Callum runs a mortuary but needs to marry by 35 in order to keep his family business and his inheritance. Luckily Lark, a visitor staying next door, shows up at his funeral home out of nowhere. Even though she doesn’t believe in love after losing her husband, she’s willing to help Callum find his person and get married. Only as she sets him up on dates, they begin to fall for each other instead.

This story was fun and unique and Callum was the sweetest grumpy MC. There was a good mix of (sometimes dark) humor and witty banter to balance out Callum’s job. I enjoyed the dating project and thought it made for some fun moments. But the slow progression of their attraction to each other was fun to watch play out.

Thank you to Putnam and NetGalley for the advance copy.

Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks. The dedication made me tear up: "To My Mom. There’s a confession I must make: during middle school, I stole every shirtless-cowboy romance novel from your nightstand that you warned me not to read. Miss you every day, and I hope this makes up for it."

"I'd stared at Callum all night like the bug-eyed, whistling wolf in a Tex Avery cartoon all night. From the moment I saw him at The Hare's Breath, dressed down with his hair flopped over his brow as he swayed to the band, I'd fought the urge to throw my head back and howl in delight."

If I were to say "name a profession for someone who is like a black cat," you might say undertaker. If I were to say "name a profession for someone who is like a golden retriever," you might say animator or artist. Now say them in the same sentence. That's Morbidly Yours. And my GOODNESS does it work well.

Lark Thompson, an American animator, comes to Galway, Ireland running from her grief. Eighteen months before, her husband died, and she wants a fresh start where she isn't reminded of her loss at every corner. Yet her rental happens to be right next to a funeral home, with its own grief-stricken undertaker Callum. In his Granda's will, Callum must marry by the age of 35 in order to inherit the business, since his Granda was afraid that the socially anxious Callum would never get out of his shell.

Wait, a marriage of convenience plot? Nope. The bubbly Lark refuses to fall in love and experience loss again, but she takes Callum under her extroverted wing to help him find someone to marry. She is patient with his persistent stutter and anxiety, and he finds that Lark is the only person he actually feels comfortable talking to. As Lark helps him undergo more and more dates, with his deadline on the contract and her deadline on her visa looming, their connection strengthens and blossoms.

For some reason, I've been on a kick of reading romance novels that talk about grief. This one talks about it the best. It gets into the discomfort, the guilt, and the way that human connection can help us not get over our grief, but grow with it. Lark and Callum's anguish are both different but both so real.

I love how Ivy Fairbanks subverts the marriage of convenience trope. It would be easy enough to just say "Lark, marry Callum." But in the subversion, Fairbanks allows for a deeper look at demisexuality in a genre that celebrates hyper-sexuality. She depicts stuttering accurately, including circumlocution and the way certain sounds cause issues. Lark doesn't "cure" Callum's social anxiety; she supports him in stepping out of his comfort zone while enjoying things one on one with him in appreciation of how he lets her in. He doesn't "cure" her grief, he gives her the time to share about Reese in her own way.

And the spice. My god, the spice.

Everything adds to the story. From the battle with the nepotism hire at Lark's animation studio to the terminally ill woman who gave Lark a couch to the sparks between Lark's cousin and an Irish lawyer, this makes one beautiful story with a hefty dose of spice and Irish goodness. (Psst: pull up Google Translate while you read. Thank me later)

Come for: probably the most unique premise I've heard of in ages
Stay for: nerdy animation references, accurate depictions of undertaking, Irish slang, and the cutest Irish nicknames you've ever heard

Thank you for this ARC and I really wish I could undergo a memory wipe so I could read this again.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I have never read a non-queer romance, but I thought an undertaker as a main protagonist would help this feel a little queer. And it did! I loved the setting and I thought the story was quite sweet. I was rooting for these two the whole time.

This book had some cute moments and I liked the setup of it, but it fell prey to a couple of the romance pitfalls that make me dislike a romance, namely a comically evil bad guy at a character's job and a pointless medical emergency to up the stakes. The tone was also overly explanatory for me, as if the reader doesn't trust the audience. Nonetheless, I did stick with it because there were a few swoonworthy moments.

Don’t let this cover deceive you. Even though it’s an animated cover (cute nod to our FMC, maybe) it’s actually a quite deep and thoughtfully serious novel. There are certainly moments of adorable sweetness and humor that offers levity, but I loved the genuine life struggles that were presented in this book. As a debut, this hit out of the park for me.

