Oh wow how I absolutely adored this book and this author, she had me laughing so hard from the beginning, commiserating throughout ( peri lady here) I loved the characters of the M & M’s made me want to be a part of the group even though it was fictional.
Well written, fab storyline and just utterly relatable!
Will be recommending to everyone!!

When you have to read two pages out loud to your husband because he asks what are you laughing at.
This book made me smile, recognise myself and menopause symptoms and laugh out loud.
We need our support networks and everyone is different, this book celebrates our differences as well as our commonality.
Like meeting old friends for a catch up. Enjoy

Brilliant, just what I needed! I’m a similar age and navigating the am I, am I not ear of analysing any possible potential symptom whilst still full thrust in the middle of a crazy busy life with work, teenage daughters, elderly parents and basically lots of stuff! This book is absolutely laughable out loud funny and entirely relatable in so many ways, although I don’t think the laughing out loud bit has helped my quest to still remain vaguely sane. The story, as it were, contains every single tonic you could wish for, there’s a love story, romantic comedy style, there’s reflection on your youth and the characters therein who shaped you. There’s panto style baddies to boo at and hope for the demise of whilst you get angry with them unrealistically so seeing as this is fiction (ooh am I get anger issues?) There’s some fabulous female friendships and solidarity and overall a reminder not to take it all too seriously and that it’s actually ok not to be ok and to ask for help. The floundering your way through the NHS system is totally spot on and a reminder to hang on in there and try a second opinion and also an amazing array of facts that I wasn’t even aware I was digesting and some which were completely new to me. A total one book mends all situation, reassurance, comedy and informative and a big fuzzy feel good hug. Top marks. I’d love to hear what happens next to the characters too, it definitely left me wanting more. Perfect, thanks. Ps extra marks for mentioning a TVR, I even showed my husband that bit, we had a Tamora when we were DINKY a lifetime ago….

I liked everything about this book!
Heidi is going through menopause and mid-life. Her 'fanny' is 'atrophied',
We follow her and other women who go through life - this is an honest, hilarious and hot take on menopause, modern life, parents, love, being a woman and several other important topics.
Even the romance was done quite well (I say this because I am not a great romance reader).
Plot 4
Characterisation 5
Prose 4.75
Mood 5
Themes 5

Absolutely brilliant, truly capturing the trials and tribulations of the Perimenopause and Menopause. Wonderful characters both the main ones and those on the periphery, just ordinary women struggling with everyday problems and juggling a female's lot in life with all that it throws at us.

Many bursts of humour with a delightful heart warming feelgood element amidst the darkness and despair encountered whilst going through the 'change' and the struggles with this part of women's lives in a male heavy management workplace. A touch of romance also thrown in the mix.

An absolute must for women of a 'certain age', I wish this book had been about when I was going through this era of my life

Harper Ford does it again with a story that hits all the right notes. This time, we’re introduced to Heidi, a divorced mum of two daughters (with a serious age gap!) who's juggling the wild ride of peri-menopause symptoms including an uncontrollable rage she's dubbed "Blondie".

After receiving a condescending company-wide email offering "support" for menopausal women in the form of overpriced desk fans, Heidi, in a fit of anger, drafts an unfiltered response never intending to send it at all let alone for it to actually go out to the entire company. Oops! But, this accidental email sets off a chain of events that leads to her chairing a support group for other menopausal women in the workplace.

And that’s how the M&Ms are born. These women soon form close bonds not just through the madness of menopause, but through all of life’s ups and downs.

As if that’s not enough, enter Luke and Nate, back in Heidi’s life as their 30-year university reunion approaches.

The supporting characters? Absolute gems. They add so much flavour to the story and make this book an even richer read.

If you’re in the mood for a book that’s equal parts hilarious and heart-warming, try this one!

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for the ARC .

Brilliant. Heart warming and inspiring, with a sprinkling of wonderful humour too. Heidi is a wonderful lead in what I think could be quite an important book to many, many women! Very quick read.

"Hot Not Bothered" is a quick read, even though it's very... wordy. I mean, there are tons of descriptions and thoughts and not so many dialogues, but nevertheless, it reads quickly. Maybe because, even though there is a depth, a bit of sadness and desperation hidden, it's written in a light way, with some funny scenes and a few one - liners.

