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Husband Material

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Charlotte Rosen is a 29 year-old widow. It's her big secret. Her husband died suddenly, barely a year into their marriage, five years before, and she's focused solely on finding the perfect mate now that she's nearing 30. She's a data analyst at a social media company, and she's developing this app on the side, using herself as a test subject. But when her husband's ashes show up on her doorstep after the mausoleum containing them suffers a catastrophe, Charlotte finds herself uncovering secrets and re-evaluating her life.

Less a romance and more of a contemporary chick-lit novel, Husband Material is a solid story about grief, loss, and becoming unstuck. Charlotte is an interesting character - she's got her moments - who tried to move on from loss by suppressing it. I love that it's a smart woman in tech story - brava to Harlequin for finding more authors exploring this! - and I liked the characters. The subplot felt tacked on to propel the story forward, but I liked the message: sometimes, things don't get resolved, and it can be okay, anyway.

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I was in the need of finding something fast, funny and enjoyable to read. So when I came across Husband Material, the plot sounded chick-lit enough. So I was really glad when I was approved for the book through Netgalley.

The story starts out with Charlotte, who is only 29 and has been a widow for the past five years when all the sudden the ashes from her husband appear in her apartment after a California wildfire. Over the course of two weeks after being suspended from work to deal with the urn and all the emotions she didn't deal with since his passing, but ultimately she finds closure and love. (Did I mention, all in two weeks?)

The narrative by the main character Charlotte Rosen was good and was reminiscent of a chatty girlfriend. And overall, the book was very enjoyable, but it had its moments when it felt a bit unbelievable, yes I know it is a work of fiction, but when Charlotte makes a 1-80 from hating her mother-in-law to all the sudden being understanding all in the course of a night, it's just a bit of a stretch for my imagination.

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Wonderful read. First you meet Charlotte through her job where the perfect algorithm is everything. And then you see her behind closed doors when the the new hard drive she ordered arrives. Except it isn't a hard drive. And it sets her world on end. It is the ashes of her dead husband. When her role as "wife" ended five years ago. She has worked hard to keep her widowhood a secret, managing her grief like another algorithm. And how has that worked out for her? Well...

The characters are believable, the emotions as messy as real life, and the twists just unbelievable enough to shock...and put the reader in touch with the crazy messed up take two of Charlotte's life.

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It’s going to be a review heavy week on readandwright.com! I finished some incredible books and need to share them with you ASAP. Yesterday I shared Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston and today I have Husband Material by Emily Belden.

Wow. Just…wow. I LOVED Husband Material. It was a book that really surprised me. Initially, I was drawn to the book by its cover and title. Being a bride to be, I thought the title suited my current reading mood and content. I read the synopsis and was a little surprised, but still thought it would be about Charlotte, the main character, finding someone who was “Husband Material.”

I was wrong in the best way. This book so much more than chick lit. This book explores loss, identity, trust, adulthood, and moving on in such a delicate and real way. I am so incredibly impressed with it.

Charlotte Rosen’s husband Decker died suddenly at 27, not even one year into their marriage. Charlotte was 25, struggling with the idea that “widow” was a not a title many 25 year olds have. So she packed up and started a life where no one knew about Decker, threw herself into work, and all of a sudden 5 years have passed. Until one day, Decker’s ashes are returned to her and she is forced to confront the grief she pushed away.

Belden handles a extremely delicate story with such precision and honesty. She interviewed widows of all ages to give Charlotte an authentic grief process, which leaps off the page. But the book doesn’t feel all “doom and gloom”, it feels so real. We watch Charlotte try to deal with every emotion thrown her way, including her desire to be someone’s wife again, which cannot be an easy thing to understand.

I cannot imagine ever being in such a position. I shed quite a few tears while reading this book, but I also smiled and laughed, felt like Charlotte’s cheerleader and her annoyed friend. This is going to be a favorite of 2019 as well.

A huge thank you and round of applause to Emily Belden for such an incredible piece of writing and to Random House for the advanced digital copy!

Husband Material is on sale December 30, 2019 (which just so happens to be my birthday, but that’s not why I loved this book so much) but is available for preorder now! Add it to your Christmas lists, TBR’s, all the things! I’ll definitely be talking about it again as the publication date nears.

