This was a bit of a slow burner for me but I stick with it. It got there in the end. Thanks for the advanced copy unfortunately this just wasn’t for me

An easy to read book with a couple of laugh out loud moments, plenty of raised smiles and heartbreak at its core... it wasn't as light as I expected it to be and the main theme could be a trigger for some people so be warned! I enjoy this author's style and would seek out her other books to read.

I love Mhari’s books and have read and enjoyed them all.
I love the 80,s references, the music lyrics and the story so skilfully woven around a simple theme. And the theme for this book is in the title.; Georgina remembers Lucas, but he doesn’t remember her.....which is weird because he definitely should.

Funny, warm, familiar and curiously life affirming this book is a delight!

If you want romance with heart, grit and wit, you can't go past Mhairi McFarlane.

I really loved this book. McFarlane has a talent for writing heroines that have long suffered from self-esteem issues and who, through the course of the story, learn to stand up for themselves, recognise their own value, have faith in themselves and make peace with painful things that have happened to them. Georgina, the heroine of Don't You Forget About Me, is no exception and maybe McFarlane's most memorable creation yet.

As I wish to avoid spoilers, I won't go into the details of the plot, but suffice it to say, Georgina gets a second chance with her first love....but it doesn't go according to plan (does it ever?). Her life is a bit of a mess and she is dating an absolute moron (but he is a genius creation - haven't we all known a Robin at some point in our lives). While the story is easy to read, it deals with very serious issues like abusive relationships, sexual assault, family friction and gaslighting. I liked the way that therapy was brought into the story too.

If you want a compulsively readable book that will make you laugh, cry and think, I'd highly recommend this!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC.

Absolutely loved this book and shall be exploring more by this author. She had me hooked from the start! Laughed, cried, despaired and celebrated! Georgina and Lucas, what a pair!!
Great writing, warm and witty! Thoroughly recommend this book -a great read

LOVED, LOVED, LOVED IT!!!!

What a wonderful book!! Oh how I cried. I can honestly say this book is going to have a special place in my heart forever. I certainly won't be forgetting about it.

We never forget our first love… or do we? Mhairi McFarlane gets the mix of laughs, romance and serious emotional depth just right, creating a page turner which stands out from the crowd.

FULL REVIEW TO APPEAR IN SUNDAY EXPRESS S MAGAZINE, 3/3/19

One of the best books I’ve ever read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Some points I laughed out loud, others I felt sad for the characters and other moments just made me feel really warm and uplifted :) I highlighted some quotes throughout the book, because I loved / related to them so much! Par example:

‘To be honest, a lot of counselling appears to be accepting you’re up to your tits in shit and finding your zen about it. Saying: at least my tits are warm’ LOVED IT.

This was my first book by this author. I did enjoy it but I found Georgina quite self indulgent at times and didn’t warm to her a great deal. I would’ve liked to hear from the point of view of Lucas as I think that may have given a different take on him.

None of us have forgotten our first boyfriend . Georgina meets him again after several years and it would appear he has forgotten her . Working as a barmaid to her family's consternation, she also has to deal with an obnoxious ex boyfriend who she wishes she could forget, and vice versa. Brilliantly written, very funny and yet sad, I could not put the book down. All comes good in the end.

Mhairi McFarlane does it again and pulls off another brilliant book. I actually couldn’t put it down and laughed and cried all the way.
Georgina falls in love, aged 18 and is about to have the best night of her life, when it all comes crashing down around her. Now, 12 years on she is still plagued by that day, in fact it has probably not helped her life in any way, but thus story tells the heartwarming tale of how she picks herself up, dusts herself off and carries on.
I have had tears streaming down my face, and a warm feeling inside, wondering where I can find a man like that for myself. I would definitely recommend you read this story. It has certainly brightened up my week.

This was my first Mhairi McFarlane book and I wasn't disappointed,
The story of Georgina and Lucas,
I loved how the story looped around, tying the beginning to the end.
There are plenty of women out there who had dreams and aspirations, yet the world doesn't work in their favour, and they get stuck in the loop of bad job/bad relationships/bad fortune. Women like Georgina who thought life would be so much better.
Things don't always work out for her, and the digs from her family don't help.
But the chance offer of a one-off job leads to more, and some interesting twists and turns in her life.
I really enjoyed the story, reading it in one day, The characters were relatable, and there was the romance, interlaced with doses of the reality of dating life nowadays.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

“You never forget your first love”, these words have never left Georgina our likeable 30 something with her chaotic life.
The story leads us through her current life with flashbacks to her school years where she met her true love. Bumping into him again brings all her feelings to the front and she is gutted to find he doesn’t even remember her.
The story is bittersweet, dealing very well with Georgina’s darkest secret and ending just as we would want!
I can’t help but think this would make a marvellous film ! I could picture the scenes in my head as I read. Lovely story!

I think I've read every Mhairi McFarlane book and this book is vintage. There's a healthy dose of reality, especially in the central character's personality and backstory, and the further I get through the book the more I don't want to put it down. The writing is witty and the poignant parts are super-poignant.

