What a delight of a book. I love a well-written, smart book that has a touch of irreverence and that's exactly how I would describe this one. After the first few husbands, I wasn't sure how the author was going to execute the remaining 200 pages but she landed the ship beautifully.

This was such a fun book! I recently divorced after 27 years of marriage and it was so fun to imagine what I would have done if I'd have had the option to "test drive" husbands until I found the perfect fit. Or if I would even want the option and the ramifications that would come with it. Would I realize I had it good (I didn't) and that the grass is always greener? Would I have learned to look past the little things and discovered what my actual deal breakers are? I also loved that with each husband, the author imagined the same-ish life, but slight differences, because of course your life would take different turns if you had different partners, even if you stayed on essentially the same path.

I really liked this story! Such an intriguing premise-I was really happy with how the story ended, and I appreciated that the author doesn't try to explain the magic of the attic, you just have to go with it. This is one I could see handing to lots of people. It has a lot of cross over appeal with sci-fi/alternate reality and relationships, great character development and a fast moving plot line.

This debut was so fun, the game of the novel (an endless supply of husbands emerging from Lauren's attic) made for a fast paced and engaging read. I can tell the author is a game designer, and the twist halfway through the book was really fun. I enjoyed the larger themes at play in the book--how the dynamic of a partnership shifts and changes both our inner (self) and nuclear (of the duo) worlds, as well as our outer world (how we engage with our friends, family, and co-workers/community once partnered). The myriad of possibilities that sometimes limit (and exhaust!) people from settling on a partner is something I think we don't often discuss in a typical romance storyline and it was nice to see it done so well here. Not sure how I feel about the climactic ending, but I shall not spoil it as I definitely recommend this read 4.5/5 stars!

It started out so well and intriguing. I even like the former title of the uncorrected proof, "Do you take this man? No, What about this One? If I saw this in a bookstore I would definitely pick it up. The title "The Husbands" not so much, but the description of returning home to find her husband and she is not married, going in the attic to change a bulb and new husband replaces the last one. Lauren goes through so many man and some repeat. I thought it would have been a bit better and happy with the outcome, but definitely different from other books.

At first, Lauren strikes me as the most shallow main character. I mean, she recognizes how picky she is - and then she cycles through possible husbands like the spring water cycle! Ice snow rain fog - seriously, we got all the Moods of Lauren.

I think my opinion started to change when she decided to get to know some of the guys. Honestly, it feels like maybe that was the lesson she needed to teach herself. Get to know the people you keep close. Not just the husbands, but the friends and family that make up her inner circle.

"The rules of the situation are becoming clearer to her. All of her husbands are men that some version of herself might have chosen to marry, and who might have chosen to marry her."

The change in Chapter 23 was welcome, but the ending was... weird.

3.5. This is a great example of a book that would make a phenomenal short story. I’m a bit conflicted on it because, on one hand, I could not put this down. On the other, reading this was exhausting. I found the concept so incredibly compelling, but it also got extremely repetitive. And for all of the hundreds of husbands we see Lauren meet, I left the book still feeling I don’t know much about her.

I think the book was trying to make a few different points about how no life or person is perfect, you can’t wait for an “ideal” life, there are a million versions of life that one person could have, etc etc. But I’m not sure if it quite stuck the landing on any of that?

Still, A+ for concept. Even though the execution wasn’t 100% for me, I still liked this overall and can say for certain it’ll be memorable.

I accidentally put this off until after its publication, but a belated thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

The premise of this book is super interesting! The many different lives and husbands held my attention for a bit, but most of the time, it felt like the book wasn’t going any where. All in all, it felt slow, and I was disappointed by the ending.

The Husbands is the ultimate what if book. What if you could change your husband every time you wanted to?

Lauren comes home from her best friend's hen party to find a strange man in her flat. He says he's her husband, and when she looks at her phone, she finds evidence he's telling the truth. When he goes into the attic to get something, there a strange noise, the lights glow, and a new man comes back down.

Over the next year, she tries out hundreds of husbands, hundreds of different ways her life could have gone. But time keep marching forward, even if everything resets each time she gets a new husband.

This is a unique concept and I really enjoyed this book. You do have to suspend logic, not just because of the impossibility of this situation, but how she manages to handle this for an entire year without losing it. Readers of women's fiction will enjoy this, even with the dash of magic.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book.

