Such a Good Couple

by Sophie White

SIX FRIENDS. THREE COUPLES. ONE HOLIDAY THAT WILL RUIN EVERYTHING . . .

'This book is exactly what I crave from popular fiction and so rarely get. Enormously entertaining and enjoyable' MARIAN KEYES

'Utterly gripping, glamorous, and emotionally devastating. Each storyline is razor-sharp and deeply felt, with characters so vivid you ache for them' LOUISE O'NEILL

MAGGIE'S LIFE HAS NEVER LOOKED BETTER.
She has a superstar husband, a Hollywood mansion and a stylist on call. No one, not even Fionn (who's usually in a different time zone), knows how much she's struggling.

ANNIE'S TRYING TO GET PREGNANT.
Conor's trying to talk to Annie about their crumbling relationship. But breaking up after two decades would be crazy - and if they do, how will Annie ever become a mother?

CLARA THOUGHT SHE AND OLLIE WERE HAPPY.
Even though the chaos of parenting means they're rarely in the same room of their crowded home. Then she spots a text on his phone that might blow their life up.

A sun-soaked holiday in Cape Cod brings the six friends together, each hoping to escape their problems. But soon champagne, secrets and harsh truths are spilled. When the first 'it's over' sends shockwaves through the group, will the other couples survive the fallout?

What people are saying about Sophie's

'Sharp, funny ... with characters you'll fall in love with' BETH O'LEARY

'Astutely observed, whip-smart and very, very funny' SARAH BREEN

'A modern, witty, razor-sharp page-turner' EMER MCLYSAGHT

Genres: Contemporary, Ireland, Audiobook, Fiction, Irish Literature

441 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 26, 2025

About the author

Sophie White is an Irish author, journalist and podcaster. She is the co-host of the podcasts Mother of Pod and The Creep Dive.

Reviews

[Jennifer Whitney]

Shouldn’t have finished, but it was an easy read and I wanted to see if it grew on me. It actually got worse and even more unrealistic, while clinging to Irish twitter tropes to stay relevant. Referencing the WhatsApp group name in Maggie’s eulogy was just one of the many moments I cringed through in this book. Maybe I don’t like pop fiction? I think the description of her bulimia was well done, but so detailed that I wouldn’t recommend to anyone struggling with an ED.

[Chloe]

#Gifted

The latest novel from bestselling author Sophie White is here, and it’s my favourite of hers to date. That’s saying something as I’ve really enjoyed her other books.

Before we go any further, I’ve included the author’s note from the start of the book so you’re forewarned on potentially upsetting content.

Maggie & Fionn, Conor & Annie, Clara & Ollie; three couples, all in a big mad friendship group since they were in college.
They’re now in their early 40’s and facing a variety of life struggles; finance woes, kids driving you bananas, relationships changing, job dissatisfaction, the downsides of super stardom, and fertility issues.

Maggie & Fionn have all the money thanks to him becoming a movie star later in life, and so they invite their best friends on all-expenses paid holiday where unfortunately the thin veneer they’ve all plastered on their relationships soon starts to crack and potentially irreversible things are said and done that will change their little group forever.

I don’t want to give too much away so that’s all I’ll say, BUT! I’ve been reading this on holidays for the last few days and have honestly struggled to put it down; you know when you’re looking forward to getting back to a good book even when you’re having a great time?! Always the sign of a really excellent read.

I loved all the characters, I felt like I knew them all (sometimes intimately 👀😂). There’s an innately Irish feel to the humour and I loved all of the pop culture references throughout (Dr. Quirkey’s Good Time Emporium had me cackling 😅😅).

I read sections out to my husband that were clever and funny and he laughed also. Then of course, I cried. I later found myself telling him about the sad parts too, and then I cried again (see the 3rd slide).
Am I a sap? Yes. But I don’t react like that to every book. I loved this one.

This is a book about the importance of non-romantic love, of those friends that have become family. It’s a warm, funny, relatable and honest read that might break your heart a bit..but it’ll be worth it.

With many thanks @hachetteireland for my copy. Such A Great Couple is out on the 26th of August. All opinions are my own, as always.

