The brilliant new romantic comedy from the author of Five Bush Weddings.
In a town like South Star, everyone knows Sarah Childs’ name, face, entire history… and the fact she’s just been dumped by Johnno West.
Sarah would happily keep to herself on their property, Dunromin, for the rest of her days. But now her parents are refusing to put her in charge until she spends a year getting more involved in the local community and, yes, dating. Well. She’ll show them community spirit. She’ll be Miss bloody South Star if that’s what it takes. How hard can it be?
Under small-town surveillance, Sarah rekindles neglected friendships and throws herself in the dating deep end (recruiting the Bush Telegraph, Mabel Peters, to matchmake for her). She joins a new women’s rugby team, the Pink Cockatoos, and even the bristly new cop in town, Sergeant Smith, can’t slow Sarah’s race to keep up appearances as the perfect daughter, citizen and girlfriend.
As Sarah moves in with Mabel to help catalogue her vast wardrobe – bringing up memories of Mabel’s beauty pageant past and long-lost friend Rose – vintage fashion might not be all that comes out of the closet.
Wonderfully funny and very Australian, Love Match is a story about learning a new game, figuring out who you are and maybe even finding real love.
A long-time journalist and comms manager at the Walkley Foundation, Clare Fletcher made a seamless pivot to fiction with her rom-com debut, Five Bush Weddings, which took readers by a storm last year. (Catch up on the podcast we recorded with her here!) Love Match is another pitch-perfect portrayal of love and friendship in a rural community, with the perfect balance of humour and heart.
Toned biceps; ropey, rose-scented hair; vintage dress-ups; beauty pageants; makeover scenes (plural); sweaty rugby training sessions… did I mention toned biceps? Fletcher playfully celebrates queer stereotypes one minute, then throws them out the window the next. The same can be said of her small-town depictions. The result is a cast of wonderfully nuanced and believable characters, and the kind of authentic queer representation that rural romance readers are crying out for.
Fletcher can’t have known what an impact the Matildas would have while she was writing this book, but its release couldn’t have been better timed! Okay, so it’s rugby and not soccer that brings the women to the field in this case, but the outcomes are the same. It’s such a joy to witness Sarah and the other women of South Star come together from all walks of life, shedding their shame and internalised stigma to prove to their town – and, more importantly, themselves – that they absolutely belong on the field!
Sarah is an instantly likeable and beautifully flawed protagonist; witnessing her grow into herself is a delight. While the plot centres on young Sarah’s experiences, there are wonderful role models for readers of all ages, with a brilliant cast of supporting characters reflecting the diversity that small-town Australia hasn’t always been so forthcoming in celebrating. I suspect that 75-year-old Mabel’s subplot will be a fan favourite, with her own latter-life coming-of-age proving that it’s never too late to embrace your true self!
Love Match is a gorgeous exploration of love, friendship, self-acceptance, sport and the unique challenges and joys of small-town living. If you’re looking for an uplifting read that inspires you to live your most authentic life, I couldn’t recommend this more!
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