It was great to get Heidi, a heroine that is visibly struggling, and the author told her story in a brutally honest way, just like it is, like it or not, not beating around the bush and not sparing us the worst details - hats off, Harper Ford, welcome to a life of a menopausal woman. She focuses on trials and tribulations of the main characters, intoducing us a great group of mature women, all with their own stories. I liked their no - nonsense, stright to the point conversations and personalities.
There is also a bit of a romance in this story, friendship and simply normal human interactions and it is really well woven together.
However, I missed on this "wow" effect and as much as I enjoyed this book and its important subject, it won's stay with me for long.

It was light - hearted, thought - provoking, important and meaningful read.

A Glorious Heroine..
Heidi is juggling. Juggling everything. As she maniacally attempts to treads water and her menopausal symptoms escalate, something happens to propel her into the spotlight - but is it somewhere she really want to be? A fun, honest and uplifting tale with a glorious heroine at its very heart. Warm and relatable.

Hot not bothered is a great read, lighthearted, relatable yet with a meaningful undertone for women of a certain age!
Great to focus on the trials and tribulations that women of a certain age experience that affects them both at work and home, the reluctance of medical professionals to listen and provide HRT, the lack of workplace adaptions and breaking down the barriers to raise acceptance understanding and knowledge of the perimenopause and menopause.
Heidi aged 52,divorced single parent of 2 girls, working in an admin role, juggling work and home commitments whilst in perimenopause has had enough, provoked by a particularly bad day at work she lets rip and pours out her innermost rage into an email, one that was never meant to be sent, but somehow gets sent to all! What ensues changes Heidi’s life both at work and at home and that of her colleagues, friends and families in a way no one could have predicted!
A brilliant read that all women of a certain age can totally relate too, would highly recommend
Thank you NetGalley for this early read

Another fab contemporary story from the new Queen of fiftysomething, badass, angsty ladies. I liked this even more than Divorced Not Dead, her previous novel.

While I love a good swear, I sometimes found the heroine’s rants in that one too abrasive and yes, there are angry women cursing a lot in this one too, but they have good reason, as you will find out.

With gorgeous depictions of Jericho in Oxford and an anxious and lovable middle-aged heroine getting her groove back as she joins forces with new pals Niki, Joy and Rhona at work and masters (mistresses)? the menopause, this is a surefire winner. Bloody brilliant!

Many thanks to Avon, UA and ‘Harper.’ A fun few days!

Harper Ford is back with her no-nonsense, straight to the point writing, It's another hoot of a book!!

Sending THAT email to everyone within the company.... go Heidi, go!!!

Unfortunately for Heidi, it means she now has to lead a support group for menopausal women at her workplace, when she rather just stays in the background and gets on with her stuff in between hot flushes, memory loss, anger and tiredness...

It turns out that the group is not as bad as Heidi feared and they quickly build trust and share stories of their struggles during this natural part of all women's lives.

The group also helps Heidi to take charge of her own life and symptoms, and to seek the professional help she needs; to try different things until she finds something that works for her.

Admittedly, it is a work of fiction, but there are lots of relatable events in this book for anyone experiencing peri-menopause or menopaus - it's good to know that we're not alone!

The quote below if from one of the passages towards the end of the book:

"Menopause is not the beginning of the end, as I once called it; in fact, it’s the end of the beginning."

Harper Ford’s "Hot Not Bothered" is a witty and refreshing take on contemporary romance that will capture the hearts of readers looking for humor and heat. Ford’s sharp, engaging prose and lively characters make for an entertaining and enjoyable read. The story cleverly navigates the misadventures of dating and relationships in the modern world, combining relatable scenarios with laugh-out-loud moments and genuine warmth. The chemistry between the characters sizzles, and their banter is both endearing and hilarious. "Hot Not Bothered" is a delightful rom-com that’s perfect for those who love their romance with a side of humor.

A very funny book about a family orientated woman, Heidi who is suffering from the Perimenopause. Her daughters try to help her but to no avail as she refuses to take advice from people younger than herself. Then there is her mother who is of no use for advice whatsoever because she believes in dealing with things yourself with no help as it will make you stronger she thinks. Then she has her ex-husband living in the downstairs apartment and he’s handy for child sitting but not much else.

