This was a lovely read. Difficult in places, I think I identified with Susan a bit too much in some ways! I'm sure there will be discussion on what has made her how she is, to me she's just Susan, Shy, prickly, likes to keep to herself. She likes to keep her distance even in relationships, but how much of that is a self defence mechanism given her experience of her parents' relationships is a point to speculate. Difficult relationships all round, from growing up with an alcoholic father, and a brother with whom she clearly didn't get on, and a former fiance, a story which emerges over time. Can Susan and her brother Ed sort out their problems, now they are the only family each other has? Ever suspicious, Susan can't trust anyone. She's never really had friends, so how will she get on with the seemingly well meaning intervention by Ed's friend Rob. And having her neighbour decide they are now best buddies. It's a minefield of relationships for someone who has lived her life for the first 45 years in her own space. Somehow, being pregnant makes you public property, and it's interesting to see how Susan copes. I was pulled into Susan's world from the beginning, and so wished for a happy outcome. A great read with great new characters. #cactus #netgalley

I love this book! I read this so fast, within a day and loved the characters and the style of writing. I can see why this is compared to The Rosie Project - in a good way! A brilliant book.

Thank you to NetGalley, John Murray Press and Sarah Haywood for the chance to read this book.

“It’s never too late to bloom….”

People aren’t sure what to make of Susan Green - family and colleagues find her prickly and hard to understand, but Susan makes perfect sense to herself, and that’s all she needs.

Susan Green is a strange character.  She only buys charcoal, grey or black clothes, is often found writing letters or emails of complaint , will bring up ideas for timesaving with her manager so often that she jokes Susan save time by having an allotted time each month to raise these things, she tends to her collection of  cacti with precision each day and never takes holidays. She doesn’t have any friends, has no interest in socialising with her colleagues, has limited and regimented contact with her family and has created a life where she is so independent and isolated in order to avoid being hurt.  But there is a problem - Susan is going to be a mother.  This unplanned event in her carefully controlled life leaves her reeling and unsure, not knowing what she will do first about the pregnancy and then when the baby is born.  

I loved the opening paragraph and how it gave an immediate sense of Susan’s nature. You see her detachment and how she endeavours to act in a proper way whatever the circumstances when she has a seemingly emotionless response to the news of her mother’s death.  She is in fact upset, but views her ability to conceal her feelings from others is a talent, tears as not of any help and something she certainly doesn’t intend to shed in front of her brother Edward, who she has an intense disliking for.

When she arrives in Birmingham for her mother’s funeral she is shocked and appalled to hear that her mother wrote a will just weeks before her death in which she gives Edward the right to live in the house for as long as he wants so it will only be sold upon him leaving or his death.  Susan is immediately convinced there is foul play involved as there’s no way her mother would do such a thing without force.  Intent on proving this she embarks on taking the case to court and gaining her rightful, and needed, inheritance, not realising this will also take her on a journey of self discovery as she strips away the secrets she never knew were hidden from her and finds things she never expected to learn.

I enjoyed this often funny and heartwarming book but did find it slow at times and that both the character and story could be a little too bland.  A lot of the humour for me was in how little self awareness she actually had in some situations and in her complete lack of understanding about children and parenting.  The fact that she is very sure of her child being as sensible and understanding of the right way things should be done as she is, and that anything else can be simply and calmly explained to the child  lead to some wonderfully amusing scenes.  It wasn’t easy to warm to Susan, although as she became less of a frosty personality and her impending motherhood made her grow as a person, I took to her more and was rooting for her finding the ending she wanted.  Another thing I liked about this book was that even though it wasn’t written in diary form it was still narrated as if she was talking to the directly to the reader.

Overall this was an amusing, fun and at times emotional debut . It will inevitably be compared to Eleanor Oliphant but is a very different book in a lot of ways.  I would recommend this to any lovers of chick lit and adult fiction .

Susan Green is a 45 year old woman, who lives a very independent and routined life. I think she has aspergers as everything about her is very ordered and precise and she has little in the way of social skills.   
She finds herself unexpectedly pregnant while having to deal with her mother's will, which has been written in her brother's favour. She tries to deal with these challenges in her usual pragmatic way, but unexpectedly starts to experience new emotions and forge new friendships. 

She is initially a prickly (hence the title), unlikeable character, but as her pregnancy progresses and we learn about her upbringing, her vulnerability becomes apparent. By the end of the book, I felt a lot more fondness towards her. 

A very enjoyable book, well deserving 4.5/5. My only criticism, as has been mentioned by other reviewers, is the Americanised use of Mom rather than Mum or Mam, but overall, it is a book well worth reading. 

