Don’t You Forget About Me is the laugh-out-loud romance we all need
Looking for a new genuinely funny romance to read this fall? Don’t You Forget About Me by Mhairi McFarlane is just the book for you,
Have you ever thought about your first love and wondered, what if? What if it had gone differently? What if one event hadn’t happened? What if you said that one thing you were too self-conscious to say? That is what Mhairi McFarlane’s Don’t You Forget About Me is all about.
It’s also about taking back your voice, knowing your worth, and getting a second chance. Well…except for emotionally manipulative ex-boyfriends. They don’t get a second chance.
The story follows Georgina, a 30-something-year-old woman living in Sheffield (South Yorkshire, England) who is just trying to make it through her day-to-day life. She was once considered Most Likely to to Succeed in school, but after what happened on the last day of school and her father’s untimely death, she put her hopes and dreams on an indefinite hold.
When we first meet Georgina, she is working at an awful restaurant with horrible people. After trying to pacify a rightfully angry customer, she is fired. This is not Georgina’s first firing, but given how horrendous the job and people were, it feels like the worst.
She then heads over to her boyfriend’s (Simon) apartment to tell him the news. This leads to her finding Simon in bed with another woman and a pint of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream (don’t ask). Needless to say, Georgina is having a horrible day.
But one thing does go right: Her sister, Esther, calls. And while this normally wouldn’t be a good thing, as Esther is a bit of a nag, it brings about an experience that will change Georgina’s life forever. Her brother-in-law happens to have a client who’s opening a new pub and needs a bartender for a night
Georgina jumps at the chance for some source of income. Her excitement changes when, during the job, she sees someone she never expected set eyes on again: her high school boyfriend, Lucas McCarthy. And of course, he looks like freaking Aidan Turner.
While we know a little bit about their past relationship from the prologue, we don’t know exactly how they broke up. Needless to say, Georgina is sweating bullets, but when they’re finally introduced, he doesn’t seem to recognize her at all. This guy she has obsessed about since high school finally shows back up in her life, and he doesn’t even know her. WTF?
Or at least that what he wants her to believe…
The one-night gig turns into a full-time job, and Georgina is stuck working with and for (that’s right, he’s one of the owners of the pub) Lucas every day. But what’s starts as an awkward relationship between co-workers soon turns into a friendship — and then something more.
Don’t You Forget About Me is unique in so many ways but one major one (at least for me) is that, while Lucas has all the makings of an alpha male love interest, he isn’t that at all. Georgina’s awful ex, Simon, shows up to “win” her back more than a couple times, and Lucas has no qualms about throwing his butt to the curb. I might have cheered while reading.
He also does end up revealing that he knew who Georgina was from the first moment they met but was keeping it a secret so they could have a chance of actually working together without all that past baggage.
But it’s not just the swoon-worthy dude that’s makes this book special. The writing is also legitimately hilarious. Georgina and her friends are hysterically funny, and some of the situations she finds herself will make you genuinely laugh out loud. Her roommate, Karen, is very overbearing, but also provides some of the funniest lines in the book.
But it’s not all romance and humor. There are some dark and heartbreaking moments as well. By the end of the prologue, you’ll probably have some inkling of what happened to Georgina in high school. It haunts her into the present day, and she doesn’t really let it free until she performs at the pub’s storytelling night. It’s an emotionally raw and powerful moment.
She has told no one what happened to her until this moment and she does it in front of a room of her friends, family, a bunch of strangers, and Lucas. The aftermath is dealt with so perfectly. This was one moment where I was worried Lucas’s behavior was going to be a let down but it was the complete opposite.
In terms of trigger warnings, there is a description of a sexual assault, a couple scenes of emotional abuse and manipulation, but they’re called out and dealt with, and multiple mentions of the death of a parent.
Don’t You Forget About Me is for anyone who has ever wanted a second chance. It’ s for the anyone who feels lost and looking for a place to belong. And of course, It’s for anyone simple looking for a great romantic read that’ll also give you a few laughs.
Don’t You Forget About Me by Mhairi McFarlane is out now.
Next. 17 new SFF books to get cozy with this September. dark