Thank you for providing access to this book. I'll be reviewing/featuring this book separately from NetGalley as I have purchased a copy.

Read Dec 18

I didn’t realise on requesting this book that it was a sequel to an existing book which I haven’t read. It didn’t matter much as everyone is easy to get to know. My rating increased as I went, at first, I found Emma’s voice annoying, but I soon got used to it and even came to appreciate her frankness about things like masturbation. I also really liked the growing friendship she had with Gracie. Emma seriously needed to lighten up on the making friends thing though, she went way too overboard… Overall a light, breezy, fun book.

I read the Friendship Fails of Emma Nash in one sitting, laughed uproariously throughout and felt thoroughly better for it. Chloe Seager has given us such a strongly humorous narrative voice in Emma, and the discussions surrounding sex, masturbation and slut shaming was great to see in YA fiction. I really *really* hope this isn’t the last we’ve seen of Emma. This truly is a spiritual successor to the great Georgia Nicolson books!

Released on 9th August by HQ, The Friendship Fails of Emma Nash is the follow-up to Editing Emma (which is Emma’s fictional blog handle.)

I hadn’t read the first novel prior to reading this one. Although it may have given me additional information, you can read this one as a standalone novel if you wish.

Written as a series of personal blog posts, I felt that you really got to know Emma – what made her tick.

She is very well-developed and through her point of view, you get to meet some wonderful supporting characters.

The style of writing is very interesting and one I think works very well. It was very easy for me to integrate myself into Emma’s story; the goings on in Emma’s life.

I believe Emma to be a very relatable character for teenagers but there is a lot there for adults to take away too. Chloe has very successfully got into the head of a teenage girl (it brought back memories of school.)

It’s full of funny ‘OMG’ moments, awkward and embarrassing encounters and focuses on the marvellous time you have whilst trying to navigate yourself through your teen years, even if it doesn’t feel marvellous and fun at the time. Haha.

Her voice is so brilliantly contradictory. Sometimes she sounds so mature and yet at other times, so child like. There’s a lovely innocence to Emma.

I was laughing out loud in so many places. I really enjoyed this novel and loved getting to know Emma.

She reminds me of a younger Bridget Jones with Will from the Inbetweeners thrown in. Mostly though, in my opinion, Emma is the Adrian Mole for the social media era and I loved her.

I’m hoping it’s not the last time we see her.

The misadventures of Emma Nash continue as she tries to reinvent her life with new friends, when Steph has a new boyfriend in Gracie's brother. She has to reevaluate her friendships and try to maintain that balance between giving them space and still being in the loop. To be more active and to have something to do, she takes part in the school's fashion show, where she and Charlie, another student, design clothes for a runway show with the help of other kids who volunteer. Along the way, she makes new friends in Charlie and Holly, but also strengthens her friendship with Gracie, while also finally having a conclusion to the Leon saga. In true Emma style, though, lots of shenanigans happen in between, with loads of pop culture references and apt teen experiences.

Emma's plan to make new friends backfires in spectacular ways as she tries to apply the same tactics as the one she used to get a new boyfriend in the previous book. She also gains a stalker, and also experiences cyberbullying (she is going forward with her fashion designing). The tone of the book, overall, may not be as light as that of the previous, primarily because of the many plot arcs happening during it, as well as the fact that Emma is growing up. But there's also humorous mistakes, hilarious misunderstandings, the fact that Emma 'tries too hard' Nash treats this like a mission to accomplish. And there's also loads of cute moments, like the relationship with her mom and the beheaded teddy bear, Gracie and her frankly discussing friendships with people of the other sex and dismantling some hetero-normative myths by including bisexuals in the equation, and some genuine conversations between the girls as they try to figure out sexuality, relationships and everything else.

So, while it may not be as great as the first book when it came to humor, it did make up for it with everything else.

Oh my God, this was just bloody brilliant! Fantastic! Hilarious!


I swear I was snorting with laughter on every other page, which made for an awkward Q&A session with my Nan.


Friendship Fails starts briefly where things left off at the end of Editing Emma, things are settling back to normal, only her best friend has got herself a boyfriend and Emma begins to worry that she has no friends... and so we embark on Emma's misadventures.


