Lauren is a mom of a teenage daughter, sister to a movie star brother, and perhaps more definitively, a widow. This story gives us an inside look into her childhood and how she came to know her husband as well as the present and how she is navigating her new normal. While visiting her brother on set, she meets his co-star, Ben, who is everything you’d expect a movie star to be. He awakens Lauren from the slumber of grief, guilt, and struggles of a teenager’s mom. Their chemistry is simply electric. You can feel the excitement while reading the words on the pages. This book was easy to read. I don’t normally care for the bouncing back and forth between the past and present, but it was tastefully done and does add important details to the story. Lauren and Ben’s story is exciting, daring, and quite spicy. I wasn’t ready for the onslaught of tears at the end, but any story that can bring that emotion is definitely five stars.

I really love Lena and Lauren’s relationship arc. However Lauren’s relationship with Ben never really felt flushed out. I get that he liked her, but never really understood their relationship spark. I really liked the concept, but just felt so disconnected. The chapters I ended up like most were the ones about Spencer.

Totally and Completely Fine by Elissa Sussman is a soft, emotionally-driven contemporary read that touches on grief, single motherhood, and a second chance at love.

Lauren’s been frozen in time since her husband died, doing her best to just keep it together for her daughter. But now, a year later, she's on the edge of starting something new...both for herself and her future. Enter Ben: her famous brother’s co-star. There’s chemistry, there’s heat, there’s some classic soul-searching.

For me, this was one of those “I liked it, but didn’t love it” reads. The writing was easy to sink into, and I appreciated the exploration of moving on, but I never fully clicked with the characters. I kept waiting to feel more, and that emotional punch never quite landed.

Also... let’s talk about Ben’s bisexuality. While I like to see rep everywhere, this felt oddly tacked on. It wasn’t explored, it didn’t affect the plot or character arc, and honestly, it just felt like it was thrown in to check a box. Representation matters, yes, but it also needs to matter within the story.

Would I Recommend It?
Yes, for a casual, heartfelt beach read with a sprinkle of romance and healing. But go in knowing this is a “nice” read, not a soul-shaking one. Perfect for when you want something light with a hint of depth.

Thank you to Ballentine | Dell, and Penguin Random House Audio for the ARC and ALC of this title in exchange of an honest review.

I’m not a writer so it won’t be eloquent when I say that Elissa has some special way of telling stories. They’re so captivating and full of every emotion to bring her characters to life. I’m always drawn in right away and can’t wait till I can open the book again.
Could not put this down! Loved every moment! Loved having Gabe and Chani there through it all! Loved the flashbacks of Lauren’s first love, her husband Spencer who died three years ago. Loved how Elissa wrote about grief and love. Loved the slow burn with Ben. Loved the perspective of raising a thirteen year old daughter alone, who is also grieving and discovering herself. Ohh it’s all so tender and sweet! I loved it all!!!


Thank you NetGalley and Dell for the ARC!!

A good effort, yet ultimately takes on a little too much. This tale acts as both a sequel and prequel to Funny You Should Ask, giving readers more of Gabe and Chani in addition to centering the story on Lauren's relationship in the past with her husband Spencer and her blossoming new one in the present with Ben. The dual timeline is a double-edged sword; the portions from the past allow for more backstory to be shared about these characters, particularly about Spencer so that Lauren's grief over his death feels suitably palpable, but giving it so much space within the book robs time from her growing connection with Ben to make it fully believable. I became very invested in Lauren's happiness, the storylines involving Lena felt well considered as well as realistic, and I appreciated Sussman's intelligent writing on multiple serious topics. While this ultimately didn't work perfectly, I admire the stab at something a little different from a standard romance.

Elissa Sussman is a must-read author for me, and I absolutely loved Funny You Should Ask, so I could not wait to get my hands on the follow up featuring Gabe’s older sister Lauren. This book was an emotional, heartfelt read about moving on, rediscovering yourself and finding love through grief. This book gave me butterflies off the bat and I was excited to pick it up the entire time. I loved how it switched between past and present timelines helped to give us background and context into Lauren, Gabe and Spencer.

