Queen B’s Decree: Between Us felt less like a romance and more like a “woman’s journey to discover her truth in her relationship.” Essentially, Roisin realizes that her long-term boyfriend used information she told him in confidence and added it to his new TV show he’s written. And it makes her realize that there may be more he’s lying about.
Most of this book is back and forth between Roisin and Joe. There’s discussion of family trauma, gaslighting, and the sunk cost fallacy. Roisin, despite breaking up with Joe and never wanting to get back together, just wants to know the truth of what he did; whether or not the nine years they were together were entirely a lie. I can empathize, I would want to know all that my “partner” had lied about. But it felt almost obsessive.
And her new romance, with the one that had been there all along, felt a bit contrived. It was easy to guess his feelings towards her, but hers felt reactive to the trauma of her break-up.
Despite everything, Mhairi McFarlane is a wonderful author that always sucks me in and gets me interested in the characters. Even though this was less of a romance, I still really enjoyed Between Us and will happily read more from this author.
Book: Between Us by Mhairi McFarlane
Series: standalone
Genre: Contemporary
Hotness: no salsa
Plot Devices/Tropes: cheating