Love... And Sleepless Nights

Love... #2

by Nick Spalding

Falling in love is easy...
... starting a family is far from it.

Just ask Jamie and Laura Newman, who (thanks to a rather relaxed attitude to contraception) find themselves about to have a baby. It’s obviously a terrifying prospect for a newly married couple, but as long as they stick together they’ll be fine, right?
They’d better, because the path between conception and those first few baby steps is littered with many obstacles – such as public sickness, rabid insomnia, violent mood swings, complicated sex, and copious amounts of swearing.
Featuring a cast that includes an overbearing mother-in-law, a terrifying midwife, and at least one chorus of mating humpbacks, Love… And Sleepless Nights is the hilarious sequel all about what happens next...

Falling in love with another person is easy. Making a new one with them is where things get complicated.

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Comedy, Fiction, Humor, Audiobook, Adult

276 pages, Paperback

First published November 8, 2012

About the author

Nick Spalding is an author who, try as he might, can't seem to write anything serious.

Before becoming a full-time author, he worked in the communications industry, mainly in media and marketing. As talking rubbish for a living can get tiresome (for anyone other than a politician), he thought he'd have a crack at writing comedy fiction - with a very agreeable level of success so far, it has to be said. Nick is now a multimillion seller. This flabbergasts him every single day.

Nick is now in his fifties - and is rather annoyed at the universe about it, because it gave him no choice in the matter. He's also addicted to Thai food and roast potatoes (not together), loves Batman and Warhammer, and has a dreadful singing voice.

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Find out more about Nick and his books at www.nickspalding.com

Reviews

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nick has outdone himself again! From the first chapter I was laughing with tears in my eyes, then when we first hear from Jamie I had to put it down from laughing. I tried to tell a friend at work about it and again started laughing so hard I had to stop and compose myself.

I am a little sad with the ending I have to say... I can only hope that there are some lost diaries and blog posts out there that eventually come to surface. I can't have this be the end of Laura and Jamie! I need to know what happens, there are too many good years to read about.

I would recommend Love... From Both Sides and Love... And Sleepless Nights to anybody who would ask my opinion... and truth be told to people who don't ask for it because they would not be disappointed.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, I really like this author. His books are funny and witty and spot on with regard to many of the situations he is writing about - in this case, having your first baby. He also does a great job with the characterization of both the male and female POV's in his books. AND the narrators hired to create the audio are awesome at bringing those characters to life. I laugh so hard and often while listening.

This book chronicles the time period in Jamie and Laura's relationship from when they find out they are going to have a baby up until the baby's 1st birthday. There are so many funny things that happen to them; from admitting the pull-out method is not proper birth control to the ridiculous things that happen at prenatal birthing class. There are weird pregnancy cravings and even losing the kid in the shopping mall. The book also accurately shows that having a baby is stressful and how it can affect your relationship with your spouse. It was a good balance between funny and truth. I could relate to so many of the things that happen to this couple.

[Stacey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book because I so enjoyed the first book "love from both sides". This book did not make me laugh out loud in the same way as the first one though I did chuckle several times. This was an entertaining, quick read.

[Adele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another laugh a minute read from Nick Spalding. Love Nick's honest writing. This book was full of great one liners, great funny moments but also had a lot of emotion in at times I was crying with laughter and at others I was crying with Jamie and Laura. Brilliant, now on the next instalment.

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Opet smijeh do suza. Jedva cekam slijedecu.

[Kristen Hodges · Rating 1 out of 5]

Half way through and hating this book so much. Clearly written by someone who either hasn't actually had a baby or just wasn't really paying attention. My experience of it so far are that its vapid and pointless. The characters don't speak like human beings so much as a writer trying really hard to sound "real". If I make it all the way to the end I'll be stunned.

[Ana Vukadin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely hilarious!

[Paul · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the worst piece of tripe I've ever read, and I could only stand to read half of it. The writing is bombastic, the stories are raunchy (making fun of your wife while she's in labor has to be a new low in bad taste). Here's a typical paragraph: "Off I trot, penis waggling gaily in front of me like a divining rod, leaving Laura to rest her head in her hands--the perfect globe of her peachy little behind still pointing upwards, making her back arch in that way I find so irresistible."

If I could give it zero stars, I would.

