Hi reader and thanks for stopping by!

I’ve been very busy enjoying the start of spring in the northern hemisphere. I’ve bagged three summits already, walked goodness knows how many miles across Scotland, the Lake District, the Peak District and the gorgeous Yorkshire Dales and the nearby wolds.

I’ve cooed at many a gorgeous little lamb (lambing season in the UK is my absolute FAVOURITE!) and I’ve spent some time sowing seeds and hoping that I’ll grow some gorgeous beautiful flowers for summer.

I’ve been reading of course, although at a slow and steady pace. This year I promised myself that I’d slow down, be more mindful of my surroundings, go on adventures and take things easier than I had the last couple of years. That meant no reading goals, no over booked diaries and plenty of movement and fresh air.

Here’s a few snaps of some recent Summit hikes I’ve been on:

Now if all of this hiking talk and snaps of hills is awakening your inner adventurer, let me introduce you to my next review – and hopefully your new favourite read for 2024.

You Are Here, by David Nicholls

That’s right, bestselling Author of One Day (which has just had a well timed revival thanks to Netflix who recently launched a 14 episode series adaptation of the book), ‘Starter for Ten’ and ‘Us’ is BACK with a brand new romance novel!

Here’s the synopsis:

‘Sometimes you need to get lost to find your way.

Marnie is stuck. 
Stuck working alone in her London flat, stuck battling the long afternoons and a life that often feels like it’s passing her by.

Michael is coming undone. 
Reeling from his wife’s departure, increasingly reclusive, taking himself on long, solitary walks across the moors and fells. 

When a persistent mutual friend and some very English weather conspire to bring them together, Marnie and Michael suddenly find themselves alone on the most epic of walks and on the precipice of a new friendship.

But can they survive the journey?

A new love story by beloved bestseller David Nicholls, You Are Here is a novel of first encounters, second chances and finding the way home.’

One thing I knew before starting this read from Nicholls’ other works, is that he has this beautiful ability to write well rounded, relatable, tender characters that stay with people for a very long time after reading, so I began this novel with a lot of excitement to meet our protagonists.

Marnie is 38 and Michael is 42, both going through a difficult lonely time after failed marriages. Michael is a geography teacher in York, working alongside his friend Cleo. Marnie is a copy editor living alone in London, lonely and without a social life, for all her friends have married, moved away, had kids or all of the above. She is also a friend of Cleo, who organises a group multi-day hike from the Lake District with Michael, Marnie, Cleo’s family, a guy called Conrad and a woman called Tessa (although we dont ever meet her). This group hike is how Michael and Marnie come to meet.

Whilst Marnie’s energy is bouncy and vibrant, Michael’s recent life experiences have left him very low. He is not looking after his appearance and is living in a rather depressive state, grieving for what he has lost. It’s very much night and day when the two personalities meet.

As a group, we then set off on our adventure, of both a 190 mile cross country hike from the west to east coast of England devised by Wainwright and of a blossoming ‘will they, won’t they?’ romance.

CAN’T PUT IT DOWN RATING: 5/5.

How it made me feel:

I cannot put into words how much joy this book brought me.

From the beautiful descriptions of the walks Marnie and Michael set out on (mostly genuine but with some artistic license!), to the use of the maps to guide us, to the belly laugh moments and tender sweet spots on the page.

The prose and our characters are so warm and compelling, with dialogue written with expert emotion and chemistry between them. Even Michael, who can be a difficult character to read at times, is a pleasure to get to know amongst the pages.

This is a slow, will they won’t they romance, a ‘getting to know you’ over the course of a 190 mile cross country hike. It’s forced proximity in that their friend has put them in a group together, although Marnie and Michael’s connection was not at all Cleo’s intention. It is through the mutual understanding of feeling alone and misunderstood that both Marnie and Michael can relate.

At first, they find companionship on their hike, then friendship, then slowly…romance. The dynamic and chemistry between the two characters is so positive and at times raw, honest, but it’s always genuine. It’s a beautiful, slow journey – nothing feels forced or rushed.

My favourite laugh out loud moment:

The preparation prior to the hike for Marnie, who is not a hiker or an outdoor lover in the slightest, had me in absolute stitches. I was only 8% of the way into this book and I had read parts out to my husband for us to both have a good giggle at numerous times. She is so relatable, warm, quick witted and hilarious, which makes it even more sad as a reader that she is lonely and feels lost.

There’s a moment early on in the book where Marnie goes to an outdoors shop to try to buy what she’ll think she needs for a multi-day hike. This was so relatable that it was almost like Nicholls had been on a recent shopping trip with me and wrote about it. I took my husband on his first hike earlier this year and we had a similar experience to what Marnie did in her internal thoughts, discussing the benefits of a waterproof map case, the need for a compass, trying out a little hike over the shop multi terrain bridge to try out new boots and much browsing of waterproof clothing. I felt instantly connected to Marnie and she was without doubt my favourite character.

The Characters:

I loved Marnie’s enthusiastic, energetic character. It made sense that she would live in London, amongst the buzz, and also why she would feel lonely without friends to socialise with.

Here’s one of my favourite Marnie moments :

‘This was the razzle-dazzle she brought down to dinner. The bar was suddenly busy with what’s called ‘an older crowd’, hunched male backs in olive green, and she felt absurdly overdressed in her small black dress, Audrey Hepburn addressing the National Farmers Union. She ordered a gin and tonic, a double, the glass as large as an astronaut’s helmet, taking such a deep gulp that she almost sucked it on to her face. Time to summon up that metropolitan air. She wiped lipstick from the rim with her thumb. The rest of the group was already seated and as she approached, too far from the table, she shouted, ‘I think I smell of cow shit,’ effervescent, fascinating, an enigma to all.’

The characters I didn’t connect with were Conrad and Cleo. I didn’t feel like Conrad was a genuine character, he felt like an obstacle for storyline purposes more than anything else. I also didn’t really care for Cleo, she honestly did feel like a bit of a rubbish friend to both Michael and Marnie, but in the end none of that really mattered for me. The book was such a joy to read and Michael and Marnie are characters you care so much about, I didnt really want to focus too much on other characters.

‘There’s something about walking. Things slip out. It’s like taking a truth serum or something.’

If you enjoyed ‘The Humans’ by Matt Haig, I think you’ll really love this. Both have romantic story lines that aren’t ‘in your face romance’, have moments of huge self discovery and self development, and leave you feeling warm and fuzzy.

This warm, hilarious novel is out for you to purchase on Tuesday 23/04/24 in the UK, so you can either pre-order now or pick it up next week!

Huge thanks to the publisher Hodder & Stoughton for my Advanced Reading Copy.

In summary:

I expect this one to rocket from the shelves and be another best seller for David Nicholls. Are you a reader of his fiction and if so which book has been your favourite so far? Will you be buying this novel when it’s released? Let me know in the comments!

Thanks as always for reading, I hope you’ve enjoyed and youre feeling inspired, both to read and explore the outdoors!

Until the next Chapter,

Emma, X0

Instagram: @papyrusandpeppermint