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I Want You to Be Happy
An age-gap relationship between two aspiring writers acts as the vessel through which modern loneliness, addiction, love and ambition are heartwrenchingly explored, in this penetrating new novel by Jem Calder.
In a crowded, noisy bar in London a man and a woman meet, awkwardly. Chuck, 35, is no longer engaged to his long-term girlfriend Sarah. He makes a comfortable living as a copywriter, but increasingly struggles to balance work with his alcoholism and the novel he has not quite given up on writing. Joey, 23, barely has a foothold in the city but her crippling self-doubts are somehow stilled by her steady dedication to her vocation as an apprentice poet. Their ensuing relationship stutters through an anti-pastoral landscape of vaguely aspirational coffee shops, bars, and purpose-built apartment blocks.
Steeped in loneliness, told with exquisite sensitivity and humour, I Want You to be Happy is excruciating at we follow Calder’s lovers as they flail and stall, wincing at every missed opportunity, every moment of self-delusion and self-sabotage. The novel’s mobile, third-person narrator stays meticulously close to Chuck and Joey, and gradually the atmosphere of attentive noticing reveals itself as something wholly different from “unflinching”—the narrative gaze is rather one of loyalty, care, and compassion for the lovers. Like a strange, sad love ballad, their story is ever-so-lightly dusted with crystals of beauty and hope that dissolve sweetly on the page. The result is a debut novel that reads like an instant classic.
In a crowded, noisy bar in London a man and a woman meet, awkwardly. Chuck, 35, is no longer engaged to his long-term girlfriend Sarah. He makes a comfortable living as a copywriter, but increasingly struggles to balance work with his alcoholism and the novel he has not quite given up on writing. Joey, 23, barely has a foothold in the city but her crippling self-doubts are somehow stilled by her steady dedication to her vocation as an apprentice poet. Their ensuing relationship stutters through an anti-pastoral landscape of vaguely aspirational coffee shops, bars, and purpose-built apartment blocks.
Steeped in loneliness, told with exquisite sensitivity and humour, I Want You to be Happy is excruciating at we follow Calder’s lovers as they flail and stall, wincing at every missed opportunity, every moment of self-delusion and self-sabotage. The novel’s mobile, third-person narrator stays meticulously close to Chuck and Joey, and gradually the atmosphere of attentive noticing reveals itself as something wholly different from “unflinching”—the narrative gaze is rather one of loyalty, care, and compassion for the lovers. Like a strange, sad love ballad, their story is ever-so-lightly dusted with crystals of beauty and hope that dissolve sweetly on the page. The result is a debut novel that reads like an instant classic.
271 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 21, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,110 reviews
February 18, 2026
really really good stuff. chuck you insufferable piece of shit
July 24, 2026
sally rooney says to read it, i read it
(thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)
(thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)
December 22, 2025
a love story for the digital age or a cautionary tale - maybe both?
really enjoyed this! such a sharp, poignant examination of modern relationships and loneliness. will write a full review soon.
really enjoyed this! such a sharp, poignant examination of modern relationships and loneliness. will write a full review soon.
July 9, 2026
He’s called Chuck because you want to Chuck him out of a window
June 3, 2026
This is the ultimate depresso London situationship from spiralling hell story, and it’s a delight.
Terminally online, emotionally bankrupt, everyone optimising their lives while actively deteriorating, you should avoid if you think you’re above this for even a second.
Chuck, 35, a “lead” copywriter (he will absolutely tell you this many times) functioning alcoholic, recently dumped, is operating at a sustained level of twat that feels almost athletic.
Joey, 23, sweet, skint, stuck in a flatshare, quietly writing poetry and mistaking Chuck’s hollow little lifestyle for stability and adulthood, and I shudder as I say “something aspirational”.
This is vibes and red flags.
And the age gap, it's not even about age, it's about digital operating systems. Chuck texts like corporate email. Capital letters and punctuation. Joey texts like a human being. Fundamentally, they’re an incompatible species. The texting in this book is VIOLENT. The drafting. The deleting. The timestamp analysis. The if I reply now will I look desperate, disinterested, the absolute cringe spiral. I felt personally attacked. Calder has clearly watched and decided to ruin all of us. Also, this book gets that addiction isn’t just substances anymore. It’s loops. Notifications. Micro-validations. The constant hum of needing to feel something, anything, even if it’s it just a blue tick.
