Cover Image: Little Nothings

Little Nothings

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

This wasn’t a book for me.
I was bored and didn’t enjoy it at all.
The writing wasn’t to my taste at all.

Was this review helpful?

Little Nothings
Julie Mayhew


This was an enjoyable read about a group of (so-called) friends going on holiday together to a Greek island. Interesting to see how different dynamics work in a group, especially one that only came to be because they all joined the same mother & baby group. A good poolside read with a nice bit of suspense.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this title.

Was this review helpful?

Great book, I really love how it depicts female friendships that turn toxic and broken. As four friends embark on a trip to Greece for 3 weeks. Liv, Ange, Beth and Binnie and their young children. They say twos company, three's a crown and what four makes, is described in the suspenseful pages of this page turner.

Was this review helpful?

Liv is happily married to Pete and they have a young daughter. She has never had a lot of female friends and has experienced a lifetime of loneliness and a feeling of not fitting in with others, until she meets Beth and Binnie at a music playgroup. She feels like they have bonded for life and that she finally belongs and can be herself amongst her two new friends

Until

Binnie introduces to the group, glamorous and wealthy Ange, she insists how much they will like her, she is funny and great fun to be around and before they knows it, they have become a group of four doing everything together.

The problems arise when Ange plans a three week break in Corfu for all the families to attend. Liv knows they cannot afford to go but Ange insists on paying for them and Liv is desperate not to miss out.

However whilst away they may appear to be a group of friends enjoying their well deserved break, but look closer and you can see that Ange is very controlling and manipulative of her friends. This is a toxic friendship and Liv once again starts to feel like an outsider, she cannot afford to keep up and is she imagining Ange's antipathy towards her?

A brilliant book full of drama that kept me engrossed.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Being a Mother is hard. No one knows and understands this more than Liv Travers.

It can also be very lonely, and Liv isn't sure that she ever knew real friendship until she met fellow mums Beth and Binnie.

As they navigate early parenthood together they become largely inseparable.

And then along comes Ange, who wants to infiltrate their group. She is ambitious, wealthy and seems to have it all. Who wouldn't want to be her friend?!

The friends soon find that their group has a renewed purpose, and exclusivity. Expensive restuarants, better schools for their children... these ladies want it all. They want to be like Ange, they want to be Ange!

Unfortunately Liv can't help but feel a little excluded. So when the foursome decide to take a three week trip to a luxury resort, Liv is determined to gain centre space at the heart of the group. With potentially devastating consequences.

Was this review helpful?

Brilliant book. Great story, fab writing, lots of the unexpected. Gripping. Did not want it to end. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers and the author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest opinion

Was this review helpful?

A well-written psychological thriller based in Greece, with a brilliant writing style, well-written characters and plenty of suspense and twists.

Was this review helpful?

A great story line and really well written book about female friendships and how toxic they can be. Recommended by me.

Was this review helpful?

A tale of friendship and how toxic some relationships can be. Friends on holiday with their families. It’s suspenseful and you’ll not be able to put it down! A great beach read ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Was this review helpful?

I recently read Little Nothings by Julie Mayhew, a book about the power and complexities of female friendships. Liv Travers, a new mum, finds herself befriending Beth and Binnie, who become her lifeline during the difficult early stages of parenthood. Everything changes, however, when Ange joins their group. A successful, wealthy mother, Ange becomes the unofficial leader of the pack and Liv can't help but feel like she's being left behind.

Mayhew does an excellent job of portraying the different dynamics between the women and the ways in which their friendship evolves. The characters are well-rounded and nuanced, and their interactions feel authentic. While at times the book can be uncomfortable to read (particularly as Liv begins to feel ostracized by the group), it is also compelling and emotionally resonant.

The book's climax, which takes place during a luxury holiday, is devastating and powerful. I won't give away any spoilers, but suffice it to say that it left me thinking about the book long after I'd finished reading it. Little Nothings is an excellent exploration of the joys and pitfalls of friendship, particularly amongst women. Highly recommended.

Was this review helpful?

Wow, another fantastic psychological thriller from Julie Mayhew. I found this gripping and uncomfortable, set in Greece, I found the setting really claustrophobic and stifling too. Added to the overall effect of the book. Thank you for the chance to read this book.

Was this review helpful?

A great psychological thriller surrounding a group if freinds, a holiday in Greece and a perfect climax. An unputdownable book. What more do you need?

Was this review helpful?

I enjoyed part of this novel. It took a while to get into then became quite a fast paced thriller but slowed down again and then it ended quickly. Granted the twist at the end I did not see coming. I enjoyed finding out about their relationships when some were good and some were just toxic. I enjoyed that part of the book. I would definitely try another by this author though.

Was this review helpful?

I requested this as I thought it would be a thriller as that is the impression that I got however I definitely wouldn't stick this book in that category. It's more drama so be aware if this may affect if you pick this up. Because I thought it was a thriller, I kept waiting for more 'scary' aspects or something 'thrilling' to happen but was left unfulfilled. The book is about Liv and her life and her relationship with this group of women that she meets and ends up becoming friends with. As mentioned previously, there is a lot of drama, especially when they all end up going on holiday together but I just felt like there was something missing.

Was this review helpful?

I was expecting this to be a Liane Moriarty - esque thriller / social commentary, and I'd say it was less thriller apart from the last quarter of the book which was much more fast paced. The rest is more of a commentary of friendship, trust, money, and keeping up appearances.

Liv, who has never really had proper friends, finds her people in Beth and Binnie when they meet at a baby class with their newborns. Everything is great until Beth meets, and introduces to their friendships group, Ange. Ange is what I guess would be classed as a "frenemy" who is effectively gaslighting the group. While Beth and Binnie fall for her charm, Liv can see through her and the psychological bullying.

The book is well written in terms of the accuracy of fake friends, anxiety -inducing situations, and how awful it must be to know an Ange. I didn't particularly like any of the characters, and found myself frustrated at Liv throughout both the present day scenes and the flashbacks. I whizzed through the last part of the book, but would have preferred it to be a bit longer, it felt slightly cut short. Thank you to Netgalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

This is an absolute gem!!! I’ve been so excited about this book and it hasn’t disappointed.absolutely will be recommending this book to anyone who will listen to me.

Was this review helpful?

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I could not connect with the characters and thought the story was very slow to get going. The chapters were very long and the characters are highly unlikeable with quite a few stereotypes thrown in for good measure.

Was this review helpful?

A book about the darker side female friendships and how they can become toxic. Three close friends…add one more and watch the carnage commence!

Was this review helpful?

Thank you netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing Plc (UK & ANZ), Raven Books for this arc. It took me a while to finish. But was a really intrresting discoveryof friendships between all the families. Sometimes is really difficult to find out what is toxic and what is not.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I devoured this in an afternoon, with my expectations continually challenged throughout. With the opening on Liv and Pete, plus their daughter Ivy, on a fraught package holiday with friends, it was very recognizable as a common British experience of a holiday not living up to the idea built up. I had so many reflections throughout, especially on how far we go to keep up with the Joneses, the difficulty so many adults find in making new friends and the faces we put on for different people. With ange the cuckoo usurping her from the first friends she feels close to, Liz is relatable even as she spirals into paranoia and destructive behaviour, veering between sympathy for her and repulsion.
It made for a very interesting read, one that I would recommend to anyone enjoying a complex morally grey lead female character.
TW for drug abuse, violence

Was this review helpful?