Don't You Forget About Me (2019): More Than Romance (Spoilers)

💗💗💗🖤🖤

 What propels you to read a book through? The most obvious reasons would be because, first, you have already laid your hand on the book and second, the book itself is interesting. Had it not, none would be willing to spend quite a considerable amount of their time to finish a book. As for me, the third reason that is guaranteed to glue my face on the book is how far relatable is the theme.

Don’t You Forget About Me (2019), much like your ordinary chick-lit, is a book you can gulp in one sit with only around 300 pages. To tell the truth, I am not much a fan of the romance genre (I would happily avoid it if I can) and this is the first book from Mhairi McFarlane I read. Nevertheless, it does not stop me to fall in love with her sharp, clever, and fiery writing style.

The book begins with the pit Georgina is in, being almost 30 with no steady job, no college degree, a boyfriend who is a total jerk, with bitter glorious memories of her former self and image during high school. Could things go even far south from here? Yes, it perfectly can. One unfortunate day, Georgina was unfairly kicked out from an Italian restaurant she had been working in for quite some time. She then came home to find her boyfriend in bed with another woman. Up until this point, all seems pretty standard for a chick-lit. All of these events brought her to a job in a newly-opened pub to find that the pub was run by none other than her first love, Lucas McCarthy. From the not-so fated encounter with Lucas, she unearthed the deep dark past of her last day at school that got her into this hellhole she is currently in.

It's a truly gritty journey from that last day of school and her last encounter with her late father, but McFarlane chose to tell the tale in a witty way to show how tough Georgina has been to herself. When finally Georgina won against her past and trauma, it got me to feel triumphant as well. Upon listening to Georgina's clever and cool remarks of events surrounding her, I can't help but find myself being encouraged to believe that it is going to be okay if you stand up and deal with your past.

I have to say that McFarlane really got me on an emotional rollercoaster through Georgina and her first-person perspective as I found myself in laughter and tears during my journey throughout the book. I was reading this during the first week after my father passed away. The very same week in which my then-boyfriend and I have reached an agreement that things between us should be over. Thus, in Georgina’s narration, I found a voice to express what I have been through, and her resolution by the end reminds me to stay afloat and hold on to the precious things I have.

If you are looking for romance, this book might offer a bare minimum of it. Not so much stage for steamy passionate romance, some characters’ love lines remain hidden in the background, and Georgina-Lucas itself is rather angsty for a love story. However, it offers overcoming grief and trauma, managing the self-love path, and acceptance in returns. I say it is a fair trade!