Since their childhood, Katie, Maeve and Evelyn have been friends and it was never a question who was the leader of their gang. Admired by the other two girls, Evelyn decided on what and who to like or dislike. When a new girl moves to their small Irish community, she immediately knows that Pamela is arrogant and stupid. Due to her mother’s interference, Katie is prone to become Pamela’s friend, but before they could really get to know each other, the girl vanishes and is never to be seen again. Rumours go from her being killed by one of the trio’s friends, over being abducted to her having run away. When school is over, Katie and Evelyn plan to move to Dublin together, but when her friend is not accepted at university, Katie for the first time is on her own and cannot rely on her friend anymore.

What a great beginning of a novel. I totally adored to careless and adventurous kids who then developed into typical teenagers. Unfortunately, the novel lost a bit of its spirit when the three separate. Even though this is necessary for Katie’s development, from this point on I struggled a bit with the reading, first and foremost because I found it hard to endure Katie’s naivety and her inability to become an independent person, to develop her own ideas and tastes, she is totally dependent on others and their opinion, thus just bounces somehow in her life without goal. Her return to her small hometown is a logic consequence which even makes things worse for her.

In my opinion, the protagonist is well developed and throughout her life, the decisions made are well motivated by her personality and point of view, yet, she is certainly not a character to sympathise with or to take as a role model. In spite of that, I found it quite realistic to see how she struggles with her future, not having really developed but play but only a mere vague dream, she cannot succeed and must end up being totally disappointed. Similarly, her blindness when it comes to her friend Evelyn is well portrayed, she ignores all warnings and other views and is thus left to learn it the hard way.

A wonderful first part and some great aspects, nevertheless, I was a bit disappointed in the end, as I think the author could have made more of her plot and character.

This book was archived before I had a chance to download it and read it.
I will not be able to publish a review online because I did not read it.

Sorry to say this but the notification for accepting my request came on 27th March while the book got archived on 26th March 2020. So I never got the book or the chance of downloading it.

Three friends grow up in a small Irish town where everyone knows everyone and everything about them. All 3 dream of getting away to Dublin or London and becoming famous. The advanced copy tended to jump around from character to character in a manner that was sometimes hard to follow. None of the characters were really developed to a point where one felt invested in them. An interesting book but not one that really made for a good read.

EXCELLENT! Loved this coming-of-age meets intense-female-friendships with a dark twist set in Ireland. Couldn’t put it down, sailed through to the end.

A lovely read of how a group of friends grow up from childhood to adulthood, very well written and thought-provoking book.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

3.5 stars

I think this captures so well,growing up in a small town,where everyone knows you.
The trio of friendship where someone is always at the bottom,and left out.
The struggle of starting out in the world and finding your feet,going home again,growing apart.
All of this was good.
I enjoyed the character of Katie,and to some extent her awful friend... a real love to hate character.

Thank you to Oneworld Publications and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book. This was a coming-of-age story about three Irish girls growing up in rural Ireland. I really liked the pacing of the story (spanning over a long period of time) and would say it reminded me of Sally Rooney's stories. I enjoyed each of the characters and found their descriptions quite distinct from one another.

"You Have to Make Your Own Fun Around Here" reads like a darker version of 'Derry Girls". It's a coming-of-age novel about 3 Irish girls growing up in the rural area of Ireland, where your best friends are chosen for you by proximity. I didn't know where the story was really going after reading the first 1/3 of the novel, then it got interesting when suddenly something sinister happened, but then it slowly drifted back to the baseline of the journey of the main character Katie. It's an interesting read in the sense that it's not like any other coming-of-age novel, it felt real and honest, but at times a bit flat.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For fans of Netflix’s “Derry Girls” and Sally Rooney’s “Normal People.” This is a novel about three friends growing up in a small community in rural Ireland. Following the girls, who have distinct personalities, from when they are children into their twenties, this story explores the complex dynamics of female friendships and how we see ourselves in relation to others, but also in their absence. Thank you to NetGalley and OneWorld Publications for the opportunity to review an advanced copy.

