The concept of this book was incredible. I loved the idea of giving power to the singletons - finally we're not the ones who have to pay extra for everything. It was super clever and what really drew me into this book, and what made me down everything and want to read.

Ben was my favourite character, he was loveable and immediately so endearing. I was drawn into him as a character from the moment he was introduced which is so important with a story like this.

I did find that the editorial lagged in places, Millie was a little too caricature, and her romance with Ben was clear from the very first moment - but it took until 80% for anything to actually happen, which made their interactions quite repetitive by the 3rd quarter of the book. From the moment we meet Millie, it was clear that she didn't want the life that she'd been living, she was so type-A yet didn't seem to have the gumption to pull off the idea of her being this ambitious career woman with such a strict way to live her life.

I also wanted to see more from her friendships, June is quite present but Ruth and Ali get lost on the page. I'd have loved to see different layers to this group, and further conversations around their lives rather than just about couples and singletons.

The idea of this story, and the clever way that Slide was used throughout the book, makes me give this five stars, but overall the romance needed to come alive a little more and I wanted to see some more layers between the characters.

I'll continue to read more from Helly Acton though, she's made it clear that she's a star on the rise, with genius concepts and ideas.

So Helly Acton is a new author to me although I have seen her last book The Shelf everywhere and so fancied giving her new book a read.

I really loved the characters and the concept of The Couple for being alternative. I found it a charming, entertaining and fairly lighthearted book and I would recommend it to others.

I absolutely LOVED this book! The concept, a world where being in a couple is classed as weird and being single is the norm, and all that comes with it, is already genius, but Hellys characters are so well written and believable. The male character, Ben, will be my number 1 book boyf for a long time to come.

So funny and entertaining. My favourite book of the year so far

I adored The Shelf and so I was so ready to snap this up from Helly Acton as soon as I saw it announced on NetGalley. In a world where being in a couple is seen as weakness, Millie is sure that she’ll never fall in love. With a life plan since she was 16 that centres on becoming Chief Creative Officer at her company, she has everything worked out. Until her new colleague, Ben, starts and she isn't so sure anymore if her life plan is what she wants. I loved this idea that dreams change and that's okay, especially when you've spent your entire life working towards it.

The main thing I loved about this book is it advocates for choice. As a woman, any choice you make is bound to be the wrong one for many people, and fighting against social pressure to make the right choices for you is a difficult thing to tackle every day. This book was exactly in Helly’s vein of topical, touching and engaging style. I loved it!

Full review to be posted on my blog next week.

This had a really interesting concept, one that I hadn't seen done before, being set in a world where being single for the entirety of your life is the societal norm.
As someone who has been single their entire life, this was a nice change when it comes to the ways in which single adults are routinely painted.
And the whole notion of a pill that stops you from falling in love and the ways in which the PR company are looking to advertise it was incredibly well done and thought provoking.
But the rom com itself was pretty standard.
As soon as she meets Ben you just know that they are going to be together (in a couple) by the end.
I'm also not sure that her friends have quite the same levels of characterisation as Millie or Ben, which is a bit of a let down when Millie interacts with them regularly. Even Sasha felt like more of a well rounded character than them and she was meant to be the villain of the piece.
It was well written even though the ARC had quite a few errors (spelling, grammatical and spacing issues) so hopefully that will be resolved before the book is officially published.
I haven't read Helly Acton's other book, The Shelf, but I will definitely be seeking that out next and look forward to reading what she does next.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Having recently read The Shelf by Helly, I couldn't WAIT to get my hands on her new offering to us readers!

I love how a simple idea, that we class as 'normal' to our everyday life, is taken and totally twisted around to give us such an opposite outlook on what we as society, define as 'right'.

"Falling in love won't be a choice if you create a cultural belief that says that love stops you from succeeding at school, in your career, in your social life. It's not a choice when you're made to feel defective if your decision is different to everyone else's"

And with that one quote, Acton manages to show us very clearly just how much, we as humans take into account 'what is embarrassing' , when it comes to our life choices!
As someone 'in a couple', I found it really interesting to take into account both sides of the arguments made in the book. In an ideal world, normal would be what each individual defines as such, not what society deems is 'correct'. Which is why this story was so much fun to read!

This book will make you laugh your heart out, sit and ponder the meaning of it all and have you racing through the pages to see what happens next.

