I don’t know if I had higher expectations for this book or if something else went wrong. It would be silly of me to be surprised by frank discussions of grief in a romance where half of the couple is assumed to be dead, but it was difficult to get into at the beginning because of the one-two-punch of the loss of her father and then the unexpected surprise demise of her editor. The career aspects of a blocked writer were very relatable and I did like both love interests, but maybe I just wasn’t in the right headspace to love this as much as I hoped to.

I am a big Ashley Poston fan. I've read all of her book in the Once Upon a Con series and loved every one of them but this one missed the mark for me. The concept was intriguing but overall did not work for me. The first hundred pages of the book are exactly what the synopsis describes so I got bored.

Thank you to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for access to this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Dead Romantics is something special!

This book was an absolute delight, I didn't want it to end and it left me in my so in my feels. I became enthralled with these characters and their world. I enjoyed the romance references that so many of us romance readers just get. Many aspects of this book resonated with me on a personal level.

For those going into this book, this is more of a women's fiction story. The romantic element is there but it is near the end and not the focus of this book.

What a wonderful little book! The Dead Romantics surprised me in the best way! I didn't really know what to expect, and I certainly didn't expect to love it as much as I did, but wow did I love it! It tackles grief and love simultaneously and so beautifully and I thought it was just the most delightfully and whimsically gothic tug-at-the-heartstrings reading experience. I enjoyed it so much!

This one took a little longer to get to as my own father passed away around the time it landed on my shelf.
That said, I've now read it twice. It's a delightful and yet poignant story, with well-developed characters and a story line that will tug at your heartstrings.

I absolutely loved it.

Really wanted to like this one more! I found the premise to be very creative, and I liked the themes explored in the book. The humor wasn’t for me, and I found myself wanting for more.

Lovely. Not at all what I expected. Romance was not the highlight here - it's a story about family, death and life, moving on, and finding yourself.

I didn't quite feel the chemistry between Florence and Ben, but the story as a whole is so fantastically readable. Creative and heartfelt.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Thank you to Berkey Publishing for my copy of The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston in exchange for my honest review.

This is one of my favorite books of the year and I have recommended it to sooo many people! This is a perfect book for all Romance lovers, and especially those that are looking for something different and fresh. It is a heavier book in regard to the aspect of grief, but that part was written so beautifully. I just flew through this book and it will definitely be one that I reread multiple times in the future. I just could not stop thinking about Florence and Ben after I finished it.

This was the first book that I have read from Ashley Poston, and I can't wait to dive in to her backlist and see what she comes out with in the future!

⁉️Do you read hard covers with the dust jackets on or off?
On always, how else would I hold my page? 😂 they double as a bookmark

BOOK REVIEW:
The Dead Romantics, @heyashposton
Pub date: June 28, 2022
368 pages
@berkleypub

I put this one off despite all of the hype when it came out last summer. I’m sort of glad that I did, because it was so fitting for a little October romance. I didn’t read the synopsis or take the title all that literally, but it turns out this is like Christina Lauren romance meets Casper (the 90s movie version with Devon Sawa and Christina Rocco specifically).

Florence Day, ghostwriter and also ghost seer, loses her dad (a mortician) and her dreamy book editor all in the span of a few days. Will their deaths bring her back to a belief in love or is romance truly dead, too?

I tire over the whole main character doesn’t believe in love anymore trope, but really thought this was a quick, fun and appropriately ghostly autumnal romance read 👌

If you missed out on this one for beach reading season, def add it to your fall reading. You might appreciate it even more this time of year 👻 Also, it was a @gmabookclub pick!

Thanks @berkleypub @netgalley for gifting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

#berkleypublishing #romancereader #paranormalromance #romancereading #romcombooks #thedeadromantics #ashleyposton #goodmorningamerica #gmabookclub #bookclubpick #ghoststory #fallreading #booksiread #booksinstagram #bookrecommendations #bookreview #pumpkinpatch #booktography #bookpicture #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #netgalley #netgalleyreads #netgalleyreviewer #readspinrepeatbookclub #rsrbcarctober

Unfortunately I didn't finish the book, but I got past 50%. Maybe it just wasn't the right period but it was kind of boring for me and every time I picked it up I just couldn't concentrate.

3 ⭐️ This is a heartfelt story about loss and overcoming grief, family and love.

What I loved:
- The premise of a writer being able to see ghosts
- The Day family
- The slow-burn romance between Florence and Ben.
- The ending. 💕

The bonds Florence has with her father and family are so wholesome. It makes me wish I had that with mine. They may have their differences, but at the end of the day, they unconditionally adore and love one another.


