When she first meets Adam, Coralie is new to London and feeling adrift. But Adam is clever, witty, and (he insists) a quarter inch taller than the average male. His charming four-year-old daughter only adds to his appeal. But ten years on, something important is missing from the life Coralie and Adam (though let’s face it, mostly Coralie) have built. Or maybe, having gained everything she dreamed of, Coralie has lost something else she once had: herself.
Consider yourself kissed —and hugged and understood—by Jessica Stanley's smart, oh-so-relatable tale ... What sets Consider Yourself Kissed apart from other novels about overwhelmed mothers who feel stretched to the limit and are disappointed by their partner's level of engagement is the way it braids its utterly sympathetic heroine's domestic drama with the concurrent rollercoaster of British politics and cataclysmic global events ... American readers may care even less about the vicissitudes of various Labour Party leaders than Coralie does. But fortunately, her Australian outsider take is often amusing ... Stanley's novel is rich, and her cleverness irrefutable.
Entertaining ... Funny, smart and memorable, this contemporary romance offers a lucid example of how humanity can endure amid a daily churn of horrendous news ... It is enjoyable to read about this idiosyncratic blended family and their efforts and failures to care for one another across an eventful decade that sees births and deaths, renovations and resentments, as well as Brexit and Covid ... Amid the private dramas that come with the territory of long-term relationships, Stanley deftly animates the heightened tensions outside the home ... Stanley’s delightful novel reminds her readers of the joy, humor and even subtle hope that can be experienced during life’s lowest moments.
A deeply enjoyable mix of romance, social comedy and political satire ... Stanley writes with a gentle, easy humour. She captures that first flush of love, when Coralie feels totally understood by Adam, but is equally convincing on how difficult it is to stay in love, especially when you know someone so well you can predict exactly how they are going to be irritating ... It’s refreshing to read a depiction of motherhood that acknowledges both the incomparable love it brings and the strain it puts on relationships, especially when one person feels like they are doing all the nose-wiping ... If I have a criticism of this deeply enjoyable book it’s that the politics occasionally feels shoehorned in ... But Stanley redeems this with her on-the-nose observations about relationships.
