I was extremely excited to be approved for this, and it certainly didn’t disappoint.

The journey that Michael and Marnie go on unfolds and develops perfectly, which made me never want to put this book down. Both characters had me rooting for them very early on!

The way the story is written is beautifully descriptive and felt like an artist painting a canvas. Having never been a big walker, the landscapes drew me in and have made me keen to explore some of the destinations mentioned. It is also made me realise that I should take on these walks regardless of the weather!

The ending was perfect and I love how the focus was on the journey, not the destination.

I’d recommend this to anyone as it has such wide appeal. And will it appear on Netflix? Hopefully…one day 😉

A brilliantly witty book, that had me laughing one minute and feeling sad the next. He always manages to to produces books full of hope, love and warmth. You have got to read it.

Michael loves walking; Marnie loves reading. He wants little more than to be heading out over the hills, the rain in his face and a map in his pocket. She enjoys escaping the everyday by diving into other people’s fictional lives. And yet … neither is happy. Both are fundamentally lonely.
When they meet on a small group walking holiday arranged by their mutual friend Cleo, after a few days others drop by the wayside. The coast to coast route across the Lakes is certainly not a walk in the park! However, Marnie sticks with it – what, she reasons, has she got to go back to? And Michael was always going to make it to the east coast.
Over time, they grow increasingly fond of each other. David Nicholls’ ability to use everyday funny, moving, telling, relatable dialogue to build character and draw out connections is so subtle and real that, at times, the reader forgets this is a work of fiction. Rather, we are the silent, invisible companion in the rain, by the tarn, in the wood, on the scree, as we listen in to this couple’s pain and desires; their misunderstandings and expectations.
In creating two people who can see middle age over the horizon, David Nicholls takes us from the beauty, naivety and energy of his recently re-introduced ‘One Day’(courtesy of Netflix) characters to give us a different sort of romance. ‘Here We Are’ is quieter; it’s melancholic; it’s honest. A special sort of lovely!
My thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

Relatable, enjoyable, & a little Inspiring. I kind of want to walk coast to coast now!

You Are Here follows two characters, Marnie & Michael, as they are pulled out of their comfort zones by a mutual friend for a walking holiday. The characters are quirky, the setting is grounding, & the interactions are much like the trail - up & down. It is a calming romance filled with humour and it won’t leave you devastated like one of his other novels ;)

DAVID NICHOLLS - YOU ARE HERE*****

Although I had seen the Netflix version of One Day, I have not read a Nicholls novel before. He has a brilliant turn of phrase, which makes his prose a constant delight to read.

This story concerns Marnie, divorced, lonely and living in Herne Hill and Michael, a teacher, who prefers his own company even though he has many friends. And it is through one of their mutual friends they meet.

The brilliant structure/premise of the novel is that they – a group of friends and not friends – will walk from one side of the country to the other, taking in the varied landscapes and sights along the way. From the Irish Sea to the North Sea, they cross through Cumbria and Yorkshire.

Each scene is told from the alternating points of view of the two leads, neither of whom even notice each other to begin with, but, you’ve guessed it, are in a relationship by the time the mammoth hike is finished.

It's a deceptively simple tale, told beautifully, and is a pleasure to read. Highly recommended.

Beautifully written, endearing and heartwarming. I loved Marnie and Michael and how they became so close on their journey from coast to coast. The setting for this book was perfect, and the characters were so real and well written. I devoured this in a day!

This was just lovely. The writing seemed to cover an epically long time whilst at the same time be just the short coast to coast walk. Both Marnie and Michael are endearing, their last hurts shape them and are explored gently and sensitively. There is something quite gentle and tender and the story, as one foot is put in front of the other life continues and develops and the potential for romance is there but also for new meaning and direction for both.

I loved Marnie and Michael on their walk from coast to coast. Their discussions and their mature way of thinking about the other person and also how their relationship evolved in time it was so natural and so normal. This book made me crave for a walk like this even though it would be impossible but happy to read and imagine about it in the book,

An exciting read with twists that keep you guessing till the end! Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!

I really enjoyed this book! I look forward to reading other books by this author

I loved it. I loved it. I loved it.

it’s even better than One Day and is destined to be a major hit. It has all of Nicholl’s characteristic warmth, humour and zinging one-liners, but it also has a more mature take on loneliness, what it means to get older, and what a good life really entails.