Following the receipt of an email from work, which outlines what they’re going to do to help workers suffering from the menopause. Heidi loses her mind and accesses her inner rage, which she feels a lot of due to her perimenopause, and constructs an email outlining her aggression and thoughts as to what they can do with their offer in that email. It’s not until she gets into work that she realises she didn’t actually save the email but sent it out to every single member of staff in the University. She’s subsequently called into her manager’s office and begins to grovel knowing that she could actually lose her job, but decides against that and does the total opposite. Then after speaking to the head manager, he has decided that she needs to send an apology email out and run a support group for people suffering from the menopause. These are two of the things which she doesn’t really want to do because, she doesn’t feel that she should apologise for something that she thinks is true and secondly, she hates people.

But the group turn out to be not so bad, she actually quite enjoys the 4 women after a while, and she realises that she’s not the only one suffering from the symptoms, especially the rage. Together they find a way to cope with their personal problems and also the menopausal problems that they are experiencing.

This book is about a woman suffering from menopause and all the problems that are contained with having it. It also raises issues with the healthcare profession who are always misdiagnosing women and not accepting that they are actually suffering from the menopause and the specific drugs that they need. This book is also a love story about unrequited love and lust. It’s also about friendships which can be found in the most unusual places and ways. There are times when you found you were cheering for our protagonist and other times when you just cringed at her mishaps due to the menopausal symptoms. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and it didn’t seem long because it had so much packed into it, there are laughter tears of joy and sadness. But most of all love, love of family, friends and of life.

Heidi is coparenting her two children. She’s also holding down a job struggling with the menopause.

As her symptoms increase her mood gets even darker. So when she receives an email from HR for women of a certain age, she finds the content particularly patronising and irks her fury. She types an email (a very funny one) to vent her emotions. She never intends to send it. It’s just to get her thoughts together.

However what should’ve been an email that she intended to delete she accidentally send to all within her company. The next day she is a global sensation all be it not with her boss. To make amends. She must send a global apology and form a menopause support group.

What starts off feeling like a punishment to Heidi ends up becoming one of the highlights of her life.

This is a highly entertaining read. Being of a similar age to the character Heidi I could certainly relate to a lot of the things she was going through. This is certainly a book that I will be recommending to my female friends although some of my male friends could learn from it too.

I really enjoyed this book.
I could totally relate to it, going through the menopause myself!
It made me laugh.

It's great to see more books available for women of a certain age hitting that special time in their lives and not shying away from the realities - Hot Not Bothered does that unapologetically!

Heidi Hobbes is in her early 50s and definitely perimenopausal (whatever that means) resulting in mental and physical changes she doesn't really understand and has no control over. One particularly stressful work day this sees Blondie the Rage Monster take over and Heidi sends a company-wide email that wasn't meant for public consumption.

This kickstarts a series of events which sees Heidi face her current situation head-on instead of hiding away and hibernating which is what her anxiety is telling her to do.

I loved this book, the way it deals with menopause and its effects of women is incredibly relatable - as is the lack of information, misinformation and poor support options available in the real world. I could very much empathise with some of the character's experiences and it references a few things I have googled to check out myself.

This is a great story in itself, but I would love to see what happens next for Heidi and her friends and family!

A hilarious insightful look at menopause and how it effects Heidi and her new thrust upon friends.
A wrongly sent email in the throes of menopausal anger brings the most wonderful and different women into Heidi’s life, all women tackling menopause.
These are great but different characters who possibly would have never been friends in other circumstances, all have different symptoms and deal with them differently.
This is a journey I’m about to start and hope I can do so with the same hilarious attitude as Hailey, preferably without the diarrhoea.

This book should be available on the NHS and given to all peri/menopausal woman !!! Very relatable for woman going through the same struggles as Heidi and her friends … informative about menopause and the many many symptoms as well as having a great storyline and characters .. loved this book !!

Buckle up for a real fun, feel-good read about women, menopause and life in general.

Heidi works at a university, is mum to two lovely girls, has her ex-husband living next door, positively involved in their upbringing. It all should be wonderful. But Heidi is hitting the menopause and is really struggling. Then she receives a patronising email from the university (I worked in one for over 20 years and could just envisage this happening!) offering help to women going through the menopause, and she drafts an email back telling him exactly what she thinks of him, his policy and his bright ideas. Unfortunately the email is sent to all staff... and Heidi faces disciplinary action, or the chance to step up and help her colleagues.

The result is heart-warming, slightly twee but offset by some real laugh out loud moments as she and her friends cope with these distressing symptoms. A great read for anyone, menopausal or not.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.