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Seeing Other People
From "My Legendary Girlfriend" to "Turning Forty," Mike Gayle's bestselling novels have taken his millions of readers through many key times for the modern man - friendship, courtship, stag weekends, marriage, work, holidays, significant birthdays - but "The Divorced Dad's Club "is perhaps his most compelling, engaging and bittersweet novel yet. When Joe Clarke writes a feature for his newspaper on the guys called the Divorced Dads' Club, he doesn't think he'll ever see this sorry bunch of losers again. Why would he? He's happily married to Penny, his university sweetheart and he is the father of two lovely children that they both dote upon. Joe has never strayed from his marriage vows . . . until one drunken night which leaves his life in ruins, and Penny showing him the door. He is still in love with Penny and still crazy about his kids, who can't understand why their lives have been turned upside down, but Joe knows he deserves to be cast out into the world of bedsits and baked beans. And it soon becomes clear that as far as Penny is concerned, there is no way back. Joe feels totally alone. And then he bumps into none other than Van, lead singer of West London's most famous Van Halen tribute band and leading light of the Divorced Dads' Club. Could this motley crew of fathers, all in some way separated from their children but determined to support each other, help Joe get back together with Penny and the kids? Not if his first meeting with Penny and her new boyfriend is anything to go by . . . Funny, heart-wrenching and totally page-turning, "The Divorced Dad's Club" is a rollercoaster ride of emotion. By its end, Joe Clarke will be a very different person.
362 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
153 people are currently reading
708 people want to read
About the author
Mike Gayle
38 books2,250 followersI was born in the 70s — the 70s were great. I would recommend them to anyone.
I was also born in Birmingham — in my humble opinion the greatest city in the world with the nicest people too.
I used to live in London — a great city too. But a bit on the pricey side.
I also used to live in Manchester — another great city (although technically I lived in Salford which is next door but that’s sort of splitting hairs).
Before I went to university I wanted to be a social worker — I have no idea why. It didn’t last long.
After I left university I wanted to write for the NME — I’ve always loved music but it was only when I went to uni that it started loving me back. I can’t play any instruments or sing so writing about music seemed to make sense.
My first paid writing gig was for a listings magazine in Birmingham — (Actually my first unpaid writing gig was an interview with Kitchens of Distinction for Salford Student Magazine. I can’t begin to tell you how terrible it was.)
I used to write a music fanzine — it was called Incredibly Inedible and I co-edited it with my mate Jackie. We typed up the first issue on my dad’s olde worlde typewriter and then literally cut and paste on to A4 sheets using scissors and glue. Over the three years of its existence we interviewed many bands and artists including: Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, Pavement, Bill Hicks and Blur.
I was also born in Birmingham — in my humble opinion the greatest city in the world with the nicest people too.
I used to live in London — a great city too. But a bit on the pricey side.
I also used to live in Manchester — another great city (although technically I lived in Salford which is next door but that’s sort of splitting hairs).
Before I went to university I wanted to be a social worker — I have no idea why. It didn’t last long.
After I left university I wanted to write for the NME — I’ve always loved music but it was only when I went to uni that it started loving me back. I can’t play any instruments or sing so writing about music seemed to make sense.
My first paid writing gig was for a listings magazine in Birmingham — (Actually my first unpaid writing gig was an interview with Kitchens of Distinction for Salford Student Magazine. I can’t begin to tell you how terrible it was.)
I used to write a music fanzine — it was called Incredibly Inedible and I co-edited it with my mate Jackie. We typed up the first issue on my dad’s olde worlde typewriter and then literally cut and paste on to A4 sheets using scissors and glue. Over the three years of its existence we interviewed many bands and artists including: Smashing Pumpkins, The Cranberries, Pavement, Bill Hicks and Blur.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews
April 1, 2016
Pile of shite. The story is basically he's unfaithful and tells the unravelling of his life following a one-night stand with an intern at work. Turns out it's all a dream and he's still got his lovely boring one-dimensional wife and two boring children. I don't like him at all, he treats women like objects and he blames the intern for luring him away (she's beautiful after all) and he thinks it's ok to lie to his children (eg pretending he's working in china when his wife chucks him out; springing a move to Harrogate on them with no discussion). Plus he can't even add up, the author I mean - he says his protagonist 17 years older than the 25-year-old intern but also that he's 38. Hmmm. Anyway, total waste of time and I'd give it 0 stars if I could. I'm sure I've read something else by him that was set in Cornwall and I quite liked it. I won't read anything by him again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 15, 2018
A must buy, must read.
I love reading Mike Gayle novels. The last one I read was Wish You Were Here, which I highly recommend.
Mike Gayle's new novel is told man's perspective. Seeing Other People is a brilliant novel that makes you hard to take your eyes off the page. Not a word is wasted on any page. There is an utter thrill of discovering what really happens to Joe Clarke.
Happy married, father of two Joe wakes up beside a young woman from his work. He is sure that he has been unfaithful to the wife he loves, but Joe can not remember having an affair with this young woman.
But when his ex girlfriend dies Joe's life begins to take a strange encounter. This story is cracking stuff that I recommend it with high-flying colours.
I love reading Mike Gayle novels. The last one I read was Wish You Were Here, which I highly recommend.
Mike Gayle's new novel is told man's perspective. Seeing Other People is a brilliant novel that makes you hard to take your eyes off the page. Not a word is wasted on any page. There is an utter thrill of discovering what really happens to Joe Clarke.
Happy married, father of two Joe wakes up beside a young woman from his work. He is sure that he has been unfaithful to the wife he loves, but Joe can not remember having an affair with this young woman.
But when his ex girlfriend dies Joe's life begins to take a strange encounter. This story is cracking stuff that I recommend it with high-flying colours.
February 6, 2017
It took longer and it was meant to be finished last year but the struggle I went through was one I regret buying this book. I have three words after I read it.
Plain. Dull. Predictable.