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Charlotte is all about the algorithm. She could probably fix Instagram. She has her life planned like it's one of the programs on her computer. She is in control. Well...that is until her husband's (Decker) ashes show up at her door!! The mausoleum the ashes were at burned down and they sent them to her. And since no one in her life even knew she was a widow, she has some explaining to do.

But that is not the only part of her past that's come back into her life. She also runs into her husband's best friend, Brian. Decker's mother is desperate for the ashes and tries to get Brian to talk to Charlotte about it. That ultimately backfires (Charlotte refuses to give them up), but Brian doesn't just go away. She keeps meeting with him and their budding friendship turns into something more.

Charlotte also has to deal with how she's been using her roommate to stay inside the box she created for herself after her husband died. She's barely dealt with her emotions and she chose her roommate specifically because she knew she wouldn't ask any questions. It also doesn't help that she's been hiding her true self from the people she works with.

This was a really interesting story, especially for a romance. It was about Charlotte's past relationship with Decker, her life after, and how she needed to deal with her past and present. I really enjoyed her character. She had a lot of things to work through and did so in a very real, slightly panicked way which I always appreciate lol.

That being said, Brian...he could be an asshole at times. There's a point where he wants Charlotte to make a decision about where she's going to store the urn. He finds a place that would be available in a couple of months. When she doesn't make the decision in a couple of days, he becomes upset and almost belligerent. And it's never really addressed, even after it turns out he is keeping a HUGE secret from her. His behavior and faults are kind of swept under the rug, while Charlotte's  faults are examined and she ends up addressing them. For the most part he doesn't address his.

I am giving Husband Material by Emily Belden 3.5 out of 5 stars. I really enjoyed Charlotte's growth and how we got to see her past and how it informed what was going on in her life in the present. Brian wasn't the romantic male I wanted, but that's nothing new. lol he's no Mr. Darcy. If you're looking for an emotional but also fun romance, you should give this one a shot.

Husband Material comes out December 30, 2019

Thank you to NetGalley and Graydon House for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

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Husband Material by Emily Beldon is a heartwarming story about grief and love and second chances. I read it in a single sitting, which (given the fact that I have three children constantly <i>needing</i> things) should communicate how much I loved it.

Charlotte Rosen, an app developer and Numbers Queen, is a widow--but no one knows it. Now, at 29, she has a job she enjoys, a decent roommate, and an algorithm that she's sure will help her find her perfect match.

Her equilibrium is upset by the sudden arrival of a package containing her husband's ashes. With his urn on her nightstand, she is forced to confront the grief she's been running from for five years. She's been a widow now far longer than she was ever a wife--and she's learning there isn't a straightforward path through grief. But maybe, if she can open up to those around her, she won't have to walk through it alone.

I have never lost a spouse, but I have several friends who have, and from watching them experience this kind of loss, I can tell that Beldon did her research. Charlotte is a likeable protagonist--charming, a bit of a control-freak, . She's very relatable, and the way she explored her grief felt honest and real. I also appreciate that while the story is sprinkled with humor, the loss and grief itself is never belittled or made light of. It's given the weight I felt it deserved, and honors the experiences of the widows Beldon interviewed in the process of researching this book.

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I both liked this and also deeply disliked this at the same time. The main character, who I thought had a lot of potential, was sort of just deeply unlikable and that made it hard to believe the romance itself. If the romance can't be believed, I find it difficult to get into this type of book.

Overall though it's written really well and it IS engaging, I just have some problems with the main character herself. I would recommend the book to anyone as it's emotional and impressive and an overall enjoyable read.

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Husband Material is an extremely captivating novel that puts an algorithm reliant woman in a conundrum of finding true love. Using a dating/mating program she wrote, Charlotte is out to find true, one and forever love, love based on numbers, patterns and likelihood of matching rather than on chemistry. It all looks good until her deceased husband’s best friend re-enters her life and begins to disrupt the flow of information she programs. Charlotte has to weigh numbers vs. chemistry.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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I have mixed opinions about this book. My older sister borrowed my kindle while I was at work when she was visiting yesterday and read it before I did. She loved it. Bear in mind that she's ten years older than I am so she's in her thirties. I wasn't as into this book as she was.