I absolutely loved the premise for this book, nicely introduced by the author at the start. This is a really ambitious and interesting, thought-provoking, funny, love story. And the package is brilliant. Would recommend.

I'm afraid this is one I just couldn't get into. The opening scene with the waitress who couldn't be bothered to do her job just left me cold - it wasn't a great start. I had to force myself to keep going. Wasn't quite sure what I was meant to get out of this book: didn't find it funny or entertaining or heart-warming.

Millie is a perfectionist. She's happy, she's successful - and, with a great support network of friends and family (and a very grumpy cat) around her, she's never lonely. She has her dream job at a big tech firm and is on track to become the company's youngest ever Innovation Director. The last thing she needs is romance messing up her perfectly organised world.

Besides, normal people just don't have romantic relationships. Everyone knows that being in a couple is a bit . . . well, odd. Sure, everybody has that one coupled-up friend who messes up the numbers at dinner parties, but it's a bit eccentric. You know, like having a pet snake or living off the grid. Why rely on another person for your own happiness? Why risk the humiliation of unrequited love or the agony of a break-up when you can do everything yourself? No, Millie is perfectly happy with her conventional single life.

So when Millie lands a new project at work, launching a pill that stops you falling in love, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. That is, until she starts working with Ben. He's charming and funny, and Millie feels an instant connection with him. Is this the spark that science and society are trying to suppress?

This is a heart-warming and thoughtful read. As funny as Acton's debut The Shelf, this book will make you query the set ideas that society has set upon us. Loved it, have already been recommending it to others.

This is a highly entertaining read.

A unique story with a brilliant concept. The author flips the world of dating on its head. The idea of being in a couple becomes strange and almost wrong in this novel, being single is the preferred option and is actually encouraged.

Millie, who is our main protagonist, is content with life. She has great friends, she's near to reaching her career goal, she is happy.

Well that's what she thought, until Ben turns up. The more she works with him, the more she starts to feel.

Can love really be that bad?

This is a smart, engaging and though provoking novel. A romance, but not as we know it. A refreshing read with some hilarious dialogue and a storyline that gives us a new outlook on love.

The Couple- Helly Acton
I found this a really enjoyable read. I was slightly confused at the start as it wasn’t clear if the ideas of the society were purposely extreme or just were supposed to be accepted. Once I realised it was indeed a reversed society, I felt far more comfortable and enjoyed it a lot. I do feel that the ending was a bit rushed and the last third was a little jumpy as if the author was being told to wrap it up before the characters were ready.
Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the concept and the almost satirical feeling to it, it made me think about our own society whilst maintaining a really light-hearted approach. I defiantly recommend this one as it has a great mix of familiarity we expect as readers with the genre, but also is a really unique concept and felt even slightly dystopian because of it, especially with the inclusion of oxytoxin.
I will definitely read Helly Acton again and I feel that is one of the best compliments I can give it! I definitely think she will be a go-to author along with Talia Hibbert and Isobel Hart.

Firstly, I really want to thank @netgalley and the publishers for granting me access to this AMAZING book!

I absolutely adored The Couple. The characters are so relatable and lovable and the plot is completely genius! This book has a very dystopian feel to it, in the sense that being single is the idealistic lifestyle so that you can focus on yourself and your career, and being in a couple is frowned upon by many parents (and society in general). The world building was so perfectly thought out I could go on for hours about it! I loved the twist on song titles and game show names (‘Single Me Out’!). It was overall just so cleverly written!

I also really enjoyed seeing how people handle their relationships in this world. It was so interesting seeing Millie and Ben meet different family dynamics and different reasons people wanted to take the pill. This book was simply a ridiculously addictive page-turner. I can’t wait for it to be released on 21st May so I can read it again in its physical form 🤩

Please add this book to your TBR! And read The Shelf by Helly Acton if you haven’t already, too!

I’ve given The Couple ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Millie, 29, works for ‘Slide’ the worlds fastest growing no strings attached sex app in a world where singledom is the norm and couples are scorned. Ben joins the company and the pair have to work on creative ideas for the launch of Oxytoxin, a pill that is an antidote to love so a perfect ‘ partner’ for Slide.

