The Guncle Abroad
Rating: 4.5⭐️/ Loved!

Thank you @putnambooks and @netgalley for the advanced digital copy- this releases on 5/21. Review to come on bookstagram closer to publication!

Quick synopsis: Years later, Patrick is single and once again called upon for Guncle duties, as his brother Greg is getting married to an Italian baroness, Livia, and kids Grant and Maisy object. Life lessons (aka Guncle rules) and hilarity ensue.

GUP is back!! One of my most anticipated of the year and it lived up to the hype! This was a fun trip to Europe with GUP and the kids, who have now grown up so much. While still full of laughter (The banter! The one-liners!) and heart warming moments, the first half of the novel moved a bit slow for my preference. Still, this felt like coming home to a comfort sitcom with characters that you’ll always root for.

To get the most out of this sequel, I would definitely recommend first reading The Guncle, in order to fully understand characters and context. The Guncle was one of my favorite books of 2021 and I can’t recommend it enough for a comforting, funny read with plenty of heart in its dealing with the grief process.

An absolute hit! I loved the first book in this series and loved getting to follow along on yet another adventure of the MC with how he continues to teach his niece and nephew the importance of living life to the fullest, falling in love, and the beauty of strong family relationships.

I absolutely loved getting to join this crew again. I adored this first book and was excited for this one and it didn’t disappoint. It was an adventure from the start.

Synopsis:
Patrick O’Hara, Guncle- gay uncle to Maisie and Grant, is back. It’s been five years since his summer as caretaker to his niece and nephew after their mother’s (and his best friend's) passing. Looking down both barrels at fifty, Patrick is single again after breaking things off with Emory (who we met in Book 1). But at least he has a family to lean on. Until that family needs to again lean on him. When Patrick's brother, Greg, announces he’s getting remarried in Italy, Maisie and Grant are not thrilled. Patrick feels drawn to take the two back under his wing. As they travel through Europe on their way to the wedding, Patrick tries his best to help them understand love, much as he once helped them comprehend grief. But when they arrive in Italy, Patrick is overextended managing a groom with cold feet; his sister, Clara, flirting with guests left and right; a growing rivalry with the kids’ charming soon-to-be-launt (lesbian aunt), and two moody young teens trying to adjust to a new normal, all culminating in a disastrous rehearsal dinner. Can Patrick save the day? Will teaching the kids about love help him repair his own love life? Can the change of scenery help Patrick come to terms with finally growing up?

Review:
I just love these books. They are charming, funny, and full of love. Just the ultimate feel-good summer book. I think the pacing is nice, it keeps things moving from one setting and one lesson to the other. We don't dwell on anything to the point of exhaustion or disinterest. The tension points are realistic even if a tad bit dramatized at some points (but hey, that's the fun of it). The relationships between the characters just pull at your heart strings. The shenanigans make me laugh at loud. I can't recommend enough.

Oh how I love this family. The banter, the smartass remarks, the way they come together, all of it. Although I feel like some of it is a bit jaded because everyone in the family seems well off financially. I so enjoy Patrick’s relationship with his niece and nephew and how his lessons always teach him something as well. It’s a beautiful book addressing loss even year later and how to navigate the feelings attached to it.

@mrstevenrowley won me over with Guncle so I was so freaking excited when I got this from @netgalley and it did not disappoint!! I laughed and I cried and I just loved every minute of it I was Patrick in my life but I think there should definitely be a LAUNT Palomina spin off because I need to live in her life !!! As with the first I love all the little life gems sprinkled throughout the story and the sense of humor is my type!!! I seriously love this and would read every single one if this were to continue ! I almost died reading the acknowledgements because this is being made into tv show or film and @instadanjlevy name is attached OMG!!! Seriously if you haven’t read this or the first go get both NOW and get to reading

THE GUNCLE ABROAD by steven rowley is the sequel to THE GUNCLE, and brings us back to the lives of GUP (gay uncle Patrick) and his niece and nephew — who are about to get a new stepmother after their father’s wedding in Italy.

Ok so this one was cute 🥰 and it never stopped being cute. Don’t read for the plot, which is totally fine and all, but read for the colorful characters and vibes! Also made me want to book a trip to Italy (or Europe in general) ASAP. And ugh. How it ends. My heart 🥲

Btw, if THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA is one of your fave books, you MUST read THE GUNCLE and this sequel! Less magic, but the vibes are similar.

The Guncle Abroad was a breath of fresh air and just what I needed. I love all of the life lessons weaved throughout the storyline and could spend forever in the life of Patrick, Maisy, and Grant. Though I didn’t quite like it as much as Guncle itself, I still highly recommend this book!

I was worried when I saw we were getting a sequel to The Guncle. It was one of my favorite books when it came out and I loved the ending. Did we really need a sequel? Yes, yes we did. I loved The Guncle Abroad. It had all the heart and humor of the first book. It was breezy and fun, but emotional and heavy at the right spots. I loved it and will gladly take a third in the series.

I love these characters. Nothing tops the first Guncle book, which was just a delightful story that came at the perfect time during the pandemic, but revisiting them years into the future was so fun!

Oh my gosh, I LOVED returning to the world of GUP! I adore Patrick and it was so fun to see Maisie and Grant as older kiddos. Patrick’s wit and banter keeps me coming back for me. I love seeing him grow and show up for his niece and nephew. Absolutely adored this one!

