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Unapologetic Love Story
Not yet published
Expected 2 Apr 26Big-hearted, bold, and full of bite, Unapologetic Love Story is the dazzling debut adult romance novel from bestselling author, Elle McNicoll. For fans of Emily Henry's Book Lovers and Talia Hibbert's Get a Life, Chloe Brown.
Enter Raina Lewis, London’s hottest It Girl - effortlessly cool, endlessly intriguing, and beloved for her smash-hit podcast spotlighting autistic women. But not everyone’s convinced by the hype. Investigative journalist and ‘King of Cancel Culture’, Tom Branimir is sure there’s more to Raina than meets the eye. He’s determined to uncover her secret. . . if he can just manage not to fall for her first.
UNAPOLOGETIC LOVE STORY is an unapologetic celebration of love, relationships and the women who have historically been shut out of such stories, until now . . . Elle McNicoll is about to become everyone's favourite new name in adult romance.
Enter Raina Lewis, London’s hottest It Girl - effortlessly cool, endlessly intriguing, and beloved for her smash-hit podcast spotlighting autistic women. But not everyone’s convinced by the hype. Investigative journalist and ‘King of Cancel Culture’, Tom Branimir is sure there’s more to Raina than meets the eye. He’s determined to uncover her secret. . . if he can just manage not to fall for her first.
UNAPOLOGETIC LOVE STORY is an unapologetic celebration of love, relationships and the women who have historically been shut out of such stories, until now . . . Elle McNicoll is about to become everyone's favourite new name in adult romance.
400 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication April 2, 2026
129 people want to read
About the author
Elle McNicoll
18 books773 followersHey, I'm Elle. I'm Scottish, autistic and an author/screenwriter who is really bad at logging her reading choices.
I write about autistic girls finding out who they are and what makes them happy, because I'm an autistic girl trying to find out who she is and what makes her happy.
I don't read reviews, as they are for readers, but I'm grateful to any and everyone who engages with my work, on the page or on the screen. My Young Adult Romance debut is called Some Like It Cold in it will be published on the 3rd of October. Official professional shiz below:
Elle McNicoll is a bestselling and award-winning novelist and screenwriter. Her debut, A Kind of Spark, won the Blue Peter Book Award and the Overall Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, as well as Blackwell’s Book of 2020. She is a four time Carnegie nominated author, and was shortlisted for the Books Are My Bag Awards 2020, 2021 and 2022, the Branford Boase Award 2020 and The Little Rebels Award 2020 and 2021. She was also honoured in the US with the Schneider Award, 2022.
Her second Middle Grade novel, Show Us Who You Are, was Blackwell’s Book of the Month and one of The Bookseller’s Best Books of 2021. Her first fantasy middle grade, Like a Charm, was nominated for Best Children’s Book for Older Readers in the first ever Week Junior Book Awards, and was highly praised in the New York Times.
Her debut novel, A Kind of Spark, has also been adapted for television, which debuted on UK and US screens on the 2nd of April, 2023. It is Emmy nominated and won Best Children’s Programme at the Broadcast Awards and the Royal Television Society Awards in London, 2024 and is now streaming in many territories around the globe. A second season is currently airing on CBBC.
Her debut Middle Grade was named as one of the greatest children’s books of all time, coming in at number 75, and she is twice nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.
Her YA debut, Some Like It Cold, will be published on October 1st (US) and October 3rd (UK). She is an advocate for better representation of neurodiversity in publishing, as an autistic and dyspraxic novelist, and currently lives in North London.
I write about autistic girls finding out who they are and what makes them happy, because I'm an autistic girl trying to find out who she is and what makes her happy.
I don't read reviews, as they are for readers, but I'm grateful to any and everyone who engages with my work, on the page or on the screen. My Young Adult Romance debut is called Some Like It Cold in it will be published on the 3rd of October. Official professional shiz below:
Elle McNicoll is a bestselling and award-winning novelist and screenwriter. Her debut, A Kind of Spark, won the Blue Peter Book Award and the Overall Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, as well as Blackwell’s Book of 2020. She is a four time Carnegie nominated author, and was shortlisted for the Books Are My Bag Awards 2020, 2021 and 2022, the Branford Boase Award 2020 and The Little Rebels Award 2020 and 2021. She was also honoured in the US with the Schneider Award, 2022.
