Fern and Jessica used to be the best of friends as teenagers. Now in their 30s, they haven't seen each other in over a decade when Jessica turns up at an event Fern is hosting. Fern is shocked at first but gets swept up in nostalgia when they meet again to catch up. However Fern is unsure about letting Jessica back into her life, if she's fully forgiven her for the events that lead to their friendship ending all those years ago. Can she forgive Jessica and enjoy having her back in her life or will all those feelings that have been raked up taint Fern and the rest of her life?

The book is told in alternating chapters, the present and then the past. In the past, we see how Fern and Jessica became friends, the ups and downs they have along the way, navigating the difficulties of being a teenage girl. Holly Bourne has a knack of nailing authenticity when it comes to the secret, dark thoughts a lot of people have. Both in her adult and YA books, this one in particular I felt really connected to some of the flashback chapters, set in the early 2000s as that's when I was a teenager. The little details really made it for me, I laughed when she mentioned logging in and out of MSN Messenger to get the attention of some boy!

Fern and Jessica have this complex relationship, the best of friends but Fern feels so inferior next to Jessica. I like that we can see both characters have their flaws. Even though Fern is the protagonist and we see things from her point of view, you do feel sorry for Jessica at times. Their friendship is one a lot of women feel, the jealousy, the resentment; the laughter and support. How it can be amazing but at times have this toxic undercurrent. It's a really well executed tale of female friendships.

The book covers a lot of heavy subject matters, such as self-harm, suicide, rape, sexual violence, toxic masculinity, drug use. But it never felt like a chore reading it, it's really well paced. That said, I could see why this book may be very triggering to people. Though I think Bourne does a good job at highlighting problematic events and how even Fern knows at times how damaging her behaviour is but can't make herself stop.

Fern and Jessica were best friends from the age of fourteen to eighteen. Growing up in the early 00s, they navigated teenager life together, riding the good with the bad. But then something happened, and Fern broke off the friendship for good during her first year of uni. Now more than 10 years later, Jessica is back and Fern struggles with accepting her back into her life. Can their relationship really be that different now they're both adults, or will all those insecurities if early teenage life coming looming back to haunt them both?

I'm surprised by how much I really enjoyed this. It's a heavily character driven story, centering around Fern - a woman in her early 30s who's on the verge of settling down with the love of her life, Ben and seeing her journalism career really take off after a blog post on mental health goes viral. Fern struggled a lot with her mental health as a teen, relying heavily on her best friend Jessica - yet also harbouring some deep seated resentment for her at the same time. She's always perceived Jessica as the beautiful friend, the one all the boys loved, and when Jessica comes crashing back into her life it reopens this massive bag of insecurities. She'll never be as attractive as Jessica, as desirable, ant this leads to some massive self reflection of Fern's part.

There's a lot of discussion about violence against women here, and what it was like to grow up in the early 00s surrounded by this culture of tearing women down. If you didn't already have a complex about men's behaviour towards women before reading this, be prepared to have one by the end. Holly Bourne really lays it all out here about how men treat women, how women treat other women and how one person's perspective may not be the same as another's. All the times growing up when you went out clubbing and some random person touched you inappropriately, when you tried to change yourself for a boy, when you thought yourself to be worthless if no one wanted to go out with you... Honestly so many of my own insecurities as a teenager were stripped bare here that I felt a really connection to Fern and Jessica. I've been those girls, I've lived that experience myself, and yes I probably have the same traumas.

Holly Bourne was written a wonderful novel with interesting yet deeply flawed characters that expertly describe what life was really like growing up in the 2000s, and how those insecurities have followed us into our 30s.

I’m a huge fan of Holly Bourne’s Young Adult books. This one started a little slow for my liking but once I got into it I enjoyed it as much as her other works. As always it had an important message to purvey

Fern is a thirty-odd mental health editor for Gah! website, a suicide survivor and a feminist. Fern's best friend is Jessica from their schooldays who has just appeared on the show Fern is hosting despite them not having spoken for a decade. Jessica has moved back to the country from America with her daughter, seven-year-old Bridget, after her divorce. The reasons for the two friends' estrangement still lurk and as their lives start to re-entwine, Fern wonders if the past is coming back to haunt her.

This novel is powerful, smart, sharp, sad and amusing. The author depicts really well the emotional turmoil lots of young women experience as they come of age and the complexities of female friendships. Insecurity, angst, fear, anxiety, judgement, and pleasing others are examined or touched on. Girl Friends will resonate with many.

This review was written voluntarily and my rating was in no way influenced by the fact that I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel from Hodder & Stoughton via NetGalley.

I've been a fan of Bourne's writing - specifically her adult novels - for a few years now. I think she absolutely nails the feeling (and internal thoughts) of being a teenage girl / young woman growing up in the early 00s in the UK and I find her characters incredibly relatable.