I think my favourite thing about this book is how Seager switches course and Emma focuses on friendship and finding her feet with that, rather than being another book on romantic relationships. Its so important that we get more books like this is YA. What do I mean by that? Funny, engaging, and valuing the importance of teen friendships.

This book was not for me. I felt as thought it was aimed at a younger age, specifically the 13-15 young adult age range. I can see how younger teens would love this book though.

Editing Emma was one of the funniest books I've ever read in my life, and book two in Seager's series certainly did not disappoint!

Emma is a teenage girl with a private blog that she posts basically everything on - it's kind of like a private Twitter account (I know you have one, own up) but obviously a lot more can be written. It's such a good way to write a book, making it very easy to keep up with and understand, and it gives it such a personalised, private way of writing that is uncomfortable when you just have the first person perspective.

Emma is such a relatable character, and although she gets herself into some hilariously ridiculous situations, they're really not that far-fetched. I love how this book really explores the importance of female friendships, especially as the last one revolved around romantic relationships.

Seager also writes about more "taboo" subjects with ease: like female masturbation, sex, orgasms, what happens when your best friend gets a boyfriend (surprisingly, this one isn't talked about that much??), periods, stalking, cyberbullying and internet safety, and addiction to social media. It's so refreshing to read about these subjects discussed without fear, and it's especially brilliant considering the age range these books are aimed at. Knowing that there are teenage girls out there reading this book and learning that things like this are acceptable to talk about and explore in discussion is really brilliant and I'm sure Seager's books will be recommended by teachers all over the country.

Not only is this book laugh-out-loud hilarious, it's honest, brilliantly written, and exactly what a teenager needs in this 21st-century, technology-heavy world.

Chloe Seager has absolutely done it again. I loved her debut Editing Emma last year. Emma is such a fresh, honest and real voice in YA and I just loved reading about her hilarious escapades. As soon as I realised there was a sequel I knew I had to get my hands on it and was lucky enough to pick up an early copy when Chloe came to an event in the city where I live.

Friendship Fails of Emma Nash is just as outrageously funny as the first book, maybe even more so. I love Emma’s personality and the fact that everything that happens to her is absolutely those things we all imagine only happen to us. Emma runs into embarrassing moment after embarrassing moment and I was cringing so hard for her at points but also desperately laughing my head off. She is such a relatable character to young girls and women and also makes it feel okay not to be perfect.

This second books sees Emma leave behind romance and embark on a journey to find new friends when she realises that with her best friends off with partners, she doesn’t actually have many people to hang around with. There begins Emma’s usual internet stalking (with some hilarious outcomes – we’ve all accidentally liked someone’s post/tweet from months ago whilst stalking online, right??) in her endeavour to make new friends. Little does she realise that the friends she will make will come from the unlikeliest of places.

Emma’s voice is still one that I find to be completely unique in YA. She is painstakingly honest about everything from periods and female masturbation (oh, those taboo topics in YA!) all the way up to friendships and relationships. I love that the books are told through the medium of blog posts because they allow for such a personal, insightful narrative and I think that’s one of the reason that I love Emma so much and am able to connect with her. Reading this book made me want to be Emma’s new BFF. Who wouldn’t want to be best friends with this hilarious, messy and brutally honest person?

I love that Chloe Seager uses these books to tackle what are considered to be the ‘big taboos’ but actually are normal, everyday things and I’m so pleased to see them being considered so mundane and normal in a book that I hope many young people will read. It’s about time that girls didn’t feel embarrassed of the norm! Emma Nash is a witty, honest and outrageously funny YA voice and I honestly find her to be a breath of fresh air. I hope there will be more to come!

I read an early finished copy of the novel which was bought at an event but I would also like to thank NetGalley, HQ Books and Chloe for giving me access to an early eARC of the book in exchange of an honest review.

I don’t often read YA novels, but Emma Nash is one of my favourite heroine and I am so happy she is back with more hilarious and engaging adventures. I was so engrossed in the novel that I read it in one afternoon and I didn’t get up from the couch until I finished reading it.

Emma is funny, honest, mature and innocent at the same time, and completely likable. She has her own fashion blog where she posts pictures of the clothes she creates. She was raised by her hypochondriac single mother. She loves watching Gilmore Girls and Pretty Little Liars (which, by the way, is one of the many reasons I like this character).