What I didn't love:
- The writing at times was very wordy with unnecessary descriptions and inner dialogue.
- I do wish we could have gotten a bit more in-depth with Ben’s character like we did with Florence.
- I wish her ex got f*cked over somehow in the end.

A perfectly ok romance for spooky season, in which a romance writer/ghost whisperer stops believing in love until she falls in love with... a ghost. A little slow at times, but I was able to read it on an airplane with a toddler so I can't complain about it!

I've so often wanted romance books to include more supernatural elements without going into pure "dark fantasy" territory, so when I read the synopsis to this one, I KNEW it was meant for me. Ghosts? Romance? WRITING? I'm obsessed! I went into this expecting a lot, and it honestly delivered. I'm pretty new to modern romance books, but this immediately bolted up to the top of my list -- I'm going to be recommending it LOUDLY from here on out!

Although it has a sort of dark plotline, ie death and the afterlife for one of the main characters, there's an overall feeling of uplifting positivity you feel when you read this, and it'd make SUCH A FUN rom com screen adaptation. Seriously, would LOVE to see this one as a movie!!

I’ve loved Ashley’s geekerella series, so I had high hopes for this one. I did the audio and quite enjoyed it. It's really hard to pull off the ghost/romance storyline, but this one was great.

This review is a long time coming. I was so excited for this book. I've loved all of Poston's YA books, and I couldn't wait to dive into her paranormal, adult debut. I actually started reading an advanced copy before it even came out. . . and then I put it down. For months.

I didn't put The Dead Romantics down because I didn't like Florence or Ben, or because I didn't enjoy Poston's writing style. Quite the opposite, in fact. I set this one aside because I figured there was heartbreak on the horizon for Florence and I was so moved by the story that I didn't want to go through her heartbreak with her.

When I couldn't stay away from Florence's troubles any longer, I dove back in and devoured the last half of the book. This ended up being a right book at the right time, and it was definitely a top read of 2022 for me.

I can't recall the last book that made me feel this hopeful for a HEA. Florence had so many factors working against her: writer's block, losing her belief in love, the loss of her father, falling in love with someone she couldn't have. But Poston wrote this story in a way that didn't make me sad for Florence (despite a few tears towards the end). In fact, I spent the whole book hopeful; I didn't know how Poston was going to pull off a HEA for Florence and Ben, but I had this unwavering need for it to happen.

There's very little I didn't absolutely love about this book. I loved Florence's journey from start to finish: her black sheep status within her family, her preternatural ability to see and talk to ghosts, even her loss in her belief in love. It all made me just love Florence's character. Of course, I also loved Ben. He was just a perfect (albeit slightly unattainable) book boyfriend. Ben and Florence's romance was admittedly nowhere near your standard courtship, but I could not get enough of those paranormal elements.

Sometimes, books are meant to be read at a certain point in your life; as much as I loved the story and the writing when I first picked this one up, clearly I was meant to put it aside for a bit and devour it months later. The Dead Romantics ended up easily being one of my favorite reads of the year, and I can't wait to read Ashley Poston's next story.

I liked this on but it was a bit slow in the middle. It also reminded me a bunch of other books I read around the same time.

A fresh romance that tackles not only taking new chances on love but also the lessons grief can teach us about life.

Ghost writer Florence is beyond deadline for the last of four contracted books, and has a new editor to content with; she has to explain to Benji Andor that she cannot write a romance novel when she no longer believes in romance. Her ex, also a writer, horribly betrayed her by taking stories she told him and loosely fictionalizing them into his next bestseller-and she’s getting zero credit. The stories are about the ghosts she sees. Like her father, a mortician, they appear and often want her help, though she’s mostly been ignoring them since leaving home. The new editor shows up at an open mic night, and so does Florence’s ex–and she kisses Benji, then abandons him when she get a call from home to come home–her father has died. Imagine her surprise when Benjo shows up the next day at her door at the Day family funeral home: asa ghost.

There is so much to love about this delightful novel, and it’s one of the best books I read this year. I don’t want to give away the brilliant plot twists. My favorite books balance angst, awkwardness, and the stars aligning. The Dead Romantics has all that and is gothy and still sweet, atmospheric, and unique. It’s about coming home, resolving relationships, and finding love.

I received a free advance reader’s review copy of #TheDeadRomantics from #NetGalley, and loved it so much I bought my own copy which I made my kids wrap up and put under our Christmas tree (happy Hanukkah/Merry Christmas to me!)

I was unsure if I wanted to give this book a shot. After the absolute nightmare that was Layla I almost swore off ghost stories forever. I'm glad I gave this one a shot, I loved the premise and although I guessed the twist before the first 100 pages it was a fun read that kept me engaged.

This was a very strange yet addictive read and I am so glad I took the chance on this book and author!