Firstly, the title isn't much of any connection that for the whole universe searching I can barely understand its meaning of it. Secondly, this has been done before many times that even any films that dealt with the subject of infidelity is a passing off of uninteresting story that even real life is happening to many people. The characters, as it turn out to be, are just predictable responses of every day norm what people will do when one cheats. Sure - there is a page I like where it talks about conviction and what was said is very true, but the rest has left me any thing to be desired about.
I truly try to like the story, I truly do. I even try to find other angles of acceptance but it was tolerance that takes over and that sense of realization that I know where this story is going - Tom is an idiot that only had cheated one time and only through his honesty, shit happens and every thing just go downhill. His wife, behaves like any other wives, cheat once and let's divorce. Nothing to compromise but a fixated mind that I can't handle this and so I find my ex-boyfriend who is much better and give the kids a better life. Then of course, there is that 'their kid's running away' routine and find that and its a sign. Throw in the ghost/hallucination of an ex-girlfriend of Tom to torture him and 90% of the novel was all a dream.
I didn't read this book to have all that but I guess when it comes to writing such stories, I thought maybe there would be some thing that is thoughtful or witty. Nothing comes to that and only escapism of Tom's character that it was all a dream, save his arse the next time he knew what to do when he was tempted again.
Seeing Other People is a book I tolerate and at times, I do find it a bore. I had a lot of such normal realities in my experience but reading this on each chapter, its expected such consequences do happened when a guy makes a single mistake. It shows men are dumb when it comes to the opposite sex and women are not strong when they can't handle such situations. I won't recommend it to anyone that live through such an experience before... whether even a ghost 'appear' in front of them for any book readers.
December 2, 2015
A touching heart-warming tale engagingly written and often hard to put down. It's a story of how bad decisions by a hapless falible male protagonist can damage a relationship. It begins on one tack and then takes off in another direction but Mike Gayle has honed this sort of thing down to a tee and it makes me want to read another of his in a similar vein.
November 26, 2015
Ridiculous premise, truly. I used to love Mike Gayle's novels, but his recent few have not been enjoyable to read. He has a cosy and readable style of writing, but the plots are as thin as tracing paper.
April 28, 2020
This is the 2nd book I'm reading from Mike Gayle. Seeing Other People is a weird yet hilarious which talks about love, parenthood and fidelity and how easy it is to get lost on the way to your own happy ending.
August 25, 2022
Mike Gayle does what he does, and he does it well. Though not particularly literary, the strengths of his observations on human nature and his characters often elevate his novels somewhat. This followed a husband and father, Joe, and how a life unravels after being tempted into a one night stand with an attractive younger colleague. How this impacts.
Setting aside one 'twist' (not sure it is a twist, it's a motif.. and it's a very obvious and signposted one) which was very important to the story, but didn't sit completely comfortably with me, I enjoyed this as a read. Yes, there were parts a little saccharine and simple. Yes, I tend to enjoy Gayle's novels when there is more common ground between me and the plot (as I am not a married man with children, this was limited). Yes, this doesn't stand up to detailed scrutiny as a work of great depth. However, it was interesting and readable and I'd say three and a half starworthy.
Setting aside one 'twist' (not sure it is a twist, it's a motif.. and it's a very obvious and signposted one) which was very important to the story, but didn't sit completely comfortably with me, I enjoyed this as a read. Yes, there were parts a little saccharine and simple. Yes, I tend to enjoy Gayle's novels when there is more common ground between me and the plot (as I am not a married man with children, this was limited). Yes, this doesn't stand up to detailed scrutiny as a work of great depth. However, it was interesting and readable and I'd say three and a half starworthy.
August 28, 2014
http://www.pagetostagereviews.com/201...
Unfamiliar with author Mike Gayle, when I read the blurb for this novel I wasn't sure what to expect. Would it be a cheesy rom-com? A bizarre ghost story? A heart-wrenching family drama? Turns out it was a little bit of all of those and then some.
It took me a little while to get into the story, because while Joe was a compelling main character I found it difficult to come to terms with the ghost of his ex-girlfriend floundering about, which for me detracted somewhat from the seriousness of the situation he found himself in. After all, while his memory is hazy of the deed itself, he's under the impression that he has cheated on his wife of many years which puts both his marriage and the relationship with his young, impressionable children at risk. As a true family man, this is his worst nightmare come alive and from a reader's perspective it's interesting to see him try to come to terms first with the feeling of regret and disappointment in himself, and then with the inevitable loss of those he cares about most in the world.
The occasional scene with the ghost of his ex-girlfriend seemed very much out of place here and didn't seem to add anything of substance to the themes of infidelity, family and loss, which the novel focuses on. After having completely finished the book I understand why Mike Gayle decided to include this but the lack of focus on the seemingly random reappearances of his ex-girlfriend and the nuisance of this character throughout only served as a hindrance rather than an addition to the plot and story.
The true strength of this novel for me lay with Joe's personal growth and the importance of the Divorced Dads' Club in his life. This is also the original title of the novel and one that is much more befitting this story, as the divorced dads have left a lasting impression on me as a reader. While in the beginning of the novel they were merely some interviewees for one of Joe's stories, when his life falls apart all around him, they're the support group that gets him through the worst of it. And each of the men in the club have their own stories too, which are equally heartbreaking; I found myself getting quite emotional reading about the hardships they had to face in life.
It's rare to come across a novel with a male protagonist that depicts a powerful group of friends. It was not only refreshing to read such a different perspective on infidelity and the crumbling down of a family, but the individual stories of each of the dads were very well-written and I found them incredibly inspiring people.
Unfamiliar with author Mike Gayle, when I read the blurb for this novel I wasn't sure what to expect. Would it be a cheesy rom-com? A bizarre ghost story? A heart-wrenching family drama? Turns out it was a little bit of all of those and then some.
It took me a little while to get into the story, because while Joe was a compelling main character I found it difficult to come to terms with the ghost of his ex-girlfriend floundering about, which for me detracted somewhat from the seriousness of the situation he found himself in. After all, while his memory is hazy of the deed itself, he's under the impression that he has cheated on his wife of many years which puts both his marriage and the relationship with his young, impressionable children at risk. As a true family man, this is his worst nightmare come alive and from a reader's perspective it's interesting to see him try to come to terms first with the feeling of regret and disappointment in himself, and then with the inevitable loss of those he cares about most in the world.
