I feel ridiculously happy whenever I see that Mhairi McFarlane has a new book out and Mad About You did not disappoint.
As always, there are likeable characters, witty exchanges and a love interest but what makes this author's books so interesting is that she isn't afraid of including issues which affect many of us. In this book, Harriet is still dealing with the damage caused by an abusive relationship and how that has shaped her current relationship. It's hard not to empathise - and rejoice - with the women affected by Scott's abuse.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Yet another hit from Mhairi McFarlane. I always love her books because they're smart, well-written and touch on real life issues that anybody could face in their romantic lives. In this case, Harriet goes through a break-up with her perfectly normal boyfriend Jon and it unleashes a stream of almost impossible events. Harriet has a proper backstory and in-depth character development. I'd really recommend the book with the trigger warning that it does include references to coercive control.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley!

Mhairi wrote Last Night in 2021 and in return received my undying loyalty.
Mad About You is another fantastic book filled with British charm, wit and wonderful characters.
Like every Mhairi book, this one too is bound to make you cry and then laugh and finally *swoon*.


posting this on goodreads too! (because this book deserves all the love xx)

What a true gift it was to receive this ARC. Mhairi continues to produce words I want to spend ALL my time with.

Mad About You, while full of laughs, gags and heartache—delivered in true Mhairi fashion—felt a very different experience to me. I really enjoyed the book, I just feel that there was a little too much going on for any one thing to cause that big emotional punch. Regardless, it was subtle and steady and I still felt the highs and lows as intended.

I don’t want to spoil plot points, of that there were many, but Harriet had to face challenges in her past, present and future relationships. She doesn’t have a huge support network, she feels very lonely, but is forced to be brave. I loved Harriet, I’m not sure the time frame truly allowed for her to be ready to be as ‘in love’, as she was but I’ll absolutely take it.

It was all expertly woven together. I think, on reflection it’s really all okay—it just wasn’t what I’d expected. If you know me you know I want the romance and this was probably her least romantic book. The male hero didn’t get a ton of page time, but he was still amazing and I loved their moments together most of all.

Mhairi McFarlane’s books do not disappoint and this one was no exception! The writing style is so authentic and enjoyable - I read this book in a day!
The storyline is somewhat of a departure for her, tackling some all too real issues that are happening in this age of social media, but still has all the qualities you would expect from this author. I did however feel some parts were rushed towards the end but perhaps that’s because I didn’t want it to be over!

I always look forward to a new book by this author and this one certainly lived up to expectations.

Harriet, a wedding photographer who doesn’t believe in marriage. Cal, a runaway groom. Two unlikely friends. But when Harriet’s past comes calling and threatens to derail her life, Cal is there to support her every step of the way.

An excellent story which deals with the serious subject of emotional abuse with sensitivity and humour. With a great mix of characters, this was a great read

Another absolute 5 star read from Mhairi Mcfarlane!! All of her novels feature strong, independent women that I am desperate to be best friends with.
Harriet is a brilliant lead character, she’s just broken up with Mr-Right-On-Paper and moved in with a stranger. I loved her friendship with Lorna and Cal was written perfectly. The last quarter had me on the edge of my seat and I stayed up desperate to find out what had happened. I now have a serious book hangover from this one! A must read, then go back and read her others.
Thank you so much for this arc.

Mad About You is another excellent Mhairi McFarlane book. I’m pretty sure at this point, I’m guaranteed to love whatever she writes, and Mad About You was no different. From page one I was sucked in, and I read the entire thing in a single sitting.

There’s not a whole lot I can say different here to how I’ve reviewed McFarlane’s previous books, to be honest. Yes, it’s a different book, with a different story, but it’s also Mhairi McFarlane, with her signature beats. There’s the humour, the romance, the friendship, and the balance of the narrative as it treads along heavier topics—all of it ties together into a book which, although it might not be my outright favourite of McFarlane’s, is up there among them.

What I love best about Mhairi McFarlane’s books, really, is how distinct they all are from one another. Maybe this is a bit harsh a generalisation, but after 8 books, you might expect books to start blurring into one, particularly the characters. But none of that happens here. Harriet and Cal are as distinct as any of the mains of the previous books. They feel real, they jump off the page. This is a book you won’t be able to put down and it’s because of them.

And while this has similar themes to previous books, they have a new twist to them. This is, in part, because they’re viewed through different lenses—Cal and Hattie are both characters who’ll react differently to the events they experience than those before them. And, as ever, the story that is told is treated with kindness and gentleness.

