I liked the quirky characters and the fresh plot line. I thought the action was moving along fine. One day when I had to put the book down and go do life things, I returned to an unexpected steamy scene which seemed out of step with the previous tenor of the narrative. Was it because I put it down and lived, and then came back to the book? But the spell was broken, and I couldn't get into the story after that. Other readers may have better luck with the book.

Pub date is Aug 20, 2024. Sincere thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

Read this book. This is a wonderful rom-com between an animator and an undertaker set in Ireland. I loved every minute of this book. Just put it in your TBR pile and thank me later.

I received an arc from netgalley and the publisher.

Morbidly Yours is Ivy Fairbanks' debut novel & I'm definitely looking forward to reading more from her soon. Such a wonderful love story about two very different characters. A quiet old-fashioned introvert, Callum & an outgoing foreigner, Lark, that is dealing with issues from her past past as she moved to Ireland to start over. Fantastic & funny side characters add to this great storyline that sends you on a roller coaster of emotions. Passion, drama, hilarious one-liners, family, friendships, & plenty of romance makes this an overall gem of a novel.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book on #NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own, but highly recommend you add this one to your TBR list.

The moment Callum opened his mouth I fell in love. As I imagined, he was perfectly imperfect. I love when books talk about things that aren’t always talked about, Or is hard for people to talk about. I loved that he had a stutter 🥹 and Larks past was such a hard thing to!
I loved Lark. 🤌🏼 this Texan country girl was perfectly charming !
This book was such a romcon feel good, you knew both had hard/dark pasts and watching them both fall in love (Lark getting to love another ) I loved it. I loved that Callum never made her choose or pressured to only love him.

“You’ve got a right puss on” 😂😂
“Mournhub”
“I’d let him take be to the boneyard “
“Growling at the badger “😂

Neighbors to friends, Friends to lovers 🤌🏼😍
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

What a fun rom com! I adored the death/funeral puns- looking at you MournHub. The tension building between the characters was delicious with a worthwhile payoff. Cal was adorable and sweet, the perfect not quite grumpy to Larks very sunny sunshine. I appreciated the deep themes running underneath the lighter romance. And the setting was perfection. Adding in the Irish language was the icing on the cake. Thank you netgalley for an e arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the authors debut novel, originally self pub on KU, now being picked up by a traditional publisher and re-releasing Aug 20th.

This was such a cute friends-to-lovers story. Give me a dirty talking Irish man any day. There are a lot of conversations about grief in this story and trying to find happiness in life afterward. The male main character is demisexual and I really liked the open, honest discussions these characters were capable of.
The ending set up a book 2 with another couple in here perfectly, and I can't wait to dive back into their world.

The only reason this wasn't 5 stars for me is that I found a few things in here pretty repeatative and a few of the conversations between characters were hard to follow because it would say who was talking.

I absolutely loved this book! The dynamic of the main characters is everything to me , I loved how they contrast each other but compliment each other . The whole concept of the book was just amazing and honestly completely different . I was anticipating this book being more morbid than love story and truthfully was pleasantly surprised that my assumption was wrong .. 10/10 for me the dialogue was great ,character development, overall would read more work from this author

Thanks to Netgalley and Lassen Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Morbidly Yours is the debut by Ivy Fairbanks and I’m totally here for this offbeat, quirky, slow burn romance. The title and the cover initially were what drew my eye, but I was immersed in the story from the first page.

Callum and Lark start out as friends but boy do they have a slow burn to get to their beautiful HEA.

If you like HEA’s off the beaten path, this book may be for you.

I’m a sucker for a good friends to lovers story. Especially because that’s how my ow story started with my husband! Haha!
Calling and lark’s love story is so cute and wholesome. I love that he’s a mortician and she’s the grieving widow… the plot is different and so unique. Ilove that the author looked outside the box with this one.
I can’t believe that this is a debut book. I can’t wait to snag a physical copy and read it again. It’s so lovely!

“Morbidly Yours” by Ivy Fairbanks is a heartwarming romance that brings together two unlikely characters in the quaint setting of Galway, Ireland. Callum, a mortician bound by an unusual inheritance clause, and Lark, a vivacious American animator, find themselves in a series of humorous and touching encounters that lead to an unexpected connection. Fairbanks crafts a story that’s both sweet and poignant, exploring themes of love, grief, and the joy of finding companionship in the most unexpected places. It’s a delightful read that’s sure to charm anyone looking for a blend of laughter and tenderness

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

"You wrecked my comfort zone. Jammed a stick of TNT in and exploded it. I'll never be the same, Lark."


Morbidly Yours was so freaking cute. In this, you will meet Callum and Lark. He is an undertaker and her next-door neighbor. She is new to Ireland and is a cartoon creator and animator. Both have had their fair share of grief, and together they could take on the entire world. Well, first, we need a crapload of puns, inside jokes, and so much sexual tension.

The romance that brewed between them was simmering for so long. I kept waiting for the top to explode so that they could explore and express their feelings. All I'm going to say is that I was not disappointed one freaking bit and just wanted more. Then there's the drama—my god, there was so much.

Without spoiling anything, just know that karma has a funny way of showing up when you most definitely expect it to. Again, I am not disappointed one bit with this. I'm also really happy that these two found a way to heal, not only with each other but with other people in their lives. Or maybe with kicking people out of their lives.

