Courtney Can't Decide

Hot Mess Trilogy #2

by H.L. Macfarlane

Courtney Miller is notoriously bad at making decisions.

She can’t pick between jobs – she works both.

She can’t pick what to eat – she eats nothing.

She can’t pick which film to watch – she gets wasted with her friends instead.

Struggling with her mental health, jumping between jobs and constantly postponing the appointment that would confirm her ADHD diagnosis, the last thing Courtney needs is the attention of a wealthy Londoner currently staying at the hotel she works reception for every evening.

Right?

The only problem is…Courtney can’t make the decision to stay away from Simon Saint any more than she can decide not to order takeaway three days in a row. Add in dog day care centre owner – and Courtney’s best friend – Richard Blake professing his feelings for her, and Courtney is stuck in the middle of a dilemma no amount of booze, insomnia or procrastination can solve.

She can’t date them both…right?

An ADHD-addled take on the classic love triangle, Courtney Can't Decide is perfect for fans of The Kiss Quotient and Love, Comment, Subscribe.

Courtney Can't Decide is the second book in the Hot Mess Trilogy – a series of standalone but connected rom-coms set in Glasgow. Happy Ever After guaranteed with no children, marriage or unexpected pregnancies involved!

Genres: Romance

314 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 1, 2024

About the author

Follow me on Bookbub! https://bit.ly/HLBookb

NOTE: H. L. Macfarlane is currently on a publishing hiatus to focus on her mental health. She hopes to return with new titles in early 2026 and appreciates your understanding in the meantime.

Hayley Louise Macfarlane hails from the very tiny hamlet of Balmaha on the shores of Loch Lomond in Scotland. After graduating with a PhD in molecular genetics she did a complete 180 and moved into writing fiction. Though she loves writing multiple genres (fantasy, romance, sci-fi, psychological fiction and horror so far!) she is most widely known for her enemies-to-lovers STEM rom-com, The Unbalanced Equation, and her Gothic, Scottish fairy tale, Prince of Foxes – book one of the Bright Spear trilogy.

Reviews

[Meagan✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Sorry, I was just thinking about the fragility of my mental state.”

Brief Summary-
Courtney is notoriously bad at making decisions. Struggling with her mental health, working two jobs and constantly postponing the appointment that would confirm her ADHD diagnosis. Trying to balance family and friends. The last thing Courtney needs right now is to be juggling two completely different men, right? This is the second book in the “Hot Mess Trilogy”. Can be read as a standalone.

What To Expect-
🌷ADHD Representation
🌷Multiple POV
🌷Love Triangle
🌷Both Men Fall First
🌷Cute Banter
🌷Feel Good Modern Rom-Com

”God, I wanted what they had. A love that you didn’t want to leave your bed for because you’d rather face the consequences of being late to work in order to screw the morning away.”

My Thoughts-
Courtney Can’t Decide- was such a fun, quick, cozy little read. I read this in a day. Under 300 pages. I found the story, relatable, and funny. I adored the adhd representation as you don’t see enough support around the topic. Sadly there is still a stigma around adhd so it was refreshing to see it written in a way that didn’t trash the diagnosis.

The writing in this book was simple, you can expect some millennial lingo. This was a medium to fast pace book. This was a story that you wanted to see how everything played out asap. I think the ending to the story was just right.

The characters were all so fun to read. The side character flowed in nicely with the love triangle. I felt like I was part of the friends group which was refreshing.
💘We all have a friend like Courtney- the hot mess of the group. The fun, playful one. I really enjoyed reading Courtney POV. She was sassy and I loved it. Some might say she was rude, but we all have to be rude at one point in our life ✋
💘Simon the wealthy Silver Fox Londoner, that most ladies dream about lol. He was a hard worker and determined hunk.. You know when a guy is completely crazy over a girl that it brings out his dorky”funny” side. That was Simon. The golden retriever boyfriend. Courtney was intimidated by Simon at first but the chemistry between them throughout the book was cute.
💘Rich reminded me of Shaggy Rogers lol don’t come for me 🤺 Rich is introduced as Courtney’s friend/co-worker/ friends with benefits. Rich obvi was tired being in the “friend zone” that he confesses his love to Courtney. He was sweet, nerdy. Cute(ish). He was giving stoner vibes. Courtney describes him as “safe” person in her life.