[svenjalex]

dicke TW waere nötig gewesen, es ist sehr anders als gedacht und irgendwie weiss ich nicht so recht😭😶‍🌫️

[Alicia]

hab am ende nur noch geheult und die detaillierten bulimie szenen waren echt doll uff

[Fallendreams]

Wauuuii, das Buch hat mich aus den Latschen gehauen. Es ist unangenehm, schonungslos ehrlich und beinhaltet eine Menge Probleme.

Breakup Season erzählt die Geschichte einer Freundesgruppe, von der jede:r einzelne ein Päckchen zu tragen hat. Die drei Paare kennen sich schon ewig, doch keiner lässt so wirklich hinter seine Fassade blicken.

Das Buch war für mich ein kleines unerwartetes Highlight, weil ich von den Wendungen sehr geflasht war. Zwischendurch dachte ich mir: Das ist doch echt oder nicht?

Ich wüsste nicht, welches der drei Pärchen mein Favorit war. Alle 6 Personen sind mit sich selbst beschäftigt und sehen den Wald vor lauter Bäumen nicht mehr. Ab und an wollte ich die Protas anschreien, damit sie endlich mal miteinander reden. So viele Probleme hätten sich viel eher auflösen können, wenn die Menschheit endlich mal miteinander sprechen würde.

Fazit

Nicht jede Beziehung, welche von außen glücklich wirkt, ist von innen betrachtet perfekt. Eine Beziehung benötigt Arbeit und viel Verständnis für das Gegenüber.

Das Buch behandelt ein paar echt krasse Themen (u.A. Eine Essstörung) und flasht mit der unangenehmen Wahrheit.

[Meenal]

13% DNF I will not read about plastic women

[Isis Lima]

Starts interesting and then 20% in all storyline explodes in unrealistic stuff to all couples and very dramatic death that doesn’t add anything to the plot. Do not recommend

[Louise Cahill]

This would have been so much better without the reality show tangent.

[Hanna]

Wenn ich ein gescriptetes Reality TV Format hätte lesen wollen, dann… hätte ich es nicht gelesen🙃 und damit beziehe ich mich nicht nur auf den einen Part im Mittelteil, sondern auf das gesamte Buch. Selbst die ernsteren Themen wirkten irgendwie trashy in ihrer Darstellung, die Charaktere verhalten sich trotz Ü40 wie Teenager? Gab damit mehr den vibe von Jugendroman oder gerade so new adult und war deshalb weit von dem entfernt, was ich erwartet habe.

[Ninia LaGrande]

Eher 3,5 Sterne, aber für mehr hat’s nicht gereicht. Dieses Buch wollte zu viel. Zu viele krasse Lebensthemen in einem kleinen Freundeskreis, manchmal zieht es sich trotzdem ein bisschen und die Auflösungen sind dann doch recht wild. Ich mag den Stil der Autorin, fühlte mich unterhalten, aber ganz begeistert hat es mich nicht.

[Audrey D]

Very long winded.

[Valentina]

Such an underwhelming book. 2 stars instead of 1 because I actually finished it and wanted to see where it was going. 40 year-olds with zero communication skills is not cute.

[Ksenia]

3,5 ⭐️

[˗ˏˋ lia ˎˊ˗]

“ich weiß, dass ich mir zeit nehmen kann. sogar viel zeit. aber vielleicht ist es genau das, was mir so angst macht? ich habe absolut keine entschuldigung, wenn es am ende mist ist.”

auf breakup season war ich aufgrund der prämisse wirklich gespannt, da ich mir eine gute mischung aus konflikten, drama und humor erhofft hatte. leider konnte mich die umsetzung letztendlich nur wenig abholen.

in den schreibstil habe ich erst nach einiger zeit hineingefunden. zusätzlich hatte ich gerade zu beginn große probleme damit, die charaktere auseinanderzuhalten, da sie für mich nicht ausgereift genug dargestellt wurden. dadurch habe ich sie immer wieder verwechselt und war mir teilweise selbst nicht sicher, wer eigentlich wer ist und wer mit wem zusammengehört.

