What a wonderful story! Milly Johnson can do no wrong in my eyes, her books and ways of telling a story are absolutely second to none and I know I will always love what she writes.

The characters in her books are you like you and me alright they have sometimes lost their way in life. Polly Potter in The Happiest Ever After has become slightly downtrodden and has a way of not really sticking up for herself. She has a job where she is looked over, despite being very talented and a partner who doesn't really have a lot of time for her. She has become a bit of a shadow of herself but in the novel she is writing, she is the complete opposite. She is Sabrina, a career woman with a family and does not take any rubbish from anyone.

One day, Polly snaps. She disappears and runs away to a place only she will know - a lovely seaside town she visited with her beloved aunt and uncle and a time when she was happy. Following a mugging incidence she wakes up in a hospital with no recollection of who she is, apart from knowing her name - Sabrina.

Milly Johnson has written another wonderful book that completely entices you in as you are cheering Sabrina/Polly on and live her life, her own way and not be taken for granted.

Amazing as always.

The Happiest Ever After by Milly Johnson is an uplifting rom com with the perfect balance of romance and comedy. If you are familiar with Milly’s work, you will know that in some of her novels fictional excerpts from a newspaper called The Daily Trumpet, a disastrous paper that was once local to Yorkshire and is now available nationally, which is renowned for crushingly embarassing typos, and provides incredibly funny interjections of perfect northern humour to storylines that may have a more sombre theme, such as the memory loss experienced by the main character in the book.

In this story, Polly Potter, the main character is downtrodden in life, both at home and at work where she is constantly undermined by men who expect and get constant compliance from her. She finds her voice in a creative writing class where she writes a novel where the main character Sabrina is the best parts of her.

When a situation causes her to lose her memory, Polly wakes up and believes that her own name is Sabrina. Living a new life as Sabrina, she is taken in by the Bonetti family. Marielle, a retired nurse, gives her accommodation and Marielle’s son Teddy gives her a job in his restaurant.

Polly could never find the strength to stand up for herself but her inner strength shines through when she is Sabrina. When the pieces of her memory finally recall enough to return her to her old life, she realises that she is stronger than she ever believed and is not going to allow herself to be taken advantage of any longer. I loved her true vibrant nature that had been worn down by misogynistic men in her home and work life. With her memory returned she finds herself needing to choose between pitiful and complacent Chris who expected her to continue to put his needs first, and Teddy who just wanted to make her happy. It really didn’t seem like a difficult decision to me, Italian chef every time!

I loved the corporate espionage story, and the way in which Polly was able to utilise her own skills in order to successfully resolve the matter for the best outcome.

Friendship was at the heart of the novel, in terms of how friends are the family we choose for ourselves, and I loved the intergenerational friendships ‘Sabrina’ had with both older and younger women.

There were some heartbreaking moments within the story, which deal with bereavement and abuse, but friendship and hope as the underlying themes of the story carries the reader through. Friends really can mean more than family at times, and The Happiest Ever After really shows that. I found the book such an inspirational read, and could not have loved Polly as a character more.

The Happiest Ever After, in true Milly Johnson style, is the perfect balance of romance and comedy, set among some truly poignant events and a small but immensely satisfying moment of smashing the patriarchy!

Absolutely fantastic, feel-good fiction!!

Polly/Sabrina was such a lovely character, and it was easy to warm to her straight away. But there was also an exceptional supporting cast of women in the form of Sheridan, Flick, Marielle and her friends the “Mad Cows”.

There were times when I was reading this story that I couldn’t see the words through the tears of laughter! If you’re looking for something light and heart-warming this is the one.

As always, a delightful story by Milly Johnson. I would love to find myself in a little community like this - although the horrible partner at the start I'd be happy to forgo!

When I start a Milly Johnson book it's always with the expectation that it will play my emotions like a well tuned fiddle and after the tissues have run out leave me with the biggest of grins and a total sense of wellbeing, this one has been no exception!
The Polly we first meet is not the star of her own story, she is letting everyone around her dictate her story to her but that is mostly what she has become used to. When a chain of events transforms Polly into Sabrina, she really does being to shine and becomes a character that you just have to root for and hope that this is the character Polly/Sabrina is as we turn the last page.
Viewing the character development in this amazing book was a delight to read, there were times of great joy and intense ire, some very heartfelt moments and some "why would you do that?" ones too.
This story was an absolute delight to read and yet already I am looking forward to Milly's next book too!

