'Getting over someone is not that difficult. All you have to do is focus on every negative thing about them for the rest of your life until you forget to stop actively hoping for their slow and painful death, then get a haircut.'
Serial monogamist Marnie is running late to her own identity crisis. After a decade of twisting herself into different versions of the ideal girlfriend, she's swearing off relationships for good. Forever. Done. No more, no thank you.
Pretty inconvenient time to meet Isaac: certified dreamboat and the only man who has ever truly got her. It's cool, though, they're just friends, he's got someone else, and she has more important things to worry about. Like who she is, what she wants, and what the hell she ever saw in the love(s) of her life in the first place.
Flanked by overwhelmed new mum Nicola, terminally single Claud, and eternal pessimist Kit, Marnie reckons with the question: who are we when we're on our own?
Praise for Crushing
"Crushing is a sexy, complex, bittersweet dark chocolate souffle of a book: airily paced, tartly funny, with a romantic centre that's just gooey enough."
Clare Fletcher
"Crushing stings with truth and aches with hope. I loved it."
Jessica Dettmann
"Filled with love, rage and wisdom. Reading Crushing felt like having a wine with a best friend."
Victoria Brookman
"Genevieve Novak's writing leaps off the page. Crushing has star quality written all over it."
Meredith Jaffe
Hungover, underpaid and overwhelmed, this isn't where Penny expected to be as she reached her late twenties.
She can't help but compare herself to her friends. Annie is about to be a senior associate at her law firm, Bec has just got engaged, Leo is dating everyone this side of the Yarra, and Penny is just ... waiting. Waiting for Max, her on-again, off-again boyfriend, to let her spend the night, waiting for the promotion she was promised, waiting for her Valium to kick in. Waiting for her real life to start.
Out of excuses and sick of falling behind, Penny challenges herself to turn things around. She's going to make it work with Max, impress her tyrannical boss, quit seeing her useless therapist, remember to water her plants, and stop having panic attacks in the work toilets.
But soon she's back to doomscrolling on Instagram, necking bottles of Aldi's finest sauvignon blanc, and criticising herself with renewed vigour and loathing. When her goals seem further away than ever, she has to wonder: when bad habits feel so good, how do you trust what's right for you?
Praise for No Hard Feelings
"Genevieve Novak will inevitably be compared to other authors, but the truth is, she is herself and herself alone — and that's a good thing. Funny, biting, vulnerable and unflinching, Novak's novel is like an ocean dip: a bit salty, very refreshing."
Lauren Sams, author of Crazy Busy Guilty
"Scaldingly funny and bitingly real, No Hard Feelings deserves a warning label: danger, may induce binge reading. With her sly wit, Genevieve Novak's debut demonstrates a brilliant eye for observing the little things in life, which together can be the biggest things of all."
Tori Haschka, author of A Recipe for Family
"Novak has perfectly captured the self-doubt and total horror of having to be happy and functional in your twenties. It would have you crying into your chipped manicure if it wasn't so darn funny."
Kimberley Allsopp, author of Love and Other Puzzles
"A snappy, delectable tale filled with hard truths and laugh-out-loud moments. I was dazzled."
Victoria Brookman, author of Burnt Out
"No Hard Feelings is clever, funny and surprisingly sweet, and Penny captured my heart."
Toni Jordan, author of Dinner with the Schnabels
"No Hard Feelings is a gratifying, warm and funny debut."
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