I am sometimes made slightly uncomfortable by the central character and Georgina fell into this category. Does this mean I'm an escapist reader and don't necessarily want to spend that much time with someone I don't always like? Maybe. I always like the second half of the book much more than the first.

I loved Lucas and maybe he was just as trounced by real life as Georgina but because Georgina tells us her story first person, Lucas's trials were less painful to read about.

If you want a well-written book that gives you food for thought; if you like to inspect uncomfortable lives and injustice up close, this is definitely the book for you.

I really liked this book! I found it really engaging, witty and fun. It made me laugh out loud at times, and it was a good mix of both romance and comedy!

I was drawn into reading this novel when I saw the blurb.

What I thought I was getting was a light-hearted, comedic sort of romance.

And for the most part that's exactly what I got.

The characters were well written, with witty dialogue that had me laughing out loud in places.

What I would say is that there were parts that were unexpected, and that was a good thing, they gave the book a certain twist that I didn't even know it was missing until I read it!

I'd happily read this one again and I'd also like to see a follow up novel.

It seems like forever since I read a new Mhairi McFarlane book and now it will seem like it again. I loved reading it so much and would have read it in fewer sittings but the eyes aren't what they used to be and started to close down on me.

I've said before that I don't really class Mhairi's books as chick lit and I do now think that she should have a new category of fiction named after her! This latest book shows how her writing has developed into something with so many layers (some I am still uncovering in my mind), so much humour, and yet still with an intensity that leaves you thinking - "I know just how that character feels". She also deals with heavier subjects I've not seen in her writing before. However because by then you know Georgina, it was hard hitting but thought provoking.

After the first page I didn't think of them as characters anymore, they were alive and well in my world with me and I couldn't wait to get back to them. I did at times despair of the leading lady Georgina or Gog! She really does find herself at the end of things that "aren't her fault" but to all the world they seem as if they are, which results in her being seen as a little ditsy when she's far from that. Unlike in traditional chick lit where I would be thinking "yeah! as if that would happen, it's included for comedic effect" in Mhairi's writing you just know it could have happened. Her "Worst Boyfriend in the world" was a real piece of work and at times I got a little frustrated that I couldn't give him a piece of my mind.

The book starts in the past but then the most refreshing thing about it was that it didn't then flip flop back and forth - in fact at one point I thought I had missed something. But no, we were fast forwarded without a look back and little by little in the present day we discover what happened in the past. Just like books used to be!

There were some brilliant one liners but I would spoil some spectacular moments for you if I mentioned them. Instead I'm going to say that if you want a good read about people you will feel that you could or have met in your day to day life, then this is the book for you.

This is the ere of Mhairi’s books that I’ve read and enjoyed. She writes down to earth main characters and with a sharp, sarcastic wit that reminds me of Lindsey Kelk.

This story is about Georgina and Lucas, two people who used to know each other and who are reunited in unlikely circumstances.

If I was putting together a course for people wanting to write chick lit, female-led fiction or whatever you’re comfortable calling it, Mhairi McFarlane’s latest book would be required reading.
Don’t You Forget About Me is an exemplar of the genre; it fizzes with energy, it’s hilariously funny and offers some swoon-worthy romance but at the same time is balanced by a poignancy that genuinely made me tearful.
The heroine, Georgina, is feisty yet vulnerable, relatable and likeable and the hero, Lucas, is everyone’s next book boyfriend.
All in all, even without the Simple Minds earworm of the title, it is an unforgettable book.

Believable characters, realistic humour and poignant moments are all to be found in this likeable story set in Sheffield. Georgina’s life has not followed her teenage plan, but then whose does?

However, there’s more to her story than is first apparent, and although I did find this book, dragged a little in parts, I enjoyed it and appreciated the important issues it raises. Particularly, how a young person’s life can be irreparably damaged, by a single action or event.

The story is romantic and humorous, but it goes deeper than a romcom usually does. The humour is often dark or double-edged, and the romance is there, but not in the voluminous quantities the reader would expect from romantic comedy fiction.

Georgina’s family seem to treat her as the ‘joke’, the one who never grew up, but this is her perception and not necessarily their intention. Families are made up of individuals, drawn together by birth and blood, there is always likely to be a generational difference of opinion, which comes across well in this story, as does Georgina’s reactions and thoughts about their opinions on her life choices.

The romance of the story hinges on whether Lucas remembers Georgina, I think he does. His actions are not blameless, but they are understandable, given what he believes, how he feels about her, and what has subsequently occurred in his life.

The sibling relationship in this story is one of its strengths; competitiveness, bossiness and a hierarchy are evident, but the sister bond is unbreakable when threatened by outside forces.

The last quarter of this story has the most impact. Especially, when Georgina finally faces up to and shares what changed her young life. It is heartbreaking to read, but there will probably be parts of it that you can relate to, from your teenage life. The difficulty Georgina has in verbalising her painful experience is relatable and makes her character memorable.

Well- written, topical and varied this is worth reading, but it’s not a quick, easy read.