Husband Material : A Novel
Emily Belden
On Sale Date: December 30, 2019
9781525805981, 1525805983
Trade Paperback
$15.99 USD, $19.99 CAD
Fiction / Romance / Romantic Comedy
304 pages
Advance Praise for Husband Material
“Tackling thorny questions of widowhood and dating after trauma, Belden's second novel is witty, full of heart, and blindingly au courant. Packed with pop-culture references, it will appeal to fans of Sophie Kinsella, Rosie Walsh, and Plum Sykes. Belden writes twists and turns to keep readers hooked.” —Booklist
“Charming.” —Publishers Weekly
“Sensitive, thoughtful, and touching.” —Library Journal
“In this touching, witty, and timely book, Emily Belden deftly explores the complexities of human relationships in our increasingly tech-obsessed world. By turns heartbreaking and laugh-out-loud funny, Husband Material beautifully demonstrates that you can't reduce love to a bunch of 1s and 0s.”
—Kristin Rockaway, author of How To Hack a Heartbreak
Summary:
Told in Emily Belden's signature edgy voice, a novel about a young widow's discovery of her late husband's secret and her journey toward hope and second-chance love.
Twenty-nine-year-old Charlotte Rosen has a secret: she’s a widow. Ever since the fateful day that leveled her world, Charlotte has worked hard to move forward. Great job at a hot social media analytics company? Check. Roommate with no knowledge of her past? Check. Adorable dog? Check. All the while, she’s faithfully data-crunched her way through life, calculating the probability of risk—so she can avoid it.
Yet Charlotte’s algorithms could never have predicted that her late husband’s ashes would land squarely on her doorstep five years later. Stunned but determined, Charlotte sets out to find meaning in this sudden twist of fate, even if that includes facing her perfectly coiffed, and perfectly difficult, ex-mother-in-law—and her husband’s best friend, who seems to become a fixture at her side whether she likes it or not.
But soon a shocking secret surfaces, forcing Charlotte to answer questions she never knew to ask and to consider the possibility of forgiveness. And when a chance at new love arises, she’ll have to decide once and for all whether to follow the numbers or trust her heart.
Review:
This was a fun story that got me crying, although it surely didn't start all that hilarious. And don't get fooled by the cute cover, this isn't lighthearted at all.
Charlotte likes her numbers, they give you the certainty life doesn't. Especially for her who lost her husband within months of marriage. When you become a widow so soon and have been so for longer than a wife, were you really a wife?
Although she's done her best to erase that marriage from her past as she comes up with the perfect algorithm to find the perfect date, it all comes back to hunt her when her late husband's ashes gets sent to her new apartment. Now she has to find him a new resting place but it's also a change to do over and get a real closure.
One of the downsides was the romance for me. Yes, there is one, Charlotte does have a romantic interest and he's cute but the way it all develops along with a few revelations really made me wonder if I should be cheering for them. They do have cute moments together but in the end there was this "but" in my head.
I also think that maybe the final quarter? The piece before it? A little bit after the middle section it lost steam but it does recover a bit. The rhythm isn't perfect.
Still, Charlotte's journey to put herself together was very relatable even to me, who's never been married much less a widow. Also, her relationship, or lack-there-of, with her mother-in-law is quite a highlight. I loved all the bits the writer had planned for us as we find out more about Charlotte's marriage and she finds out more about it too.
It's a book I ended up eating instead of just reading so much I was into this, but it does have a sad backstory that I don't recommend to anyone who's had losses in their family recently. I think the writer was very sensitive but it's still a hard theme and as I mentioned before, despite the cover, this story doesn't go light on it.
I don't think I'll forget the lessons I learned from this book and would love to read more from Emily Belden.
Charlotte likes her numbers, they give you the certainty life doesn't. Especially for her who lost her husband within months of marriage. When you become a widow so soon and have been so for longer than a wife, were you really a wife?
Although she's done her best to erase that marriage from her past as she comes up with the perfect algorithm to find the perfect date, it all comes back to hunt her when her late husband's ashes gets sent to her new apartment. Now she has to find him a new resting place but it's also a change to do over and get a real closure.
One of the downsides was the romance for me. Yes, there is one, Charlotte does have a romantic interest and he's cute but the way it all develops along with a few revelations really made me wonder if I should be cheering for them. They do have cute moments together but in the end there was this "but" in my head.
I also think that maybe the final quarter? The piece before it? A little bit after the middle section it lost steam but it does recover a bit. The rhythm isn't perfect.
Still, Charlotte's journey to put herself together was very relatable even to me, who's never been married much less a widow. Also, her relationship, or lack-there-of, with her mother-in-law is quite a highlight. I loved all the bits the writer had planned for us as we find out more about Charlotte's marriage and she finds out more about it too.
It's a book I ended up eating instead of just reading so much I was into this, but it does have a sad backstory that I don't recommend to anyone who's had losses in their family recently. I think the writer was very sensitive but it's still a hard theme and as I mentioned before, despite the cover, this story doesn't go light on it.
I don't think I'll forget the lessons I learned from this book and would love to read more from Emily Belden.
Honest review based on an ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley. Many thanks to the publisher for this opportunity.
Buy Links:
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/husband-material-emily-belden/1129908343?ean=9781525805981#/
Author Bio:
Social Links:
Author website: http://www.emilybelden.com/
Twitter: @emilybelden
Instagram: @emilybelden
Facebook: @emilybeldenauthor
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