Hands down, one of the best books I've read so far this year

The pure nostalgia vibes this book provoked in me was, 👩‍🍳 💋. I laughed and cried along with Ella throughout her teenage years into adulthood, and Laura has written an honest, relatable book, capturing the emotional rollecoaster we call life perfectly. I actually found myself cringing at points because it was so spot on. Despite the fact I loved going back in time through this novel, it reminded me of why I'm so glad my own teenage years are far behind me 🤣.

I absolutely adored everything about this. And the cover is stunning!
I will certainly be purchasing this when it is released so I can not only re read it in the future, I can have this beautiful book sitting proudly on my book shelf.

This book just transported me back through the decades - to that first love and all the angst and worries and insecurities that go with it. The book made me smile so much, I totally related to every crazy moment. A high energy book about a relationship that you just know needs to become something so much more. Will they, or won't they. I read the book in about two sittings, didn't want it to end.

5 stars. No notes. I fully expect this to be turned into a film or tv show STAT, and if it’s not I’ll be so upset. It reminded me of Love, Rosie (which is one of my favourite films) and it had me reminiscing (and cringing) about being an awkward teenager in secondary school in 2000s. It’s so painfully accurate at times it hurts. Gosh, what a book! I can’t wait to reread it and recommend it to everyone who will listen to me! Absolutely a top read of 2024 and it’s not even out yet!

Thank you so much to HQ + NetGalley for the chance to read this before it gets published, I’m counting down the days! I love you, I love you, I love you is out on 20th June 2024 🩵 #ILoveYouILoveYouILoveYou #NetGalley

I absolutely adored this book! The nostalgia this bought back of the awkward teenage years - house parties at parents houses, cassette tapes & first loves, all tied together with an Elle & Lowe shaped bow. This book moves between present day and the early 2000's, following Elle as she moves through her teenage years with a deep and unmoving, but hidden, love for her best friend Lowe. I loved seeing how their relationship grew throughout the years but their deep connection always remained. Its giving One Day vibes, but possibly even better in my opinion!

Would 100% recommend this book and will be raving about it for months to come!

I loved the concept of the book when I first read the blurb , the older self remembering the younger self , I thought it would be a fun read, but for me what started well became monotonous and boring. For those who grew up in the 90’s onwards I’m sure will enjoy it , it’s well written , just not for me I’m afraid, and as much as I hate to say it I think it’s for a younger generation than mine. :(

I Love You I Love You I Love You
By Laura Dockrill
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“It’s wonderful being a kid like that. You think trauma is just sliding off your skin, when really it is the opposite; it’s sinking in deep, like the most painful tattoo ink of a word or picture that you absolutely hate, directly into your nervous system, that nobody else will ever see unless you one day are loved or desperate enough to show it.”

I was initially drawn to this book based on the cover art and after reading the blurb I was really intrigued.
Laura completely captured the feel of consuming, obsessive love to the point where I felt I was in love with Lowe. Ella’s inner monologue was so convincing that I truly felt I was experiencing each emotion with her, and that I may actually BE Ella. The experience of being a young teenager in the 90s was SO SPOT ON that this book felt like going home to me. Her descriptions of things only a 90s kid could experience had me almost in tears at some points. Then Ella’s experiences as a 30 year old were just so scarily accurate as someone just turned 30. I cannot express enough how much I loved the way this was written.
The way you only got to see Lowe from Ella’s point of view and experience him through her eyes was so interesting as I found myself wondering alongside her - does he like Ella? Is he in love? At one point I wondered if he was real! The reality is you really don’t know anything about Lowe other than Ella’s opinion of him.
The two time lines were perfectly done and went together seamlessly. I absolutely adorned this book and will recommend it to anyone who loves dual timelines, romance, unrequited love stories or ANYONE who has been in love or grew up in the 90s!
Thank you to HQ and the author for the ARC. It really was a privilege to read this one!

Isn’t this an absolutely stunning cover ❤️ I was so excited to read this book but was left a little bit deflated, exasperated and maybe even a little bored by the end.

The story is told from Ella’s point of view and the timeline switches between “now”, where Ella is in a long term relationship that feels a little lacklustre and “then” which chronicles Ella growing up from her teens into adulthood and all the while being in love with Lowe but not being able to tell him.

The plot is a friends to lovers trope mixed with a dose of miscommunication which works well with the younger Ella. There are some great laugh out loud moments detailing the teenage angst of first love, self consciousness and all the usual friend and family dramas that come with being a teenager and are so relatable. However, the story dragged in places; the plot felt like it was being stretched for too long without any real substance. The miscommunication trope wasn’t as convincing with the older Ella who had so many opportunities to declare her feelings but never did. I was also bored with the over detailing in certain scenes which didn’t really add to progressing the story.

I love unrequited love, I love first love and I love the sliding doors kind of love too but unfortunately this love story didn’t quite work for me.

I have just flipped the final page and I AM NOT OK. This book is an absolute hurricane of nostalgia, taking me straight back to the painful awkwardness of my teenage years and holding my sticky hand through the agony of growing up - and old - clutching a love that never gets spoken of. Beautiful storytelling and a resolution that hits just the right spot at the right time. Perfection.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and HQ for the advanced copy of this book.
I loved this book so much! I was crying along to their heartache and cheering along to the triumphs. This was one of my most anticipated reads for this year and I'm so glad it didn't disappoint!
The characters were so beautifully written. I loved the friendships and how they were central to the characters despite this being a love story. I particularly adored how the story wove between 'then' and 'now'.
Thank you again for this advanced copy and a truly wonderful read.

