This is a great book. Made me laugh out loud in places.
I loved the depiction of female friendships in this book

There was a lot to love about this book, but ultimately I found it a difficult read and in the end I had to DNF it at around 50/55%.

Bourne discusses and highlights very important topics of sexual abuse/assault, rape and mental health and I feel like this was done sensitively. I felt that throughout the book it really hits how it often feels to be a woman interacting with men and the expectations that are put upon us and what we are meant to want, even without considering the physical trauma April suffers.

April has a lot of trauma (completely understandably) and I really felt for her and I understood her righteous anger. It was, however, at times an uncomfortable read though as we experienced April's disassociation and trauma- I understand that this is the point and it is a testament to the quality of the writing that it was so difficult to read.

The big thing I didn't like, though, was the deception when April starting seeing Joshua under the name of Gretel. Although I understood the motives, I felt like it went too far and when they slept together and she was still 'Gretel' I had to stop reading and put it down. I haven't gone back to it for some time and I think I need to now just mark it as a DNF.

I am grateful for the opportunity to have read this (even though I put it off for some time), but for me the level of deception made me want to stop reading!

A good read- well established characters- warm, well written and scarily a times relatable.
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for gifting the book,

I actually enjoyed this more than Holly Bourne’s previous adult novel but do still prefer her YA novels. That being said, this addressed some important topics and I thought it was written really well. It was refreshing to see therapy painted in a positive light and see the effect it had on different people and knowing April had support from her friends. However considering April is in her 30’s, she came across a little immature in parts and actually reminded me of Holly Bourne’s characters from her YA novels.

Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read. Great read.

The opening pages of the book are hard hitting and give you a very clear idea of what you think Alice is going to be like. Through her monologue, she slates men and is extremely opinionated. As the story goes on, she adopts a persona when talking to men until she realises that she is starting to fall for one of the men.
I really liked the premise of the story but I was just left feeling a bit flat and I don't know why. I really enjoyed the friendships and support April received but I felt like April became a bit of an unlikable character. She just seemed a bit too immature.
Bourne covers some very traumatic themes and does so in a sensitive manner, although more trigger warnings are probably needed.
I enjoyed but definitely prefer more of her YA novels.

Holly Bourne gets better and better! I can’t wait to read her next and adored this one. The story was warm and heartfelt and the characters were brilliant

As usual Holly Bourne hits the difficulties of modern dating, the very relatable insecurities faced by women today in this funny at times, sad at others novel. Kept me reading to the end.

A touching read, difficult at times with the subject matter but very well handled. I liked April's character a lot. Easy writing style and an enjoyable read.

I just adored this book. Holly Bourne has made an extremely successful move into adult fiction and I regularly recommend her to people of all ages!

I'm a huge fan of Holly Bourne's YA writing so was so disappointed to find that I just couldn't mesh with this book. I found myself slogging through it and felt I only finished it because I felt I had to, because Holly is an automatic read for me. Perhaps I'll stick with her YA writing.

Because of the subject matter - it addresses sexual violence against women - Pretending should be a hard read, but it's not. It's warm and funny with characters you'll root for. It's also set during a heatwave in London, which Bourney conveys brilliantly, making me forget I was reading on one of the coldest days of the year. I loved Bourne's first adult novel too. Can't wait to see what she writes next.

I'm a massive Holly Bourne fan, reading everything she's ever written. Pretending is her second adult novel, and while it was an engaging and smart read, I didn't feel like it was as good as her previous novel.

Would still recommend to fans, but prefer How Do You Like Me Now?

I am a longtime fan of Holly Bourne’s writing and her second novel for adults didn’t disappoint. In fact, I think it was far better than her much-loved first (How Do You Like Me Now?). It tells the story of April, who struggles to ever get past date five. Every time she thinks she’s found someone to trust, they reveal themselves to be awful, leaving her heartbroken, upset and angry. So she decides to take a new tact and pretends to be the woman every man seems to want – Gretel, the Regular Everyday Manic Pixie Dream Girl Next Door With No Problems. But, of course, it isn’t that easy. I sped through this 450 page book in just a few days and enjoyed it so much it sent me into a reading slump afterwards – no book seemed to live up to it! The characters have stuck with me and Holly Bourne’s therapeutic training comes out in her accurate descriptions of trauma and disassociation. I also loved the descriptions of London (it made me crave Dishoom so much!)

This is a brilliantly incisive, clever book about the ways women contort themselves to fit what they're told to want, and what they're told men want. Sharp, wise and also very funny and very generous, I've recommended it to multiple friends!

Excellent read, entertaining and fun whilst tackling some important issues. Having struggled to read my usual amount of books since lockdown began I've finally gradually got back into it and am glad I chose this book to resume a bit of normality in these odd times.

Holly has once again delivered a novel full of relatable characters and emotional scenes. Strong content warning or sexual assault; from the beginning this book can be quite intense in places. It made me think a lot about how experiences shape our assumptions about people, especially in the dating world. The boxing class scenes in particular left me super emotional and I would definitely recommend this powerful story.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

Life After Trauma......
When protagonist April begins to pretend to be someone else in her efforts to seek revenge and escape past trauma she unleashes all types of chaos. Emotional themes and heavy, sensitive issues well observed but, perhaps, seeking a younger audience.

Holly Bourne has written a beautiful, well researched novel which is both thought provoking and necessary.

This might be the most informed book I have read this year and would encourage both men and women to pick up a copy.

Please be aware that the subject matter of this book deals with the impact of sexual violence and may not be right for everyone.