You Don't Have to Say You Love Me

This was a good book with very likeable, human characters. I had a harder time losing myself in the story because it is set in the UK, which I would forget until there was some jarring reference to it. (I'm from the US.) I'm also not into fashion, so the references to the main character's work in the fashion industry weren't interesting to me. Both just personal preference, however. This was a good book, and I enjoyed it, but I probably won't read it again.

The story lagged the characters were beyond flawed and honestly no one would put up with any of them. The author didn't know when to stop drawing everything out and just get to the point already that I only finished it because I always finish a book I start. Don't waste your time or money.

This book is awful! I decided to read it as I enjoyed Sarra Mannings other books quite a lot! But unfortunately this book lacks everything and I'm trying to push myself to finish it and try to get into reading it every time i pick it up. The main character is boring and lame and the whole concept she has going on is moronic, she needs to grow up. A better main character would have made the story line slightly more bearable but in the end this book is RUBBISH!

If you can skip through a lot of the words, words, words about stuff that I’m not sure really relate to the story, than the romance is good. Neve (have no clue how to say it) is a “fat” girl trying to get slimmer to woe the man of her dreams, William. She’s in England and William is in California teaching for 3years. In the mean time, her sister tells her she needs experience, so she hooks up with Max, social manwhore and friends with all the trendy people. They start a pretend relationship to help Neve gain experience. What happens to them is a surprise to them both.

The problem is the author added so much other situations in the story, like it had to be a certain length to get published. And, I ended up skipping a great deal of the story to just read the parts between Neve and Max and Neve and William. Just seems a waste of my reading time.

We do read how Neve learns how not to be the “fat” girl and how to love herself, inside and out. That part was great, too.

Warning: some sexual situations and language.

The Premise
Neve is terrified of blowing it with Will, her idealized man, the person she connected with on an intellectual level before he left for California three years ago and she began her journey to transforming her life and her body. Will is due to come back in six months, and her sister Celia points out that if Neve wants William to think she's an experienced love-goddess and not the fumbling, awkward girl he left behind, then she'd better get some, well, experience. So she decides to embark on a “pancake” relationship with Max - you know, that first kind of wonky pancake that everyone throws out. Who better to do it with than Celia's colleague Max. Wicked, shallow, sexy Max. And since he's such a man-slut, and so not Neve's type, she certainly won't fall for him. Because William is the man for her... right?

My (jumbled) Thoughts
An emotional bit of Brit Chick Lit that I thoroughly enjoyed, You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me is a full length novel that takes its time but once it hooks you in, you can’t help but flip page after page hoping for the best for these two. Sometimes it’s the needy, prickly gals that I connect to and Neve fits that bill. Neve isn’t the easiest heroine to love, though in this case that makes her more interesting to me. She’s obsessive, neurotic, loving, tormented, funny, with a severe case of body dysmorphic disorder that affects everything in her life.

Neve wasn’t just fat,not just pleasantly plump. She was legitimately morbidly obese, weighing over 320 lbs at her heaviest. She has battled to regain her body (she loses essentially half of her body weight) and her life and I think it’s a difficult situation for those who’ve never dealt with being overweight to understand. There is a certain amount of obsession that she actually needs to have about her weight, because she is terrified of falling back down that slippery slope and ending up back where she started. This can lead to frustration, when her myopic view of her body and inability to see for herself how it’s transformed, that fascinated me because I can relate to that on some levels.

Max is a good beta type of hero, and beta isn’t a bad word in my book - he’s dealing with his own emotional issues, and inability to get close to people. He’s the male version of the slutty, low self-esteem girl. He has trouble establishing relationships and is the good time guy that no one bothers to look below the surface, as they seem to believe that’s all there. Much of the story is seen through Neve’s eyes, but what you do see of Max was great.

No one sees that deeply into Max, but he sees her, flaws and all and you can feel it when he falls for her. Max sees beyond Neve’s defenses, and the story builds slowly, as you see Neve and Max begin to connect on a deeper level over the course of months. Max and Neve don’t completely trust each other at the start, and you get to see them screw up and get back up, since this isn’t about “hey, she lost a shedload of weight and everything is now fantastic!” kind of a story.

I think it’s a credit to Ms. Manning that Neve is still sympathetic, even if she can be hard to deal with, especially right before she has her epiphany about herself and her life. I think if you can get to that point though, when she finally realizes what is important - and it’s not a number on the scale, it’s worth the journey.

The setting is one of my favorites, and picturing the different locations in London that Neve and Max go to during their pancake courtship really brings the whole story to life. I enjoyed the secondary characters, even seeing Neve’s nemesis from school, now married to her brother, still torturing her and making her feel like her old self, serves a purpose to the story.