The occasional scene with the ghost of his ex-girlfriend seemed very much out of place here and didn't seem to add anything of substance to the themes of infidelity, family and loss, which the novel focuses on. After having completely finished the book I understand why Mike Gayle decided to include this but the lack of focus on the seemingly random reappearances of his ex-girlfriend and the nuisance of this character throughout only served as a hindrance rather than an addition to the plot and story.
The true strength of this novel for me lay with Joe's personal growth and the importance of the Divorced Dads' Club in his life. This is also the original title of the novel and one that is much more befitting this story, as the divorced dads have left a lasting impression on me as a reader. While in the beginning of the novel they were merely some interviewees for one of Joe's stories, when his life falls apart all around him, they're the support group that gets him through the worst of it. And each of the men in the club have their own stories too, which are equally heartbreaking; I found myself getting quite emotional reading about the hardships they had to face in life.
It's rare to come across a novel with a male protagonist that depicts a powerful group of friends. It was not only refreshing to read such a different perspective on infidelity and the crumbling down of a family, but the individual stories of each of the dads were very well-written and I found them incredibly inspiring people.
December 27, 2014
So there's this bloke who wakes up after what he thinks is a late night mugging. He wakes up in the bedroom of an intern he works with. Oh no. Thus ensues an unraveling of conscience and trust and upon confession his marriage. Joe Clarke has made a mistake and now he must deal with the consequences.
But early on the reader is treated to a Christmas Carol type of story where the ghost of Joe's first girlfriend, a horrendous being who is haunting him and also showing that his life isn't what he thinks it is and how even though he may or may not have committed an act of betrayal his thinking of it, and letting his ego be stroked in a hurtful way could be just as bad.
The story was good, I generally don't go for the surreal mixed in but I do love Mike Gayles 'chicky-lit' novels. This one wasn't as serious as it seems, with the content of the story, it was all Gayle all the way. I was glad to have gotten the book and if you're a fan this one is a keeper.
But early on the reader is treated to a Christmas Carol type of story where the ghost of Joe's first girlfriend, a horrendous being who is haunting him and also showing that his life isn't what he thinks it is and how even though he may or may not have committed an act of betrayal his thinking of it, and letting his ego be stroked in a hurtful way could be just as bad.
The story was good, I generally don't go for the surreal mixed in but I do love Mike Gayles 'chicky-lit' novels. This one wasn't as serious as it seems, with the content of the story, it was all Gayle all the way. I was glad to have gotten the book and if you're a fan this one is a keeper.
September 3, 2016
Always a good read by Mike Gayle. I would have liked a better twist at the end though but well worth a read.
July 17, 2021
This book would be better if:
It had a believable plot
You cared about the characters
It was a third as long
Other than that it was amazjng
It had a believable plot
You cared about the characters
It was a third as long
Other than that it was amazjng
February 24, 2018
I've been a fan of Mike Gayle since his first one, My Legendary Girlfriend. Not the sort of thing I usually go for, but goodhearted, easy comfort reads I keep going back to. I was lucky enough to attend a talk Mike gave at Bexley Library, and discovered that he was just as sweet and lovely as I had always assumed. This book was unaccountably missing from my collection, so I bought it and had it signed.
It's familiar Gayle territory - nice guy and nice woman have relationship troubles - but with a touch of the supernatural that's a new development and reminded me of Nick Hornby's Slam. As a bonus, it's mostly set in and around Lewisham in south London, where I lived for several years and still regularly pass through.
It's familiar Gayle territory - nice guy and nice woman have relationship troubles - but with a touch of the supernatural that's a new development and reminded me of Nick Hornby's Slam. As a bonus, it's mostly set in and around Lewisham in south London, where I lived for several years and still regularly pass through.
December 15, 2020
Another great read from Mike Gayle. I'm liking his books as they are from the perspective of a male protagonist. So often, I find my self frustrated with female characters as I cannot relate to them or they don't seem realistic - I'm obviously never going to be a man so don't find the same pressure to relate.
My one irritation was when friends of the couple immediately took the wife's side when they split up. Are people really so awful to leave someone high and dry after a mistake? Can't have been very good friends in the first place.
My one irritation was when friends of the couple immediately took the wife's side when they split up. Are people really so awful to leave someone high and dry after a mistake? Can't have been very good friends in the first place.
August 17, 2021
Wasn't really what I expected after reading his more recent books. This was still thought provoking but in a different way. The story of how a married man's entire world unravels after a one night stand with a pretty colleague. Love Mike's style of writing. #onelinebookreview #audible #goodreads #lovebooks #readersofinstagram #booklover #bookstagram
April 11, 2021
Good book. Nice little twist at the end.
Read
December 1, 2022Not my jam,did skimming so will not rate
November 6, 2024
warm characters the usual mike Gayles take on family lifei was disappointed with the ending
December 4, 2022
An ok book. It was easy to read but not really mind blowing story wise.
May 19, 2021
Brilliant
Another brilliant book by Mike Gayle. He makes his characters so real and this story has a great twist to it.
Another brilliant book by Mike Gayle. He makes his characters so real and this story has a great twist to it.
July 3, 2020
When journalist Joe Clarke wakes up he expects to find his head either badly bruised or bleeding because the last thing he recalls from the previous evening was texting as he left the pub, being attacked by a couple of young thugs, presumably for his phone, and falling to the pavement. However, not only is there no sign whatsoever of injury, but he’s in bed with Bella, the young, attractive new intern from his office. He has no recollection of how he ended up in her flat and, although each of them is naked, has no memory of having sex with her. Also, as he still has his phone that can’t have been why he was attacked. The last text he’d sent had been to his wife to say he’d had too much to drink and would stay with Carl, one of the colleagues he’d been drinking with. Has he really cheated on Penny, the wife he adores? Has he really risked twenty years of marriage and losing her and their two children? When his wife was fifteen her father, following numerous affairs, had finally run off to Canada with one of her mother’s best friends and Penny has always made it clear to Joe that she’d never forgive him if he cheated on her.
