Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks [ARC Review]

 *I’d like to thank NetGalley, Random House UK and Ivy Fairbanks for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

“Morbidly Yours” is Ivy Fairbank’s debut on the stage of contemporary romance novels, and marks the beginning of her continuing series “Love in Galway”.

The book tells the story of Lark and Callum, an unlikely couple that perfectly compliments each other. Lark, an American cartoon artist, seeks refuge from grief and guilt when she moves to Galway. Far away from her husband’s death and fallout with her best friend, she wants to begin again. Yet, when she arrives at her flat, it is quickly revealed through a wrong delivery that while she was running away from mortality, she now lived right next to a funeral home. Luckily though, the owner Callum, an eccentric yet lovable man in his thirties, quickly becomes her first ‘mate’ in Galway. Callum, who prefers death to the living, has struggles of his own. When his grandfather passed, the funeral home would go to the next living relative, his estranged father who unfortunately plans to sell the family business. The only way for Callum to save the funeral home is to marry, as his grandfather’s will dictates. Unfortunately though, he is a hopeless case when it comes to flirting and dating. And on top of that he slowly falls for his new neighbour Lark who had sworn of dating and romance.

“Morbidly Yours” starts off very strong with a very compelling introduction of the both main characters. We learn much about their personalities within the first couple of chapters. While the book is very funny with many clever jokes, the underlying themes clearly linger within the humorous interactions.  The major themes of “Morbidly Yours” are Lark’s struggle with grief, guilt and her tendency to flee instead of facing her problems, as well as Callum’s struggles with rigidity, a stutter and dating as a demisexual man. And though I really enjoyed how Lark’s themes were handled for most of the book, I felt the last third did truly convince me in the way it showed Lark’s almost miraculous recovery from grief and fear of commitment. Her character growth felt very sudden and I would have preferred if the author would have woven it nicer into the ongoing romance with Callum. Callum on the other hand had a much smoother character growth, though I wish the author would have done a little more with his character. I did appreciate the discussion of Callum’s experience with demisexuality, however I felt as someone who can relate to the ace experience that the portrayal could have been handled better. The introduction of demisexuality felt unnatural and almost like read from a definition instead of nicely integrated into conversation and shown with Callum’s thoughts and feelings. To the end, Callum had very little ongoing character growth and his story was more focussed on saving his business which was alright. Though, it felt a little dishonest that he was looking for a wife for months, when he could have married his secretary right away instead of trying to find someone willing to marry him in mere six months. Or the author could have turned the romance from friends-to-marriage-of-convenience-to-lovers rather than going messy with the conflict towards the end. 

The plotlines were at points a little overwhelming as much was added to the story going forward. And some conflicts such as the one between Lark and her best friend were only resolved in the epilogue, though they were handled as important in the main part of the book. And again, because Callum’s conflict with the funeral home was quite lazily handled in the end, it took a lot from the intensity of his problem. I wish this could have done better. However, I liked how Lark’s workplace conflict was handled, as well as her coming to peace with mortality through her friendship with an elderly woman. The ending was not as satisfying as I had hoped for the reason already mentioned. But also for Lark’s lack of commitment that lasted pretty much till the end. Like there was just something missing that gave me the feeling of a true HEA, instead of somehow happy, maybe happier some time after the ending.

Overall though, the characters were crafted very well, and convincing in their strengths and flaws. They were definitely the strength of this novel besides its clever dialogue. Especially Callum was a very entertaining personality to read and be in his head. I liked that the author picked a type of man that is not often portrayed in romance. He is introverted and eccentric, but also very kind and romantic. I really enjoyed getting to know him, and could very much identify with him. 

Another thing I loved was the setting and atmosphere of the book. Rainy Galway and its surrounding landmarks were described beautifully, and I almost booked a flight to see it myself. The atmosphere felt very cosy yet grey and rainy which I personally very much enjoy.

Considering this novel is Fairbank’s debut, I’ll rate it as such. A first novel will not always be the crown of someone’s craft, but the beginning. For a debut, it is definitely convincing with its characters, dialogue and setting. Moving forward, I can see Fairbanks becoming a very beloved author in the genre. She shows much talent for creating entertaining stories with much heart and soul. And I for sure will not forget about Callum and Lark’s romance anytime soon.