This is a book about sex, but it is not a sexy book.
Far from erotic this is more of an exploration of a woman discovering her sexuality, and how uneven and exploitative relationships happen between all different genders.
Despite the dark parts - where I felt Julia was losing herself in a quite inappropriate relationships (haven't we all!) - it was still very amusing and the observational humour worked very well and felt real.
I enjoyed it but did feel the ending tried a little too hard to be 'the fairytale' and for quite a real/gritty read it ended up tying up every lose thread so happily to be a little unrealistic which didn't sit well with the natural tone throughout.
But that's a small point, great to read 'mass' lesbian literature and would like to read more!

This was a fun and intense read that it took a while for me to get into. The first 20% felt like a slog and I would dip in and out but when I reached past that mark I flew threw it and read the other 80% in one sitting. Julia was a complex and interesting character and it was good to read from her perspective as she had many layers to her as character. I disliked Sam from the 2nd scene she was in so I spent most of the book being like "dump her arse". The side characters were well developed and I would love to know more about those in her swing class and Eric who was one of my favourite characters in the book.

I’ve been wanting to read more books from diverse points of view this year.
As a white, straight, cis female I want to know and understand more about different sexualities, races, cultures and lifestyles.

This book was eye opening and well written. I got to see representation of the queer community from someones POV and see more about lesbian culture.

Just like any straight romance or relationship, this doesn’t represent everyone, but it’s one persons story of learning more about themselves and their introduction to the queer community.

I have friends who have been in similar relationships with similar people to Sam and I really thought the development of the relationship was written brilliantly. It really showed how someone can become controlling and dominate a relationship and how your control slowly slips away.

If you’re triggered by controlling relationships or emotional abuse/blackmail then be warned.
It’s not the worst case I’ve read about but if you are triggered or sensitive to it and want to read it then take this as your warning.

Also learnt a lot about fisting!

Unfortunately this was a miss for me. Surprisingly, since I don't consider myself a prude, I thought that sex was too pervasive in the book and the vast majority of it was not good -- both selfish and abusive. I don't think that I could get through a page without some mention of sex. I wish I could say that I liked this, but it was not for me.

ulia has given up on her romance life, believing that she's just not very good at sex when she comes to the realisation that maybe it's not her, but the men she's been sleeping with. After a night with a woman, Julia realises that she is, in fact, a lesbian and steps into a bright, new life full of LGBT+ swing dancing, SM clubs and fisting - yes, fisting.

This is a laugh-out-loud, raucous story about a young woman really coming to understand who she is, and who she wants to be as she finally accepts her sexuality and loudly announces it to the world. I have to say - this story is NOT for anyone faint of heart when it comes to sexual things, or anyone who doesn't really like vulgar descriptions or words used in stories because this has it all. I honestly know a little bit more about fisting than I ever want to, and I'm now side-eying people on the train, wondering if they are the type of accountant to go to an SM club at the weekend and wear a gimp mask.

This book contains a bounce of energy to it, and you can't help but be swept up alongside Julia as she proudly steps into her new lesbian life and radiates a newfound confidence. I really liked how it was no big deal really for her as she came out to friends and family (though realistically, I know many people do not have such easy coming out experiences) and I really felt like there was so much great character progression for Julia throughout the story.

Julia's relationship with Sam is the big 'love story' in the novel, and I liked how Kate Davies was able to really showcase a relationship that was unhealthy in a way that wasn't in your face abusive or emotionally manipulative, and how easy it is for people to enter and stay in relationships that aren't good for them. I think I personally would have liked the relationship to wrap up a bit sooner than it did, so there was a bit more healing time and a bit more time with Julia and her new beau near the end.

I also just really loved the little side plot of Julia's letters from Eric - an OAP who writes letters to the civil service to complain but ends up becoming pen pals with Julia. It was just really sweet and every letter from him made me smile, even though it was a tiny bit in the overall book.

This is a great romp of a book for people who don't want to take their reading too seriously, and just want to have a good time with some funny characters who like to have a lot of loud sex (and may even let you watch!).

In at the Deep End is a drama about a young woman discovering her sexuality in contemporary London. Uncompromising and quite explicit in some of the description, it is a thought provoking novel about the nature of relationships regardless of sex or gender.

This book was very different to what I usually read however I found I really enjoyed it. It was maybe a little to graphic in places and had me blushing as I sat on the bus to work but overall it's a good gritty storyline. I give this book 3 stars

This is another book I read while on holiday, having downloaded it from Netgalley without really having any idea what it was about. As it turns out, it's about a woman named Julia, who thinks she is just unlucky enough to have had bad sex for the most part, but comes to realise that she's actually been looking in the wrong place, i.e. at men. When she chances on a date with a woman, she realises what she's been missing out on, and begins a very tumultuous relationship that is full of much more satisfying sex. This is not my usual kind of book: I'm no prude, but I just don't tend to read books with graphic sex in them. And this is pretty graphic. But it was refreshing to read some modern fiction about someone who wasn't straight (though as I acknowledged on Instagram, she was still late 20s, white, able-bodied, and living in London).