The Bottom Line
A messy, (relatively) realistic emotional journey between two flawed characters learning to accept themselves and each other. I really liked it and I’d definitely recommend it.

What a gem of a book! I had heard mixed reviews on this, but had also seen it recommended to those who enjoyed "Some Girls Do" by Clodagh Murphy, so I gave it a shot. (I <3 Clodagh Murphy's books, especially "Some Girls Do").

At first, I couldn't really like Neve. She seemed to be too pretentious and fairly boring as a result. Her letters and conversations with William seemed to be mostly just letters between colleagues and not exciting or romantic. And he was always asking her to do things for him! Max was an interesting character and it was him, and his love for his dog, that especially kept my interest. As I kept reading, I really grew to appreciate just how very well-written this was. As you read, it's as though you are Neve and before you know it, it feels like a completely different book and character (in the best of ways - superb character development!).

All of the characters, both primary and secondary, were well-developed and interesting. The dialogue felt natural (aside from Neve's pretentiousness, but that's to be expected ;) ) and it had good amounts of heart and humor throughout. The steaminess was also believable and just right, somewhere between Doris-Day-fall-onto-the-bed and a romance novel with Fabio on the cover (Fabio-esque romance novels, in particular, are not my cup of tea, personally.)

There was a particular line or two that made me chuckle in the novel for being "meta." Something about how the biography being written felt stilted for the first few chapters but really grabbed your attention after that... ;)

Neve used to be greatly overweight. She's been in love with William for years, but he is currently in CA for several years (the story is set in England). They email and snail mail regularly. While William is gone, Neve embarks on a journey to lose weight, eat healthy, and work out. She is close to her goal of a size 10, having lost about 170 lbs. William is coming back in a few months when Neve realizes she has never been in a relationship and should have some experience with that before he comes back.
Enter Max. Max is a man-whore who has no interest in being in a relationship. Neve proposes what she terms a "pancake relationship", meaning it's a test relationship that gets thrown away, much like the first pancake that is cooked. This works well for both of them. They agree not to have sex or hold hands, but other than that, they would be together. Neve and Max begin to sleep together (just sleep), Neve gets to know Max's dog. And they become more and more comfortable together. Neve has some serious self-esteem and body issues, the confident and composed Max is perfect for her. He is fun and supportive and a great boyfriend to her. When they go away together on a long weekend, we find Max has some things in his life that aren't as perfect as they seem. As they grow closer and become more comfortable together, Neve becomes happier and somewhat more confident. But the clock is ticking on their relationship and William is due back soon...
I recommend this book. It's a cute, enjoyable read. Sometimes I wanted to shake Neve, but generally she is likable, Max is endearing, and the supporting characters are exceptionally well done.

This is a heavyweight of a book, coming in at 555 pages. But it's worth it. It doesn't drag or bore you and you're hooked after the first couple of pages.

Neve Slater is 25 years old and has never been in a relationship. She's an archivist and intellectual and has always had weight problems. Her goal is to become a (British) size 10 before William, the love of her life, returns from a 3 year trip to LA. Neve was morbidly obese and has managed to get herself down to a size 16.

Realizing she's going to need some practice if she's going to snag William, Neve decides to have a fake relationship until he comes back and finds that wild boy Max is up to the challenge. They get to know each other and when William comes back, Neve is torn between Max and William, for whom she has done so much.

Let me tell you, I really enjoyed this book. The characters are likable and real. What woman doesn't have body image/weight problems? I loved how Sarra Manning has written this book. I didn't really like Unsticky, her debut adult book, but this one more than enough made up for it. I am hoping her third venture into books geared towards adults will be just as entertaining. I can hardly wait for its release later this year!

~Reviewed by SUZANNE & posted at Under the Covers Book Blog

Neve Slater has been preparing for the day William will return from LA for three years. In that three years Neve has lost half her body weight and toned up, although she is still no where near her coveted size 10. But, the one thing that Neve still needs to gain if she is going to seduce William with her new trimmer body is some experience, something that she is sadly lacking. Max is the perfect person to experiment with, sexy, charismatic, but ultimately shallow man slut he may be, but she only needs him for a few months before William comes back from L.A., after all, it’s not like she will fall in love with him…right?

What do you get when you put one insecure formerly fat girl and a charming playboy with an adorable dog together? Hilarity, a few bad decisions and a bit of heartbreak, all of which came together and created You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me, which was a very entertaining and enjoyable read.

This book can cross the line a little bit from contemporary romance to chick lit, but only barely as although it was more about Neve developing and changing, it was mostly focused on her love life. But Neve’s development was part of what I loved about this book, she wasn’t perfect and she made some questionable decisions, but that only made me like her more, even when I wanted to shake her. I loved watching Neve develop from insecure, slightly shallow and very lonely to someone with more confidence in herself and in what she wants.

