Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™

A Love in Galway Novel, Book 1

From the publisher:

TikTok sensation Morbidly Yours, an opposites-attract romantic dramedy about a shy, demisexual Irish mortician who must marry by his 35th birthday to keep his beloved family business, and the Texan widow escaping her past who moves in next door.

Falling for the wrong person? Bury your feelings.

Painfully shy Callum Flannelly would rather dive into an open grave than take a stranger to dinner. But he can only inherit the family undertaking business under one condition: He must marry before his 35th birthday. Texan animator Lark Thompson moved to Galway, Ireland, to restart her life and career, not be reminded of losing her husband by moving in next to a funeral home.

But when she learns of Callum’s dilemma, Lark’s certain she can help him find The One, even if she’s sworn off love herself. Though as the dating project progresses and Lark spends more time with straight-laced, sarcastic Callum, he starts to crack the ice around her grieving heart. And the more joy that vivacious Lark brings to Callum’s grey existence, the less he can imagine letting her return to Texas.

If they think they can ignore their connection, they’re dead wrong.

“[A] charming romance…Poignant and heartwarming, this is a quirky love story you won’t forget.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred)

“The setting is unique, and Fairbanks is admirably frank about death and grieving… Callum himself is an admirable hero, with impressive depths…This will appeal to readers who don’t mind some death in their “til death do us part.” –Publishers Weekly

“With a fantastic Irish setting; sensitive portrayals of demisexuality, grief, and workplace misogyny; and a sexy friends-to-lovers romance, Fairbanks makes an excellent debut.” –Library Journal

An LA Times Romance Novel to Heat Up Your Summer
An August LibraryReads Pick

https://amzn.to/46KULLC

I think this was my first romance with an undertaker as the main love interest, but it worked!

Lark is a young widow, and she is tired of talking about it. When an opportunity comes up for her to work in Ireland for nine months, she jumps at the chance to escape. She moves into her new apartment which she believes is next to a Bed & Breakfast – their sign is in Irish Gaelic with no English translation. She decides to pop in to say hello and is shocked to find Callum, her new neighbor, is an undertaker. The building is, in fact, a funeral home, not the B&B she was expecting. Lark’s previous experience with a funeral home was when her husband died, and they tried to upsell her and rip her off in a myriad of ways, so she’s not too interested. But there is something about Callum…

Callum grew up in the family business and takes his work seriously. His grandfather raised him as his parents weren’t interested and took off. But when his “granda” dies, Callum is devastated to find that the only way he can inherit the family business is if he is married by age 35. At 34, the clock is ticking with nary a prospect on the horizon. Callum has a stutter and consequently has difficulties in talking to the opposite sex. He also isn’t the type to just fall in bed with anyone; he needs to feel an emotional connection before he makes a physical connection.

Lark bursts into his life like a ray of sunshine. She doesn’t appear to be bothered at all by his stutter and is kind, sweet, and patient. In need of friends herself, Lark quickly befriends Callum, despite his initial standoffishness. She enjoys her new co-workers, well, most of them. There is one who apparently wanted the job she got and does not hesitate to make that known or to belittle her and her work as often as he can. So Callum is a bit of respite from that problem. But she has no interest in ever marrying again. She blames herself (and so does her sister-in-law) for her husband’s death and doesn’t want to ever feel that way again.

Lark decides to help Callum find the wife he desperately needs. Dating apps and the subsequent dates from hell gleaned from them add some humor here. This is a slow burn, opposites attract romance that really works. If you were a fan of Six Feet Under (I loved it!) this book has some of that same appeal in the setting.

Their duplicate deadlines – Lark’s time in Ireland is fast coming to a close, and 35 is mere months away for Callum – dictate a moment of sudden realization, an epiphany if you will, for the both of them. There are some very steamy moments and some real obstacles along the way to their happily ever after. I am really looking forward to the next book in the series.

8/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

MORBIDLY YOURS by Ivy Fairbanks.  G.P. Putnam’s Sons (August 20, 2024). ISBN:‎ 978-0593851869. 352p.

