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Okay Days
‘A perfect Millennial love story ... with its acidic dialogue and languid sex scenes. A charming and clever romance, a perfect summer read’ – Irish Times
‘Utterly immersive ... it's reminiscent of Sally Rooney and is a complex and joyous ode to being in love, messing up and finding your way’ – Stylist
Sam is 28, Swedish, carefree and chaotic. Doing a work placement in London over the course of three sticky summer months, she falls hard for Lucas, a man she first met as a teenager. Lucas, 27, sensitive and calm, is trying to get a start on adult life while struggling to hold the pieces of his life together. Sam is a gorgeous distraction. But you can only avoid reality for so long, and both Sam and Lucas know their relationship can't last. Nobody can be this happy forever, surely?
Okay Days tells the story of the rise and fall of Sam and Lucas's affection for each other, looks unflinchingly at male body dysmorphia and women's reproductive rights, and the pitfalls of modern love. When is okay good enough? And what are we willing to lose in the search for a life that is much better than just okay?
‘An intimate drama of what matters in stories: relationships. Mustard is a talented portraitist in whose hands these two characters become real, enthralling, and viscerally realized. It is one of the most entertaining novels I have read of the times we live in.’ – Chigozie Obioma, author of The Fishermen
‘A beautifully-observed portrait of self-discovery and uncertain love. Jenny's sharp and evocative prose gave me a feeling of immense nostalgia for London's long summer days’ – Natasha Brown, author of Assembly
‘Fresh and sharply observant ... One of the most intriguing books I've read in some time’ – Elaine Feeney, author of How To Build A Boat
‘Tender and spellbinding, Okay Days breaks you all the way open’ – Annie Lord, author of Notes on Heartbreak
‘Utterly immersive ... it's reminiscent of Sally Rooney and is a complex and joyous ode to being in love, messing up and finding your way’ – Stylist
Sam is 28, Swedish, carefree and chaotic. Doing a work placement in London over the course of three sticky summer months, she falls hard for Lucas, a man she first met as a teenager. Lucas, 27, sensitive and calm, is trying to get a start on adult life while struggling to hold the pieces of his life together. Sam is a gorgeous distraction. But you can only avoid reality for so long, and both Sam and Lucas know their relationship can't last. Nobody can be this happy forever, surely?
Okay Days tells the story of the rise and fall of Sam and Lucas's affection for each other, looks unflinchingly at male body dysmorphia and women's reproductive rights, and the pitfalls of modern love. When is okay good enough? And what are we willing to lose in the search for a life that is much better than just okay?
‘An intimate drama of what matters in stories: relationships. Mustard is a talented portraitist in whose hands these two characters become real, enthralling, and viscerally realized. It is one of the most entertaining novels I have read of the times we live in.’ – Chigozie Obioma, author of The Fishermen
‘A beautifully-observed portrait of self-discovery and uncertain love. Jenny's sharp and evocative prose gave me a feeling of immense nostalgia for London's long summer days’ – Natasha Brown, author of Assembly
‘Fresh and sharply observant ... One of the most intriguing books I've read in some time’ – Elaine Feeney, author of How To Build A Boat
‘Tender and spellbinding, Okay Days breaks you all the way open’ – Annie Lord, author of Notes on Heartbreak
340 pages, Hardcover
First published June 29, 2023
589 people are currently reading
29266 people want to read
About the author
Jenny Mustard
5 books676 followersJenny Mustard is a writer and content creator, born in Sweden but living in London.
Jenny and her work have featured in the Observer, the Independent, Vogue, Stylist, the Evening Standard and elsewhere. She has over 600k followers, and more than 60 million views on YouTube.
Her acclaimed debut novel, OKAY DAYS, was published in 2023 and her work has been translated into ten languages. Her second novel, WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE, a New York Times Editors' Choice, was published in spring 2025.
Jenny and her work have featured in the Observer, the Independent, Vogue, Stylist, the Evening Standard and elsewhere. She has over 600k followers, and more than 60 million views on YouTube.
Her acclaimed debut novel, OKAY DAYS, was published in 2023 and her work has been translated into ten languages. Her second novel, WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE, a New York Times Editors' Choice, was published in spring 2025.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,329 reviews
April 17, 2023
This book is dedicated to me, so I might be biased.
January 4, 2024
i will read anything sally rooney-y. and this is that!!!
well, in that it's a book about two artsy, good-looking young people with undiagnosed mental illnesses trying to reckon with love in a european city.
which is officially my favorite niche subgenre.
otherwise, it's rather different. the style takes some adjusting to, being very stream of consciousness, and it is the kind of literary fiction about millennials that you read with your shoulders up by your ears (like PLEASE CARE FOR YOURSELF AND OTHERS BEFORE I DIE CRINGING), but neither of those are even bad things.
this is so incredibly established by a debut, and i felt impressed by it nearly from the first page.
plus jenny mustard is the coolest name ever.
bottom line: every book i spot in a cool bookstore in ireland should be good, and this was.
(thanks to the author for the copy)
well, in that it's a book about two artsy, good-looking young people with undiagnosed mental illnesses trying to reckon with love in a european city.
which is officially my favorite niche subgenre.
otherwise, it's rather different. the style takes some adjusting to, being very stream of consciousness, and it is the kind of literary fiction about millennials that you read with your shoulders up by your ears (like PLEASE CARE FOR YOURSELF AND OTHERS BEFORE I DIE CRINGING), but neither of those are even bad things.
this is so incredibly established by a debut, and i felt impressed by it nearly from the first page.
plus jenny mustard is the coolest name ever.
bottom line: every book i spot in a cool bookstore in ireland should be good, and this was.
(thanks to the author for the copy)
July 5, 2023
This wasn't a book for me, I'm afraid. Possibly because of my age or possibly because of life experience - mine not the characters. Either way I found the whole book pretty pointless.
The narration was the best thing about it to be honest. David Wayman as Luc and Kaisa Hammarlund as Sam had good clear voices and their performances were thoroughly believable.
Okay Days is about the relationship between Lucas and Sam, both post grad students attempting to negotiate life.
Luc appeared to me to not so much have body dysmorphia (as is suggested in the blurb) but rather a lack of personality which he moulded to each person he was with. So with Sam he tried to be relaxed, with his friends he became nerdy and when the new sporty girlfriend comes along he starts training for a marathon. So he's easily led which may or may not have something to do with losing his mother at a very young age.
Sam, on the other hand, appears to be more together - good job, prepared to travel, good friends and family connections. What Sam doesn't want to do is grow up. Unfortunately she's about to find out that being a selfish brat is only something you can get away with for so long. By the time the story ends she's almost pulled it together but if you haven't worked out by the time you're 30 that you cannot party all night and work all day then you're liable to come to a sticky end.
I think the end disappointed me the most though. Without spoiling it - for me the solution to the couple's earlier dilemma was only going to be a stop gap rather than the rosy re-set we're sold. Truth is though that I couldn't really have cared less by that stage. I was just glad it was over.
This will probably appeal to twenty or thirty somethings who recognise themselves in the characters or possibly have encountered similar problems with jobs, somewhere to live, becoming independent etc.
1 star for me because I finished it. Second star because it annoyed me but didn't give me a headache and 3rd star purely for the narration.
The narration was the best thing about it to be honest. David Wayman as Luc and Kaisa Hammarlund as Sam had good clear voices and their performances were thoroughly believable.
Okay Days is about the relationship between Lucas and Sam, both post grad students attempting to negotiate life.
Luc appeared to me to not so much have body dysmorphia (as is suggested in the blurb) but rather a lack of personality which he moulded to each person he was with. So with Sam he tried to be relaxed, with his friends he became nerdy and when the new sporty girlfriend comes along he starts training for a marathon. So he's easily led which may or may not have something to do with losing his mother at a very young age.
Sam, on the other hand, appears to be more together - good job, prepared to travel, good friends and family connections. What Sam doesn't want to do is grow up. Unfortunately she's about to find out that being a selfish brat is only something you can get away with for so long. By the time the story ends she's almost pulled it together but if you haven't worked out by the time you're 30 that you cannot party all night and work all day then you're liable to come to a sticky end.
I think the end disappointed me the most though. Without spoiling it - for me the solution to the couple's earlier dilemma was only going to be a stop gap rather than the rosy re-set we're sold. Truth is though that I couldn't really have cared less by that stage. I was just glad it was over.
This will probably appeal to twenty or thirty somethings who recognise themselves in the characters or possibly have encountered similar problems with jobs, somewhere to live, becoming independent etc.
1 star for me because I finished it. Second star because it annoyed me but didn't give me a headache and 3rd star purely for the narration.
July 8, 2023
Didn’t really get the point of this book/story (or the lack of it, I should say?).
The writing style wants to be a re proposition of Sally Rooney’s but it fails, due to bland and insufferable characters who acts randomic or in opposition of their own previous description. They don’t make sense, they are not credible or in any way relatable.
For a novel mainly based on characters and their own inner worlds, this one is utterly void of insights or relatable feelings/moments - in this way the storytelling is only making the reader bored.
I was asking myself, while reading around page 80, what the heck do I care about the two protagonists? I don’t want to read how they stroll around doing nothing, not exchanging meaningful part of themselves with each other.
This book is basically the two of them hanging out. There is attraction and affection, bea cause they said so - but why? At one point, they decided together and that is it. I was feeling pretty damn bored by the lack of passion, emotion, something. Sarcasm even, I don’t know.
Luc doesn’t have a personality and it’s so washed out that is useless. Sam has too many things going on, it’s too egocentric and it’s the true protagonist of this book - unfortunately, I’d say, because it’s impossible to follow her and her trail of thoughts, her behavior often don’t match what she says or think.
