When I watched One Day on Netflix last year I was transported back to a time (many moons ago!) when I had loved reading the David Nicholls novel (despite the tears). I also loved Starter for Ten and Us, also now from quite a few years back. So, when You Are Here, Nicholls’ 2024 release became a topic of conversation amongst book lovers I follow, I made sure I got myself a copy. I was so excited to read this novel that I saved it for a holiday in the Lake District; only the highly anticipated ones get saved for holidays! Despite hearing it was a great book I didn’t actually know what the novel was about before I started it. Here is the synopsis:
‘Marnie is stuck.
Stuck working alone in her London flat, stuck battling the long afternoons and a life that increasingly 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 it 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.’ (Courtesy of Waterstones.)
Well, it just ended up being perfect that the walk that brings these two characters into each other's lives begins in Cumbria where I was on holiday at the time. I was familiar with many of the locations referenced and felt like I was on the adventure with them and the rest of the group. They embark on doing the early stages of the coast-to-coast walk which, in its entirety, spans 190 miles across the west coast of northern England to the east coast of northern England and can take up to two weeks to complete. Whilst Michael plans to walk more of the route than Marnie and the others, plans inevitably change along the way.
I loved the company of both Marnie and Michael from the beginning. Whilst they initially seem an unlikely pairing, with both being quite locked down with their emotions they were both immediately loveable. Marnie in particular had me laughing out loud on several occasions, she’s forthright, self-reflective and extremely relatable. But with Marnie being very attracted to another member of the party, what will this mean for any connection with Michael?
The third person narrative between the characters was executed so well and explored loneliness and what happens when life isn’t necessarily how you expected it to be at a certain point so well. The setting, just wow, I felt like I was on the walk with them, the beauty and appreciation for nature shone throughout - as the coast-to-coast walk is on my bucket list, I enjoyed this so much!
This novel yet again is full of warmth, hope, the importance and desire for love and connection (with people and nature!). I really enjoyed the story centering around the walk. Take away much of the mundane day-to-day life for the characters and this opened up the opportunities for these characters to really develop and begin to know each other and their surroundings. I admit that I was apprehensive about what the ending would bring, would I be crying again? All I’ll say is I felt the closing chapters were very fitting to the characters we got to know so well. I adored this book.
One Day
Us
A Question of Attraction
Listen to this book on Speechify!
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