In this book Neve almost had two relationships, one with the untouchable and perfect William and then with Max, the supposedly shallow but sexy ‘pretend’ boyfriend. The relationship with William is mostly just Neve’s cerebral daydreams about what she thinks she wants and what she hopes will happen when Williams gets back from L.A., where as Max is the complete opposite, they have nothing in common but their mutual attraction and are definitely more physical. I am pretty sure you can guess what happens in this book from the blurb just like I did, but that doesn’t make the journey any less interesting and enjoyable to read.

I really liked this book, You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me was funny, romantic and insightful, I will definitely be reading more Sarah Manning in the future.

Neve Slater has a mission and life-plan. She's on her way to becoming her fittest, healthiest self after a wake-up call about her obesity pushed her into hiring a personal trainer two years ago and getting her weight under control. And even though she's dropped dress sizes and exercises every day, she's still not her ideal size-10 self. She needs to get down to the tiny 1-0 in order to impress her old college crush, William, when he gets back from three years teaching abroad in California (where, no doubt, all the women he's been with are size-0). Because William is Neve's one-true-love, and mostly likely the man she'll marry.

There's just one problem that can't be fixed with the treadmill and celery sticks - something Neve's little sister, Celia, has pointed out to her on many occasions. Neve doesn't actually have much experience in the men department, and is in fact a 25-year-old virgin. She won't win William's heart if she's woefully inexperienced, so Celia is helping her to try out some light-flirting on the gentlemen of London.

One man who is certainly no gentleman (more `cad') is Celia's colleague and major editor at the magazine where she works - Max. Max is a ladies' man through and through, and where Neve is concerned he's the out-of-bound big leagues and certainly not the right person to tentatively attempt her flirting with. Except one night at a post-Christmas party for magazine `Skirt' Neve and Max have a moment. Granted, a moment that wavers between disastrous and outrageous, but a moment nonetheless.

Then Neve has an idea - what if Max was to be her `pancake boyfriend' in the months before William's return? `Pancake' after the first pancake in the batch that's inevitably botched and thrown away. Max is clearly emotionally unavailable and if Neve is fine with him seeking his carnal pleasures elsewhere (they'll be purely platonic, no sex) then this could be the best way for Neve to practice having a boyfriend, and for Max to attempt to make a real human connection with someone (without sleeping with them). It's a match made in a batch!

`You Don't Have To Say You Love Me' was the 2011 novel from Sarra Manning.

I've been meaning to read Sarra Manning for the longest time. She's such a popular British YA author, with a fairly fairytale writing background - she was writer for (now defunct) teen mag J17 and has previously written for ELLE, The Guardian, ES Magazine, Seventeen, Details and Heat. No wonder her bio touts her as a "teen queen extraordinaire." And of all her books `You Don't Have To Say You Love Me' is undoubtedly the one that's come most highly recommended to me. So, I finally got round to reading it and NOW I GET IT. She's amazing, and I need to read more Manning, pronto.

This book is probably one of the best examples of `New Adult' I've encountered thus far (though I'm sure it wasn't marketed as such). Neve is twenty-five, fitting her comfortably into that somewhat awkward grey-area age-group of New Adult readers, but more importantly she's a character who's plagued by her teenage past and finds it's still defining her life and fears.

Neve was tormented for her weight throughout high school - it sent her into a spiral where she'd be teased for being "fat" and then eat to numb the pain of the bullying. Now in her 20s, Neve is still plagued by the fat-shaming of her childhood since her older brother married her high school tormentor - who now lives in the flat above hers and takes every opportunity she can to dredge up Neve's biggest pressure-point insecurities.

Even now, when Neve has shrunk down to a size 14-16, she's still insecure and constantly paranoid about her "problem areas". Not to mention that she's fixated on getting down to the perfect size-10 to really impress William (whom she's been corresponding with via letters and phonecalls, hell-bent on not letting him see her transformation until her returns to London to be awed in person).

The focus on Neve's body insecurities is a big part of the book, and definitely a wound that Manning keeps prying open. But she does it in such a way as to let readers know that Neve's perception of herself are distorted - granting us a wider look at society's dictates on `perfection' and `beauty' versus personal happiness and health. For this reason, all that uncomfortable body-shaming and Neve's personal berating works without being insensitive or needlessly cruel. I really tip my hat to Manning for this; other authors could have just let Neve have a Cinderella-esque story where she loses weight and gets the fabulous life as a bonus prize. But Manning actually prises this misconception open bit-by-bit throughout the story, and actually turns Neve's body-image into a journey in itself.