Now, waking up in Bella’s bed, he’s almost certain he must have, but why can’t he remember having done? Although he’s ashamed of treating the young woman so badly, as Bella is still asleep he sneaks out of the flat, vowing to be a better husband and father. But, should he confess or should he accept living with the guilt? Then Penny puts two and two together and they split up. Joe is devastated and will do anything to win his family back … but when he discovers that the key to achieving this appears to lie in the hands of the ghost of Fiona, his mean-spirited, controlling first girlfriend, he isn’t hopeful of success!
The story follows Joe as he tries to make sense of what he’s done, why so many things in his life have now gone so disastrously wrong and whether there’s anything he can do to make things right. On this emotionally fraught journey he finds an unexpected source of support from Stewart, Paul and Van Halen, three men he’d brought together following his boss’s enthusiastic response to his idea for a feature piece called “The Divorced Dads’ Club”. Its aim had been to look at how a group of recently separated fathers felt as they approached their first Father’s Day as single parents. However, the serendipitous outcome was that, in spite of their disparate personalities, the men got on so well that they’d started meeting weekly to offer each other support and, when Joe’s life started to disintegrate, they were there to support him.
The strength of the friendships which developed between these four male characters was one of the things I enjoyed most about this story. Being enabled to look at things from a male perspective provided interesting insights into how men deal with emotional vulnerability, their attitudes towards family, their views on loyalty and infidelity and the various ways in which they offer each other with support.
A major theme throughout the story was the exploration of the devastating effects of separation and divorce, not only on the adults involved but also the children. The developing story follows Joe’s struggle to discover whether there’s any chance that he and Penny will be able to rebuild what had been such a loving relationship but has now been torn apart by infidelity. What lessons can they both learn about what it takes to sustain a long-term relationship and how to truly listen to one another? At the same time, he has to deal with the pain and guilt of being separated from his two young children, Rosie, aged ten and Jack, aged six, and attempt to maintain a close relationship with them as they struggle to cope with the breakdown of family life.
There were moments when the emotional pain being experienced by each of these characters felt heart-rending, something which was reinforced through the individual stories of Stewart, Paul and Van Halen and their personal experiences of family breakdown. It was through these that Mike Gayle was able to highlight some of the very different circumstances which can face fathers in the separation/divorce process – being denied access to their children if the mother moves either abroad or to a distant part of the country, having to face long legal battles to gain access, being left as a single parent etc. What came across very powerfully was that no family breakdown can ever be pain-free for any of the individuals involved.
The author’s creation of such vivid, well-rounded, easily recognisable characters was something I both enjoyed and appreciated, because it meant that, warts and all, I came to care about each of them and wanted things to come right for them. I also appreciated a clever title, able to be interpreted in more than one way. In fact, the only part of the story which didn’t work for me, because I found it both a distraction and a source of irritation, were the sporadic appearances of the ghost of Fiona. Although the interactions Joe had with her provided a conduit through which he reflected on his life, his relationships, the effects of his behaviour, what was important to him and how he could make reparation etc, I think this could have been achieved just as effectively without introducing a supernatural element. Had it not been for this I would probably have given the novel a 4* rather than a 3* rating.
Until I received a copy of this book to review, I’d neither heard of Mike Gayle nor had any idea of what to expect of his writing-style. I have to admit that when I read the synopsis, the idea of the ghost of a dead ex-girlfriend determining Joe’s fate did make me wonder whether I’d find the story-telling too risible – I’m pretty sure that had I just picked this novel up in a bookshop I’d have immediately put it back on the shelf. However, I’m pleased to have read it because whilst the writing is light-hearted and often very humorous, the serious themes the story explores are sensitively dealt with and the psychological insights are credible. Although I quickly guessed what the major twist was likely to be, by the time it was revealed I felt so engaged with the characters that confirmation of my earlier insight did nothing to spoil my overall enjoyment of the story!
“Our greatest misfortunes come to us from ourselves”, the Rousseau quote at the start of the book, reflects a theme which threads through the story would probably provide some lively, thought-provoking discussion in book groups!
With thanks to NB for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Now, waking up in Bella’s bed, he’s almost certain he must have, but why can’t he remember having done? Although he’s ashamed of treating the young woman so badly, as Bella is still asleep he sneaks out of the flat, vowing to be a better husband and father. But, should he confess or should he accept living with the guilt? Then Penny puts two and two together and they split up. Joe is devastated and will do anything to win his family back … but when he discovers that the key to achieving this appears to lie in the hands of the ghost of Fiona, his mean-spirited, controlling first girlfriend, he isn’t hopeful of success!
The story follows Joe as he tries to make sense of what he’s done, why so many things in his life have now gone so disastrously wrong and whether there’s anything he can do to make things right. On this emotionally fraught journey he finds an unexpected source of support from Stewart, Paul and Van Halen, three men he’d brought together following his boss’s enthusiastic response to his idea for a feature piece called “The Divorced Dads’ Club”. Its aim had been to look at how a group of recently separated fathers felt as they approached their first Father’s Day as single parents. However, the serendipitous outcome was that, in spite of their disparate personalities, the men got on so well that they’d started meeting weekly to offer each other support and, when Joe’s life started to disintegrate, they were there to support him.
The strength of the friendships which developed between these four male characters was one of the things I enjoyed most about this story. Being enabled to look at things from a male perspective provided interesting insights into how men deal with emotional vulnerability, their attitudes towards family, their views on loyalty and infidelity and the various ways in which they offer each other with support.
A major theme throughout the story was the exploration of the devastating effects of separation and divorce, not only on the adults involved but also the children. The developing story follows Joe’s struggle to discover whether there’s any chance that he and Penny will be able to rebuild what had been such a loving relationship but has now been torn apart by infidelity. What lessons can they both learn about what it takes to sustain a long-term relationship and how to truly listen to one another? At the same time, he has to deal with the pain and guilt of being separated from his two young children, Rosie, aged ten and Jack, aged six, and attempt to maintain a close relationship with them as they struggle to cope with the breakdown of family life.