ihr verhalten konnte ich leider häufig ebenso nicht nachvollziehen. dafür, dass es sich um erwachsene menschen mitten im leben handelt, haben sie sich für meinen geschmack doch erstaunlich oft kindisch verhalten. dadurch wirkten einige situationen auf mich weniger authentisch, als sie vermutlich gedacht waren.

auch der plot wollte mir insgesamt etwas zu viel. es wurden zahlreiche unterschiedliche handlungsstränge miteinander verwoben, die für mich jedoch nicht immer wirklich zusammengepasst haben. einzelne davon waren durchaus witzig, wirkten innerhalb der gesamten geschichte aber teilweise etwas fehl am platz.

somit konnten meine erwartungen leider nicht erfüllt werden. von anderen werken der autorin habe ich allerdings bereits viel gutes gehört, weshalb ich ihr definitiv noch eine chance geben möchte!

2 stars

[Ross]

ugh i loved this!! sophie writes friendship so well

[Rachel]

This was funny, clever and emotionally devastating too. One of my favourite books I’ve read this year.

[Elaine Mc]

DNF at 40%

[Selina]

Auf dieses Buch habe ich sooo hingefiebert, weil Hot Mess letztes Jahr so ein überraschendes Highlight für mich war. Vielleicht waren meine Erwartungen dadurch auch einfach zu hoch.

Ich habe Breakup Season wirklich richtig gerne gelesen und dabei sämtliche Emotionen durchlaufen. Gerade zum Ende hin hat es mich komplett erwischt und ich habe bitterlich geweint (damit hatte ich wirklich nicht gerechnet!).

Trotzdem ist es irgendwie kein Highlight geworden und ich kann gar nicht so richtig greifen, warum. Vielleicht, weil hier einfach extrem viele schwere Themen zusammenkommen und ich auch mit dem ganzen Hollywood-Aspekt nicht so gerechnet hatte und bis zum Schluss nicht ganz wusste, wie ich ihn finde.

Aber: Sophie White kann einfach Beziehungen, Freundschaften und all die messy Dinge dazwischen schreiben. Sie hatte mich definitiv wieder!!! Ich finde es mega, wie sie diese Balance zwischen Humor und wirklich harten Themen schafft.

[Pia Freiling]

4,5 ⭐️

[MsDanilini]

Auf den ersten Blick wirkt Breakup Season wie ein leichter Sommerroman, doch schnell wird klar, dass viel mehr in dieser Geschichte steckt.

Ich konnte mich von Anfang an gut in Maggie, Clara und Annie hineinversetzen. Die drei Frauen stehen mitten im Leben und müssen sich den Herausforderungen, Sorgen und Veränderungen stellen, die das Älterwerden mit sich bringt. Gerade das hat die Geschichte für mich sehr authentisch gemacht.

Der Schreibstil ist angenehm flüssig und verbindet die ernsteren Themen mit genau der richtigen Prise Humor. Dadurch lässt sich das Buch trotz seiner emotionalen Momente leicht lesen.

Mein einziger Kritikpunkt ist der Mittelteil, der sich stellenweise etwas gezogen hat. Hier hätte die Geschichte für meinen Geschmack etwas gestrafft werden können.

Insgesamt ist Breakup Season ein berührender Roman über Liebe, Freundschaft, Neuanfänge und die Hoffnung, dass es nie zu spät ist, das eigene Glück zu finden. Von mir gibt es eine klare Leseempfehlung.

[Mairead Hearne (swirlandthread.com)]

My Rating ~ 4.5*

Such a Good Couple by Sophie White publishes August 26th with Hachette Ireland and is described as a novel ‘about the complexities of sharing your life with other people – partners, friends and family – and what it is exactly that makes a good couple’.

I picked up my copy of Such a Good Couple knowing that Sophie White’s writing would entertain me and would probably encourage me to look at certain aspects of my life in closer detail. What I was not expecting, however, was the emotional journey that awaited me. Six college friends, now three couples, have holidayed together for years. As the clock has ticked forward, their lives have changed drastically from those carefree days of their twenties. Now with careers, family and mortgages, the pressure of the daily grind is taking its toll.