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

The main character Susan  is very regimented in her ways and approach’s life in her own safe way.  I think the descriptions from her behaviour alludes to the fact that she is on the spectrum and maybe this story could have been an opportunity to explore this angle more.   It was also very hard to not compare to Eleanor however I felt Susan had more warmth about her, 

Thank you to the publisher for giving me an opportunity to review this book.

Well, I started this book and I really wasn't sure. I didn't like Susan, and I didn't think I was going to enjoy reading about her. I pushed on for a few pages, and the further I went, the more I was intrigued by her. 

Susan is sensible, she's logical, and she doesn't do emotions. Except, she does, and we watch her experiencing feelings and not admitting to them. She's a totally unreliable narrator. 

Her friend, Rob, explains cacti to her. They need to be kept dry during the dormant period, and then given a sudden drenching of water - and that's when they flower. I guess this book is about the drenching of experience Susan receives after her mother dies, and Susan starts to peel back layer after layer of information about her life. 

"The truth will set you free", the vicar tells her at one point. Susan doesn't believe him, but in fact, that's exactly what happens. By the end I loved her.

I enjoyed reading Eleanor and I enjoyed this one, but not quite as much. Susan Green is a lot like Eleanor in that she's a straightforward, no-nonsense woman used to being on her own. Again very Bridgitte Jones. If I had not read these and seen BJ baby film I think I would have enjoyed it far more than I did. But, saying that its a fun entertaining read.

The publisher’s description likened this book to Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine. I can see the similarities - a prickly woman with an unusual personality experiences some life changes while finding love and a new way of living. But the comparison made me annoyed, for I loved Eleanor and really didn’t like Susan. She was just too bristly. Her humanity seemed so very buried that I wasn’t sure it was hidden under the bitterness and anger. I kept with the book, however, and finally after abut a half or two-thirds of it, I started to see how she was going to warm up. 

I guessed one of the major plot lines, which disappointed me, and much of the denouement. Not one I will rave about, but not one I’m sorry I read, either.

I’m giving an honest review after being given a copy to read by Netgalley.

This book has been comparied to ‘Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine’, I can see why, but I have to say this was a more enjoyable read.  Susan is as prickly as the cacti she keeps on her desk and at home.  The story begins with the death of her mother and you seem glimpses of how Susan reacts to her family, particularly her brother Edward in light of this event and the subsequent information about the will.  You soon realise that at 45, she is about to become a mother to a man she has had a convenient rather than loving relationship with.  She doesn’t like messy relationships or complications,  but these two life changing events trigger many changes for Susan.

Overall I really liked Susan, whilst she found relationships tricky her development through the book established so firm connections with people such as her neighbour and Edwards friend Rob.  They were likeable characters, her brother she found difficult, but as you learn about their lives you start to understand why there is an animosity between them.

I would recommend this book to my friends.

There's a popular meme that's travelled the length and breadth of the Internet; the 'That's me' meme. 
A particularly rotund seal sunning on a beach? That's me. 
A candid photo after a small cooking misadventure? 
That's me. 
And so on. Infinitely relatable. 
This novel is the book equivalent for me. Susan is as prickly as the cacti she cultivates. Not a fan of chit chat, personal space invasion or unwanted/unwarranted conversation, she navigates through her life adhering to strict rules. And that suits her just fine. 
Anyone that's ever distanced themselves from the society around them can relate. Anyone that has rules for situations, that perhaps has Asperger's or autism or a mental illness that dictates certain aspects of our lives, will be able to read sections of this book and think, 
'That's me.'
And whilst humorous, it's also poignant. Because people can and do live like Susan. And sometimes it's hard being a Susan of the world, when everyone you interact with is more of an Edward. 
Susan's growth and sense of self expanding and changing to her new prospects is a joy to read - sometimes we Susans do not end up happy. Sometimes there are no happy endings, just constant confusion and disappointment. So to read this episode of Susan's life, which had moments of sadness, but is ultimately triumphant, is a balm to myself, certainly, and surely to many. 

A very enjoyable novel. Exactingly well written, the prose is tighter than... A very tight thing. 
Highly recommended for all fans of Eleanor Oliphant.

Smart, funny, endearing main character, warm and uplifting novel. Will inevitably be compared to Eleanor Oliphant, but in my opinion, this is much better. Loved the storyline and the theme of family secrets and relationships. Great read.

An excellent debut novel, full of wry humour and pathos. 

