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Cow Girl
Winner of the Comedy Women in Print Prize
An udderly hilarious story of friends, family and four-legged beasts
Billie fled her Yorkshire upbringing to pursue her dreams of finding a cure for the illness which killed her mother, yet when her father gets sick, she must return home to save the farm.
But the transition from city girl to country lass isn’t easy, not least because leaving London means leaving her relationship with Joely Chevalier, French pharmaceutical femme fatale, just as it was heating up. And when she gets to Yorkshire, Billie’s shocked to discover the family dairy farm is in dire straits.
Battling misogyny, homophobia and the economic turmoil of a dairy crisis, can Billie find a way to save the farm, save the cows and save herself?
An udderly hilarious story of friends, family and four-legged beasts
Billie fled her Yorkshire upbringing to pursue her dreams of finding a cure for the illness which killed her mother, yet when her father gets sick, she must return home to save the farm.
But the transition from city girl to country lass isn’t easy, not least because leaving London means leaving her relationship with Joely Chevalier, French pharmaceutical femme fatale, just as it was heating up. And when she gets to Yorkshire, Billie’s shocked to discover the family dairy farm is in dire straits.
Battling misogyny, homophobia and the economic turmoil of a dairy crisis, can Billie find a way to save the farm, save the cows and save herself?
400 pages, Paperback
First published June 5, 2020
29 people are currently reading
1094 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 139 reviews
July 3, 2020
Book Reviewed on www.whisperingstories.com
Can you imagine having to return to your family home in Yorkshire to work on a farm after living in London as a biochemist Grad Student and just starting a new relationship with someone you have idolised for quite a while, well that is what happens to Billie after her farmer father takes ill and she is needed to run the farm, a run-down farm that is?
The book is warm, funny, and brings family life to the forefront. Billie is quite the woman. She is tougher than she believes she is and very witty too. Her sexuality comes with some prejudices from those that are obviously still stuck in the dark ages, but she handles what people think about her with grit and grace. The secondary characters are all fun to read about too, especially her friends.
For a debut novelist, this is a real gem of a book by Kirtsy Eyre, I think she has found her calling in life. It is a beautiful read with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments surrounded by a story filled with love, life, and cows.
I enjoyed the writing and the pace, which never felt too fast or too slow. The chapters were a good length (I hate long chapters) and I love that they were each given a name instead of just a number. There were no real fillers to make the pages count up, which was nice to see and the story plausible, even the cows had personality!
Overall, this is a lovely book that I read in just a couple of sittings as I didn’t want to put it down. I enjoyed spending my time in both London and Yorkshire, even if it has confirmed for me that farming would definitely never be for me, I like my lie-ins too much.
Can you imagine having to return to your family home in Yorkshire to work on a farm after living in London as a biochemist Grad Student and just starting a new relationship with someone you have idolised for quite a while, well that is what happens to Billie after her farmer father takes ill and she is needed to run the farm, a run-down farm that is?
The book is warm, funny, and brings family life to the forefront. Billie is quite the woman. She is tougher than she believes she is and very witty too. Her sexuality comes with some prejudices from those that are obviously still stuck in the dark ages, but she handles what people think about her with grit and grace. The secondary characters are all fun to read about too, especially her friends.
For a debut novelist, this is a real gem of a book by Kirtsy Eyre, I think she has found her calling in life. It is a beautiful read with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments surrounded by a story filled with love, life, and cows.
I enjoyed the writing and the pace, which never felt too fast or too slow. The chapters were a good length (I hate long chapters) and I love that they were each given a name instead of just a number. There were no real fillers to make the pages count up, which was nice to see and the story plausible, even the cows had personality!
Overall, this is a lovely book that I read in just a couple of sittings as I didn’t want to put it down. I enjoyed spending my time in both London and Yorkshire, even if it has confirmed for me that farming would definitely never be for me, I like my lie-ins too much.