Her second Middle Grade novel, Show Us Who You Are, was Blackwell’s Book of the Month and one of The Bookseller’s Best Books of 2021. Her first fantasy middle grade, Like a Charm, was nominated for Best Children’s Book for Older Readers in the first ever Week Junior Book Awards, and was highly praised in the New York Times.
Her debut novel, A Kind of Spark, has also been adapted for television, which debuted on UK and US screens on the 2nd of April, 2023. It is Emmy nominated and won Best Children’s Programme at the Broadcast Awards and the Royal Television Society Awards in London, 2024 and is now streaming in many territories around the globe. A second season is currently airing on CBBC.
Her debut Middle Grade was named as one of the greatest children’s books of all time, coming in at number 75, and she is twice nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.
Her YA debut, Some Like It Cold, will be published on October 1st (US) and October 3rd (UK). She is an advocate for better representation of neurodiversity in publishing, as an autistic and dyspraxic novelist, and currently lives in North London.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 27, 2025
This is written with heart for anyone who has been told you don’t look autistic enough. Or that you’re *too* different. Or for those who feel they aren’t autistic enough. Or for ANYONE who wants an incredible love story that will make you laugh and tear up and glow from within.💜
Raina Lewis is a 28-year-old podcaster spotlighting autistic women. Tom Branimir is an investigative journalist who is known as the King of Cancel Culture. When Tom crosses wits with Raina, he is surprised to find a sparring partner.
As someone who recently got an autism diagnosis, someone who didn’t even realise I could claim a community, a sense of being understood; this hit home.
This book highlights how autistic people (women especially) listen to people talk at length about how tragic and terrible it is to be them, or to be in their lives, or how they’re not real.
You can tell this is an own-voices romance from someone desperate to see themselves represented.
If Clark Kent’s signature glasses did represent autistic masking, they’d been discarded.
Raina is bubbly and optimistic, Tom is more cynical and comes across as dour at first. I wouldn’t call this opposites attract as Elle artfully demonstrates masking and also the desperate need to fit in - even from neurotypicals.
The steamy scenes will have your toes curling, but it is balanced out with emotional resonance.
Yes, it was occasionally cheesy. Yes, the romance felt too perfect, too quickly. But, hey. This is a love story. A projection we can dream about.
“No one is voiceless–some people just don’t know how to vary their listening skills.”
Physical arc gifted by Pan MacMillan.
Bookstagram
Tiktok
Raina Lewis is a 28-year-old podcaster spotlighting autistic women. Tom Branimir is an investigative journalist who is known as the King of Cancel Culture. When Tom crosses wits with Raina, he is surprised to find a sparring partner.
As someone who recently got an autism diagnosis, someone who didn’t even realise I could claim a community, a sense of being understood; this hit home.
This book highlights how autistic people (women especially) listen to people talk at length about how tragic and terrible it is to be them, or to be in their lives, or how they’re not real.
You can tell this is an own-voices romance from someone desperate to see themselves represented.
If Clark Kent’s signature glasses did represent autistic masking, they’d been discarded.
Raina is bubbly and optimistic, Tom is more cynical and comes across as dour at first. I wouldn’t call this opposites attract as Elle artfully demonstrates masking and also the desperate need to fit in - even from neurotypicals.
The steamy scenes will have your toes curling, but it is balanced out with emotional resonance.
Yes, it was occasionally cheesy. Yes, the romance felt too perfect, too quickly. But, hey. This is a love story. A projection we can dream about.
“No one is voiceless–some people just don’t know how to vary their listening skills.”
Physical arc gifted by Pan MacMillan.
Bookstagram
Tiktok
December 1, 2025
[arc review] I so badly wanted to enjoy this book and now I feel like the minority while reading everyone’s positive reviews—I just didn’t connect with the story. I think it’s definitely a me problem, because I’m not a huge fan of the writing style and traditionally prefer to read romance in first person.
I did like the way the story touched on the difficulties neurodiverse women face—being told you don’t look like you’re autistic, but then made to feel like you’re just difficult for wanting to establish health boundaries that work for you and make you feel comfortable in a world built for those that are neurotypical.
as someone with debilitating high functioning ADHD—I too struggle establishing boundaries on what is expected of me, so I found myself relating to raina throughout the story.