The story proceed for hiccups: we start after 10 days after they decided to stay together for the summer, then we rush back to when they met, then again we read about Sam worrying about Luc’s moments of coldness (or mere moments of privacy, like washing clothes at his own home) and then back again at 10 years prior their reunion. This is the main line, in between this hiccups there are smaller one, made of flashbacks or old memories - the whole thing reads like scattered puzzle pieces. Hard to follow for no reason. Or maybe was an attempt to mimic a story that isn’t there in the first place?
At the random rescue of the pigeon I was like, “wtf, why”, what this scene serves to the storytelling? But it was only the beginning of the randomness of this book, full of details or scene or characters that doesn’t serves the story itself.
Didn’t have the strength to finish it.
The writing style wants to be a re proposition of Sally Rooney’s but it fails, due to bland and insufferable characters who acts randomic or in opposition of their own previous description. They don’t make sense, they are not credible or in any way relatable.
For a novel mainly based on characters and their own inner worlds, this one is utterly void of insights or relatable feelings/moments - in this way the storytelling is only making the reader bored.
I was asking myself, while reading around page 80, what the heck do I care about the two protagonists? I don’t want to read how they stroll around doing nothing, not exchanging meaningful part of themselves with each other.
This book is basically the two of them hanging out. There is attraction and affection, bea cause they said so - but why? At one point, they decided together and that is it. I was feeling pretty damn bored by the lack of passion, emotion, something. Sarcasm even, I don’t know.
Luc doesn’t have a personality and it’s so washed out that is useless. Sam has too many things going on, it’s too egocentric and it’s the true protagonist of this book - unfortunately, I’d say, because it’s impossible to follow her and her trail of thoughts, her behavior often don’t match what she says or think.
The story proceed for hiccups: we start after 10 days after they decided to stay together for the summer, then we rush back to when they met, then again we read about Sam worrying about Luc’s moments of coldness (or mere moments of privacy, like washing clothes at his own home) and then back again at 10 years prior their reunion. This is the main line, in between this hiccups there are smaller one, made of flashbacks or old memories - the whole thing reads like scattered puzzle pieces. Hard to follow for no reason. Or maybe was an attempt to mimic a story that isn’t there in the first place?
At the random rescue of the pigeon I was like, “wtf, why”, what this scene serves to the storytelling? But it was only the beginning of the randomness of this book, full of details or scene or characters that doesn’t serves the story itself.
Didn’t have the strength to finish it.
September 1, 2025
Official Review
The days I spent reading this book were, unfortunately, NOT okay days.
I went in relatively blind. I had found it on Pinterest first, under a listicle titled 'Books that Have a Feel-Good Effect' or something similar. I was intrigued, partly because I could vaguely remember having heard the author’s name before, and that yellow cover seemed cordial enough, and partly because I don’t have an SSRI prescription and thus have to resort to the pseudoscience of reading good books to supply me with that sweet, sweet serotonin. On Goodreads, I saw it being compared to Sally Rooney, which at the time didn’t alarm me as much as it should have. Because, after all, I do have a nice track record against rating her books high. But joke’s on me because as it turns out, the Sally Rooney similarity starts and ends with Normal People, a book I don’t care for whatsoever. I mean, I don’t even like Paul Mescal. (This is the first time I've publicly come out as a Paul Mescal hater. I hated him even before he became slightly uncool with the ladies with that tone-deaf comment on the Graham Norton show. Please don't kill me.)
Okay Days is about two millennials living their boring, cringy millennial lives. You've seen them before in multiple bad literary fiction books. Sam is a 28-year-old Swedish immigrant living in London, working in Marketing at an agency she got in through nepotism. Lukas is 27 years old, working as a shop assistant at a boutique even after obtaining a swanky engineering degree, because no big corporation is interested in running a climate-conscious company, and his conscience doesn’t allow him to apply for what he calls “dirty” engineering jobs, even if it renders him broke. The novel begins after they’ve already had their meet-cute at a party, ten days into their summer fling. And because it’s a romance book, we’re told they like each other very much and would very much want it to be much more than just a summer fling. And because it’s a romance book, we also know that no matter how rocky the road is, in the end, they’d end up together.
If you point at an apple and tell five hundred people that it’s actually blue, you’d have to persist in your loud proclamations for just a finite time before they relent and join you in pointing at every single apple in the basket and calling it blue. That’s how wartime propaganda and, evidently, literary romances work. I positively felt like one of those five hundred idiots nodding and agreeing with the author as she tried to convince us, the readers, that the protagonists in this book were oh so interesting and fascinating in their interesting and fascinating love for each other by repeating it one billion times. Or she maybe didn’t repeat it verbatim, it’s just how it came across.
And that’s such a shame, because I didn’t need that much convincing at first. Man, one day I want someone to hold me up in half as much love and appreciation as I do every book I pick up. I seemingly enjoyed the dry, amusing, matter-of-fact writing style, going as far as to put the book under my “LOVE the writing!!!” tag. I liked the nonlinear timeline, I liked that, for a change, the female protagonist was the more successful of the two, and I also liked the languid descriptions of London city. But soon, the novelty wore off, and I realised it was going nowhere, that I was just reading pages upon pages about them having sex and partying and going on holidays and having silly fallouts. I quietly removed the love-the-writing tag from my Goodreads log. I’d begun to realise that I hated the characters. It’s never a good sign if you’re feeling like that in a character-driven book.
Sam is self-absorbed to the point that it’s concerning, like watching a bad young adult TV show where the main character is convinced that she is the supreme leader of the universe. But it’s even worse for Sam because no one should be that egotistical after they already have their frontal lobe developed. I didn’t like Sam at all, neither as a person nor as a fictional character. She and I would very much not be friends in real life. And throughout the novel, Lukas has the personality and agency of a soggy biscuit you’ve held inside your chai too long and thus made it unpalatable. He lets Sam walk all over him, they break up when she wants to, and they reconcile when she talks about it. There’s so little going on on his end. It’s pathetic. I definitely think that with all these romance-adjacent literary fiction novels written by women, we've slowly started seeing a pattern where all the male leads are barely getting by as characters on their own. Their only purpose in the story is to serve an unattainable "Dream Boyfriend" fantasy for women. Which is very much not a novel concept if you flip the gender by the way; that's how women characters have been portrayed across media catered towards a male audience throughout the ages, and still are in Hollywood and Bollywood and god knows where else, but it still disappoints me a little to see women writers falling for the same formula. And that is probably Sally Rooney's strongest point as an author that sets her apart from everyone else. Conell from Normal People and Nick (if I'm remembering his name correctly, I'm too lazy to Google) from Conversations With Friends and all her other male protagonists are fully three-dimensional characters on their own. They are allowed the dignity of being their messy, less-than-ideal, imperfect selves. Y/N fanfiction-esque books can be fun, until they get tiring.
Another thing that pissed me off immensely was how carefully flawless both of them were made to be from a socio-political viewpoint. Like ugly, unadorned, squeaky clean Millennial Beige flats. Of course, Lukas is a staunch feminist/vegan/climate activist/ally/what you will. Of course, she’s the ideal Western woman of the 21st century. Of course, they always use reusable to-go coffee cups. Of course, Lukas would rather go jobless and poor, even with an engineering degree, than work for a non-environment-friendly corporation. Of course, they officiously mention to their not-important-for-the-story partners that they are still keeping in touch through flirtatious texts even after breaking up. You can treat your girlfriend like shit and still be into your ex but you cannot keep anything secret from her, because arsehole as you might be, you’re still the ideal boyfriend.
Anything and everything they say to each other and other minor characters screams performative activism. There’s no humanity in these characters; they don’t feel like real people— they are what good white men and women are supposed to be in a multiracial, multicultural European utopia. Unproblematic, unburdened by even a flicker of deeply inherent prejudices, always using the "correct" verbiage, always subconsciously patting themselves on their backs for being holier than thou. So perfect. Like freshly manufactured cardboard cutouts. Except when they are incredibly snarky and dismissive of anyone who veers ever so slightly from this manufactured perfectness. I guess that adds to good characterisation (by making them unlikeable, even if done unconsciously on the author’s side?) They are only mean towards people who don’t like, for example, to eat veg salads over steak, or who plan on getting married and starting a family by the time they are 28. I used “of course” as many times as I did because the author literally used it while checking off those politically correct traits and attributes, too. Subtlety, what, haven’t heard of her.
I was at around 85% and actively rooting for them not to end up together. Even as I finished the book, I was hoping against hope that there would be an epilogue where we would find them to be shacked up with other, less toxic partners. But alas, no such luck.
PS# The word “Okay” is used 105 times, and no, I’m not being pedantic, that counts as overuse, even if it’s the title of your book and is an incredibly common catchphrase.
Thoughts Before Reading
"Normal People" but without obnoxious teenagers and third-person simple present narration in it? Sounds like a dream!
Thoughts After Reading
The days spent with me reading this book were, unfortunately, not okay days.
RTC
The days I spent reading this book were, unfortunately, NOT okay days.
I went in relatively blind. I had found it on Pinterest first, under a listicle titled 'Books that Have a Feel-Good Effect' or something similar. I was intrigued, partly because I could vaguely remember having heard the author’s name before, and that yellow cover seemed cordial enough, and partly because I don’t have an SSRI prescription and thus have to resort to the pseudoscience of reading good books to supply me with that sweet, sweet serotonin. On Goodreads, I saw it being compared to Sally Rooney, which at the time didn’t alarm me as much as it should have. Because, after all, I do have a nice track record against rating her books high. But joke’s on me because as it turns out, the Sally Rooney similarity starts and ends with Normal People, a book I don’t care for whatsoever. I mean, I don’t even like Paul Mescal. (This is the first time I've publicly come out as a Paul Mescal hater. I hated him even before he became slightly uncool with the ladies with that tone-deaf comment on the Graham Norton show. Please don't kill me.)