In this new novel, Emma’s two best friends are busy with their new relationships and she is often left alone. So Emma makes two resolutions: take part in the school fashion show (which causes a few hilarious reactions from her friends and teachers) and find new friends. This last one proves more difficult than Emma thought and she finds herself in awkward and comic situations that made me laugh out loud.

FRIENDSHIP FAILS OF EMMA NASH is written as diary entries and the conversational and clear tone make for an easy and entertaining read. Cat abductions, octopus dancing, mutilated stuffed animals, Matrix coats, and bathroom stalking, there is never a dull moment in Emma’s life. From cyber bullying to today’s obsession with social media, from sex to periods, the author tackles on topics that are typical but sometimes taboo in YA novels and make the book and the characters feel real and relatable.

If you are looking for a funny, captivating and refreshing novel, FRIENDSHIP FAILINGS OF EMMA NASH should be at the top of your list.

One year on from the publication of Chloe Seager’s hilarious debut Editing Emma and I have finally got my hands on the sequel! We left Emma vowing to give up on love and focus on her friendships and this book documents how she gets on. Perhaps unsurprisingly, she soon learns that friendships can be just as complicated and stressful as romantic relationships… if not more so!

It was so good to be back with Emma and her friends in this book. In my review of Editing Emma and Q&A with Chloe Seager, I spoke about how much I wanted to be part of their gang. They are clever, supportive and witty.

The sequel is also just as laugh-out-loud hilarious as Editing Emma, if not more so. The massage scene is the funniest thing I’ve read in YA since the missing condom fiasco in Tom Ellen and Lucy Ivison’s Freshers. It had me cackling to myself on the tube on the way to YALC. I immediately turned to my friend and told her how she had to read it asap.

Alongside the jokes, the book also deals with some darker themes. There is an interesting (and slightly terrifying) exploration of social media addiction, ‘trolls’ and the need for validation. Important reading not just for teens, but for all of us.

I absolutely love this series. May it live on for a long, long time!

I finished reading this while on the plane yesterday but was obviously not able to post the review at that time. I'm in Croatia now, and didn't get time to write it yesterday, but I'm here now! I'll attach links and images when I return home and have use of my laptop.

This is the second book in the Emma Nash series, but I read it as a standalone without reading the first. There are several moments where I'm sure I would've benefitted from having read the first book, but there is enough information in this book alone to understand what's happened and follow the story. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and am now considering reading the series 'properly'.

So as the title suggests, this is a book about Emma's friendship mishaps. The entire book is comprised of Emma's personal blog posts, which I really liked. It gave a very interesting narration, and allowed Seager to really develop the voice of Emma.

The 'plot' is a bit hard to explain, as it's pretty much a collection of lots of little problems and events. The book starts with Emma outlining her new 'resolutions' which involve working on herself and her hobbies, and developing new friendships. She also focuses on not stalking her ex-boyfriend online, and strengthening her existing relationships. It sounds like the last book was a lot more romantically focused, and Emma emphasises how she is not looking for romantic relationships this time.

The friendships Emma attempts to form are... Disastrous. And in attempting to strengthen her existing friendships, she manages to have a major fall-out with her best friend, Steph. She does make some unexpected friends, though, and there is an interesting romantic plot throughout the book, too.

Her friendship with Gracie sounds like it went through some tough patches in the past, and the couple work on their relationship. Another close friend of Emma's, Faith, has some big happenings regarding her own relationship with her girlfriend, too. I really liked how Seager included the same-sex relationship, and how she talks about the issues faced by the couple.

There are some fantastic moments in this, from a feminist POV. The girls openly discuss things such as sex and masturbation, and Emma even brings up the use of the word "slag" as a sexist term. I really appreciated how casually things are mentioned. There is even a moment where Steph's boyfriend reacts to her period blood in a bad way, and the girls discuss how awful it is of him to do so.

