Name: The Lonely Fajita
ISBN: 9780008393687

Abigail Mann

‘Abigail Mann is a sparky new talent on the scene. The Lonely Fajita is comforting, witty, wise and thoroughly entertaining. (And it made me crave fajitas)’ Milly Johnson

The Lonely Fajita

readwithJLH

I’ve felt so down, empty and really needed a pick me up, which is exactly what this book gave me: 

I’m adore the elderly and I would 100% be so happy to do co-icing like Elissa does. 

I loved the character building in this book, the progression of the story and the way the whole book develops. 

Thank you to Abigail for writing a book that just lets you escape when things are a bit tough as you just need a break! Also, the cover photo is so relatable!

'Abigail Mann is a sparky new talent on the scene. The Lonely Fajita is comforting, witty, wise and thoroughly entertaining. (And it made me crave fajitas)' Milly Johnson Breaking up is hard to do... Or the best thing that could happen to you! It's Elissa's birthday, but her boyfriend hasn't really noticed - and she's accidentally scheduled herself a cervical smear instead of celebration drinks. Great. Then there's her borderline-psychotic boss, the fact she's not making but losing money at work, and her sinking feeling she's about to be dumped. But Elissa will soon find out that being single doesn't have to be lonely... And with a little help from her friends, even a girl with minus £1,000 in her account can have a lot of fun. Hilarious and moving, this is a book you'll want to share with all your friends. The perfect read for fans of Marian Keyes, Sophie Ranald and Holly Bourne. Shortlisted for a 2019 Comedy Women in Print Prize Readers love The Lonely Fajita... 'I relished this witty, tender story of loneliness, growth and friendship. Mann has a fabulous knack of finding the funny in life's small detail' Pernille Hughes 'This book had me in stitches from the beginning!' ***** '2020's feel-good must-read ... witty and wonderful' ***** 'Pure joy in a book ... perfect escapism' ***** 'If you like Beth O'Leary, this is absolutely the book for you!' ***** 'Laugh-out-loud funny, an addictive storyline with very well-thought-out characters and a touching friendship' *****

Anika | @chaptersofmay

This ARC has been generously provided in exchange for an honest review. Thanks HarperCollins UK & NetGalley!

The Lonely Fajita is a modern story of Elissa Evans, a 26-year-old social media manager on the edge of homelessness who suddenly finds herself single and moving in with an elderly person Evergeen Village, London. This effortless and amusing story was really easy to read. I finished it in 24 hours!

The first thing I noticed is that I didn’t love the protagonist, Elissa. I actually liked her friends more than I liked her. There were a lot of moments where I wanted to grab this character by the shoulders and shake her into reality. And there were countless times where I just wondered what on earth she was thinking, some of the selfish and thoughtless choices she made frustrated me. Generally, she really struggled to get it together, even staying in a job with a psycho boss and an unfair wage. She settled for a lot of things that she definitely didn’t deserve. 

I also didn’t like a lot of the secondary characters, such as Elissa’s flatmates or the other residents at Everygreen Village. However, I think the author’s intention was for the reader to despise Craig, and that was perfectly achieved. 

My favourite character was Annie, the elderly lady who takes a liking to Elissa and allows her into her home. Annie is a Yorkshire lass (like myself), and a very smart, self-aware, and layered character. She has her flaws, but was a bright and notable part of the story. I loved her backstory, her authentic personality and of course, her Yorkshire accent. 

My biggest issue with The Lonely Fajita was the pacing. It was just so slow! While it was humorous, and entertaining in some parts, I felt a lot like I was reading large chunks of text without actually getting anywhere. The temptation to skim through grew stronger and harder to resist as Elissa’s life continued to sit in the same place. I was looking forward to seeing some real growth in Elissa’s character, I wanted her to develop a love for herself, her career and her life. I was waiting for the lightbulb moment full of inspiration and excitement that usually comes with contemporary books focused on 20-somethings. Unfortunately, I found her story anticlimactic.

The book has been described as a feel-good romantic comedy. And while there are comedic, feel-good moments, there’s next to no romance in the book. The hopeless romantic in me wasn’t excited by any dreamy prospects in the story. It’s certainly a fun book, and the author has a skill for well-timed, relatable comedy. It doesn’t feel loaded down with jokes, or like the author is trying too hard. 

While The Lonely Fajita struggled to evoke any emotion or memorable moments for me, it did make me laugh and was definitely a light and easy read, perfect for fans of contemporary fiction. 

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Anyaconda

The premise sounded interesting and it was marketed as "utterly relatable feel-good comedy".
Instead of utterly relating and feeling good I could only shake my head at Elissa's life and relationship choices and I wanted to shake her to make her wake up.
She leads a very problematic relationship, lets herself being exploited and treated horribly at work and the only thing she can think of is how she wants to go out dancing and drinking.
That was just sad.
I also feel like that she didn't get any support from family or friends. The idea of sharing space with an elderly lady was great, but wasn't done very well. 
Annie was the most interesting character, but I couldn't care less about Elissa's whining and feeling sorry for herself.
I was missing some major breakthrough and character development along the line and the ending was just unrealistic and silly.

Unfortunately not a contemporary novel that I can recommend, so 2 coffee cups out of 5.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Lonely Fajita

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