I didn’t—controversially—like tom, and at times I found myself rolling my eyes at him. I also feel like third act break ups only really work if it makes sense for the plot, but in this it felt predictable and only there to serve as a final push towards the end of the book.
I know that when ‘unapologetic love story’ is published, it’s going to be one of those books that becomes well loved and received by a lot of people—I just wish I was one of them!
I did like the way the story touched on the difficulties neurodiverse women face—being told you don’t look like you’re autistic, but then made to feel like you’re just difficult for wanting to establish health boundaries that work for you and make you feel comfortable in a world built for those that are neurotypical.
as someone with debilitating high functioning ADHD—I too struggle establishing boundaries on what is expected of me, so I found myself relating to raina throughout the story.
I didn’t—controversially—like tom, and at times I found myself rolling my eyes at him. I also feel like third act break ups only really work if it makes sense for the plot, but in this it felt predictable and only there to serve as a final push towards the end of the book.
I know that when ‘unapologetic love story’ is published, it’s going to be one of those books that becomes well loved and received by a lot of people—I just wish I was one of them!
November 13, 2025
This is Elle McNicoll's adult debut and it is very much an adult novel (sweary words and sexy scenes included!). And as a reader who enjoys romance I really, really enjoyed this book. She has a very (unapologetic) way of telling things like they are in her books. And I love it.
This story focuses on older main characters in their late 20's and early/mid 30's who have a lot of their own lives sorted, which I always enjoy reading. Tom and Raina know who they are, or who they want to be, but just want that one special thing to complete their wee puzzle... And because the characters are older in this book - with a life and jobs and experience - we get sweary words and physical affection and life. We also get to see how the romance between Raina and Tom forms, how they are drawn to each others intellect, wit, and their banter. This is their foundation (and doesn't it just smack 'autistic stereotypes' in the face!) and it's really quite fun to read/watch develop.
I loved this more 'adult' story about an adult autistic woman from Elle McNicoll. Yes, we've read about similar characters in her other books, but in 'Unapologetic Love Story' we also get to talk about the shushed over aspects of being an autistic women, which is refreshing and very much needed. As an autistic woman, I find that is isn't uncommon for people to be surprised that I have emotions, big feels, about things (pick a topic; climate, environment, and human right are some of my favorites) but can't handle wooly jumpers, loud noises/bright spaces, or people telling me to 'smile, it can't be that bad', or f*cking supermarkets . All this to say that this romance book is real, it made me feel seen, and will undoubtedly make others feel seen too. It has a rawness to it, a reality that I feel lends itself to the story. Some romances paint unreal expectations of relationships and life; I don't think this one does, not at it's heart.
Did I shout, sigh, swoon, swear, sweat through drama? Yes, I did. Did I also say 'f*ck yes' and 'isn't that the truth' so many times that I lost count? Also yes. Is Tom so totally swoony, and Raina deserving of all the love. Absolutely. Did I cry a few times? Yes.
And not just because I felt seen. Not just because some of this was too sweet and cute. Not just because I felt the pain of some of Raina's experiences. But because all of those things together. The tears were of sadness and joy combined. Of those big feelings we autistics 'are not meant to have'.
We need more books by neurodivergent authors with neurodivergent characters. I think I get so much joy from books with this representation because it's a reality for so many - and such a diverse reality too. How do we show authors its safe to write like this, that the support is there, that
I received this as an eARC from the publisher through NetGalley. It has not affected my opinions - but I did squeal when it came through!
Also I wrote way more than I wanted to here. A simple "Sweary-word yes!" didn't seem appropriate for a GoodReads review. ... I'll do that somewhere else..
This story focuses on older main characters in their late 20's and early/mid 30's who have a lot of their own lives sorted, which I always enjoy reading. Tom and Raina know who they are, or who they want to be, but just want that one special thing to complete their wee puzzle... And because the characters are older in this book - with a life and jobs and experience - we get sweary words and physical affection and life. We also get to see how the romance between Raina and Tom forms, how they are drawn to each others intellect, wit, and their banter. This is their foundation (and doesn't it just smack 'autistic stereotypes' in the face!) and it's really quite fun to read/watch develop.