This is such an entertaining read and it makes really valid points as you progress through. The characters are so good, though not all likeable - yes, you Sasha. Millie is intriguing in her devotion to being in control, her desire for a timetable and singledom. Ben is her polar opposite, he’s funny, random, clumsy, has a liking for hangman and crosswords and zero filter which of course makes him so lovable. What develops is witty, funny, some of it is cheesy on occasions, at times maybe a bit corny but overall it’s just such good fun. The idea of Oxytoxin appalls which allows for some toe curling at the thought and with some of the research they carry out. The reality TV show ‘Single Me Out’ is equally the curling but then it’s reality TV (😁😏😉) and a send up of Love Island. I really like how Helly Acton has turned the world on its head in this novel (her introduction is so worth reading) with tax breaks for singles and parodies like St Bridget’s Day on February 2nd. It’s not one sided either as characters such as Ruth are in a couple. The message? Blow what society thinks or judges to be acceptable, go with your own flow and no one else’s, do whatever suits you personally and whatever choice you make is absolutely fine and nobody else’s business. Amen to that.

Overall, I really enjoy the spin and thoughts to mull on in this novel, it’s engaging, well written with whip smart dialogue and very easy to read. Another good one from the author and she’s one whose books I will always want to read.

With thanks to NetGalley and Bonnier Books, Zaffre for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

The Couple by Helly Acton
I give this book 4.25 stars
Millie is happy & successful with her dream job at a big tech firm and great family & friends. The last thing she needs is romance messing up her perfectly organised world.
Normal people just don't have romantic relationships.Everyone knows that being in a couple is a bit . . . well, odd
Millie lands a new project at work, launching a pill that stops you falling in love, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. That is, until she starts working with Ben!

This book has such an entertaining and refreshing concept and is pieced together by believable characters. It is well written with great pace.and also clever as it makes you stop and think while at the same time providing you with great humour.
An immensely readable and highly recommended light fiction book from an author who has become a firm favourite of mine
With thanks to Netgalley,Helly Acton and Bonnier Books for my chance to read and review this book.

I read Helly Acton’s first book and had mixed feelings about it. I feel completely differently about ‘The Couple’. My feelings about ‘The Couple’ are completely uncomplicated - I loved it!
I really enjoyed the upside down world where being in a couple was considered unusual and weird, and the small details Acton added to make it more realistic (the song titles were great).
I did think Millie’s friendship group and company were aggressively judgemental, but I suppose they were representing the general population and their feelings about couples.
I really recommend this book if you need an escape to another world right now, and to all book lovers in general!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

An incredibly fascinating concept where society is anti-couple and loving yourself with "slide" hook ups is the norm. Slide is like Uber of the dating world and couples are shunned for their habits.
Millie works for a company introducing a pill that stops you falling in love and has to pitch it for a chance of promotion with a colleague.
I loved that our "normal" was completely turned upside down and how that world looked was captivating. The story of Millie and Ben is unusual too. I like the richness of Ben being Welsh, and living in Wales myself I like the different places they explored and could imagine it well.
Cheeky, fun. morally challenging for the characters and what lengths people will go to for the job they want. Light, but with an interesting resounding message.
Thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend.

After reading Helly Acton’s first book, The Shelf, I was excited to be offered an advanced readers copy of her second book, The Couple.

‘The Couple’ tells the story of Millie, a perfectionist whose career is everything to her along with her friends, who needs romance to complicate that? In a world where being in a couple is seen as, well a bit odd, she is perfectly happy living her own life, not having to consider anyone else, do what she wants when she wants. So when the opportunity presents itself at work for a new project promoting a pill that prevents people from falling in love, it seems like the perfect chance for her to get that promotion she’s been working towards. That is until she’s paired up to work with new colleague Ben...

Whilst I don’t rate this as high as ‘The Shelf’, I did enjoy it but I did struggle to get my idea around the concept of a world where couples were deemed as abnormal and taxed more etc just for being two people together. Once you do understand this alternative way of thinking the story uncovers itself as a classic love story, who in the end, must make the choice between the perceptions of what should be and what actually makes people happy. The underlying messages of not caring what others think, doing what makes you happy, not always pleasing others etc are also a nice addition. A good read and would be interested to continue to read more from this author in the future.

Based in a slightly alternative reality in which our relationship norms are flipped and it’s far more common to be single with couples regarded as unusual, this was a thought-provoking and heartwarming read. Millie is in her 30s and very focused on her career, actively discouraged by her friends and mother from pursuing a relationship. Millie has felt the same until a new colleague starts to challenge her perception of relationships... I loved the protagonist, Millie; her potential love interest and her friends - these were engaging and interesting characters and I felt very absorbed in their world! I couldn’t put this book down and am excited to read more from Helly Acton.

