Mutual dislike is a good starting point for any fictional romance, and when former school tormenter James Fraser comes back into Anna Alessi's life the conflict runs deep. The strong Austen undertones do Mhairi McFarlane's new novel no disservice, populated as it is with reality-based characters that shine with wit and insight on contemporary London life. Wedding debts, bullying, marital infidelities and online dating are some of the issues highlighted, with Anna, a smart and articulate history lecturer, able to find the humour in the trials and trivialities of modern society, even when dealing with her own troubled past. From the hipster swagger of the digital marketing scene to the emptiness that can hit a marriage when the celebrations stop, McFarlane uses her characters and their predicaments, as Austen did, to send up the world in which they live. With a cover stamp of approval from Marian Keyes, Here's Looking at You follows an award-winning debut that took the top place in the UK Christmas ebook chart last year, singling out McFarlane as one to watch in 2014.