Maggie and Fionn now live a Hollywood lifestyle after Fionn’s career took off. Hesitantly, Ollie, Clara, Conor and Annie, agree to let Maggie and Fionn fund these annual jaunts, giving them access to another world miles away from the humdrum of their busy Dublin lives. Cape Cod is the location for this years trip, with the expectation on all sides that this much-needed break will be miraculous in more ways than one. Each couple is struggling for various reasons and the superficial gloss starts to slip as soon as the holiday begins.

Maggie and Fionn, on paper, have everything they could ever dream of. A celebrity lifestyle, with every service imaginable available to them on tap, two beautiful daughters and on the surface the perfect marriage. But Maggie is struggling. Somewhere along the way, she lost herself and now, under the constant spotlight of the media, she is under pressure. She hardly sees Fionn anymore, as his career reaches greater heights, leaving her with too much time on her hands to doomscroll and to question her choices.

Clara and Ollie live a regular, and very busy, suburban family life. Both are constantly exhausted trying to cram in everything that modern living throws at them. With little time alone, they are merely passing each other by most days. Clara is extremely dissatisfied with her customer services job but feels a pressure to remain in the role as bills need to be paid. Their chaotic lifestyle is placing their relationship under great pressure but, as a team, they have always had the ability to see the humour and to just push through it. This upcoming holiday provides them with the opportunity to step back a little and recharge. But then Clara sees a text on Ollie’s phone that changes everything.

Annie and Conor have been together for years, Their partnership has always been strong, with neither seeing the need to tie the knot. As the years pass, Annie’s hope for a baby increases, with the ticking of her biological clock. This stress places an inordinate amount of pressure on their relationship, with unexpected fractures appearing. Annie is frustrated but is completely blindsided by Conor’s words.

A trip to Cape Cod, on paper, might just provide the solace they all need but, as the days pass by, it soon becomes very clear that issues go deep and no amount of luxury can compensate for the individual pain they are all enduring. A dream vacation soon becomes a fragile environment with emotions running high and stuff said that can never be taken back. When the holiday ends, what have they left?

Sophie White provides trigger warnings for her readers in an Author’s Note at the beginning, yet, even after reading that, I was still unprepared for how her writing would resonate. Sophie White is known for being quite open about her own mental health issues over the years and is unafraid to put her thoughts and feelings into her words. Anyone reading this novel, whether they struggle with specific issues or not, will feel the impact of the writing. As a parent it made me stop for a minute and reflect on my own behaviour and the potential impact it could have on those nearest and dearest to me.

There is no sugar-coating of certain themes but Sophie White highlights them with a gentle honesty and intelligence that allows every reader to process their thoughts and try to make sense of what they have read. Authentic and extremely relevant, Sophie White manages to wrap humour around some of the darker plotlines while also acknowledging that some moments require less. Such a Good Couple is a very sharply written exploration of the complex nature of relationships and of the fragility of our mental health. With a perfectly flawed, relatable and wonderfully depicted cast of characters, this book oozes with humanity and a healthy dose of reality. Bravo Sophie White for being so unafraid to write about such uncomfortable themes and with such warmth and honesty.

[Breige]

Maggie and Fionn, Annie and Conor, and Clara and Ollie have all been friends and in their respective relationships since college. Now they're in their 40s and while still friends, find themselves in very different stages in life, with their own set of struggles.

Clara and Ollie are parents to 3 wild kids under 10, with Clara hating her job and feeling resentful towards Ollie. Annie and Conor have been trying for a baby for so long that it's beginning to put a strain on their relationship. And Maggie and Fionn are living the high life in Hollywood with their twins, as Fionn (or Finn as he's known professionally) is a big time actor. But the couple rarely see each other and the scrutiny of being an A-listers wife is getting to Maggie.

Maggie and Fionn are hosting the others for the summer holidays on the East Coast of America. But while this big, all expenses paid holiday should be a trip of a life time, it turns out to be a catalyst that causes secrets to spill and foundations to crack, impacting all 6 people and all 3 couples in various ways.

I love books with big groups of friends and the dynamics of the various interconnected relationships. Sophie White does such a good job at making the characters all stand out (the women are definitely more of a focal point than the men) and making them very human, with flaws and good qualities. It felt very realistic portrayal of friendship in larger groups, how loyalties shift and references to various side chats and couples relaying information to each other when told in confidence.