[Amina · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Sanela K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sedma knjiga koju sam pročitala 2019. godine je "Neprospavane noći" ("Love and sleepless nights" by Nick Spalding), nastavak "On voli, ona voli" ("Love from both sides") kojom sam isto bila oduševljena, kupila sam nekoliko primjeraka, sebi i dragim ljudima. E, dragi moji, drage moje, pa i ovom knjigom sam bar podjednako oduševljena. Ponovo sam se smijala naglas svako malo, bilo da sam sama u prostoriji ili da su prisutni neki od članova moje porodice. Ali, pored smijeha, ova knjiga me je u par navrata natjerala da se zamislim o svom životu, da razmišljam o pravim životnim vrijednostima i da budem dirnuta do suza. Pronalazila sam sebe i supruga u glavnim likovima i svemu što im se dešavalo od momenta kad je Laura ostala u drugom stanju, pa do djetetovog prvog rođendana. Neću da pravim spojlere, samo ću vam reći: uzmite i pročitajte, čista petica od mene.

[Robert Petkovic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nick Spalding majstor je jednostavne priče i sve ono što bi uštogljeni autori propustili uvrstiti u svoje rečenice, on koristi besramno, podižući životnost svojih priča do razine da se koji puta sramimo što NAS toliko dobro poznaje.
Svi mladi (ili trudni) roditelji trebali bi pročitati ovaj zanimljiv dnevnik, da vide kako nisu usamljeni u svojim strahovima, mukama, smjehovima, plakanjima, radostima,... Kod mene je prošlo više od 20 godina od sretnih događaja ali se proživljene emocije još uvijek pamte, a ponovno proživljavanje izaziva smijeh.
Što su romani koje piše Nick Spading? Jednostavno - život.

[Miss Chocolate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ova knjiga bi dobila sočnu dvojku zbog svog sadržaja, prenemaganja, nepoznavanja zenskog mozga, ali s obzirom da sam se nekoliko puta uspjela nasmijati dajem joj skromnu trojku.

[Petra Lapić Potnar · Rating 2 out of 5]

NEDOVRŠENO-došla do pola knjige. Puno dosadnija i lošija od prvog dijela stoga nisam niti nastavljala dalje.

[Becca Alderman · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Nick has outdone himself again! From the first chapter I was laughing with tears in my eyes, then when we first hear from Jamie I had to put it down from laughing. I tried to tell a friend at work about it and again started laughing so hard I had to stop and calm myself.

I am a little sad with the ending I have to say... I can only hope that there are some lost diaries and blog posts out there that eventually come to surface. I can't have this be the end of Laura and Jamie! I need to know what happens, there are too many good years to read about.

I would recommend Love... From Both Sides and Love... And Sleepless Nights to anybody who would ask my opinion.

[Jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is amazing, fantastic, awesome, great, and of every good words on earth that can describe the greatness of a book. It was so funny my mom asked me was I out of my mind because I was laughing so hard.

I had no idea who Nick Spalding was. Picked this book up merely because it was on the promotional rack. I am so glad I bought it. I started to love this book and the author after reading the first chapter, and more deeply after each and every chapter. The story was just so funny.

Five big, fat stars for this book. Totally one of my favourites now!

[Katka R. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bližšie k 3,5*

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant and funny! Love Nick Spalding's books :-)

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another very funny easy read book!

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious book, loved every minute of it!