Patrick is in charge of his niece Maisie and nephew Grant on a whirlwind European trip which will end in the wedding of Gregory and his fiancé. Maisie and Grant are apprehensive of their dad's new marriage and are trying to convince Patrick to help them make sure it doesn't happen. Patrick takes them across Europe as he tries to show them love and work through their grief. Overall, a heartwarming sequel with a great setting, set five years after the first book. Some of the characters did seem a little type casted, but the heart was still there.

Wedding season is upon us and even the Guncle needs to travel ...
The Guncle Abroad takes us back into Steve Rowley's Guncle world but five years have passed since the event in The Guncle and Patrick's brother Greg has fallen in love again and is preparing his marriage to an Italian Marquesa right on the shore of Lake Como but his kids Maisie and Grant, a teen and a tween by now, are not on board. This puts the spotlight on Patrick and his relationship with the kids yet again as he takes the kids on a whirlwind tour of Europe to take their minds off the impending nuptials and teach them a thing or two about love and family.
If you liked the Guncle I am sure you will like this one as well. This book is clever, witty and deeply emotional as Maisie and Grant are grappling with their dad getting remarried. Steve Rowley is a master at the art of balancing the light and heavy, deeply philosophical thought and witty banter. This was fun to read!

After loving the Guncle I was so excited to see that there was a sequel coming out and it didn’t disappoint. While it didn’t quite capture the magic of the first one (I honestly wasn’t expecting it to) it still was a very enjoyable read with amazing settings. The Guncle was such a special book that I think any book trying to follow it was going to fall a little short. The fantastic setting helped make up for the parts that fell a little short for me. This one relied heavily on stereotypes more so than the first book which contributed some to my rating. It was nice to get more depth from some of these characters since we already knew so many of them.

The ending was so special and wonderful. Reading it brought tears to my eyes and I felt like Rowley did a good job of wrapping things up. I would have loved to see a little bit more of what happened after, but the ending was still great.

This was a 4.75 overall for me.

The Guncle Abroad was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024 and it did not disappoint! It was great to reconnect with GUP, Maisie, and Grant!

Patrick and family are back for another adventure, this time with a wedding and travel! Patrick's brother, Greg, is getting married to an Italian social lite. His kids, Maisie and Grant are not happy about the upcoming nuptials. They have both grown since they spent the summer with Patrick. Patrick takes it upon himself to convince his niece and nephew what love is while they want him to talk to Greg and get the wedding called off. Hijinks ensue when Patrick becomes involved in a rivalry with the kids' soon to be launt (lesbian aunt) and his sister having her own romance, left and right,

I felt that this one relayed to heavy on stereotypes. However, I loved the traveling that Patrick and the kids do. I also loved Patrick's humor that was still just as sharp this go around.

📖 BOOK REVIEW

🎧 THE GUNCLE ABROAD by Steven Rowley
⭐️⭐️✨⭐️

Genre: contemporary fiction
Did I cry: yeah honestly
Published in 2024

💭: after absolutely adoring THE GUNCLE, i was so so excited to pick this up and continue following Patrick and his niece and nephew.

I have some mixed feelings about this book. What i didn’t love about this was in-part made up for by the setting, the ending & the writing. Galavanting around Europe in the days leading up to an extravagant Italian wedding… cmon. Nothing beats that. The ending really was so special and wonderful and brought (many) tears to my eyes. I kind of wish we got more out of the ending in terms of like what happened after, but nonetheless it was still great. The writing had that same GUNCLE charm but with a little more depth since we knew the characters fairly well at this point. Each character had their own character arc which was so special to see after two books, and that really came to clarity by the end.

I think that Patrick’s character in this book was sort of abrasive in terms of being slightly offensive and entitled. He was made to be more naive and aloof in THE GUNCLE whereas this one, his behavior and dialogue felt a lot more intentionally malicious at times which felt kinda icky. This book didn’t have that same magic that THE GUNCLE did, but I feel that any succeeding book might have had difficulty with that. I definitely think it’s worth the read, but try to separate it from THE GUNCLE to avoid heightened expectations!

PS — the audio was wonderful and read by the author himself🙌🏼

4.5/5 stars
Delightful once again!
Thank you Steven Rowley for sharing the lives and loves of Patrick, Maisie, Grant, and their families with all of us!

What a treat! This book is fun, engaging, and heartfelt. If you liked The Guncle, this is a must read.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the early access!

What a lovely follow-up to The Guncle! Picking up 5 years later, The Guncle Abroad is again the story of GUP (Gay Uncle Patrick) and his adorable niece and nephew, Maisie and Grant, this time as they travel across Europe to attend a wedding. Along the way, Patrick teaches the children lessons in fashion, chocolate, The Sound of Music, and family dynamics. There are meltdowns, reconciliations, a sibling-in-law-to-be rivalry with a Launt (Lesbian Aunt), and, most importantly, the Love Languages of GUP.

As Patrick imparts nuggets of wisdom to Maisie, Grant, and anyone else who will listen, he travels a path of self-discovery and acceptance. I cannot even express how much I love both The Guncle and The Guncle Abroad. I recommend reading these books in order, and I can imagine myself reading and listening to them again and again. As in The Guncle, The Guncle Abroad audiobook is read by the author himself, and this version is not to be missed.

Thank you to author Steven Rowley, Putnam's Sons, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. I loved it so much!