Okay Days is about two millennials living their boring, cringy millennial lives. You've seen them before in multiple bad literary fiction books. Sam is a 28-year-old Swedish immigrant living in London, working in Marketing at an agency she got in through nepotism. Lukas is 27 years old, working as a shop assistant at a boutique even after obtaining a swanky engineering degree, because no big corporation is interested in running a climate-conscious company, and his conscience doesn’t allow him to apply for what he calls “dirty” engineering jobs, even if it renders him broke. The novel begins after they’ve already had their meet-cute at a party, ten days into their summer fling. And because it’s a romance book, we’re told they like each other very much and would very much want it to be much more than just a summer fling. And because it’s a romance book, we also know that no matter how rocky the road is, in the end, they’d end up together.
If you point at an apple and tell five hundred people that it’s actually blue, you’d have to persist in your loud proclamations for just a finite time before they relent and join you in pointing at every single apple in the basket and calling it blue. That’s how wartime propaganda and, evidently, literary romances work. I positively felt like one of those five hundred idiots nodding and agreeing with the author as she tried to convince us, the readers, that the protagonists in this book were oh so interesting and fascinating in their interesting and fascinating love for each other by repeating it one billion times. Or she maybe didn’t repeat it verbatim, it’s just how it came across.
And that’s such a shame, because I didn’t need that much convincing at first. Man, one day I want someone to hold me up in half as much love and appreciation as I do every book I pick up. I seemingly enjoyed the dry, amusing, matter-of-fact writing style, going as far as to put the book under my “LOVE the writing!!!” tag. I liked the nonlinear timeline, I liked that, for a change, the female protagonist was the more successful of the two, and I also liked the languid descriptions of London city. But soon, the novelty wore off, and I realised it was going nowhere, that I was just reading pages upon pages about them having sex and partying and going on holidays and having silly fallouts. I quietly removed the love-the-writing tag from my Goodreads log. I’d begun to realise that I hated the characters. It’s never a good sign if you’re feeling like that in a character-driven book.
Sam is self-absorbed to the point that it’s concerning, like watching a bad young adult TV show where the main character is convinced that she is the supreme leader of the universe. But it’s even worse for Sam because no one should be that egotistical after they already have their frontal lobe developed. I didn’t like Sam at all, neither as a person nor as a fictional character. She and I would very much not be friends in real life. And throughout the novel, Lukas has the personality and agency of a soggy biscuit you’ve held inside your chai too long and thus made it unpalatable. He lets Sam walk all over him, they break up when she wants to, and they reconcile when she talks about it. There’s so little going on on his end. It’s pathetic. I definitely think that with all these romance-adjacent literary fiction novels written by women, we've slowly started seeing a pattern where all the male leads are barely getting by as characters on their own. Their only purpose in the story is to serve an unattainable "Dream Boyfriend" fantasy for women. Which is very much not a novel concept if you flip the gender by the way; that's how women characters have been portrayed across media catered towards a male audience throughout the ages, and still are in Hollywood and Bollywood and god knows where else, but it still disappoints me a little to see women writers falling for the same formula. And that is probably Sally Rooney's strongest point as an author that sets her apart from everyone else. Conell from Normal People and Nick (if I'm remembering his name correctly, I'm too lazy to Google) from Conversations With Friends and all her other male protagonists are fully three-dimensional characters on their own. They are allowed the dignity of being their messy, less-than-ideal, imperfect selves. Y/N fanfiction-esque books can be fun, until they get tiring.
Another thing that pissed me off immensely was how carefully flawless both of them were made to be from a socio-political viewpoint. Like ugly, unadorned, squeaky clean Millennial Beige flats. Of course, Lukas is a staunch feminist/vegan/climate activist/ally/what you will. Of course, she’s the ideal Western woman of the 21st century. Of course, they always use reusable to-go coffee cups. Of course, Lukas would rather go jobless and poor, even with an engineering degree, than work for a non-environment-friendly corporation. Of course, they officiously mention to their not-important-for-the-story partners that they are still keeping in touch through flirtatious texts even after breaking up. You can treat your girlfriend like shit and still be into your ex but you cannot keep anything secret from her, because arsehole as you might be, you’re still the ideal boyfriend.
Anything and everything they say to each other and other minor characters screams performative activism. There’s no humanity in these characters; they don’t feel like real people— they are what good white men and women are supposed to be in a multiracial, multicultural European utopia. Unproblematic, unburdened by even a flicker of deeply inherent prejudices, always using the "correct" verbiage, always subconsciously patting themselves on their backs for being holier than thou. So perfect. Like freshly manufactured cardboard cutouts. Except when they are incredibly snarky and dismissive of anyone who veers ever so slightly from this manufactured perfectness. I guess that adds to good characterisation (by making them unlikeable, even if done unconsciously on the author’s side?) They are only mean towards people who don’t like, for example, to eat veg salads over steak, or who plan on getting married and starting a family by the time they are 28. I used “of course” as many times as I did because the author literally used it while checking off those politically correct traits and attributes, too. Subtlety, what, haven’t heard of her.
I was at around 85% and actively rooting for them not to end up together. Even as I finished the book, I was hoping against hope that there would be an epilogue where we would find them to be shacked up with other, less toxic partners. But alas, no such luck.
PS# The word “Okay” is used 105 times, and no, I’m not being pedantic, that counts as overuse, even if it’s the title of your book and is an incredibly common catchphrase.
Thoughts Before Reading
"Normal People" but without obnoxious teenagers and third-person simple present narration in it? Sounds like a dream!
Thoughts After Reading
The days spent with me reading this book were, unfortunately, not okay days.
RTC
September 1, 2023
Please stop telling new authors their work is “reminiscent of Sally Rooney”, it’s a curse.
March 7, 2025
⟢ 4 stars
so realistically depressing that i resulted to weeping on my couch whilst reading so i apologize to the person who will borrow this book next because i fear that it will forever be stained with my tears.
i'd like to preface this by saying that this is not a romance novel. these types of novels focus on the human psyche; how our decisions directly impact our relationships, not just romantically, but familial and platonic; how love doesn't always take center stage. these types of novels are not for everyone, especially since there's very little plot and it's almost all vibes. but, fortunately, fleeting romances that are set in europe seem to be my new fav somewhat niche genre.
okay days follows our two main characters, sam, a terribly lost 28-year-old trying to find her way in life, and luc, a charismatic 27-year-old who's perfect on paper but carries a heavy baggage underneath. set, mostly, in london, sam and luc meet again at 28 and 27 after a 10-year lull. a whole summer of romance passes them by and now sam needs to return to stockholm. as their feelings grow, so do tensions and they start to question whether if their relationship was only meant to last that one summer.
love might be a fairytale but relationships definitely aren't. at the beginning of sam and luc's relationship, it was pure bliss; everyday felt like an adventure. but, as time goes on, a routine falls upon them until those days become mundane, okay days. this book encapsulates that battle between doubt and feeling; wanting days that are better than okay but still wanting to stay with your person. both their internal struggles to either find something "better" or do what's "safe" takes center stage. though frustrating at times, i can feel for them both. honestly most of their problems would have been easily solved with therapy or maybe better communication but they're messy and i like messy.
i also like how it delt with topics such as body dysmorphia when it comes to men. the whole "gym-bro" culture can definitely get out of hand at times, bordering on an eating disorder. and sam having no sense of belonging. as an immigrant child, she's always felt like she doesn't belong anywhere. but, alas, home is never a place but it's the people that you want around you.
⤿ bottomline. this was a very solid debut that made me ugly cry on my couch. i don't have any real complaints except that the ending was too happy but that might just be because i'm getting old and bitter. when you have the name jenny mustard, you're kinda destined to do something great and that's what she did. overall, i'm excited to see what she put out next. (also the allegation that this gives off normal people vibes is very real)
𖥻 “ but even if certain misery ahead. i'd rather have two miserable years with you than two okay years without. ”
so realistically depressing that i resulted to weeping on my couch whilst reading so i apologize to the person who will borrow this book next because i fear that it will forever be stained with my tears.
i'd like to preface this by saying that this is not a romance novel. these types of novels focus on the human psyche; how our decisions directly impact our relationships, not just romantically, but familial and platonic; how love doesn't always take center stage. these types of novels are not for everyone, especially since there's very little plot and it's almost all vibes. but, fortunately, fleeting romances that are set in europe seem to be my new fav somewhat niche genre.
okay days follows our two main characters, sam, a terribly lost 28-year-old trying to find her way in life, and luc, a charismatic 27-year-old who's perfect on paper but carries a heavy baggage underneath. set, mostly, in london, sam and luc meet again at 28 and 27 after a 10-year lull. a whole summer of romance passes them by and now sam needs to return to stockholm. as their feelings grow, so do tensions and they start to question whether if their relationship was only meant to last that one summer.
⊹ "but now i'd said i loved him, and he couldn't say it back.”
love might be a fairytale but relationships definitely aren't. at the beginning of sam and luc's relationship, it was pure bliss; everyday felt like an adventure. but, as time goes on, a routine falls upon them until those days become mundane, okay days. this book encapsulates that battle between doubt and feeling; wanting days that are better than okay but still wanting to stay with your person. both their internal struggles to either find something "better" or do what's "safe" takes center stage. though frustrating at times, i can feel for them both. honestly most of their problems would have been easily solved with therapy or maybe better communication but they're messy and i like messy.
i also like how it delt with topics such as body dysmorphia when it comes to men. the whole "gym-bro" culture can definitely get out of hand at times, bordering on an eating disorder. and sam having no sense of belonging. as an immigrant child, she's always felt like she doesn't belong anywhere. but, alas, home is never a place but it's the people that you want around you.