Read it now. Then re-read it.

Like every bibliophile, I went a bit mad when I received an early e-copy of David's new book. I mean, has he ever written anything not fabulous? And with the new series of One Day, I love that a new generation of audiences are discovering his work.

Okay...it mentions Stevenage. That's a bonus just for me. I love it when I spot it mentioned in books. It is so often mentioned in derogatory ways and so to see it in a normal context within a page or two was a nice bonus for me.

I instantly felt a kinship to Marnie. She sounded like me, she wanted similar things, and she felt so familiar. And, if that wasn't enough, she's a freelance copywriter and proofreader - which is what I am! She's obsessed with reading. She packs 12 pairs of pants for 3 days, which I do. It became a bit freaky. I'm worried I actually wrote this character and sent her to David so it wouldn't look so egotistical; I've never seen myself more in a character than I do Marnie.

I also adored Michael. He's a bit of a loner perhaps, but a gorgeous one at that. He's passionate and kind and just perfect, and I loved him and I want one.

It flits between Marnie's point of view, and Michael's point of view, with a couple of pages dedicated to each before it flips. This could have been potentially repetitive, as some scenes are seen from both angles, but I actually think it's one of the book's strengths. It gives us two thoughts of what's happening which means you get to know the individuals more and how they'd work, or not work, together. It's a very interesting way of writing and was the perfect format for this story.

This may sound a bit weird, but go with it. I know good authors can write any characters, but for a man to write a female character like this (or vice versa, I suppose), to write it so intimately and intricately, is just fabulous. He's not written a carboard cut-out of a woman, she's so well rounded and expertly created. I mean, I'm a woman and even I'm not sure I could write a woman this well.

David is so skilled at writing normality. Normal people, normal jobs, normal relationships, normal lives, just...normal. Readers can identify with the goings-on and will them on. And his characters!! They could easily become a kind of paint-by-numbers character of what a person might be like, especially a lonely person, stereotypically weird even, but there's so much heart in his creations that the characters become friends, become loves.

He also makes every setting seem glorious. I mean, this is set in and around Yorkshire and The Lake District, which is an area of the country I adore, but for some, it's not particularly glamorous, especially in the rain. It doesn't shout Hollywood glamour perhaps. But for me, that's what I love about it. He is making the most familiar and "ordinary" settings shine.

It's an easy book to read, pleasant and lovely and enjoyable and uplifting and all-absorbing. It's not full of scares or thrills or anything like that. I mean, I like books like that, but for this one, it would have felt entirely out of place. Instead, this is an exploration of humanity, of the mundane and everyday, an exploration of friendship and romance, of exploring our countryside, of loneliness, and, an exploration of dialogue.

Dialogue can be hard to depict truthfully in books. Sometimes it feels like...well, it feels like exactly what it is, made up. But with this book, and David's books in general, it's full of conversation and whilst you are aware it is false, it feels so real that you forget you're reading a book. You feel like you're listening to a conversation between friends. That's very skilful.

I loved the discussion around being alone and being lonely. For many, myself included, they like their own company, curled up on the sofa with a cup of tea and a good book. I mean, I know I'm not 100% in good health currently and so that kind of dictates what I do, but even before then, the idea of going out socialising or partying or whatnot fills me with dread. A weekly doctors appointment is enough social interaction for me. But for extroverts, they assume you must be lonely and try to drag you to everything, and that's just not everyone's cup of tea. And I think David's done a really good job of exploring the differences between being a lone and being lonely.

He loves what he writes, that much you can tell. That after 2 decades, he still holds that passion for his craft, and it's still as good. His first books were excellent, and his recent books are excellent. I would put him in the same vein as John Boyne (of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas fame), in that there has never been a bad book by him. Some may speak to you more than others, and you may enjoy certain aspects more than others, but you know you're always going to get a good book, regardless of the topic, and that's comforting, this knowledge that you can rely on them.

Could I see this being turned into a film or series? Yes, definitely. Perhaps a limited series; each episode covers one day of the walk, maybe? I think it would transfer to the screen extremely well.

Whilst I do appreciate every book that I get sent, and I will never take that for granted, it's like the best thing every for me - especially whilst I've been so ill over the past few years - but every so often you get as book that reminds you of why you love reading so much, reminds you how much power and hope and joy that the written word can give you. And that is this book for me. From the very start to the very end.

