and Jamie's plan seems incredibly immature and fraught with issues such as lying to coworkers and ignoring possible consequences. However, during this time, Laurie does apparently come out of her shell and recognize what was wrong with her relationship with Dan as well as her working status in the firm. Throughout the first half of the book, Jamie is described as a womanizer and manipulator, but a few tragic details about his past are supposed to make us like and root for him. Overall, If I Never Met You left me with very mixed feelings about the pacing and intent of the story.
    • 4/5
      So... here's the thing. I think this book is really well written and Laurie is an amazing, strong, funny, vibrant character. But this book traumatized me. I am that person who's with their first and only love and have been for 12 years... so the first part of this book was is my literal nightmare written on in ink. And I felt ever single minute of it, because Laurie's reaction that would be exactly me (except I would be way less composed than her). I just couldn't get over the trauma even though I felt the love blooming between her and Jamie was cute. So, its well written, but I don't think I'd jump in and read it ever again.
    • 5/5
      Thoroughly delightful. It made being completely incapacitated with a back problem a whole lot better. Laurie and Jamie are the best couple because they are each great characters individually, not because the coming together was so fantastic. Having this set in a law firm made it extra fun for me (welcome to the temple of my familiar) but I think it would have been a 5 star regardless . I was a big fan of the reader as well.
    • 4/5
      I went into this thinking it would be a standard romance novel and discovered it was so much more. Laurie is blindsided when her perfect, long time partner leaves her for another woman. She randomly agrees to a false relationship to get back at her ex but then discovers that she and Jamie actually like each other, have a lot in common, and in the course of time fall in love. Along the way Laurie has the courage to deal with difficult family relationships, take an honest look at her relationship with Dan, and discover that the gutsy woman she was as a young person is still there. I love stories that surprise me with depth and this one did that.
    • 3/5
      This definitely falls under the category of 'Chick Lit'. It's light, funny, and romantic -- in other words perfect for these uncertain times. I did think they book started out strong, but the end felt way too sappy to the point where I had a few eye rolls. But I loved the main character and could definitely see this as a fun Romcom movie.
    • 4/5
      A delightful romantic comedy, If I Never Met You is Mhairi McFarlane’s sixth novel.Laurie is devastated when her boyfriend of eighteen years suddenly announces he is leaving her, claiming the need to ‘find’ himself, and then completely shattered when she learns just weeks later that Dan not only has a new girlfriend, but that the girlfriend is pregnant.Desperate to retain a shred of dignity, especially given she and Dan still have to work together in the same law firm, Laurie strikes a deal with a colleague. Jamie needs help to rehabilitate his reputation as a lothario to have a shot at making partner, and being seen to enjoy a new relationship with a handsome and successful man might make Dan rethink his decision to breakup with Laurie. A fake relationship will benefit them both...as long as no one ever finds out.The bare bones of the plot of If I Never Met You is not by any means unique, but the execution by McFarlane has real appeal. Yes this is a romantic comedy that exploits the enemies to lovers trope, but there is also a surprising depth to the story.In particular, McFarlane’s characters move beyond the expected stereotypes, subverting them in ways that are thoughtful and realistic. I felt as if I could relate to Laurie, even though I don’t share her experience, and empathised with her feelings and behaviour. On first impression, Jamie appears to be a typical ‘Alpha’ hero, but it quickly becomes clear that appearances can be deceiving.I love McFarlane’s sense of humour, which can be very dry, but also makes judicious use of the cheap laugh. I also really admire the way in which the author utilises a full range of emotion without becoming too farcical, nor too angsty, it’s a difficult balancing act that she gets just right.If I Met Never You is witty, heartfelt and utterly engaging.