You Had Me at Hello / Here's Looking at You / It's Not Me, It's You

by Mhairi McFarlane

Three hilarious novels from the SUNDAY TIMES bestselling author

YOU HAD ME AT HELLO: Rachel and Ben. Ben and Rachel. It was them against the world. Until it all fell apart. It’s been a decade since they last spoke, but when Rachel bumps into Ben one rainy day, the years melt away. They’d been partners in crime and the best of friends. But life has moved on: Ben is married. Rachel is not. Yet in that split second, Rachel feels the old friendship return. And along with it, the broken heart she’s never been able to mend. Hilarious, heartbreaking and everything in between, you’ll be hooked from their first ‘hello’.

HERE’S LOOKING AT YOU: Anna Alessi – history expert, possessor of a lot of hair and an occasionally filthy mouth – seeks nice man for intelligent conversation and Mills & Boon moments. Despite the oddballs that keep turning up on her dates, Anna couldn’t be happier. As a 30-something with a job she loves, life has turned out better than she dared dream. However, things weren’t always this way, and her years spent as the ‘Italian Galleon’ of an East London comprehensive are ones she’d rather forget. So when James Fraser – the architect of Anna’s final humiliation at school – walks back into her life, her world is turned upside down. But James seems a changed man. Polite. Mature. Funny, even. People can change, right? So why does Anna feel like she’s a fool to trust him?

IT’S NOT ME, IT’S YOU: Delia Moss isn’t quite sure where she went wrong. When she proposed and discovered her boyfriend was sleeping with someone else – she thought it was her fault. When she realised life would never be the same again – she thought it was her fault. And when he wanted her back like nothing had changed – Delia started to wonder if perhaps she was not to blame… From Newcastle to London and back again, with dodgy jobs, eccentric bosses and annoyingly handsome journalists thrown in, Delia must find out where her old self went – and if she can ever get her back.

Genres: Romance, Fiction

1280 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 17, 2015

About the author

Mhairi was born in Scotland in 1976 and her unnecessarily confusing name is pronounced Vah-Ree.

After some efforts at journalism, she started writing novels. It’s Not Me, It’s You is her third book. She lives in Nottingham, with a man and a cat.

Reviews

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm really enjoying this author. The British settings speak to me. I've always loved books set in places I am familiar with. The characters are good. There are a few laugh out loud funny passages which may or may not have resulted in a genuine coffee out my nose experience.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is for Its Not Me, It’s You. I’m still on a roll with these books, they don’t stop being good! They all have a Pride and Prejudice vibe, this one with Adam and his particular twist (no spoilers) reminded me of Darcy/Pemberly.

[Jane Messer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've gone from never having read a thing by Mhairi McFarlane to four books in as many weeks. Life in pandemic lockdown is stressful, and I have really and truly enjoyed losing myself in these very likeable, flawed, sassy, younger women characters' problems. I'm prompted to recall my own mishaps and past loves and hopes, and there's something perfect about the note that MM strikes with storylines and characters producing a rollicking good read, the wit, all of it laced with genuine moral conundrums. Sure, there are elements that get repetitive, with all her heroines having the perfect posse of 3-4 friends, one of whom is a sensitive and/or woke bloke. There is also the constant of excessive drinking (which surely will lead to serious liver damage in the sequels to come?). The mother characters aren't a write-off, and I certainly appreciate that.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

When fall in love with an author...

....and you to read all you can immediately, so you buy the 3 book set. I love all of Mhairi's books so far. I started with "If I Never Met You" and now only have "Who's that Girl" left. These stories are relatable and the characters are human. Mhairi's characters are 3 dimensional. "It's Not Me It's You" was good, but as an American it was a bit like reading Shakespeare. The language is English, but it has language and references that are not of my culture making it hard to follow the humor. I like the novel, but it's very British. Meaning there are so many references that should have been known to me that I had to look up or just decide the research was to taxing to get the joke. It's not a complaint it's an observation.

[Laurie Rigler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Am on a read-every-Mhairi McFarlane-novel-ever written challenge

Just made that up. But it’s true. And hardly a challenge. The only challenge will be when I turn the page on the last one and have to wait impatiently for the next one. I love these novels. Full of wisdom, unputdownable, and both laughs and tears. Instant elevation. And she’s a fellow Jane Austen devotee. The allusions are legion. Thank you, Mhairi McFarlane.

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection is a great value for the price. I enjoyed the three books in it- they have some shared plot elements, but I liked the characters and what made them unique.

[Nina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute stories. Same vibe. Good mindless reading.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the first 2 on the 3rd now, funny, witty, good chicklit. Lots on laugh out loud moments especially in Heres looking a you - great holiday reading.

[Sasha K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five stars every time for Mhairi McFarlane. These books make me laugh out loud and tear up from the tenderness. What a joy to read 3 in a row!

[Rundee · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's there to say? She's by far the best writer of contemporary romance, it's not even a contest

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

S!!S