🗣️You can’t have a long triangle if the two love interest are not completely opposite am I right? So who does my girl Courtney pick? And does she get her life together? 👀 I definitely recommend this book as a quick cute read. If you love Multiple POV and a love triangle scenarios this book is for you. This is my first book from the author and I can’t wait to read the other books in this series.

✨Thanks to NetGalley and Macfarlane Lantern Publishing for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ✨

Playlist-
🎶Hot Mess- Zoe Clark
🎶Love Myself- Olivia O’Brien
🎶Sweet Creature- Harry Style
🎶Sunflower- Post Malone
🎶Anti- Hero- Taylor Swift
🎶All American Bitch- Olivia Rodrigo
🎶Riptide- Vance Joy
🎶All Star- Smash Mouth
🎶Wildest Dream- Taylor Swift
🎶Blank Space- Taylor Swift
🎶Come As You Are- Nirvana
🎶Friday I’m in Love- The Cure
🎶Sail- AWOLNATION
🎶Jungle- Emma Louise
🎶What The Hell- Avril Lavigne
🎶 King Of My Heart- Taylor Swift
🎶Fallen- Mya
🎶I Think I’m In Love- Kat Dahila
🎶 needy- Ariana Grande
🎶 Do Something- Britney Spears
🎶Crazy In Love- Beyoncé
🎶 I AM WOMEN- Emmy Meli

[Karina Serrano · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5.

It was a slow read for me it took me a while to get into it. I don’t know, but then when I did finally start getting into it.

I thought it was a nice read.

(Now this is just my opinion please don’t knock it off, read for yourself and you be the judge some people might not like it, some people might love it, others like me might’ve taken them awhile to get into it)

I really enjoyed the characters I would’ve liked to see the main mcs be a bit more different they sounded kinda alike when reading their povs sometimes I’d get confused.

I enjoyed the banter between Courtney and Simon.

Thank you book sirens and author for the arc!

[Noelle Legault · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Read as an ARC courtesy of NetGalley*

I jumped at the opportunity to read this primarily because the protagonist is an adult with ADHD. The portrayal of adult ADHD, especially in a woman, was refreshing to read. I also enjoyed the sex positive approach to the story, as well as the faceted friendships and platonic relationships. I was almost sad to reach the end of the book, because I was quite enjoying the characters. All in all, worth a read.

[Jennyfer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Courtney works as a receptionist at the Plaza hotel, where (after a series of unfortunate inconveniences) she meets billionaire Simon. And as fate would have it, she keeps bumping into him at social events as their circles overlap.

Courtney is also a dog walker for her bestie, Richard's, dog sitting business. And here begins the love triangle. Rich wants to be more than friends, Courtney's anxiety/undiagnosed ADHD sends her second guessing herself. Simon is the "lust at first sight" character that splashes a ridiculous amounts of money on Courtney before even really knowing her; Rich is the sensible, solid, dependable guy who has been there for Courtney through the good time and bad.

Told in alternating chapters between Courtney and Simon, this book weaves through Simon's career, Courtney's relationships (with Rich, with her family, with her friends), Simon's relationship with his grandparents, Courtney's ADHD journey and of course the inevitable love triangle. And sex. Open door sex.

There are trigger warnings at the start of the book - please read them, so you know what you're getting in for.

I really wanted to like this book, but I found it fell flat to me. I found the characters too much of a caricature of common tropes: the ditzy blonde who can't make up her mind; the "distinguished" rich guy; the friendzoned bestie and so on. I liked the fact that ADHD and decision paralysis were represented, but from my own ADHD journey, I found the references to "manic" episodes off-putting as they are not (generally) a characteristic of ADHD itself, but parallel mental health conditions.

Like I said, I wanted to like this, but it was too formulaic for my taste and I didn't care for the writing style. There were errors in the copy I received (uncorrected ARC) that I hope were resolved before final publication.

