Dual POV, Spicy, Friends with Benefits, Care Taking, Slow Burn, Opposites Attract

Ivy Fairbanks has delivered the most unique and heart wrenching opposites attract romance in Morbidly Yours. Pairing self deprecating humor with tender moments of intimacy set in the lush descriptive setting of Ireland. Featuring a shy, introverted mortician who needs a wife and a bubbly animator who is dealing with the grief of losing her husband who has sworn off love. Callum despite needing to find a wife to secure inheriting the funeral parlor knows Lark is the woman for him no matter how much she tries to put walls between them.

I think this book was super cute. The meet cute was perfect for their personalities. Having to live with grief and move on is a hard thing to do. One thing after another was not going her way or according to her plan but she kept running into the one man she didn’t think she’d want. They both learned from each other life lessons of doing what you love while you can and caring for those you love and showing them you care. But also lessons of sticking up for those you love and fighting for what you want. I loved having the pronunciation of words and names along with the Irish being translated at particular spots in the book (iykyk 🫣😉).

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this quirky romance book set in one of my favorite places.

Wow, this is such an incredible book! I read the indie version of this book last year, and heard it was being traditionally published. I couldn’t wait for it! I wanted to see what improvements had been made and what had changed, and I was blown away because it was even BETTER! This story is so cute, wholesome, and a cozy read, despite having some heavy themes. I think there was a lot of improvement within the sentences, paragraphs, and structure that were cleaned up and helped the flow of the story, and made it even more excellent than it was before. I was very happy to have more Lo and Maeve this time around. The extra Maeve scenes were exactly what I wanted them to be, and Lark and Calum were perfection. I think these add ons really helped the story and help Lark’s character. I also really enjoyed Reese being mentioned more. It added empathy and tugged on the heartstrings in all the right away. I loved the changes that were made to help structure it more and that we got to see more of some very important characters. I appreciate the representation of so many different things put into this story. From speech issues, anxiety, dealing with grief and self deprecation, to LGBT+ representation; this book truly has it all and something for everyone. This book is so well written and the plot and characters were just so well done. The cover is also really adorable! I loved the setting of this book as well. I think everyone will enjoy this newly refined release of this wodnerful book and will be happy with not only the changes and improvements, but the story and characters as a whole.

Thank you to NetGalley, Ivy Fairbanks, and G.P. Putnam's Sons for the eARC of this book.

Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks

Setting:
Modern Day Ireland

Characters:
Lark
Callum
Reese
Cielo
Maeve
Séan
Aiden
Deirdre
Bran
Robin

Tropes:
Grumpy Sunshine
Widow Romance
Virgin? Hero
Second Chance Romance
Demisexual Rep
Neurodivergent Hero
Heroine moves to a new country

Goodreads:
🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 six stars, an all time favorite.

Spice:
🌶 🌶 🌶

Review:
Let me first say, that this book got me misty and I NEVER cry. Oh my goodness where do I start, this book is a six star read for me, not only do I love it for this year, but I love it period, and I read and have read a ton of books. The heroine was just so loveable and sweet, I really enjoyed seeing her character and her coping with life and guilt that comes from losing a spouse. Callum... where can I find him irl, 🤔. He's one of those heros that I just will absolutely call a book boyfriend. My heart melted anytime Lark made him blush. Y'all absolutely need to read this fantastic novel. Ms. Fairbanks is now a definite AUTO BUY. I literally can not wait for her next book. She is so talented, and her characters were some of the best I've read all year.

Content Warnings:
Talk of death, mortician hero
Death of spouse
Death of friend
Workplace Drama

Morbidly yours overall was cute story. It was a little deeper than most romance stories handling grief of lost of loved ones and trying to figure out how to move on. I enjoyed both characters, but found sometimes of the book really was dragging on. It seem like I never fully conducted or got behind their romance, I'm trying to find love books that have a stipulation of that so has to get married.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam. My review is voluntarily my own.

Morbidly Yours was a great debut novel for Ivy Fairbanks! It started a little slow for me, but definitely picked up. I enjoyed the friendship between Lark and Callum - the slow burn was sweet! I didn’t love the story line with Sean at Lark’s work - it felt unnecessary to the overall plot.

