A 2024 highlight for The Times, Sunday Times, Observer, Financial Times, Guardian, Evening Standard, Irish Independent and Scotsman
Winner of the Books Are My Bag Readers Award for Fiction 2024
The new novel by the author of One Day, now a major Netflix series
‘Written with charm and wit, it even made me consider walking the Northumberland Coast Path’
JACQUELINE WILSON, SPECTATOR
‘A triumph, a real gift of a novel’
SUNDAY TIMES
‘A comforting antidote to the grimness of our grim world’
GUARDIAN
‘Nicholls’s knack for warm characters, funny dialogue and superb scene-setting is as spot-on as ever’
DAILY MAIL
‘I read David Nicholls’ new book You Are Here – you’ll love it as much as One Day . . . Probably his best yet’
INDEPENDENT
‘A great comic novel . . . The reader becomes so invested in the outcome of this romance that it makes the whole world shimmer with a kind of secret possibility’
OBSERVER
‘A novel that will make you feel terrific’
FINANCIAL TIMES
‘Few contemporary writers make characters feel as human as David Nicholls does’
BBC.com
‘The irresistible feel of a classic romance’
MAIL ON SUNDAY
‘Romantic, funny and hopeful’
DOLLY ALDERTON, author of Good Material
‘Tender, wise and joyful. I inhaled it’
JOJO MOYES, author of Me Before You
‘Magnificent’
MARIAN KEYES, author of My Favourite Mistake
Sometimes you need to get lost to find your way
Marnie is stuck.
Stuck working alone in her London flat, stuck battling the long afternoons and a life that often feels like it’s passing her by.
Michael is coming undone.
Reeling from his wife’s departure, increasingly reclusive, taking himself on long, solitary walks across the moors and fells.
When a persistent mutual friend and some very English weather conspire to bring them together, Marnie and Michael suddenly find themselves alone on the most epic of walks and on the precipice of a new friendship.
But can they survive the journey?
A new love story by beloved bestseller David Nicholls, You Are Here is a novel of first encounters, second chances and finding the way home.
ONE OF BRITAIN’S MOST ACCLAIMED WRITERS
‘One of the most astute chroniclers of England as it is now’
FINANCIAL TIMES
‘An uncanny ability to make us laugh out loud, but also care passionately about his characters’
DAILY TELEGRAPH
‘Nicholls writes with such tender precision about love’
THE TIMES
‘No one else writes novels that are both relatable and revelatory in the way he does’
EVENING STANDARD
‘Genuinely brilliant’
NEW STATESMAN
David Nicholls, You Are Here Number 1 Sunday Times bestseller May 2024 (UK)
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Reviews
PRAISE FOR DAVID NICHOLLS
'One of the most astute chroniclers of England as it is now' FINANCIAL TIMES
'An uncanny ability to make us laugh out loud, but also care passionately about his characters' DAILY TELEGRAPH
'Nicholls writes with such tender precision about love' THE TIMES
'No one else writes novels that are both relatable and revelatory in the way he does' EVENING STANDARD
'Genuinely brilliant' NEW STATESMAN
You Are Here is a gorgeous, grown-up love story. I fell for Marnie and Michael hard and fast - this book is honest, raw, yet profoundly hopeful. This is the work of a writer at the peak of his enormous powers - it's one of the saddest stories I've ever read, and one of the funniest. A future classic
David Nicholls is at the peak of his considerable powers - You Are Here is not only packed with the delicious observations, profound truths and moving encounters we expect of him, it's the funniest thing he has written. Even if it was twice the length, it would have finished too soon
Brilliant: just perfect and exquisitely written. Every page is a delight
I loved this book. A story about loneliness and the beginnings of love, with the backdrop of England's lakes and fells and relentlessly changeable weather. As a read it is warm, unsentimental, hilarious and SO acutely observed. Nicholls has given us a masterclass in writing. I want to buy it for all my friends
David is the laureate of the modern love novel, and this is his best yet
You Are Here is David Nicholls' funniest, warmest and most addictive novel yet. Perfect
A witty, touching love story. The writing is magnificent: taut and vivid. I was so happy while I was reading it and now I'm bereft. Gorgeous
What a rare find this is! Beautiful writing and authentic characters supported by a dry and honest wit. I loved it
It's Nicholls' best since the Booker-longlisted Us, and I'm already dream-casting the BBC adaptation
A poignant love story of first encounters
No one does the minutiae of love as well as Nicholls
2024 is set to be the year of David Nicholls . . . a story of love, chance encounters and new beginnings
David Nicholls wears his formidable intelligence so generously and so lightly that you scarcely notice the skill it takes to write a book like this: a story at once passionately funny and richly human. You Are Here is gorgeously witty and joyful, kind and sad: a book you do not want to be away from
