This book is everything you need in your life right now! This book is hilaroius, poignant and thought provoking. My favorite quote from the book is "I must never again forget to care for myself".

The protaganist, Amy Byler is a school librarian and single mom with two children, teenage years. Her exhusband had left them all 3 years ago but suddenly he is appearing out of nowhere wanting three months with the kids. All this leads of to Amy going on a "momspringa" in New York City.

I laughed so much during this novel and there are some definite "bookish" themes in the book with two of the characters are librarians.

The author has created such likeable characters that I found myself rooting for.
The fact is, I am not a mom, but this book is for EVERY woman in every situation. I loved it so much and I highly recommend it.

The Overdue Life of Amy Byler was a delight to read, captivating me from the very first sentence, and keeping me turning pages long into the night. Amy Byler's husband left her high and dry with two children, a big mortgage, and little money three years previous, and she has had to reinvent herself and her family for them to become thriving and happy. When he suddenly reappears and wants to devote himself to his children, Amy has to reinvent herself again! Amy's journey was poignant, touching, and at times, hilarious! The banter and dialogue between Amy and her friends, her kids, the hot librarian, and even her husband is sparkling and oh so witty!! There is a seriousness to this book, too, as Amy struggles with guilt and angst over her kids, and somehow trying to do the right thing for everyone, at the same time realizing how much she likes this new Amy that she discovers in NYC. As a certified bookworm, I loved that a lot of the book was devoted to books; the love of books, and getting kids to love books, and I loved that they used the word "unputdownable" to describe a book, because that's exactly what this book was-unputdownable! This is the first book I've read by Kelly Harms, but I'm going to go check out her backlist right now! #momspringa

Don't we all wish to be Amy at some point? To escape our life that's become so overwhelming that we've lost ourselves? She does everything for everyone and nothing for herself. Amy's husband John left three years earlier saying he needed a break and like that he went off to Hong Kong, leaving her to take care of their two kids, forced to take a job as a librarian at her kids private school, to continue to afford their life. One day John waltzes back in, expecting to pick up where he left off. Amy decides a bit of space in order and heads to NYC.. There she meets the "hot librarian" Daniel, but the feelings she has for him freak her out. When Amy's friend Talia asks her to participate in a makeover for her magazine, she reluctantly does. The story idea is titled #momspringa, similar to Amish teens rumspringa, rite of passage. Amy's #momspringa includes blind dates, hair & makeup, and workouts. Is Amy's real life overdue? Is it her time to shine? Will she find love? You'll be utterly charmed by this lovely book.

This book is hysterically funny! Amy through no fault of her own, finds herself a single mom. Her husband walks on his family. He has a new younger girlfriend and moves to Hong Kong. 3 years later, he returns and wants to reconnect with his children who are now teenagers. Amy goes to New York for the summer. Amy's entire life revolves around her children and for the summer it is all about Amy. As Amy rediscovers herself, the reader is taken along for the most hilarious ride. I loved this book and the characters. I received an advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for providing a copy for an honest review

This book is engaging, insightful and, at times, laugh out loud funny...sometimes in the same sentence!!!
The writing was wonderful. I've not read anything by Kelly Harms before, but I am now a fan! The plot was engaging, I could not put it down! I adored all the fun characters. Would go higher than 5 🌟 if I could!! Fully recommend!!

Amy Byler used to have an exciting life. But two kids, crushing bills, and a long absent husband have left her exhausted and frumpy. So when her ex reappears and offers to care for their kids for the summer, she reluctantly agrees to a few weeks in New York City, to a makeover from a fashion magazine, to high heels and dates and well-fitting bras.

Kelly Harms' THE OVERDUE LIFE OF AMY BYLER is a fresh and very funny reminder for every woman who struggles to put herself first that creating an enjoyable life is an important part of being a great mom.

I have never read anything by Kelly Harms before, and truly didn’t know what to expect from this novel.

It’s the story of a school librarian who gets the chance to take a break from a pretty stressful life. She learns to be herself again while also hanging on to the hope that her kids still need her.

I enjoyed the “teaching” (librarian) perspective of this book, as I am a teacher and it resonated with me and the difficulties of getting students to enjoy reading. I also appreciate that sometimes life can be very difficult to handle on your own.

Amy’s #momspringa was a way to get away from it all, but also her way to understand how much she has already.

I think this book would be an excellent vacation or beach read for any parent/teacher who feels a bit overwhelmed and would like to live vicariously through Amy Byler.

I’m spilling over with love for this book.

There is a very bookish theme, sparkling banter between the characters, including in-depth discussions on books. And there is food porn, there was so much food consumed that I was constantly hungry. And there was journaling. And a New York setting. And all the humour, literally laugh out loud moments.