Thank you to Netgalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam for this ARC.

Morbidly Yours was such a fun read! I don’t know that I’ve ever read a book where one of the main characters/love interest is an undertaker, but let me tell you, I would definitely read it again!

After the death of her husband in a tragic accident, Lark Thompson is looking for a fresh start. She takes an opportunity to join an animation studio as an art director in Galway, Ireland, moving next door to a funeral home. A case of a mistaken package delivery brings her to the funeral home’s doors and its mysterious (and attractive) owner. Callum Flannelly, the shy owner of said funeral home (Willow Haven), is at risk of losing the business. As a stipulation from his grandfather, in order to keep Willow Haven, Callum must be married by his 35th birthday. With this deadline quickly approaching, Callum enlists the help of Lark to find someone to marry him. But the solution to his problem may be closer than they both realize.

What a debut! I thought Morbidly Yours was a great start to (what I know will be) a very successful author career for Ivy Fairbanks. I loved Callum’s Irish lessons with Lark and their quiet, slow-burn romance. And I loved how Lark learned to work through her grief with Callum’s support and that Callum built confidence in himself with Lark’s encouragement. The love the two developed for one another was almost palpable towards the end.

I highly recommend you preorder or request from your library!

Thank you to Netgalley and Putnam/Penguin Random House for the ARC!

I am so thankful that I was able to receive an eARC of this book. I had read the Indie version earlier this year and when I heard it was being traditionally published I couldn’t wait for it! This story is so cute, wholesome, and a cozy read. Having read the indie version, when I started this ARC I picked up on things that were changed right away. Sentences, paragraphs, and structure were cleaned up and helped the flow of the story. I was very happy to have more Lo and Maeve this time around. The extra Maeve scenes were exactly what I wanted them to be. I think these add ons really helped the story and help Lark’s character. I also really enjoyed Reese being mentioned more. It added empathy and tugged on the heartstrings in all the right away. Overall I rated this story at a 4.3 ⭐️. I loved the changes that were made to help structure it more and that we got to see more of some very important characters. I think I’m just greedy for more because I do wish there was a little bit more to hearing about Lark’s work and her workplace interactions. Overall I really enjoyed the story. I appreciate the representation of so many different things put into this story. From speech issues, anxiety, dealing with grief and self deprecation, to LGBT+ representation. These elements were added in so well. I’m excited for everyone else to read this story when it releases. And for people who read the indie to be able to go in and spot how this story is still everything great, but now we get more of it and the characters we grew to love

This latest grumpy/sunshine romance involves an extroverted Texan widow, Lark, and Callum, a lonely Irish mortician, who hiding both his muscles and his charm. Lark moves to Galway for a job as an art director for an animated movie, and rents an apartment next door to what she assumed was a B&B - until she accidentally opens a package intended for her neighbor and sees that it's full of body bags!

She returns the package and meets her neighbor - and mostly thanks to Lark's golden retreiver extroverted nature, becomes friends with Callum, drawing him out of his shell. The hitches? Lark is blaming herself for her husband's death and Callum has to get married in six months or lose his home, his business, and his legacy.

This is a romance so we know it ends with a HEA - what matters is the journey we take to get there. I loved getting to know all the characters in this - and all of the HORRIBLE dates Callum goes on trying to find someone worth marrying. Each character has a ton of personality, and having Callum show Lark around Galway is another lovely touch.

As an animation enjoyer myself, I loved all the small references to great movies as well as the dedication to reflecting both Lark's and Callum's jobs with the good, the bad, and the ugly.

All told, this was a sweet escape and I look forward to reading more from Ivy Fairbanks!

My thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read this ARC!

This is the perfect treat for a sweet tooth. Half Hallmark romance and half real life heartbreak, Morbidly Yours is a romance full of pining and desire complicated by sweet friendship and affection.

I had a really nice time reading this. I don’t venture into contemporary romance as often as some of my other genres, but I am glad I did for this.

Morbidly Yours is a dual POV romance between Callum and Lark, the mortician and the American animator who just moved in across the street.