I loved this more 'adult' story about an adult autistic woman from Elle McNicoll. Yes, we've read about similar characters in her other books, but in 'Unapologetic Love Story' we also get to talk about the shushed over aspects of being an autistic women, which is refreshing and very much needed. As an autistic woman, I find that is isn't uncommon for people to be surprised that I have emotions, big feels, about things (pick a topic; climate, environment, and human right are some of my favorites) but can't handle wooly jumpers, loud noises/bright spaces, or people telling me to 'smile, it can't be that bad', or f*cking supermarkets . All this to say that this romance book is real, it made me feel seen, and will undoubtedly make others feel seen too. It has a rawness to it, a reality that I feel lends itself to the story. Some romances paint unreal expectations of relationships and life; I don't think this one does, not at it's heart.
Did I shout, sigh, swoon, swear, sweat through drama? Yes, I did. Did I also say 'f*ck yes' and 'isn't that the truth' so many times that I lost count? Also yes. Is Tom so totally swoony, and Raina deserving of all the love. Absolutely. Did I cry a few times? Yes.
And not just because I felt seen. Not just because some of this was too sweet and cute. Not just because I felt the pain of some of Raina's experiences. But because all of those things together. The tears were of sadness and joy combined. Of those big feelings we autistics 'are not meant to have'.
We need more books by neurodivergent authors with neurodivergent characters. I think I get so much joy from books with this representation because it's a reality for so many - and such a diverse reality too. How do we show authors its safe to write like this, that the support is there, that
I received this as an eARC from the publisher through NetGalley. It has not affected my opinions - but I did squeal when it came through!
Also I wrote way more than I wanted to here. A simple "Sweary-word yes!" didn't seem appropriate for a GoodReads review. ... I'll do that somewhere else..
November 12, 2025
I received an eARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. It has not affected my opinions.
At this point, I think it's probably pretty obvious that I'll read whatever Elle McNicoll writes. We need more books - of all genres - by neurodiverse authors centring neurodiverse characters. And the only way to make that happen is to show up for those books that are published to show there is a market for them.
It certainly doesn't hurt that they're very fun reads.
This is Elle McNicoll's adult debut and it is very much an adult novel. The characters are 30 plus and have lived and loved before (and there are a few spicy scenes too). They are not finding love for the first time or trying to work out who they are. It's therefore a very different romance to her other novels - these characters know what they want from life and are going to do their best to get it.
There is a lot of chemistry between the duo from their first meeting. I particularly liked how the novel explored the meeting of minds in their attraction and developing romance, not just the physical side of things. They're both smart and not afraid of a fight and it gave the romance more depth to explore the myriad ways people can be drawn to one another. Plus that's the bit of a romance that always draws me in and find most interesting.
I also appreciate how Elle McNicoll continues to push back against the stereotypes of autistic women in media, instead pointing out the truth that one neurodiverse person is just one neurodiverse person - there is no standard way to be neurodiverse (the clue is somewhat in the name!) Raina loves clothes and is a romantic at heart, she's not afraid to say her mind (and has the courage to say it even knowing it will cause pushback.) She is loyal to her friends, even when they're displaying their flaws. In short, she is a multi-faceted person.
Some of the chapters start with little excerpts from Raina's podcast showing the breadth of topics she covers. Many are romance focused, given the book, and I liked how it did gave fragments of voices to other neurodiverse characters. There was also a little cameo of a character from her YA novel, WISH YOU WERE HER, which I very much enjoyed.
At this point, I think it's probably pretty obvious that I'll read whatever Elle McNicoll writes. We need more books - of all genres - by neurodiverse authors centring neurodiverse characters. And the only way to make that happen is to show up for those books that are published to show there is a market for them.
It certainly doesn't hurt that they're very fun reads.
This is Elle McNicoll's adult debut and it is very much an adult novel. The characters are 30 plus and have lived and loved before (and there are a few spicy scenes too). They are not finding love for the first time or trying to work out who they are. It's therefore a very different romance to her other novels - these characters know what they want from life and are going to do their best to get it.
There is a lot of chemistry between the duo from their first meeting. I particularly liked how the novel explored the meeting of minds in their attraction and developing romance, not just the physical side of things. They're both smart and not afraid of a fight and it gave the romance more depth to explore the myriad ways people can be drawn to one another. Plus that's the bit of a romance that always draws me in and find most interesting.