Lowe and Ella meet as teenagers. Friend zoning each other they never romantically get together.
Are they each others destiny? Just friends? Or never meant to be?
Life takes them in different directions but they still cling to each other.
Will they or won't they?

Wow. This was an emotional one! I was so invested, and can't imagine forgetting these characters in a hurry.

I really enjoyed reading about Ella's teenage years, she's a similar age to me so everything felt so nostalgic and relatable. The way Ella felt about Lowe was so well-written, anyone who has ever been in love will recognise parts of themselves in the writing.

It wasn't all big, emotional scenes. There was plenty of light relief in the form of Ella's friends and family, with some funny bits thrown in to stop the plot from being a bit much.

I would 100% recommend this. It was emotional and thought-provoking and I loved it.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advance copy to read.

To say I loved this book would be an understatement. Elle is in her 30s with a steady boyfriend, a job but feels like something is missing from her life. It's told from Elles POV but over dual timelines as we uncover a lifelong long with her best friend Lowe.

This was an incredibly nostalgic read, reminiscing over the late 90s to early 2000s. The writing was so authentic and brilliant. I really felt like I was living through the words of the story. Everyone remembers their first love, the way it makes them obsessive and desperate to be around that person. The author captured this heady feeling so perfectly.

I feel this will be a romance book I'll be recommending forever.

Yes, at times it was frustrating with the miscommunication trope but it also really made the story. The whole way along you are screaming at the characters to just be vulnerable and show their feelings.

One of my favourite reads so far of the year.

This just wasn’t for me. Not necessarily because it was bad or anything. I just don’t enjoy the “lost 30 something woman” trope and I don’t like split timelines. I’m sorry !!

I Love You, I Love You, I Love you follows Ella who at 30, is living with her long term boyfriend but can’t help feeling like something is missing from her life… that something being Lowe, the boy she has loved since was 14.

We flit between past and present from Ella’s perspective and see her meet Lowe for the first time and see her fall desperately in love with him almost immediately. The pair soon decide to be ‘just friends’ but that might end up being Ella’s biggest regret.

God, I loved this book. The flashbacks scenes were so nostalgic and as someone who grew up in that era I really felt like I was reading about my childhood.

I adored Ella and Lowe but they were very frustrating in parts, I just wanted to shout at them - if you don’t like the miscommunication trope then this won’t be one for you, I don’t usually but I think it worked in this book.

All in all a great read, the only reason it’s not 5 stars is I felt the ending was slightly rushed and could’ve benefited maybe from an epilogue or one more chapter.

I had a lovely time with this nostalgic will-they-won’t-they. The 2000s references hit the spot perfectly and I was rooting for Lowe and Ella the whole time. I love a flawed character and I loved Ella’s character growth.

I absolutely loved this book, it created such a feeling of nostalgia for growing up in the 2000s and having that teenage angst and first love. In this case, Ella and Lowe continue long into their adulthood with the back and forth, will they/wont they.

I will admit that to begin with I found the narrative really punchy and fast-paced, almost to the point of frenetic and I worried it would become tiring to read. Saying that, I was creased with laughter only a couple of chapters in by the dry wit and humour, as well as the relatable overthinking, catastrophic reasoning of Ella. It was the humour and the journey of Ella growing up that really made me want to read on, rather than any burning love for Lowe. Towards the end of the book, as we read more of Ella as an adult, I had either become accustomed to the frenetic energy or Ella had actually matured! Either way, I finished this book feeling like I knew and loved Ella.

Overall, a life-affirming, hilarious and addictive read. Can’t wait to see what else this author has to offer in the future!

Finally a big thank you to hq for granting me early access in exchange for a review .
This is Laura’s first adult novel and I was super excited to read especially after years of following her on social media and relating heavily to her openeness on her struggles with Postpartum mental illness.

This was a fantastic trip of nostalgia and an evocative experience of memories from the early 2000s.
Absolutely packed with humour and dry wit which are always the best type of comedy in my opinion!

Friendships ,family, work and love life are centre stage of this dual timeline.
Perfectly embodies and encapsulates the emotions good and bad we have as a teen but also as an adult when surely we’re meant to have it all figured out right ?

A life affirming and uplifting yet sometimes sad book about life and the journeys we go on with ourselves and others .

I can’t wait to read more from Laura

I *LOVED* this, to the point of being addicted and resenting anything that got between me reading it. A sweeping epic telling the story of two people who are meant to be together, but are their own worst enemies in stopping that happening. Again. And again. And again. A beautifully profound love story which is only heightened by the autobiographical elements. Ideal for my fellow 30-somethings who grew up on Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging before getting stuck as Bridget Jones.

I was very excited to read this debut novel by the author and it did not disappoint. It’s just goes to show the intricacies of relationships and how we never really know what the other person is thinking/ feeling. I loved the ending of this story and it’s defo my fave read of the year so far

I wanted to love this, it fell a little short for me personally.
I thought it was stirring up some late teens early 20s emotions but it kept me waiting too long for a kiss and gave me Angus, Thongs vibes with the throwbacks. I think it will be a good read for some but just not for me.