[Martina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laura Newan nakon što je morala zatvoriti svoju prodavaonicu čokolade zbog krize pokušava dobiti posao kao voditeljica u velikoj tvrtci čokolade, no prije razgovora za posao osjeti mučninu i zanemari je kao i tijekom dijela razgovora za posao koji teče glatko, no njezina mučnina rezultirala je tim da je povraćala po šefovima tvrtke i tako izgubila svaku mogućnost za posao. Jedan od šefova govorio joj je kako je jutarnje mučnine imala njegova žene prilikom trudnoća, a ona je rekla da su ona i muž pazili. No, kupila je u trgovini test za trudnoću i saznala da je ipak trudna. Ona i Jamie su friško u braku i nisu željeli dijete i prilikom odnosa su koristili kondome, no jednom su imali toliku želju i nisu uspjeli naći kondome pa je Jamie izvadio prije svršavanja, ali kako odnos nikad nije siguran, zbog toga je Laura ostala trudna. Kad je Laura priopćila Jamieju da je trudna, ostao je šokiran pa je mislio da je prvoaprilska šala jer mu je to rekla na 1. april, no nije bila šala. Od tada su stvari za njih krenule nizbrdo. Laura je zbog slabe financijske situacije morala početi raditi u prodavaonici Morton i Slacks, a Jamie je uzimao malo više sati u novinarskoj firmi za koju je radio. Lauru su poslije mučnina, prali i hormoni. Pa je tako nakon večeri upoznavanja prijatelja s trudnoćom koja je prošla dobro, na večeri na kojoj su Jamijevoj obitelji rekli za trudnoću, a njezina svekrva upitala Jamieja je li njegovo, rekla svekrvi da je kučka i još ju malo počastila. Laura je shvatila i da izlasci za trudnicu nisu baš posebni kad ne možeš piti. Ona i Jamie su probali ići na privatni tečaj kod Trishe s kojega su pobjegli glavom bez obzira. Jamie je imao loše usporedbe na ultrazvucima koje su živcirale Lauru, kao i pokušaji biranja imena. Nisu imali ime sve dok malena curica nije došla na svijet. Lauru su trudovi uhvatili u Applevoj trgovini gdje joj je puknuo vodenjak, i to dok su kupovali božićne poklone. Jamie je bio uz Lauru na porodu, a ona ga je počastila svim mogućim uvredama i navodila sve njegove pogreške. Kad je rodila nije osjetila posebnu ljubav kako drugi opisuju, ali je ipak zavoljela svoje dijete. Odlučili su je nazvati Poppy, po psu Jamijeve bake s kojim se Jamie igrao i kojeg je volio i srednje ime su joj dali Helen po Laurinoj majci koja je umrla. Poppy je par dana nakon rođenja dobila upalu pluća i tjedan dana nije bila dobro što je slamalo Lauru i Jamieja, ali se Poppy izvukla. Laura je skoro dobila infarkt kad su dobili rodni list, a na njemu umjesto Poppy, pisalo je Poopy (kakica), ali je svojim frustracijama prema službeniku uspjela osigurati promjenu. Zbog nedostatka sna nakon što je Laura ukinula sisanje, oboje su bili iscrpljeni i izbezumljeni. Jamie je morao i više raditi, pa je nakon što je oštetio auto parkirajući, Laura sve noćne smjene oko Poppy preuzela na sebe. Kad je Laura izašla s prijateljicom Melinom, Jamie je u trgovačkom centru zamijenio Poppy s drugim kineskim djetetom pa se ispostavilo da je to Lolly s trudničkog tečaja od Trishe. Kako Laura nije mogla izaći na kraj s Poppyinim deranjem dok su joj izlazili zubići, odlučila je pomoć potražiti od svekrve. Kako se Jane nije javila na mobitel, Laura se odvezla do nje i uhvatila je sa ljubavnikom. Jane ju je molila da ništa ne govori nikome, a Laura joj je rekla kako sama mora reći mužu i sinu. Kako Jane nije ništa govorila Jamieju, Laura je osjećala sve veću napetost, što je i Jamie osjetio pa je pomislio da ga vara, no kad mu je za večerom na koju su sami izašli, dok je Melina, Laurina najbolja prijateljica čuvala Poppy, rekla za majčinu prevaru, Jamie se nasmijao i rekao da oni to znaju, da je otac njemu i bratu i sestri to odavno rekao, ali Jane ne zna da znaju. Bilo joj je lakše i njihov odnos se malo popravio do kampiranja na kojem je Jamie inzistirao. Tada su se izgubili u šumi, Laura je završila u kravljoj balegi, Jamieja su izbole pčele i šator im je poplavio. Do Poppyinog prvog rođendana su stalno imali neke razmirice, svađali bi se, ali se ne bi mogli pomiriti u krevetu kao i prije jer se sve svodilo oko Poppy. Na Poppyin rođendan Poppy je napravila svoje prve korake što ih je ponovo udružilo i zbližilo. Poslije je Jamie dobio otkaz nakon što mu je menadžer tvrtke pristupio kako bi mu rekao da će mu smanjiti sate i da gubi ured, a Jamie imao živčani slom i svašta mu izgovorio i u četiri oka, a i pred drugim članovima tvrtke. Zbog toga je Laura morala podebljati sate u prodavaonici čokolade Morton i Slacks. Dok je hvatala staricu koja joj je iz trgovine krala čokoladu, nazvali su je iz australske tvornice čokolade za razgovor na posao.

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another slice of life from Nick Spalding's character's Jamie and Laura. Book 2 in series is just as hilariously inappropriate and sweetly emotional as the first. Books are written as blog on Jamie's part and letters to her deceased mom on Laura's part. I listened on audio and smirked from the 1st chapter.

Anyone who is honest will laugh and cringe at the situations they get involved in. The loss of sex, sea of hormones involved in pregnancy and birth of their baby. The real life messiness is uncomfortable and mortifying but is sweet and sidesplittingly funny. Having your child be sick, or pop out four letter words in the worse place, going camping with a 9 month old as you are too broke to do anything that costs money, and dealing with horrible in-laws. I have never seen an author that can make me laugh so much that I am smiling for hours after reading a chapter. Can hardly wait to listen to the next book.