Oh, and the romance? Be serious. This is not love. This is two people almost trying cosplay intimacy. The sex scenes are forensically embarrassing. You will want to evacuate your own body. I feel like they're both obsessed with appearing cultured, interesting, and intellectual while rotting in real time with screens and bad decisions. It's self-awareness as an aesthetic. Depth as performance. Everyone is curating, no one is connecting.
The dual POV is savage. You watch them misunderstand each other and there is nothing you can do to stop it. Bleak, sometimes funny, emotionally eviscerating in a “oh god is this how I come across” sometimes way. Read this if you want to feel slightly exposed and ashamed of your own texting habits but if you are not a fan of Normal People you need to stay away from this.
I loved this almost spiritually humiliating read. Honestly, I just want them to be happy (but mostly, Joey).
Thank you to NetGalley and Faber for allowing me to read an advance copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
Terminally online, emotionally bankrupt, everyone optimising their lives while actively deteriorating, you should avoid if you think you’re above this for even a second.
Chuck, 35, a “lead” copywriter (he will absolutely tell you this many times) functioning alcoholic, recently dumped, is operating at a sustained level of twat that feels almost athletic.
Joey, 23, sweet, skint, stuck in a flatshare, quietly writing poetry and mistaking Chuck’s hollow little lifestyle for stability and adulthood, and I shudder as I say “something aspirational”.
This is vibes and red flags.
And the age gap, it's not even about age, it's about digital operating systems. Chuck texts like corporate email. Capital letters and punctuation. Joey texts like a human being. Fundamentally, they’re an incompatible species. The texting in this book is VIOLENT. The drafting. The deleting. The timestamp analysis. The if I reply now will I look desperate, disinterested, the absolute cringe spiral. I felt personally attacked. Calder has clearly watched and decided to ruin all of us. Also, this book gets that addiction isn’t just substances anymore. It’s loops. Notifications. Micro-validations. The constant hum of needing to feel something, anything, even if it’s it just a blue tick.
Oh, and the romance? Be serious. This is not love. This is two people almost trying cosplay intimacy. The sex scenes are forensically embarrassing. You will want to evacuate your own body. I feel like they're both obsessed with appearing cultured, interesting, and intellectual while rotting in real time with screens and bad decisions. It's self-awareness as an aesthetic. Depth as performance. Everyone is curating, no one is connecting.
The dual POV is savage. You watch them misunderstand each other and there is nothing you can do to stop it. Bleak, sometimes funny, emotionally eviscerating in a “oh god is this how I come across” sometimes way. Read this if you want to feel slightly exposed and ashamed of your own texting habits but if you are not a fan of Normal People you need to stay away from this.
I loved this almost spiritually humiliating read. Honestly, I just want them to be happy (but mostly, Joey).
Thank you to NetGalley and Faber for allowing me to read an advance copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
December 17, 2025
I don’t feel like I was reading the same book as the reviews as I found this depiction incredibly sad of 2 people living mediocre unhappy lives where they felt trapped. I enjoyed their coming together and the mismatch of their feelings but the unlikeable character of Chuck did jar my enjoyment of the book overall.
June 3, 2026
To be inside a man’s mind is a tedious thing. May Joey find happiness far far far away from Chuck.
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June 16, 2026idk why Goodreads has this as unpublished bcos it’s very unfortunately published.