I also appreciate how Elle McNicoll continues to push back against the stereotypes of autistic women in media, instead pointing out the truth that one neurodiverse person is just one neurodiverse person - there is no standard way to be neurodiverse (the clue is somewhat in the name!) Raina loves clothes and is a romantic at heart, she's not afraid to say her mind (and has the courage to say it even knowing it will cause pushback.) She is loyal to her friends, even when they're displaying their flaws. In short, she is a multi-faceted person.
Some of the chapters start with little excerpts from Raina's podcast showing the breadth of topics she covers. Many are romance focused, given the book, and I liked how it did gave fragments of voices to other neurodiverse characters. There was also a little cameo of a character from her YA novel, WISH YOU WERE HER, which I very much enjoyed.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I started reading around midnight last night and just finished. I did get some sleep but clearly my brain decided it was not a priority. And now I'm cursing myself slightly for reading it so quickly. I imagine I will read it again pretty soon.
It's a good romance novel, first of all. It works on that level in a very satisfying way. It made me think about how maybe I don't avoid most romance books because I don't like the genre. Maybe I just find it hard to relate to most of the characters.
.
Raina is spectacularly relatable. What resonated for me was her political rage and her love of creating space for autistic women to be themselves. This is built into her character development in a way that feels totally natural. I had highlighted 6 things I loved in the first chapter and by the end of that chapter I had been moved to tears because I could absolutely picture the scene and how much of a triumph it would have been. Rainy meets a group of secondary school children and answers their questions and she "held court" after having confounded the teachers' expectations of an autistic speaker. The first short chapter also skewers condescending charity and educational attitudes and introduces us to a flamboyant, confident and articulate main character I was rooting for.
The podcast structure enables the book to bring in other perspectives. Raina as podcaster also seems very natural when sharing her strong opinions. The opinions themselves are rooted in McNicoll's deep understanding of autistic, neurodivergent and disabled community and politics. There is so much love in this book. Yes, it's a romantic love story but it is also so incisive in relation to growing up, being part of a community and choosing a lens on life that fits your values. It has a lot to say about friendship, redemption, and deciding what to do when relationships might be beyond redemption. It rings true about being a Scottish person moving to London too. There is a lot of love for autistic people. It is so affirming to read.
Buy it. You won't regret it. It has something for everyone, but it will be especially important for neurodivergent people to read and to fall in love with.
It's a good romance novel, first of all. It works on that level in a very satisfying way. It made me think about how maybe I don't avoid most romance books because I don't like the genre. Maybe I just find it hard to relate to most of the characters.
.
Raina is spectacularly relatable. What resonated for me was her political rage and her love of creating space for autistic women to be themselves. This is built into her character development in a way that feels totally natural. I had highlighted 6 things I loved in the first chapter and by the end of that chapter I had been moved to tears because I could absolutely picture the scene and how much of a triumph it would have been. Rainy meets a group of secondary school children and answers their questions and she "held court" after having confounded the teachers' expectations of an autistic speaker. The first short chapter also skewers condescending charity and educational attitudes and introduces us to a flamboyant, confident and articulate main character I was rooting for.
The podcast structure enables the book to bring in other perspectives. Raina as podcaster also seems very natural when sharing her strong opinions. The opinions themselves are rooted in McNicoll's deep understanding of autistic, neurodivergent and disabled community and politics. There is so much love in this book. Yes, it's a romantic love story but it is also so incisive in relation to growing up, being part of a community and choosing a lens on life that fits your values. It has a lot to say about friendship, redemption, and deciding what to do when relationships might be beyond redemption. It rings true about being a Scottish person moving to London too. There is a lot of love for autistic people. It is so affirming to read.
Buy it. You won't regret it. It has something for everyone, but it will be especially important for neurodivergent people to read and to fall in love with.
December 4, 2025
I genuinely loved this book—both the romance and the insight it offers into neurodivergence. It opened my eyes to how many people’s daily struggles might come from a lack of diagnosis, understanding, or access to the right tools. I learned so much without ever feeling lectured.