I love it when I pick up a book that I know nothing about and I am absolutely blown away by the story and indeed the story telling. That is exactly what happened when I read In at the Deep End by Kate Davies. It is unexpected, hilarious, and heartfelt.

The story focuses on Julia and her sexual awakening. She is nearly 30 and has always known she is bisexual but has yet to have a relationship with a woman. Once she does, her life changes forever.

In At the Deep End has been compared the Bridget Jones’s Diary which is a pretty fair assessment. Julia’s relationship escapades really do rival Bridget’s for their ridiculousness. However, Davies explores deeper issues too.

The story looks at manipulation, mental abuse, platonic relationships, and jealousy. This is a lot to be covered in its 392 pages.

I can honestly say that I didn’t want this book to end. I was so completely engrossed in Julia’s life that it became a pleasant distraction from my own.

In at the Deep End by Kate Davies is available now.

For more information regarding Kate Davies (@katyemdavies) please visit www.katedavieswriter.com.

For more information regarding Harper Collins (@HarperCollinsUK) please visit their Twitter page.

A great easy read, made me laugh out loud a lot! I was glad no one was looking over my shoulder as I was reading this in the office, NSFW but really entertaining!

Witty, razor-sharp and so, so relatable, I devoured this book and cannot believe this is a debut. I laughed and cried in almost equal measure and can't wait to see what Kate does next.

This was such a fun read! Lots and lots of sex though xD It might have been a bit much, but I guess that was to be expected (from the cover), so that's okay. I was interested from the start and it read a bit like fifty shades of grey.. but where the bad sexjokes were meant to be bad and funny. They weren't gross like fifty shades of grey, which I really appreciated. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I would love to read more by Kate Davies.

An absolutely hilarious, action packed, sexy, racy read of Alice's self discovery in trying to find who she is, where she belongs, who to and what group?. And that fine line between love, obsession and trying to get it right every which way when you are growing up and battling emotions and frustrations.
If you want a fun, heartfelt, crude and open read this is the one. I think a lot of ladies will recognise or remember similar incidents from their past that may make them smile or squirm but ultimately it's what makes us who we are!.
My thanks go to the publisher, author and Netgalley in providing this arc in return for a honest review.

It took me a while to get round to this book, it was sitting there and something else always sounded more appealing. I was wrong to wait. Julia is inspirational, this is a wonderful blend of romance and drama in the real world with a character that is relatable and loveable. It made a great change from all the usual female lit thats out there. Loved it.

This book was funny on places, especially at the start but really started to lose me as it progressed.
The main character ended up in what became an abusive relationship which took it out of comedy territory for me and felt a little confused as to what it was trying to do.
Not bad but I wouldn’t rush to recommend.

I wanted this book to be so much better. It kind of just relied on graphic sex scenes, taking drugs and a bad portrayal of BDSM and Poly relationships. There’s very little consent and Julia seems to be uncomfortable with most of it which makes it an uncomfortable read.

It started well and was funny and entertaining but it soon went downhill. It’s like the author couldn’t decide what genre she wanted to write. It definitely isn’t a rom-com. Halfway through it switches from funny to just sad. You get to read along with an abusive relationship mixed in with uncomfortable BDSM practices which is not what I signed up for when I chose a rom-com.

With regards to characters, the only ones I actually liked were the minor background ones. The main characters weren't particularly likeable including Julia which was disappointing. I wanted to stop reading but I also wanted to see how it was going to end. It ends nicer than I expected but it's finished up in about 5 pages.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review

A character so bland that she has to constantly keep exclaiming about how interesting her newfound sexuality is, lest we forget that being gay is actually definitely unusual and means that you can be forgiven for working as a civil servant.

Very ham-handed, and not just because of the constant references to fisting.

Inspiring, moving, refreshing, contemporary and intelligent... And somewhat educational. And yes, very very funny.
It is like indulging in "Girls" and "Fleabag" at the same time - entertaining and thought-provoking. I laughed out loud.

Thank you NetGalley and the Borough Press for this one-night-stand engrossing odyssey in exchange for an honest review.

Loved it! Recommend it! Will share it (i.e. give as gifts)!

P.S. If you loved it I would recommend to check out "How Do You Like Me Now?" and "Not Working".

This is a well written, funny book which reads as a cross between Bridget Jones Diary and Fleabag, with a healthy dose of explicit lesbian sex. Julia is a nicely written character and there were times I wanted to hug her and times I wanted to kick her butt - hard. It's a good read about a young woman navigating her way through life and Kate Davies is a writer I will return to in the future. I didn't warm to Julia or many of the other characters and I'm not sure I'm the best audience as a retired woman but there were good elements in this story.

I was given a copy of the book by Netgalley in return for an honest review.

hilarious and real. book was brilliantly funny. honest fun and full of sex. can't ask for better and yeh I will be recommending this book to my friends.