And, and, and.

I could keep whispering sweet nothings about this book, but I rather you discover the joys of it yourself.

If you love books bursting with wit, and highlighting the power of female friendships, and the joy of finding yourself, then I highly recommend this gem of a book to you.

I have been reading some heavy novels recently and thought it was time for something a little less oppressive. This one fit the bill perfectly.

Amy Byler is a school librarian and single mom with two kids, ages 12 and 15. Her husband up and left them for nebulous reasons three years previously. It has been a struggle to make things work, but Amy has indeed made a good life for her family even though she is worn down from her efforts. Suddenly Amy’s husband reappears and wants three months of re-bonding time with the kids, which eventually results in Amy getting a “momspringa” vacation in New York City.

This book is engaging, funny, and thought provoking. Amy finally has time to actually think about finding her true self, and to try to determine in what direction she wants her life to go. Things are complex, and Amy has much to sort through. What exactly does her husband want? How will the kids react to him? Does she still love him or is she ready to move on to someone else? Her whole recent adult life has revolved around being a wonderful mother to her kids. But at what cost to herself? Is it possible to find a way to take better care of Amy? The cast includes a couple of great longtime friends of Amy’s - a magazine editor and an ex-nun (whom I loved) who dole out advice and a couple of interesting male companions Amy connects with during her journey in New York.

Amy has a ton of decision trees in this novel, and it was fun to think about what I would do in her position. Humor is present throughout; I smiled a lot and laughed out loud several times. I also liked the fact that two of the main characters are librarians and we get some good librarian book talk in this story. Extra credit goes to Ms. Harms for her dialogue, which simply sparkles.

Amy is so easy to cheer for and I kept hoping for a way for everything to fall into place for her and her family. I looked forward to grabbing the book every time I had a few minutes to read; I felt invested in the characters and was engrossed in their story.

I recommend The Overdue Life of Amy Byler to anyone looking for a quick, easy, and fun read featuring a very likeable main character on a thoughtful journey.

Thank you Net Galley, Lake Union Publishing, and Kelly Harms for the gift of an advanced review copy. Thanks also to Sonja Yoerg for kindly bringing this book to my attention. Opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way.

This book is hilarious, I’ve never been a single parent but I started getting anxious just reading about Amy. I read this book in a few hours and was kicked out of my bed for laughing so hard. My husband was not amused but I certainly was. I look forward to reading this author in the future

This was a funny book! The author did a great job with the main character, Amy Byler, as well as the supporting characters - especially Amy's quirky friends Lena (a former nun) and Talia (a single, childless, fashion magazine editor). The story focuses primarily on Amy, a determined mom who has been working nonstop after her husband left her and their two kids 3 years ago. Her estranged husband randomly reappears and decides he wants to be a part of his children's lives by taking the kids for a week. So while the kids are with their father, Amy goes to NYC to attend a conference for librarians. What was supposed to be a quiet and uneventful week without her kids turns into a wild adventure that lasts the summer (#momspringa)! I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading others by this author.

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for providing a copy for review.

I'm so grateful to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and the author for an opportunity to read this wonderful novel prior to publication. I have been in a lengthy reading slump, and though I've started several great books, I have not finished one until THE OVERDUE LIFE OF AMY BYLER, which I could not read fast enough! I will provide a more in-depth review on my blog closer to publication in April, but for now I will say that this book is honestly and engagingly written, has wonderful character development, witty dialogue (including some laugh-out-loud text message exchanges), emotional depth, and thought-provoking situations arising between the characters. It deals with marriage, children, including teenagers, friends, regret, and the road to possible redemption. And, if you read this book, you will understand when I say that I want a #Momspringa, like, right now! This will end up as a favorite read of the year. Really well done.

"I must never again forget to care for myself."
Definitely a fabulous, laugh out loud funny novel mixed with a whole lot of truth.
What Mom doesn't forget herself as she is raising her kids?
What is a Mom's life? Does it include time and enjoyment for oneself?
When Amy's husband decides to come forth and get to know" his kids after a few years on hiatus, Amy decides with some reluctance and persuasion, to take a month for herself. Could she really relax, live and love?
This is a wakeup that is amazing for not only Amy, but for her twitter fans that are following her to see her escapades as #momspringa!
I loved all the characters in this book, but especially Cori, Lena and the hot librarian!
Read this in a day!