Holly Bourne's latest offering will be unlikely to disappoint existing fans. This is a pacy and engaging portrayal of an intense teenage friendship and how the fallout of this relationship impacts upon the protagonist in her adult relationships (particularly those with men). Sometimes it hit a little close to home and my own teenage insecurities I thought I'd long left behind, but this is only a testament to how good the writing is! Recommended.

Despite the rave reviews which tempted me into requesting this book from Net Galley I am afraid it was not for me quite slow and dragged out and unfortunately did not hold my attention.

What an INCREDIBLE and insightful look into female friendships!

Girl Friends looks at the friendship between two girls at two different stages of their life. The story chart the ups and downs of their experiences as they support one another and then drift apart.

This was so well written, and was tender and effecting in some moments, while in others it was a love song to the 90s.

I do wish the trigger warnings were more prominent though!

I've heard 'Girl Friends' described as page-turning and thought-provoking, and I feel this is exactly right! Also if you were a teenager in the UK in the early to mid-naughties, the period details are bang on accurate: Jansport backpacks, getting wasted underage at parties and festivals, and the casual and accepted misogyny from your so-called boy peers. It's not just a book about my teenage years, it's like looking right through a window directly into those years, with both the rose-tinted nostalgic bits, and the horrible, hard-to-look-at bits too.

Then the present-day thread perfectly shows the long-term impact of living through that era: how we are all the product of our upbringing and the times we lived through, how that affects relationships, your self-worth and your feelings about relationships.

This isn't just a novel; it's a commentary and a critique of our society (not just men), with a small flash of hope that we've somehow progressed since that time. Holly Bourne is a fantastically talented author, and 'Girl Friends' is no exception.

Meet Fern: Mental health editor for Gah, suicide survivor, fierce advocate, feminist, fan of swearing and a walking ball of anxiety.

Meet Jessica: Ferns best friend from their youth, who has just appeared at the talk show she's hosting after years apart. And despite the decade between them, it's like no time has passed. Jessica has just moved back to the country with her daughter after a chaotic divorce, but she's still as magnetic and beautiful as ever.

But between all the smiles and love, the real reasons for their estrangement still hangs in the air around them. So as their lives start to entwine once again, Fern can't help but wonder if the past is coming back to haunt her all over again.

"Staying alive came first, friendships second. I was yet to discover how much the two were entwined."

Holly did it again. With her patented wit and candour, she has once again captured the feminist rage and frustration that so many of us feel but struggle to vocalise. These books give words to the things I've been trying to say and provide me with such catharsis and validation. Bourne said a quote by Atwood was one of the inspirations for her third adult novel; "You are a woman with a man inside watching a woman. You are your own voyeur." - and I have never understood that quote more.

When we meet Fern, she is worried about selling out and dealing with some seriously bad PMS. Immediately, I fell in love with her sweary, bold personality, finding myself painfully laughing at the awful situations she finds herself in. And then when Jessica dances in, looking polished and perfect despite the chaos in her life I couldn't help finding a bit of myself in both of them.

We jump between their lives as they reconnect and their formative years, building a picture and watching as their lives take shape with a beautifully easy flow that brings us closer to the characters in the most intimate ways. We get to see the things they don't talk about in the present, about the struggles that stole their childhoods, about the reality of being a young girl and of course, the real reasons they stopped speaking. The entire story moves fluidly, almost conversationally, each tiny detail adding to the deep understanding we develop with Fern and Jessica.

Insightful and thoughtful, this book gives a deep, intersectional commentary on female friendship and identity - and how it can be influenced by the outside world, one that is created for and by men. Not only about how the patriarchy can poison every aspect of our lives, but how easy it is let it happen without even noticing.

Painfully funny and relatable, this tender story is above all a love story. A love story for women, and the beautiful connections that link us all together.

"A man can't ever understand a woman like another woman can - especially the women who knew you as a girl."

Thank you to NetGalley, Holly Bourne and the publisher for providing me with an E-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

As a long-time reader of Holly Bourne, I was excited to read this and was not disappointed! The way she approached complex topics throughout this was handled delicately. It also highlights how much of a clouded view of friendships and relationships you can have as a teenager, and it's not until you mature that you realise how toxic and traumatic it actually was. I could not recommend it enough!

So this is the second Holly Bourne book I've read this year - and what I can say is that these books really get you thinking and reflecting. I thought I knew Fern's friend Jessica from about halfway through the book, I thought I had her sussed - turns out so did Fern. Then somewhere towards the end, Holly flips the script - lets look through the lens a little differently shall we? This is what this author does best, she scoops up a social issue/consensus/ commentary and says: "Have we looked at this from every angle? The full 360 degrees?"

We all had those friends at school that we thought we had sussed, the stereotypical (carbon copy up and down the secondary schools of the country) friends who we knew would act a certain way. This is what happens - Fern is in her 30's when she is reunited with an old friend, Jessica, who she hasn't seen since university days. What pulled them apart, and why, becomes apparent as the book progresses - but can the friendship be repaired, have they both matured enough to have moved on and find a way to re-establish a trusted friendship?