An absolute pearler of a book. If you started reading this book without knowing who had written it, you'd soon guess it was Milly Johnson as it has her sheer brillance from the first page until the last. An amazing skill of writing about daily situations, memory loss,work issues, life & relationships(which may be relatable to many) with such authority & knowledge, with warmth,wit & humour and weaving in amongst it the hilarious Daily Trumpet, an absolute treat for those that have never read any before. So many incredible stand outs for me, the boardroom showdown, poogate, the seagull, absolutely brilliantly written. I cannot praise and recommend this book highly enough. I also encourage you to read the acknowledgements where Milly writes about the romance genre👏

An absolutely fantastic read. Milly Johnson never fails to deliver. This book is full of great characters along with a storyline full of humour. An unputdownable book. I loved every page.

Absolutely Fantastic! Pure escapism at its best !
Polly’s story, a woman who gets taken for granted and is undervalued .
Brilliant characters, great storyline , lots of humour and an unforgettable read which I highly recommend. Milly Johnson at her best !
Thank you to Netgalley, Simon and Schuster and Milly Johnson for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review

Polly Potter should be living her best life but is pulled down by a mediocre relationship with her partner Chris and working for a boss who neither appreciates nor values her contribution to the business. Her escape from the mundanity of her life comes in writing about a fictional character called Sabrina who is everything that Polly is not. However, when an unexpected event occurs Polly wakes up believing that she really is Sabrina and her life takes off in a whole new direction ,

The Happiest Ever After is quite simply joy wrapped up in 400 pages of delightful writing in a story which which has you laughing out loud one minute and then reaching for the tissue box as your heart strings get well and truly pulled. I loved reading about Polly/ Sabrina, I cheered at her small triumphs and desperately wanted her to find the happiness she so richly deserved and hoped against hope that certain people in the story would get their comeuppance. I especially loved the snippets from the Daily Trumpet which had me chortling into my cuppa at their apparent daftness.

I really believe that special books come along just when you need them and as I gleefully escaped into the story the grey skies and rain clouds around me disappeared. Brilliantly observed, and as expertly written as all Milly Johnson's books are The Happiest Ever After is an absolute joy to read from start to finish.

This book is just the best of Milly! Witty, while dealing with real issues and written so well, that you fall in love with the characters and are rooting for Polly from the off!
I love her books, and always think my last read is the best yet, but this has really pipped it to the post. You are right behind Polly from the off, she's underappreciated and feeling low, writing a book where the main character takes control. And boy does she follow suit! There are some toe curling, heart stopping moments, you'll laugh out loud and you will feel all the feels! A must read!
I say this every time, because her books are so good, I genuinely can't wait for the next!

Totally loved Milly Johnson’s new book! It’s fabulous and full of classic Milly wisdom, insight and hilarious humour, which can at times be quirky and dark!! This book is total unfettered joy to read!!
Here is the story of Polly Potter, who has, let’s face it, not been given an easy life, and things are set to try her patience to their very limit. Her only joy comes from the creative writing course she has joined. When events take a different direction she is suddenly forced into change when she arrives at an unexpected place having forgotten her whole life in the process. Will she remember her life before these events, will she find her true self?
I love that everyone gets their karma and comeuppance, so pleasing.
As the nub in so many of Milly’s books, she gets to the root of the woman’s lot in life that is a little too close to be comfortable, both at work and in the home, with too many of us accepting what we shouldn’t and Milly lights the way of change. The hilarious Daily Trumpet is totally brilliant light relief, as are the comedy characters which enable a smile and a laugh to counteract the sadness and frustration of reality.
The emergence of a fettered woman is always heartwarming to witness!! The development of strength and soul in Polly is beautiful.
Unique descriptive language full of wisdom.
Heart warming, wise, and truly wonderful. This one had me gripped from the first page to the last, LOVED it and can heartily recommend!
Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the early read. Much appreciated.

This was a totally satisfying read which I thoroughly enjoyed. Yes, it’s romantic fiction but it is beautifully written with well rounded characters to love & dislike accordingly. I really wanted to find out what happened to them and, unsurprisingly it was a happy ever after ending. I am sure that all the readers would like their own lives to be the same.

Well, I just loved this from start to finish. Like many of Milly Johnson’s characters, to begin with the main character Polly is not in a happy place. She’s brilliant at her job as a business analyst but underappreciated by her new boss and overlooked for promotion simply because she is a woman. Her home life isn’t much better with a partner who has cheated on her and who takes her for granted. Her only escape is her creative writing where she writes about a character called Sabrina who is living the kind of life Polly wishes she could have. I was immediately on Polly’s side and hoping she could make a better life for herself.

For reasons I won’t go into, Polly comes to believe she really is Sabrina and begins anew in a small seaside town which hold many happy memories for her. I loved this part of the story as she was warmly welcomed into the community, particularly by kind Marielle who really is a lifeline. Female friendship and support is always a big theme in Milly’s books and this book is no exception. Marielle has a group of women friends of varying ages known as the ‘Mad Cows’ and they were just brilliant! These women were such fun to read about and fiercely defensive of each other, even when they occasionally had the wrong end of the stick as they did at one very significant point in the book. Everything the ‘mad cows’ did for each other came from a place of love.