1. Joey should have bludgeoned Chuck to death
2. What stupid name is chuck
3. I hate chuck
4. If you’re going to have a bit about how chuck writes flat female characters, you can’t also be writing the main girls as devoid of really any growth or inner life
5. I think this is a cynical and boring take on relationships
6. I think is a cynical, boring, tired and incorrect take on London
7. Joey should have stabbed chuck repeatedly
1. Joey should have bludgeoned Chuck to death
2. What stupid name is chuck
3. I hate chuck
4. If you’re going to have a bit about how chuck writes flat female characters, you can’t also be writing the main girls as devoid of really any growth or inner life
5. I think this is a cynical and boring take on relationships
6. I think is a cynical, boring, tired and incorrect take on London
7. Joey should have stabbed chuck repeatedly
June 18, 2026
Not as amazing and outstanding as everyone is saying it is, but it's good. I can see why it's getting compared to Sally Rooney but also I think Rooney often has more to say than this does. It's about a woman in her early-twenties who gets into a situationship with an emotionally immature manchild in his late-thirties. You will spend the whole novel telling her to dump him and that's it, but it is a captivating and entertaining read and the characters grow on you.
April 6, 2026
Chuck is insufferable,
Joey isn’t thrashed out as a character, naive and young.
It’s unlikeable character, stupid decisions and no plot at all. If that’s your kinda story you may well love this.
I liken it to conversations with friends by Sally Rooney (I know most people love that book, I did not). So perhaps this style of writing just isn’t for me.
I can generally get behind unlikeable characters if there’s something more to the story or other characters but this just fell flat for me.
This is a book about two miserable people who hate their lives having a very awkward relationship… I’m yet to see the real point of the book to be honest.
ARC copy supplied by Net Galley.
Joey isn’t thrashed out as a character, naive and young.
It’s unlikeable character, stupid decisions and no plot at all. If that’s your kinda story you may well love this.
I liken it to conversations with friends by Sally Rooney (I know most people love that book, I did not). So perhaps this style of writing just isn’t for me.
I can generally get behind unlikeable characters if there’s something more to the story or other characters but this just fell flat for me.
This is a book about two miserable people who hate their lives having a very awkward relationship… I’m yet to see the real point of the book to be honest.
ARC copy supplied by Net Galley.
June 5, 2026
Loved loved loved
Gave me war flash backs with my ex tho hence the 4*s
Gave me war flash backs with my ex tho hence the 4*s
June 23, 2026
didn’t get the hype! just gave me anxiety and lose faith in men watching him self destruct and double back, even though that was the moral of the story
the east london trendiness is a bit overdone although it was funny to recognise the non descript settings as broadway market and ldn fields. find men going through a break up a difficult trope to get through, no sympathy from me sorry x
the east london trendiness is a bit overdone although it was funny to recognise the non descript settings as broadway market and ldn fields. find men going through a break up a difficult trope to get through, no sympathy from me sorry x
July 25, 2026
felt like i was stuck in this situationship with them
June 12, 2026
I saw this novel everywhere in London when I was there three days ago, so I just had to buy it. I’m glad I did.
Jem Calder, what a writer. I rarely come across a contemporary romance that feels this well observed and sharply written. Calder captures relationships with remarkable precision, but what impressed me most was the attention to the tiny details that shape the modern millenial’s life - the calculations, the compromises, the quiet anxieties that often go unspoken.
It’s the kind of book that feels deeply specific to a generation, in ways that might be difficult to fully grasp if you’re much older or younger. Intelligent, funny, and painfully accurate, this was a standout read for me. I will definitely read whatever Calder has got cooking next.
ps: This book reminded me of Good material by Dolly Alderton, who is also very good at writing about modern romance. Interesting thing is that in Dolly's book I sided with the male character, while in Calder's book I sided with the female. So yes, Chuck was an asshole
Jem Calder, what a writer. I rarely come across a contemporary romance that feels this well observed and sharply written. Calder captures relationships with remarkable precision, but what impressed me most was the attention to the tiny details that shape the modern millenial’s life - the calculations, the compromises, the quiet anxieties that often go unspoken.
It’s the kind of book that feels deeply specific to a generation, in ways that might be difficult to fully grasp if you’re much older or younger. Intelligent, funny, and painfully accurate, this was a standout read for me. I will definitely read whatever Calder has got cooking next.
ps: This book reminded me of Good material by Dolly Alderton, who is also very good at writing about modern romance. Interesting thing is that in Dolly's book I sided with the male character, while in Calder's book I sided with the female. So yes, Chuck was an asshole
July 26, 2026
Guys this was not as revolutionary as people are saying it is. It’s another book about a man who needs help, doesn’t get it and puts all of his problem on what ever woman he’s with.