Lark lives up to her name and is a hurricane of positivity and optimism crashing through Callum’s too dreary life. Callum has never been one for spontaneity but something about Lark is too infectious to look away from.

The two hit it off like a match to flint and the burn for one other is undeniable . I appreciated the slower burn in this story. The Demi representation was refreshing as well as the handling of grief. I think Callum and Lark compliment each other very well, and their love story was pretty believable.

I have exactly one big gripe with this book, which is absolutely personal preference by the way, but the beach rejection was not my jam. I know it probably isn’t mean to be, but it made me not like Lark as much. It seemed out of character callous of her.


Other than that, this was a delight. If grumpy/sunshine is your thing, I think you will eat this right up. A very well done debut.

4/5 stars


Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book. The opportunity is immensely appreciated but does not impact the contents of my review.

I absolutely loved this rom-com, the Irish setting, the characters, the storyline, the friendships, everything was so well done!
I adored Callum and Lark, their friendship was so pure and precious, I couldn't get enough of them. It was more than just a simple friends to lovers romance, it dealt with fining love after a loss, grief, coming out of your shell and discovering the best version of yourself. This book was the perfect amount of cuteness, funny moments and just the right amount of spice.

Lark is running from her past and looking for a fresh start in Ireland after the untimely death of her husband. Callum is firmly rooted in the past and having a difficult time stepping out of his comfort zone in order to fulfill his grandfather's dying wish. Together, they just might be the perfect duo!
Lark, an animation director for a film studio, has arrived in Glastonbury with a 6 month work visa and a plan to get her career on track and put her personal disasters in the past. She's hoping the beauty of the city and her passion for her work will keep all those pesky feelings at bay. But when a package gets delivered to the wrong address, a chance meeting with her neighbor is definitely not in her planner! Callum has 120 days, per his grandfather's will, to get married or his family business, the local funeral parlor and mortuary, is going to his father, who plans to sell it to the highest bidder. But Callum has never been comfortable meeting new people and even worse at trying to charm them into a relationship in 6 months or less. But the exciting, extroverted Lark might be just the ticket to helping him find the perfect solution!
A fun, sweet, charming romance filled with likable characters, realistic dramas, and the perfect amount of steam. Don't let this book pass you by!
I just reviewed Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks. #MorbidlyYours #NetGalley

I’d like to thank Ivy Fairbanks, NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Morbidly Yours had the perfect description, I was so excited to read it. I told everyone and their mother about it. A demisexual mortician and a widow fall in love. I thought oh finally someone has a demisexual main character. However things didn’t turn out the way I’d hoped they would.

Let’s introduce them. Lark, our main female character, is an animator from Texas whose husband died several years ago and she moved to Ireland for a job position. Callum is an Irish mortician, who is “demisexual” and stands to lose his business and his home if he doesn’t marry by the age of 35. Lark begins a quest to pull him out of his introverted shell and get him into dating to find his person to save his business.

There are several things I’d like to mention. The author seemed to have such little insight on how demisexuality works, it was honestly both appalling and insulting to read. I so wanted to love this book, for all the cute death puns and the set up, but the author really fell short by adding the sexuality. It felt like a box she wanted to check off, something to add diversity to her story. I don’t know if she has any demisexual loved ones in her life, but the book was written in such an insulting way to anyone on the asexual spectrum. It threw me off so bad I actually cleaned my entire house before finally sitting down and finishing the book. It could have been good if the characters were both just heterosexual, instead of throwing in the demisexuality and acting as if the character had a choice in it, the coming out scene was awful, and the libido comments were terrible. As well as adding that he thought something was wrong with him and he needed to get checked out for it. Callum is introverted and is constantly being pulled out of his comfort zone by the very loud and obnoxious and quite nosey Lark, which rubs me the wrong way.

I’m honestly just so sad. I was so excited for this book and it felt like all it did was insult my existence. I can’t speak for all demisexuals but I can speak for myself and my own experiences and I feel as though this character and a lot of queer readers were wronged by how this book was written. There were 3-4 on page sex scenes, which felt weird for me as I don’t really care to read about sex, I say as a demisexual woman. I feel like I need to reiterate it because I feel like there’s so much praise for this book and it’s all coming from straight and frankly sexual people. We’re not a box to check off on a list, and we’re not here to make your book quirky.