While I really enjoyed this book, and couldn’t put it down. It felt like there were so many things this book was trying to tackle and it felt like none of them got fleshed out— I got to 90% and I knew I wasn’t going to get closure on quite a few aspects: Lauren and Ben’s romance didn’t get enough airtime, we didn’t get any finality into Ollie and Gabe’s theatre debut, we didn’t get an idea of what Lauren’s plans were for her career or life outside Cooper, Lena + Eve’s relationship— and the ending felt extremely rushed and unrealistic. I felt like this book needed at least another 100 pages!

This world that Sussman has created is so satisfying to revisit. Through the whole book we get glimpses of where previous characters are now and I love it.

This is a story of a widow coming to terms with her grief and the possibility of new love. The cast of characters is great. The vulnerability shown through growth is fantastic.

If you like celebrity, age gap, single mom romance - you might want this one.

Thank you to the publisher and thank you to NetGalley for the chance to review this e-ARC. Full review will be available soon

Grief is a weird and wondrous thing.

Once it touches you, it never leaves. You never know what it will do to you or how you'll handle it. How you'll handle it is entirely different from how anyone else you know who deals with it handles it.

Elissa Sussman masterfully weaves the throughline of grief, in all its forms, throughout her latest romance, 'Totally and Completely Fine.'

We met Lauren in one of Sussman's previous books, "Funny You Should Ask,' the sister of the MMC in that book. Most of us fell in love with the young widow then. Now we get to dive into her life. And I'm so glad we did.

Lauren's life is stagnant and moving at the same time. Work is fine, and the small town is fine. Her teen daughter hates her. And she never knows how she'll feel grief-wise day by day, even three years after her husband's death. Then, a trip to visit her movie-star brother at work sparks a new interest.

In Lauren's flirtation with Ben, Sussman illustrates an awakening from the haze of going through day-to-day motions and locking away a part of yourself to house never-ending grief. By going back and forth in time, the reader gains a comprehensive understanding of the before and after of their life.

You also see the trial and error as she tries to start navigating life again.

It's a beautiful story.

I really love everything I've read by Elissa Sussman thus far, so this book is starting out with a leg up. That being said - I was not prepared for the heavy weight of grief this book carried. Its not a bad thing, but it was a surprise. If you are looking for something lighthearted and sweet, this isn't it. It is a really beautiful exploration of how grief can alter a family and a person and their relationships - wrapped up in a romance novel. I do wish we had gotten more of the "heavy" side of Ben and Lauren - we didn't get to see the commitment come to life fully on page like I would have liked, and the ending felt a little less satisfying because of it I think. All up still a book I enjoyed reading and will recommend!

Totally and Completely Fine is more than its fun, tropey premise (Hollywood actor meets small-town woman) might suggest. At its core, it’s a poignant exploration of grief, healing, and the messy process of moving forward. Lauren’s journey feels raw and authentic, and I appreciated how the novel structurally mirrors her emotional progress—early on, she’s consumed by memories of her late husband, Spenser, while Ben, the love interest, takes a backseat. As Lauren begins to heal, Ben becomes more present, which was a clever narrative choice.

That said, I did wish for a deeper exploration of Ben’s character and his relationship with Lauren. Beyond their chemistry (great banter, even better steam) and shared appreciation for her cooking, their emotional connection sometimes felt underexplored. What truly makes them compatible, beyond attraction? A bit more development there would’ve made their bond even stronger.

This isn’t a breezy rom-com—it’s a heavier, more introspective story with moments of warmth and wit. If you’re looking for a book that tackles grief with sincerity while still offering romance and hope, this one’s worth the read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. Unfortunately, this one didn’t quite work for me—I had a hard time connecting with the writing style and didn’t feel invested in the characters.