It is awkward and honest and funny and romantic and silly and real, and just a joy to read. It's hopeful and life-affirming, sad and joyful, beautiful, loving, hopeful, imperfect, human, and positive - I couldn't bear to finish it.

What a beautifully written story. I have loved all of David Nicholls previous novels and I get so attached to the characters as he has a way of making them incredibly relatable and you invest in their personal journeys.

I really really enjoyed this book and read it with a massive smile on my face. It tells the tale of Marnie and Michael, both loners perhaps partly through inclination and partly through circumstance. Both are friends of Cleo, who invites them on a coast to coast walk and then abandons them after a few days. Marnie is drawn to the impossibly handsome Conrad- also a brief participant on the walk- and Michael is hoping he will be reunited with his estranged wife Natasha. Despite this, the two connect, become friends, and maybe hope for something more. The chemistry between the two is heartwarming and yet realistically drawn. The author has such sympathy for and insight into his characters, and inspires hope and optimism in the reader - or at least in me!

Set up by a mutual friend to find romance with two entirely separate people, Michael and Marnie find themselves flung together when their intendeds either bolt or fail to turn up at all for a coast-to-coast walking holiday.

With its detailed walking itinerary interspersed with the ups and downs (both literal and metaphorical!) that life has already thrown at Michael and Marnie, this book will surely bring an influx of new walkers to the St Bees to Robin Hood Bay coast-to-coast trek. Cumbria and Yorkshire tourist boards - look out!

Deftly told from both Michael and Marnie's points of view, this bittersweet tale - filled with all of the sparkling, banter-ish dialogue at which David Nicholls is so very good – it's a story that keeps you guessing all the way to the end and beyond. The characters linger on in your memory, just as Emma and Dexter once did.

This is the perfect summer beach read. An easy, funny tale about some single people heading on a walk from cost to coast in England. The areas are beautifully described and Iit created a desire to see much of it in person.

The characters are well rounded and interesting, as you’d expect from this excellent author. It’s just, for me, I found it dragged a little and lacked a punch. However, it is an easy breezy read and I did enjoy it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the opportunity to preview.

David Nicholls has done it again. how is that possible. Having read starter for ten many years ago and then followed on with so many of his others this one does not disappoint. Once again the characters are believable with a great back story that makes you want the best for them. This is a book that will resonate with you long after you have finished it. Another great read and I can not say much about as it will spoil it but read it you will not be disappointed.

There are far too many books about first love, or finding big love in your 20s. There really aren't enough books about second love, of picking yourself up after the happy ending went array. We also live in a loneliness epidemic, where more younger people than ever consider themselves to be lonely. Nicholls weaves both of these things to wonderful effect with You Are Here. As a superfan of multiple POV, I really enjoyed the alternating chapters between Marnie & Michael. There's a really joy to be had from following their respective journeys' simultaneously, voyeuristically following their miscommunications and misunderstandings as we will them to get together. This was such a wonderful and profound read because it found the extraordinary within the ordinary, encouraging the reader to embrace the joy that can be found within the smaller moments of life and stepping outside the safety of a comfort zone. Superb!

Once again David Nicholls has given us a wonderful read. Superb characterisation and detailed descriptions of landscape must surely mean that this is a best seller.

As with One Day David Nichol's new book centres on the day to day trivia and hang ups that prevent people getting together.

Marnie is a copy editor and Michael a geography teacher and have been set up together by a friend on a walking holiday.
If you are already familiar with the area walked it would make it more interesting. If not it would put you off for life.

The walk is leisurely and the progress of getting to know each other is painfully slow. I'm not convinved coupledom is worth the hassle

Michael, recently separated from his wife, and Marnie, divorced from her husband, meet on a walking trip organised by a mutual friend. What starts out as a tentative friendship between two people who have gotten used to being alone soon blossoms into whatever it becomes, they're not sure.

The entirety of this novel is largely two people walking and talking. It's a quiet build-up of a burgeoning relationship. It was quite beautiful in its simplicity and felt very real - although the characters were in their late thirties/early forties, there was a lot to relate to for anyone in a similar situation. I don't have much to say about this one except that it was quietly beautiful.