Yet another Sally Rooney comparison - when will it end? This time the comparison is largely unjustified but that's not to say this wasn't a very enjoyable, immersive read.

I guess comparing a writer to Nick Hornby or David Nicholls might not shift as many books these days, but in reality, the style of writing and the nature of the story in Talking at Night is much more aligned to those two authors than to Sally Rooney.

This is a book I would have lapped up and adored in my 20s - a story of undying first love between Rosie and Will, waxing and waning over the years, but never extinguished by virtue of a shared trauma that weighs heavily on both characters.

The book has quite a YA feel at the beginning, and takes some time to get going, laying the groundwork for the rest of the book by spending quite a while on the teen years. It takes off around a third in, with a pivotal dramatic moment upon which most of the action in the book actually hangs.

I found it to be quite a nostalgic read, probably because it reminded me of many books I read back in the 00s (One Day, Come Together, The Time Travellers Wife). It's quite cheesy and unrealistic to a forty-something cynic, but utterly romantic and devastating to a younger me so I just indulged myself for the duration.

If you loved the above-mentioned books and are a sucker for well-written, heartfelt (but not particuarly spicy) romance, then definitely check this one out. 3.5/5 stars

*Many thanks to the author, publisher @MichaelJosephbooks @penguinbooksuk for the e-arc via @netgalley. As always, this is an honest review.*

I found that I couldn't connect with the characters really so couldn't enjoy. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review this book.

This book just wasn't for me, I'm afraid - clearly a lot of people love it and the fault isn't with the book, but it didn't strike a chord with me. I'm not a Sally Rooney fan either so perhaps it just isn't my style, but I found it impossible to connect with and never got involved with the characters.

This book is one of the best books I've read in a long, long time. From surface level, you can say it is just a romance about two people that were always in the wrong place at the wrong time. But it is so nuanced, it's so deeply personal that I felt forlorn. I was heartbroken at the end even though we are led to believe it is a happy ending. It just killed me that Will and Rosie wasted so many years before they could allow themselves to find true happiness. I will be thinking about this story for a long time. In a way, it has actually forced me to look introspectively at my own life to see am I really happy, and it's been a long time since a book has had that power over me. Wow!

I so wanted to love this book - but I just couldn't get into it! I not sure if it was the plot or Daverley's writing style.
I just didn't like it

Unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me. It reminded me very much of Normal People by Sally Rooney, which I also didn’t like. The lack of speech marks irritated me and I just couldn’t get in to the style of writing or the story. I may come back to it a later date to try again but for now it’s a DNF.

I wont be reviewing this book elsewhere and I’m giving it a neutral 3 stars because I didn’t finish it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was sucked into this story so quickly that I had to get to the end to see how it was resolved. It has a sense of 'sliding doors' - Will and Rosie meet as A level students and have very different aspirations and backgrounds. Their attraction to each other is compelling and could be all consuming, but each have their own futures mapped out which does not really leave room for the other.

Their lives become bitterly entangled following a shocking death which is unexpected and links them for ever more. They are friends and lovers, destined never to be quite on the same page, yet, inexplicably drawn together.

I was rooting for this couple - it seems that everything is against their relationship ever becoming solid and committed even though it is patently obvious that they are meant to be.

The book covers a timespan of over 20 years and I was convinced by their character development throughout. This is a coming-of-age style story where both much make mistakes to learn what is most important. Identities are shaped and shift constantly and nothing is a given.

I'm not sure who would be the intended target audience. I am older than Will and Rosie at the end of the book, but I loved following their journey. Equally I can image my young teenagers being absorbed by their story, too.

Masterful writing - when is the next novel out?

This was a bit different, as the love story carries on all through the book. A o and off spark between two people that desperately really do love one another but never make it to a relationship that lasts. The death of his friend and her twin is something that will be there with them forever. Will they ever find their way together for a happy ending? Good story.

This book felt the the literary equivalent of those hours just as dawn is coming when you've been at a party and most people have gone home or fallen asleep - it's all softly-spoken and a mixture of melancholy and hope. You believe good things could be on the horizon but the horizon seems so far away and never gets closer.
Just like Rosie and Will's hearts, the writing is bruised but beautiful - it perfectly captures their situation. This is a love story, but not a technicolour schmaltzy one. A real, black-and-white, painful one.
As the story unfolds, it was a vivid reminder to not be quick to judge people, especially not on actions that you don't know the full context/motivation for. Will is a much more caring and sensitive person than most in his life would ever think and it seemed at times that he was trapped in living up to this perception that people have of him.
I can see that the writing style won't be for everyone - the lack of quotation marks took me while to get used to - but I felt that it suited the feeling of this book exactly. As a debut novel, Claire's style was so established that I'm excited to read anything else she writes

I loved this book and the way it was written.
It was pretty sad to read but it had to be with everything that it covered.
Rosie and Will were both really good characters, despite their many flaws.
Would definitely recommend!