June 18, 2020
a uk contemporary on the lighter side all about dairy farming with a lesbian heroine, a f/f relationship, and an unnervingly accurate portrayal of the social structure of the british countryside. Also, a really cute slow burn hate to love relationship. Devoured it within a day.
full review to come!
> 4 stars
(rep: lesbian heroine & sapphic love interest; bi and sapphic side characters)
I was provided with a review copy in exchange for an honest review by the publishers <3
full review to come!
> 4 stars
(rep: lesbian heroine & sapphic love interest; bi and sapphic side characters)
I was provided with a review copy in exchange for an honest review by the publishers <3
January 2, 2026
“🦌✨Reindeer Readathon✨🦌
🥜🌰Team Nutcracker🌰🥜
Prompt: [i forgot]
I felt every emotion possible with this book. I laughed, I cringed, I cried, I felt empowered—all of it and more. I absolutely adored Billie’s story, especially for the cows. She had a tremendous character growth throughout and, slight spoilers, I greatly appreciated how she didn’t give up either life at the end of the day but instead found a way to combine her passions.
(Also, Joely can go eff herself).
June 28, 2021
I really liked the farming plot, and found myself tearing up during the emotional parts. But… outside of that this story is basically just people being blatantly homophobic to the mc.
Also, the usage of slurs felt unnecessary. And there were strange parts and things that seemed a bit transphobic (ie using an outdated term, even though this book was published last year??). No thanks.
Also, the usage of slurs felt unnecessary. And there were strange parts and things that seemed a bit transphobic (ie using an outdated term, even though this book was published last year??). No thanks.
May 14, 2020
Triangles are rigid. You construct buildings with triangles – roofs, pylons, braces – because they can’t be twisted out of shape. Take one of its sides away and a triangle is useless. We can’t function without Dad.
On my blog.
Rep: lesbian mc & li, bi & wlw side characters, Deaf side character
CWs: some casual homophobia and transphobia
Galley provided by publisher
I was first sold on Cow Girl when I opened the first page to find that the part was entitled “Farmerceuticals”. What can I say? All I need is a really bad pun and I’m all in.
The book follows Billie, a grad student trying for a PhD, who is forced to return home to the family farm when her father falls ill. There, she contends with misogyny, homophobia, and the economic failing of the dairy industry. Oh, and a vet who may or may not hate her.
This book gave me serious Mhairi McFarlane vibes and that was an excellent thing. You know the kind of somewhat irreverent humour you get in McFarlane’s books? Well that’s also present here. And it has a similar bluntness to it. So, basically, I loved this book for that from the moment I read the first page.
I also really loved Billie as a main character. She was one of those you know from the start you can sympathise with and just like, really. That’s pretty much the first thing I want from a book (after writing I can stand, of course). Just being able to like the main character. They don’t have to be perfect (and Billie is not), but as long as they’re likeable, I’m good.
And then there’s the romance. Think kind of hate/rivals to lovers, but, and I’ll try be vague and non-spoilery here, where actually all is not as it seems. I love that trope, to be honest. And it’s done pretty well here. I mean, I was busy thinking at the start, how can I root for a love interest who’s homophobic and then… yeah. Yeah. (What I’m saying is that wasn’t a problem, really. The book does not contain that trope.)
So really, what I’m trying to say is please, please, read this book.
July 13, 2021
Fun! Really liked the cows
April 16, 2021
Want a genuinely funny friends to lovers queer contemporary? Set in the uk? Written by a uk author? Look no further!!!
Funny and griping from page one, this book tells the story of Billie as she attempts to secure a phd scholarship until her dad suddenly falls in and she’s called back to tend to the family farm. And wonderful, joyous chaos ensues.
The characters, plot, language and even the narrator were absolutely brilliant. Couldn’t find a fault with any aspect of any part of this book.
Funny and griping from page one, this book tells the story of Billie as she attempts to secure a phd scholarship until her dad suddenly falls in and she’s called back to tend to the family farm. And wonderful, joyous chaos ensues.
The characters, plot, language and even the narrator were absolutely brilliant. Couldn’t find a fault with any aspect of any part of this book.