The FMC is a neurodivergent woman who has faced a lifetime of bullying, misunderstanding, and ignorance, yet she’s thriving as a podcaster who discusses topics related to neurodivergence with honesty and courage. The MMC is a brooding Scottish writer, known for his political criticism, now digging into the world of social-media fraud. Their relationship begins with an enemies-to-lovers spark—at least from her side—but the story quickly expands into something deeper. It explores friendship, family expectations, social class, and the quiet cruelties society often directs at people who don’t fit its narrow mold. The supporting cast adds so much warmth and depth.
I don’t pretend to be a professional reviewer; I can only share what the story made me feel. And this one made me reflect deeply. It made me realize how overwhelming daily life can be for neurodivergent people and how isolating it must feel when the world responds with judgment instead of empathy. We easily accept friends who are grumpy, anxious, dramatic, or overly cheerful—so why do we struggle to extend that same acceptance to autistic or otherwise neurodivergent people? That question stayed with me. At the end, we are all different and should be accepted as we are.
This book didn’t just entertain me; it gave me a reality check. I can’t wait to read more from this author.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC, this is my honest and voluntary review.
The FMC is a neurodivergent woman who has faced a lifetime of bullying, misunderstanding, and ignorance, yet she’s thriving as a podcaster who discusses topics related to neurodivergence with honesty and courage. The MMC is a brooding Scottish writer, known for his political criticism, now digging into the world of social-media fraud. Their relationship begins with an enemies-to-lovers spark—at least from her side—but the story quickly expands into something deeper. It explores friendship, family expectations, social class, and the quiet cruelties society often directs at people who don’t fit its narrow mold. The supporting cast adds so much warmth and depth.
I don’t pretend to be a professional reviewer; I can only share what the story made me feel. And this one made me reflect deeply. It made me realize how overwhelming daily life can be for neurodivergent people and how isolating it must feel when the world responds with judgment instead of empathy. We easily accept friends who are grumpy, anxious, dramatic, or overly cheerful—so why do we struggle to extend that same acceptance to autistic or otherwise neurodivergent people? That question stayed with me. At the end, we are all different and should be accepted as we are.
This book didn’t just entertain me; it gave me a reality check. I can’t wait to read more from this author.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC, this is my honest and voluntary review.
November 16, 2025
It is rare that I read a book and know it is going to be 5 stars within the first 3 chapters, but here we are!
This is Elle McNicoll's first adult Romance and oh my goodness it was perfection!
Raina is a 28 year old autistic woman who runs a podcast for disabled women, who meets the "King of Cancel Culture", Tom. Tom needs a positive story to finish his book on his previous subjects, who were scam artists, liars and overall bad people, to weigh out the bad with the good. However, Raina is sceptical about his intentions, but intrigued.
Raina and Tom's love story was truly wonderful and their chemistry was off the charts from the start. Tom fell first and he feels hard!! Their love was gentle, understanding the others needs and full of passion.
The neurodivergent rep was so fantastic in this! I could not believe how much I related to Raina, it made me cry several times.
The ableism and internalised ableism in this hit hard and Raina's resilience against people always trying to put her down was something extraordinary and how hard she worked against it. It was also realistic in that some days are harder than other to battle people's opinions, but having people who love you and can prop you up is a great thing.
This is a love story for all the autistic people who were told they would never find love and just how wrong society was to say that!
Please check the trigger warnings for this book, as it contains mentions of eating disorders, controlling behaviours from a parent, ableism, internalised ableism, mentions of bullying, death of a parent (in the past) and mentions of alcoholism.
This is Elle McNicoll's first adult Romance and oh my goodness it was perfection!
Raina is a 28 year old autistic woman who runs a podcast for disabled women, who meets the "King of Cancel Culture", Tom. Tom needs a positive story to finish his book on his previous subjects, who were scam artists, liars and overall bad people, to weigh out the bad with the good. However, Raina is sceptical about his intentions, but intrigued.
Raina and Tom's love story was truly wonderful and their chemistry was off the charts from the start. Tom fell first and he feels hard!! Their love was gentle, understanding the others needs and full of passion.
The neurodivergent rep was so fantastic in this! I could not believe how much I related to Raina, it made me cry several times.
The ableism and internalised ableism in this hit hard and Raina's resilience against people always trying to put her down was something extraordinary and how hard she worked against it. It was also realistic in that some days are harder than other to battle people's opinions, but having people who love you and can prop you up is a great thing.