QUICK TAKE: Do you want to be the coolest kid on spring break this year? I’m telling you now, if you plan to be poolside, pack a copy of THE HUSBANDS (out Tuesday!), the delightful new novel from debut author Holly Gramazio. It’s one of my favorite books coming out in 2024, and I can’t recommend it enough.⁣
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A mix of GROUNDHOG DAY and THE BACHELOR, #TheHusbands has a really fun premise: a single woman comes home one night to discover a strange man in her house claiming to be her husband. Before she can figure out who this man actually is, he heads up to the attic to change a lightbulb, only to come back down…a different person. Our female MC soon discovers that said attic is a magical porthole that allows her to try out new marriages. Every time her husband goes up, a new husband comes down; it’s Tinder with real-time consequences, and damn, it is so much fun. It’s sexy, and romantic, and laugh-out-loud funny, and Gramazio’s ability to elevate what could be a cute romcom into a poignant coming-of-age story about a woman discovering who she actually is so impressive. Just when the concept starts to get a touch tedious, the author pulls off a really great twist that takes the story into a completely new direction.⁣
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Fans of FINLAY DONOVAN and OONA OUT OF ORDER and REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES and SYLVIA’S SECOND ACT and LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY…you’re going to LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. It’s one of my favorite reading experiences in the last year, and it was one of the biggest book-to-screen film auctions of recent (20+ companies chasing the tv/film rights!!). That’s a sign of a GREAT book, and I absolutely expect it to be a top ten pick for me at the end of the year.

🤷‍♂️ OMG, this was so much fun! I loved it. Thanks to @doubledaybooks for giving me an advanced copy. I somehow forgot to put it on my ARC list so I didn’t get it read by pub day 🤦🏼‍♀️. But ya know, it’s a @readwithjenna pic so I think it’s ok. 🤣

🤷‍♂️ ANYWAY— I ended up listening to this and it’s a fantastic audiobook! This had me hooked from the first couple of paragraphs, and I so enjoyed it. I kept wondering how the author would progress the plot— but I honestly think she nailed it. She did a great job of progressively upping the stakes as time went on! While the end felt a bit rushed, I also appreciated the conclusions the MC had come to and I think it delivered on its message.

🤷‍♂️ This was certainly a fresh take on the soulmate vs. choosing to make it work with a person narrative, and I can’t recommend it enough. It reminded me a bit of both Expiration Dates (premise) and Good Material (humor). Some moments had me laughing out loud. Although, as a Colorado native I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention her thoughts on Denver— ouch, Holly!

🤷‍♂️ I definitely think you should check this out if you’re curious- and recommend the audio enough.

This one was so fun and quirky. Lauren comes home from a night out to discover that her life has somehow dramatically changed to include a husband she doesn't remember, and her house and phone are filled with photos of their lives together. But when he heads up to the attic, a new husband comes down, and so it continues. There are plenty of completely mid husbands, some truly terrible, and a few that Lauren finds herself interested in. It's fun to see what subtle changes happen in Lauren's life to go along with the husbands- some of the time she's wealthy, some of the time she's doing different jobs. It is also so much fun to read the different ways she sometimes has to get husbands back in the attic- there are some over the top moments that had me doing some wide side eyes. A quick, entertaining read.

How many husbands would you sift through to find the perfect one? Once she realizes that the man who has suddenly appeared in her home one morning is her husband and can be exchanged for a new husband with a simple trip up into the attic, main character Lauren must ask herself this question.

It was fun to cycle through such an array of spouses with her, noticing the changes made to home, garden, her own appearance, and other relationships that accompanied each new man.

Although there were some entertaining antics involved with a few of these husbands, there were times where this book dragged a little for me. I think the main complications were not quite as compelling as they could have been, but I still enjoyed this read and appreciated its creativity! I found the conclusion to be extremely satisfying as well! It’s worth a read when you’re in the mood for something fun.

Thank you to Doubleday and NetGalley for the e-ARC!

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly: this book was not for me. I picked it off the cuff, and then was excited to see that it was one of the big book club picks (Reese, Jenna, or GMA- I honestly forget). Oh man was I disappointed.

Lauren returns home to find her husband, Mike, coming out of the attic… but she doesn’t have a husband. The premise states “don’t like your husband? Return him to the attic for a new one.”