The other reason I loved this book was Max. Hands-down, one of the best "bad boys" I've ever read. A smarmy editor at equally smarmy-sounding `Skirt' magazine, he was set-up in a very conventional way, but by the end of the book became a very unconventional hero.

Where Neve's issues were very psychological and body-based, Max has emotional wounds that run deep. But I was glad that Manning didn't write him as a through-and-through jerk - she lets Neve's sister-in-law be the fat-shaming bully (with her own issues), not Max. Max is always appreciative of Neve's body, as a lover of the female form (in all shapes and sizes). I loved this. Yes, he's a `bad-boy' in that he's a real Lothario and plays on his good looks to be God's gift to women, but he's not cruel. He's the epitome of charming, and I adored him.

Sarra Manning also has a wicked sense of humour. From the obligatory spanx-related jokes, to a WAGs mega wedding party and Neve's pre-coital nerves, Manning is a laugh-riot.

I loved this book, absolutely. True, towards the end it got a bit waffling and lost in the `will-they-or-won't-they?' portion of the story, but this was a thoroughly enjoyable read that took me one afternoon to read voraciously. I'll definitely be reading more Manning.

This is the second book from Sarra Manning that I've read and she is perhaps the only YA romance author I've so far come across that writes characters that I can easily relate to. You don't get the completely glossed over romantic hero or heroine - they are clearly flawed and their thoughts and feelings aren't always politically correct. It's not an unfamiliar story and yes, maybe it was easy to figure out what will happen but she cleverly avoided the cliches you'd expect and you still can't wait to find out what happens in the next chapter, and the next and so on ... I like that they didn't "instantly" fell for one another the instant they lock eyes, that the "cad" didn't necessarily change the way he is overnight, that characters aren't necessarily black and white (ie, WAGs, Charlotte, Mum & Dad). Also, support characters were pretty well written and developed as well - they weren't token best friends or what have you.
She treats us readers quite smartly. She didn't have to fill in all the details for us to get what happens/happened (case in point again, Dougie & Charlotte, Fremont, etc) - she teases us enough that we can come up with our own conclusions.
To me it was almost 5 stars but it was quite long - but that said, I can't think of any part that I can do without or was unnecessary. This was more 500 pages yet I managed to finish it in less than 2 days and I'm not a fast reader!

This is my second time reading this book. And I love it even more the second time around. Neve is in her twenties,and she has never been in a relationship. She blames it on her weight. You see Neve use to weigh alot more than what she does now. She's lost over a hundred pounds. But, just because she's lost it doesn't mean she's secure in her appearance. She's still extremely insecure. Her goal is to fit in a size ten. She's also hoping that once her good friend William returns from California he'll finally see her for who she is and fall madly in love with her. But, she's never been involved physically with another man which is adding to her insecurities. She wants to interact with another man to practice with before William comes back. This is when she meets Max. Max is a good looking, sexy, fine, gorgeous man who works with his sister. Did I mention he's a complete man whore. So, they decide to get to know each other better with no strings attached and no sex either. Date after date they begin to know each other better and start building this great friendship. Max is completely attracted to Neve and doesn't care about her size. Because of him she becomes a little more confident. But she still can't understand why someone like Max would be interested in her when he could get a beautiful skinny model. You as a reader will fall in love with Max and sympathize or relate with Neve. It's a charming, sweet, and likeable story. Max and Neve bring out the best inone another. Definitely a must read. LOVED IT.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY YOU LOVE ME by Sarra Manning.

During the first half I was chuckling sooo many times. I was intrigued with the relationship. Very well done. Neve has a masters degree. She has been made fun of most of her life for being overweight. She used to be a size 32. She exercises hard and is strict with food. She is currently about a size 16. Her goal is to be a 10.

Neve has a friendship with William (a professor) who is away for three years. They write and call frequently. Neve is in love with him and hopes he will reciprocate if he sees her as a size 10 when he returns.

Max is good looking and picks up women easily. His coworkers call him a man-slut. He hears Neve talking about having a temporary relationship with a guy so she will be better prepared to have a successful relationship with William when he returns. Max offers himself. This surprised me. The main story is about Max and Neve.

The only part that wasn't as good was when they broke up. But that is not supposed to be fun.

Most of the story is Neve's point of view. We are not in Max's head other than his conversations. That worked fine. And it's 3rd person which I liked. The side characters were nicely done and interesting - Gustav the trainer, the sister, the sister-in-law, and others.

DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Kindle count story length: 6,918 (696 KB). Swearing language: strong including religious swear words, but not often used. Sexual language: strong, but not often used. Number of sex scenes: about 7. Setting: current day mostly London, England. Copyright: 2011. Genre: contemporary romance.