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From the publisher:

A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Eleanor & Park and Attachments comes Slow Dance—a novel of true love and friendship.

Back in high school, everybody thought Shiloh and Cary would end up together . . . everybody but Shiloh and Cary.

They were just friends. Best friends. Allies. They spent entire summers sitting on Shiloh’s porch steps, dreaming about the future. They were both going to get out of north Omaha—Shiloh would go to go to college and become an actress, and Cary would join the Navy. They promised each other that their friendship would never change.

Well, Shiloh did go to college, and Cary did join the Navy. And yet, somehow, everything changed.

Now Shiloh’s thirty-three, and it’s been fourteen years since she talked to Cary. She’s been married and divorced. She has two kids. And she’s back living in the same house she grew up in. Her life is nothing like she planned.

When she’s invited to an old friend’s wedding, all Shiloh can think about is whether Cary will be there—and whether she hopes he will be. Would Cary even want to talk to her? After everything?

The answer is yes. And yes. And yes.

Slow Dance is the story of two kids who fell in love before they knew enough about love to recognize it. Two friends who lost everything. Two adults who just feel lost.

It’s the story of Shiloh and Cary, who everyone thought would end up together, trying to find their way back to the start.

“A will-they, won’t-they second chance romance for the ages, this one is poised to be one of summer’s breakout hits.” —People

“Rowell takes her time revealing the couple’s origins as high-school besties, the conflicts they helped each other through as teens in working-class families and those they’re dealing with now, the long period of silence between them, and the undeniable glimmers of their enduring mutual attraction. Their dance is sweet and sexy, and Rowell draws out the whole, simmering affair as she ping-pongs through her characters’ past and present. . . . [Slow Dance is] sure to be a crowd-pleaser.”— Booklist (starred review)

“Rich, real, and emotionally raw, this satisfying contemporary is sure to impress.”  — Publishers Weekly

https://amzn.to/3SFJuq8

This is Rowell’s first adult novel in ten years, so I was very excited about it. I read all of her earlier books and loved them. I met her at the American Library Association’s annual conference many years ago, and loved her! She verged off into graphic novels after writing a couple of novels with some graphic elements, but I am not a fan of graphic novels (for the most part), so I didn’t read them. All that said, as much as I was looking forward to this book, I almost didn’t finish it.

The “slow” of the title is appropriate. I was maybe a quarter of the way in and put it down. It felt like nothing was happening of any consequence, and I wasn’t invested enough with these characters to care. But then I saw Reese Witherspoon had selected it for her book club, and I almost always like the books she chooses, so I picked it back up. At about three-quarters of the way through, I finally felt invested. We are talking super s-l-o-wwwwwwwww here. I realize not every book has to be fast-paced, but that is my preference whether a romance, a thriller, or anything else.

Cary and Shiloh grew up together as the best of friends. But then life happened; he joined the Navy, and she went off to college. They got together once during that time, but hadn’t spoken in many years before a mutual friend’s wedding brought them back together. But it took a lot more time for them to really find their way back to one another as friends, and a lot more time after that to find their way into love and a lasting relationship.

Neither of them had good role models growing up. They both came from toxic, dysfunctional families and really were the glue that held them together. Now Shiloh is back home, living with her mother, and trying to raise her two kids alone. Luckily, her mother is a better grandmother than she was a mother.

Carey is dealing with an elderly parent who needs more help than his half-siblings care to give her, so he is constantly having to step in, taking leave from the Navy as he can. As he and Shiloh become friends again, she starts helping with his mom as well. It seems like they both have emotional and mental struggles that need more attention than they are getting.

Eventually, they realize they are in love and find their happy ending, but it is such a long, difficult road to get there. I did end up liking this book, but not to harp on it or anything (and sorry if I’m being too repetitive), it was slow going.

8/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

SLOW DANCE by Rainbow Rowell. William Morrow (July 30, 2024). ISBN:‎ 978-0063380196. 400p.

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