Romcoms are definitely more my thing than pure romances. So if you're in the mood for love (and laughs) this Valentine's Day then here's my favourites from this genre:
Confessions of a Forty-Something F##k-Up by Alexandra Potter
I love this - probably because like main character Nell I am a forty-something single not on the same page as everyone else around me. Nell's single friends are now married with children, sky-high rents force her to rent a room in a stranger’s house and in a world of perfect instagram lives, she feels like a f*ck up. Even worse, a forty-something f*ck-up.
I totally related to so many of the themes regarding age, marriage and children such as “I always feel the pressure to explain why I don’t have kids, in a way I’m not sure women who have children do" or “Who can make that kind of promise [marriage] when you truly have no idea what will happen in the next thirty or more years?” But, it was the love/hate dynamics of unlikely housemates Nell and Edward that I really loved. Set over the course of a year, with chapters denoted by months, made the course of events and speed at which relationships developed more realistic and believable than some romance novels where boy meets girl and settles down together a week later. Unlike some this also wasn’t entirely predictable – I mean it did end up exactly as I hoped and thought but somewhere in the middle it wasn’t a given.
And, in terms of the 'com' this is funny – truly hilariously funny. There’s funny one-liners: “My theory is that’s why our eyesight goes as we get older: to protect us from seeing ourselves in sharp focus.” But, also plenty of situational humour such as Nell’s attempts at babysitter or dealing with Arthur’s dog-poo. But, it’s not all laughs. There are some serious messages and life lessons too such as: “Real life is messy and complicated. Shit happens. One size doesn’t fit all....We’re all just living our life, and it might not tick all the boxes or look Insta-perfect, but that’s OK.” And, finally this had a great cast of characters but even more so was the dynamics between them in particular “the super fabulous Cricket”.
We Just Clicked by Anna Bell
As one of the funniest books I've read I absolutely love this. The situational and observational humour is spot-on from the colleague who never makes tea to going out for the night but wondering how long you have to stay before it's acceptable to go home and get into your PJs. There's also the awkwardness of a glass-walled ensuite in your swanky hotel or not realising your girlfriend has a flat full of people when you start discussing your sex life over the flat's intercom.
This is a great contemporary love story highlighting the difference between people's perfectly-filtered life online and their real life - including in Izzy's case a fake boyfriend. At the same time Izzy runs into Aidan and major sparks start to fly between them. There's also a great posse of characters - I even loved fake boyfriend and fellow instagrammer, Luke, secretly hoping there were actually genuine feelings developing on his side.
This hilariously funny, fast-paced, light-hearted romantic comedy is my favourite but 'The Man I Didn't Marry' by the same author is also amazing and perhaps more romantic whilst still funny.
The Summer Job by Lizzie Dent (Coming soon)
I LOVE this great story about a "ramshackle family hotel.....trying so desperately to be grander and more magnificent than it was....filled with imperfect people, all muddling along together with their ridiculous flaws and gigantic hearts". But, it was totally main character, Elizabeth Finch or Birdy to her friends, that made this for me. She's a wonderfully boisterous, attention-seeking, risk-taking, sarcastic gobshite thirty-one year old girl trying to stop herself from falling for the first man she's ever actually liked (but who thinks she's someone else).
But, mostly she's hilarious as this quote shows where Birdy is about to finally get it on with James: "I stink. I haven't had a shower and I'm still wearing yesterday's knickers. Oh, and in this light, I'd better warn you, there will be some disappointments." Or "Sorry, James, I'm a total mess. I'd like to say it gets better than this, but it really doesn't."