March 20, 2025
Udderly shit x
July 2, 2020
‘Cow Girl’ was a book that I did not particularly like. Maybe this book was just not for me but I’m sure someone else would like it more than I did.
This book felt like it was a lot longer than 400 pages so it felt like I was reading it for ages. However, even though this book felt really long, nothing actually happened. I think the only characters name I remember is Lorna, even though I know there were a lot of characters. Also, this book was filled with stereotypes which I did not particularly care for, like how the gay men were described only as flamboyant.
The only thing I did like about this book were the cows and they are the reason why I’m giving this book two stars instead of one. I felt like the cows had more personality than any of the characters and I honestly would have preferred to read 400 pages about the cows lives instead of the life of the main character.
At least the cover of this books is really cute though. I do really like the cover.
Thank you to HarperCollins Uk, HarperFiction for sending me this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book felt like it was a lot longer than 400 pages so it felt like I was reading it for ages. However, even though this book felt really long, nothing actually happened. I think the only characters name I remember is Lorna, even though I know there were a lot of characters. Also, this book was filled with stereotypes which I did not particularly care for, like how the gay men were described only as flamboyant.
The only thing I did like about this book were the cows and they are the reason why I’m giving this book two stars instead of one. I felt like the cows had more personality than any of the characters and I honestly would have preferred to read 400 pages about the cows lives instead of the life of the main character.
At least the cover of this books is really cute though. I do really like the cover.
Thank you to HarperCollins Uk, HarperFiction for sending me this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 16, 2020
[actual rating: 4 stars] between 3.75 and 4.25 stars, so 4 it is. Cow Girl was one of my most anticipated releases of the year, and i really enjoyed it! it has some of my favourite things and tropes: countryside setting (for the most part), a great cast of characters (Billie, the heroine, is awesome, but her friends, her dad and grandmother – i can't even begin to explain how much i LOVED to read about a supportive dad and an equally supportive grandmother – are also really great), an f/f enemies-to-lovers romance, character growth and development, and, of course, cows. i'm not going to lie, i had a couple of minor issues with it—i feel like i need to warn people about the love triangle aspect: there are basically two love interests – one is introduced at the beginning and one at the end of the book – and, towards the end, the MC has to sort of "choose" between them (i'm only saying this because i, personally, feel like i would've enjoyed CG even more if i had known about this in advance). the writing style is really great and enjoyable, and you can totally read this in 1-2 days, but the pacing could've been better, probably (the middle was maybe a bit too slow). re: the humour, think Mhairi McFarlane—if you enjoy her books, then definitely give CG a chance, if not… you may still enjoy this, but proceed with caution? a good summer read, in my opinion.
August 10, 2021
Too much hype and not enough laughs - if the cover hadn't told me I wouldn't have known it was a comedy. Didn't really jell for me... sorry.
March 18, 2022
This was a really fun sapphic rom-com that for once literally made me laugh out loud! It took a long time for me to read this solely because my library loan ran out and I had to return it before finishing, but this is genuinely a really fun, hilarious, but at times heavy romance novel that I highly recommend (though the transphobic language, less so)!
March 13, 2022
I persevered with this to see if the main character would become less frustrating and more likeable but (spoiler?) she doesn't.
The whole romance side of the plot felt very contrived and you could see what was going to happen from about chapter 2. I don't mind cliches if they are well-written but this book didn't know if it wanted to be a gritty drama or a frothy romance. It's possible to be both but you won't find that here.
The author also spends a long time adding unnecessary descriptions of the characters' body size, with any bigger characters seen as slow, sweaty, lazy and generally unpleasant. In general there are a lot of stereotypes which made me pull a face - this book was only written in 2020 and it already feels dated.
Finally she throws in 'tr*nsv*stite' on more than one occasion - for a book centred around LGBT characters, this felt particularly jarring.
I finished this because I was still holding on to the idea that it might get better, but it didn't. I should have abandoned it much earlier!
Two stars because after all that, I did enjoy the farming parts.