This is the story of Susan Green (definitely not Suze, as her annoying brother Edward keeps calling her). Susan has her life mapped out: undemanding job, own tiny flat, part-time no-strings partner. This routine is shattered by two events: her mother's death and the realisation that she is pregnant, aged 45. Self-contained and self-satisfied, she's as prickly as the cacti she keeps on her desk and has never learnt to love. This is her defence against the world. At first, the reader sniggers at her hide-bound routines and conviction that she's always right. Gradually, her life story unfolds and new events occur, her armour starts to crack and we begin to understand why she has become so insular.

Will she accept her pregnancy? Will she fall in love?

A refreshing and touching debut novel from Sarah Haywood. I'm sure we'll hear more from her.

Susan Green is an indomitable woman with a very distinctive voice. The cast of characters are richly drawn, with shades of Gail Honeyman’s “Eleanor Oliphant” in the tone of the novel. I particularly enjoyed the protagonist’s extensive vocabulary. An enjoyable, compulsive read.

This book came out to be a was a nice surprise. It's an easy summer read. 
Susan is our main character, whom you may love or hate. She has her own ways. She's 45 and lives in her London flat alone. She works, and she has her no-strings-attached relationship with a man for quite some time now.

Suddenly, her life changes when she realises she's pregnant. Also, she loses her mother suddenly, and enters into an inheritance drama with her younger brother. So, her life is not so on a routine anymore.

I enjoyed reading about Susan. I found her down to earth and quite relatable to anyone around. I liked this as a light read.

I enjoyed The Cactus- very similar to Eleanor Oliphant however not quite as funny. 
I think had I not just read Eleanor I would have enjoyed this book more as the difference would have been less apparent.
The negativity of the main character left me feeling a bit bored of her. I think having such a crispy protagonist needs to generate a warmth of affection in the reader but I admit I stopped reading before it came. 

Give it a go as a holiday read.

The digested review is, it's a lot like A Man Named Ove except (for me at least) not quite so effective at being charming. Susan's mother has died, and she has to handle the funeral with her brother: they don't get on. She is a bit of an odd bod, with very determined Views, but determined that she is happy with her (largely) solitary life. However, a Big Change is about to happen, heralded by nausea. Nausea in the mornings.
Some very funny lines. 
"The women all looked youthful and radiant, glowing with the delight of appropriately timed procreation. I was at a aloss to see what these instinctive breeders had in common with me; I felt like someone attempting to infiltradte a fundamentalist group with a less-than-believable cover story."

I loved this book simply because of the fact that it was brave to pick a mid-forties heroine, in a literary world where 40+ woman could only be side characters, bitter/bitchy  bosses, or victims of grisly murders,  but never the  main girl!
The writing was good and the plot got me interested. I loved the characters. I am surprised that this book wasn't hyped as much as Eleanor Oliphant. Recommended! And also loved the gorgeous cover art, Would love to buy this book as an addition to my library.

A charming read about a character who has her own unique ways of looking at life but finds herself unexpectedly blown off course through a series of events. I did laugh out loud at certain parts of the book and enjoyed enjoyed its quirkiness.  Refreshing and different.

This is a very pleasant and easy read ( I finished the book in a day). Self-sufficient, rational, very happy to be on her own Susan finds herself pregnant at the age of 45, whilst at the same time being thrown in a legal battle with her brother over their late mum’s will. Along the way, she makes friends and encounters romance in unexpected places and tries to make peace to events from her past and family secrets.

There are some touching moments throughout - in particular Susan’s reminiscence of her perfect childhood day.

I could guess the ending half way through the book, but as this is not a ‘whodunit’, this didn’t bother me.

3.5 stars from me. Like other readers before me, I was struck by the similarities between Susan and Eleanor Oliphant. And, also like other readers, I couldn’t help feeling that Eleanor’s character has a little more depth to it than Susan.

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for an ecopy of this book in exchange for a fair and impartial review.

I am grateful for my review copy of 'The Cactus', but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I hoped I would. The book’s premise is an older woman, set in her ways – probably on the autistic spectrum – trying to find her way when faced with her life changing all around her. I wanted to be able to root for her and for the author to endear her to me. However, personally, I found that the humour often didn’t land, and Susan commonly came off as just rude rather than someone who the reader would warm to. At times it felt like the book was going through the motions rather than having real heart, the pacing was quite slow, and it wasn’t until the very last chapter that I actually connected with it and felt any real warmth towards the characters. Having said that, I have seen this book compared to ‘Eleanor Oliphant’, which I did not enjoy at all, and I think ‘The Cactus’ is much more successful in terms of characterisation. But overall, although generally the book was enjoyable, it wasn’t the funny, heartwarming story I hoped it would be.