July 5, 2026
unbelievably dull
July 22, 2026
I'm upset because it's compared to Sally Rooney and maybe I was naive to think that even with her praise, this would come anywhere close to her writing.
I can see the parallels for sure, but I never quite got attached to these characters like I did to Rooney's and for me, characters are the most important thing. Chuck was insufferable and I know he's supposed to be; sometimes I really enjoy being in the insufferable person's mind. Here, I did not. These two characters were really just going around in circles and it was hard to remain into it, especially when Chuck wasn't over his ex, or at least his ego wasn't, and he was not a great guy overall. At least Rooney's male characters have dialoge that my heart could yearn over.. that was not the case with this MMC. It was sad and frustrating but not the kind I enjoy unfortunately 😅
I can see the parallels for sure, but I never quite got attached to these characters like I did to Rooney's and for me, characters are the most important thing. Chuck was insufferable and I know he's supposed to be; sometimes I really enjoy being in the insufferable person's mind. Here, I did not. These two characters were really just going around in circles and it was hard to remain into it, especially when Chuck wasn't over his ex, or at least his ego wasn't, and he was not a great guy overall. At least Rooney's male characters have dialoge that my heart could yearn over.. that was not the case with this MMC. It was sad and frustrating but not the kind I enjoy unfortunately 😅
July 19, 2026
it’s been a long time since a piece of fiction made me feel as bleak as this. i had kind of learned how to separate the emotions i feel when reading from the emotions i carry in my body after the reading is done, but this broke through those imposed barriers. just so close to the bone on the dire experience of dating men. being privy to chuck’s innermost thoughts as he fucks around with joey gave me insights into the male psyche i probably would have been happier without. fair play to jem caldwell — fella knows how to write.
August 3, 2026
This was genuinely one of the worst books I’ve ever read and I wish there was a better way to express that than giving it a single star. I wish I could remember all the reasons that I hated it, but alas I will just have to hit the highlights here:
1) I don’t have to like your characters (and frankly a lot of my favourite books have characters I dislike greatly), but I do need to care about them, and I just didn’t care about these two.
2) Chuck is a certifiable asshole and it pisses me off that he got a happier ending than Joey. Not even a happier ending actually, it pisses me off that he GOT an ending at all and she didn’t. I’m a woman in my twenties too and I would like to know that life isn’t all bowls of shit and dating men who hate your guts???
3) none of these characters are fleshed out or possess any depth in any way. They are shallow, selfish, and stupid, and frankly I didn’t give a crap about what happened to any of them. Also, not once did I ever feel there was any kind of spark between them. Again, I don’t have to like them but I do need to care about them, and I was just not invested in their “love story” because I didn’t feel or see any chemistry at all!! Why the hell were they even together!!!
4) if you’re writing what is being marketed as a “love story” of some kind, I feel like it’s fair for me to reasonably expect the sex scenes to have some kind of intimacy. But when your (sad and depressing) masturbation scenes have more intimacy and depth than your actual sex scenes, I think there’s a problem here. Also, less masturbation scenes please. Chuck is a 35 year old man there is no reason for every scene to start AND end with him jacking off in his living room.
5) this books is so unbelievably dull. The prose is listless and wandering, the plot lacks any kind of imagination or structure, there’s no clear ending of any kind for anyone or even a HINT of what could be an ending for them in the future, and frankly I don’t like books that take a completely nihilistic stance!!! Like maybe life ISN’T always out to get you and full of terrible terrible things all day every day for the rest of your life!!! I’m not saying every story has to have a happy ending but we have to keep up some kind of hope in humanity or else what do we even have anymore!!!!
Anyways. Off my soapbox now. I hate seeing people comparing this book to Sally Rooney because it could NEVER be her. Doesn’t even come close not even in the same UNIVERSE. Don’t piss me off.
1) I don’t have to like your characters (and frankly a lot of my favourite books have characters I dislike greatly), but I do need to care about them, and I just didn’t care about these two.
