Is She Really Going Out with Him?

by Sophie Cousens

Overview

A hilarious love story about a disillusioned divorcée who agrees to let her children play matchmaker.

Columnist Anna Appleby has left her love life behind after a painful divorce. Who needs a man when she has two kids, a cat, and uncontested control of the TV remote? Besides, she’d rather be single than subject herself to the hell of online dating. But her office rival is vying for her column, and no column means no stable source of income. In a desperate attempt to keep her job, Anna finds herself pitching a unique angle: seven dates, all found offline, chosen by her children.

From awkward encounters to unexpected connections, Anna gamely begins to put herself out there, asking out waiters, the mailman, and even her celebrity crush. But when a romantic connection appears where she least expected it, will she be brave enough to take another chance on love?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593718919
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	11/19/2024
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	368
Sales rank:	42,173

About the Author

Sophie Cousens worked as a TV producer in London for twelve years. She is now a full-time novelist and screenwriter who lives with her family on the island of Jersey, one of the Channel Islands. She is also the New York Times bestselling author of This Time Next Year, Just Haven’t Met You Yet, Before I Do, and The Good Part. Her work has been translated into twenty-one languages and her adaptation of This Time Next Year has been produced into a film.

Editorial Reviews

09/16/2024

In this appealing enemies-to-lovers romance, bestseller Cousens (The Good Part) pairs a stressed-out, recently divorced mother of two with her hot new coworker. The new owner of Bath Living magazine wants to reach a younger audience, so writer Anna Appleby needs to up her game. Otherwise, the annoying (and distractingly attractive) Will Havers will get her column and perhaps her job, too. Anna reluctantly agrees to write about the dating scene in Bath, England, and accepts her boss’s proposed hook: her preteen children will get to choose who she dates. The results are both awkward and amusing, sending Anna out with the morose father of one of their classmates, their waiter at a hip restaurant, and the forbidding next-door neighbor, among others. Will, with whom Anna grows closer the more they work together, begins to seem very appealing in contrast, especially as he proves himself to be unexpectedly kind. While the happily ever after is never in doubt, Cousens fills the path there with laughter and surprises, and strikes a good balance between romance and family life. This is a charmer. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

One of Bustle’s Best New Books of Fall 2024
One of BookBub’s Best Books of Fall 2024
One of Nerd Daily’s Most Anticipated Books of 2024
One of SheReads’ Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2024
One of LitHub’s Ultimate Fall 2024 Reading List


"[Cousens] delivers another refreshing novel that takes readers on an unexpected journey…Through a series of chaotic, charming, and surprising rendezvous, Anna begins to find herself again. . . . Complete with a cast of well-developed and memorable characters, Cousens expertly weaves together themes of self-discovery, romance, motherhood, and friendship, resulting in a rich story that is engrossing to the end with high appeal to women's lit readers." —Booklist (starred)

"Cousens has a well-earned reputation for writing delightful love stories, and this one more than delivers. The enemies-to-lovers chemistry between Anna and Will is both believable and steamy, and Cousens deftly plays with rom-com tropes while crafting a journey of self-discovery in the wake of divorce. It’s also refreshing to read a slightly older heroine—Anna is in her late 30s, an age that often seems nonexistent in romances—with an established life, career, and children. A supremely satisfying love story with all the charm readers have come to expect from Cousens." —Kirkus Reviews (starred)

"This is a charmer." —Publishers Weekly

"Three words: rivals-to-lovers, and I’m obsessed! Is She Really Going Out with Him? is a love letter to us messy readers who obsess over gossip columns and all the piping hot tea. It’s How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days meets He's Just Not That Into You with all the sizzling chemistry of an Emily Henry novel, and Sophie Cousens does it best!” —Ashley Poston, New York Times bestselling author of A Novel Love Story, The Dead Romantics, and The Seven Year Slip

"Clever, thought-provoking, and oh-so-funny, Sophie Cousens’s latest novel will make anyone consider all their potential mates—and the best and worst dates. Original and witty, this novel is a true delight, one that had me reading non-stop to find out what happened and making me miss the characters once it ended. Who says parents can’t have fun?!" —Zibby Owens, bestselling author of Blank, host of Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books

"Is She Really Going Out with Him has all the ingredients to become your next favorite read: a protagonist you can root for, a mysterious love interest you’ll (eventually) swoon over, iconic dating scenes that will leave you in stitches, and a path to love that’s sweet, fun, and uplifting. Cousens is a master at writing enchanting, laugh-out-loud stories that tug at your heartstrings. You will be charmed!" —Mia Sosa, USA Today bestselling author of The Worst Best Man

"Zippy dialogue, a great cast, and a delicious enemies to lovers plot made me want to turn my phone off and read in one sitting. . . . Charming, with so much heart and Cousens’ trademark wit—a fab read." —Cesca Major, author of Maybe Next Time
 
"Sophie Cousens has been one of my favorite writers for years now, and with Is She Really Going Out With Him? proves that she is only getting better and better with each book. This book has it all: heart, humor, and buckets of charm. Anna's journey was completely captivating and yet entirely relatable, while Will is a deliciously swoony hero. Cousens has done it again!" —Falon Ballard, author of Right on Cue

"Brimming with Cousens’ trademark wit, charm, and richly drawn characters, Is She Really Going Out With Him is a page-turning romance that spotlights parenthood, community, and knowing your worth. I'll read anything Sophie Cousens writes!" —Ellie Palmer, author of Four Weekends and a Funeral

"Sophie Cousens masterfully slips another gorgeous life lesson between page after page of pitch perfect jokes and a romance that builds just right. This one might be her most touching yet - that the path back to ourselves is always through the eyes of the people that love us most." —Jessie Rosen, author of The Heirloom

From the Publisher

★ 2024-07-19
A recently divorced woman lets her kids set her up with eligible men, only to find herself falling for someone unexpected.

British magazine writer Anna Appleby has sworn off love. After the depressing and drawn-out end to her marriage, she doesn’t believe in romance—and she’s definitely not into online dating. But when Will Havers, a younger, way-too-cocky fellow writer, starts angling to take over her column, Anna needs to step it up. So she pitches a new column idea: She’ll go out on dates with men chosen by her children. Will, meanwhile, will write a companion column about his adventures in online dating. Anna’s kid-chosen dates—with everyone from a dad at their school to the mail carrier to a celebrity—end up charmingly awkward or downright disastrous. (Who knew a fishing date could end with a hook to the face?) Meanwhile, Anna has to deal with the frustration of seeing her ex-husband move on. It’s only when she spends more time with Will that she starts to feel the sparks she never thought she’d experience again—but he’s her office rival, and isn’t he trying to take her job? That’s difficult to remember, though, when the sexual tension between them is driving her to distraction. Cousens has a well-earned reputation for writing delightful love stories, and this one more than delivers. The enemies-to-lovers chemistry between Anna and Will is both believable and steamy, and Cousens deftly plays with rom-com tropes while crafting a journey of self-discovery in the wake of divorce. It’s also refreshing to read a slightly older heroine—Anna is in her late 30s, an age that often seems nonexistent in romances—with an established life, career, and children.

A supremely satisfying love story with all the charm readers have come to expect from Cousens.

Kirkus Reviews