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!

I loved this sweet debut story from author Ivy Fairbanks. I think that fans of The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston will enjoy this one (though it doesn't have the supernatural element that book does).

My husband's family has roots in the funeral home biz, so I think that make this one extra special to me.

This was such a fun, quick read. i really enjoyed the fmc and mmc they were both great to read about individually and ofc together. the banter was cute and as a texas girlie i loved reading about her being from austin, and also as a girlie going to ireland this summer i'm so excited!!!
my only gripe is the 3rd act breakup. it's not my favorite trope and when there is miscommunication/not wanting to communicate it really irks me. but overall this was a solid read!
thank you netgalley and publishers for this e-arc

This debut romance novel is absolutely beautiful. While it has a heavy topic, loss of a partner, I love how this story instilled a sense of hope. Even after something so tragic, it’s possible to find happiness again without forgetting the past. This is a must read for romance fans, with equal parts humor, romance, and spice.

A cozy read. I really enjoyed this book. I like to read multiple books at once and this one was a great little reprieve between the thriller and fantasy books. This was a cute story and well written. I loved the pronunciation guide and the slang terms incorporated.

I got this book as an arc from NetGalley

I want to start off by saying that this is an excellent debut novel and I can’t wait to read the next books in the Love In Galway series.

"Morbidly Yours" is a sweet and heartfelt story about a grieving mortician and an animator who find comfort in each other and fall in love. After losing her husband two years ago, Lark decides it's time for a fresh start and moves to Ireland. But despite her efforts to leave death and grief behind, she discovers that her new neighbor, Callum, is a mortician. Callum's late grandfather stipulated that Callum must be married by his 35th birthday to inherit the family mortuary. As Lark and Callum quickly become friends, Lark is determined to help Callum find a wife, but soon realizes she's falling for him.

This story is absolutely delightful and full of fun tropes like "he falls first," "friends with benefits," and "grumpy x sunshine." Callum and Lark are so cute and perfect for each other! Callum, with his shy, sweet nature and surprising dirty talk, has definitely earned a spot on my list of book boyfriends! Grief is an important part of the story, but it's handled beautifully, showcasing different aspects without ever getting too heavy. The only reason this wasn't a five-star read for me was the third act conflict, which felt a bit one-sided and unnecessary.

This book was not for me. I do want to give it props for dealing with grief so respectfully throughout, but I personally never felt attached to the characters. The pacing also felt off to me, and I didn’t like the switching between character narratives throughout— this felt more disruptive than valuable.

I absolutely loved this book! Callum being a mortician and demisexual was so unique, that I couldn't help but be intrigued. I thought the romance between Cal and Lark was so sweet and genuine. At first, I was worried Lark was going to be a little too quirky and Cal a bit too grumpy, but they were very fleshed-out characters and had the BEST chemistry! Lark and Cal managed to balance their jobs, their friends and colleagues, AND their growing relationship-- all in a fast-paced book that I did not want to put down. The only thing I didn't love was the third-act breakup, but that's a personal gripe.

I heard there's going to be an audiobook for this book which I will DEFINITELY be looking forward to hearing (that chess scene-- iykyk!)

First let me say that romance stories are generally not my thing but this one sounded interesting so I gave it a try. Oh. My. Gosh! If I could find more like this I would turn into a romance lover!!! I adore Lark and Cal. Such a fun plot and these characters are so great! I want more of these two. This was truly enjoyable!

If this wasn't a romance novel, it would be a 2 star read for me. There was too much going on with not enough explanation. I thought the chemistry between the characters was pretty good, but the hanging out being more than friends didn't ring authentically to me. Also Lark not being able to stand up for herself got old very quickly, specifically in a professional environment. Ultimately, it was too slow burn with too many plot elements.

This book was phenomenal and to top it off, it's the author's first novel! 5 stars, must-read, pre-order NOW! Release date 8/20/23.

Lark Thompson traveled to Ireland for a job and moreover, to escape reminders of her late husband. She did not expect to live next door to a funeral home with a smoking hot, cinnamon roll mortician. Lark especially did not fathom to become best friends with the man. For Callum Flannelly, his home has always been the funeral home. It's his goal to keep the family business in his name. BUT, this shy, introverted man must marry in order for the funeral home to be his according to his grandfather's will. While Lark helps him set up dating profiles and encourages him to go out on dates to find "the one" a mutual attraction builds between the her and Callum.

This Rom-Com was perfect. The characters had excellent depth, each with their own unique back stories. I loved the vulnerability of Callum's character, such as his stutter and social anxiety and how Lark immediately looked past that and saw the beauty within. Callum's character grew throughout the story to the point of being hilarious and impossibly sweet, all for Lark. The touch of the Irish language throughout was neat.

I certainly hope there will be a second book in this series centering Cielo and Adrian!!

Thank you for the ARC.

This was a cute debut read about neighbors learning to tolerate each other, that becomes something more. I liked the look at a mortician job. This is a fun read that I think a lot of romance readers will like.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC.

Ivy fairbanks did an excellent job of portraying life after heartbreak.
Well written and a beautiful story.

This was such a fun read I genuinely enjoyed and I can't wait for more to release from Ivy Fairbanks! I will definitely read anything from this author moving forward.

This was a really cute story. Both characters grew and did things outside their comfort zone. A lot of healing on her part. The romance was sweet and quite spicy! A very enjoyable 4 stars

Morbidly Yours was a refreshing read (and a debut novel at that!?)! Set in dreamy Ireland, this story was unique and had a great slow burn! I really enjoyed the two main characters, I liked their careers (animator and a mortician) and how they grew throughout the book.
If you like:
- nieghbors
- grumpy/sunshine
- friends with benefits
- friends to lovers
- cinnamon roll boys (but with some Irish Dirty talk) and he falls first
- disability rep (done very positively!)
Then this should be enjoyable for you!

I am 100% going to listen to the audiobook version of this! And I will certainly read more of this author's books!
4.5/5 (rounding up!) and spice 3.5/5
Thanks to Netgalley, Ivy Fairbanks, and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam | G.P. Putnam's Sons for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!