This is a love story for all the autistic people who were told they would never find love and just how wrong society was to say that!
Please check the trigger warnings for this book, as it contains mentions of eating disorders, controlling behaviours from a parent, ableism, internalised ableism, mentions of bullying, death of a parent (in the past) and mentions of alcoholism.
November 29, 2025
4.5 stars
I have loved every Elle McNicoll book I have read because Elle is great at ensuring neurodiversity is represented, explored and celebrated in fiction in a way that just hasn’t existed before. Elle doesn’t just use her characters as a nod to being neurodivergent, she fully embraces it loud and proud and ensures her writing allows readers to not only be seen but banish the myths and preconceptions about being autistic. Therefore writing a romance novel was such an important step in her writing journey.
I loved the theme of being unapologetic and honestly the talk about being neurodiverse throughout the book. I’ve highlighted so many quotes which I can’t wait for others to read when the book is published. I’ve been struggling with reading lately and especially the romance genre so I found it hard to rate this one, ( nothing to do with the book or the author but my own personal life. ) but I really loved to see how their relationship was about opening up to see their true selves and supporting each other for who they truly are.
I have loved every Elle McNicoll book I have read because Elle is great at ensuring neurodiversity is represented, explored and celebrated in fiction in a way that just hasn’t existed before. Elle doesn’t just use her characters as a nod to being neurodivergent, she fully embraces it loud and proud and ensures her writing allows readers to not only be seen but banish the myths and preconceptions about being autistic. Therefore writing a romance novel was such an important step in her writing journey.
I loved the theme of being unapologetic and honestly the talk about being neurodiverse throughout the book. I’ve highlighted so many quotes which I can’t wait for others to read when the book is published. I’ve been struggling with reading lately and especially the romance genre so I found it hard to rate this one, ( nothing to do with the book or the author but my own personal life. ) but I really loved to see how their relationship was about opening up to see their true selves and supporting each other for who they truly are.
January 15, 2026
Unapologetic Love Story
A fabulous well crafted story with two wonderful leads and a cast of characters good and bad.
Raina is a podcaster connecting with women who like her are neuro divergent. Tom a dour Scot writes books exposing frauds. He is immediately attracted to Raina and wants to finish his latest book with a chapter about Raina, she refuses. Both are wildly attracted to each other, Tom completely smitten, the relationship develops and is joyful to read but not without some angst and misunderstandings.
Raina is a wonderful complex character and the descriptive writing of how autism impacts how she has to navigate a world and society that to be frank can be pretty ignorant and downright cruel.
Toms understanding and love is joyful particularly as we see Raina blossom and thrive with Toms support and we also see the empathy and intelligence Raina has.
If like me you love this book another brilliant romance to read is Outlier by Susie Tate which also well describes this subject.
My thanks to net galley and publisher for the opportunity to review this book honestly.
A fabulous well crafted story with two wonderful leads and a cast of characters good and bad.
Raina is a podcaster connecting with women who like her are neuro divergent. Tom a dour Scot writes books exposing frauds. He is immediately attracted to Raina and wants to finish his latest book with a chapter about Raina, she refuses. Both are wildly attracted to each other, Tom completely smitten, the relationship develops and is joyful to read but not without some angst and misunderstandings.
Raina is a wonderful complex character and the descriptive writing of how autism impacts how she has to navigate a world and society that to be frank can be pretty ignorant and downright cruel.
Toms understanding and love is joyful particularly as we see Raina blossom and thrive with Toms support and we also see the empathy and intelligence Raina has.
If like me you love this book another brilliant romance to read is Outlier by Susie Tate which also well describes this subject.
My thanks to net galley and publisher for the opportunity to review this book honestly.
November 13, 2025
Raina Lewis hosts a successful podcast about her life as a neurodivergent woman. At a party she meets journalist Tom Branimir. Tom is known as the king of cancel culture , exposing the fakes of social media. It's a love story, but as much about the love of friends, family and self as between the two main characters.
Raina's descriptions about her autism were perspectives I had never heard in that way before and as detailed by the author's note, deeply personal to Elle McNicoll, which shines through the writing. A beautiful read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Raina's descriptions about her autism were perspectives I had never heard in that way before and as detailed by the author's note, deeply personal to Elle McNicoll, which shines through the writing. A beautiful read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
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