Amy’s life as a wife and mother was going along as smoothly as can be expected with John, a mostly absent husband, Joe, an eight year old genius son and the diver, Cori, her twelve year old daughter. But on the day John rolled his suitcase out the door and got on a flight to Hong Kong, stable, stay-at-home mom, Amy, became a single mother with two children to raise. Quite quickly, according to Amy’s BFF, Lena, Amy snagged a job as school librarian at the private school Joe and Cori attended, refinanced the house and barged on with her life.

Kelly Harms recreates the topsy-turvy life and emotional roller coaster ride of a single mom with her quirky accounting of conversations that Amy Byler has with herself, in her own head. Amy’s actually quite convincing and has you choosing her side of the argument, and then just as swiftly your emotions flip-flop and suddenly her rationionalizations have you siding with John! (There were times I didn’t know if I’d “kiss ‘im or kick ‘im” if I actually ran into him.) The BIG issue arises when John returns after three years in Hong Kong, in order “to spend time” and “get to know” his children. (Oh brother, picture lots of really mad faced, exasperated emojis in Amy’s texts.)

John wants to spend a week with his children-just a week! What could go wrong? Amy’s friends, Lena and college roommate, Talia, are in cahoots when Amy decides to spend that same week in NYC at a conference for librarians, earning continuing education units and presenting at the conference. ( This is a “get away” on which planet?) Amy’s sensible financial strategy is to stay with Talia, editor of Pure Beautiful Magazine, in order to save hotel expenses. When Amy’s phone calls and texts go unanswered she reverts to their old college days and the tricks she and Talia used to get into hotels. This is the point where Amy’s “overdue life” begins to get REALLY expensive-it’s NYC, not rural Pennsylvania. Credit cards are for emergencies, right?

Amy’s attempt to enthuse and enthrall Cori with reading begins with summer book suggestions and journaling. This “grateful reader” simply adored the journal entries Cori writes to her mother at the beginning of each chapter. The references to authors, book titles and plays are a luscious treat for book lovers of all ages.

Amy does experience life in NYC. And it was certainly “overdue.” You’ll need to read the book to find out the bits about the “make over of Amy”, the clothes, the dates, the restaurants & bars, the plays, the museums; the crying & heart-breaking decisions that have to be made. Read Kelly Harm’s newest book and you will experience the pain of abandonment and the false elation of martyrdom; regret and forgiveness, the thrill of a new love, and even the realization that children grow up and become independent -which is both joyful and bittersweet. You might need your own ” momspringa” after you read The Overdue Life of Amy Byler.

Check out: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41723475-the-overdue-life-of-amy-byler

I really enjoyed this book. The style is breezy and humorous, despite the somewhat serious subject, and I loved the heroine who goes on a Momspringa and rediscovers herself in the process. Will definitely recommend and It should find many fans with readers of this type of fiction.

This book is hilarious. Amy rides a rollercoaster of emotions from living the life of a single mother the last 3 years because her husband couldn't handle life and just took off leaving her with 2 young kids. When he decides to return she has to decide if she can enjoy a week in NYC at a conference while he cares for them. This starts the summer of having fun, trying to rid herself of self guilt and falling love. It's a great book and I couldn't put it down. Make sure you put it on your TBR list and grab it when it comes out.

When a mother who’s been all the parent, all the time for three years gets a week off, everything falls into place.

“Could it be this easy? Could life be this aligned for once?”

Amy leaves her small-town life for a week of responsible-only-for-herself time. #momspringa

“The tablet blinks again, and I click back to the message app. Talia, in her succinct way, doubling down on her cool in four little words: this party is on”

There are makeovers (“I promise you will be thrilled. You look like … like the perfect version of yourself.””) and dinners and walks in the park. There’s romance, friendship, and self-reflection. There are literary references and reading adventures. And, probably my favorite, there are LIBRARIANS.

But momspringa doesn’t last forever.

““Amish rumspringa ends with a big decision. Go home or never turn back. I’m not sure how your momspringa is any different.””

I suspect many mothers will find Amy’s time of complete freedom fabulously relateable. Recommended for mothers looking for a fun, funny, and touching story about love, family, friendship — and being yourself.

Amy Byler's husband ditched her and their kids three years ago, so when he shows up, full of reget, we can forgive her for being less than welcoming. Still, she could use a break--and a life.

What follows is so engaging, I had to clear my calendar. Harms dances on the knife edge between snort-your-coffee humor and bull's-eye insights, often in the same sentence. As a card-carrying curmudgeon, I resist such tactics, but here I never felt played. Instead, I was swept up in Amy's Everymom dilemma, her quest for a full life without sinking into the swamp of selfishness.

Whip-smart and honest to the core, THE OVERDUE LIFE OF AMY BYLER is a thoughtful, nimble charmer.

Did I mention the hot librarian?