To be frank, WTH was the point of this book? I kept reading waiting for the other shoe to drop, but there was no plot. Husbands came and went, Lauren got crazier, and then the book finished.

Going with 2 stars because I did finish it, but I would be genuinely interested to hear of other’s takeaways.

Really enjoyed this lighthearted story of Lauren & her many, many, many husbands. Every time a husband goes up the ladder into the attic, a new one comes down the ladder. Some last a day, some a few days and one or two she tries to keep for longer (and they go up into the attic unexpectedly). A quick read.

In this fun romp of a book, Lauren has just come home and found a strange man in her apartment. Even stranger, the apartment itself looks different and she’s wearing a wedding ring! Turns out, this is her husband - that is, until he goes to the attic to change a lightbulb and out comes a new husband and a slightly new life happens around her. Infinite husbands, infinite lives - what happens when you get to pick and choose what your life looks like?

This book was so fun and easy to fly through with a great look at marriage, too many choices, and finding the right path. I will admit that at times I felt a bit bogged down by the repetitive nature of the plot. One husband comes down, she doesn’t like him, she sends him back up to exchange for a new one. That’s essentially the entire plot of the book and after awhile I just wanted her to decide how she was going to get out of it. But even so, it never felt slow or like I wanted to give up, and that is a feat in itself. It’s unlikely it’ll be a book that sticks with me, but for what it was, I really enjoyed it.

Lauren's never been married, but has just come home from a night out for a friend's hen party and she's found a husband. She does her best to make sense of it, but it's been a long night, she's been drinking a bit, she figures if she sleeps it off, she'll feel better in the morning. But he's still there come morning. Until he goes to the attic to change a lightbulb and an entirely new husband emerges. This book is such a delight. It's funny and thought-provoking. Everything about the story is perfectly plausible except for the magical attic. It's so clever. Highly recommend!

(Thanks to @PRHAudio and @doubledaybooks #gifted.) Oh my gosh! Sometimes you just need a book that is pure fun and that’s exactly what Holly Gramazio delivered in her debut, 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗛𝗨𝗦𝗕𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗦. The whole story revolves around Lauren and her amazing attic. After a big night out, Lauren comes home and is greeted by her husband, Michael. The only problem is that Lauren doesn’t have a husband. Lauren is baffled, but Michael is convincing. It’s all a quandary until Michael goes up to the attic and a different husband comes down.⁣
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Yes, Lauren has some sort of magical attic that keeps changing out her husbands. Some she likes others she loathes, some she never even gives a chance. Eventually, Lauren sends husband after husband back into the attic, always hoping for someone that’s the perfect fit. It sounds crazy, but I thoroughly enjoyed the rapid cycling through of husband after husband. ⁣
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I listened to this book and thought the narration by Miranda Raison was excellent. She kept it light and fun, while really bringing Lauren and her increasing frustration to life. I think this is a perfect book for summer, whether you’re reading or listening. It’s a book that’s easy to pop in and out of without losing the thread of the story. When you’re in need of effortless entertainment, I recommend picking up 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25

The premise of this book: Woman has an attic that keeps making more husbands, was the thing that drew me in and at the beginning of the book I really enjoyed the story. However, at about the 60% mark I started to lose interest in the main character and her quest. It was too much introspection, too much rehashing of the same plot points and too little connection to the various husbands. I a little had to push myself to keep going and while I am not unhappy that I finished the book, I was a little unsatisfied with the ending.

If this was meant to be a romantic ending, then we did not get enough of their actual relationship.

If this was meant to teach a lesson then was that lesson that sometimes you just had to settle?

Overall, good premise. Weird story but it lacked real character. If it had leaned more into being a romance or a comedy or even a horror I think it would have been a more compelling read.

Single twenty-something Lauren returns home after a friend's hen party to find a strange man in her apartment, who behaves as if he is her husband. Small changes to her decor and photos on her phone appear to support his story. When he goes up into the attic to change a light bulb, there is a crackle of electricity and a different man comes down the ladder. It would seem that Lauren has a magic attic that provides her with a different husband as often as she likes. This delightful fantasy is laugh out loud funny and explores how someone might react when given the opportunity to explore many different lives and partners. How do we know when we have met "the one"?