Today marks one month since the launch of my debut novel, Not Famous.

It’s been quite an interesting experience!

Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect. Publishing is so competitive… I didn’t even try to query agents or publishers, I just jumped right into self-publishing it because I believed in my novel and felt that even if managed to get a publisher interested I’d still do pretty much all the heavy-lifting anyway, so why not do everything myself, and if by some miracle the book sells, great, I’m not splitting royalties with a publisher—that is, if the book sells at all.

So, how did my first month go? Well, I’ll tell you…

Over a hundred copies of Not Famous have sold in more than six different countries. My Kindle Unlimited pages reads are in the five figures. That’s right, five! Not Famous made it into the top 10,000 Kindle books overall in the Amazon UK store.

And people aren’t just buying and reading the book, they are really enjoying it, too!

Between the US and UK Amazon stores, Not Famous currently has 10 reviews, all of them five-stars.

Here’s a few of those reviews…

From Ian Shane, a fellow lad-lit author:

“Matthew Hanover delivers a pitch-perfect story in his debut novel. It’s a funny and touching story about learning to love and trust again. […] Not Famous is a story that stays with you long after you’ve finished reading it. I’m holding up my lighter, because I want an encore.”


From M. Becker:

Here’s hoping that is just the first of many books coming from this author. I know I’ll be reading more.

From Scott Richardson:

“I love this book. Nick and Alli are brought to life in this sweet story. My only complaint is that it ended too soon, I’m hoping there is a sequel in the works.”


From Amazon Customer:

As someone who’s been anxiously waiting for a new book from Jonathan Tropper, Matthew Norman, Nick Hornby, or some of the other “lad lit” authors, I enjoyed NOT FAMOUS a ton. It’s a heartfelt and charming story that has you rooting for the characters from start to finish, and, framed in Boston’s independent music scene, it has a sense of place and purpose that you don’t always see from debut novels. I look forward to reading more from Hanover in the future.

Amazon Reviewer


“From the very first page, the author managed to grip me and make me want to read more.”


From Mr. J. M. Vidamour:

From the first page I was hooked. Interesting characters who you root for an care about and a believable world that you wished you lived in.

A fantastic read that will be loved by fans of Nick Hornby with a twist in its tail that you won’t see coming.

From SThaw:

A very impressive debut. I’m looking forward to what comes next. This novel was funny and heartfelt. I was hooked from the first chapter, loved the characters and read the whole thing in one day.

There are more, but you get the idea. There are also reviews on Goodreads, where an overwhelming majority of readers loved the book.

I still have a lot of work to do to keep the book in the hands of readers, but I’m thrilled that things have so far gone this well… It’s great to know that people are reading Not Famous and enjoying it!