The whole romance side of the plot felt very contrived and you could see what was going to happen from about chapter 2. I don't mind cliches if they are well-written but this book didn't know if it wanted to be a gritty drama or a frothy romance. It's possible to be both but you won't find that here.
The author also spends a long time adding unnecessary descriptions of the characters' body size, with any bigger characters seen as slow, sweaty, lazy and generally unpleasant. In general there are a lot of stereotypes which made me pull a face - this book was only written in 2020 and it already feels dated.
Finally she throws in 'tr*nsv*stite' on more than one occasion - for a book centred around LGBT characters, this felt particularly jarring.
I finished this because I was still holding on to the idea that it might get better, but it didn't. I should have abandoned it much earlier!
Two stars because after all that, I did enjoy the farming parts.
July 18, 2020
Overall - 3.5/5
Story - 3.5/5
Writing - 4/5
Character - 3.5/5
Memorability - 3/5
Enjoyment - 3.5/5
Would I read again? No
A contemporary novel set in the Yorkshire farming world and it really worked. I cared about our main character Billie. She's intelligent, driven, caring and I really felt for her running the family farm solo. I was less enamoured by the will they won't they relationship, but there is the most incredible cow birthing scene in this. Never thought I'd write that in a review! I was in tears. Then jubilation. Then all for the cow shed romp that followed. I would certainly pick up a novel by Kirsty Eyre again. Just a few little gripes for me concerning fat phobic language and the use of the word transvestite that I think an editor should have picked up on.
Book provided by NetGalley.
Story - 3.5/5
Writing - 4/5
Character - 3.5/5
Memorability - 3/5
Enjoyment - 3.5/5
Would I read again? No
A contemporary novel set in the Yorkshire farming world and it really worked. I cared about our main character Billie. She's intelligent, driven, caring and I really felt for her running the family farm solo. I was less enamoured by the will they won't they relationship, but there is the most incredible cow birthing scene in this. Never thought I'd write that in a review! I was in tears. Then jubilation. Then all for the cow shed romp that followed. I would certainly pick up a novel by Kirsty Eyre again. Just a few little gripes for me concerning fat phobic language and the use of the word transvestite that I think an editor should have picked up on.
Book provided by NetGalley.
October 5, 2022
Well, I absolutely loved this one! It was really funny, sweet, heartwarming, infuriating, empowering, well-written, and well-narrated.
It’s a rare time that I really have nothing to gripe about after I’ve finished a book, but this is one of those times. I found this book absolutely hilarious with a fantastic cast of characters and excellent banter. The main character, Billie, goes through a ton of ups and downs, makes idiotic mistakes, and powerful decisions, and managed to thoroughly endear herself to me throughout the course of the story. The romantic chemistry is very well done (you’ll see what I mean), and I really enjoyed the relationship development throughout.
The romance isn’t the only focus of the story either, there’s a big family and community aspect that goes through a lot of growth as well, it’s heartwarming as f***, though you’ll have to grin and bear it through some homophobia as well – that always gets me boiling! And for you animal lovers, there are cows galore and they play a pretty frontal role, all with their own names and personalities, as you might predict from the title of the book.
The narration on this one was a solid 5 out of 5 – absolutely listen to it! I will say that the accent took me a sec to get used to, it’s a bit stronger than the UK accents I normally hear in audiobooks, but she does a fantastic job and I think the humour and personality of the book and the main character really shine through because of it. I would absolutely recommend giving it a listen if you can! (At the time of writing this review, I think it’s still on sale on Chirp for my CA and US audiophile friends)
It’s a rare time that I really have nothing to gripe about after I’ve finished a book, but this is one of those times. I found this book absolutely hilarious with a fantastic cast of characters and excellent banter. The main character, Billie, goes through a ton of ups and downs, makes idiotic mistakes, and powerful decisions, and managed to thoroughly endear herself to me throughout the course of the story. The romantic chemistry is very well done (you’ll see what I mean), and I really enjoyed the relationship development throughout.
