“By turns heartbreaking and laugh-out-loud funny.”–Kristin Rockaway, author of How To Hack a Heartbreak Sometimes love is unpredictable… in this witty and thought-provoking novel about a millenial widow whose life is thrown into disarray, with often hilarious results, when the most unexpected delivery arrives on her doorstep. Twenty-nine-year-old Charlotte Rosen has a secret: she’s a … 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 when her quest reveals a shocking secret, Charlotte is forced to answer questions she never knew to ask and to consider the possibility of forgiveness. And when a chance at a new life arises, she’ll have to decide once and for all whether to follow the numbers or trust her heart.
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I picked up Husband Material by Emily Belden thinking that it would be a fun romantic comedy. It wasn’t, but it is decent contemporary fiction. The premise of the story is great, and the characters are interesting. I enjoyed Ms. Belden’s writing style, but I struggled with some aspects of the story.
Charlotte Rosen is a 29 year-old-widow, and part of the way that she avoids dealing with her loss is to keep that a secret from everyone in her “new” life. I can see someone not wanting to be defined by that tragedy, but when her late husband’s ashes show up on her doorstep, it is clear that Charlotte’s secretiveness is about her unresolved issues. Some of those issues include an acerbic MIL and the late husband’s best friend, Brian. Both of these characters are unlikable; I couldn’t get past their deception, and I found it hard to accept how Charlotte responded to their explanations.
As a social influencer, Charlotte relies on numbers and spreadsheets. She also relies on them to avoid accepting that the heart wants what the heart wants, no matter if the math doesn’t add up. The discovery of a big secret and the multiple deceptions is the catalyst for Charlotte moving on with her life. She is finally forced to deal with her past, and that allows her to stop using work as an excuse not to live her life to the fullest.
I loved Charlotte’s quirky roommate, Casey; she is a sparkling addition to the story. I appreciated the messages about loss, grieving and second chances. I’d give the writing 5-stars, the storytelling 4-stars (the plot slows for a while after the funny start to the book), but the denouement didn’t work for me. Overall, a 3-star read for me.
Well this is my first read by this author and probably my last. I read it all but really have nothing to say because it was just ok. The best part was there few grammatical errors but maybe an editor could have helped more with the plot and making the characters more likable and relate-able. The humor of the story quickly ends at the beginning and the story becomes all about lies and deception along with betrayal. This book didn’t work for me but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad story just not my speed.
An Explosive Emotional Roller Coaster
This book is truly awesome. It has the most romantic proposal scent that I have ever read. It begins one way, shifts direction and doesn’t stop doing the spinout until almost the end. I had to read this one start to finish in one session. I even re-read certain parts to make sure I had the full meaning and impact. You will never be sorry for reading this book. It ran me through the entire range of emotions. I know that I will read this book again. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.
**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**
Husband Material is the first Emily Belden novel that I’ve read. I was very drawn to the blurb for this book, so I decided to take a chance on a new-to-me author.
Charlotte Rosen is an extremely intelligent young woman who makes a living as a coder for an analytics company. She’s twenty-nine, lives with a roommate and hasn’t been totally honest with her roommate about the fact that she was in fact married at one time. When her husband’s ashes show up on their doorstep, not only is Charlotte shocked, but it sends her into a bit of a tailspin. Couple that with the fact that she learns another secret about her husband that she is stunned to learn was kept from her.
As she tries to come to terms with everything that is going on in her life, she also finds herself in a position where she may be able to let love back into her life. But with everything that is going on, and everything she’s been through, will she be able to do that?
I enjoyed this book, but I would have loved for there to have been more development of the romance. It felt rushed to me, but it had so much potential, especially because of where the relationship was born from. I did enjoy the aspects of self discovery, growth and healing that took place in the book. The characters were enjoyable as well.
I found this book difficult to enjoy. The main character, a widow, who basically, five years after the death of her husband, comes to terms with her decisions. I found her singularly selfish and a little pathetic. This story is her running around making a mess of things. Not a top read for me.