[Manuela · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nemam običaj pisati recenzije pročitanih knjiga, dugo vremena čak nisam ni ostavljala ocjene, ali ova je knjiga to promijenila.
S obzirom na to da nisam ljubiteljica chick-lit žanra ni takozvanih komedija, nisam imala velika očekivanja, a ipak sam ostala gorko razočarana. Osim što knjiga sadrži svaki mogući klišej vezan uz trudnoću, porod, odgoj djece i bračne razmirice, kroz cijelo čitanje bilo mi je nemoguće prepustiti se priči i zanemariti činjenicu da su dijelovi pisani iz "ženske perspektive" djelo muškarca koji, čini se, nije imao previše doticaja sa ženama u stvarnom životu.
Očekivala sam laganu, opuštajuću priču s ponekim trenucima smijeha, a dobila razočaranje – i to bez ijednog smiješnog trenutka. Ovo je uvjerljivo najlošija knjiga koju sam pročitala.
Jedva sam čekala da završim s čitanjem kako bih sažela cjelokupni dojam u recenziji. Sve u svemu – grozno. Ovog ću autora ubuduće zaobići.

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have never written a review for a book before. Ever. And I read a lot of books.

This book was awful. I won’t be picking up any more from this author. Spalding writes from the male and female POV but would have benefited from speaking to an actual human woman before writing from a female perspective. His description of her pregnancy and labor were absolutely ridiculous and inaccurate on so many levels.

I won’t even comment on his depiction of the foreign woman in the department store or how he seems to dislike people who probably weigh more than he does.

Literally nothing happened in this book. What was the climax? Gun to my head, I couldn’t tell you. There wasn’t one. It took my a century to finish this book and I’m never returning to this author.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very entertaining book which continues Jamie and Laura's story as they start their new life together after getting married in the first book of this series. I like the author's perspective as a male writer, it's light while still managing to bring in the realistic challenges of being young, while having a baby without having a lot of money. I think the author captured both the male and female outlook well and the writing style is easy to read. This book is funny, but still has it's heartfelt moments, and I recommend it.

[Asimah Akhtar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book in the Love series by Nick Spalding. You're always guaranteed a laugh when reading books by Spalding. In the second book we see the love, life and laughs of Laura and Jamie within their marriage. You're always likely to experience some very humourous accounts. We are also introduced to topics that are very serious. Spalding has a great way of turning any story humourous, however, he also knows how to make you shed a tear or two when needed. A great read.

[Safari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who said Spalding can't be serious?

Oh that's right, it's Nick himself who says this. Pfft... This book proves otherwise.

This was a wonderful follow-up novel to "Love... From Both Sides". Filled with plenty of funny moments and yes some seriously emotionally heart felt times. I even shed a tear. Brilliant work Mr Nick. Although you're still getting your sat/sitting and stood/standing words muddled up.

[the boy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm sorry but considering what we know about Laura and how big of a slut she is, I am not surprised Jane asked her if that fucking kid was Jamie's.

Poppy is a cute name, I like that. Helen is ugly ass name that old people wear. Also Poppy Helen sounds bad as fuck.

This book is the best birth control you could get.

Oh boy, Melina has a such sad mindset 😕

So, Laura became one of THOSE mothers.. 🤮

Don't read this book if you hate kids. First one was so much more fun. 2 ⭐

[Janaszone · Rating 2 out of 5]

Keď som sa knihu chystala citat, čakala som, že bude jednoduchšia, ľahko čitateľná a bez hlbšej zápletky. Plytkost tejto knihy však predčila aj moje očakávania. Veľmi jednoduchý, ba priam bezduchý príbeh, formou blogovych príspevkov alebo denníka hlavných hrdinov, mi vyslovene nedal nič, ani pobavenie do dni, kedy som si na neho nasla priestor a čas. Som zvyknutá na príbehy jednoduchých romantických romanov, toto ale naozaj podľa mna nestalo ani za napísanie knihy, nieto ešte za jej citanie.

[Becky L Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audio version: Heather Wilds and Napoleon Ryan. Both narrators are amazing and put so much life into the characters. Not sure how, but the sequel was even better. Now I want a sequel to all the Romances. Ok OK not reasonable, but don't neglect this follow up if you read love from both sides. As always, nick spalding does not disappoint.

[Faery · Rating 4 out of 5]

*** 3.5 stars ***

Another funny and enjoyable read from Nick Spalding, and it was great to continue Jamie and Laura's story, as they enter the world of parenthood. Though this wasn't quite as funny (and cringeworthy) as Love From Both Sides, it wasn't far behind.

I will definitely be reading the next in this series.