OTHER BOOKS:
I've reviewed the following Sarra Manning books. Dates are copyright dates.
5 stars. You Don't Have to Say You Love Me 2011
4 ½ stars. Unsticky 2009
2 ½ stars. Let's Get Lost 2006

I took my sweet, sweet time with this because it was so wonderful. I ~think I haven't read Sarra Manning before, but somehow I had high expectations which were not only met but exceeded!

Amazing writing, great chemistry between Max and Neve - wonderful, realistic, lovable characters that you really get to know and love inside and out - and I'm not only talking about Neve, but you get to know Max so good as if the author wrote the book from his POV as well! The story grips you from the very beginning and really, I thought they were doomed because of the way how things started between them.

Neve has so many body image issues (understandably) but not in an annoying way that I usually find these heroines to be. While she does wallow in self-pity and has a bit of a problem with instant-gratification, she is determined to reach her goal and finally find that happy place even if at first she has this huge misconception of what happiness should be for her. Actually, my heart was breaking for her every time she would talk in such a condescending way about herself, or let Charlotte get to her!

And Max...where do I even begin? I loved him - everything I thought he would do, everything I usually expect in a book like this from the hero, he did something completely different and I loved that so much because he kept surprising me. He never really gives up on her, even when she was at her lowest (or meanest. Or stupidest.) The author completely makes you change your opinion on him from their first encounter by the end.

The book spans over a time period of five months and this was great, there's none of that insta-love nonsense which makes it believable.

I have to say I'm glad I gave this a chance. It's not very chick-lit-y, in my opinion it's not as light as I like them to be. There are a couple of graphic sex scenes (that are actually awesome!) so be warned if you like your chick-lit clean. Overall, a wonderful book which I would recommend everyone read!

During the first half I was chuckling sooo many times. I was intrigued with the relationship. Very well done. Neve has a masters degree. She has been made fun of most of her life for being overweight. She used to be a size 32. She exercises hard and is strict with food. She is currently about a size 16. Her goal is to be a 10.

Neve has a friendship with William (a professor) who is away for three years. They write and call frequently. Neve is in love with him and hopes he will reciprocate if he sees her as a size 10 when he returns.

Max is good looking and picks up women easily. His coworkers call him a man-slut. He hears Neve talking about having a temporary relationship with a guy so she will be better prepared to have a successful relationship with William when he returns. Max offers himself. This surprised me. The main story is about Max and Neve.

The only part that wasn't as good was when they broke up. But that is not supposed to be fun.

Most of the story is Neve's point of view. We are not in Max's head other than his conversations. That worked fine. And it's 3rd person which I liked. The side characters were nicely done and interesting - Gustav the trainer, the sister, the sister-in-law, and others.

DATA:
Narrative mode: 3rd person. Kindle count story length: 6,918 (696 KB). Swearing language: strong including religious swear words, but not often used. Sexual language: strong, but not often used. Number of sex scenes: about 7. Setting: current day mostly London, England. Copyright: 2011. Genre: contemporary romance.

OTHER BOOKS:
I've reviewed the following Sarra Manning books. Dates are copyright dates.
5 stars. You Don't Have to Say You Love Me 2011
4 ½ stars. Unsticky 2009
2 ½ stars. Let's Get Lost 2006

Standalone
Third person

Neve was fat virgin and in love with William. Unfortunately, he moved to LA for 3 years. Her goal was to lose enough weight to be a UK dress size 10 before he moved back to London. She worked hard and lost most of it. Before William moved back to London she met Max. Max agreed to let her practice having a boyfriend with him so she would have experience when William moved home. It was a great plan. NOT

Jeepers (only safe word I think of that was not a deity's name or curse word) do I love Sarra Manning. I checked numerous U.S. vendors and finally I freaking had to track this book down in England to get it and I did everything but swim the dang Ocean to get the book. . After reading it I realize I would not have regretted the act. Although honestly I want to visit England for so many other reasons but Sarra Manning is top of the list. To the point where I am seriously considering telling the husband we will have to make sure we schedule the trip around her publishing dates. Yes much of this is Hyperbole but many of my family and friends will sadly believe it is true. But again so what. I am never disappointed in a Sarra Manning book. Have you ever read a book and you have to put it down because it is getting too intense and you want to prolong the journey. Just me:?? Once again love the book love Sarra, please keep writing and I promise I will get the swim fins ready.

This book took a very long time to hit its stride, but it was a sweet love story overall. The setting was in London and the characters were English, which meant some of the terms were unfamiliar to this American reader, but it wasn't a deterrent. I loved Max and Neve and their humorous relationship, and the emphasis on having a loving relationship with family and close friends. The ending was a bit abrupt but the overall result was satisfying,

I came across You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me during my time working in a bookshop. If I am remembering correctly this book was free when you bought something else (I can’t remember what title it was tied too, probably some other chick-lit title). I was very intrigued when I noticed the author was Sarra as I had read many of her young adult books as a teenager (I will be looking to feature some of her books soon in a Throwback Thursday post), so I excitedly picked up a copy and dug in! My main surprise about the book was the fact that it contained fairly explicit (although tasteful and humorous) sexual content which I wasn’t necessarily expecting due to my past experience of her as a teen novelist.