The romance isn’t the only focus of the story either, there’s a big family and community aspect that goes through a lot of growth as well, it’s heartwarming as f***, though you’ll have to grin and bear it through some homophobia as well – that always gets me boiling! And for you animal lovers, there are cows galore and they play a pretty frontal role, all with their own names and personalities, as you might predict from the title of the book.
The narration on this one was a solid 5 out of 5 – absolutely listen to it! I will say that the accent took me a sec to get used to, it’s a bit stronger than the UK accents I normally hear in audiobooks, but she does a fantastic job and I think the humour and personality of the book and the main character really shine through because of it. I would absolutely recommend giving it a listen if you can! (At the time of writing this review, I think it’s still on sale on Chirp for my CA and US audiophile friends)
November 12, 2021
A laugh-out-loud funny story set in the unequivocally charming countryside.
Billie puts her life and career on hold when she moves back in with her family at their farm to help out while her father undergoes a health scare. We follow her journey as she tries to navigate the intricacies of running a farm and having a love life at the same time.
For me, the best part of this book was the cows. Who knew they could have such personality without ever uttering a word! I found Billie to be a bit of a mess, which is not uncommon in this genre but was frustrating when it came to the romance element. She was hung up on one relationship for so long that the enemies to lovers relationship seemed rushed and cut short. I wanted more time to enjoy this!
I had a few issues with terminology used when describing transgender people, and some of the characters were no more than a blatant stereotype. You could perhaps get away with that if it was only one or two of them as, after all, stereotypes exist for a reason. It rather seemed that there was a lack of original thought put into the creation of some of the side characters which really could have transformed this from a 3 to a 4 star book.
For a debut novel this was a great attempt and I look forward to reading more from the author in the future.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the review copy!
Billie puts her life and career on hold when she moves back in with her family at their farm to help out while her father undergoes a health scare. We follow her journey as she tries to navigate the intricacies of running a farm and having a love life at the same time.
For me, the best part of this book was the cows. Who knew they could have such personality without ever uttering a word! I found Billie to be a bit of a mess, which is not uncommon in this genre but was frustrating when it came to the romance element. She was hung up on one relationship for so long that the enemies to lovers relationship seemed rushed and cut short. I wanted more time to enjoy this!
I had a few issues with terminology used when describing transgender people, and some of the characters were no more than a blatant stereotype. You could perhaps get away with that if it was only one or two of them as, after all, stereotypes exist for a reason. It rather seemed that there was a lack of original thought put into the creation of some of the side characters which really could have transformed this from a 3 to a 4 star book.
For a debut novel this was a great attempt and I look forward to reading more from the author in the future.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the review copy!
February 20, 2022
I'd never heard of this but decided to pick it up for a readathon as it fit a prompt I couldn't find anything else for. It was a very pleasant surprise that I really enjoyed it on the whole (I listened to the audiobook and would recommend it!). I loved the conversation about queerness in small English towns and the fact that the main character's flatmate wears hearing aids but that it doesn't make up the whole of her personality! However the conversation about 'transvestites' at the end of the book left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth and just seemed unnecessary.
December 11, 2020
I might be biased as a farmer's daughter myself, but I think Cow Girl is a very entertaining comedy novel. After a slow start I was fully invested in Billy's life, the problems and heartache she was facing, her past experiences and hopes for the future, I wanted to know it all!
It's a very detailed novel that doesn't shy away from the nitty gritty of farming, the highs as well as the lows. It demonstrated an even balance between city and country life.
With the added romantic escapades, Cow Girl is a fun and flirty comedy novel about a lesbian farmer's daughter knee high in sh*t... in more ways than one!
It's a very detailed novel that doesn't shy away from the nitty gritty of farming, the highs as well as the lows. It demonstrated an even balance between city and country life.
With the added romantic escapades, Cow Girl is a fun and flirty comedy novel about a lesbian farmer's daughter knee high in sh*t... in more ways than one!
