Go Gentle

by Maria Semple

'A fresh, flamboyantly witty voice' Helen Fielding, author of Bridget Jones's Diary

Adora Hazzard has it all figured out. A Stoic philosopher and divorcee, she lives amongst friends and culture on New York's Upper West Side, and works for the ultra-wealthy and secretive Lockwood family as a private ethics tutor for their tween boys. Her main life hack - and the key to her own enviable happiness - is to desire only what you have. Everything else life throws at you? Don't just accept it; love it. Amor Fati. Adora believes it so deeply she has it tattooed on her wrist.

When Adora meets Johnny, a handsome stranger at the ballet, she finds herself loving fate indeed. Soon, she's pulled into a world of secret rendezvous, black-market art deals and international intrigue. Driven by an unexpected and maddening desire, Adora risks reputation, job and hard-won serenity for the feelings Johnny has awoken in her.

Go Gentle is a romance with wit, a page-turner of ideas, a globe-trotting mother-daughter story, all wrapped inside a mystery with a socko twist. Maria Semple has created another hilarious and unforgettable heroine.

Genres: Romance, Fiction

384 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication April 21, 2026

About the author

Maria Semple's first novel, This One is Mine, was set in Los Angeles, where she also wrote for television shows including Arrested Development, Mad About You, and Ellen.

Semple was born in Santa Monica, California. Her family moved to Spain soon after she was born. There her father, the screenwriter Lorenzo Semple, Jr., wrote the pilot for the television series Batman. The family moved to Los Angeles and then to Aspen, Colorado. Semple attended boarding school at Choate Rosemary Hall, then received a BA in English from Barnard College in 1986.

Reviews

[britta ⋆˙⟡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Covens, you can’t afford not to!”

I had such a good time reading this! Maria Semple wrote Where’d you go, Bernadette?, which I also thoroughly enjoyed. Her writing is very singular; simultaneously quirky, funny, deep and relatable. This story has it all: eccentric apple billionaires, art terrorism, a middle aged single lady condo coven, Paris, peonies, a lip-reading dog walking teenager, a philosopher queen, the Grateful Dead, a mystery to be solved and lots more. Adora the FMC is so totally loveable and there’s a wonderful cast of characters and a little romance too. I loved the philosophy bits.

“Adora is trying to find someone to blame because she hasn’t won her Oscar.”
“My Oscar?” I said with a jerk.
“We all thought she’d have an Oscar by now,” my mother explained to the therapist. “But she’s stuck writing for television shows none of us have ever heard of.”
My therapist recognized narcissism when she saw it, and this was god-tier. I half expected her to throw the Ali-G hand sign and say, “Respect.”

Many thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Content warnings: Narcissistic parent, suicide attempt, sexual assault (in flashbacks)

[Alisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so f’n much. Adora is so smart and funny, sometimes to her detriment. The celery/bread scene cracked me up. I love her and her coven of badass women and the few good men in her life.

[Allie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

[Ellen Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such an enjoyable book. I loved Adora’s character as she is extremely relatable. I was entertained at how she handles life and loved the mix of themes in this book - from mid-life and love to secrets and silliness. I was lost in the pages as I gasped and giggled. This book is lighthearted for the reader while delving deep enough into Adora’s life to keep you guessing what could happen next.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Oolookitty · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one! The story takes so many unexpected twists and turns that you are never quite sure where it’s going; something that is really in keeping with the life of lead character Adora, who goes from wannabe television writer to writing for her favorite comedy show to leaving the industry under a cloud, then somehow finding a new life in New York City where she falls into a romance with someone who may not be what he seems.

There’s also a charming, believable relationship with her teenage daughter, whom Adora struggles to get off her phone and engaging with the real world. But the daughter also turns out to have surprises in store for Adora, who finds new respect for the person her child is becoming.

There may have been a couple of moments where I thought… OK, this is crazy, have we gone too far here? But in the end I really just enjoyed the entire thing, craziness and all.

And as a television writer myself, of course Semple’s portrayal of the industry, or one dark side of it, really rings true. Aside from the madness of what women often have to go through in this industry, she also gives us the tiny everyday details of life in a writers room, right down to “the place on Barham” where the PA buys flowers.

A fun read.

Received an advance copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Danielle · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was as if the author had three different ideas for a book and couldn't decide which one to write about, so she smushed them all into a single book. The plot that starts out the book with the main character trying to create a "coven" of older women living on the same floor of an apartment building and supporting each other as they grow older together just pretty much disappears and is not really relevant to the rest of the book. The other two main plots eventually tie into each other even though it all seems kind of ridiculous. If the author had settled on one story to pursue this book could have been a lot better than it actually was. It felt way too disjointed as written.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bernadette is one of my favorite books, so I was excited to get an advanced copy of this from NetGalley. Overall, I loved it. Maria Semple creates such interesting and complex characters and relationships. Adding some whimsy really helped soften some of the more pretentious philosophical themes of the story. I’d still call it delightfully pretentious. My issues lie in the plot and execution of the story’s climax. I was a bit confused, honestly. I really wanted it to make sense and land perfectly. I don’t think it does, it might all be a bit too convoluted. But, I loved everything else so much that I would still give it 4 stars.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars


I liked this. As someone who doesn’t know a thing about philosophy I thought that was going to get too in the weeds for me but it ended up being what I liked most. Do I need to read a book about philosophy? 


What was working for it was also kind of its downfall though. It had something for almost everyone, and because of that the story felt kind of disconnected throughout. All the pieces came together in the end though, maybe in too neat of a bow though tbh.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a rollicking good time and as bonkers as we’ve come to expect from Maria Semple. I only wish she hadn’t used the main characters weight as sloppy shorthand for why she tolerated bad behavior and then once she moved from LA she magically lost 30 pounds and her weight never came up again. The casual fatphobia wasn’t worthy of such a good story.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well I inhaled Go Gentle in one day. 5 stars

Semple is the Queen of Character Development. Filled with found family, women helping women, later in life romance, and a dose of intrigue, I won’t soon forget the fantastic characters in this story. Have I already read my favorite book of 2026?

[Britanie Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written and deeply thoughtful. A story about transformation, identity, and even finding love later in life. Maria Semple’s prose is gorgeous, and this made me excited to read more of her work.

[Tam📖 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

A timely read as it covered Covid, me too movement, as well as the political environment.