Nicholls tackles modern loneliness in this witty and warm love story for cynics
A stunning, funny, frank and beautiful look at loneliness, friendship, and the risks taken to love and be loved. In a career of standout books, You Are Here takes its place at the top. David Nicholls is my favourite writer
A wryly heartwarming tale of second-chance romance . . . the dialogue crackles off the page . . . pure pleasure
You Are Here encompasses all of David Nicholls' characteristic warmth, humour and observational insight. But it also asks fundamental questions of life, love and loneliness in such a beautifully delicate way that you don't even realise it's happening or that the fundamental truth of human happiness has been staring you in the face all along. I don't know how he does it, but he does and he's the only person who can
A beautiful book. Nicholls perfectly judges the balance between humour and pathos. I was often on the verge of tears even when I was laughing
The genius who gave us One Day has written another classic and funny love story, set on a ten-day hike. You breeze along and get caught up in it like a leaf in the wind. Joyous
Nicholls is a writer going from strength to strength - his previous novel Sweet Sorrow was his best yet - so this is set to be one of 2024's most exciting titles
Witty and moving at the same time, it's a figurative and literal journey that might even have you hunting for your walking boots
Oh, how I love, love, love this beautiful story! The observations David Nicholls makes about people and their behaviour are just so astute . . . I can't stop recommending it to everyone
David Nicholls is a wonderfully gifted writer. His trademark wit and sensitivity bring light and life to his characters, allowing him to explore difficult subject matter with an admirable lightness of touch
David Nicholls is one of the best writers at chronicling the way annoyance and resentment are often irretrievably mixed with love and empathy. This is a love story but never predictable - Nicholls stays one step ahead of the reader in the sharpest, funniest way. If you're looking for a great comic novel, You Are Here
Few contemporary writers make characters feel as human as David Nicholls does . . . Nicholls has a knack for finding the magical in the everyday. It's not a pandemic novel, but its themes of loneliness and clinging on to moments of connection feel particularly pertinent after the past few years
I think it might be Nicholls' best book ever. He's somehow managed to remember exactly how people talk when they're falling in love, which is virtually impossible to do properly
For anyone who has pounded a pavement or even climbed a mountain, wrangling with the stuff of life, love, loss, loneliness, betrayal and failure, or simply destiny's strange peculiarities that can upend life, this book is both journey and destination. It will make your heart soar with the climb. It's so tender and wise, that I found myself walking every step of the way with Marnie and Michael, through the rain and shine, hoping, praying that they would find one another, and at last see the view. It has pain and bliss in its pages, and does what David Nicholls does best: cracks open your heart, to show love in all its infinite beautiful chaos, imperfect, funny yet always true. Loved it
Marnie and Michael are two characters who I will carry in my heart for a long time. This is a love story for all ages, an epic journey, a moving tale of second chances. I don't know how David does it but his characters are real to me, and I know I will want to go back to them, to re-read You Are Here, the way I have his other novels
Oh this book! What's better than rooting for two shy, once-burnt characters to recognise that love is within reach? I stopped often to reread and savour its sparkling, wry sentences. You Are Here is both up-to-the-minute and old-fashioned in the best way: sharp, yet so very kind, funny, and bittersweet
I finished this novel in two breathless sittings, as invested in its outcome as I would be in the happiness of a friend. This is the magic of You Are Here: warm, generous and funny, it invites readers into the world of Marnie and Michael with the promise that everyone is welcome, and that choosing happiness and being courageous in any small way we can is always possible. I loved this book
What a beautiful, beautiful novel, sensitive, witty, and brilliantly insightful and kind about us messy, stupid humans. I loved every single step of it. I will miss it now that I'm finished and I know that it will be one of those rare novels that will dwell in my memory and my heart
You Are Here is everything I hope for from a David Nicholls novel: beautifully observed, very funny, a little heartbreaking, and at its core, full of hope about people and love
Such a lovely book!