April 18, 2021
A thoroughly enjoyable read, this was absolutely not what I thought it was going to be, it’s true, NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER, loved it ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Read
September 22, 2021Never have I read a book with such an unlikeable lineup of characters.
This book was so deeply grating that I had to close it repeatedly and take a deep breath to find the strength to finish the wretched thing. I only succeeded because I wanted to complete my goodreads challenge.
The main character is a deeply annoying, insecure and emotionally unavailable wreck who makes awful self sabotaging choices at every opportunity, every background character is a small town homophobe and the story line starts out as being a bit too 'sciencey' for my personal taste which could have been manageable if it didn't turn into a social study on cows. I was expecting Bridget Jones but gay and dragged into farming and what I got was an irritating, out of touch tale of cattle peril and problematic relationships. The only likeable characters were her group of friends and her dad, everyone else was detestable.
I feel like there wasn't much romance arc, things just kept happening and conflict was resolved with no explanation. There wasn't really any sex scenes which I would expect in a romance book. Everything Billie did kind of made me want to shake her, for example trying to make an announcement at dinner while the waiter is taking a drink order. Who does that???
Long story short, everything everyone says in this book is off the scale annoying. Highlights include a passage on how relationships don't need labels, which came across kind of "queer labels don't really matter" and I won't even start on the fact that I don't think the word Tr*nsvestite is acceptable any more and is used several times, maybe this should be re-printed?
I kind of wanted like a feel good chick flick about a twenty something sapphic character and it just... didn't deliver at all. Its 50 percent cows and 50 percent awful personal relationships. Its actually a real bummer to read a book where you want to relate to the characters and all you see is their family friends saying things like in my day being gay wasn't an option, and every man belittling and also objectifying the wlw characters. Some guy literally said an attractive woman being a lesbian was a shame. One of the characters we're supposed to like keeps trying to walk in on them having sex?? One of the characters is explicitly transphobic???? Why are there butch lesbians flirting with men???? What the fuck is going on in this book?? It feels very... hostile to lesbians for a book that's written about sapphic relationships
Do not read unless you feel like listening to every male character fetishize lesbian relationships during every single line of their dialogue. Or you just really like cows I guess.
This book was so deeply grating that I had to close it repeatedly and take a deep breath to find the strength to finish the wretched thing. I only succeeded because I wanted to complete my goodreads challenge.
The main character is a deeply annoying, insecure and emotionally unavailable wreck who makes awful self sabotaging choices at every opportunity, every background character is a small town homophobe and the story line starts out as being a bit too 'sciencey' for my personal taste which could have been manageable if it didn't turn into a social study on cows. I was expecting Bridget Jones but gay and dragged into farming and what I got was an irritating, out of touch tale of cattle peril and problematic relationships. The only likeable characters were her group of friends and her dad, everyone else was detestable.
I feel like there wasn't much romance arc, things just kept happening and conflict was resolved with no explanation. There wasn't really any sex scenes which I would expect in a romance book. Everything Billie did kind of made me want to shake her, for example trying to make an announcement at dinner while the waiter is taking a drink order. Who does that???
Long story short, everything everyone says in this book is off the scale annoying. Highlights include a passage on how relationships don't need labels, which came across kind of "queer labels don't really matter" and I won't even start on the fact that I don't think the word Tr*nsvestite is acceptable any more and is used several times, maybe this should be re-printed?
I kind of wanted like a feel good chick flick about a twenty something sapphic character and it just... didn't deliver at all. Its 50 percent cows and 50 percent awful personal relationships. Its actually a real bummer to read a book where you want to relate to the characters and all you see is their family friends saying things like in my day being gay wasn't an option, and every man belittling and also objectifying the wlw characters. Some guy literally said an attractive woman being a lesbian was a shame. One of the characters we're supposed to like keeps trying to walk in on them having sex?? One of the characters is explicitly transphobic???? Why are there butch lesbians flirting with men???? What the fuck is going on in this book?? It feels very... hostile to lesbians for a book that's written about sapphic relationships
Do not read unless you feel like listening to every male character fetishize lesbian relationships during every single line of their dialogue. Or you just really like cows I guess.