I loved that this book continued with characters connected to Funny You Should Ask. It’s a delight to peak at what Gabe and Chani are doing now. And now Gabe’s sister, Lauren, has a chance to process her grief and open herself up to another relationship. Her story deals with loss, addiction, widowhood, and raising a daughter. Ben is a bit younger than Lauren, and their chemistry ignites at their very first meeting. But it takes time to figure out how in the world they could ever be together. I love stories like this that deal with real-world problems and feature adults who are mature enough to realize they have a lot to figure out. Loved how the queer rep was a natural part of the story. Very well done and highly recommend!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC to read and review. All opinions are my own.

I really liked this book a lot. Sort of a lighter "The Idea of You," it's the story of a grieving widow and single mom who connects with a hot, younger actor, even though she lives in Montana and he lives in LA. But as luck would have it, he's doing a play in her small hometown as a favor to her brother, also a movie star. There were definitely some head scratching moments in terms of the rules Sussman essentially made up for how theatre works, but those were small things and not enough to take away from the rich characters she created.

I will gobble up everything Elissa Sussman writes, and was overjoyed to receive an ARC of this book (thank you, Netgalley). This one has the banter and the feelings and the realness you come to expect from Sussman, with the bonus of basically two love stories in one as we get the brother's BFF romance of our FMC and her deceased husband alongside the celebrity romance of her getting her groove back. I loved this slight twist on the tropes. Getting to explore Lauren and Spencer's story throughout made their relationship and her grief ever-present in the narrative, just as it is in her life. Also, we love an aggressively thirteen thirteen-year-old.

I will absolutely recommend this to folks, but a bit more selectively than I reco her other work. But that is for a variety of reasons, not all of them critical. For example, the very themes of this story limit who I might recommend it to. This is a beautiful and heartbreaking story of grief, it could be too close to the bone for some or just generally difficult for others to read (not me reading and sobbing in bed next to my partner). Some just don't want sprinklings of sad in their romantic comedies. In that regard, I'd recommend this badboy to fans of Sussman — you kind of need to have read 'Funny You Should Ask' to get some of what's going on, to be honest — and also Abby Jimenez, because feelings.

On the more critical side of things, some of the pacing and depictions in this book felt especially tell-y rather than showing. The spark between Ben and Lauren felt abrupt in a way that made it difficult to fully buy-in and cheer for them. As an actor, I had a few "that's not how that works" moments, which is wild because one thing I loved about 'Funny...' and 'Once More...' was the accuracy of a bunch of small moments that allowed me to suspend my disbelief for some of the more convenient-for-plot moments. I liked that Ben's queer identity was just sort of in there as a matter-of-fact vs. a "let's unpack this/make it his whole identity"...but it was also repeated so much and we were given so little at times about him that sometimes it did feel like his whole identity...just not a fully fleshed out one. From a pacing perspective, there were scenes/exchanges that happened so quickly that I found myself occasionally wondering if those maybe got revised and built out more in a future draft.

All in all, I loved the concept, I loved the voice, and I loved the raw, bittersweet ache of Lauren's journey. However, I felt like our FMC's walls and avoidance of talking about her feelings extended to me as well as her fellow characters. I didn't feel like she let me in. And the result was akin to watching a rollercoaster from the ground while holding everybody's stuff.

3.5/5 stars, rounded up for netgalley

I normally love Elissa Sussman's books, but I don't know why I couldn't get into this one! I absolutely adore Funny You Should Ask, and I do think if I had reread that one right before reading this one that maybe I would have had a better experience. I feel like this one is a book that didn't work for me initially, but I'm not fully taking it off my TBR just yet. Hopefully, I'll come back to it with a different outlook because I want to love it!

I went into this totally blind so I was not ready for this to be a grief story. But damn she did it well, especially with how a single person can affect so many people and how all their grief can look so different. The queer rep was an added bonus. I loved the conflict over when to come out. This is definitely a struggle for people today, and I loved the way it was addressed. It was great representation.

Super cute. Slow start. However, I was pulled in and loved how it went after that.

I love a book that is complicated like life. This book is that! The book tackles grief (throughout) and navigating life after an unexpected death. Not only that, but raising a child and moving on, too.

This book felt real. It felt complicated yet full of good moments and more than just family and grief, even if those are the main themes. There’s new love, alcoholism, family, parenting and more. They are all introduced in ways that felt realistic.

