I suspect the material would have worked better in short essay-style pieces: as a novel this feels laboured and lacks dynamic forward movement. Really Good, Actually opens with the line My marriage ended because I was cruel and the narrator Maggie continues with a list of reasons her marriage ended. I give the author a lot of credit because she took a subject that is explored frequently in fiction, divorce, and yet came up with a story that felt fresh and new. Some of these reasons will be familiar to most longtime couples—“Or because he forgot our anniversary once”—while others seem quite specific to this couple—“Or because he kept insisting we go vegan, then sneaking pizzas into the apartment while I slept. I am awake WAY too early because I accidentally took a weeeee depression nap after learning about a family member's illness.

Really Good, Actually - Monica Heisey - Hardcover Really Good, Actually - Monica Heisey - Hardcover

like i previously mentioned, i read the audiobook and i highly recommend going that route if you decide to pick this one up. I'll admit to getting frustrated with her at times but to be honest that's kinda what made the book special. Some references mean nothing to me as a reader in the United Kingdom but will mean something to North American readers.

Hear Monica open up about navigating divorce at a young age, and how she found humour in heartbreak.

Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey | Waterstones Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey | Waterstones

This morning, after he left, I’d almost immediately taken a photo of myself, wanting to “preserve the moment” and entertaining grandiose ideas about this horrible loss marking the start of a very creatively generative time. Now she has time to take up nine hobbies, eat hamburgers at 4 am, and “get back out there” sex-wise.And it also had so much compassion for the protagonist even as she made mistakes and generally had compassion for heartbroken people everywhere. There’s certainly a breezy confidence to Heisey’s mode of storytelling via text messages and Tinder correspondence, but quickfire DM exchanges in an age of internet dating can also read like comedy sketches, obstructing the possibility of real insight. If you’ve ever felt lost and hoped that it was leading towards wisdom, Really Good, Actually is your novel. At once self-mocking and serious, Heisey’s whip-smart tale of Millennial disillusionment and dawning self-knowledge sends up ‘personal growth’ cliches while exploring friendship, sexuality, body image and online performativity . A prime example of how a storyteller's voice can pull you right in and keep you clinging to every sentence.