Others may enjoy a fluffy, superficial open door love triangle romance, but it was not for me.

~Many thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review~

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

SPOILERS

I have mixed feelings on the book! There are a lot of things I enjoyed. I loved the contrast of how Simon and Rich treated Courtney and her ADHD. I felt like it was a good representation of how neither of the men in the love triangle were bad guys. Both had their immature moments but both loved Courtney. I appreciated the ending and how no one was villainized/became a cheater/etc. It was obvious as the reader who was a better fit for Courtney, so there really wasn’t much suspense on how things would turn out. I’ll admit the first part of the book was slow for me and I may have contemplated DNFing, but instead skimmed through a. few chapters until the story began to pick up. I also had trouble accepting the different POV’s because their voices/thoughts sounded so much alike. I felt it a tad odd how their mannerisms and slang were very similar. Not sure if this was intentional or due to the author not quite accomplishing making them distinguishable. Overall, I did enjoy the story, and loved all the banter and scenes with Simon and Courtney just meshing perfectly. It was a solid, feel good modern rom-com book with elements that made it unique enough to not blend in with the rest and be forgettable.

[Addictive Passions · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book started off great. A gigantic dog, two jobs I could relate to that Courtney had,(hotel reception which I loved and met a lot of cute guys, and working in dog daycare), a fumbling hero who acted more like women act towards men when they know a particular guy is interested. The first half of the book was sniggering/giggling funny rather than laugh out loud, the secondary characters left wanting me to read their story which is the first book in this series.

But then it all fell apart. I don't know what it was. It could have been Courtney not giving a thought to spending Simon's money, it could have been her leading her best friend on romantically, even going so far as breaking up with the hero and trying to make a go of it with best friend. It could have been the ADHD aspect, I thought it was going to be a major plot point in the story. It wasn't. Basically, the ADHD was blamed for her making all these bad decisions, when really it was just her as a person. To me, ADHD had NOTHING to do with anything in this book.

By the time I turned the last page, I was left with a bad taste in my mouth. Idk, maybe I wasn't in the mood for a Pretty Woman romance. But I didn't feel that love connection or that satisfied feeling after having read a good romance.

[Anonymous 5 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second installment of the Hot Mess Trilogy. I read and enjoyed the first one so I was excited to read this one and I wasn't disappointed. If you haven't read the first one, no worries, this can easily be read as a standalone. Courtney is balancing a lot in her life, between her two jobs and struggling with her mental condition, which by the way she has been putting off in getting a confirmed diagnosis. She is also really bad at making decisions, and when she has two great men vying for her attention, how is she supposed to choose?
The story was cute, quirky, and fun and I had a great time reading it. Courtney was a well-crafted character who had realistic qualities and was relatable. I also appreciated the representation of ADHD, and I think we need more stories addressing various mental health issues. It was written into the story with sensitivity, and I really appreciated that. I got caught up in the story from the start and was interested to see how it played out. The story was well-paced and came to a satisfying conclusion. All in all, I enjoyed the story and look forward to reading the next installment.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing a complimentary copy. This is my honest opinion.

[Anni · Rating 4 out of 5]

I totally loved the first book in the Hot Mess Trilogy (The Unbalanced Equation) - I’ve been eagerly awaiting this book for 18ish months and I’m so happy it’s finally here!! 4.5 stars!

Courtney Can’t Decide was a beautiful description of so many of us in this day and age - scrambled, indecisive, messy, and chaotic… I think a lot of us have undiagnosed ADHD or something like this and have difficulty with finding exactly where we fit in and what we should be doing (and keeping the mess clean and the schedule straight). Other than the love triangle aspect, I definitely identify with Courtney.

I normally can’t stand a love triangle trope, but the way MacFarlane wrote this storyline it was done to perfection and you could easily feel Courtney’s dilemma and her true intention and her heartbreak the whole time. I definitely could tell where things would go and knew how it would resolve, so I didn’t let it get to me like the trope normally does. Very well done, Hayley - round of applause for this!!

I definitely recommend this to everyone who loved Unbalanced as much as I did (it was one of my top 2022 reads), and everyone who feels a bit scrambled and unsure and can’t decide what to do!

