What happens when an estranged father and son unwittingly fall in love with the same woman?

That is exactly what happens to Harriet, who meets Tom, a regular customer at the café she works at, and his dad, radio presenter DJ Richard who she meets at ‘The Voice of London competition’.

Having just come out of a shambolic relationship, with cheating Damian aka ‘Cockweasel’. Harriet decides to take a chance on both men, not realising they are father and son, and by the time the truth is out, both Tom and Richard are deeply in love with Harriet, leaving her with an impossible choice.

Three’s A Crowd has a little bit of everything in there. As expected, it is a love triangle romance story, but with humour and mysteries thrown in. Themes in the book included relationships and breakups, career confidence, big life decisions and mental health illness.

Normally in novels with a triangular love story, I find myself having a favourite and see one lover as more worthy than another, but as the mysteries unravel throughout the book, it was very hard not to emphasise with everyone. I think this goes to show just how impeccable the way Simon Booker portrayed the characters was, and this does not only go for the main three protagonists, but also for the minor characters too. Nancy, Harriet’s hilarious Nan, and Gorgeous George, Richard’s runaway Dad, really added value to the story.

Overall, a light, humourful rom-com , which I would give 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a truly beautiful romantic comedy that I found impossible to put down.
The characters were all brought to life brilliantly and well developed. I found myself really liking each of them as individuals and could not wait to see how the love triangle would pan out as the book progressed.
The storyline is perfection and really keeps you engaged to the very end, full of laugh out loud moments alongside those that really warmed your heart, this was a delightful read!.

If you need a read that you will fly through and make you absolutely howl with laughter then look no further.
Reading the synopsis you’d never expect the subject matter to be so funny. Great book

I really enjoyed this book. It was fun, easy to read, I enjoyed all of the characters and their personalities. Would definitely recommend!

This was a lovely, romantic comedy that I couldn't seem to put down. Love triangles are one of the best book tropes, am I right!? So, I just had to know how the three was going to solve it in the end. I grew very fond of each character, who were beautifully written and developed. This is my first book of Simon's and most certainly won't be my last - his witty comedic writing really had me giggling to myself and was definitely my type of humour. I loved it very much!

Some will argue with me that you can enjoy a rom-com at any given time of the year but for me this is the best season to add some extra sweetness and love into my life and Three’s A Crowd certainly puts the sugar in my tea. I think I resist it most of the time but at the end of the year I can’t seem to get enough of it.

When I saw Simon Booker, the author, during a live Zoom session where several new books were announced for 2021 by publisher Simon & Schuster, I enjoyed his little quips and when he told us about his new book Three’s A Crowd, I knew it would contain that same type of humour and I wanted to read it as soon as I could. The book’s publication date is set for 24 August so you could say I really couldn’t wait to read it.

It all starts when Harriet meets Richard in the run-up for The Voice of London competition (to become the person who tells you to ‘Mind The Gap’) and she meets Tom in the coffee shop where she works as a barrista. Father and son don’t know of each other because they haven’t spoken to each other in a long time. The reason for the radio silence between them and their difficult relationship throughout Tom’s childhood was a mystery on its own and the revelations about the root of their astrangement certainly came as a big surprise and was definitely one of the best twists in this novel.

I know a lot of readers don’t really like a love triangle trope and although I don’t really mind as long as it doesn’t happen to me, you can rest assured Three’s A Crowd has a much lighter and funnier outlook on the whole love triangle trope. For one the whole ‘affair’ with the two men doesn’t go too deep and doesn’t get too complicated, on the contrary, it plays out on the same level field so that made it fun and I didn’t have to take sides to support whoever wasn’t winning. Tom and Richard were both interesting men with a good nature and with Harriet’s age right in the middle of them she could do well with both of them.

Three’s A Crowd has a little bit of everything, drama, mystery, love and well, the bottom line is that it is just fun to read. The story was engaging from the start and it was cute to see both men falling for Harriet and trying to be a perfect gentleman at every moment, being patient because they were playing the long game, patience thus being the key word.

A little word about the other characters who make Three’s A Crowd a very worthy read then. Age is just a number, Three’s A Crowd proves it! Gorgeous George, Richard’s father, is to put it quite frank an 80 year old gigolo trying to swindle his latest love interest Imelda for money by spinning her a story about an African gold mine… George is here and there and everywhere, except with his son who has cut him out of his life… And then there is one of the youngest of mind, Nan (Nancy), Harriet’s grandmother who is such a fun character to have come across and her advice to her granddaughter is priceless. It’s not really what you expect from a grandmother but I loved her one-liners!

3% in: “Like Nan says – try everything once except incest, folk dancing and bin juice.”

6% in: “… she listened to me wanging on about Cockweasel, took out her teeth then said, ‘The best way to get over a bloke is to get under a bloke.’ I like her style.”

The story kept me well entertained, it is certainly much more than a love story and quite enjoyable to read even if you’re not big on romance, and I’m satisfied with the way the story ended although I didn’t anticipate who she would choose/not choose. There were quite a few unexpected twists throughout the story and I did like that all the different storylines with the other characters, Nancy and Gorgeous George were thought out and were wrapped up nicely as well. It wouldn’t surprise me if I’d see this novel on screen at some point. I’d certainly watch it because it’s perfect rom-com material!

I thoroughly enjoyed every page. At heart it’s a story about messy family dynamics and the secrets that make it all that bit worse. I loved the characters and seeing the relationships between them develop and change over the course of the book. Funny and full of heart. Begging to be made into a rom com film.

Unable to review as for some reason Simon & Schuster UK have archived a batch of books for publication next year.

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This romantic comedy came with the unexpected twist of father and son being a part of a love triangle. The heroine is hard-pressed to decide which one is her true love. Highly recommended!