I did find this a little bit immature at times, like Emma was acting quite young. Sometimes the grammar/punctuation was a little off, but then that fits the teenage voice of Emma, who is 'writing' the book through her blog. Usually I find books about friendships and romances, especially at this age, super cheesy and boring. But I actually really liked this! It was so easy to read, and such a feel-good book. Emma really emphasises the importance on working on you, and not letting external factors ruin your happiness. She even faces cyber bullying at one point, which is another extremely important topic.

Overall, I really liked this. It was fun and happy and tackled some really important issues. 3.5 to 4 stars.

Emma is back! Which means that my life has once again be carefully studied and spread across the pages for everyone to read! At least that's what it feels like. I should legally look into getting my name changed to Emma Nash. I think its the only appropriate thing to do at this point.

I remember reading Editing Emma and feeling so connected to both the book and the character, like someone had dragged part of my personality out and laid it down in book form. This makes it a joy to come back to a character you feel like you know and have been on a journey with because book one was quite the ride. We'd left Emma full of resolutions to change and so you'd be right in thinking New Book New Emma (I'm apparently very keen of that phrase atm) however as we all know and as Emma finds out, nothing in life is ever that simple, especially when you feel like you've changed and the world around you has its own ideas.

Written in short episodic diary entries we get everything; the before, the during and the after and the result is a really raw an open narrative where we see Emma, thinking, considering and learning with every entry because she is far far to open and observant about everything. She has a very distinct and comedic voice, and I read it like I can hear her talking to me (is that weird?). She's a trier god bless her, I'll give her that. The conversational tone really draws you in and I was addicted to this book, constantly wanting more, cringing with every other entry but more importantly laughing, openly and loudly in all kinda of public places because it was such a fun read. The only annoying thing was I was reading it on my phone so when i got a funny look I couldn't wave my phone in front of their faces and say its a BOOK! like I know Emma would.

Emma has this great selfish point of view. I don't mean selfish in the negative sense of the word, more, and this is something we all do, is that her pov is very single minded to what she think she knows and understands about the world around her. Her reactions to situations then don't always go the way she wants them and it's through these pitfalls that she learns to grow. And when you're Emma Nash/Me you don't make it easy for yourself. Hilarity ensues (thought I've never had and hope not to have a stalker!).

This was sone of the things that I loved about the dynamic of Emma and Steph's relationship. How they could be so close but their lives were both slowly changing and moving in different ways, with new people and new situations to factor in, but as is teenage way they weren't talking about it. So Emma assumes she knows what's best and you should never assume...because when you assume you make an ASS out of U and ME. I'm so glad I've been able to finally write that down. I think Emma would be proud.

This was actually reflective of a lot of Emma's relationships throughout the book, and this is a great example of how friendships are these complicated difficult things. Things that need work, things that we take for granted and more often than not something that is right there in front of us the whole time. It was great then to see how her relation with Gracie changed through out the book. If we learnt anything from this book it's there are just certain ways to approach trying to make new friends, stalking them on Twitter is NOT one ( thoughI'm sure we've all done it) nor is picking someone based on surname! You can have the best of intentions but not everyone is going to get that! I think that's a lesson we can all learn.

Plus there was another Britney reference. It really is the way to my heart in a book!

I can only imagine what situations emma is going to get herself into in the future. Can you image her at university!? I am here for that ride!

As soon as I started reading this book and discovered that it was a sequel, I went straight out and bought the first book Editing Emma! I love Emma Nash as a character and the writing style is so engaging.
Friendship Fails of Emma Nash had me in hysterics at times and it was such a relatable book. I think it touches upon insecurities that we all have regarding the balance of friendships and relationships in a lighthearted way.
I would definitely recommend this book, especially for fans of the Georgia Nicholson books and The Exact Opposite of Okay.

Chloe Seager hits the comedy nail right on the head again in this absolutely amazing sequel. Although Emma did a lot of emotional growing in the first book, you could tell that she still had a long way. This time, it's friends rather than boys that she needs to sort out. I loved how this book captured both the good and the bad. The fallings out and the FOMO of not being invited, the joy of sharing secrets and being supported in your passions...this felt like a very realistic portrayal of what it's like to keep friends as a teenager now.

I also loved that Emma had a passion in design and the fashion world with her school runway. Making new friends feels like quite a mystical activity, and seeing not only long lasting friendships, but new ones form too was the balance I (and Emma!) needed. All I can say is MORE hobbies in YA, please!