All of which to say, this is a highly insufficient review to really get across just how much I loved this book. Perhaps it should have been wholly expected—I was always going to love it, and I was always going to struggle to find the words to explain exactly why.

Although it’d be nice if I could at least come up with a single synonym for “different”.

This was a truly cracking book, the second I’ve read lately that sees an awful, abusive man nearly succeed at stamping out the beautiful soul of the woman he’s trapped. It is great to see authors tackling the issue of emotional abuse and to explore how damaging it is and how isolated women can become. Thankfully Harriet, the star of this amazing novel, escaped before she completely disappeared and reading the story of her healing process is inspiring. Mhairi manages to weave entertainment and light heartedness in appropriate places too which is welcome and truly funny. I was enthralled by this story, her talent as an author shines from every page. Would absolutely recommend.

This was so, so, so good. Ms McFarlane has done it again.

This was a classic McFarlane story: witty, relatable heroine (with an equally witty and loveable best friend), and an interesting and gorgeous love interest, covering important issues but with McFarlane’s classic humour and charm.

I’ve always described McFarlane’s books as being very fleabag-esque: the way you will feel sucker punched by a plot point, and you feel awful but then she follows it up with such a funny line that you find yourself laughing even though you also feel like you want to cry. She manages to encase really difficult topics in light, witty writing that keeps the mood from sinking too far down.

There were many things that I loved about Mad About You. The fact that Ms Mhairi (nearly) always sets her books in the north. It’s such a rarity to read books not situated in London, and Leeds has a special place in my heart so this book was a dream.

McFarlane knows how to write heroines that aren’t stereotypically beautiful or ‘perfect’, but she never makes them out to be ‘not like other girls’ either. They feel real, and relatable, and they’re always, always, funny as hell. Harriet was interesting, flawed, funny, and i loved her.

This was a very raw book, a vulnerable book—i would look up content warnings before reading (I have included a short list at the bottom of my review), but it covers such an important issue with tact and great care.

My one critique is that this s less of a romance story, and more a story with a romance sub-plot. Harriet and Cal’s relationship happens slowly and more in the back ground than as the main plot device. It was still there, and I really enjoyed watching their journey, but it was definitely not the focal point of this story.

Five whole stars from me!


Content Warnings:
gaslighting
Emotional abuse
Parental death (occurred before the events of the story)

I've been a fan of Mhairi's work since her first novel, discovered completely by accident in an Amazon deal.

Her writing is always sharp and witty, and every one of her characters shines brightly off the page, grabbing your attention and keeping you reading. It's fair to say that the characters are so consistently well written that the end of a book feels like you have left a close acquaintance behind. She's often labelled under the 'Romance' category, but there is so much more to this writing than that.

'Mad About You' was a very quick read for me, purely because I didn't want to put it down. A real combination of joy, cracking one liners and moments of real emotion.

If you haven't read one of her novels before, you really should.

When wedding photographer Harriet Hatley's life unexpectedly turns upside down, she finds herself moving into a house with Cal Clarke. They share a brief but strange past connection, something Harriet is horrified by. But as they live together, Harriet begins to realise that her first impression of Cal isn't what it seems, all while Harriet confronts the reality of two of her ex-boyfriends. Both of who crop back up in Harriet's life with the potential to really damage her reputation. Can Harriet face the past in order to save her future?

I really enjoyed reading this, Mhairi always write with such warmth and humour, even when tackling difficult situation. She reminds me of Marian Keyes in that way. This has a number of trigger warnings, such as gaslighting and emotional abuse. The ending is a bit fantastical, but honestly sometimes you just have to go with something that's a bit OTT, treat it like a romcom film!

Speaking of romance, there is a romance plot in this but it's not really the centre of the story. It's more about Harriet dealing with lots of elements of her past, her parents dying when she was a child, and it's also about friendship. How some grow over time, some fade away and how new friendships bloom. The friend most at the core of this is Lorna, who was a lovely side character.

I read this in two days as it was just the perfect thing to pick up in a long January, but you'll enjoy this any time of the year if you're looking for a comforting warm story

I am a huge fan of Mhairi McFarlane, having enjoyed every one of her fabulous novels so far. She has a way of immersing the reader in a romantic world whilst also weaving the narrative with more serious and thought provoking issues. Her last novel 'Last Night' pushed closer to the weightier issues than previous novels, a trend which is once again evident with 'Mad About You'. The cover and blurb promises us a romance, which is delivered with our heroine Harriet and her landlord Cal, but this feels like a sub plot of Harriet's journey.

