I very much enjoyed Rachel Marks' previous book, Saturdays at Noon, so appreciated the opportunity to read and review her new one, Until Next Weekend.

The story is narrated by primary school teacher Noah (that rare thing - a male teacher of young children, in this case the reception class). I liked his character, despite his many and acknowledged flaws. It's fair to say that Noah's life isn't going particularly well. Ex-wife Kate - a woman of admirable tolerance and forbearance - is with someone new, the much maligned (by Noah) Jerry. Noah's time with his two young sons is limited to every other weekend, and it's time he values hugely, yet often self-sabotages. Yes, Noah's a bit of a mess, filling his empty evenings with too much alcohol and casual sex, yearning for the family life - and much-loved wife - he threw away through his own behaviour, and apparently unable to move on.

Until Next Weekend deals with some serious themes - bereavement, suicide, mental health, family breakdown, the lasting impact on children of their parents' issues - but is never less than compulsively readable.

There are some great characters here - I really liked Mimi. the girl Noah meets when she's working behind the bar he frequents, and all the children are excellent. The descriptions of Noah's class of four-year-olds were lovely, and for the most part extremely believable, even down to the names of the children - the Ethans and Baileys and Olivias of today's primary schools. The dialogue - both of adults and children - is excellent throughout.

A very enjoyable and satisfying read.

“There was this ‘dad’ advert on the TV that depicted all these different family situations and one of them was Weekend Dad. He was this super cool fun guy who took his kids to all the best places and they looked up at him like he was some kind of God. I’d sit there – this grumpy git who stomped around the house telling the boys to put their shoes on the rack and go to bloody sleep and stop leaving their foot-piercing Lego on the floor – and I hated Weekend Dad, getting all of the good bits and none of the crap, and being put on a pedestal because of it.”

Noah loves his boys but can’t help thinking that he’s not being quite enough for them. So when his marriage to the perfect Kate crumbles, he withdraws and watches from the side-lines as Kate’s new partner Jerry swoops in superhero-style to raise Gabe and Finn, erasing Noah from the picture and redrawing their perfect family with himself at the centre.

An agreement with Kate means that Noah gets to see the boys every other weekend but, rather than assuming the Weekend Dad role he’s always craved, he is too often intoxicated, wandering the streets unaccounted for or just plain oblivious to their arrangement altogether. He descends into an alcohol-fuelled depression, certain in his belief that his boys will be better off without him.

His job as a primary-school teacher is simultaneously made difficult when young Harley transfers from another school, bringing with him a whirlwind of distraction and destruction in his wake. Complaining parents, a formidable headteacher and a useless teaching assistant circle in Noah’s thoughts until he finds himself alone at a desolate bar down-town.

Reaching out to meaningless women for meaningless sex, Noah plummets further into his cycle of self-destruction. That is, until a conversation with Mimi, a striking red-haired barmaid who gives him a much-needed shake by the shoulders.

Too often in fiction does a depressive father meet a woman and turn his life around, and Rachel Marks thankfully doesn’t submit to this overdone stereotype. Instead this book is about dealing with the past, even if it means stirring up unwelcome traumas, and actively contributing to a better future. Noah’s position of responsibility at school is critical to the plot and his caring vigilance and love for the children in his care are both touching and excellently executed.

Uplifting in parts and heart-breaking in others, ‘Until Every Weekend’ was unputdownable and I read it in one sitting. An enjoyable slow to medium-paced read until the final few chapters which I raced through at breakneck speed. I fell in love with the characters, connecting particularly to the loveable challenge of Harley and the over-and-above role that Noah plays in safeguarding this child.

In spectacular Rachel Marks style, she doesn’t shy away from the difficult yet real struggles found in society. This book contains themes that are tackled maturely but may be triggering to readers including mental illness, suicide and alcohol dependence.

A book of hope that we all need in these current times. An unforgettable read.

A huge thank you to the teams at Michael Joseph and NetGalley for gifting me an ARC of this book, and I wish it all the best of luck with its publication in April 2021. This honest review has been given at the request of the publisher but all of the opinions given are my own.

I absolutely loved Rachel's first book Saturdays at Noon so I was so excited to read her latest book. Until Next Weekend follows Noah, a 'weekend dad' on a mission to win back his ex-wife Kate. He misses the life they used to have together, he misses spending everyday with his boys and he's decided enough is enough, he's going to change. At first I wasn't sure how I felt about Noah, it kind of seemed like Kate had been well within her rights to make the decision she did but as the book went on, I really grew to like him, and every character actually. It felt very believable and once we know what Noah has been through, it's very easy to have sympathy for him and hope he gets what he really wants. There was a nice amount of humour thrown in and a few parts towards the end made me very emotional which I didn't expect. I already know I'll be looking out for Rachel's next book, I think she's a fantastic writer.

I didn’t enjoy this quite as much as Saturdays At Noon, but I think it was because the character of Noah was such an inept, whiny man-child. Even discovering the reasons why this was so didn’t endear him to me. I suppose the fact he exasperated and annoyed me shows what an excellent writer the author is!
The descriptions of a fractured family were spot on, there is a lot of wry humour and the children are delightful.

I just loved Rachel Mark's first book "Saturdays at Noon", so I was so excited when I saw that she had a new book on the way. I was also slightly scared that I might be disappointed, well I didn't have to worry this was absolutely brilliant.
It occasionally broke my heart as Noah did everything he could to get back with Kate and win her back from her fiance.
I think that I felt every emotion that Noah went through and I must admit that I was in tears on more than one occasion. He is the most believably real character and I was just captivated.
I feel a little overwhelmed at the end if it as well as bereft tk be finished but I wholeheartedly recommend it to all. Just make sure you have some tissues and chocolate to hand.