⤿ bottomline. this was a very solid debut that made me ugly cry on my couch. i don't have any real complaints except that the ending was too happy but that might just be because i'm getting old and bitter. when you have the name jenny mustard, you're kinda destined to do something great and that's what she did. overall, i'm excited to see what she put out next. (also the allegation that this gives off normal people vibes is very real)
May 30, 2023
OKAY DAYS | Jenny Mustard
Wow. Wow. Wow.
This debut novel by Jenny Mustard was everything I’d ever needed!
The story follows Sam, a Swede who came to London to work at a London marketing company over the summer, and Luc, a British man who seems to be a little lost at times. Their relationship blooms in its first stages but it has an expiration date, as Sam has to go back to Stockholm.
Jenny’s take on modern relationships was refreshing, with two people desperately wanting to be together but having to face life’s obstacles and the reality of living together.
I loved the characters, they were written so well I felt like I was listening to their story directly from them. There’s also a strong character development in both sides, we get to see how they grow, change and become the better versions of themselves.
But it is not just a story about love, it explores topics such as female reproductive rights, being lost in your 20s and body image (this time from the perspective of a man, and oh how much do we need it).
Jenny’s writing is superb! I couldn’t believe it’s her very first novel! It was painfully relatable to the point that I’d giggle at how accurate her description of London was. She’s managed to capture the mood so well, it almost felt like a Japanese novel.
Now, if you’re a fan of Sally Rooney and Marie Aubert, you’ve got to give it a go. I loved it, I’ll be holding onto my copy forever (you know, in case Jenny wins a Booker Prize).
ad: thank you so much to Jenny Mustard and Sceptre Books for the ARC. It was a pleasure to be able to read it and review it. 🤎
Wow. Wow. Wow.
This debut novel by Jenny Mustard was everything I’d ever needed!
The story follows Sam, a Swede who came to London to work at a London marketing company over the summer, and Luc, a British man who seems to be a little lost at times. Their relationship blooms in its first stages but it has an expiration date, as Sam has to go back to Stockholm.
Jenny’s take on modern relationships was refreshing, with two people desperately wanting to be together but having to face life’s obstacles and the reality of living together.
I loved the characters, they were written so well I felt like I was listening to their story directly from them. There’s also a strong character development in both sides, we get to see how they grow, change and become the better versions of themselves.
But it is not just a story about love, it explores topics such as female reproductive rights, being lost in your 20s and body image (this time from the perspective of a man, and oh how much do we need it).
Jenny’s writing is superb! I couldn’t believe it’s her very first novel! It was painfully relatable to the point that I’d giggle at how accurate her description of London was. She’s managed to capture the mood so well, it almost felt like a Japanese novel.
Now, if you’re a fan of Sally Rooney and Marie Aubert, you’ve got to give it a go. I loved it, I’ll be holding onto my copy forever (you know, in case Jenny wins a Booker Prize).
ad: thank you so much to Jenny Mustard and Sceptre Books for the ARC. It was a pleasure to be able to read it and review it. 🤎
June 12, 2023
The easiest five stars I have given a book this year!!
I throughly recommend every ‘20-something-year-old who is starting to think about moving places and meeting people who you might fall in love with and trying to fall into careers’ to read this book and then just try and tell me that it doesn’t fill you with hope because it just does.
“I think I’m getting better at realism though…. So okay, London isn’t an escape anymore but it’s my home. And you’re not my sister but you are family. And maybe Luc isn’t the romantic hero but he could’ve been a decent f**cking boyfriend.”
As a woman who has never wanted children, I felt that this plot was written for me. The idea of ‘deal breakers’ and not ‘fitting’ with someone you’ve fallen for worries me and the way that Jenny writes about this subject-that so many young women now have questions about- is so realistic.
The story unfolds through both Sam and Luc’s point of views as they-as first loves- keep drifting back to each other.
Told in the ambiance of a ‘London on a lazy Sunday morning’, the descriptions feel as if they’ve been taken on film (maybe that’s my photography student brain). I absolutely loved how the timelessness of the plot mimicked the timeline of Sam and Luc falling in love and the way they lose track of time when they’re together.
It’s a modern day ‘star-crossed lovers’ storyline but with realistic obstacles and compromises that are thought provoking and balance the line between uplifting and life affirming.
“If your mother had said to choose between her and children, I wouldn’t chosen her in a heartbeat. No question.”
This book isn’t about falling in love, it’s about once you’ve fallen and what happens afterwards, what keeps the relationship going and how to know if one person is right for another.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
I throughly recommend every ‘20-something-year-old who is starting to think about moving places and meeting people who you might fall in love with and trying to fall into careers’ to read this book and then just try and tell me that it doesn’t fill you with hope because it just does.
“I think I’m getting better at realism though…. So okay, London isn’t an escape anymore but it’s my home. And you’re not my sister but you are family. And maybe Luc isn’t the romantic hero but he could’ve been a decent f**cking boyfriend.”
As a woman who has never wanted children, I felt that this plot was written for me. The idea of ‘deal breakers’ and not ‘fitting’ with someone you’ve fallen for worries me and the way that Jenny writes about this subject-that so many young women now have questions about- is so realistic.
The story unfolds through both Sam and Luc’s point of views as they-as first loves- keep drifting back to each other.
Told in the ambiance of a ‘London on a lazy Sunday morning’, the descriptions feel as if they’ve been taken on film (maybe that’s my photography student brain). I absolutely loved how the timelessness of the plot mimicked the timeline of Sam and Luc falling in love and the way they lose track of time when they’re together.
It’s a modern day ‘star-crossed lovers’ storyline but with realistic obstacles and compromises that are thought provoking and balance the line between uplifting and life affirming.
“If your mother had said to choose between her and children, I wouldn’t chosen her in a heartbeat. No question.”
This book isn’t about falling in love, it’s about once you’ve fallen and what happens afterwards, what keeps the relationship going and how to know if one person is right for another.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
August 4, 2023
*Thank you to the publisher for gifting me a copy of this book!*
If you liked the vibes of Normal People and Open Water whereby you sort of glide through the novel watching as two characters float in and out of each other's orbit, you might really like this one. It’s quite slow burn and some could argue ‘mundane’ as we alternate between Luc and Sam as their lives intersect and diverge repeatedly, but if you like books that have a more relaxed character focused vibe to them, and enjoy a relationship being explored, this is definitely the book for you.
Luc and Same have a really tender, honest connection in here that you can’t help but want to soak up. Their love felt simultaneously really quiet and content, while also being blazingly loud on page. I think Mustard did a great job of really selling their relationship to us as readers, she didn’t even have to try though really. Their connection seems to be instantaneous, and the chemistry never waned. I was obsessed with the way they interacted and looked out for one another time and time again. It was such a sweet story, while also not shying away from the nitty gritty of what makes us human. It also looks at our own flaws, it’s very introspective, and how we can be our own worst enemy sometimes. It deals with as lot of heavy things, but the book somehow felt light as a feather.
I just think this book had really nice vibes to it. It felt very realistic and human to read, and though it had a lot of scenes just going through quite ordinary day to day interactions, I liked that. When this book is described as a modern love story, I think that’s a perfect way of describing it. I think the writing was good, the pacing worked really well, and I managed to sit and read this book in about two or three sittings because it was so digestible and more-ish. It also felt like a love letter to London in a lot of ways, and as an outsider who gets sucked into the London whirlwind everytime I visit, those lines resonated with me a lot. The ending of this book also made me cheesy smile.
The only negatives I have really are that the timeline felt a little chaotic and confusing, and the sentence structure was sometimes a bit too snappy for me. Other than that, wonderful.
If you liked the vibes of Normal People and Open Water whereby you sort of glide through the novel watching as two characters float in and out of each other's orbit, you might really like this one. It’s quite slow burn and some could argue ‘mundane’ as we alternate between Luc and Sam as their lives intersect and diverge repeatedly, but if you like books that have a more relaxed character focused vibe to them, and enjoy a relationship being explored, this is definitely the book for you.
Luc and Same have a really tender, honest connection in here that you can’t help but want to soak up. Their love felt simultaneously really quiet and content, while also being blazingly loud on page. I think Mustard did a great job of really selling their relationship to us as readers, she didn’t even have to try though really. Their connection seems to be instantaneous, and the chemistry never waned. I was obsessed with the way they interacted and looked out for one another time and time again. It was such a sweet story, while also not shying away from the nitty gritty of what makes us human. It also looks at our own flaws, it’s very introspective, and how we can be our own worst enemy sometimes. It deals with as lot of heavy things, but the book somehow felt light as a feather.
I just think this book had really nice vibes to it. It felt very realistic and human to read, and though it had a lot of scenes just going through quite ordinary day to day interactions, I liked that. When this book is described as a modern love story, I think that’s a perfect way of describing it. I think the writing was good, the pacing worked really well, and I managed to sit and read this book in about two or three sittings because it was so digestible and more-ish. It also felt like a love letter to London in a lot of ways, and as an outsider who gets sucked into the London whirlwind everytime I visit, those lines resonated with me a lot. The ending of this book also made me cheesy smile.
The only negatives I have really are that the timeline felt a little chaotic and confusing, and the sentence structure was sometimes a bit too snappy for me. Other than that, wonderful.