The main thrust of the story sees Harriet breaking up with her boyfriend, Jon, as he attempts to trap her with a proposal he knows she does not want. Hence, her fleeing and moving in with Cal without having ever met him in person. What follows is a story of Harriet finding her way in the world, orphaned very young and still suffering the trauma of a past emotionally abusive relationship, she has a lot to learn about loving herself and allowing herself to be loved by others unconditionally, whether this be in friendship or a romantic partnership. There are certainly some heavy moments, with different strands of the narrative not always necessarily easily flowing, but the overriding sense of kickass girl power in the novel left me very satisfied.

Overall, a worthy addition to McFarlane's catalogue. I would have liked to see more development and prominence given to Harriet and Cal's romance but this was certainly a full and emotionally charged plot. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I've loved every book Mhairi has written and this one is no different. I told myself I'd stretch it out over a week to make it last but got so engrossed in Harriet's story that I read it all in one sitting! This is a great story of female friendship, revenge and unexpected love. I was rooting for Harriet and Cal and was thrilled by the ending.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy.

A quick and easy read that I found myself picking up after a long day to unwind. The characters are beautifully written and I came to love them within the first few pages and was rooting for them all the way to the end. At times I wanted to stop reading because I just wanted the experience to go on for longer.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Harriet is a wedding photographer who hates weddings, so when her boyfriend Jon proposes to her in front of his (terrible) family, she knows they are over. A series of events lead to her moving in with Cal - a groom from a wedding she previously photographed who left the bride at the alter. After an awkward realisation, Harriet promises to find somewhere else to live asap. But then her deepest secret is revealed and the life she built comes crashing down around her.

Tropes: Forced Proximity, slow burn, found family.

TW: Abusive relationships, gaslighting, cheating.

Overall feel: Think The Other Woman meets Flatshare.

I will read anything Mhairi McFarlane writes. I have never not enjoyed one of her books and this is one of my favourites so far!

Before anything else, I will say that this is definitely more contemporary fiction than a romance. I was slightly disappointed in the romance of this book. It was a bit rushed and the epilogue seemed to come out of no where (Harriet doesn't want to get married, but then gets married to Cal when the reader has barely seen them together). Going into this, don't expect the romance to be the main plot and I think you will enjoy it a lot more!

Now the only negative is out of the way, let me talk about why I really enjoyed this book. The characters in this were brilliantly written. I loved Harriet as a main character. I found her really relatable and routed for her throughout. It is always really impressive when authors make you truly despise certain characters whilst also showing that they are human, and Mhairi did this with several (looking at you Roxie, Jon and Jon's mum - all characters that we all know from our day to day lives and cannot stand).

This book also discussed hard topics really sensitively (see trigger warnings) and balanced them out with genuine laugh-out-loud funny moments. This was an enjoyable but emotional read throughout, and I would really recommend you pic this up!

As a wedding photographer, Harriet Hatley is happy to share in the merriment of the different couples days, Her own thoughts on marriage? Not for her, thank you very much, So when her then-boyfriend asks him to marry him in front of his family (who she doesn't really get on with) she reluctantly says yes - only until they reach their hotel room and she calls it off and time on their relationship. Having let their failing relationship go on for too long, each time she approached the subject he'd blindside her with a holiday, dinner out etc.

Finding a room to rent she moves out, sight unseen after the landlord was happy with a telephone conversation. Although as his best friend arrives it is clear that their paths have crossed before. Sam being the best man at a wedding the didn't happen and her new landlord is the runaway groom. Overhearing a conversation between the two of them it is clear that Cal isn't happy about the connection. Even more so when her ex Jon arrives frunk and punches Cal.

If this weren't bad enough she is brought face to face with another ex at a wedding. having escaped his gaslighting and abusive ways she reaches out to his current fiance which has consequences for Harriet. A journey through parental loss, abusive relationships, speaking up and friendships. Takes a while to get into it as it rehashes things from the past but a good book nevertheless.

A very enjoyable read, a quick easy read which I would recommend, it’s nice to get a book that captures the imagination ..

This book was like a silent assassin, a steady enough read about Harriet splitting with her boyfriend and moving into a house share with newly single Cal until bam around halfway through the real story starts and boy it was good. This was a very insightful read with a very relevant storyline and the way Mhairi McFarlane wrote this giving the reader the opportunity to get to know Harriet, her friends and her background before adding in a huge missing chunk made for some really heartbreaking chapters. This really does pack a punch and I was really gripped by the depth of it, there’s some great female solidarity and yes underneath all that the story I was expecting, that of Harriet and Cal.

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

This author does not miss and her books only get better as she goes along. Easy five stars. I would read this author if she wrote the weather report. Mhairi McFarlane gets love and unusual women.