The writing is beautiful, and what sold me was the honest depiction of grief, the accurate representation of challenges women can face as talented workplace professionals. It was the joy of finding a kindred spirit but the sadness that comes when it’s clear that they’re only with you for a short time and the clock is eternally winding down as you just try to cocoon yourself in the warmth of their friendship. It was the sweetly patient and gentle way that Callum drew Lark out of her shell of grief into the land of the living again, and the equally loving way that Lark encouraged, inspired, and pulled laughter from Callum’s serious nature. I really just loved this book.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for this free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Cute, tender, feel good romance. Definitely all the cozy rom com feels in an unexpected sort of story

This book was funny and steamy!
It starts with Lark moving next door to Callum. Lark is a full of life animator on a visa in Ireland for her job while Callum runs a funeral home. The more time they spend with each other the more they each start to develop feelings which Lark is trying to avoid at all costs.

(3.5/5) I enjoyed this friends to lovers romance novel - which is not something that I often find myself saying. Fairbanks writes both characters so lovingly and I loved experiencing their journey!

Cute and fun romance. A little slow at times but I enjoyed enough to continue the series!!!

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the chance to read and review this book.

I loved this book! While it's really a rom com it deals with topics such as grief, trauma, stuttering, bullying and self confidence in real and believable ways.
Tropes: Grumpy/Sunshine
Opposites attract
Second chance at love

Excellent character development . I couldn't stop reading this book. Every chance I got I was opening the ebook and devouring a few pages. Will definitely read more by this author.

A sweet yet deep romance set in Ireland!

Love the grumpy(anxious)/sunshine trope. There are a few personal pet peeves present that take away my enjoyment of a story, like a long withheld secret.

A few big moments (that were supposed to fail) felt so wrong that when the HEA finally cabs together, it felt undercut by the previous beats.

I think my personal problems were specific to me, and other readers will/have enjoy it!

This is a debut novel? Crazy! Its so cute and I'm really excited that this is going to be a series! SLOWWWWWWWWWWEST of slow burns but still adorable!

This was such a cute read! I started off my October autumn reads list with this book and it did not disappoint.

Lark has lost her husband and finds it too unbearable to be around the friends and family they built a life with. It doesn't help that she blames herself for the fight they had and the fact that her husband died in a car crash after. And she isn't the only one who thinks so. Her sister-in-law has made it very clear that she also holds Lark responsible. So when an opportunity at an animation company in Ireland opens up with a place to stay, she packs up and heads across the pond. After all, a fresh start might be just what she needs!

And a fresh start is what she gets. After a mix up in delivery boxes sends Lark to her next door neighbor, she realizes that what she thought was a Bed & Breakfast is actually a funeral home. Talk about morbid! And with the death of her husband so fresh in her heart and mind Lark thinks for sure that this can't be a good sign. But Callum is sweet and shy and the two hit off on a friendship that is clear to be something more if she will let it...but will she? She swore off marriage after her first attempt. Her and Callum couldn't possibly be more than friends with benefits. After all, he needs to get married to save his business and family legacy. Lark doesn't want to jeopardize all that for some spicy feelings.

Will they or won't they? It's such a cute story. Though the idea of Callum being a mortician can seem morbid, Fairbanks' words across the page are anything but. It's a story of healing and acceptance and doing things that make you uncomfortable for the sake of growth. Truly a delightful read!

I thought this was a great debut! It surprised me. Very emotional, sweet and spicy. Loved the male main character Callum. I found the female main character Lark to be frustrating at times, and wasn’t a fan of all the miscommunication. Still overall it was a treat to read! I wrote a full review post for it on my Bookstagram that I have linked down below.

DNF at 25%. The story was boring and the two main characters had no chemistry. I was expecting more morbid/mortician content but that was nonexistent

What a cute romance about a weird topic. But as I was reading it, it seemed like it could be real. Very enjoyable and easy to read!

I thought this was a very cute book! Perfect for spooky season! I loved the representation! It did feel a bit slow at time for me but I loved the story as a whole. I found it to be cosy as well!

3.5 stars rounded up. This was such a cute read! I especially appreciate how Callum's stutter was handled. The plot seemed a bit slow at times, but overall was enjoyable.

This book was so cute! The cover pulled me in and it was a perfect October read! It was funny and full of witty banter. The romance was adorable and I loved the ending! A must read for Fall!