'Evelyn can give us strength, but she can steal it away from us too when she feels like it.'

Katie learns to make her own fun but always under the sway of the far more charismatic Evelyn, with Maeve completing the trio as someone Katie ‘endures’. Katie and Evelyn are the closer of the two in an unbalanced friendship based far more on convenience “there aren’t many children along our road, so there isn’t much choice” and on Katie’s envy of her bold, commanding ways. It is always through Evelyn the girls define themselves and no one more than Katie. Macken bares the painful dynamics of female bonds, when a girl is still an unformed thing, looking to others for clues of who she will become, often relying on another’s wisdom who seems to understand the world far better. A time when jealousies arise from pecking order of importance and friendships are as fevered as love. As with many small towns all the world over, someone is always the leader, the queen until someone more interesting comes along.

Evelyn can dish out mean criticisms, and understands the adult world far better than anyone. She is the authority on all things and she is Katie’s ticket to a brilliant future, they have big plans to leave the Irish town of Glenbruff when they’re old enough. But there are times when Evelyn can be overbearing, when Katie feels her inadequacy is exposed, usually by Evelyn. If she tries to be more, or get attention from a boy, no one can bring her down a peg better than her best friend. Yet Katie never fails to praise Evelyn, that is the best way to keep her close and happy.

Pamela is a threat, new on the scene, drawing all the attention that should be Evelyn’s. A talented dancer and pretty enough to have all the lads chasing her, naturally Evelyn can’t stomach her. “Life is exciting at the minute,” all this Maeve feels, and it’s all because of Pamela, throwing their small world into chaos, ruffling her cousin Evelyn’s feathers. Things change when Katie is forced to get to know Pamela which in turn tests her loyalty to Evelyn. There are disappearances and disappointments, secrets and lies. Too often we see people as they wish to be seen, rather than as they really are. Sometimes we hide behind other’s strength rather than searching within to discover our own. People have to earn confidences, and Pamela isn’t any different, has her escapades, secrets that Katie doesn’t understand, and may never get the chance to.

The future is upon them soon enough and with it broken promises, altered dreams. Katie has to learn to step out of her best friend’s shadow, to find out who she is and what she wants, needs. It requires distance from everything she has known but often when you leave it’s easier to ignore those you left. When you return, it is as if everyone has changed, or won’t let you be the person you’ve become and worse, accuses you of abandonment. Is it better to fold and let people tell you who you are or allow experience to ‘alienate you’ until you are chiseled into something new? Katie isn’t the only one trying to find herself, Maeve has a difficult history that comes into play as the girls grow up. Evelyn isn’t always as steady and sure as she seems, and Pamela… Pamela is a flicker, and yet comes to leave an indelible mark on the town.

It’s a quiet story about a small town in Ireland. There is a bit of a mystery and it isn’t solved in a flash. Much like real life, the truth is a long time in coming. After the incident occurs, time moves on, but the questions and wonder always hum beneath the town’s feet. Some are stunted, others flourish, it is about finding and understanding yourself and coping with the ways some friendships change you; how you both rely on and escape the people who may not be good for you. This is called growing up, and it can feel mean.

Publication Date: June 9, 2020

Oneworld Publications

Really enjoyed this book thank you. Vibrant, believable, characters and an absorbing plot. I will ensure I look out for this author in the future!

A lovely read a group of friends ,from childhood on their dreams their growing up following their lives paths and how their friendships mature and grow,Love the setting the people really enjoyed this novel.#netgalley#onewirldpublication.

It was unexpected how much I liked this book. The authors writing was plain, yet had depth of character that is hard to describe. Spanning a number of years is also a small mystery that in the end is unclear which is disappointing? Although we do eventually see the main character come to conclusions about herself and revelations that the reader could see much earlier. Thank you for the advance copy. A good winter book!

This review was made possible by the early copy of the story from netgalley

Three girls growing up from childhood to early adult hood and how their friendship manifests at different points.

This book was a pleasant glimpse into how we see ourselves in to relation to other people.

I was surprised at how .well it captures the fear of the early twenties, where their are not the bench marks of school to guide your decision making.