August 2, 2023
“Seeing the city like this, it’s impossible not to feel like it is the centre of the world. Sooner or later, everything and everyone comes to London”
at this point it’s clear that I just love books about humans being humans in all their silly quirks and perfect flaws. I also love books that are a love letter to London so no surprise I absolutely ate this one up
“He put his hands on the table and folds them. His nails are short and clean. Hands made for kindness. Petting cats and peeling carrots, feeling your forehead for fever”
this isn’t a romance but it is a story about love. about meeting that person that you connect with in ways you never have before. about growing together and growing apart as you navigate your 20s, who you are and where you’re supposed to be. I adored how it focused on the mundanity of everyday life, the small things you experience with another person when you choose to spend so much time together. it was beautifully written and an outstanding debut
sally rooney girls I think you’ll eat this up
thank you again to @jennymustard for sending me a copy and inviting me to your event (and writing a fabulous book)
4.5/5
at this point it’s clear that I just love books about humans being humans in all their silly quirks and perfect flaws. I also love books that are a love letter to London so no surprise I absolutely ate this one up
“He put his hands on the table and folds them. His nails are short and clean. Hands made for kindness. Petting cats and peeling carrots, feeling your forehead for fever”
this isn’t a romance but it is a story about love. about meeting that person that you connect with in ways you never have before. about growing together and growing apart as you navigate your 20s, who you are and where you’re supposed to be. I adored how it focused on the mundanity of everyday life, the small things you experience with another person when you choose to spend so much time together. it was beautifully written and an outstanding debut
sally rooney girls I think you’ll eat this up
thank you again to @jennymustard for sending me a copy and inviting me to your event (and writing a fabulous book)
4.5/5
March 18, 2023
Read via NetGalley
For fans of Yolk by Mary HK Choi and Conversations With Friends By Sally Rooney, Ok Days follows the in-betweens of new relationships and the inevitable decline when two lives don't quite fit together, no matter how hard you try.
Counting down until breakup, the story spotlight is on Sam and Luc.
This novel is delightfully peaceful and captures the feeling of a sunny Sunday morning, when you are relaxed and calm and have leant into the weekend fully before having to go back to work. Through Jenny Mustard's writing we are able to see through both Sam and Luc's eyes and read how they feel about eachother in their own words.
Mustard explores the feelings and events that happen when you first meet someone- the slips from routine, the days that feel like jumps in time and seem to last forever but not long enough. The beautiful radiance of experiencing first time romance with a person that feels magical.
And what happens when the magic stops.
The languid, dreamy descriptions of drinking too much, doing too little and going to restaurants with warm lighting are depicted with such feeling and vividness which unravels in your mind like film tape.
Mustard is able to flick between past and present using the characters voices, making the novel feel like a discussion rather than a record and guide us into the feelings of Sam and Luc, and their sides of the events that broke them. But when the chapters that count down to their demise change, you are lead to wonder what will happen next as Sam and Luc's dynamic changes and they see other people but still feel drawn to eachother...
I really enjoyed the pace of this book as we read through Sam and Luc's relationship and I particularly enjoyed that it covered the phenomena of suspended time when you first meet someone and get together. Time seems a bit flimsy and simultaneously on pause but also not enough and you slip out of your routines to spend time with this new person. It was really enjoyable to relive in book form and I also loved that the chapter titles were countdowns to different defining moments in the pairs' relationship. Seeing their two points of views enhanced the story and have more depth to these moments and made me second guess my predictions for the ending and made it all that more satisfying to finish.
For fans of Yolk by Mary HK Choi and Conversations With Friends By Sally Rooney, Ok Days follows the in-betweens of new relationships and the inevitable decline when two lives don't quite fit together, no matter how hard you try.
Counting down until breakup, the story spotlight is on Sam and Luc.
This novel is delightfully peaceful and captures the feeling of a sunny Sunday morning, when you are relaxed and calm and have leant into the weekend fully before having to go back to work. Through Jenny Mustard's writing we are able to see through both Sam and Luc's eyes and read how they feel about eachother in their own words.
Mustard explores the feelings and events that happen when you first meet someone- the slips from routine, the days that feel like jumps in time and seem to last forever but not long enough. The beautiful radiance of experiencing first time romance with a person that feels magical.
And what happens when the magic stops.
The languid, dreamy descriptions of drinking too much, doing too little and going to restaurants with warm lighting are depicted with such feeling and vividness which unravels in your mind like film tape.
Mustard is able to flick between past and present using the characters voices, making the novel feel like a discussion rather than a record and guide us into the feelings of Sam and Luc, and their sides of the events that broke them. But when the chapters that count down to their demise change, you are lead to wonder what will happen next as Sam and Luc's dynamic changes and they see other people but still feel drawn to eachother...
I really enjoyed the pace of this book as we read through Sam and Luc's relationship and I particularly enjoyed that it covered the phenomena of suspended time when you first meet someone and get together. Time seems a bit flimsy and simultaneously on pause but also not enough and you slip out of your routines to spend time with this new person. It was really enjoyable to relive in book form and I also loved that the chapter titles were countdowns to different defining moments in the pairs' relationship. Seeing their two points of views enhanced the story and have more depth to these moments and made me second guess my predictions for the ending and made it all that more satisfying to finish.
March 30, 2023
I loved every second of this book.
August 13, 2023
"But even if we are fairly miserable now," he says, "to be honest I'd rather have two more miserable days with you than two okay days without."
"And then on that ferry from Athens, spotting her in the harbour waving, I was back to colour. We are not an easy fit, sometimes we hurt each other. It doesn't change anything. I still want her."
"Unreasonably, this hurt like a punch to the chest. I said oh thank you that's nice, which was a stupid response to a punch."
I'm really struggling to gather my thoughts right now. This was incredible, and I'm trying (and failing) to deal with the fact that it is over.
It took me a while to get to this, because I was travelling, and then I was trying to get settled into a new uni semester, and I really wanted to give this book my full attention. In June of this year, I had the absolute privilege of going to the launch party for this book, where I got to meet Jenny (and many other lovely people) and hear her talk about her creative process for this book. However, please know that all opinions are completely my own.
Sam is 28, Swedish, spending a Summer in London. She is impulsive, blunt, and chaos personified. Lucas (Luc, Luke, Lukey) is 27, lives in London, is gentler and more sensitive. Someone at the event compared them to a golden retriever and a black cat respectively, which is so true. They spend a summer falling in love, and when it's time to let go, they can't seem to move on.
In her interview, Jenny described this book as less of a "will they won't they" (which I find incredibly tedious) and more of a "should they shouldn't they" (which was far more enjoyable). I really felt conflicted over all the reasons they don't fit, but wanting them to make it work regardless. It was very introspective, and a bit of a character study on human nature and relationships. The truth is, I really fell for these characters and all their idiosyncrasies. They were flawed but they felt so real.
Another thing I loved was that this was a dual perspective, and both Sam and Luc had very distinct voices, so it was always very clear to tell whose POV we were in. In cases where the two differed, it really helped to show both sides of the argument, so we as the reader could see that both of them had perfectly sound reasoning and it was impossible to pick a side.
Jenny perfectly captured the struggle of being from a small part of the world, and the lure of a big city like London. I could understand Sam so acutely at times, with her conflict about being away from her family and where she grew up vs. a place where things actually happen. It ached.
I cried, multiple times, especially in the second half where things got very heavy. I won't spoil it, but it was very intense.
I need to buy a paperback copy of this asap, since I couldn't bare to deface a signed copy. I want to turn back to the first page and start it all over again. I can't recommend it enough, and I can't wait to see what Jenny does next.
"And then on that ferry from Athens, spotting her in the harbour waving, I was back to colour. We are not an easy fit, sometimes we hurt each other. It doesn't change anything. I still want her."
"Unreasonably, this hurt like a punch to the chest. I said oh thank you that's nice, which was a stupid response to a punch."
I'm really struggling to gather my thoughts right now. This was incredible, and I'm trying (and failing) to deal with the fact that it is over.
It took me a while to get to this, because I was travelling, and then I was trying to get settled into a new uni semester, and I really wanted to give this book my full attention. In June of this year, I had the absolute privilege of going to the launch party for this book, where I got to meet Jenny (and many other lovely people) and hear her talk about her creative process for this book. However, please know that all opinions are completely my own.
Sam is 28, Swedish, spending a Summer in London. She is impulsive, blunt, and chaos personified. Lucas (Luc, Luke, Lukey) is 27, lives in London, is gentler and more sensitive. Someone at the event compared them to a golden retriever and a black cat respectively, which is so true. They spend a summer falling in love, and when it's time to let go, they can't seem to move on.
In her interview, Jenny described this book as less of a "will they won't they" (which I find incredibly tedious) and more of a "should they shouldn't they" (which was far more enjoyable). I really felt conflicted over all the reasons they don't fit, but wanting them to make it work regardless. It was very introspective, and a bit of a character study on human nature and relationships. The truth is, I really fell for these characters and all their idiosyncrasies. They were flawed but they felt so real.
Another thing I loved was that this was a dual perspective, and both Sam and Luc had very distinct voices, so it was always very clear to tell whose POV we were in. In cases where the two differed, it really helped to show both sides of the argument, so we as the reader could see that both of them had perfectly sound reasoning and it was impossible to pick a side.
Jenny perfectly captured the struggle of being from a small part of the world, and the lure of a big city like London. I could understand Sam so acutely at times, with her conflict about being away from her family and where she grew up vs. a place where things actually happen. It ached.
I cried, multiple times, especially in the second half where things got very heavy. I won't spoil it, but it was very intense.
I need to buy a paperback copy of this asap, since I couldn't bare to deface a signed copy. I want to turn back to the first page and start it all over again. I can't recommend it enough, and I can't wait to see what Jenny does next.
August 27, 2023
Dit is mijn normal people!!
July 8, 2025
"Our last irresponsible summer, the deep breath before the plunge"
Okay Days starts as a sweet romance between Sam and Luc during her summer stay in London.
This evolves into a much more real, Sally Rooney-esk story of two young people in their twenties learning about life, jobs, addiction, friends, responsiblity and true love.
This book is for anyone who is into Sally Rooney (Normal People, Conversations with Friends and Beautiful World, Where Are You) or André Aciman (Call Me By Your Name). A real, slow book with a love story that is more than realising you are into the other person. That does not end with a "1 year later" chapter at the end showing the FMC and MMC married and expecting...
