Unfortunately I found this really hard to engage with, which is unusual for me to say and I hate to write it! Just not my cup of tea. As there’s no archive date I may come back and re-read to give it another chance, perhaps it was just the wrong time for me…

Stand up comedy.

Women, and how they're treated.

And it's always the "good guys", that you need to watch...

Creeps up on you: dark, disturbing and discussion-worthy.

Taking one industry in its sights, radio producer Ali is trying to find comics for a new show, and is immediately drawn to Ed Catchpole, who is charming, funny (of course) and interested in her. Other possible candidates for the radio are flagged to her as... problematic.

A slow and steady build up gives the reader time to see a snippet of behind the scenes in the comedy industry as Ali and Ed ratchet up their texts and sexual tension, until a bomb lands in Ali's lap and she has to question not just other people but herself.

I feel I have to leave the synopsis there, as I wouldn't want to give away too many details. This did feel ponderous for a while, but as soon as revelations hit, then BAM, definitely wanted to keep on.

The rabbit-hole went deep with this one, with some psychological insights, a lot of upsetting scenarios and all-too-realistic characters that meant this became a book I hope makes it into a lot of hands.

One small issue I had with the writing though - most of the time we are inside Ali's head, but a few scenes rotate and we confusingly are inside multiple points of view successively, which didn't feel right as this was not the trend for most of the book. It made me re-read to work out who I was meant to be 'reading'.

Definitely reminds you that saying nothing is not helping. That there are more forms of harm than merely physical. That many people are hiding problems and trauma.

Ultimately this was a book I won't easily forget. The coda was unexpected but fitting, and the resolution a welcome one.

With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.

It didn't make me laugh.

I don't get why this is advertised as a comedy, dark or otherwise. I probably would have enjoyed it more if I wasn't expecting it to be funny.

This is the sort of book I feel I'm supposed to like because it's about an Important Topic, but I just... don't. It's well written, but I found the lead character annoying rather than sympathetic and the plot too slow to engage.

#metoo in the comedy industry. From fan girl to discovering the real nature of an apparently perfect specimen of a comedian. Eye opening and relatable.

I really enjoyed this cosy novel and the peek behind the scenes it offered at the comedy world. It was funny, charming, and clever, and I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoyed the comedy bits of Dolly Alderton’s Good Material in particular.

Timely exploration of the comedy scene and the themes are well explored and originally put across. It's great that someone has chosen to look at this area of the entertainment industry.

The book had a good pace and was readable with interesting characters and scenarios but something about the writing style felt slightly disjointed for me and left me struggling to connect at times. I didn't find this as engaging or as engrossing as I'd hoped it would be.

What a debut! A #MeToo story set in the world of standup comedy. This was an outstanding, searing and topical book.

It follows Ali, a 40-producer for a radio station. She’s rather meek and ordinary. She’s been sent to a standup comedy routine to scout for a comedian called Paul. Unfortunately there seems to be allegations about him so instead she ends up talking to Ed, who seems like an ally. We see a friendship develop between the two that has some flirting too. For the first 40% of the book you think is this a romance? I’m ngl I even found myself considering DNF for a bit cause I was so confused - where’s the story going? Then you have the confrontation scene between Sid and Ali and suddenly the book takes a darker turn. You start to realise there’s more to Ed than meets the eye. After this point the book was just unputdownable and I was gripped.

I liked the nuanced way the author shows how reluctant women are to come forward and how they sometimes see other women, even ones who’ve been gaslit and abused, as a sort of competition. The way a part of them thinks maybe they’ll be ‘different’ and how everyone is a feminist until they realise they can gain more by male validation so they compartmentalise their feminism. I did, however, think the ending was going to be bittersweet. It was a bit neatly tied up for my taste. I wanted to what Ali and what the rest of the women were doing a year later. Regardless this was a brilliant debut and I can’t recommend this highly enough.

This is kinda old ground but ground breaking at the same time such an insightful dark book that I couldn't put down. Well written and handle the dark aspects of the boon with care, will make you think and I hope raise discussion...important book getting reading it

This book, the themes it contains, has been a long time coming and Julia Raeside has booted it out of the park. She has perfectly presented the insidious nature of abuse, in all its apparent nuance. Grainne Murphy captured my feelings precisely when she said (of the book) ‘One of the most accurate depictions I have ever read of the true monsters in stand up; it's not the swaggery lads you need to keep an eye on; it's the “good guys”’
‘Don't Make Me Laugh’ is a brilliant, timely piece of work. I hope it reaches a wide readership - of men, especially. Time's up!