BLURB:

When my brother suddenly passes away, shattering my family, I’m left to pick up the pieces.

Then Vince Mancini knocks on my door. My brother’s best friend from high school—and the boy I loved—is a funeral director, and he promises to answer whenever I call.

With his steadfast nature and warm smile, he becomes the anchor in the storm, willing to hold me up as everything falls at my feet. He sees through all my bluster, and it’s easy to remember why I’d hung on his every word when I was younger.

Now, he thinks he can fix me, even though there’s a lump of clay where my heart used to be.

Which makes the fluttering in my chest all the more disconcerting. And this hurt? It’s too much too soon.

MY THOUGHTS:

I was immediately drawn to the description of this book on NetGalley and couldn’t resist requesting the ARC. To my delight, I was approved to receive it. I feel privileged to have the chance to dive into this special story. While the story delves into grief, it also offers a journey of healing and resilience. The author’s heartfelt note resonated with me, and I admire the strength and courage it took to write this book. It’s incredible how art and literature can provide solace during difficult times. Although the book delves into the intense emotions of loss, it also captures the power of love and support. Vincent, as a love interest, adds a lightness to the narrative, balancing the weight of the theme, but I don’t know if I would really label this as a romance. I felt like we could have done so much more with Vince in this story and since we did not, perhaps this could just be a story of loss, family and self-discovery? We get a more in-depth look at Cassandra’s grieving process than the romance element, which is totally fine, but I was kind of expecting more romance. The romance element is there, but I wanted more. If that makes any sense, because of that, I would rate this book 3 stars and recommend that a disclosure be included for readers who have experienced their own loss though.

Wait a minute.

I just noticed that the following Content Note is on Amazon for this book:

“Love at a Funeral and Other Awkward Conversations is a romance. It is also a story about learning how to live and love with grief. Like all romances, this book has a happy ending, but the journey to get there is long and winding, filled with bittersweet moments and some very sad ones. Please read with care.”

So this is great!

After reading this story, I am left with a heaviness on my heart but also yearning for more romance. I can only imagine how it feels to lose a sibling unexpectedly. My heart goes out to Sophie and to everyone that has experienced this. Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, for providing me with this ARC.

For those that are interested in reading this, it hits shelves May 31, 2024.

Happy Reading Folks.