Even though I didn't always identify with Sam and Luc when it came to their decisions. I could still follow their intentions. Young people make mistakes, learn about the world they live in, struggle with money and with finding the right place to stay and call home,...
Some of the quotes that I just had to mark:
🎬 "His eyes will zone in on you like he is actually listening instead of waiting for the moment to cut you off. The type who refills your glass before it is even emptied."
🎬 "To be honest I'd rather have two more miserable days with you than two okay days without."
🎬 "For this call to end, she will have to hang up because I never will."
🎬 "But I can't switch countries every time I fall for a boy."
🎬 "It doesn't matter that the flat is small, I don't want space between us anyway."
🎬 "We were too different. And the life she wanted was not mine."
Okay Days starts as a sweet romance between Sam and Luc during her summer stay in London.
This evolves into a much more real, Sally Rooney-esk story of two young people in their twenties learning about life, jobs, addiction, friends, responsiblity and true love.
This book is for anyone who is into Sally Rooney (Normal People, Conversations with Friends and Beautiful World, Where Are You) or André Aciman (Call Me By Your Name). A real, slow book with a love story that is more than realising you are into the other person. That does not end with a "1 year later" chapter at the end showing the FMC and MMC married and expecting...
Even though I didn't always identify with Sam and Luc when it came to their decisions. I could still follow their intentions. Young people make mistakes, learn about the world they live in, struggle with money and with finding the right place to stay and call home,...
Some of the quotes that I just had to mark:
🎬 "His eyes will zone in on you like he is actually listening instead of waiting for the moment to cut you off. The type who refills your glass before it is even emptied."
🎬 "To be honest I'd rather have two more miserable days with you than two okay days without."
🎬 "For this call to end, she will have to hang up because I never will."
🎬 "But I can't switch countries every time I fall for a boy."
🎬 "It doesn't matter that the flat is small, I don't want space between us anyway."
🎬 "We were too different. And the life she wanted was not mine."
July 7, 2023
Oh my, this book and the VIBES 🥹🤌It is quite hard to summarise why I fell so hard for this book but the sparse yet sharply observant prose of the mundane - everything that we feel and do - felt so real and held so much meaning in a given scene. The story of Luc and Sam is a modern love story. They first met as teenagers where they showed signs of affection for each other. A decade later, Sam and Luc meet again in London as Sam is on a summer placement from her home town in Stockholm.
During the summer months, Sam and Luc build a relationship that is intense, passionate and loving but also fraught with bursts of insecurities, anxieties and misunderstanding. They so desperately want to make their relationship work but given their own headspace and mental health struggles, the relationship is bumpy, painful and I felt torn whether they should be together or not. I love that Jenny shares the narrative through both Sam and Luc’s perspective, giving us an insight into how they both interpret the other and realistically shows two sides to any relationship.
As mentioned in my stories, I chewed over the prose slowly and savoured every word, moment and feeling. It is a stylish and sexy read. I also found parts of the dialogue quite funny, particularly Sam’s blunt observations. I loved both characters but interestingly I found myself siding with Luc more as Sam’s behaviour felt quite self-absorbed and immature at times. The ups and downs and push and pull of the relationship was so relatable and I did empathise with them both. Also special mention to Diwa and Luc’s father who are both delightful.
Lastly this book is a love letter to London which forms the backdrop to this story. Sam feels torn leaving this love of her life, in addition to Luc. The descriptions of London, good and bad, are vivid and immersive. As a Londoner myself, it feels so great to read a book that shows so much love for this great city particularly in the sticky summer months like in the book!
If you love Sally Rooney, character driven books like Cleo and Frank, then I highly recommend this beautiful read which is out now 💛
During the summer months, Sam and Luc build a relationship that is intense, passionate and loving but also fraught with bursts of insecurities, anxieties and misunderstanding. They so desperately want to make their relationship work but given their own headspace and mental health struggles, the relationship is bumpy, painful and I felt torn whether they should be together or not. I love that Jenny shares the narrative through both Sam and Luc’s perspective, giving us an insight into how they both interpret the other and realistically shows two sides to any relationship.
As mentioned in my stories, I chewed over the prose slowly and savoured every word, moment and feeling. It is a stylish and sexy read. I also found parts of the dialogue quite funny, particularly Sam’s blunt observations. I loved both characters but interestingly I found myself siding with Luc more as Sam’s behaviour felt quite self-absorbed and immature at times. The ups and downs and push and pull of the relationship was so relatable and I did empathise with them both. Also special mention to Diwa and Luc’s father who are both delightful.
Lastly this book is a love letter to London which forms the backdrop to this story. Sam feels torn leaving this love of her life, in addition to Luc. The descriptions of London, good and bad, are vivid and immersive. As a Londoner myself, it feels so great to read a book that shows so much love for this great city particularly in the sticky summer months like in the book!
If you love Sally Rooney, character driven books like Cleo and Frank, then I highly recommend this beautiful read which is out now 💛
October 3, 2024
seelenverwandtschaft oder toxische beziehung? diese frage spaltet die buchcommunity, wenn es um bücher geht, die realitätsnahe beziehungen mit komplexen charakteren beinhaltet.
sam ist eine lebenshungrige junge frau, die nach etwas sucht, dass sie selbst noch nicht benennen kann. luc hat in sam alles gefunden, was er zum leben braucht.
mit diesen gegensätzlichen erwartungen gehen die beiden in die beziehung. denn lieber verbringen sie miese tage zusammen, als okaye tage allein.
in »okaye tage« schauen wir sam&luc beim leben und lieben zu. wir sehen sie fallen und wachsen. sowohl sam als auch luc sind grad dabei sich selbst zu finden, sich zu formen und dazuzulernen. genau so wie alle, die sich in ihren 20ern befinden.
die nahbarkeit und verletzlichkeit machen das buch zu einem highlight, welches ich so schnell nicht mehr vergessen werde.
sam ist eine lebenshungrige junge frau, die nach etwas sucht, dass sie selbst noch nicht benennen kann. luc hat in sam alles gefunden, was er zum leben braucht.
mit diesen gegensätzlichen erwartungen gehen die beiden in die beziehung. denn lieber verbringen sie miese tage zusammen, als okaye tage allein.
in »okaye tage« schauen wir sam&luc beim leben und lieben zu. wir sehen sie fallen und wachsen. sowohl sam als auch luc sind grad dabei sich selbst zu finden, sich zu formen und dazuzulernen. genau so wie alle, die sich in ihren 20ern befinden.
die nahbarkeit und verletzlichkeit machen das buch zu einem highlight, welches ich so schnell nicht mehr vergessen werde.
June 4, 2023
I adored this book. I’m struggling to comprehend how this is the authors debut, because it feels like a seasoned pro wrote this. I loved reading through the buddy romance between two people, that initial honeymoon phase where everything is new and shiny, and then when the feeling of bliss subsides and some problems arise, just how quickly their differences can tear down the walls.
We go between dual timelines of the past and present as we work through it all and the pacing was beautiful, I was never truly sure where their story would end though as the two were drawn to each other even while seeing other people.
This is an incredible book that should on everyones TBR.
Thank you to Sceptre for sending me a proof of this one.
We go between dual timelines of the past and present as we work through it all and the pacing was beautiful, I was never truly sure where their story would end though as the two were drawn to each other even while seeing other people.
This is an incredible book that should on everyones TBR.
Thank you to Sceptre for sending me a proof of this one.
November 17, 2023
I bought the book in a very nice bookstore because it said that Sally Rooney and Naoise Dolan fans will love this book. This is absolutely misleading and totally false as the writing does not even come close to the wit and intelligence of these two writers. I feel tricked by the publisher as well as the bookstore. Therefore, I am writing my first book review. Other readers may like this book, but it should be clear that the story is neither literary, interesting nor intelligent - it might be a flat, easy story for young people in London.
The book is about the love story of Sam and Lucas, who seem to be the exact representatives of the author and her husband. The couple falls in love in London when they’re navigating their twenties. They’re basically hanging out and doing nothing. The underlying theme is whether or not they will give their love a chance, but very early on it seems clear that they are absolutely decided to be together (regardless of minor hiccups), so that then the rest of the book is pointless.
The beginning of the book is entertaining and maybe also beautifully written. If it ended when Sam decides to move back to London, it would have been a light, simple love story. However, then the author just keeps describing their life, which is absolutely boring for the rest of the book. I could not finish it because it was too annoying, even though I liked the beginning. After a while it is clear that the entire book Sam & Lucas are just describing how they’re obsessed with each other. They behave like the couples that become one when they get together and therefore really annoying for the rest of the world. It reminds me of little girl fantasies to meet their prince charming, only that this fantasy is reciprocated by Luc. Sam repeatedly claims to be feminist and that really bothered me, that a character with so little depth and interests other than her prince charming is trying to appeal to feminist readers. Furthermore, both characters seem like pretentious douche bags who do not seem to be concerned with what the friends in their lives might think or feel. Lucas’ perspective does not seem plausible, towards the middle of the book his narrative sounds actually like Sam’s narrative. Other than looking good he is portrayed as totally submissive, who adapts his habits to his current partner. The problem is not his behaviour though, but that his behaviour is not questioned in the book, as if the author is incapable to reflect on her character’s behaviours. This might be because the similarities of the characters and the author’s life, thus indicating an autobiographical text. Unfortunately, not everything that happens in your life is worth telling.
In summary, I think that the author published too quickly before working on her literary skills. If the manuscript would have been worked on with a very critical & challenging editor, it might even have had potential. It would require more soul searching. It is just important that people are not tricked into reading this book because it is by all means no new literary genius at work.
The book is about the love story of Sam and Lucas, who seem to be the exact representatives of the author and her husband. The couple falls in love in London when they’re navigating their twenties. They’re basically hanging out and doing nothing. The underlying theme is whether or not they will give their love a chance, but very early on it seems clear that they are absolutely decided to be together (regardless of minor hiccups), so that then the rest of the book is pointless.
