John Lincoln is comparing Chicago to New York, the place he sees as his future. "He wants to attach himself to a great publishing house, edit profound writers, maybe even write a book or two himself. Bask in the pride of his parents. Wave those credentials in front of his rivals. Be somebody." It was like he didn’t understand that relationships were all about power. They were about control, about who could endure the longest without visibly caring. Andrew was always giving his power away without a thought, like wasn’t ceding anything. As the characters contend with old and new hurts, hidden feelings, loneliness and longing, psychogenic catatonia continues to threaten their horizon. Jameson seamlessly switches points of view, often adopting a nonlinear narrative and or using foreshadowing to build and maintain tension. Her prose brought to mind Hanya Yanagihara, Donna Tartt, and Scott Spencer. Jameson’s prose effortlessly moves between registers: from presenting us with clear-cut and incisive descriptions (of the character’s feelings, thoughts, actions, and surroundings), to using her language to evoke with striking intimacy and poignancy the mood and nuances of a certain moment/scene. Jameson’s style maintains a balance between crisp yet opaque, at times eliciting in dazzling detail the state of mind of a character, at times allowing room for the ambiguous nature of her character’s fears and desires to shine. Her dialogues rang true to life, not only in their rhythms but in how they often revolved around or hinted at unspoken feelings. The setting, mostly ‘post’-covid NY, is brought to life. Jameson captures just how easy it is to feel lost and alone in such a city, while also incorporating discussions on current politics and on America’s healthcare service. Comparisons to Emily St. John Mandel should be ignored, imvho, but otherwise it's a solid dystopian take on the anger and sense of injustice that permeates throughout contemporary twentysomething culture. All the characters are flawed and act out on their individual insecurities and anxieties. There were moments where I empathised with them but many times where I got quite frustrated with them too. What started out as a meet cute between Emory and Yun becomes a lot more complicated. I particularly loved the intimacy and complex dynamics between Yun and Andrew’s friendship.

This is a novel about relationships, romantic and platonic. It’s a novel about loneliness, about illness, about fear, about unmatched expectations. It’s about art, music, society and philosophy. It’s a novel about our daily interactions, about how we interact with and care for the people around us, be they strangers or loved ones. The reader views the world collapsing around 4 main characters (Yun, Emory, Andrew and Fin) that are each trying to navigate this new normal. The dialogue and narrative is deeply personal, in some ways introspective and made me think a lot about what happiness means, and what defines it. Is there such a thing as feeling too much? What if you don’t feel anything? Are You Happy Now makes for a deeply moving novel exploring the sadness and happiness of its main characters as they grapple with ordinary and extraordinary situations. While I was reading I felt many things: apprehension, joy, sadness, and tenderness. Are You Happy Now is a striking novel that for all the heartache it causes me, I look forward to revisiting again.

I went into this read blind and I almost think it’s the best way to read and experience this strange and unsettling dystopian narrative. It could be classed as pandemic fiction but you’ll soon realise the illness that is suddenly affecting clusters of the population (primarily young people) doesn’t seem to be infectious - but potentially a choice? A choice to sit down and give up on life as there’s no hope. Alleys, thinks John Lincoln. At least Chicago has alleys." These are the opening lines, immediately catching you off-guard but in so doing drawing you in from the off. The narrative’s self-awareness adds to the story. Not only does Jameson touch upon the notion of ‘main character syndrome’ but she reflects on the concept of a narrative arc, examining stories' tendency to provide some sort of closure for their characters. Jameson resists doing this, which will inevitably annoy readers and I have to say that the what-ifs scenarios presented by the ending were the only thing that I did not love about this novel. When Cassidy's world comes crashing down she finally leaves and becomes a female rogue, a rarity of its own. Cassidy will find herself in the year she is a rogue.She will make a new family and discover herself.But what happens when her past catches up with her? We later return to the wedding scene, except that this time we follow two different guests, Andrew and Fin. Both are there with their soon-to-be exes. They properly meet later on, in a gallery. Despite his best efforts, Andrew, a 31-year-old professor who has recently gone through a fairly amicable separation from his wife, finds himself falling for Fin. Not only does Andrew slowly come to terms with the desires and knowledge that he had so long suppressed, but he is wary of falling for Fin, a 20-year-old ballet student hailing from London. Fin too is filled with doubt, and seems always braced for the worst-case scenario, of Andrew’s inevitably disinterest, of failing at what he loves, of not being good enough. Yet, despite their worries, the two have fallen fast and hard for each other. As their relationship becomes more serious, Andrew and Yun’s friendship seems to come undone.

Have people finally given up? Are they choosing to die? After a wedding in New York when a woman sits down in the middle of the dance floor and refuses to move, all over the country people start doing the same. Soon it’s a pandemic, with “catatonic events” happening worldwide. And she thought, Oh shit, I really like him. Oh shit, because it was never a good time to realize you really liked someone. Realizing you really liked someone meant knowing on some level it was going to hurt.Jameson presents us with a painfully realistic portrayal of depression: not only the many ways in which it manifests in the person affected but on its eventual effects on the people who love them; rather than indicting Yun, Jameson makes us feel for him. We eventually may grow saddened by his inability and unwillingness to accept other people’s help and the way he weaponizes his own hurt and disappointment. Despite the melancholic tone permeating much of this novel, there are so many moments and scenes that will fill readers’ hearts with hope and love. I was 100% invested in Andrew and Fin’s relationship, and seeing them be vulnerable with one another really pulled at my heartstrings. Andrew and Yun’s relationship also gave me all sorts of feelings, and I found myself filled with sorrow on their behalf.

Like Cassidy's mate would ever want her." Briella muttered under her breath. She then gave me an almost knowing like smile. What was that about? Jacob and I were the only to hear it with our enhanced hearing. My mom didn't even Some of the story at times almost feels too clean, as though some plot points are at times too convenient, and it’s certainly an imperfect novel. Fin is probably the character I like the most, but damn, this book made me deal with some flawed (and in some cases unlikeable) characters. Which I don’t mind, but there was just not enough about Yun to let me like him or feel very sorry for him. And I feel like that should have been the case?What a question! Are you happy now? We want to put a nice face on ... smile ... and say yes. But so many times that is a mask that we put on to cover the fact that we are not happy … that we are perhaps even unhappy. “Are You Happy Now?” is a book of wisdom to be worked with, to be placed in our lives, to be made part of ourselves. Each of the ten ways is part of the path to a happy life. Este, para mi gusto, buen punto de partida se sume en el más absoluto aburrimiento durante la novela. Ni los cuatro protagonistas son interesantes ni su desarrollo atractivo. Sus idas y venidas no son más que un slice of life que, aunque por momentos parece despegar, termina siempre dejando una sensación agridulce. Para añadir más problemas, el ritmo de la historia es sumamente lento. Y, aunque sea un ligero spoiler, el final de la trama “pandémica” es totalmente decepcionante. DISCLAIMER: This book was written over the course of a year, and it has clear distinctions as to where my thoughts changed on the story line. It is a first draft so please excuse plot holes as it may not be up to par with your expectations. But please read on, I still believe it is worth your time:) Fin wanted with all the wide-eyed grasping of someone who’d never had, and no matter how viciously he polished the surface everyone could see it. I thought the premise was potentially very interesting - basically a mental health 'epidemic' - and the central question of whether this was caused by people becoming victim to an infectious agent or simply 'giving up' on life was very brave of the author.