The No-Show

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O'Leary's wit, charm and heart are on full, fantastic display in this cosy, surprising and deeply satisfying novel. Beth O'Leary's latest novel opens with three women - Siobhan, Miranda and Jane - who have all been stood up on Valentine's Day by the same man.

The No-Show by Beth O’Leary | Smart Bitches, Trashy Books The No-Show by Beth O’Leary | Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

The No-Show starts with Siobhan, Miranda, and Jane being stood up on Valentine’s Day for breakfast, lunch, or dinner respectively. Miranda is a badass tree surgeon in London, happiest when climbing a tree, and most annoyed while fending off compliments from her hot lumberjack coworker.I’ve been hearing good things about this book, primarily that most of us made the same assumption, and many were pleasantly surprised. This is the most satisfying conclusion I’ve read in a long time and a wonderfully original take on the romance novel.

The No-Show by Beth O’Leary - Zoella BRB Sobbing! Reviewing The No-Show by Beth O’Leary - Zoella

SusanS: I think for me it goes back to the central conceit just not working great for me, The “manipulative deception” you reference was central to the “twist”, but the instances of what I saw as misdirection – the restaurant bill that Miranda finds, for one – felt heavy-handed and yeah, a little dishonest. In that time she's read a lot of good romances, a few great ones, and, unfortunately, a whole lot of dreck. I foolishly read The No Showover the course of a couple of weeks, dipping in and out which was my downfall. The No-Show may appeal to readers who like relationship-driven fiction with laughs, angst, tension, and tragedy. The three romances are on different timelines (the Valentine’s Day no-shows all occur in different years – 2015, 2018 and 2019, IIRC), though the misdirection really tries to make the reader believe that they are simultaneous.There’s some unexpected twists that I didn’t see coming that make all the threads feel satisfying in the end. It might have been the mystery of how Joseph was going to get caught that kept me reading, but it was spending time with Siobhan, Miranda and Jane’s journey that made me enjoy the book along the way. They’ve not known each other long but their friendship is fast becoming the brightest part of her new life in Winchester. Since we’re on the same page about the declining quality, skipping this one is probably the right choice for me.