Dumped by her girlfriend of seven years, jobless and homeless, Ally flees, devastated, back to her dad’s in Sheffield, taking Malcolm the cat with her. While licking her wounds she reconnects with childhood friend Jeremy, also the victim of a recent dumping, and they find themselves accidentally entering a local half marathon despite both being completely unfit. So while the plot isn’t exactly original (it could just as easily have been called Getting Over Emily), it’s told so engagingly and the characters are just so adorable that it really doesn’t matter. Ally is far from perfect but is very relatable and indeed all the characters were great - Jeremy, Ally’s lovely dad, Charlie and Sophie... maybe not the dreaded Emily. As a bit of a runner myself, I loved the running elements too. A delight to read and just what I needed! Many thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

When a couple splits up, it's not unusual for one or both of them to split up belongings as well. When Ally's girlfriend Emily springs their imminent break-up on her, Ally takes the cat. Going back home to her Dad in Sheffield, with the vague hope that taking Malcom will force Emily into coming to see her, Ally's reunited with her old friend (and first beard) Jeremy, who's also living at home after an emotional break up. And although Ally would be quite happy to sit huddled in her duvet eating cake all day, Jeremy gets the idea for them to run a half-marathon, in order to impress their exes with their commitment to athleticism. What could go wrong? The Split is a gently funny LGBTQ rom-com (where, for once, their LGBTQ status is not the source of the characters' angst) about friendship, love and learning that sometimes it's more important to impress yourself than other people. And there's a grumpy cat - you can't go wrong with one of them. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for review.

If you're having the kind of day/week where you just want to switch off from everything for a few hours, The Split is the book for you. It's a gentle read, about (surprise surprise) a break-up, and how sometimes we'll cling desperately to what's familiar, without considering what we actually need and want. Ultimately, most of the characters who appear on page are kind and likeable, whilst remaining human. Each has their own little flaws, and I think that's what made it super readable, because you could relate to pretty much everyone in some ways. Ally could be annoying and selfish, just as easily as she could make you laugh and cheer her on through her ups and downs. Obviously Malcolm totally steals the show, with his complete indifference to life, the universe and everything. My only criticism is that there should have been more Malcolm!! If you are looking to escape to the pages of a book for a few hours, and forget your own problems by walking in someone else's shoes, I definitely recommend The Split.

Ally is living a happy life with her university girlfriend Emily on a houseboat in London when, suddenly (for Ally at least), Emily dumps her. Oof. Ally packs up her stuff, and her cat, their cat, okay, Emily's cat and scarpers back to her home town Sheffield, to stay with her dad. Whilst there, she reconnects with a childhood friend, Jeremy, also recently dumped, who concocts a plan that is sure to show their exes what they are missing - they'll run the local half marathon. A foolproof plan......right?? The characters here are relatable. Ally is, quite frankly, a bit of a mess following her dumping and I was cringing at some of the deluded emails she was sending to Emily once she'd got back to Sheffield. But then, we've all been there. Is there honestly anyone who can say "oh yes, following that out-of-the-blue dumping, I most definitely acted like a completely rational person 100% of the time". Well there might be but they're probably lying. Having trained as a teacher and found it wasn't really for her, Ally had left the profession with Emily's encouragement but not found anything new so when she arrives at her Dad's house, she really is starting her life again from scratch. Its not easy going for her but Ally starts to re-build her life and reflect on her time with Emily. And I say "it's not easy" as someone who has actually trained for and run that same half marathon, there are no flat surfaces in Sheffield. She and Jeremy begin to realise some truths and, not so much put the pieces of their lives back together, but look for new lives that fit them better. I did chuckle a few times throughout this book and it was fun to read a book set in the city I live in. I'd say its less of a romance book and more of a coming-of-slightly-older-age, covering that period in your 20's when everything you thought you wanted, turns out not quite to be.