Book Review: "If I Never Met You" by Mhairi McFarlane
“If I Never Met You” by Mhairi McFarlane
Publisher Synopsis: When her partner of over a decade suddenly ends things, Laurie is left reeling—not only because they work at the same law firm and she has to see him every day. Her once perfect life is in shambles and the thought of dating again in the age of Tinder is nothing short of horrifying. When news of her ex’s pregnant girlfriend hits the office grapevine, taking the humiliation lying down is not an option. Then a chance encounter in a broken-down elevator with the office playboy opens up a new possibility.
Jamie Carter doesn’t believe in love, but he needs a respectable, steady girlfriend to impress their bosses. Laurie wants a hot new man to give the rumor mill something else to talk about. It’s the perfect proposition: a fauxmance played out on social media, with strategically staged photographs and a specific end date in mind. With the plan hatched, Laurie and Jamie begin to flaunt their new couple status, to the astonishment—and jealousy—of their friends and colleagues. But there’s a fine line between pretending to be in love and actually falling for your charming, handsome fake boyfriend...
Rating (out of 5): 4
Trigger Warning: a deadbeat dad, generally annoying men
Review: As we’ve talked about ad nauseam here at SFOL, it’s been hard to concentrate on reading right now. (…I have no idea why that could be.) Enter, British rom com books! I’ve read a few lately (see some ideas for Comfort Reads here), and Mhairi McFarlane’s are among some of my favorites.
“If I Never Met You” introduces us to Laurie, a lawyer in her mid-to-late 30s who has been in a relationship for 18 years. Her boyfriend, whom she lives with, unceremoniously dumps her and moves out of their shared house. It’s not a spoiler (as it’s in the synopsis above), but Laurie’s ex almost immediately impregnates the woman he was having an emotional affair with, leaving Laurie (understandably) reeling.
After a chance encounter with Jamie, who Laurie believes to be the office playboy, they team up to fake a relationship, taking Instagram photos with dreamy filters and even meeting one another’s parents.
Anyone who’s read a rom-com-y type book like this knows where it ends up, but I found Laurie so relatable and lovely, and I appreciated how Laurie was willing to admit she was wrong about Jamie once she got to know him. There’s even a full-on makeover scene that is so realistic after a breakup, and would be amazing to watch if this were to be adapted to a movie.
I’ve only read 2 other Mhairi McFarlane books, and this is the first that dealt explicitly with racism. Laurie’s mom is black and her dad is white, and Laurie deals with some microaggressions and incidents that are a direct result of that. I always appreciate when issues like that are handled thoughtfully.
Overall, I found this book delightful and, while I didn’t enjoy it quuuuuuite as much as “Don’t You Forget About Me,” it was charming and an excellent distraction right now.
TL;DR: A lovely and engaging British rom-com. While somewhat predictable, the journey is super fun and the characters are relatable.
If you liked this, try:
“Don’t You Forget About Me” by Mhairi McFarlane (my review here)
"Love Letting” by Kate Clayborn (Elizabeth’s review here)
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