It would be fabulous to be able to write your own life story and I’m sure we’d all write ourselves happy and contented lives. It was so lovely to see Sabrina live the happier life that Polly deserved, when she was free from the constraints of Polly’s life. There was a really sweet love story too of course, perfectly pitched, gently unfolding and so heart-warming.

I have to mention the author’s note at the end of the story in which she talks a bit about romantic fiction in general – a genre that specialises, of course, in happy ever afters. I totally agree that romantic fiction is just as beautifully written and carefully crafted as any other kind of book. Hooray for romantic fiction bringing readers cheer, inspiration, escapism and joy!

The Happiest Ever After is another warm hug of a book from Milly Johnson. Full of heart and love and sure to leave you feeling uplifted. Milly Johnson at her fabulous best!

Always love it when Milly has a new book out. You are guaranteed a fantastic read no wonder she is a bestseller. Polly Potter aspiring novelist is stuck in an unhappy partnership and is being walked all over at work. Her only escape is her writing but she has a plan to escape but when things take a turn for the worse. Can Polly find her happy ever after? With hilarious offerings from The Daily Trumpet and a seaside setting and memorable characters this is a must read

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.

The story is about Polly, who feels that she’s not being treated properly either by her partner or her employers, and decides to make changes.

Throughout the book, you want to see Polly happy and be successful in the changes she’s hoping to make.

It has some lovely characters, and some not so. Along with moments that make you laugh and sad.

The Daily Trumpet made me laugh whenever they popped up throughout the book.

I highly recommend this book.

Milly Johnson has been one of my auto-buy authors for many years and I've read most of her books, so I was excited to receive a free copy of this from @netgalley and @simonschusteruk, in exchange for an honest review.

This book felt like a return to her older style of storylines as a feel good book with a host of nice characters. Her more recent books have become a little more serious but this felt more light hearted again.

It was also great to see the welcome return of The Daily Trumpet with all its mistakes that made me giggle 🤭

There are a lot of characters so it did get a bit confusing at times. Most characters were likeable and the book felt like a warm hug in a book with the obligatory happy ending.

I enjoyed this book and enjoyed the return of Milly Johnson's older writing formula.

Yet another wonderful book from Milly, with twists and turns that keeps you continually reading the book to the end. I have read all of Milly's books, and this is her best one. Thank you for the ARC.

We meet Polly, who has fallen out of love with her job and feels underappreciated by her partner Chris. The only happy escape Polly has is her writing class writing about fictional character Sabrina Johnson.

After the end of a bad day, Polly decides to leave her partner. She is planning to do this after her sister-in-law’s wedding vow ceremony, which she has been roped into. That day something happens and an incident causes Polly to lose her memory.

Waking up believing she is Sabrina Johnson, Polly is taken in by a kind samaritan and finds work at her new friend’s family Italian restaurant. She works together with her friends son and slowly trying to piece together her memory.

The Daily Trumpets at the end of each chapter were a hoot. I was rooting for Polly to find her happiest ever after. With the kindness of strangers, Polly turns her life around.

A great mixture of funny, heartwarming moments with fantastic characters & storylines.

There is much happiness to be found in Milly’s latest big-hearted novel. This is definitely Milly Johnson at her finest and her fans won’t be disappointed by her latest book.

Thank you @netgalley, @simonschusteruk and @themillyjohnson for the chance to read the advanced copy.

I am looking forward to meeting Milly Johnson at her book signing at @waterstonesmcr next week.

This was such a fun read, from the wedding planning at the beginning (I think I would have walked at that point) to the hilarious Daily Trumpet articles it made me smile.
The characters and the relationships were perfect, the importance of family and friends was wonderful and refreshingly realistic, and of course the romance was the icing on the cake.
Heartwarming and immensely entertaining.

Milly Johnson is one of my favourite authors, so I consider myself incredibly lucky to receive an ARC of her new book "The Happiest Ever After" Thank you Simon & Schuster UK for providing me with a copy to read and review.

Polly Potter is a terrific character that you can really relate to. But life is not treating Polly particularly well. Her partner is taking her for granted and generally being a bit of a git and her boss is just despicable. Polly is desperate to escape her unhappiness and the universe lends a helping hand in a most unexpected way.

This is such a heart warming read, full of great characters and dry wit. I honestly couldn't put it down until I finished the very last page. Polly's story was lovely to read and I was rooting for her throughout her journey. I also found the subplots and side characters engaging too and thought they added another dimension to the book. I was delighted to see The Daily Trumpet make its return. The snippets between chapters made me laugh out loud.

I would definitely recommend this book to readers who enjoy heart warming stories with found family and plenty of humour.