I received an advance copy from NetGalley and BooksGoSocial, and this is my honest feedback.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read and I was looking forward to the ADHD spotlight. However, in my (familial) experience with ADHD I've observed more of the day to day chaos and less indecision and "manic episodes." It seemed like the author was using "ADHD" as a code for any/all mental health issues (ADHD, anxiety, manic-depression, etc.) but I know ADHD impacts different people in different ways and the self-sabotage of any mental health struggles can certainly be difficult to watch.

As for the romance and love-triangle - Simon and Rich were the perfect opposites, although I didn't always like how Courtney treated either of them. Seemed like she took advantage of her best friend as well as the new rich guy who starts throwing money her way in the form of travel and shopping.

Definitely check those content warnings at the beginning of the book - there wasn't anything there that put me off but sensitive readers may want to skip this one. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up. Things I liked: the chemistry and interactions between the main characters, the friendship group and reappearance of Liz and Tom from the previous book (and the sly dig at their miscommunication issues!), the whole flow of the author's writing style. Things I wasn't quite so sure about (hence why I didnt enjoy it quite as much as the first in the trilogy): the pacing, which was a bit erratic and a tiny bit repetitive with Courtney's lack of decisiveness, and the whole love triangle premise. It was clear from the outset which way it was going to go because of the way the first-person narrative was set up, so there was no tension there at all really. Having said that, it was worked out sensitively and with no 'ickiness'. Another enjoyable outing in this Glasgow setting, and there's clearly more to come.
Thanks to Netgalley for the advance review copy. All opinions are my own.

[Melinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was overall just okay for me. The H was likable and well developed. For me, he was the best main character. The h was also likable overall, though she had some irritating qualities that I believe the author was trying to attribute to the h’s ADHD. I do not have ADHD so I cannot judge the accuracy of how ADHD was portrayed in this story. I will say that this story’s portrayal did not leave me with any deeper understanding of ADHD than I had going into the book. If you’re going to make a main character neurodivergent, I feel you should commit to fleshing that disorder out fully and in a way that does a service to the community you’re representing. The love triangle, though present, was never much of a real plot. The supporting character friends and family subplots were integral in keeping the story interesting. The chemistry was good when it was present. This book was just overall slow.

[Jazzy Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very funny quick read. I feel like this is a good book for someone who just wants something to read that isn't very serious or hard to follow. I personally didn't like the way that the author made Courtney come across. I feel like it made it seem like woman are just male motivated and so boy crazy that they can't decide. I know that it is a work of fiction and that I can't think too far into it. The characters were interesting, and I truly feel like they were good characters. This book was not for me and that's okay because I truly believe it will be meant for someone. I write this review to not discourage anyone from reading this book but to inform them of the pros and cons that I personally felt the book had. I personally rated this book 3 stars because the book has good characters, it's a quick read and it was something new for me. I will definitely be reading more by this offer in the future to see if another one of her books will be for me.

[Court · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall, this book was not really for me. There were parts that I enjoyed but something about the writing and the plot did not connect with me.

Adult diagnosis of ADHD is talked about a lot in social media right now, so I was interested to see how this was going to play out in this book. Unfortunately, I felt like these parts of the story felt very forced, like certain boxes needed to be checked, rather than it being a seamless part of the story. There was not even a resolution to Courtney getting or not getting a diagnosis of ADHD at the end the book, despite this being discussed throughout.

I did enjoy reading about Simon. I laughed out loud when Courtney scared him when he was trying to “run into her” on her run! His POV chapters were my favorite to read.

[Alecia · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Spoilers ahead*

This was a good read. I thought it was interesting to read what getting an ADHD diagnosis looks like in Scotland, vs. America. I felt like the stigma of ADHD might be more striking there? So that was eye-opening and I definitely felt empathetic towards Courtney and her father. I liked Simon’s character. I really liked their chemistry; I didn’t get a “best friend” vibe from Rich, and I also wouldn’t even call this a “Love Triangle Rom-com”. He obviously never had a chance. He felt skeezy to me, so I’m glad he turned out ok in the end. Tom was the best side character-definitely makes me want to read his story. Loved that the sister was standing up for Courtney and teaching their mom to be kind. Probably unrealistic, but I'll take it.