In the end, this was so freaking cute. Together, these two will cherish one another and just continue to build a stronger bond. Maybe one day they will start their own family, but for now, I'm happy that they are happy. I also really need to go to Ireland, stat.

This is by far the best book I’ve read this year! Easily 5 stars!! I loved that it was more than a romance and actually had the main characters work through their own problems. This book made me laugh and cry. Highly recommend!!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Lark is a widow who takes a job in Ireland to escape her grief and go somewhere where no one knows her story. Her neighbour, Callum, is the town undertaker and he needs to get married in the next 6 months in order to retain ownership of his family business.

I'm having a hard time finding the right words to describe this one. Yes it's sad, Lark and Callum are both grieving losses, there is also the death of a friend later in the book as well. It's also funny and perfect how Lark and Callum's story comes together.

This one definitely took me by surprise and I loved it

Loved, loved, loved this! The characters communicated so beautifully, and the story had such a good pacing.

Thank you NetGalley for the e-arc!
I found this book pretty disappointing. I loved the premise of this book with the promised Demi rep and the cute grumpy/sunshine dynamic but the result was lacking.
Despite the clear conversations in this book where are Callum discusses needing to develop feelings, not necessarily love but deep romantic feelings, before feelings that sort of attraction; this is like completely ignored and twisted by Lark who basically uses this conversation to justify a sexual relationship with Callum despite knowing his sexuality and his need for marriage. For the first half of the book looks promising but as the story progresses Callum’s sexuality is ignored or basically purposefully misinterpreted to benefit Lark’s desires. Lark acts extremely selfishly in regards to the mural feelings her and Callum. She them gets extremely upset when he tried to take it marriage despite knowing from the beginning he wanted marriage.
While Callum is generally a better character in regards to not being as insufferable as Lark, he still ignores the boundaries Lark sets in regards to marriage and relationship. They make it impossible to root for their relationship when the whole story they are both ignoring each others boundaries and lying to each other & themselves to benefit their own desires.
In addition the subplot of Lark’s husband and workplace issues has no real development or bearing on the plot. It felt like it was there to be there and was seriously underdeveloped.

Overall the execution of the romance was pretty lacking and the way Callum’s sexuality was handled felt like a last minute addition instead of a well thought out and well meaning aspect of Callum.

This is an unexpectedly funny novel! It kept me interested and I enjoyed the banter! I would reccomend this book to friends and others!

Adorable and laugh out loud funny, rip your heart out, and make you feel EVERYTHING. Morbidly Yours is a book I will remember for a long time. I love every part of this book. Grumpy meets sunshine, black and white meets color, you name it, Lark and Callum are it. The burn in this book is slow and angsty and at points completely palpable. I found myself cheering the couple on from close to the beginning. This is easily one of favorite books of 2024 and definitely worthy of 5 stars! My favorite quote from this novel: “But all we can control is how we choose to move through life. With honesty. With bravery. With love. I know you can do it.”

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam, Ivy Fairbanks, and Netgalley for the ARC of this novel!

Lark is running but she’s also coping in the only way that makes sense for her. Callum is coping but he can’t run the way he wants. When they wind up neighbors, friendship balances them beautifully. The safe space they’ve found in each other can hardly be ignored. Maybe they can be exactly what the other needs, forever.

I love it when a book comes along and you just click with it so completely.

Morbidly Yours and I clicked so perfectly. I never wanted this book to end, I never wanted to leave Lark and Callum, I wanted to become their neighbor just to stand to the side and happily smile and cheer them on forever. A piece of my heart will always remain with this beautiful story.

Lark and Callum are a revelation, their love story a triumph.

I loved each protagonist so wholly, and so greatly admired their personal and intertwining arcs.
I adored how their personalities were so opposite of one another yet so beautifully complemented one another. Lark is the bubbly extrovert, Callum is the socially anxious introvert. Yet they each encouraged one another's strengths and helped the other to overcome all hurdles standing in their way.

Lark may be all sunshine, but she is not without anxieties, and along with her grief, she needs a helping hand-- one Callum steadily offers, standing up for her until she's ready to rediscover her voice and stand up for herself too.

Callum goes against the grain of the traditional masculine male leads, and it was a breath of fresh air. He's quiet, shy, he has anxieties and a stutter; and he needs to emotionally connect with someone before attraction takes hold. He's no alpha male, but that does not make him any less desirable as a male lead. Lark embraces it all with her friendship and love. She offers the same strength he lends to her. She emboldens him with courage, she advocates for him taking risks, and she loves him for exactly who he is.

They are meant to love one another, they just need to remove those obstacles along the way. They are the most perfect fit, they highlight each other's strength and they embrace each other's vulnerabilities. They build the most gorgeous love story with friendship, kindness, trust, and holding each other's hand, learning to simply let go of all that is weighing them down.

This is a story of healing, of courage, and, above all-- a story of love.

Thank you Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for this complimentary copy, I leave this honest review voluntarily.

A delicious, fun and romantic story. with great clichés. I liked the couple's dynamics and I really rooted for their relationship to work out. It's a book that talks a lot about overcoming the loss of someone special, about forgiveness, starting over, taking risks and new chances. A lovely grumpy and sunshine

Thanks to Netgalley, Ivy Fairbanks, and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!