The book itself was fine. No complaints. The cover is cute and so's the story. I just felt too ... young? ... for it. The main character is 29 and the things that she deals with are things that I can't really relate to for the most part. My sister could though, remember? So that leads me to believe that this romance is meant for the 30+ age group rather than those like me. It had a happily ever after and hit all the genre expectations with a bit of humor to boot. It just wasn't for me. But ... the story itself was good enough and that's why I'm still giving it a 3.8 rating. It deserves it. <3

Would I recommend? To the 30+ romance seekers, sure. <3

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

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I am relatively new to the chick-lit/contemporary romance genre and so far my favorites have been love stories that tackle serious or important topics along with the relationship plot line. Husband Material did just that, to the point where it could be said the romance was entirely secondary, and I think that's what made it such an addicting read for me.

Having just finished reading One True Loves, and seeing how one author writes about grief in the genre, I loved reading Emily Belden's take on the subject.

I am very interested to see how seasoned contemporary romance readers enjoyed this novel, but this newbie is eager to read more like it.

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Husband Material is a women's fiction story centering around 29 year old Charlotte. She is a rising star in the tech world and, outside of work, appears fairly closed off to relationships, even with her long term roommate. She dates sparingly and cautiously, guided by the app and algorithm that she is developing to find her perfect mate. That would be a cute story in and of itself. But, this is not a cute story. The reason Charlotte chooses social isolation is because she was widowed at a very young age. She has hidden this fact from everyone she knows and intends to keep her grief unknown. Until something occurs, making that no longer an option.

This is a story about great loss, confronting grief and finding the courage to heal. This book is not, as the title and cover art would suggest, a romance. Not of any sort. While there is some levity in the writing, this is an inherently emotional story.

Thank you to NetGalley and HARLEQUIN - Graydon House Books for the eGalley of this novel. All opinions are my own.

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Husband Material is about a young widow named Charlotte who is forced to grieve her husband's death all over again when his ashes are unexpectedly delivered to her home. Now she has to deal with her past that she tried so hard to move on from.
After avoiding her husband's best friend and mother for five years, she now comes in contact with them to try and figure this situation out. In doing so, she discovers more than she bargained for.
I feel I can relate to the character Charlotte because I also worked in the social media industry. I also can understand the love she had for her husband because even though he passed away, you could tell she still loved her husband and felt guilt for kissing Brian, to me faithfulness is a very important thing. My favorite thing about this story is seeing Charlotte’s growth as she overcomes her past. I feel that is very empowering and I believe readers can relate because everyone will have things they will have to overcome, but like Charlotte we can learn and grow from them as well. I really enjoyed this book a lot. It had some drama, a little romance, and the author's writing style really drew me into the story.

I want to thank Netgalley for providing me an e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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This is one of the best "women's fiction" novels I've read in several months! This is a new author to me, but I am a forever fan. The writing was impeccable! The characters were warm and relatable while also being complex. The story was full of twists and turns while also exploring in depth emotions, relationships and real world issues. I enjoyed the comedic aspects of the writing but also the serious, gut-wrenching moments.
The story surrounds Charlotte who is a coder for a social media influencer. She has managed to hide the fact that she is a widower and moved on during the five years following her husband's death. Charlotte hits a wall when her husband's ashes show up on her doorstep out of the blue leading to a rekindled relationship with a friend from her past. Read along as Charlotte navigates the wave of emotions and fallout as she must choose to run from her past or embrace it.
All opinions expressed are my own. I would like to thank Grayden House Books for the advanced reader copy via NetGalley.

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This was a book that I found while browsing titles, and decided from the description that I'd want to read it. The story revolves around 29 year-old widow Charlotte Rosen, a coder for a "social media influencer" firm. I love that she has a real job (that requires actual skill), but I don't know what it was exactly that I didn't really love about this book. Maybe it was the main character, who at times made just insanely horrible decisions and made me want to scream. It seemed more of a comedy instead of a romantic comedy with how slow the romance part was, but it was funny! The ending felt a bit rushed, but overall it was a quick, easy read.

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A really quick read. Some interesting plot twists in this fun novel about what makes relationships work and whether or not an app can make an accurate prediction.

