I lost a large part of a weekend reading Who’s That Girl but it was definitely time very well spent. Mhairi McFarlane has come up with yet another cracker of a read. It starts with Edie at her office colleagues Jack and Charlotte’s wedding. At the very beginning she is musing how photos on social media can give a very misleading picture and my goodness doesn’t she find how just how badly social media can affect your life as the story goes on! To be fair, she was caught kissing the groom just hours after he promised to love his new bride until death did them part. Immediately, Edie is horrified at what has happened and tries to hide herself away from the fallout. She knows she can’t possibly go back to work in the same office and expects to resign. Her boss, the suave Richard, has other plans though recognising her talent and arranges for her to work in Nottingham, her home town, ghost writing the ‘autobiography’ of mega film star Elliot Owen. Of course, they get off on completely the wrong foot but soon become friends.
Now so far this sounds like a typical will-they-won’t-they kind of chick lit read but it’s not. Mhairi McFarlane has a real knack for showing the complications of everyday life for her characters. Despite the fact that Elliot is such a huge star, the friendship and working relationship between him and Edie seems completely natural. The reader is taken into the crazy world of celebrity along with Edie and can see how false it is.The characters feel like real people dealing with real issues. There is a lot of humour in the book but a lot of serious issues are addressed too such as the cyber-bullying which Edie has to deal with. Edie’s relationship with her family is very much a part of the story too. Her mother died when she was quite young and the family have never quite got over this and haven’t talked about it. Her dad was lovely and tried so hard to keep the peace between Edie and her spiky sister Meg – there were some terrific scenes between the battling sisters. Their neighbour Margot was hilariously eccentric and helped Edie to really think about what she wanted in life.
Who’s That Girl was, for me, a hugely satisfying read. With witty dialogue, feisty characters, a great plot and a healthy dose of romance Mhairi McFarlane has written another fabulous story which will please her many fans.
Thanks to the publishers Harper Collins for allowing me to read a review copy via Netgalley. Who’s The Girl in published today in hardback and as an ebook. You can order a copy here: Who’s That Girl
From the back of the book
An achingly funny story from the author of the bestselling YOU HAD ME AT HELLO
When Edie is caught in a compromising position at her colleagues’ wedding, all the blame falls on her – turns out that personal popularity in the office is not that different from your schooldays. Shamed online and ostracised by everyone she knows, Edie’s forced to take an extended sabbatical – ghostwriting an autobiography for hot new acting talent, Elliot Owen. Easy, right?
Wrong. Banished back to her home town of Nottingham, Edie is not only dealing with a man who probably hasn’t heard the word ‘no’ in a decade, but also suffering an excruciating regression to her teenage years as she moves back in with her widowed father and judgy, layabout sister.
When the world is asking who you are, it’s hard not to question yourself. Who’s that girl? Edie is ready to find out.
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