Ultimately this is another totally relatable narrative on life, trust and friendships. Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the advanced proof copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

This was so much more than I was expecting from a book - huge congratulations to Holly Bourne for writing a book about female friendship that encapsulates so much about the pressure on young women as they navigate their way through teenage years into adulthood.

Fern is in her 30s, a successful mental health writer, training to be a counsellor, living with her partner - she has it all together. Her teenage best friend Jessica reappears in her life after over a decade, and the two spark up their friendship again, but it brings up memories for Fern that she thought she'd buried deep, memories of teenage days when Fern was insecure about who she was, what she looked like, whether boys would ever like her - the usual teenage worries. But as a teenager, Jessica didnt have any of the same angst, she was confident, beautiful, boys all wanted to go out with her. The book is told from Fern's perspective, and jumps between the teenage years to now, where some of the old anxieties are rearing their head. I absolutely loved Fern's character, I felt a lot of connection with her, we've all had friends like Jessica who make us feel inadequate just by being there - though its all in our heads really.

What made this stand out from other books about female friendships is the attention given to the pressure that we are all under as women , the objectifying nature of society, what you should look like, how you should act, what you should be portraying at all times- and then how freeing it can be when you can shed that. Lots to think about. Loved it.

Believe me when I tell you I absolutely devoured this book.

Girl Friends is told from the point of the view Fern, exploring her life now in her 30s alongside her teenage years and experiences. All centered around one thing... her friendship with Jessica and how this impacts her view of herself and the world.

Holly Bourne explores female friendships in a way that was so poignant and relevant I felt as if I was living the experience alongside both Fern and Jessica. Her discussions around feminism were weaved seamlessly throughout the novel and she handled triggering topics with such grace (please do check trigger warnings before reading).

This was my first Holly Bourne novel and it most definitely will not be my last!

I feel really, really conflicted about this book and ummed and ahhed between three or four stars. I've enjoyed most of Holly Bourne's women's fiction books and absolutely sped through this one. The alternating chapters between past and present worked really well and I was pleased that we stuck with Fern's point of view. As someone in their late twenties, there was so much I could recognise in Fern and Jessica's experience (both the good and the bad) so I instantly connected with the plot. Fern as a character I also really liked, I think most women can relate to how in your own head you can get about certain things and the obsessive thought process we often find ourselves experiencing. Although she had her better moments, Jessica I just couldn't warm to (and I'm not sure we're meant to) and I was frustrated with Fern for sticking with her. I also think she did very little acknowledge her own part/decisions in certain things that happen. Female friendship is such a fascinating subject and this book certainly deep dives into that while examining what it means to be a women and how far we have had to come, something I truly applaud the author for covering.

I just felt really let down by the ending, it was really obvious where it was going to the point where I think most readers will be expecting it and so the whole thing felt like an anti-climatic. While this clearly isn't mean to be a book with thrills or spills, I do still think the ending could have been a lot better and for me, this spoilt the book on the whole.

Fern and Jessica were best friends from the moment they met. However, it isn’t always easy being best friends with Jessica, she is so confident and always the one the boys hit on. The other girls also don’t like her very much but Fern stands by her until she does the unforgivable.
Then more than 10 years later Jessica shows back up in Fern’s life and although she tries to bury the hatchet, those old insecurities keep resurfacing.

This book was outstanding. It took me right back to my teenage years of always wanting to be something different than I was. And the way the boys talked about the girls as conquests definitely reminded me of conversations I heard at school. A true ‘turning of age’ story focusing on female empowerment and mental health. A total must read for this time!

Thank you Holly Bourne and Hodder and Stoughton for kindly gifting me this eARC via Netgalley!

This book was an interesting read that explored friendship really well. It looks at what it means to be a friend and people's insecurities and how that might affect us in our relationships.

It was heavy at times, but the storyline was still structured so well. 💕

I did find parts of it to be a little too in-depth and I did think the book dragged on a little bit too long but I kept going right to the end and this is why I rate it 3 stars.

I’d describe this book as realistic fiction. The author has done an amazing job at creating imaginary characters and situations that depict the world and society. The characters focus on themes of growing, self-discovery and confronting personal and social problems. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

This is the first Holly Bourne book that I’ve read and I loved it. The characters and relationships were complex, there were some serious issues raised but where done so brilliantly.
It really showed how we see things when we’re only focused on ourselves.

Why does Holly Bourne’s writing have such a hypnotic hold on me? I’m yet to start a book of hers and put it down until I’m finished. This is possibly her best adult book yet, and feels like such a natural evolution from her YA titles.

Wow ! Where can I even start with this book .
Do you ever have that feeling where your just searching for the one book that just “ gets you “ it understands what you want in a book , well this was it to me .
Tackled some prevalent themes and gracefully .
This was not my first book by this author and certainly won’t be my last .
Outstanding !