2) Chuck is a certifiable asshole and it pisses me off that he got a happier ending than Joey. Not even a happier ending actually, it pisses me off that he GOT an ending at all and she didn’t. I’m a woman in my twenties too and I would like to know that life isn’t all bowls of shit and dating men who hate your guts???
3) none of these characters are fleshed out or possess any depth in any way. They are shallow, selfish, and stupid, and frankly I didn’t give a crap about what happened to any of them. Also, not once did I ever feel there was any kind of spark between them. Again, I don’t have to like them but I do need to care about them, and I was just not invested in their “love story” because I didn’t feel or see any chemistry at all!! Why the hell were they even together!!!
4) if you’re writing what is being marketed as a “love story” of some kind, I feel like it’s fair for me to reasonably expect the sex scenes to have some kind of intimacy. But when your (sad and depressing) masturbation scenes have more intimacy and depth than your actual sex scenes, I think there’s a problem here. Also, less masturbation scenes please. Chuck is a 35 year old man there is no reason for every scene to start AND end with him jacking off in his living room.
5) this books is so unbelievably dull. The prose is listless and wandering, the plot lacks any kind of imagination or structure, there’s no clear ending of any kind for anyone or even a HINT of what could be an ending for them in the future, and frankly I don’t like books that take a completely nihilistic stance!!! Like maybe life ISN’T always out to get you and full of terrible terrible things all day every day for the rest of your life!!! I’m not saying every story has to have a happy ending but we have to keep up some kind of hope in humanity or else what do we even have anymore!!!!
Anyways. Off my soapbox now. I hate seeing people comparing this book to Sally Rooney because it could NEVER be her. Doesn’t even come close not even in the same UNIVERSE. Don’t piss me off.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 5, 2026
I would love to be happy after this novel
Read
August 11, 2026sad and horny 2020s London situationship
June 9, 2026
really enjoyed this, thank you for the lend al! this was veryyyy hyped up and the kind of book it is definitely aligns to the how & the who of how it has been promoted. it’s is a real rooney-esque / modern life is rubbish sort of vibe.
i thought it was very honest / compassionate / vulnerable & appreciated how astutely observant it was. did a good job of incorporating the teams and slack of it all in a way that is admittedly slit-your-wrists bleak, but not forced or cringe. & there’s some fantastically constructed sentences. justice for smiley.
i thought it was very honest / compassionate / vulnerable & appreciated how astutely observant it was. did a good job of incorporating the teams and slack of it all in a way that is admittedly slit-your-wrists bleak, but not forced or cringe. & there’s some fantastically constructed sentences. justice for smiley.
June 22, 2026
3*** met pijn en moeite. Nu wil ik een boek waarin geen druppel alcohol wordt gedronken.
June 4, 2026
This book doesn’t treat its male character harshly enough!! And also doesn’t do him justice!! I know the ending is ambiguous but that man is an alcoholic and doesn’t deserve to reconcile with his ex until he sorts out his own internal problems!! This isn’t fair!! I know fiction shouldn’t tie up all its ideas into neat bows but this feels both like a neat bow and an unravelled ball of string!! Pick!!
I also couldn’t help but think of a certain comedian and podcaster I’m currently deeply parasocial about as I was reading this and I’m sure that hasn’t helped with the above!!
I also couldn’t help but think of a certain comedian and podcaster I’m currently deeply parasocial about as I was reading this and I’m sure that hasn’t helped with the above!!
August 14, 2026
3.5!!
este livro acaba por ser uma demonstração muito crua da realidade, não só do “modern dating”, como também da vida em geral, onde vemos temas como solidão, dependência e depressão serem abordados.
Seguimos Chuck, a personagem principal, que tem problemas com compromisso e inseguranças e que acabam por fazer com que ele afaste todos à sua volta, e com que este se refugie no álcool. Acho que também retrata a vida atual nos 30s (apesar de ainda não ter chegado lá lol) onde toda a gente vive à volta do trabalho e da família, e como o fim de um relacionamento longo pode trazer um sentimento profundo de solidão, isolamento e também alguma dormência/perda de sentido naquilo que se faz.