[Epilogue Lover · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was looking forward to reading this as I so enjoyed The Unbalanced Equation by the same author. This was a very enjoyable and refreshing read. Courtney’s sure she has ADHD and struggles to balance everything in her life, even trying to get her diagnosis. She meets Simon who seems to help her feel settled, but her best friend suggests they become a couple as well and she can’t figure out what to do.

The characters have great chemistry in this book and the narrative voice is so readable - just flows. I think I haven’t given it five stars because I don’t love the whole love triangle element. It felt insincere from the start, she obviously had an undeniable connection with Simon!

What to expect:

- Mental health rep
- love triangle
- opposites attract

[Emily Jarvis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Courtney can’t decide, she’s notoriously bad at making decisions. Two jobs. Two men. And putting off her ADHD diagnosis.

This book was written to be read very quickly, while I really enjoyed the characters and the details, it was a little simple. A few of the topics and plot points fell a little flat but that didn’t stop me from being able to make my way through it very quickly.

I think the trigger warnings should be viewed by those who may have an issue with those topics.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macfarlane Lantern Publishing for allowing me to read this, all opinions are my own.

[Gwen|| Bookish Blondie · Rating 1 out of 5]

As someone who has adhd, I found the representation abysmal and frankly offensive. The fmc who has adhd is a selfish bitch for 99% of the novel and there is no way in real life the man she didn’t choose would’ve been okay with her terrible and selfish behavior. The ending is so unrealistic it’s kind of laugh out loud funny in that the author is delulu if she thinks it was a well written triangle at all.
It’s mind numbingly shocking that the author who wrote the first in this series went from a five star to this utter garbage.

[inesnjreads · Rating 3 out of 5]

while I really like the author's writing, the adhd representation and the chemistry that clearly was present between the main characters, I had a hard time completely connect with the story.
First I don't really see where was the love triangle because there was pretty much no suspense on that part. and while their arguments and overall discussions where pretty realistic, I found Courtney a bit rude at time...
still, it was a fun and fast paced read !

[SJ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. Just...eh.
Premise is good. Love me a love triangle done right.
Just...kinda wish she didn't have to choose, y'know? I feel like this could've been a really nice MFM why choose. But that's just me.
This is also kinda why I'm not a fan of friends to lovers (and especially best friends to lovers) bc see look what happened and it'll never be the same between them in my head.

(Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC )

[Courtney Rennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

●This was a bit of a slow read for me. It also did not revolve much around ADHD like the extended title implies. I also thought Courtney chose the wrong guy in the end! The cover and name of the book are absolutely adorable.

"I don't get paid enough to care."●

Thank you NetGalley, BooksGoSocial, and H.L. MacFarlane for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I gave it a 3.5 stars but rounded up for Goodreads.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read which kept my attention for over 75% of the book. This was perfect from ADHD brain. Apparently this is a part of a series, which I will definitely be checking out.

The book itself was really funny and relateable. It portrayed some real life situations I find myself in when it comes to having ADHD and not in a negative way.

[Brittany Steminist Booknerd · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this as a sequel to the Unbalanced Equation, which I enjoyed, but I really couldn't get into this one. The wishy washy nature of the FMC's personality was driving me nuts. She was stringing along two guys because she was afraid to make a decision, and it was a bit cringy at times. This is another childfree couple in the end, which I'm always looking for, but it just really missed the mark from the first book in the series.

[Rhonda]

DNF @ 30%

This book contained all the things that would have made it a mental health romantic journey, but the adventure fell flat with debatably interesting characters and very little plot thus far.

[bohemianrhapsodyreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a cute romance! I don’t typically read romance, but I really enjoyed this one!I highly recommend it.

[Christina Bowling · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the book for the most part and really enjoyed following along with the characters.

[Riley K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it

[Katelyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one was a bit of a slow read, with characters and choices I struggled to connect with. Still, I appreciated the mental health representation and the warmth the side characters brought (along with the doggos 🥹)