The Trouble With Henry And Zoe is the third novel by British author, Andy Jones. Zoe Goldman has a plan. Her family and close friends are sympathetic now that her life has been turned upside down, but they’d never understand the guilt she feels. As clichéd as it sounds, she needs to get away and find herself. To fund her plan, Zoe works her daytime publishing job and does nights at the Duck and Cover.

After what he did, Henry Smith had to leave the Peaks village where he was born: there was no-one who didn’t know he’d left his childhood sweetheart at the altar. He can be anonymous in London, even if he’s lonely, poor and aimless. He relies on his chosen profession for a while, but then makes his living in a seemingly unlikely manner.

Jones gives the reader a cast of characters who are wholly believable for all their very human fears and foibles; most have an undeniable appeal. There are certainly a few quirky ones among them: an elderly Chinese lady who wants perfect teeth before she sets off on her important mission; a hairdresser running a meditation group; a heartbroken mother who emails her dead son; a bunch of villagers with long memories and a strong sense of fair play.

Jones constructs his tale so that both Zoe and Henry are well down their respective paths before they eventually meet for the first time. Aspects of both the story and the way it is told are reminiscent of David Nicholls’s One Day and Marianne Kavanagh’s For Once In My Life. This is a novel with plenty of humour, but also a bit of heartache, lots of wisdom and wit, an anniversary celebration, a wedding, a hen’s party, and a generous helping of people with a graduated bob hairdo. This is a delightful novel that will have readers seeking out earlier Andy Jones books. Recommended!