June 19, 2020
For a debut novel, this book is really good! I picked it up because the cover reminded me of my favourite onesie that is no longer with me, and was pleasantly surprised to find a contemporary novel that had a lesbian main character, without feeling like her sexuality was the most interesting thing about her.
Billie starts the book living in London, as a biochemist trying to get funding for a PHD in eclampsia research. Early on she meets her idol, and they start a relationship. Personally this was a bit fade to black for me and I would have loved to have seen some more detailed passion .... but thats personal opinion! Billie heads home to Derbyshire when her dad has become ill to take over the running of a family dairy farm! What follows is a a witty and also gorgeous tale of friendships, family, politics and lots of cow farming!
There was something slightly off about the pace of this book, and use of language (regarding transvestites) which I wasn't overtly comfortable with but all in all I enjoyed the book!
Thank you to HarperCollinsUk and NetGalley for providing me with this copy in return for my honest feedback.
Billie starts the book living in London, as a biochemist trying to get funding for a PHD in eclampsia research. Early on she meets her idol, and they start a relationship. Personally this was a bit fade to black for me and I would have loved to have seen some more detailed passion .... but thats personal opinion! Billie heads home to Derbyshire when her dad has become ill to take over the running of a family dairy farm! What follows is a a witty and also gorgeous tale of friendships, family, politics and lots of cow farming!
There was something slightly off about the pace of this book, and use of language (regarding transvestites) which I wasn't overtly comfortable with but all in all I enjoyed the book!
Thank you to HarperCollinsUk and NetGalley for providing me with this copy in return for my honest feedback.
June 2, 2020
I have to give this a One Star rating. Not only because it's slow paced, but the author has the magic ability of making it feel as though nothing has happened - even during scenes that are supposed to leave me on the edge of my seat. I just never felt engaged when reading, as though there was always something missing.
I feel as though I should also bring up the stereotypes that this author seems to cherish so much. Not only does she portray all gay men as flamboyant and ‘feminine’ but she uses slurs such as d*yke and tr*nsvestite. It made me quite uncomfortable.
I’m just going to leave it at that because ugh.
I feel as though I should also bring up the stereotypes that this author seems to cherish so much. Not only does she portray all gay men as flamboyant and ‘feminine’ but she uses slurs such as d*yke and tr*nsvestite. It made me quite uncomfortable.
I’m just going to leave it at that because ugh.
December 29, 2021
I wouldn't have known this was a comedy if it hadn't been explicitly stated in the description. Honestly, it felt more like a tragedy with all the loneliness, heartbreak, and trauma Billie's carrying around, not to mention the satire levels of homophobia.
I usually enjoy the love stories (enemies to lovers can be amazing if done right), but even that was underdeveloped.
I'd normally have given this three stars but deducted a star for the ridiculous levels of transphobic nonsense which really shouldn't have passed the edit phase for a book in 2020.
I usually enjoy the love stories (enemies to lovers can be amazing if done right), but even that was underdeveloped.
I'd normally have given this three stars but deducted a star for the ridiculous levels of transphobic nonsense which really shouldn't have passed the edit phase for a book in 2020.
January 16, 2022
Released in 2020 and with two transphobic slurs in a ‘queer’ romance novel? This book and the voice of the mc doesn’t feel authentic.
It seems like more research went into cow farming than accurately portraying a queer experience.
It seems like more research went into cow farming than accurately portraying a queer experience.
June 21, 2022
Rating: 2.75 rounded up to 3
CWs: past parental death, some slurs (used as reclaimed), frequent depictions of homophobia, animal death, sick parent
I liked the book when it was about cows. I love cows and I adore stories about city girls going to the countryside. However, the romantic subplot was disappointing - how can you write a love triangle where none of the possible couples have any chemistry?? And there's a huge amount of stupid misunderstandings that add nothing to the story. I think Billie had an amazing character arc, which had little to do with romantic relationships, so they felt like an unnecessary add-on.
