A Conversation with Laura Kay and Kate Young

Join us for an evening of conversation with two of the most exciting sapphic rom-com novelists: Laura Kay and Kate Young.

Laura Kay's Making It is the latest must-read rom-com about friendship, love and finding yourself, perfect for fans of Emily Henry and Bolu Babalola.

Issy is an artist but the world doesn't know it yet.

As someone who self-identifies as 'gay and depressed', Issy keeps her life in Margate small: her mum, her chinchilla, her reliable routine.

So when she is offered her dream job at an artist's studio, Issy knows it's time to open herself up to more.

Moving to East London, Issy has a lot of firsts to catch up on - navigating a crush on her gorgeous housemate, dating, sex, and obsessing over her boss who she just can't seem to figure out.

As pressure mounts, people keep telling Issy she can do anything she sets her mind to. But what if her mind refuses to cooperate. . .?

'Heartbreaking, hopeful, funny. Rarely have I rooted so hard for a character. I loved it! '
Suzi Ruffell

'I adored Making It. Brilliantly and truthfully rendered friendships, flirtations and workplace dramas . . . But it's also a truly nuanced, sensitive and warm-hearted portrait of living with mental illness' Emma Hughes, author of It's Complicated

Kate Young's Experienced is 'a fizzing, lip-chewing, collar-bone biting, palm-sweating roller-coaster of a rom-com that is both the sexiest book you'll read all year and the most heartening' Caroline O'Donoghue, New York Times bestselling author of The Rachel Incident.

Bette is in love for the first time in her life. Finally, everything makes sense. Until it doesn’t.

As Bette approached thirty, she realized something big: she’s into women. And then she fell for Mei, who’s entirely perfect. Until, out of the blue, Mei suggests they take a break. She wants Bette to have the opportunity she missed out on in her twenties: to explore the queer dating scene, and then return certain about their future, her desires, and herself.

Reluctantly, Bette sets out on a mission: date hot women and have hot casual sex, before returning to her loving girlfriend. Maybe, put that way, it doesn’t sound so bad…

Often heady and thrilling, occasionally cringe, Bette’s odyssey will take her to some unexpected places. But with her new friend, the gorgeous and self-assured Ruth, as her queer dating guide, Bette can’t possibly fail. Right?

'Fun, sexy and smart. Kate's characters are warm and recognisable and importantly, deeply fanciable' Laura Kay, author of The Split

'Sexy, wise and funny, Experienced is about finding your way home to yourself. I fell into this novel heart-first' Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Mercies

'Like a delicious, gossipy conversation with your funniest friend, Experienced is a warm, joyful gift of a rom-com' Laura Wood, author of Under Your Spell

Laura Kay is a writer living in East London. Her journalism and personal essays have been published in The Guardian, DIVA Magazine, Stylist, the Metro and The Bookseller, among others. In 2018 she was selected for the PRH WriteNow scheme where she developed her first novel The Split, which was longlisted for the Polari First Novel Prize. Making It is her fourth novel.

Kate Young is a writer and cook, whose award-winning Little Library Cookbooks feature recipes inspired by beloved works of literature. After a sunny Australian childhood (spent indoors reading books) she moved to London, which suited her much better. She now lives in a converted factory in a Gloucestershire town. Experienced is her first novel.

Event Venue

Juno Books, 24 Chapel Walk, Sheffield, United Kingdom