Thought-provoking and unpredictable, I loved the way that this heartfelt and hopeful story showed that there is always light at the end of the tunnel, and an ending can be a happy one, even if it's not the one you thought you wanted.

This is the 1st Book I have read by the author and i be looking out for more stuff from here .

wow this book is amazing and the story is going to stay with me for a long time, This Book tells the story of Noah and his life that involves him being a Primary School Teacher, Dad to 2 school aged sons and divorcee and the adventures Noah and his sons go on through life.

This Book touches on a lot of different subjects,

I would recommend this book to everyone and would give it 5 out of 5 stars.

With thanks to Netgalley & Penguin Michael Joseph UK for the arc of this book in exchange for this review.

Having read Saturday’s at Noon and now this novel Rachel Marks has earned a spot as one of my favourite auto-read authors.

Noah was a hot mess and unlikable at various points throughout this story but you could see the good man he was at his core, still rooted for him and wanted things to get better for him. It is a testament to the writing that he was so very human and relatable even when he wasn’t at his best. Watching him struggle to cope with his past, the loss of his marriage, attempts to hold on to Kate and the impact his mother and father had on the person he became was heartbreaking, frustrating and so real that I cried at various points when reading.

I appreciated the struggle he went through, the effort it took to move forward and the people who helped him get to the other side. There were a lot of wonderful character interactions in this story but I think my favourite moments were those between Noah, and his boys Gabe and Finn, Noah and Mimi and Noah and Harley. All touching and delightful in different ways.

There were a lot of funny moments in this book with Noah and Mimi (excellent banter) and especially with Noah’s job as a primary school teacher (patience of a saint!!). An engaging, unexpected story from start to finish. Strongly recommend and look forward to the next one from this author.

This is the first book I have read by this author and won't be my last. This was a very good heartwarming yet at times heart breaking read that covered a variety of emotional and dark real life topics in a very sensitive way with an equal amount of uplifting humour along the way.

I was a huge fan of 'Saturdays at Noon' so was very much looking forward to the next novel by Rachel Marks, and it has not disappointed!

The first thing I would say is never judge a book by its cover. The cover leads you to think this is a classic, chick-lit type book of a man on a quest to win back his ex wife. But it is SO much more than that. I loved it, this would make a great TV series, I devoured it in a day!

We meet Noah, a primary school teacher who has two young sons with his ex wife. He is clearly struggling with the breakup, making some poor life choices and I thought it might be the standard 'man turns life around to get woman' kind of story. But about a third of the way in, I could see that it certainly wasn't as straightforward as that.

Noah being a primary school teacher is really important to the story, not only for the story to unfold but also to provide some very comedic moments!

One of the many things I like about Rachel Marks' writing, is that she does not shy away from challenging topics. I do not want to give away any elements of the plot but some of the story lines are heartbreaking, the views expressed by some of the characters are brave and I found myself completely absorbed in what was going on.

Overall, a fantastic, heartbreaking, sometimes very comical read. And one to remind us never to judge a book by its cover! Can't wait for book number 3!

This book is released on 29th April, 2021.

Thank you to @netgalley and @michaeljbooks for the opportunity to review.

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A totally engaging read. At first I really wasn't sure as I didn't like the main character, Noah one bit and didn't know how I was going to get on with the book with his behaviour. However, once the story falls into place with the mental issues facing Noah from his past my sympathies turned around. An emotional and touching read that had more than a few surprises along the way. Definitely a book worth reading to engage with an make the reader think.

A really great story, showing how much mental health can impact on lives of more than just the sufferer, all wrapped up with some beautiful family moments and a good old will they, won't they love story!

This book has got best seller written all over it. Firstly the characters are relatable the story is excellently crafted. Funny, relatable and simply brilliant!

I really loved Saturdays at Noon so was keen to read the latest offering from Rachel Marks. Noah is a single dad to two young boys. His life hasn't been the same since his divorce and although he doesn't have to do the boring day to day stuff with the kids- he misses seeing them all of the time. He realises he would be better off back with his ex-wife Kate. The only problem is that she's marrying someone else. This is a really pleasant and light read that was surprisingly unpredictable. It's well written with likeable characters and I thought it was excellent.

An absolutely brilliant novel - all of the heart of the old Tony Parsons novels and up amongst Mike Gayle’s best. Absolutely perfectly written, great characters and some heartbreaking moments - I devoured this novel and will definitely be looking out for more by this author.

When I started reading Noah was not my favourite person, as a single mum of 2 boys for 18 years with no father present I was agitated with his behaviour. Just beginning to embrace his honesty about his feelings, when he lies to Mimi about his mums death, using cancer as the cause because that's an easy option. Wow that's tough to read when I actually did loose my mum to cancer, nothing about it is easy. But we learn why later.... I can understand why the decision was made but... Sticks abit.

But my triggers aside it was a journey getting to know Noah, he is a lovable character who grows and learns to accept this faults and tries to create the perfect husband but without facing the demons this can be challenging.

An engaging book for anyone especially those who wanna fall in love with a rouge that learns slowly.
Really enjoyed Rachel second book, a very different kind of story but one with weight and value in 21st century living. Applies to many I would think, it's made me think twice about my judgments from the beginning of the book about Noah then massively again with Harley.

A book about seeing past what's in front of you, delving deeply to see what's beneath. Beautiful!

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