My favourite part of the story was the dairy cow parade that Billie organised. I loved her drive to make things right. Even when she was away from her medical research, she was striving to make a change for herself others.
CWs: past parental death, some slurs (used as reclaimed), frequent depictions of homophobia, animal death, sick parent
I liked the book when it was about cows. I love cows and I adore stories about city girls going to the countryside. However, the romantic subplot was disappointing - how can you write a love triangle where none of the possible couples have any chemistry?? And there's a huge amount of stupid misunderstandings that add nothing to the story. I think Billie had an amazing character arc, which had little to do with romantic relationships, so they felt like an unnecessary add-on.
My favourite part of the story was the dairy cow parade that Billie organised. I loved her drive to make things right. Even when she was away from her medical research, she was striving to make a change for herself others.
June 21, 2021
A gayer, f/f, slightly nerdier, Bridget Jones style read of our main character Billie who has to leave her London life and return to the family farm and milking cows when her dad falls ill.
There is fluffyness but also some impactful delving into class issues of freehold leases for struggling small farmers and landlord power and wealth accumulation. The novel also transverses the landscape of homophobia that can still exist in communities and within families (whether it is blatant or more softly couched) and thus there is also a CW for the homophobic and transphobic comments that the main character is confronted with at various points.
The author did manage to integrate both the serious and the entertaining fluff, plus the emotions behind her character's concern for her father/family's wellbeing very well, that the only reason the score is not higher is that at times the pacing and relationship develop with the OTP was slow for me. However if you like slowburn, childhood friends to enemies to lovers (mixed with a love triangle) this book has it :)
There is fluffyness but also some impactful delving into class issues of freehold leases for struggling small farmers and landlord power and wealth accumulation. The novel also transverses the landscape of homophobia that can still exist in communities and within families (whether it is blatant or more softly couched) and thus there is also a CW for the homophobic and transphobic comments that the main character is confronted with at various points.
The author did manage to integrate both the serious and the entertaining fluff, plus the emotions behind her character's concern for her father/family's wellbeing very well, that the only reason the score is not higher is that at times the pacing and relationship develop with the OTP was slow for me. However if you like slowburn, childhood friends to enemies to lovers (mixed with a love triangle) this book has it :)
December 9, 2020
The premise was always super interesting but I think the character growth was what was best about this book. Though Billie wasn't a very engaging character at the start I did grow to really enjoy reading about her journey. The comedic factor was how absolutely awful she was at romance, just really really bad. I think something could be said about how quickly she moves in relationships but that is actually quite common with lesbian couples.
Read
December 23, 2022DNF @ 20%. Joely is a bitch; the writing is juvenile; the pacing is all over the place; there's zero chemistry between the protagonist and her "girlfriend" (plus we never even saw them become girlfriends?? One minute they're barely even colleagues who go for a drink and don't even drink, the next they're in a relationship - it felt like several chapters were missing).
May 23, 2021
I loved this book.
It's pretty much got everything: a endearing and lovable main character who makes plenty of bad decisions (but enough good ones to redeem them), an engaging plot, well-rounded, fleshed out secondary characters, and all the queer kissing you could wish for.
Oh, and it is really quite funny.
It's pretty much got everything: a endearing and lovable main character who makes plenty of bad decisions (but enough good ones to redeem them), an engaging plot, well-rounded, fleshed out secondary characters, and all the queer kissing you could wish for.
Oh, and it is really quite funny.
March 9, 2024
An easy, fun lesbian rom-com which I feel is let down by the "transvestite" comment at the end and random comments about different character's weight (obviously hinting at this being negative for more overweight characters). For a book which was written in 2020 this makes quickly makes it feel dated.
This was also the first book where I listened to the audiobook which made it easier to follow along. Generally a quick read with good pacing and likeable, realistic characters.
This was also the first book where I listened to the audiobook which made it easier to follow along. Generally a quick read with good pacing and likeable, realistic characters.
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