Izzy Mortimer is getting married. But who is the woman in question? And how exactly did they meet and fall in love? Gather round for Izzy’s story, filled with comical blunders and hilarious bad decisions. From first love gone wrong to her wedding day, it’s a winding road to true love…
An entertaining romantic comedy from the author of ‘The Plus One’ and ‘By Any Other Name’, ‘The A to Z of Girlfriends’ is the story of every mistake that takes you to where you need to be.
The main and exclusive reason for my rating? I HATED the heroine. Legit, could not stand her and cursed her out throughout the entire time I was reading.
Izzy: *breathes*
Me:
She is rude, petty, judgmental af, never takes responsibilities for her actions or anything that ever happens. Nothing is ever her fault, she is perfect and she talks about women and people as if she is above and better than them. I knew I had hit all new levels of dislike for her when she gets cheated on and my immediate response was "good! I'm fucking glad!" and that's...fucked up. Obviously. But I hated her so much I wanted her to feel pain, wanted her to be unhappy and honestly, if an author can make me hate the main character that much than I guess I'll give her small props. Though I'm going to assume that wasn't the author's intention.
But yes, I found Izzy entirely unlikable and the more I learned about her and saw her relationships, the more I disliked her and cared even less about her story. She's a stupid cow and that's that.
This is my first book by this author and it was a huge FAIL. But despite that, I might try another one of her books in the future because I did like her writing for the most part. But first I need to simmer down and forget that Izzy exist because...yeah. I hate her (in case that wasn't said enough).
Wow. This had me at “She was a woman with a career, an almost paid off Vauxhall Astra and a premium Spotify account.” 😁
This is my favorite from the author. I’m still smiling. I think when it comes to rom-com Natasha West is the best. The story just flows smoothly. The funny parts weren’t forced. Loved it! Easy 5 stars.
This might be the most competently written book I've read by this author. But ... there was some humor but not as much as normal. That or my loathing of Izzy Mortimer was such that the humor didn't translate as well.
Ahhh, what a satisfying read! Really enjoyed reading about Izzy, the MC and her quest for love. This author has rapidly become a go-to for lovely reads that are fun, sometimes amusing and witty, but also with gravitas, grit and realism to balance it all out.
Well written with strong characters, this book tells of one woman's struggle to find love, and all of the false starts and near misses along the way. From the first girl she kissed to a disappearing bride-to-be, her story comes full circle. Don't miss it! A must for your TBR list.
I liked it start at the almost ending and you assume and hope there is a happy ending, but have to live the whole story, her story, with different people. It reminded me of the movie Definitely, maybe.
The ending is super adorably cheesy, just my kind of thing.
This book is a mixed bag for me. I liked the basic set-up, most of it was good, some of it fell flat.
It covers a decade of one woman's life through her relationships. It was refreshing to see more than one dynamic of lesbian relationships explored and for the MC to sort of mature over time. Reading about a lesbian attempting to lose her virginity to a dude is quite funny really.
Also, Simon's slap was so satisfying- but then the character of Simon needed slap many times in this book because he kept being a dick.
Thing is. I skipped some pages without care. And there were times the MC got on my nerves. She's incredibly judgemental. As a queer woman I rarely assess someone's attractiveness before I speak to them or even the first time I speak to them. I don't decide on the spot to not speak to them because they're 'unattractive', maybe that's because I find the vast majority of queer woman attractive- just for different reasons, there's always something beautiful about a person.
The twist was a bit tongue-in-cheek. I saw it coming but at the same time I didn't want to think that was where it was coming.
Flashbacks follow Izzy Mortimer's progression from her teens to her wedding day. The story arc through a number of past relationships works well.
There are enough humorous spots to classify this as a romantic comedy. However, Izzy's tendency to get angry with, and nasty to, those around her detracts from the ambiance on several occasions. The HEA was nice, but she will need therapy if the relationship with Alicia is to work out.
The lovable characters in this book stumble, fall and generally get it all wrong when it comes to love. Who can’t relate to that at some level. The main character, Izzy, is so full of self doubt that she sees love where there isn’t any and is blind to real love already in her life. Yep, I can relate.
The A to Z of Girlfriends — Natasha West (43 chapters) April 10-14, 2019
I love, Love, LOVE this author and had never been disappointed into her writings...until now. Still I gave the story four stars. Here's what went down.
I started reading this book on April 10, and after the first few chapters were done, I thought I might be done too. The build-up was great and the letdown was hard. So, I put the thing aside in disgust.
But I like this author so much, I had to gut through the rest of the story. But I didn't necessarily have issues with her. My issues was I so liked the beginning and when that has passed and didn't know if I could continue. But I did. Sadly, I cheated to make sure I could finish. But don't you dare do that! It's better if you let the sotry unfold.
I read some reviews after I finished my book and saw readers commenting on the voice in this story. I didn't have issues with that character because I saw a lot of true-to-life experiences in this book. Yes, I thought at times the protangonist was handled a little heavy handed. And the ended was too quick and self-fullfilling, but I also was glad that the author had the audacity to end it there.
However, it was well written and the story read fast (despite the ungodly number of pages.)
Still one of my favorite les-rom writers. But not the best one.
So, I have enjoyed every book I have read from this author and this book was no different. If I had to say, I think this is actually my favorite thus far.
Izzy, the main character, is a little misguided at times but so likable. Not only is this book funny, but it is sweet and relatable. The main thing I look for in books is the believability of the characters and their relationships and I felt this book nailed that. Also, I really enjoyed the stylistic approach with the past and present and seeing how everything was intertwined.
Natasha West +author) does it again. Brilliant story and read, A story of mistakes, deception, crue!ty, and !ove. Parents who constantly argue whilst the children grow up and observe this. There Izzy and Simon the brother. And then there is Alicia. Nothing girls !meet on the bus whilst going to school. Izzy story is told and the mistakes she makes. Perhaps we wiill get Alicia
This was an enjoyable cute read with some cringe worthy moments. But haven't we all had them. The idea of looking back into your past and exploring how you got to where you are is something most of us do. Wondering if we are worthy, definitively. This was a well written love story with some self-examination going on. Personally, I look back at my path of psychos and I am thankful everyday for where I am.
My favorite books let me cry and laugh. Natasha West makes writing like it was easy. Yet I know it’s not. Her characters felt real and I cringed when they did something stupid and felt bad when they hurt each other. No one was all good or all bad. Some tipped a bit more one way or the other. I loved that there was a happy ending in a way that left me knowing that I learned something. I love reading a book that makes me sorry that it’s ended!
I read the Hawke's series and Through the Roof, so I knew that I'd enjoy this story as well. I'm several years older than the main characters, and my coming out story was not as easy as theirs, but it was entertaining to read the flashbacks. My favorite relationship for Izzy was her reunion with her past, and I loved the ending.
Love, love loved this book! Lovely story, told differently to others I have read. Great way to tell the story and immerse the reader into life with Lizzie. Would love to see where her life leads next
It’s pretty obvious who Izzy ends up marrying but the fun was the road to get there. I am knocking off one star though cause I would have liked to read a bit more about their relationship before they got married as it felt a bit rush.
Honestly it’s cheesy and sappy and the ending is somewhat predictable, but all in the best way possible. It’s like one of those sappy romcoms you watch when you’re feeling down and need a pick-me-up. Basically it’s like chocolate.
This book is beautiful. It really didn't feel like I was reading book, I could see what was happening so vividly. With that being said, it felt like a movie not produced by paramount ... but wattpad. No hate tho, it's perfectly up my alley. I finished it in around 2 hours. Couldn't put it down.