Genre: Adult Fiction | Romance | General Fiction

Release Date: 27th May 2021


Millie Jones in on track. She's so close to being promoted, working on the worlds leading hook-up app, she's surrounded by an amazing group of friends and a very cute but very grumpy cat to keep her company. Blissfully single, Millie knows there is no lonliness in being alone.

Now the opportunity of a lifetime has fallen in her lap and she's working on something that's going to change the world - Oxytoxic. A pill scientifically proven to block your brain from falling in love. It sounds perfect, this could be the key to her success - until she starts working with Ben. In a world where romantic relationships are viewing as not only inconvenient but shameful and just odd - can Millie seperate her heart and her head and figure out if love could ever be worth it?

The universe that Helly Acton has created here is just amazing - throwing our world in the trash and showing us one where not being single is just weird - relationships are not normal. It's harder to rent a flat, you're not welcome in single spaces, your financial security is always at risk along with almost everything else in your life. After all, why would anybody want to be so dependent on another person? To be so restricted in your sexual and social life? To risk distraction from your own wants and needs? Or to ever let yourself feel heartbreak?

In a world where people ask, "Are you single yet?", and tell you, "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll find yourself and break up soon!" - this was a dynamic, refreshing take on the the societal views of singledom, and how relationships should be an addition to life and never a requirement. Stripping away the shame single or sexually explorative people are expected to feel, fetishes are a normal part of a life and to explore sexual partners is just a normal part of being a liberated adult.

I fell in love with Millie right away and felt every confused moment of this story right alongside her. Witty, engaging and the actual definition of a page-turner.

Also, any book that contains the words "Goose Springsteen" is absolute gold - you're just going to have the read the book yourself to find out why!
RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to Helly Acton and Bonnier Books UK for an ARC in return for an honest review.

I adored Helly’s debut novel The Shelf last year, and this, her second novel is absolutely fantastic too!

In The Couple we meet Millie, a happy and successful woman working at a big technology firm for an app called Slide, who is on track to be promoted to her dream role of Chief Creative Officer. With her perfectionist nature, the last thing she wants or needs is any kind of romance changing her organised world. And everyone knows that normal people just don’t have romantic relationships and being in a couple is just a bit odd! Therefore, when Millie is given a project at work to help launch a new pill, Oxytoxin, which prevents you from falling in love at all, it seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. And it could even lead to that dream CCO role! But, when new guy Ben is asked to work alongside Millie on the project, things are no longer as straightforward. He is charming, funny, kind and Millie feels an instant connection to him causing her to question everything she believes in, and has done for so many years...

I loved how unique this book is in terms of flipping our current society norms of being in a couple as ‘the thing to do’ because instead here, being single is what is expected. Those in a couple are almost seen as being other/strange and the Government impose many financial penalties on those people who do choose to be in a couple, like charging more for rent and health insurance! I really liked reading Helly’s author note at the beginning of the book setting out the background for why she wanted to write this story too and found The Couple to be a really empowering and a thought provoking read.

Millie is a brilliant main character and I loved getting to follow her journey as the story progressed. She has fabulous friends in Ruth, June and Al and they have so many hilarious interactions throughout the book and there are some great one liners! Millie’s Mum is also a really funny lady and I loved it when Millie and June would spend time with her. She absolutely says what she thinks and I loved that!

I also adored all of Millie’s interactions with new colleague Ben. He was just so lovely, kind, thoughtful and funny and with that Welsh accent, I am sure I would have been hooked on him too! I liked all of the little puzzle messages he would send to Millie too! He is 100% the kind of person who would brighten any office!

There were so many clever details throughout this story, like the Slide app, the Oxytoxin pill, the venture Ruth embarks on (I don’t want to give anything away about this, but I really loved it and the name) and even St Bridget’s Day on 2nd February to celebrate single people everywhere! It’s such a brilliant and clever book although I am very glad it’s fiction as something so permanent as the Oxytoxin pill is kind of scary (but amazing to have in a story)!

I didn’t want this book to end as I enjoyed it so much and the ending brought the biggest smile to my face. I will be recommending The Couple to everyone and cannot wait to see what Helly writes next!