The Happy Couple

I pure LOVED The Happy Couple. So witty, observant, wise and funny. Nihilistic about heteronormative relationships but so charmingly done I barely noticed. I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed it – Marian KeyesDolan, whose debut novel Exciting Times was a storming success, is sure to bring her sparkling wit and insightful understanding of human relationships to this second outing * Irish Independent *Sassy and smart and wickedly funny, Dolan’s voice is uniquely her own. I inhaled every irreverent page – Ruth Gilligan, author of THE BUTCHERSI just finished The Happy Couple and I loved it - an extremely funny examination of modern love, with depth, bite and poignancy – Daisy Buchanan, author of INSATIABLEA cracking ensemble, The Happy Couple is a beautiful sonata about our relationships and a sad fugue for fear and loneliness. The book is a tough, all-engrossing love-test. Dolan’s acerbic humour is unapologetically analytical. She breaks the rule of intimacy with wit and panache that are second to none. I was kept on tenterhooks till the last few pages and my heart wouldn’t stop pounding afterwards. I don’t want to say goodbye to Luke and Celine. – Kit Fan, author of DIAMOND HILLEndlessly funny, endlessly inventive - a bold and stylish novel that slipped down and burned like a shot of something lovely – Rebecca Wait, author of I’M SORRY YOU FEEL THAT WAYA sophisticated character study of a young couple coming to terms with their relationship, in this biting, whip-smart look at modern love and the tangled messes we leave behind us. I am fully in awe of Dolan’s talent. And so glad my twenties are over – Douglas Stuart, author of YOUNG MUNGO and SHUGGIE BAINThe Happy Couple is a dazzling follow-up to Exciting Times. Dolan spins her magic again with humour and insight and the sharpest of prose. Not a word out of place – KATHERINE HEINY, author of STANDARD DEVIATION and EARLY MORNING RISERThe Happy Couple is just as satisfying as Exciting Times, and deals with class, money, gender dynamics and bisexuality with similar ease. Set between London and Dublin, it is a beautiful exploration of love, fidelity - and whether either are compatible with marriage – Pandora SykesThe Happy Couple is one of those rare novels that feel like it’s been written just for you. It’s precisely what I love to read: engaging, fast-paced, hilarious, but still tender and moving. Also, is Dolan an actual genius? The pages just sparkle with smartness. It’s a true joy to read, I adored it from the first page to the last – Jenny Mustard, author of Okay DaysUsing daring, exciting sentences and close, sharp observation, The Happy Couple is a brilliant contemporary novel – COLM TÓIBÍNThe Happy Couple hooked me the way that heteronormativity hooks its ambivalent protagonists. Dolan’s prose absolutely crackles with wit, humour, and empathy – Clare Fisher, author of ALL THE GOOD THINGSThe Happy Couple reminded me of Muriel Spark in its precision of language and emotion – Emma Forrest, author of BUSY BEING FREEFun, addictive and laced with astute observations * Vogue *A deep dive into love, betrayal, monogamy and sexuality. Sensational * Daily Mail *One of the most talked about books for 2023 * Stylist *A funny and perceptive play on the traditional marriage plot that cements Dolan as one of the cleverest, most amusing new writers around. Marriage, it seems, is a laughing matter * The i paper *The Happy Couple rises towards an affecting ending that asks what illusions and armour one has to shed in order to feel free * Observer *The funniest writer you will read this year. Every page crackles – Irish Independent, on EXCITING TIMESDroll, shrewd and unafraid – Hilary Mantel, on EXCITING TIMESWitty, compelling, with a razor-sharp social commentary. I guzzled it – Pandora Sykes, on EXCITING TIMESIt’s flawless – Colm Tóibín, on EXCITING TIMESI found myself purring with pleasure. This is comic writing at the highest level – Craig Brown, on EXCITING TIMESIce cool, self-aware and very funny. Shares of Lorrie Moore and The Bell Jar – Graham Norton, on EXCITING TIMESI had real fun with Exciting Times. It is a very funny, spiky, Marxist, feminist comedy and it’s really mean – Zadie Smith, on EXCITING TIMESA sharp, smart, witty modern love story. I loved it – David Nicholls, on EXCITING TIMESNaoise Dolan’s prose accommodates equally well a quickening heart and a mind on fire – Joshua Ferris, on EXCITING TIMESFiercely intelligent, brutally funny and written with such heart, EXCITING TIMES announces an impressive new voice in literature – Nathan Filer, on EXCITING TIMES

Naoise Dolan is an Irish writer born in Dublin. She studied at Trinity College, followed by a master’s in Victorian literature at Oxford. She writes fiction, essays, criticism and features for publications including the London Review of Books, the Guardian and Vogue. Naoise’s debut novel Exciting Times was published by W&N in the UK and by Ecco in the US in 2020, and became a Sunday Times bestseller, widely translated and optioned for TV. She has been shortlisted and longlisted for several prizes, including the Women’s Prize for Fiction, the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award.