I really enjoyed most aspects of You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me, for instance, I really loved Max and Neve’s relationship and Max’s developing character. I also really loved Max and Neve’s scenes together – they had really nice chemistry. I also loved the way in which Sarra deals with issues of weight, low self-confidence, and self delusion. One thing that really hit home with me personally was how she convinces herself that William is perfect for her (lets be honest we all have done this at some point or another only to be, eventually, confronted by the harsh light of day!) and I think these scenes are dealt with particularly well by Sarra.

However, I (unfortunately) had major issues with Neve’s character. As much as I wanted to love her – partly because I could relate to her low self-esteem, I found her really annoying. Like, shouting at the book in a crowded room annoying – just for the record I don’t recommend doing this (laughing also doesn’t go down well either). Neve just couldn’t see what was right in front of her and this pissed me off! Part of my problem with Neve’s character was that she wasn’t self aware enough for me, I didn’t connect with her like I wished I could have. In the end I liked Max even more for still loving Neve after all her mistakes.

This book was a solid ‘okay’, I was slightly disappointed if I’m honest, but this could be because I had built up my excitement of reading one of Sarra’s adult books because her teen novels made up such a big part of my young adult reading years. This is definitely a read for those of you out there who like Catherine Alliott, Katie Fforde, or Maggie Alderson.

This is a difficult book for me to review, I'm really unsure how to. All the other reviews I've read have been so phenomenal that I really feel like I missed something important. There's a part of me that just couldn't connect to the characters in this book but at the same time I think it's a great fun piece of chick lit.

On the one hand I thought it was a great chick lit novel! It checked all the basic chick lit boxes...

-About a woman and her everyday struggles with work, friends, family and love? CHECK. This is one of the main reasons I adore chick-lit, it doesn't focus solely on the romance but really deals with a wide-range of issues that nearly every woman struggles with and makes you feel all happy inside too. Neve is a real character! She struggles with her weight (probably a lot more than the average woman but I still got it), she is socially awkward around new people, totally awkward around men and has some deep-seated insecurities which make her a really relatable character.

-A fun and cute romance with Mr. Right? CHECK. Ahh Max. I liked Max. A classic man-whore who can't commit to women so for some mysterious reason he enters a faux relationship to help Neve learn to date and then turns out to be exactly what she needs. Max turns out to be a sweet, observant and amazing confidence boost that I just adored. He's fun and he can joke around! I want a man just like him.

-A road to self-discovery? CHECK. I was really happy with Neve's self-discovery and the way she really learnt to accept herself, fat and all. I think it's an important lesson that every female needs to learn.

-A satisfying and uplifting conclusion? CHECK. CUTE ENDING, totally put a little smile on my face!

HOWEVER (and sorry in advance for the ramblings that are to come) I really just could not connect to the main character Neve. She pissed me off. A lot. I have a lot of issues with women who are overly conscious of their weight, especially if they complain about it all the time! Which is exactly what Neve does. I swear to God, when she turned to those freaking juice detoxes I just wanted to put the book down and walk away. I really had absolutely no sympathy for her. Rationally I get that she would still be super insecure about her body! Seriously, rationally I get it! I understand that any person who is half the weight they used to be will always be very self-conscious but it still annoyed the hell out of me. I honestly struggled to listen to her whine and complain about what to wear and how she wanted to be a size 10. Annoying. She also had annoying insecurities about her relationship with her work mates. At one point she was convinced they were going to turn against her and get her fired. Was there any evidence that this would happen? No. So please do not be so annoyingly and stupidly paranoid! Yeah. I really was fed up with Neve by the end.

But if you're a big chick lit fan, I'm sure you'll love this one.

I loved this book. This is one book that I would read again and again. All the characters added to the story and the even when you didn't like them you knew they were necessary for Neve to grow. Fell in love with Max and really related to Neve and her struggle to be comfortable with herself, her body, and who she was. I thought Max was going to be a jerk, but he had his own issues that made you just love him even more. There were so many moments in the book where I just loved and made me smile, but there were also moments, where I was right there with Neve feeling the despair that she felt. This is my favorite Sarra Manning book and one of the best books I ever read. The only thing is I wish the it never ended or at least went on for another chapter.

It stArted out pretty slow and I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy this book. It definitely got better as you read further. I really enjoyed Neve. I felt her pain with her weight struggles. I really loved Max.
I was emotionally moved throughout the story. I needed a book like this. This is a book most women can relate to.