The beginning of the book is entertaining and maybe also beautifully written. If it ended when Sam decides to move back to London, it would have been a light, simple love story. However, then the author just keeps describing their life, which is absolutely boring for the rest of the book. I could not finish it because it was too annoying, even though I liked the beginning. After a while it is clear that the entire book Sam & Lucas are just describing how they’re obsessed with each other. They behave like the couples that become one when they get together and therefore really annoying for the rest of the world. It reminds me of little girl fantasies to meet their prince charming, only that this fantasy is reciprocated by Luc. Sam repeatedly claims to be feminist and that really bothered me, that a character with so little depth and interests other than her prince charming is trying to appeal to feminist readers. Furthermore, both characters seem like pretentious douche bags who do not seem to be concerned with what the friends in their lives might think or feel. Lucas’ perspective does not seem plausible, towards the middle of the book his narrative sounds actually like Sam’s narrative. Other than looking good he is portrayed as totally submissive, who adapts his habits to his current partner. The problem is not his behaviour though, but that his behaviour is not questioned in the book, as if the author is incapable to reflect on her character’s behaviours. This might be because the similarities of the characters and the author’s life, thus indicating an autobiographical text. Unfortunately, not everything that happens in your life is worth telling.
In summary, I think that the author published too quickly before working on her literary skills. If the manuscript would have been worked on with a very critical & challenging editor, it might even have had potential. It would require more soul searching. It is just important that people are not tricked into reading this book because it is by all means no new literary genius at work.
September 13, 2024
To say I devoured this book would be an understatement. I just picked it up one day, and couldn’t put it down until I had turned the last page.
Okay Days tells the story of Sam and Luc, from alternating perspectives, as they navigate life in their 20s both together and individually. But, to quote the famous lines from a film I love, ‘This is not a love story. This is a story about love.’ It’s at times chaotic, at times messy, and at times deeply romantic, but always an absolute joy to be part of.
I can’t pinpoint what exactly it is about this book that made me fall for it so hard. The beautiful writing? The relatable characters? The city I love? Or perhaps just the combination of it all, and how it manages to create something extraordinary out of the ordinary lives of two strangers that so quickly became part of my life. It got under my skin in the best way possible, and tugged right on my heartstrings. Jenny Mustard has such a specific talent in the way her writing oozes emotion, both characters’ perspectives so characteristic, both uniquely heart-wrenching yet blissful to observe.
And how atmospheric it all is. London, the third main character in this story, comes alive so spectacularly in the writing that it’s impossible not to sense it all around you. Experiencing Sam and Luc go to the places I go to regularly, see things similarly or differently, and above all just feel at home here made me fall in love with this city all over again. As real as the relationship is between the two characters, so is the relationship between Sam and London, and, as someone who still feels lucky to be home here when not long ago I was an outsider, to have my feelings and experiences be mirrored in this was was such a treat.
Please pick up this instant new favourite this summer. Just a note that some of the more delicate topics tacked in the story are body dysmorphia, reproductive rights, and the loss of a parent.
Okay Days is out 27 June, and is a great match for sunny days to come. Thank you to Sceptre for sending me an advance copy of this gem!
Okay Days tells the story of Sam and Luc, from alternating perspectives, as they navigate life in their 20s both together and individually. But, to quote the famous lines from a film I love, ‘This is not a love story. This is a story about love.’ It’s at times chaotic, at times messy, and at times deeply romantic, but always an absolute joy to be part of.
I can’t pinpoint what exactly it is about this book that made me fall for it so hard. The beautiful writing? The relatable characters? The city I love? Or perhaps just the combination of it all, and how it manages to create something extraordinary out of the ordinary lives of two strangers that so quickly became part of my life. It got under my skin in the best way possible, and tugged right on my heartstrings. Jenny Mustard has such a specific talent in the way her writing oozes emotion, both characters’ perspectives so characteristic, both uniquely heart-wrenching yet blissful to observe.
And how atmospheric it all is. London, the third main character in this story, comes alive so spectacularly in the writing that it’s impossible not to sense it all around you. Experiencing Sam and Luc go to the places I go to regularly, see things similarly or differently, and above all just feel at home here made me fall in love with this city all over again. As real as the relationship is between the two characters, so is the relationship between Sam and London, and, as someone who still feels lucky to be home here when not long ago I was an outsider, to have my feelings and experiences be mirrored in this was was such a treat.
Please pick up this instant new favourite this summer. Just a note that some of the more delicate topics tacked in the story are body dysmorphia, reproductive rights, and the loss of a parent.
Okay Days is out 27 June, and is a great match for sunny days to come. Thank you to Sceptre for sending me an advance copy of this gem!
April 16, 2023
Summary:
Okay Days tells the story of the relationship and love between Sam and Lucas.
Sam meets Luc while temporarily working a job in London at a top Marketing Agency. Their relationship has an expiry date when she returns to Sweden. But despite it all they can’t let each other go.
The story tells the highs and falls of their relationship.
Review:
‘So our working theory is that our differences would either hold us both back from the lives we want, or evolve us into calmer looser future selves? So either catastrophe or quite sublime?’
This is a refreshing, modern take on love and relationships in the real world. There is no ‘they lived happily ever after’ but the more realistic version means their love for each other means so much more.
I found Sam hard to like at first but as the book progressed, the author really brings her to life and shows the complexities of thinking that lead to some of the questionable decisions she makes.
I loved Luc and loved that he grew stronger as the story progressed. I wanted to shout at Sam to hold onto him tight and never let him go.
The side characters added to the story and I loved the friendship dynamic between them all.
An inspiring story about love, loss and maturing. I wholeheartedly recommend.
Fans of Sally Rooney will love this book.
Okay Days tells the story of the relationship and love between Sam and Lucas.
Sam meets Luc while temporarily working a job in London at a top Marketing Agency. Their relationship has an expiry date when she returns to Sweden. But despite it all they can’t let each other go.
The story tells the highs and falls of their relationship.
Review:
‘So our working theory is that our differences would either hold us both back from the lives we want, or evolve us into calmer looser future selves? So either catastrophe or quite sublime?’
This is a refreshing, modern take on love and relationships in the real world. There is no ‘they lived happily ever after’ but the more realistic version means their love for each other means so much more.
I found Sam hard to like at first but as the book progressed, the author really brings her to life and shows the complexities of thinking that lead to some of the questionable decisions she makes.
I loved Luc and loved that he grew stronger as the story progressed. I wanted to shout at Sam to hold onto him tight and never let him go.
The side characters added to the story and I loved the friendship dynamic between them all.
An inspiring story about love, loss and maturing. I wholeheartedly recommend.
Fans of Sally Rooney will love this book.
June 29, 2023
Okay Days follows our two characters Sam and Luc as they navigate life in their 20s in London (and sometimes Stockholm). It is a gritty heartfelt story about their relationship and questions not "will they won't they? but should they shouldn't they?" (quote from the lovely author).
This was such a refreshing story about not just falling in love but also what happens afterwards when you start to question if your connection is enough. Both Sam and Luc had such distinct voices I never had to question whose chapter I was reading. The timeline of the novel was a perfect depiction of how Sam and Luc lose track of time in the intensity of their relationship. At times their relationship was heart wrenching, sometimes chaotic and always beautiful. The writing is written so well that you are fully immersed into the minds of these characters and empathise sincerely with them.
There was something about the simple pleasure of mundane things like sharing spotify playlists. No matter how small these mundane things carried great significance throughout the novel. It's made me want to make a spotify playlist of all the songs mentioned so you can listen to it while reading the book.
Let me tell you the way Jenny described London just made fall in love with the city over and over and over again. I might even be tempted to move there now. It was so lovely recognising places I've visited and seeing it from the character's perspectives.
Jenny touches upon themes of male eating disorders, parent loss, imposter syndrome and women's reproductive rights.
I have been following Jenny on social media for 7 years so when she started writing a book I was so so so excited. It's been a pleasure to follow Jenny on her writing journey from her talking about her short stories to a fully published novel. Jenny did not disappoint with this novel. The book felt like a breath of fresh air on a Sunday morning. I cannot wait to see what is in store in the future with Jenny's writing career.
"I'd rather have two miserable days with you than two okay davs without."
This was such a refreshing story about not just falling in love but also what happens afterwards when you start to question if your connection is enough. Both Sam and Luc had such distinct voices I never had to question whose chapter I was reading. The timeline of the novel was a perfect depiction of how Sam and Luc lose track of time in the intensity of their relationship. At times their relationship was heart wrenching, sometimes chaotic and always beautiful. The writing is written so well that you are fully immersed into the minds of these characters and empathise sincerely with them.
There was something about the simple pleasure of mundane things like sharing spotify playlists. No matter how small these mundane things carried great significance throughout the novel. It's made me want to make a spotify playlist of all the songs mentioned so you can listen to it while reading the book.
Let me tell you the way Jenny described London just made fall in love with the city over and over and over again. I might even be tempted to move there now. It was so lovely recognising places I've visited and seeing it from the character's perspectives.
Jenny touches upon themes of male eating disorders, parent loss, imposter syndrome and women's reproductive rights.
I have been following Jenny on social media for 7 years so when she started writing a book I was so so so excited. It's been a pleasure to follow Jenny on her writing journey from her talking about her short stories to a fully published novel. Jenny did not disappoint with this novel. The book felt like a breath of fresh air on a Sunday morning. I cannot wait to see what is in store in the future with Jenny's writing career.
"I'd rather have two miserable days with you than two okay davs without."
May 27, 2023
4.5 stars!