A lovely, romantic tale of the twists and turns of love from teenagers to adults. Slight ya vibes but a great summer read.

A beautifully written love story that I didn’t want to put down. It isn’t a short book, but it was so easy to get lost in Will and Rosie’s lives. Set over a number of years, the complexity of why they can’t be together is explored in a tender and sensitive way. I was hooked. I liked the fact that it was largely set in Norfolk, rather than London,
I am not really in the target age-range for the book, as a 50 plus woman, but I will definitely be recommending this lovely book to friends of my own age and to my daughter and her friends. It really is ageless. I think we are going to hear a lot about this book and the author, and I will definitely read anything else Claire Daverley writes Her talent is clear.

Talking at Night is a strongly character-driven look into the relationship between Will and Rosie; the back and forth, the give and take between them that spans over their years of knowing each other and the tradegy they share.

It is the story of missed opportunities and the decisions made that take us down the different paths towards our own self-discovery.

The writing feels stripped bare. Raw and exposed. Tender and fraught with emotion and suspense. Reading this journey through Will and Rosie's eyes was like a held breath. A heartbeat. A weighted moment. A feeling in motion. Everything, down to the very last page.

The characters feel real. As you read their ageing through the pages, you see their ageing in the way they handle their emotions and deal with their parting again and again. Their romance is ever present, even in their absence of each other, and beautifully flows from the page in the references to music, glances, sunsets, bonfires and lighthouses, creating a nostalgia for your own youth and blossoming love.

While targeted as a romance, this is not your typical idealistic version of love. It's a real, flawed, messy, and entirely human love, interwoven with heavy themes of mental health, illness, grief, and complicated family dynamics.

Talking at Night will leave you in a hopeful suspense, heartbroken and heart-wrenchingly satisfied until you turn the final page.

Wow! A brilliant captivating character driven love story between two people who meet as teens. I couldn’t put it down.
This book is truly something special, a beautifully written debut novel. The writing is poignant and emotional, it really sucks you in. The characters are well developed, interesting and relatable. The story is told through the POV’s of the two main characters Rosie and Will. The author really captures the complexities of love and relationships mixed with themes of family, mental health, loss, sacrifice and discovering who you are and what you want. It’s powerful and tender.
I absolutely loved this book #TalkingAtNight and look forward to future books from this author @ClaireDaverley
I highly recommend. It’s definitely a must read for 2023.
Thanks to #NetGallery @MichaelJoseph @PenguinRandomHouse for an eArc of #TalkingAtNight in exchange for an honest review.
Book publishes 6 July 2023

A beautifully written and emotional read. For all their flaws, I loved Rosie and Will’s “love” story. I admit wanting to shake some sense into them at times though!
A compelling, must read - tissues also recommended though!
Thank you to NetGalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this captivating book.

Talking at Night is a stunning novel that captured my interest quickly. The style of writing is reminiscent of Sally Rooney’s with an unusual approach to grammar along with a focus of delving deeply into two contrasting characters lives and exploring how their relationship develops over time. This makes the story feel so relatable as it is observant of feelings in everyday situations and how family relationships can be complicated. Rosie and Will have an unexpected connection and interest in each other that is so strong it always links them, even in heartbreaking circumstances. I will definitely be recommending and looking out for more books from Claire Daverley.

I really liked this book, the story was both emotional and heartwarming at the same time.

The character arcs and storyline were well developed, and it was interesting to see how the characters developed over the course of 15 to 20 years. And also how the events that happened shaped the person who they became to be.

To me it felt very reminiscent of Normal People by Sally Rooney (not that this is a bad thing), as the story followed two people from different social classes, with different family structures throughout their late teens into their twenties and then eventually into their thirties. And it also had romantic trope of right place wrong time (which is common throughout NP)

I also thought that the book discussed the deeper issues within it really well, and they felt like they made sense to be a part of the story - rather than just being an added extra

I loved this book! It’s tender, emotional and beautiful.
Well done to Claire Daverley for writing a book where the main characters don’t need to speak to know what the other person is saying or feeling.
Fans of Sally Rooney will love this.

This is a stunning read. I'm the first person to be wary of comparisons to Sally Rooney but I honestly haven't had a reading experience like this since the first time I read Normal People. It's so beautifully crafted, somehow tender but still unflinching and vivid. It spoke directly to my heart and I'm going to be thinking about this book for a long time to come.

An easy romantic read
Rosie and Will fall for each other when teenagers without telling each other then tragedy strikes that takes them apart, but life keeps bringing them back together again and again.
I just wanted to slap them both and say "get a life" with or without each other, what a waste of two lives.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC