Another enjoyable book by Nell Frizzell. I like the way this author writes.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

I found this book quite relatable in the sense that your life seems less put together compared to others and you feel as though you’re falling behind and losing. Hanna has broken up with her long term boyfriend and has moved back home with her dad at the age of 30. She needs to find a job, she wants to move out and she'd like to have a relationship but life doesn’t give us what we want. Hanna senses that she’s fallen behind her peers and is in a rush to catch up - she’s back to Square One. She meets friends back from school, struggles to adjust to her new job, living with her dad and is frustrated with her dad who is back on the dating scene. We see her navigate herself through a casual relationship whilst her ex moves on.

Thank you to the publisher and Nell Frizzell for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. I could tell when I first opened the book that it wasn't one of my favourite genres, but I really enjoyed it. I loved the focus outside of romantic relationships, especially the father daughter dynamic. I also found it very funny and endearing. A quick, sweet read.

What a stunning book! I loved the writing and there were so many moments where it broke my heart. I can't wait to read more by this author.

Thanks for the access to read this via Netgalley. After reading the panic years, I was really keen to read this. Would highly recommend for easy fiction and if you like books like Olive by Emma Gannon.

I love Nell Frizzell's journalism so I was interested in this as a bit of a light read even though it's not my usual genre. To be fair to the author, it's not really aimed at me - I'm closer to the age of the parent figures in the book than the heroine and long past her stage of life. I suspect it's that which made it a bit too shallow for me despite the sharp writing. There was a lot of pleasing imagery, clever similes and by the end I was charmed and thought the ending was nicely done and satisfying. If I had taken this on holiday with me when I was in my twenties I would have really enjoyed it and given it a four. A bit too commercial for me but I suspect, if it was compared like for like with similar titles in this genre, it would actually come out head and shoulders above the rest.

A quick, easy and fun read that shows that not only is it ok to be flawed but that it is normal too. This book was well written with well developed, real, raw and relatable characters and a goos storyline. this book left me feeling better about myself than any self help book ever has. I really enjoyed it.

If you loved Olive from Emma Gannon, then you’ll love Nell Frizzell’s fiction debut…

As expected from Frizzell, this fiction debut is poignant and sharp, hilarious and relatable. It tells the story of Hannah, who at 30 goes backwards (or a perceived trajectory based on societal expectations) - living at home with her dad (who is hilariously navigating Tinder), out of work, out of a relationship and flailing. She’s anyone who has had everything happen at once in their thirties and who, after being told she should have everything solved by this point, has nothing figured out.

I loved how this book explores relationships outside of the romantic (although do not fret, there are some sexy moments too!) with the re-calibration of the father-daughter dynamic when you are both adults, the rebuilding of friendships and the important relationship; the one Hannah has with herself outside of the long term romantic partnership she had previously found herself in.

Frizzell puts Hannah at the heart of the story and what I really loved was how her evolution was the key driver, as opposed to a love interest driving the plot forward. By the end of this book, I adored Hannah and was rooting for her to succeed. I think you will too.

I think everyone has at some stage felt like their life isn't as together as other people their age in one way or another, and so this is such a relatable book. This is a really comforting read that looks at being middle aged and feeling you're back at square. I really enjoyed it. Yes, as others have pointed out Hanna isn't perfect, but are any of us? Personally I found I liked her even more for her flaws. A truthful and well deserved 5 stars.

A rather easy and quick read that was uplifiting and left me feeling rather comforted. I thought Square One was a nice exploration of modern day dating, and dating apps.

A decent fast read. The protagonist is pitiable if not relatable. If you are feeling low or if you have just had a breakup, do pick up this book for some solidarity.

“What we need is to stop teaching little boys that they are Peter Pans, her to have fun and stay young, and that little girls and all Wendies - waiting by the window, growing old, on pause for them.”

Square One follows Hanna, who after breaking up with her long term boyfriend moves back to her hometown, and into her father’s spare room, thus feeling like she's back at Square One again.

One thing that Square One perfectly captures that point in your life when you realise that your parents are actually people, who make their own mistakes and have their own problems.

It also explore poignantly that feeling that everybody else in the world has their life together whilst yours is falling apart.

My only issue with this book and the reason I couldn't rate it higher was Hanna, who was truly insufferable. She had no redeeming qualities and was so awful to her parents and felt that the world owed her something just because her parents weren't together anymore (whose are in 2021?!)

I understand that not all characters (especially female characters) need to be likeable but as the book is written in third person you didn’t know her thought process behind a lot of things so it became hard to feel sympathy for her.

She reminded me a lot of Hannah from Girls actually, so if you liked that show and liked that character then you'll probably love this book.

Beautiful. Poignant. Phenomenal.
This was a beautify read and I learnt so much. I cried and I smiled and there was nothing more that I wanted from this book. Truly a gem.

I adored Nell's non-fiction work and so I was thrilled to have the opportunity to read her fiction work early. Square One is so sharp, so poignant and if you love fiction that explores women in their 30's/modern anxieties, then this is the book for you!

I love this book of someone picking up the pieces. It’s so refreshing to read about someone on the journey to put themself back together.
EVERYONE IS MOVING ON... AND THEN, THERE'S HANNA

BY THIRTY, HANNA EXPECTED TO HAVE IT ALL (OR AT LEAST SOME OF IT)

· A fulfilling and successful career

· A healthy, long-term relationship, maybe even an engagement ring

· A house (or at least a flat) of her own

BUT IN REALITY, SHE'S BACK AT SQUARE ONE...

· Single after breaking up with someone she's not sure ever loved her

· Flooded with wedding invitations and pregnancy scan pictures from friends

· Unable to afford to live on her own, moving in with her (also single and dating) father

Everyone moves at different paces, but Hanna's life is in reverse. With the pressure to keep up and her dad's insufferable musings on Tinder, will she be able to figure out what she really wants?

This was incredibly sharp and poignant and gave voice to so many modern anxieties for women in their thirties and the expectations placed on us. Nell frizzell is a brilliant writer

I enjoyed this book - an easy read and pretty funny. I wasn't sure I liked the protagonist, Hanna much but the plot still worked well and pacing was good. The themes explored were interesting and dialogue was snappy and fun.

Hanna is back living with her father, not where she thought she would be at this stage of her life - back at square one.
What will happen for her as she embarks on this new stage of her life

Thanks to Transworld for letting me read Square One by Nell Frizzell in advance. I was excited to read Nell's debut novel after thoroughly enjoying her debut book The Panic Years, a memoir-slash-exploration of women's lives in their 20s and early 30s (and also gifted to me by Transworld). But I was very sadly disappointed!

Square One is about Hanna: newly single, unemployed, just moved back to Oxford to live with her dad in his messy ex-council flat. Oh, and and he's just joined Tinder. I have to admit the premise didn't exactly pique my interest and was a bit more commercial than I was expecting but, you know, it's good to try new things.

I suppose my main issue with this novel is that it felt very much like someone exploring fiction for the first time. There were loads of scenes I thought were unnecessary, there wasn't much subtlety or nuance, and the topics that Nell explored so movingly and thoroughly in The Panic Years felt like they were delivered here with the ease of a sledgehammer. I've never really understood what people mean when they say they can tell something is a first novel, or that they're impressed something is a debut; obviously writers improve but a lot of the debut writers I read (and, certainly, have read lately) feel just as talented and accomplished as writers mid-career. This didn't feel the case with Square One, though, and it's a shame because I've seen what Nell Frizzell can do. Still, I read it in a matter of hours - during a dreaded late autumn cold - and it was fun enough! I would recommend if you're a fan of commercial fiction in the vein of early-30s-women-finding-their-feet, which I sadly am not. 3 🌟

I don't know Nell Frizzell personally, but I used to live in Florence Park in East Oxford, and I do know her Dad. I am very fond of him as a local character and fixture around the East Oxford Community Centre. So I was delighted to read a whole book with someone who *slightly* resembles Nell's Dad as the heroine's father! (Actually - he resembles him a LOT).

Apart from my delight at reconnecting with a fictional version of someone I know, I enjoyed this sharp, witty book that is far more than a breakup story, and doesn't (SPOILER ALERT) end with a new romance or miracle baby. (Frizzell does have a child, so could have gone down this route - thankfully, she chooses a more feminist alternative). It's also a lovely book about Oxford, with scenes of drinking, sex and silliness set everywhere from Port Meadow to Wolvercote, Summertown and Jericho - but especially Cowley, one of my favourite places on earth and still probably one of the most objectionable and weird areas in England. As I say, I'm glad it's not a cookie-cutter romance but I think the author could also write something even more ambitious next time - perhaps something a little further from home?