There are some heavy subjects, mainly eating disorders and fertility issues. I found they were handled very well but if you are not in the headspace for these subjects, steer clear for now. That said the book is very humorous too, the Irishness shines through but in a very subtle way, more of a wink and nod to Irish readers without isolating other readers.

The flew through the book, I was so hooked. It made me laugh and oh boy did it make me cry. A fantastic portrayal of the importance of love in all its forms.

[James Durkan]

Such A Good Couple / Sophie White

⭐️⭐️⭐️

~ Boning on a timetable must be such a fun-suck… ~

First off, I’ll read anything by Sophie White. She is one of my favourite authors. And I was excited for this, but it kinda missed the mark for me.

Triggers everywhere, Maggie our tragic diva. Her chapters were so hard to read but they were powerful. The depiction is so vivid. Even when it happened, it almost just happened? I wasn’t looking for an agonising scene, but it was just yeah?

Annie’s struggle is intense and the result is unexpected. This book is very 2025. But I enjoyed her as a character. I wish her only the best.

Clara is an absolute drip and I have nothing nice to say about her. Wrecked my head. We would not gel in any setting.

But it’s their friendship and the group chat that keeps this going. It’s a sharp focused book on sensitive topics, but also friendship and communication. It’s also very Irish in it’s humour and I appreciated that. Sort of a heavy rom com but in their 40s. An easy read to finish, but heavy on topics.

I’ll still read anything Sophie though.


TBR Pile: Graiguenamanagh
Bought: Hubb16, New Ross - 01/09/25

Read: 18/11/25 - 27/11/25
Release Date: 26/08/25
ISBN: 9781399746540

[Aoife Cassidy]

Equal parts uproariously funny and totally devastating, Sophie White’s books never fail to provoke a physical reaction in me. I’m laughing out loud one minute and in floods of tears the next.

As with My Hot Friend, she once again creates zany characters, colourful dialogue and gripping storylines where the humour belies the emotional heft; the whole thing just gets under your skin.

Her latest, Such a Good Couple, centres on three couples who’ve been close friends since their college days. One of them, Fionn, has gone on to Hollywood stardom with his lowkey wife Maggie, while the others (Clara, Oisín, Annie and Conor) are leading fairly ordinary family lives. But a holiday in the US together is about to change them forever.

Tackling fame, fortune, infertility and an eating disorder (content warning), Sophie doesn’t shy away from knotty, uncomfortable issues, yet she infuses the story with her trademark humour, irreverence and warmth.

“Divorce Island” (think Love Island for struggling married couples) had me snorting with laughter - Mary and Derek and the concrete block 😂🧱 iykyk. And then, as the novel reached its denouement, I went from laughing aloud to bawling.

If I were to change anything, I’d trim it slightly - at around 475 pages it can feel a touch long-winded in places. That said, I only realised how attached I’d become to these characters towards the end, so perhaps the length earns its keep. I’d also change the cover.

Brava, Sophie. A complex, hilarious, heartbreaking tale of enduring love set in a thoroughly modern Ireland. 4-4.5/5⭐️

Many thanks to @hachetteireland @elaineganbooks for the #gifted copy of Such a Good Couple, which is available now.

[Sinead Hill]

Sophie White has done it again. I don’t know what it is about this woman’s writing that makes me audibly laugh then ugly cry.
A truly realistic look at female friendships, relationships as we get older, how we treat women in Hollywood and eating disorders. while this book is fantastic lots of mental health and eating disorder stuff included so mind yourself

[Clara Henry]

Veered into lame tropes and some ridiculous storylines which really cheapened it and completely ruined the tone. Parts were excellent.

[Wiebi]

3,5

[Mia Nelson]

Irish rom com but a bit heavier! I don’t think real people talk like this. Interesting to have 3rd person though which is a bit atypical for this genre

[Chris Glynn]

was looking for a light entertaining read and it was until the last quarter when it got really really dark

[Chiara]

3,75
Der Anfang und das Ende waren Guti, der Mittelteil hat sich gezogen und war ein wenig insane
Das Ende hittet nochmal