THIS BOOK IS GREAT. Half-way through it within the day and I truly love it. The characters are hilarious and that's what makes me love it. It's easy to relate to Neve, and at times I want to slap her, but in a good way. Can't wait to see how it ends.

Of the many reasons I LOVED this book, Neve Slater and her horrible body image were especially moving to me. She wears binding undergarments, always has to have her shoulders covered, won't take all her clothes off with her man, puts pillows over her stomach when she's sitting on the sofa, feels she deserves to be treated badly because she's overweight, and so much more that resonates with me and many women I know. Yet, Neve was also feisty, hilarious, sweet, resourceful, emotionally generous and most importantly, determined. I found myself cheering out loud for her, as much as I was snorting with laughter during my 2 days with this book.

Towards the end, I was punching the air and yelling "Go Neevy!" for my girl to get her man and to achieve her goals. She was totally inspiring. And Max, the bad boy, was thoroughly endearing and wonderful, a perfect foil for the wonderful Miss Slater. All in all, a rollicking fun read, with a great message about the importance of confidence and loving yourself.

It took me a little while to get into the writer's style or maybe it was just that the first chapter or so didn't flow as well as the rest of the book...I'm not exactly sure why I wasn't immediately hooked but I was interested enough to keep reading and I'm so glad that I did because I really just loved the book. I couldn't put it down and was a bit bleary eyed from lack of sleep and that's always high praise. I will definitely be checking out some of this writer's other books.

With great surprise I loved "Unsticky" (my first foray back into "chick" literature for many years), read it twice, and couldn't wait for this one. My first impressions were disappointing: gratuitous and graphic sex within the first few pages which lends nothing to the story. Parties at which she is initially totally out of her depth "but then relaxes and finds herself enjoying them because of him" - again doesn't ring true for her character (I would argue that Grace in Unsticky knew & researched her "art" and therefore became comfortable within the confines of the social spheres she entered - Neve however does not). I was going to abandon ship midway, but stuck it out for the happy ending. At its heart, it's the story of "bad slut-boy" meets "good innocent girl" and suprises himself by changing his ways (ie leopards do change their spots). Even if the reader suspends what they know of social insecurities, the levels of self-insight & life changing epiphanies shown by all characters at the end of the book (almost within the last few pages) are beyond belief. Somewhat disappointing, because I was hoping for something a little more solid: it felt rushed. But once I dialled down my expectations and suspended logic I had a great romp reading it and kept the light on till the wee hours getting through to the happy ending prize at the end.

What I loved about this novel the most is that it delves deep into Neeve's character. We only get her side of the story and Max never gets his own point of view. this is wonderful, you get to discover him bit by bit. At first he's just a shallow manslut but as Neeve figures out bit by bit, he's a thoughtful, caring and wonderful man. She changes him, makes him develop as a person. And he helps her with her low self-esteem in such a caring and patient way.

Amazing novel, I haven't read such a good in so long. It's going to be hard to start another book and not compare.

There was a lot of humor, heart-wrenching moments, and passionate adventures. I give this book 10 stars and I want to tell the author that she is a rare, very rare pearl, she merits an award.

I started reading this book a few months ago, and at the beginning I just couldn't enjoy the story, so I decide to put it on hold, and in the last few week i started reading again, and it became one of the most adorable chick lit that I've read.

Neevy is not the usual character, the gorgeous woman that doesn't know how to find love in the big city, her story was deeper than that. She fought her whole life with her weight, and through this whole fight she faced bullying, rejection, but never gave up, because she thought a size 10 would make her happy. She's shy and bookish, and very insecure because she thinks everyone looks at her like she's only the fat girl and nothing more. She just thinks too much and forget to see what is around her.

Max was the womanizer that had nothing in common with Neve, and at the beginning I actually hated him, because his the anti-hero, which is very unusual for chick lit, but after a few chapters we get to know the real Max that has flaws and lived his whole life pretending, he felt real.

I loved this book so much. I had it sitting in my kindle for a while and one day decided to read because, why not? It started out a bit slow for me, but after 2 or 3 chapters in I was in for quite a ride! Everything about it felt so real, Neve's obsession with being a size 10, the way the dialogue between characters was written, everything. I didn't like the bits with her parents, and I might've skimmed over some of it, but I understand they play into Neve's back story.

And Max! Oh Max. Can a have a Max in my life please? I imagined him as Matthew Goode in my head even though he doesn't have a crooked nose. I went through this book so fast. When I wasn't reading it I was thinking about it and the next time I'd have a chance to pick it up. I sometimes tend to spoil myself when reading by going straight to the ending to see how things turn out, but that wasn't the case here. I just devoured this book over a 3 day weekend.

