Book Review: The Greatest Love Story of All Time by Lucy Robinson

It's Fran's thirtieth birthday and things are good. She's bluffed her way into a very Posh Job and her outlandishly handsome and talented boyfriend Michael is escorting her to the Ritz with a bulge the shape of a ring box in his pocket.
But something has gone very wrong. Very wrong. By the end of the evening Fran is howling in bed with a bottle of cheap brandy and one of Michael's old socks.
In her quest to figure out why her life has suddenly gone down the pan, Fran comes up with a fail safe plan: live like a badger, stalk a stranger called Nellie and cancel her beloved Gin Thursdays in favour of drinking gin every night. But then Fran's friends force a very different plan on her and it's nowhere near as fun. How could eight dates possibly make her feel better?
But eventually she agrees. And so begins the greatest love story of all time...

I completely fell in love with this book and I didn't want it to end. The Greatest Love Story of All Time is Lucy Robinson's debut novel and I hope that she writes many more.
The book revolves around Fran, everything was perfect, exciting job, gorgeous boyfriend, regular Gin Thursdays. But then on her 30th birthday, Fran's boyfriend Michael tells her that they need to have a three month separation. Just like that, no warning, no real explanation. Fran is utterly devastated and so begins the downward spiral involving cheap Morrison's brandy and hiding in bed.
Fran's friends are having none of this; they devise a plan to get her back on track and stop her drinking during the day. The idea is that she will go on eight dates over the next three months, it will take her mind off things and she may even meet someone else. Fran is not convinced, all she want is Michael back but she doesn't want to let her friends down.
Lucy Robinson's writing is extremely funny and the books if full of brilliant characters. My favourite was Stefania who lives in Fran's garage. We aren't told where she is from but she has a thick accent and a habit of getting her words muddled up. She is extremely loyal to Fran though and she will do anything to make her friend feel better.
At the end of the day this book is about love, the places in which we find it and the lengths we will go to, to keep hold of it. But also Lucy Robinson shows how we can be blinded by love, should you really change who you are in order to be loved by someone?
The Greatest Love Story of All Time is an excellent book. Lucy Robinson has a very entertaining and inviting writing style and I hope that she has another book out soon.

Dot Scribbles Rating 5/5

Many thanks to Penguin for sending me a copy of the book to review, The Greatest Love Story of All Time is out now.