There were moments when the emotional pain being experienced by each of these characters felt heart-rending, something which was reinforced through the individual stories of Stewart, Paul and Van Halen and their personal experiences of family breakdown. It was through these that Mike Gayle was able to highlight some of the very different circumstances which can face fathers in the separation/divorce process – being denied access to their children if the mother moves either abroad or to a distant part of the country, having to face long legal battles to gain access, being left as a single parent etc. What came across very powerfully was that no family breakdown can ever be pain-free for any of the individuals involved.
The author’s creation of such vivid, well-rounded, easily recognisable characters was something I both enjoyed and appreciated, because it meant that, warts and all, I came to care about each of them and wanted things to come right for them. I also appreciated a clever title, able to be interpreted in more than one way. In fact, the only part of the story which didn’t work for me, because I found it both a distraction and a source of irritation, were the sporadic appearances of the ghost of Fiona. Although the interactions Joe had with her provided a conduit through which he reflected on his life, his relationships, the effects of his behaviour, what was important to him and how he could make reparation etc, I think this could have been achieved just as effectively without introducing a supernatural element. Had it not been for this I would probably have given the novel a 4* rather than a 3* rating.
Until I received a copy of this book to review, I’d neither heard of Mike Gayle nor had any idea of what to expect of his writing-style. I have to admit that when I read the synopsis, the idea of the ghost of a dead ex-girlfriend determining Joe’s fate did make me wonder whether I’d find the story-telling too risible – I’m pretty sure that had I just picked this novel up in a bookshop I’d have immediately put it back on the shelf. However, I’m pleased to have read it because whilst the writing is light-hearted and often very humorous, the serious themes the story explores are sensitively dealt with and the psychological insights are credible. Although I quickly guessed what the major twist was likely to be, by the time it was revealed I felt so engaged with the characters that confirmation of my earlier insight did nothing to spoil my overall enjoyment of the story!
“Our greatest misfortunes come to us from ourselves”, the Rousseau quote at the start of the book, reflects a theme which threads through the story would probably provide some lively, thought-provoking discussion in book groups!
With thanks to NB for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
October 18, 2018
Last night when I finished this book I thought that I wouldn't be writing a review because it's so predictably and generically ok that I didn't think I would be bothered. But I have some free time and some moderate vitriol to spare so here goes.
So, did I hate it? No, there's nothing much to hate but there's also nothing much to love. It was just so bloody bland. It was ok. Nothing more, nothing less. The writing's not bad so perhaps Gayle's other books are worth reading... maybe just skip this one.
So, did I hate it? No, there's nothing much to hate but there's also nothing much to love. It was just so bloody bland. It was ok. Nothing more, nothing less. The writing's not bad so perhaps Gayle's other books are worth reading... maybe just skip this one.
January 21, 2021
This is the third Mike Gayle book I have read, and I love his style of writing which pulls me into the story from the first page. This one revolves around Joe who has a seemingly perfect life with his wife, Penny and their two young children, that is until he has a one-night-stand with a young intern. His marriage and life start to unravel, then he starts seeing the ghost of his ex-girlfriend, who still bears a grudge about the way he left her.
I'm in two minds about Joe as a character, as he doesn't treat women well, in many ways, but he's a devoted father to his children. My favourite characters are The Divorced Dads club members, Van, Paul, and Stewart, as they really made the story touching, poignant and funny. I didn't cry this time - I have with the past two I read, so it would have been safe to read in the cafe had we not been in lockdown.
I'm in two minds about Joe as a character, as he doesn't treat women well, in many ways, but he's a devoted father to his children. My favourite characters are The Divorced Dads club members, Van, Paul, and Stewart, as they really made the story touching, poignant and funny. I didn't cry this time - I have with the past two I read, so it would have been safe to read in the cafe had we not been in lockdown.
September 25, 2014
Mike's writing always keeps the pages turning and is ever so relatable - another great read that I couldn't put down!
Slightly "out-there" considering his usual style and I'm not sure the ghost aspect of the story was the right angle but the message and moral of the story was excellent in a sliding doors kind of way.
A definite summer page turner and if you like his other books you won't be disappointed (although its not up there with the to-do list or turning 30/40)
Slightly "out-there" considering his usual style and I'm not sure the ghost aspect of the story was the right angle but the message and moral of the story was excellent in a sliding doors kind of way.
A definite summer page turner and if you like his other books you won't be disappointed (although its not up there with the to-do list or turning 30/40)
December 20, 2022
I'm normally a big fan of Mike Gayle's books, but I struggled with this one. For me, the issue is Seeing Other People feels like three different books spliced together.
All three plot strands could be decent books on their own, but here it's a confusing, sluggish mix. It's a shame as I liked the characters and was invested in them...I just wish they all had the time and space to flesh out their own stories.
All three plot strands could be decent books on their own, but here it's a confusing, sluggish mix. It's a shame as I liked the characters and was invested in them...I just wish they all had the time and space to flesh out their own stories.
March 22, 2021
Review originally posted on www.HayleyReviews10.Wordpress.com
Now this is my second Mike Gayle novel and another eye opening treat. I’m truly humbled to have discovered Mike so late on in his career as I have a gorgeous back catalogue to get my teeth into.
Seeing Other People was the second read in Mike Gayle March and this was in some ways totally different from Turning 40.
In saying that this is still full of Mike’s easy writing style that had me captivated from start to finish. Joe is an interesting character I wouldn’t say I wholeheartedly warmed to him but he had his moments.
Seeing Other People has an air of A Christmas Carol about it in the elements where Joe is being shown a lesson so to speak. It’s not a festive read in any way but the way he is seeing a hallucination (or is he) had me thinking of that later on in the novel.