Chuck acaba por se envolver com Joey, numa situação que acho que acaba por demonstrar a solidão/inseguranças de ambas as personagens. Eles têm 0 intimidade emocional, as conversas são super superficiais, e penso que a Joey cria uma ideia de relação com ele que no fundo não existe bem.
Para além disso, acho que o livro também retrata a vida atual, onde se trabalha para sobreviver e os sonhos/hobbies acabam por ter de ficar sempre de lado e também a frustração e o desalento que ter um trabalho que não se odeia, mas que também não se ama, apenas para pagar as contas acaba por trazer.
dou 3 estrelas e meia porque sinto que é uma leitura bastante ok, acho que os sentimentos estão bem retratados (como eu gosto) e há muita introspecção de ambas as personagens e temos acesso aos seus pensamentos e emoções, dando-nos espaço para levantar questões e fazer-nos pensar!! para mim acaba por ser mais um retrato da nossa sociedade do que propriamente um romance e, apesar de me ter cativado, sinto que faltou algo
(plus sim o Chuck é insufferable e tao tao tao self-centered 😭 like tens 35 anos)
este livro acaba por ser uma demonstração muito crua da realidade, não só do “modern dating”, como também da vida em geral, onde vemos temas como solidão, dependência e depressão serem abordados.
Seguimos Chuck, a personagem principal, que tem problemas com compromisso e inseguranças e que acabam por fazer com que ele afaste todos à sua volta, e com que este se refugie no álcool. Acho que também retrata a vida atual nos 30s (apesar de ainda não ter chegado lá lol) onde toda a gente vive à volta do trabalho e da família, e como o fim de um relacionamento longo pode trazer um sentimento profundo de solidão, isolamento e também alguma dormência/perda de sentido naquilo que se faz.
Chuck acaba por se envolver com Joey, numa situação que acho que acaba por demonstrar a solidão/inseguranças de ambas as personagens. Eles têm 0 intimidade emocional, as conversas são super superficiais, e penso que a Joey cria uma ideia de relação com ele que no fundo não existe bem.
Para além disso, acho que o livro também retrata a vida atual, onde se trabalha para sobreviver e os sonhos/hobbies acabam por ter de ficar sempre de lado e também a frustração e o desalento que ter um trabalho que não se odeia, mas que também não se ama, apenas para pagar as contas acaba por trazer.
dou 3 estrelas e meia porque sinto que é uma leitura bastante ok, acho que os sentimentos estão bem retratados (como eu gosto) e há muita introspecção de ambas as personagens e temos acesso aos seus pensamentos e emoções, dando-nos espaço para levantar questões e fazer-nos pensar!! para mim acaba por ser mais um retrato da nossa sociedade do que propriamente um romance e, apesar de me ter cativado, sinto que faltou algo
(plus sim o Chuck é insufferable e tao tao tao self-centered 😭 like tens 35 anos)
Read
July 12, 2026Þessi var svo góð! Hnífskarpt samtímaraunsæi; frábærlega vel skrifuð órómantísk ástarsaga; margt alveg óþægilega kunnuglegt og samt ekki. Myndi setja þessa í sama flokk og Perfection eftir Vincenzo Latronico og bækur Sally Rooney.
August 10, 2026
Chuck never beating the pathetic loser allegations
August 17, 2026
Maybe it’s my fault for not remembering what this book was about by the time it came up on my Libby, but I feel like I was waiting the entirety of this book for something more to happen. Chuck is a bit insufferable and arrogant, and I couldn’t really fully get into this one.
June 28, 2026
I was absolutely sucked in. Did Calder hack my phone, enter my brain and possibly live in my walls to write this book? Perhaps. It was frighteningly astute and made me cringe at parts I could see myself in too clearly.
It just felt so real that I worried about Chuck and Joey like they were my friends when I was’t reading. Will be recommending it to all my real life friends 🙂↕️🙂↕️.
It just felt so real that I worried about Chuck and Joey like they were my friends when I was’t reading. Will be recommending it to all my real life friends 🙂↕️🙂↕️.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,110 reviews