Advanced reader copy provided by Ballantine and NetGalley but all opinions are my own.

If you have ever talked to me about books, you know that Funny You Should Ask is my favorite romance book ever. It is one of the quickest reads, because the story and characters are so compelling that it almost feels as if I'm breathing the story in. I can read the entire thing in probably around 5-ish hours. While I loved Funny You Should Ask, Sussman's second book, Once More With Feeling, left me a little disappointed. It just wasn't as captivating or enjoyable for me - I wasn't as invested in the characters. So I was nervous about Totally and Completely Fine. Which book would it take after?

Reader, it took after Funny You Should Ask and I completely DEVOURED it. You can correctly guess by my lapse in reviews that I haven't been in much of a reading mood lately, which I've hated. There are so many books I want to read, but I just couldn't get into them. But we are so back, baby. I read this puppy so quickly and loved it so much that I did a rare immediate reread, trying to make myself go slower so I could really enjoy it to the fullest. I laughed, cried, and blushed hard each time through.

In Totally and Completely Fine, we follow Lauren, older sister of movie star Gabe Parker, as she develops a relationship with his co-star who is more than 10 years her junior - Ben Walsh (who has an Irish accent, by the way). What starts out as a one-night stand slowly snowballs into something more as the chemistry between Lauren and Ben can't be denied by either of them. But dating in a small town like Cooper, Montana isn't easy - especially not when you're a young widow still grappling with the unexpressed grief of not only yourself but your 13-year-old daughter. Does Lauren even KNOW what she wants? And once she figures that out, will she LET herself have it - even if it makes her the talk of the town?

This book hits on so many levels. I'll get the obvious out of the way - this book is HOT. Ben is a talker and oh boy the stuff he says and does...🥵 It's not super graphic throughout, but you honestly don't NEED it to be super graphic. Sussman is good at giving us enough information to fill in those delicious blanks ourselves. And when the writing is more detailed, it's not just for detail's sake. It's a scene where the characters are trying to savor every single moment together - so it makes narrative sense to know exactly what's going on. 😏

There's also so much heart in this book, and it doesn't shy away from difficult topics like addiction, religious trauma, and grief. It's not really a surprise that a story with a 13-year-old in it will have some dramatic moments where the tension finally snaps and things that have been unsaid for years are hurled at people's faces. These moments are so believable and honest that they made me cry. It's refreshing to have a romance novel that also deals with consequences of past behavior. It makes the story more complete and real.

Another fantastic aspect that I wasn't quite expecting was the LGBTQIA+ representation. Ben, our leading man, is bisexual. Ollie (MY LOVE!!) is back again, and it's even mentioned that his marriage with his husband is an open one. And without being too spoiler-y, there's also representation of LGBTQIA+ youth dealing with things like first love and coming out. It's not written like the author was just trying to check the "gay character" box - sexuality is the least interesting aspect of the story. Representation is vital, and I was so glad to see it in a book with a man & woman as the main couple.

Finally, as an incredible bonus, we get to see more of Gabe and Chani! Fine is written in a similar format as Funny, where you have chapters taking place "Then" and chapters taking place "Now". Because of this, we get to see some events from the first book from a different perspective, which was so exciting. The story continues past where Funny left off, and we get to see Gabe & Chani's relationship grow - both with each other and with the rest of the Parker family. Getting some "skim and you'll miss it" easter eggs from their story (the dragon ring!) really made me feel like I knew these people.

In short, this book is everything I wanted it to be and more. I don't know if there's more story to tell with these characters that I love so much, and that does kind of make me sad because I'd love yet another book about this group of humans. I will definitely be adding Totally and Completely Fine to my annual reread of Funny, and I guess I'll just have to imagine the happily-ever-afters that these characters are certainly living myself.

I loved that we had a continuation from other Sussman books into Totally and Completely Fine. This one grappled with grief and loss which is a really tough subject, but Sussman managed to write about it with grace and dignity. I was drawn into the story and characters and walked away feeling so mushy gushy!