As the story began I was unsure as to what I was reading and what was real and what wasn’t. This is what truly captivated me and had me turning the pages to see where Mike was taking the story. From the off I wasn’t sure if Joe had suffered a traumatic experience or was just blocking out an experience for his own sake.
I liked the fact we were also shown how infidelity can change a family dynamic and how it also effects the children. I really liked this aspect as it was apparent from early on that Rosie & Jack had a gorgeous love for both their parents and how they would want them both at differing times in their young lives.
Seeing Other People is a novel that takes you on an emotional rollercoaster ride. Looking at being grateful for all we have and for not judging a book by its cover. I really enjoyed the element of ‘The Divorced Dads Club’ and the budding friendship of the men was heartwarming. This is when my thoughts on Joe really changed. Underneath the passionate journalist he’s a simple man that loves his family – his wife Penny and his children Rosie and Jack. I felt sad for Joe when I realised he didn’t have any real friends – that was until he met the Dads.
Joe needed them more than he realised and they were grateful that he brought them together. Men rarely share their thoughts and feelings and I truly loved how Mike showed this and how the bond of children changed this. These are aspects that are wholeheartedly not shared on the side of guys mainly just of women. It was a heartwarming change and it’s a story I didn’t know I needed to read.
In these strange times discovering Seeing Other People has made me think about how grateful we really should be for every single day we have on earth. I loved how Mike Gayle tied all the loose ends up with this one. Another treat that takes you into the mind of a man.
Now this is my second Mike Gayle novel and another eye opening treat. I’m truly humbled to have discovered Mike so late on in his career as I have a gorgeous back catalogue to get my teeth into.
Seeing Other People was the second read in Mike Gayle March and this was in some ways totally different from Turning 40.
In saying that this is still full of Mike’s easy writing style that had me captivated from start to finish. Joe is an interesting character I wouldn’t say I wholeheartedly warmed to him but he had his moments.
Seeing Other People has an air of A Christmas Carol about it in the elements where Joe is being shown a lesson so to speak. It’s not a festive read in any way but the way he is seeing a hallucination (or is he) had me thinking of that later on in the novel.
As the story began I was unsure as to what I was reading and what was real and what wasn’t. This is what truly captivated me and had me turning the pages to see where Mike was taking the story. From the off I wasn’t sure if Joe had suffered a traumatic experience or was just blocking out an experience for his own sake.
I liked the fact we were also shown how infidelity can change a family dynamic and how it also effects the children. I really liked this aspect as it was apparent from early on that Rosie & Jack had a gorgeous love for both their parents and how they would want them both at differing times in their young lives.
Seeing Other People is a novel that takes you on an emotional rollercoaster ride. Looking at being grateful for all we have and for not judging a book by its cover. I really enjoyed the element of ‘The Divorced Dads Club’ and the budding friendship of the men was heartwarming. This is when my thoughts on Joe really changed. Underneath the passionate journalist he’s a simple man that loves his family – his wife Penny and his children Rosie and Jack. I felt sad for Joe when I realised he didn’t have any real friends – that was until he met the Dads.
Joe needed them more than he realised and they were grateful that he brought them together. Men rarely share their thoughts and feelings and I truly loved how Mike showed this and how the bond of children changed this. These are aspects that are wholeheartedly not shared on the side of guys mainly just of women. It was a heartwarming change and it’s a story I didn’t know I needed to read.
In these strange times discovering Seeing Other People has made me think about how grateful we really should be for every single day we have on earth. I loved how Mike Gayle tied all the loose ends up with this one. Another treat that takes you into the mind of a man.
July 22, 2019
I recently read author Mike Gayle's latest release & it prompted me to revisit his earlier novels. With Google's help, I soon squealed with delight, having found several MG books I'd some how missed and decided to start with Seeing Other People'.
A wife he loves, 2 kids he adores, and a successful career; Joe seems to have an ideal life. Except that his wife is burning the candle at both ends by returning to work while remaining the main carer of their home & family. 'Couple time' seems a distant memory.
Never fear, Joe has a solution. As a successful, dedicated employee, he is up for a promotion that will ease their finances so much that his wife won't have to work, if she doesn't want to.
When the promotion doesn't go as planned Joe feels undervalued. It isn't surprising that he experiences a huge ego boost when the new office girl reveals she is a massive fan of the mostly forgotten book he wrote years ago.
Not long after, in drunken texts, she urges him to meet for a drink. However, his last memory is of his resolute plan to go home to his family instead. So why does he wake up in bed beside the sexy young intern?
You'd be wrong to think that this is a standard husband cheats on his wife novel.
I wavered at that club room door myself, trying to figure out what was going on. I actually changed my mind several times before finishing this tug at your heart story about how a single moment can change everything.
A wife he loves, 2 kids he adores, and a successful career; Joe seems to have an ideal life. Except that his wife is burning the candle at both ends by returning to work while remaining the main carer of their home & family. 'Couple time' seems a distant memory.
Never fear, Joe has a solution. As a successful, dedicated employee, he is up for a promotion that will ease their finances so much that his wife won't have to work, if she doesn't want to.
When the promotion doesn't go as planned Joe feels undervalued. It isn't surprising that he experiences a huge ego boost when the new office girl reveals she is a massive fan of the mostly forgotten book he wrote years ago.
Not long after, in drunken texts, she urges him to meet for a drink. However, his last memory is of his resolute plan to go home to his family instead. So why does he wake up in bed beside the sexy young intern?
You'd be wrong to think that this is a standard husband cheats on his wife novel.
I wavered at that club room door myself, trying to figure out what was going on. I actually changed my mind several times before finishing this tug at your heart story about how a single moment can change everything.
Read
September 11, 2021Joe is happily married to Penny and they have two small children. Joe works as a journalist at a newspaper and has sadly been passed over for promotion- something their finances could have done with. Joe is chatting to an intern who is very taken with his book- his one and only story so he says. He wakes up to find himself in bed with Bella, and only hazily remembering being mugged , he thought for his phone. He is mortified and legs it. Six months later Bella has moved on and a new intern has arrived. When Penny takes Joe out for lunch to have some together time, he is mortified to bump into Bella. After the incident he has been getting terrible nightmares which he put down to stress and overwork, only now are they beginning to ease. Joe is seeing his dead ex-girlfriend who is “helping” him through this. Joe wonders if he has lost the plot but does take some of Fiona's advice, after all he has few others to talk to about it.