To the author, you will find people who will love your book and I’m sorry that I wasn’t one of them. I hope you learn from reviews like mine to treat peoples sexualities with respect and care. Please research them before you write, talk to your friends of the asexual spectrum and get their opinions on your book before it’s published. Again I’m sorry I didn’t like it, I really really wanted to.

The Trigger Warnings I Gathered: grief, loss of spouse, death of spouse, acephobia, sexual content, morgue related medical content, car accident

Genuinely adorable. MORBIDLY YOURS is a tender and lovable romance that made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Lark has a sunny personality and is quite the optimist, except when it comes to believing in her own happy ending, The last time Lark had feelings for and was close to someone, it didn't end well. Moving across the globe for a fresh start in Ireland, she meets her neighbor, Callum, who is not her type, and quickly becomes good friends with him. With his social anxiety and stutter, Callum prefers to be alone, except when it comes to Lark. In order to keep his family business, Callum must find a wife and soon, and being his friend, Lark offers to help him find "his One." The more time Lark spends with him, the more she sees how sweet, witty, and thoughtful of a man he is, making it hard for her to only see him as a friend. Lark only wants a casual relationship with no feelings, and thinks it's selfish of her to pursue something with him, when Callum is only wants something when he feels close to someone. How could it ever work between them?

I appreciated the reminder of asking oneself how they want to move through life... in fear and hiding your feelings? Or courageously expressing yourself and desires? Also the reminder to pay attention to the lies we tell ourselves and if we are going to let ourselves be what stops us from getting what we want. What a charming and wholesome debut for this author! I loved the heart, heat, banter and connection between Callum and Lark. So happy to have read their story.

Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Lark and Callum are officially one of my new all time favorite romance novel couples! Such a unique and clever romance novel, with two flawed but lovable main characters and charming side characters. I felt like this was such a well rounded story, but could also see a sequel or spin off in the future! Never thought I would ship a cartoon artist and mortician so hard, but they were “to die for”! Can’t wait to get a copy!

• I went through every silly emotion reading
this, from giggles to even a few tears. Callum & Lark were super loveable and I loved seeing their friendship change and grow. (The banter was top notch) Definitely a slow burn with not a lot of spice, but boy will it take you straight to Ireland

An Irish mortician, Callum, must marry before his 35th birthday in order to fully inherit the funeral home that he has been running since his grandad passed away. Only problem? He's 34 and has no prospects of a wife. In comes Lark, an animator from Texas, running from the death of her husband. Lark is determined to help Callum find a wife, but they may end up finding love in the most unexpected place.
This book was beautifully written and had me tearing up while it gracefully handled topics of grieving, dying, and death. This book felt like being given a blanket on a cold night after a hard day; the feeling of comfort in loss. I will say that although there are trigger warnings, I was definitely thrown by Callum's first chapter of him preparing a body for a funeral.

Morbidly Yours was so cute, fun, cozy, and sweet! I loved Callum SO much, and I loved how he and Lark interacted, were patient with each other, etc. I’m glad I got this arc! If you want a feel-good romance with fun side characters and a side of spice, I’d highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

I requested this when I saw that it takes place in Galway, where I've been a couple of times. With all the Irish dialogue, this would make a great audio book. And I'm happy to see this will be a series. What an accomplishment for a first time author! I love the main characters, Lark and Callum, and how they support each other. They have good banter too. I also loved the character of Maeve and how she helped Lark come to terms with her loss. The ending was great - no spoilers, but the surprise Callum cooks up for Lark was *chef's kiss.* Very much looking forward to book 2.

This was a good, sweet read, and overall, I had a good time with it. I wasn't such a huge fan of Lark's personality, but it worked for the grumpy/sunshine relationship dynamic. I did LOVE Callum and how his stutter were handled. The potential for growth of both characters was there, but it happened to fast in the end in a series of epiphanies rather than gradually. The end especially felt rushed, and the banter that started out great in the beginning became stilted and awkward. A bit of a letdown after such a strong first half of the book, for sure. But for a quick, sweet romance, it gets the job done.