If you loved Geek Girl by Holly Smale, or Super Awkward by Beth Garrod, then Emma Nash will fit nicely alongside those comedic heroines on your bookshelf. Chloe Seager is one to watch!

This book is hilarious and a great follow on from editing Emma. Emmas voice and plot was just as gripping and funny as previously.

I loved this book so much. Editing Emma made me seriously laugh out loud on more than ten occasions. And this one didn't fail to neither.

Emma just gets herself into so many awkward situations and has many up and downs and I love seeing that. It shows that nothing is easy. Friendships, relationships, they are not easy. But real friends always get back on track. Everything will work out in the end.

I also love how this delves into the consequences of social media. Relying on it too much, the effects of cyber bullying. This touches on a range of other topics too (more seemingly taboo ones) such as periods, masturbation, sex. There is also a same-sex relationship in this book.

I root for Emma all the way. I love her character and her friends, and her mum. Now we're introduced to Charlie too, who I adore. Bring on those guy friendships!

Annnnnnnddd: SPOILER SO BE WARNED...

LEON!!! OMG LEON I LOVE HIM SO MUCH ASDFGHJL. I want him and Emma together. I don't even care, they just need to be. Please keep him, don't let him go or I'll cry. If that happens at least bring in a beautiful new guy for Emma.

Okay. I'm done. But I need the next book ASAP!!!!

I love this book! I really enjoyed the first one, Editing Emma, and in many ways this is more of the same, but that is just what I wanted.

After Emma's unsuccessful attempts to find herself a new boyfriend in Editing Emma, she's decided to focus on friendships instead, both looking after her existing (and worryingly small) group of friends and building it up so that she's never left alone. That concern is really at the core of the novel. Steph has a boyfriend now, Faith has a girlfriend, she never made up with Gracie, and she's getting very worried about everyone growing up and moving on and leaving her behind.

Of course her plans don't go quite right. Of course they don't. Emma is still a wonderful, glorious mess. Every time she starts a blog post with the phrase "Something horrible has happened" or some variation of that, my heart leapt. One thing Chloe Seager does really, really well is make you emphasise with Emma. I really felt for her, and watching her walk into disaster after disaster was really tough. One of the other things Chloe does brilliantly is humour though, and I was laughing throughout. This is, at the end of the day, a very fun, very funny book.

It also goes where many books fear to tread, and that is really refreshing. Chloe's characters masturbate, have periods, go to the toilet, fart, queef, and all those things that normal people do but fictional characters are rarely depicted as doing. Sometimes it is embarrassing, sometimes it's perfectly normal, but it feels very real.

The issues Emma faces are also very real though. Underneath the humour there are some really important messages, about the importance of talking to people about your problems rather than letting them lie, trying to understand that other people have their own lives and their own problems and breakdowns in friendships aren't always about what you think it is about. The cyber bullying/slut shaming parts were really powerful. Books like The Exact Opposite of Okay focus on that so well, but Friendship Fails of Emma Nash shows that it doesn't have to be a huge, publicised thing to have an impact. A couple of small comments by an anonymous dick on a blog post can have a huge impact on someone's self-esteem and confidence.

A wonderful book that I enjoyed immensely.

Picking up from where book one of Emma's life and blog stopped, we catch up with Emma, Steph, Gracie and Faith as Emma keeps up her new blog and comes without Leon or Greg and comes to terms with Steph dating Andy, Gracie's brother!



As she tries to befriend other girls in her year whilst also cope with Matrix boy and Charlie, a friend whom she knows through him also being a keen designer and being a friend of Leon's too.

We see how Emma and Steph have to reform their friendship dynamic as Emma struggles when Steph has less time to hang out a lot with her.



Emma Nash is a more modern version of Georgia Nicholson with more social media influence and of course still the boy drama! A relatable teen, Emma is a great example of a modern typical teen girl. Chloe captures the teen voice expertly as Emma deals with relationship troubles and friendships too as new boundaries are forged as her friend gets a boyfriend and we see how Emma deals with it.



Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

The book is funny and emotional. From the moment it starts to the last post, you will not want to put it down as that is how it felt for me. I would highly recommend as it is well written and enjoyable.