This is a different read from the other Mike Gayle books I have read- a least to begin with. Then there comes that warmth and reassurance that somehow radiates from the pages.We don’t always get what we dream of- which can be a good thing even if we don’t necessarily think it at the time.. One life- live it
For more reviews please see my blog http://nickibookblog.blogspot.co.uk/
or follow me on Twitter@nickisbookblog
This is a different read from the other Mike Gayle books I have read- a least to begin with. Then there comes that warmth and reassurance that somehow radiates from the pages.We don’t always get what we dream of- which can be a good thing even if we don’t necessarily think it at the time.. One life- live it
For more reviews please see my blog http://nickibookblog.blogspot.co.uk/
or follow me on Twitter@nickisbookblog
September 18, 2019
This was just average unfortunately. It had a really good premise that I could get behind but none of the execution. I wanted more from the dead ex girlfriend.. she turned up about 3 times in the entire book and didn’t explain anything at all, but also tried to be like that main focus of teaching him a lesson on what he actually wants and tbh I felt the book could be done either without her completely or more of her
I loved that he realised that all he ever wanted was right there in front of him, I love the real look at how devastating a divorce can be to EVERYONE around you, how one tiny moment can change your whole life and it was written well and definitely easy to read.
I didn’t really feel much for the main character, I didn’t hurt when he hurt, I didn’t get excited when he got excited I just kinda mulled along with him and finished the book. I wasn’t even happy at the end that it was all a dream cos the book explains it but also doesn’t explain it like halfway through??? The book just confused me, I didn’t know what it’s main focus was..
Enjoyable enough, but nothing to write home about. Right in the middle of the ball park for me.
I loved that he realised that all he ever wanted was right there in front of him, I love the real look at how devastating a divorce can be to EVERYONE around you, how one tiny moment can change your whole life and it was written well and definitely easy to read.
I didn’t really feel much for the main character, I didn’t hurt when he hurt, I didn’t get excited when he got excited I just kinda mulled along with him and finished the book. I wasn’t even happy at the end that it was all a dream cos the book explains it but also doesn’t explain it like halfway through??? The book just confused me, I didn’t know what it’s main focus was..
Enjoyable enough, but nothing to write home about. Right in the middle of the ball park for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 11, 2022
I loved this!! Bearing in mind my favourite book of all time is 'A Christmas Carol', so how could I not. I Totally bought into the plot. Joe could be totally infuriating at times and a number of times I would be tutting... "what on earth did you do that for... idiot!!" Such a man haha.
I also love the way Mike Gayle writes and his characters. I'm definitely a fan.
My favourite thing about this book was the friendships he formed with 'The Divorced Dad's Club' and I was so glad that it happened for real. I would have been gutted if it hadn't been.
I've seen reviews that are quite negative about the plot not being believable, but honestly, why does it have to be? I hope these people don't accidentally stumble upon the fantasy section in the book shop!! ;)
Having just read 3 quite intense books, this was a great antidote!
I also love the way Mike Gayle writes and his characters. I'm definitely a fan.
My favourite thing about this book was the friendships he formed with 'The Divorced Dad's Club' and I was so glad that it happened for real. I would have been gutted if it hadn't been.
I've seen reviews that are quite negative about the plot not being believable, but honestly, why does it have to be? I hope these people don't accidentally stumble upon the fantasy section in the book shop!! ;)
Having just read 3 quite intense books, this was a great antidote!
August 21, 2014
Well, I'm not one of the biggest Mike Gayle's fans for nothing. I have loved all of his books but to be honest I think that Seeing Other People is his best yet. It's written in his trademark style and told from a man's point of view, as most of his stories, and it is about problems in a relationship so somehow Mike repeats himself, but this book is like a breath of fresh air, it's beautiful and addictive.
Seeing Other People is about Joe, thirty - something journalist, and his family: wife Penny and two kids. It's a loving family, family enjoying each other and liking to be in their own company. But one day Joe makes a decision that is going to affect this family's life: one morning, after being mugged, he wakes up in a bed of an intern Bella but it's very confusing. He was sure he was mugged the previous night but there is nothing confirming this theory. He's also not dead sure if he really slept with Bella. And, as he loves Penny so much, and knows her views about betrayal, shall he confess to her or not?
But it's actually not so straightforward. Joe has moments when he starts to wonder if he was really being mugged, if this what happens is real. Seeing his ex - girlfriend, that is actually dead, who tells him he didn't slept with the Slag Face, as she calls Bella, doesn't help him. Is he having hallucinations? Is he going crazy?
Well, as usually in Mike's books, life is a bitch and it doesn't work in a way that Joe would like it work. He loves his children and his wife desperately but now they are gone and Joe realises what he's lost. But can he get his family back?
And I must tell that while the idea of paranormal characters in books doesn't always work out for me, here it fitted the story perfectly and sounded also, in some ways, real. Yes, Fiona was very annoying, I hated her character and how bossy she was, and yes, she was a ghost (huh?) but for me it sounded totally realistic.
There follow a beautiful story of lost - love, of hope and friendship. Mike Gayle writes with his heart on his sleeve, the story is heart - wrenching. It's about second chances and about appreciating what you have, and about what's really important in life.
I loved Joe as a character. He was as real as a book character can be, and he did things as realistic as we people can do. He made mistakes, of course, but who doesn't make them? And his sorrow for those mistakes was so honest, so true, it had just broken my heart. I felt for him, period, I wanted he gets his family back. His love for his family was really heart - wrenching, he would do anything for his wife and for his kids, and this feeling was palpable through the pages. I have cried with him, I have felt with him, it was all brilliantly written.
