Emma (SCR)'s Review of Just Saying

by Sophie Ranald

I almost gave up on love. My ex, who called his private parts ‘Nigel’, was enough to put me off men forever. But then I met Joe.

Alice thought she’d found Mr Right. Her blue-eyed boyfriend Joe gives her butterflies, makes her bacon sandwiches when she’s hungover, and doesn’t have a nickname for any of his body parts.

She should have known it was too good to be true. Because one day, Alice and Joe bump into Zoe. According to him, Zoe’s ‘just an old friend’. But Alice saw the way they froze, and heard the strange note in Joe’s voice when he said her name.

Then, out of the blue, Zoe needs a place to live. And Joe has the bright idea of inviting her, and her fluffy ginger cat Frazzle, to stay with them.

Alice tries her hardest not to feel threatened. But the thing is, Zoe doesn’t survive off microwave meals, or go days without washing her glossy copper-coloured hair, or accidentally get mascara in her contact lenses.

Joe’s ex might be pretty much perfect, but there’s no way that Alice will let Zoe steal him. She’s on a mission to prove that three (four, if you count the cat) is definitely a crowd…

This fabulous, feel-good page-turner is for anyone who has ever got a little too drunk and checked out their partner’s ex! (We’ve all been there…) Fans of romantic comedies by Sophie Kinsella and Lindsey Kelk, and TV shows like Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Jane the Virgin, will love this utterly relatable read

This review was originally posted on Star Crossed Reviews I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you to Bookouture for letting me take part in this tour and my copy of this book via netgalley. I really enjoyed No, We Can't be Friends which I read all the way back in January. The world has changed a lot since then but Sophie's writing was still top-notch!

The main character in this book is Alice. Alice seems to have her life exactly on track until she loses her training contract through no fault of her own. This turns her life on its head. Alice was a relatable character. She is strong, ambitious and normal. This might seem like a weird thing to say but this will be relevant once you have read the book.

I don't think I would ever be in the Alice, Joe, Zoe situation but then desperate times call for desperate measures. I have however been in the Alice/Archie situation. For me, I went in the other direction to these two and realised I needed to end my current relationship because it wasn't working but I'm glad that wasn't the case for these.

This book deals with some serious issues and should have a trigger warning for sexual abuse. It also explores the Windrush generation and homosexuality. This is more than just a rom-com and Sophie writes about all of this in such a gentle way that it doesn't ruin the rom-com vibe of the story. While dealing with serious issues the book will still leave you with a smile on your face.

Just Saying

by Sophie Ranald

Reviewed by Emma (SCR) on Jul 3, 2020

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