Review: More Confessions of a Forty-Something F**k Up

I happened upon Alexandra Potter’s novels when her book Confessions of a Forty-Something F**k Up was published back in 2020. I thoroughly enjoyed it (review here) and was so excited when I learned there would be a follow up book. More Confessions of a Forty-Something F**k Up was published here in Canada in early October and I devoured my egalley in July. It was such a great read!

Here’s the book’s description:

There is no magical land you finally arrive at where everything is figured out, fixed and sorted. Life, like us, is a sum of moving parts, and if we’re lucky, we get to keep f**king up, figuring it out and laughing in the face of it all.
Nell’s back. Her life still isn’t going to plan. And she’s still asking the big questions and getting none of the answers. Like, for

1. Why is falling in love so easy, but staying in love so hard?

2. What do you do when your friendships are put to the ultimate test?

3. Can we ever really live in the moment and leave the past behind?

4. When everything goes tits up, do you fall apart or jump on a plane to LA with Cricket (an eighty-something widow and your BFF)?

5. And when all else fails, will celebrity-scented candles, smashed avocados and Instagram filters save us?*

But first, Nell has some more confessions . . .

* #onlyjoking #sortof #LOL

Being able to reunite with Nell was an absolute joy. I loved her when I first met her in the first book and reading this one was like when you get together with a friend you haven’t seen in awhile but you immediately pick up where you last left off.

It was interesting to read a book that was set during lockdowns, now that we’re getting further removed from that time. The first time I read a fictional story that referenced the pandemic I was completely put off - I wasn’t ready to have that time invade my reading time. I think I’m more accepting now, plus Potter did an exceptional job of making it real but not a scary reminder of what we all went through.

I find Potter’s books exceptionally difficult to review and I think part of it is because the stories mimic real life so much that it would be like trying to write a review of the last year of my own life. There are highs and lows, just like you’ve likely had in the last year or so. You have great friends whose lives have also had ups and downs and you want to be there to support them but it can be hard sometimes, especially when your life looks a lot different, and, hello, pandemic. What I’m trying to get at is, there’s a lot of heart and soul in this book. You’ll laugh, nod in agreement, cringe in embarrassment, and maybe even tear up a time or two. None of the emotions will hit you especially hard but packaged together they create a wonderful story that’ll leave you with a warm glow.

If you haven’t yet read Alexandra Potter’s books, you’re missing out. More Confessions of a Forty-Something F**k Up was a great read - it’s a well-written novel that’s full of characters I adore. What’s not to love? I can’t wait to read whatever Potter writes next!

*An egalley of this novel was provided by the Canadian distributor of this novel, Publishers Group Canada, via NetGalley in exchange for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own*