Any love story by David Nicholls is a treat, but this one is especially tender, wise and joyful. I inhaled it
A romantic, funny, hopeful story of what it is to lose and keep faith in love. The characters became my friends in an instant and I enjoyed every moment spent with them
A slow-burn love story delivered with Nicholls' trademark wit and warmth
When it comes to love stories, David Nicholls is a master craftsman and, dare I say it, I loved You Are Here even more than One Day
Refreshing . . . The romance has sincerity and authenticity . . . There were echoes of Curtis Sittenfeld's Romantic Comedy, another book I loved
Nicholls excels at writing about the complexities of relationships . . . There is an appetising tone throughout the novel, which is full of clever, droll jokes about teaching, relatives, walking, friendship, pubs and motels
As a longtime fan of Nicholls' writing, I had huge expectations for this book and it absolutely delivered . . . I'm calling it now - this will undoubtedly be one of my best books of 2024
He has done it again with this lovely, touching story . . . Nicholls's knack for warm characters, funny dialogue and superb scene-setting is as spot-on as ever. You'll want to pull on your hiking boots at the first opportunity
The trouble with having a hit novel is that your work will forever be compared with it. But You Are Here is just as good - and possibly even better . . . it makes you want to get out and walk; to seize the day; to do something significant with your life; to not only believe in second chances but to make them happen. It makes you want to tell someone - anyone - that you love or care about them. I can't think of a better testament to the power of a David Nicholls novel than that
Pure and utter delight! You Are Here is a fun, poignant post-pandemic romantic comedy that takes us across the hills and moors of northern England, grapples with loss - of people, of direction - and reminds us vividly and viscerally what it feels like to fall in love
The Remains of the Day crossed with Michael Winterbottom's The Trip, only with more Gore-Tex . . . You Are Here is a triumph, a real gift of a novel, and it deserves to join One Day on the bestseller charts immediately
A great comic novel . . . The reader becomes so invested in the outcome of this unspectacular, everyday, cagoule-clad romance that it makes the whole world shimmer with a kind of secret possibility, as if such narratives are everywhere, just out of sight
Nicholls's latest has the irresistible feel of a classic romance
A master of his particular craft. This is a novel that will make you feel terrific
Funny, emotional and beautiful . . . Nicholls is the king of creating well-drawn, flawed characters that resonate and tug on your heartstrings
For many it will be a comforting antidote to the grimness of our grim world, a crowd-pleaser and, surely, a TV hit-to-be
You Are Here is an unusual novel, unusual for our time anyway. It is amusing and true to life. It is gentle, free from fashionable extravagance . . . Nicholls is a novelist who brings understanding to his work; also, happily, he is often very funny
Zip up Heathcliff in Gore-Tex, give Cathy laugh-out-loud lines, fold in the poignancy of E. M. Forster, embed quaint maps, blisters, a dash of existential terror and heaps of heartache and you have David Nicholls's latest novel . . . like all great rom-coms, the journey that Nicholls takes Michael and Marnie on is more meaningful than the destination
Captivating . . . Nicholls is rightfully attached to his central couple and their baggage of cherished neuroses, until he accepts that he has to decide on a happy ending or something more bittersweet, and how to earn either. He succeeds beautifully. Nicholls's dialogue is flawless (he's also an experienced screenwriter) and even his descriptions of bogs and muck can enchant. The novel is sharp-tongued and irresistible, the most intelligent treat
David Nicholls, the maestro of the modern rom-com, has had a big year: first came Netflix's nostalgic adaptation of his 2009 hit One Day and now there is this sweet and stylish love story for grown-ups . . . Nicholls's most satisfying love story yet
Everyone loves David Nicholls' marvellously tender and humane new novel, You Are Here
Fans will relish the fact that once again, he has written a love story with some very good comic set pieces
I'm helplessly competitive and highly irritated that I can't remember all the books I've read since 1 January. I'll just name my three favourite novels from the first half of the year. No. 1 is You Are Here by David Nicholls, a love story between two unlikely characters, the oldest plot in the book, but written with charm and wit. It even made me consider walking the Northumberland Coast Path - though I've yet to buy my walking boots
Nicholls not only beautifully evokes quintessential British landscapes, but also maps a will-they-or-won't-they love story between two midlifers (fans will be reminded of One Day's Dexter and Emma) . . . Rest assured, you'll be very invested in a happy ending
Packed with tender observations and honest truths, this grown-up love story takes place on a ten-day hike across England. As Marnie and Michael make their way from coast to coast, their hopeful affection grows with each passing step
Events
David Nicholls at Good Housekeeping Live
Business Design Centre, 52 Upper St, London N1 0QH, United Kingdom
15th Nov 2024
David Nicholls at Folkestone Book Festival
Quarterhouse, Mill Bay, Folkestone, Kent, CT20 1BN
21st Nov 2024