Competitive Grieving by Dahlia-Zelevansky is one of my forever favorite contemporary fiction books.  I read it not long after my dad passed away, and it was so cathartic and so uplifting but also very, very funny.  It was exactly what I needed in the moment.  

 

So, as soon as I saw she had a new book—this time a mature romance—coming out, I knew I needed to grab it.  

 

And while the tone here is very different from the aforementioned, many of the elements I loved in her writing there easily translated here—in particular, the wit and humor.  

 

This mature romance delved into some of the harder aspects of midlife (divorce, being a single parent, balancing life, work, and home) while also providing a fun escape.

 

💋 Single mom/single dad

💋 Enemies to lovers

💋 Quick witted dialogue

💋 Everyday life

💋 Quality chemistry

 

🎧The audiobook has a full cast (3 narrators) and had me eager to keep reading.  Teddy Hamilton had me swooning (even when rolling my eyes) over Ethan.  Gilli Messer was easily relatable as a single mom, and the sarcasm she infuses into her dialogue is 👌🏻.  Eunice Wong is one of my favorites, and here she worked well as an outside observer.  

 

Many thanks to my friends at @gallerybooks and @librofm for the free #gifted copies of this book.