It is also actually so with Mike, his books and his characters that I usually fell for the male heroes. I don't know if it is a fact that Mike is a man, probably yes, but he can describe the guys' feelings in such a fantastic way that I usually keep my fingers crossed for the male characters, not for the females'. It was the same with this book, of course Penny had a right to feel pissed with Joe, especially after what her father did to her family, and I totally, fully understood her but there were moments that I wanted to yell at her, shake her and tell her, hey woman, look what you're doing! Look what you're doing to your husband, to your kids, you destroy them all, and not Joe.
Yes, I was more pissed with Penny that with Joe. That's the power of Mike's writing.
The characters in the story were great. I have so enjoyed reading about Joe and his friends from The Divorce Dad's Club! They were brilliant and they loved their children so, so much! They couldn't be more different, they couldn't have more different life experience, but they had one thing in common: they would do anything for their kids. Anything. And their stories were both so heart - breaking and at the same time so uplifting. The way they helped Joe through the divorce and then the other things was one of the best he could have hoped for. While some minor characters at the beginning of the book, only a part of one of Joe's feature, they grow really big and important part in Joe's life, and they added so much to this story!
Mike can wonderfully write about feelings, he writes about family life and family connections in a factorising and disemboweling way, it's so detailed and exact and while reading I have just felt my heart being broken.
It's a book about second chances and how we should use them, or perhaps if there should be a second chance at all, if we should be allowed for a second chance to happen. It shows how our main character tries to come to term with a thing that yes, neither he nor we are not sure happened in the first place, but it's a great journey through the "what ifs": if I could live better, if I could better appreciate my life, my family, and it in fact left me thinking and asking myself the same questions, and one of the most important question is if I could do anything to make my family happier.
The book beautifully describes how important friendship is, and how it comes from places that you're not expecting. It also shows how important family is, how much you're bonded with your family, how much "for good, for bad" you're with your family.
It's the saddest book that Mike's written, but still with his characteristic bittersweet writing style. It's also a little different from his other novels although it has also some sure things and his regular parts of plot. It's a hooking, touching read and I would really recommend it to you all.
Copy received from publisher in exchange for a review.
Seeing Other People is about Joe, thirty - something journalist, and his family: wife Penny and two kids. It's a loving family, family enjoying each other and liking to be in their own company. But one day Joe makes a decision that is going to affect this family's life: one morning, after being mugged, he wakes up in a bed of an intern Bella but it's very confusing. He was sure he was mugged the previous night but there is nothing confirming this theory. He's also not dead sure if he really slept with Bella. And, as he loves Penny so much, and knows her views about betrayal, shall he confess to her or not?
But it's actually not so straightforward. Joe has moments when he starts to wonder if he was really being mugged, if this what happens is real. Seeing his ex - girlfriend, that is actually dead, who tells him he didn't slept with the Slag Face, as she calls Bella, doesn't help him. Is he having hallucinations? Is he going crazy?
Well, as usually in Mike's books, life is a bitch and it doesn't work in a way that Joe would like it work. He loves his children and his wife desperately but now they are gone and Joe realises what he's lost. But can he get his family back?
And I must tell that while the idea of paranormal characters in books doesn't always work out for me, here it fitted the story perfectly and sounded also, in some ways, real. Yes, Fiona was very annoying, I hated her character and how bossy she was, and yes, she was a ghost (huh?) but for me it sounded totally realistic.
There follow a beautiful story of lost - love, of hope and friendship. Mike Gayle writes with his heart on his sleeve, the story is heart - wrenching. It's about second chances and about appreciating what you have, and about what's really important in life.
I loved Joe as a character. He was as real as a book character can be, and he did things as realistic as we people can do. He made mistakes, of course, but who doesn't make them? And his sorrow for those mistakes was so honest, so true, it had just broken my heart. I felt for him, period, I wanted he gets his family back. His love for his family was really heart - wrenching, he would do anything for his wife and for his kids, and this feeling was palpable through the pages. I have cried with him, I have felt with him, it was all brilliantly written.
It is also actually so with Mike, his books and his characters that I usually fell for the male heroes. I don't know if it is a fact that Mike is a man, probably yes, but he can describe the guys' feelings in such a fantastic way that I usually keep my fingers crossed for the male characters, not for the females'. It was the same with this book, of course Penny had a right to feel pissed with Joe, especially after what her father did to her family, and I totally, fully understood her but there were moments that I wanted to yell at her, shake her and tell her, hey woman, look what you're doing! Look what you're doing to your husband, to your kids, you destroy them all, and not Joe.
Yes, I was more pissed with Penny that with Joe. That's the power of Mike's writing.
The characters in the story were great. I have so enjoyed reading about Joe and his friends from The Divorce Dad's Club! They were brilliant and they loved their children so, so much! They couldn't be more different, they couldn't have more different life experience, but they had one thing in common: they would do anything for their kids. Anything. And their stories were both so heart - breaking and at the same time so uplifting. The way they helped Joe through the divorce and then the other things was one of the best he could have hoped for. While some minor characters at the beginning of the book, only a part of one of Joe's feature, they grow really big and important part in Joe's life, and they added so much to this story!
Mike can wonderfully write about feelings, he writes about family life and family connections in a factorising and disemboweling way, it's so detailed and exact and while reading I have just felt my heart being broken.
It's a book about second chances and how we should use them, or perhaps if there should be a second chance at all, if we should be allowed for a second chance to happen. It shows how our main character tries to come to term with a thing that yes, neither he nor we are not sure happened in the first place, but it's a great journey through the "what ifs": if I could live better, if I could better appreciate my life, my family, and it in fact left me thinking and asking myself the same questions, and one of the most important question is if I could do anything to make my family happier.
The book beautifully describes how important friendship is, and how it comes from places that you're not expecting. It also shows how important family is, how much you're bonded with your family, how much "for good, for bad" you're with your family.
It's the saddest book that Mike's written, but still with his characteristic bittersweet writing style. It's also a little different from his other novels although it has also some sure things and his regular parts of plot. It's a hooking, touching read and I would really recommend it to you all.
Copy received from publisher in exchange for a review.
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