I can't wait to read other books by Sarra Manning. She just might be my new favorite author!

I loved this book. So much that I will probably go back and read it again -- something that I rarely do. Manning weaved such an appealing story and I could easily visualize the colorful characters, but more than that - I LIKED them. So much that I did not want the book to end because I was not ready to leave Neve and her world. My only quibble is that I would have liked more to the ending - I wanted to see what happened to Neve and who she chose.

Neve and Max are an adorable couple and I love their interactions whether it is just lying on the coach and kissing, fixing each other meals, eating strawberries. I cannot help but smile and sigh. Sarra's writing is wonderful and she has this ability to draw you in to feel the palpable romance, sweetness and passion between Neve and Max. This is definitely one of my favorite books having reread it multiple times.

She's done it again. While there is nothing in the plot to make it more than another "chick flick", Manning's writing makes the entire journey delightful, intelligent, and captivating. Sarra Manning is an exceptional talent whose writing turns any tale into a relatable, unable-to-put-down-able read. I will never look at pancakes the same way again! Highly recommend for the intelligent romantic.

This book shows the effects being heavy can have on a person and how someone can go from one extreme to the other. This offers insights to personalities and in my opinion is representative of life, meaning it's not super unrealistic nor is the plot.

I listened to the audio of this book and was so sad to see it end!

Over the hours I listened I became endeared to these characters. I loved Neve and Max. Their love story wasn't always pretty, but it was real, and to me that makes it beautiful.

After reading an amazing book, Me before you, I was searching for another one and I found this and after reading the reviews, I thought...lets try this one. After the 37% of the book I started to think to just stop reading it. So slow. At almost 60% I thought, let's see where is going to go. At the end ...not quite sure. Like Neve, i used to be fat, size 16, now size 10 but I really coudn't understand her way of acting. Sure we all are different but I never in my life felt the way she did. Maybe found better boys or girlfriends, but no one should make you feel that way. And sorry but all that William story...no way!

2 of my favorite characters in a long time. Their story line is real enough to ring true and their journey no less. I enjoyed this book immensely and looked forward to picking up where I left off each night.
A great read for those who are looking for a "less-fluffy" beach read and/or fun escape.

What a great story! As someone who has dealt with weight/body issues my whole life, I could really identify with this book, and with the issues that Neve, the main character had. While the book is about body and weight issues, it's also a romantic comedy that anyone could enjoy - funny, sexy, sad and very real.

The characters in this book really came to life for me. It was written with depth and understanding of life and the agonies we all go through some time or another. The character development and the story line was complete and I loved every moment of this funny, yet heartbreaking romance. This author has a fabulous writing style that kept me glued to the book until I was cross eyed.

I loved this book. It was sweet and funny and romantic with just a little bit of sexy. I knew right from the start how I wanted the book to end and was very happy with how it actually ended. Well written. Wish there was a part 2 cause I enjoyed the characters so much.

Loved the concept and related to Neve and her weight struggles. Loved the character Max but Neve got a bit annoying around the middle of the book. Overall enjoyed the book and look forward to reading other books by this author

Loved, loved, loved this book. The characters were fun, but not ridiculous. I can totally relate to wanting to be one "perfect" size and thinking life would just fall into place if that were to happen. I love how quirky Max was and determined, even though she thought he didn't mean any of. This has become one of my favorite books, and I have started reading more of her material. So glad I discovered her!!!

I know a lot of people cannot relate to Neve and how she views herself. But I liked her transformation in the story. I also liked the relationship between Neve and Max. It was an easy read, and I couldn't put the book down.

I couldn't put this down! not only are the characters compelling, flaws and all but the story line really appeals anyone who can't fit into a size zero or has things about themselves that the don't like.

This is truly the best book ever that has hit close to home. Dealing with common everyday society issues (body issues, drugs, sex, romance,etc) I could not stop reading it. By far now Sara Manning will be on my favorite authors list.

Did I mention that I loved this book. I related so well with this character having lost a tremendous amount of weight myself and the body issues we have. This character was so real to me and I literally couldn't put the book down. Great story......and the sex scenes were pretty hot too. .

Delightful is the best word I can think of to capture this book. I absolutely loved it. I stumbled across this title by accident, and I can now say that this might be my favorite book ever. The synopsis sounded like it would be a predictable, quick chick-lit book, but it was so much more. This lady can write! The characters are so in depth and relatable. I found myself smiling as I was reading constantly. I cannot recommend this book enough! GO READ IT! :)

I swear this book should have been half the length. The heroine used to be really overweight and she is hung up on it from page one till the end. It was soooooo annoying. There were good things in the book, but an editor would have made it better