"She pulls back and gives me a smack kiss. 'There. Better?' 'Do it again,' I say and kiss her hard and she laughs through her nose. My lips now taste of grapefruit and oil, and her lip balm is added to the smells my brain will associate with her. Another day, wanting to be transported back to this tube ride, I will only have to buy a grapefruit."
When I heard that Jenny Mustard was releasing her own novel, I knew I HAD to read it.
'Okay Days' follows Sam and Lucas, who meet at a party in London and find an instant connection. Ten years later, despite complications between them, all they want is to be together and we follow their paths to fight the expectations set before them. Mustard's use of environmental descriptions allows us to be transported to sweltering summer days in London and icy autumn nights in Stockholm.
For lovers of Gabrielle Zevin's 'Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow', 'Okay Days' depicts complex and flawed characters that may not often make the right decisions. I really enjoyed the use of the first-person p.o.v. that would switch between Sam and Luc so we are able to experience both sides of their story. The romance is not overly-fluffy, and I found it to be very realistic, as imperfect traits from both Sam and Luc are exposed. It's a truly brilliant summer read to get lost in!
Content Warnings: abortion, drugs
Read via Netgalley, and thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for providing an advanced copy in exchange for a review.
"She pulls back and gives me a smack kiss. 'There. Better?' 'Do it again,' I say and kiss her hard and she laughs through her nose. My lips now taste of grapefruit and oil, and her lip balm is added to the smells my brain will associate with her. Another day, wanting to be transported back to this tube ride, I will only have to buy a grapefruit."
When I heard that Jenny Mustard was releasing her own novel, I knew I HAD to read it.
'Okay Days' follows Sam and Lucas, who meet at a party in London and find an instant connection. Ten years later, despite complications between them, all they want is to be together and we follow their paths to fight the expectations set before them. Mustard's use of environmental descriptions allows us to be transported to sweltering summer days in London and icy autumn nights in Stockholm.
For lovers of Gabrielle Zevin's 'Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow', 'Okay Days' depicts complex and flawed characters that may not often make the right decisions. I really enjoyed the use of the first-person p.o.v. that would switch between Sam and Luc so we are able to experience both sides of their story. The romance is not overly-fluffy, and I found it to be very realistic, as imperfect traits from both Sam and Luc are exposed. It's a truly brilliant summer read to get lost in!
Content Warnings: abortion, drugs
Read via Netgalley, and thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for providing an advanced copy in exchange for a review.
July 4, 2023
I’m so picky with literary fiction but this WAS A MOMENT.
Without saying too much this follows the struggles of a relationship that feels monumental in a way that might just be too consuming.
It’s messy and raw, and really quite emotive at times. It’s about timing and want, and how those things may not always coincide.
Mustard’s writing is so beautifully strung together with descriptions that are poetic and at times utterly heartbreaking.
It was 4 stars for me due to slight repetition of emotions and scenes in the middle portion, but this was my only issue with the novel.
Thank you to Jenny for sending me a copy for review.
TW’s listed below, please skip if you don’t want vague spoilers.
Tw// alcohol, scenes with sex, death of a parent, abortion mentions, drug mentions & use, mentions of vomiting.
Without saying too much this follows the struggles of a relationship that feels monumental in a way that might just be too consuming.
It’s messy and raw, and really quite emotive at times. It’s about timing and want, and how those things may not always coincide.
Mustard’s writing is so beautifully strung together with descriptions that are poetic and at times utterly heartbreaking.
It was 4 stars for me due to slight repetition of emotions and scenes in the middle portion, but this was my only issue with the novel.
Thank you to Jenny for sending me a copy for review.
TW’s listed below, please skip if you don’t want vague spoilers.
Tw// alcohol, scenes with sex, death of a parent, abortion mentions, drug mentions & use, mentions of vomiting.
January 18, 2024
1.5
The title of this book is Okay Days, but my days weren't okay when I was reading it...
The title of this book is Okay Days, but my days weren't okay when I was reading it...
January 13, 2024
Nice writing but omg do we really need another form of media that is just a dull man and a manic pixie dream girl having insipid conversations on a loop?? We have had ENOUGH!!!
July 7, 2024
Nothing about this book was okay. I would love to say that I was just not the target audience, but I don’t even know who is the target audience. What was the point of this book? Who knows. I am very tolerant when people enjoyed books I did not and vice versa, but it is not the case, I want to have serious 1 on 1 talk with everyone who gave this book more than 3 stars, did we read the same book??
Nothing happened in a course of the book, and I mean it in the worst way possible. It was not “no plot just vibes” type of situation, it was no plot no vibes. It truthfully is just a cheap knock off version of normal people, and I'm saying it as someone who is not even remotely a fan of Sally Rooney’s works.“And he will be here. And I will be gone.” Look me in the eyes and tell me this doesn’t look like a line from normal people. Straight off copying and just slightly changing the words does not equal “being reminiscent of Sally Rooney” !
Book lacked cohesion, it wasn’t just messy, it was hard to read and keep up with every stunt those dumb characters pulled. There was a great opportunity for character development and in general a plot, female main character not wanting to give birth and have children, but it was wasted. This topic was mentioned only by the end and never properly discussed. Maybe I didn’t read between the lines and all of it was magically written somewhere I was too dumb to see, but as far as I remember, it was basically “I had an abortion, I don’t ever want to have kids” and its up to you to understand where it is coming from. It honestly felt like author paid attention to the wrong things, like, I couldn’t care less about their boba order. Both characters were so poorly written, they were beyond flat, none of their actions made sense, they just did what they did, with no reasoning given. Writing was just as messy and boring.
Quoting my beloved friend Madhura “author just info and metaphor dumped hoping it would turn into some sort of literary masterpiece” and she couldn’t be more right.
Nothing happened in a course of the book, and I mean it in the worst way possible. It was not “no plot just vibes” type of situation, it was no plot no vibes. It truthfully is just a cheap knock off version of normal people, and I'm saying it as someone who is not even remotely a fan of Sally Rooney’s works.“And he will be here. And I will be gone.” Look me in the eyes and tell me this doesn’t look like a line from normal people. Straight off copying and just slightly changing the words does not equal “being reminiscent of Sally Rooney” !
Book lacked cohesion, it wasn’t just messy, it was hard to read and keep up with every stunt those dumb characters pulled. There was a great opportunity for character development and in general a plot, female main character not wanting to give birth and have children, but it was wasted. This topic was mentioned only by the end and never properly discussed. Maybe I didn’t read between the lines and all of it was magically written somewhere I was too dumb to see, but as far as I remember, it was basically “I had an abortion, I don’t ever want to have kids” and its up to you to understand where it is coming from. It honestly felt like author paid attention to the wrong things, like, I couldn’t care less about their boba order. Both characters were so poorly written, they were beyond flat, none of their actions made sense, they just did what they did, with no reasoning given. Writing was just as messy and boring.
Quoting my beloved friend Madhura “author just info and metaphor dumped hoping it would turn into some sort of literary masterpiece” and she couldn’t be more right.
April 13, 2023
4.5⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this advanced e copy in exchange for an honest review.
This may be the best literary fiction novel I have ever read, and the fact that this is Jenny Mustard's debut makes it even more impressive.
Mustard removes the common miscommunication trophe and highlights that the reason why her protagonists' relationship is so turbulent is because of differences both Luc and Sam are keenly aware of. Fundamental differences which are equally understandable and justified.
This awareness accompanies a lack of pointless, unrealistic arguments and provides a refreshing will-they-wont-they situationship tale that made me dread doing any distraction from reading. While centred around a romance, this novel explores immigration imposter syndrome, the death of a parent, and male eating disorders with delicacy and empathy. These issues were not discomfortingly described or portrayed in depth, but they were frequently discussed and I found Mustard's depiction of how two people may cope with these issues to be insightful and realistic.
My one issue with this novel the colloquial writing style, which made some sentences difficult to read. While I often adored Mustard's casual descriptions and felt the first person dual narration worked excellently for this novel, how thoughts and actions were written as one would narrate them in real life sometimes did not make grammatical sense.
In short, I adored this novel, struggled to put it down, and can't wait to get my hands on a physical copy and to read more of Jenny Mustard's work in the future.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this advanced e copy in exchange for an honest review.
This may be the best literary fiction novel I have ever read, and the fact that this is Jenny Mustard's debut makes it even more impressive.
Mustard removes the common miscommunication trophe and highlights that the reason why her protagonists' relationship is so turbulent is because of differences both Luc and Sam are keenly aware of. Fundamental differences which are equally understandable and justified.
This awareness accompanies a lack of pointless, unrealistic arguments and provides a refreshing will-they-wont-they situationship tale that made me dread doing any distraction from reading. While centred around a romance, this novel explores immigration imposter syndrome, the death of a parent, and male eating disorders with delicacy and empathy. These issues were not discomfortingly described or portrayed in depth, but they were frequently discussed and I found Mustard's depiction of how two people may cope with these issues to be insightful and realistic.
My one issue with this novel the colloquial writing style, which made some sentences difficult to read. While I often adored Mustard's casual descriptions and felt the first person dual narration worked excellently for this novel, how thoughts and actions were written as one would narrate them in real life sometimes did not make grammatical sense.
In short, I adored this novel, struggled to put it down, and can't wait to get my hands on a physical copy and to read more of Jenny Mustard's work in the future.
May 4, 2023
Wow, what a piece of literary brilliance. Okay Days celebrates the mundanity of life, normalises struggling with mental health and epitomises the reality of hardships one faces when they branch out on their own as a young adult. The writing is relatable to the point where my heart broke for both the characters and my own self while reading.
I never quite understood what made a book someone’s comfort read, but in a heartbeat this became mine. I will be returning to this book many times over and recommending it far and wide.
I never quite understood what made a book someone’s comfort read, but in a heartbeat this became mine. I will be returning to this book many times over and recommending it far and wide.
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