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What a great story! I really enjoyed all of the cha. The rollercoaster of emotions was interesting. I was hooked until the end. The ending left me wanting to know more.

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I hadn't read anything by Emily Belden before, but I found her approach to writing witty and realistic. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the title, as it implies a kind of mediocre chick lit piece instead of the raw story line of Charlotte and her grief. Husband Material is a charming story about a woman (Charlotte) opening back up after years of keeping her walls in place.

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I enjoyed this book. The storyline was interesting, possibly a little too easy to guess at times, BUT it was still an enjoyable read. The ending felt slightly rushed to me?!? I did enjoy the characters and the storyline and will read more from the author in the future.

I enjoyed reading about a career driven woman who is finding out more about herself and her life and what is important to her. Learning about her backstory and what made her be the type of woman she is today was interesting and led to her character's development.

All of the characters are pretty enjoyable. The storyline flowed smoothly. I read this in one day and found that this was a very easy read, perfect for a beach read.

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This is a story about Charlotte Rosen, a 29-year-old widow who somehow has never told anyone in her life about a) having been married, or b) having been widowed. It reads like an attempt at a light, chick-lit-esque sitcom pilot that they had to shoehorn an epilogue onto when it didn’t get picked up, and is about as subtle with product placement as The Shopping Channel. Top that off with a MC who’s kind of a misogynist, scolds other people for not communicating (when literally everyone she knows is surprised by her widowhood), is kind of an asshole, and only experiences any growth in the late LATE third act/epilogue, and you have a narrative slog that only gets two stars because thankfully I didn’t have to read any sex scenes.

I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest, voluntary review.

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I feel a bit sad. The potential with this book was pretty high, it's just that Belden ended up having a main character who wasn't that likable and also the romance felt forced.

"Husband Material" follows 29 year old Charlotte Rosen. A New York transplant, Charlotte initially worked in a different field than what she does now. Charlotte works for a social media influencer firm (yeah that's a thing now I guess) and relies on hits/hashtags/numbers to show her whether a client has a certified hit or not. After returning home early one evening, Charlotte is surprised to find her late husband's ashes (Decker) waiting for her. Receiving the ashes throws Charlotte into a tailspin. She hasn't really gotten over losing Decker 5 years ago and finds herself dealing with her ex-in law and also her husband's best friend, Brian.

I loved the idea of Charlotte having the ability to figure out whether a guy was going to work with her or not based on her research into their online lives. And the first scene with the blind date at the wedding was hilarious. After that the book just swan dives into messiness and I ended up wanting to smother Charlotte. Belden does incorporate some scenes in this book so you can see how well Decker and Charlotte got along and how much they loved each other. I just think there should have been more. Decker literally haunts most of the book. When a secret is divulged I rolled my freaking eyes because it made zero sense to introduce this except as a way for poor Charlotte to overcome something else.

Charlotte's character bugged me mostly though because once she meets Brian again, she turns into needing his help every five minutes and she only wants help because she's hoping for it to turn into something romantic. I don't know. It just baffled me as I was reading. Though Charlotte pretends like she doesn't need help from her coworkers or her roommate. It just bugged the life out of me because most of the book is her being disappointed if he can't do something right away or her thinking she knows him. There is zero chemistry between these two and I think that Belden would have been better off just having Charlotte realize she wasn't ready to move on from her husband yet.

The other characters don't have much to do. Belden introduces the ex in-law who is nasty, but I actually felt for this character and we have Charlotte's periodic phone calls home to her mother along with the long suffering roommate. Brian sucked full stop once readers are informed about something and I had a hard time even believing the HEA that the book pushes on us.

The writing actually started off pretty good. The first scene at the wedding was hilarious, but after that the book seems to get into a pretty bad flow of Charlotte just sitting around waiting on Brian. I think the plot point of what to do with Decker's ashes wasn't enough to hold this book together. When a secret is revealed the book danced even further into absurdity. I think that the plot could have just been Charlotte coming to real terms with being a widow and going to grief groups and meeting other women out there in a similar situation, full stop.

The ending was a letdown to me. I didn't buy the romance especially after what Charlotte found out. I honestly thought including the secret turned this book into a literary version of the movie, "Catch and Release" starring Jennifer Garner too.

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