Scan barcode
A review by kingrosereads
The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Not your average romantic comedy. This is a paranormal contemporary romcom that takes place between a cynical romance author and her ghost editor.
Florence is a ghostwriter for her romance idol. She’s struggling to finish the last book in her contract because she’s coming off of the worst breakup after a series of bad relationships. She believes love is dead. Her new editor, Ben, refuses to give her another extension on the manuscript, and is adamant that love is very much alive. It seems like Florence’s world is crashing down around her when she gets that call we all dread, from her mom telling her her father has suddenly died. Now, Florence is returning to her South Carolina hometown after ten years, because, oh yeah, Florence can see ghosts, a gift she inherited from her father. Her gift caused others to torment and bully her for most of her life, hence avoiding her birthplace for a decade. In an ironic twist, her family also owns a funeral home. While Florence and her family make funeral arrangements, Ben comes to Florence as a ghost. Florence has taken on several impossible tasks while trying to help Ben move on and simultaneously falling for him. Ghost stories don’t have happy endings…right?
Okay, but literally, I cried approximately 83 times while reading this book. Honestly, it’s a love letter to all burnt out older siblings who try to do everything without asking for help for the sake of the family. It’s a story about beginnings and endings, death and grief, and above all, love. All kinds of love. The love of a child and parent, the love for friends, the love between bickering siblings, and, of course, romantic love.
It was honestly the perfect book for me at this time of my life. I couldn’t put it down, and as I write it’s 5am and people are getting ready for work, that’s how hard it was to put this book down. It made me laugh, like a lot, it made me cry so much, and it made my little Grinch heart swell three times its size. I completely related to Florence as someone who wanted to escape and live out her dreams, but who struggles to succeed. The sibling relationship between her, Carver, and Alice was incredibly accurate. I loved Bella and all the side characters, too. It’s also nice that even though her dad was dead the whole book, he almost seemed like a living character through the words and actions of his loving family.
It was so beautifully written. I adore Ben and Florence. Their love and chemistry was just… *chef’s kiss*. They couldn’t touch, y’all, but it was the most romantic shit I’ve ever read. It was also incredible how the Day family just celebrated life and death. It made me so happy to see this family that is surrounded by death constantly, just be happy and bubbly and functional. There was so much love and color in their lives. I can also appreciate the dark humor since my family jokes about death and such.
Sometimes, for me, it seems silly to have a book where everything is normal in the world except the main character can see/speak to the dead. I quickly got over that with this book since Poston wrote it so well. I loved the corniness and silliness of it. It’s got a nice Just Like Heaven vibe to it, too. It takes a talented writer to make me appreciate the use of clichés. And though I could predict the end, and knew it was a romance, I still felt like it could’ve had a bittersweet end to it, and yet the end still took my breath away.
All in all, READ THE BOOK.
Florence is a ghostwriter for her romance idol. She’s struggling to finish the last book in her contract because she’s coming off of the worst breakup after a series of bad relationships. She believes love is dead. Her new editor, Ben, refuses to give her another extension on the manuscript, and is adamant that love is very much alive. It seems like Florence’s world is crashing down around her when she gets that call we all dread, from her mom telling her her father has suddenly died. Now, Florence is returning to her South Carolina hometown after ten years, because, oh yeah, Florence can see ghosts, a gift she inherited from her father. Her gift caused others to torment and bully her for most of her life, hence avoiding her birthplace for a decade. In an ironic twist, her family also owns a funeral home. While Florence and her family make funeral arrangements, Ben comes to Florence as a ghost. Florence has taken on several impossible tasks while trying to help Ben move on and simultaneously falling for him. Ghost stories don’t have happy endings…right?
Okay, but literally, I cried approximately 83 times while reading this book. Honestly, it’s a love letter to all burnt out older siblings who try to do everything without asking for help for the sake of the family. It’s a story about beginnings and endings, death and grief, and above all, love. All kinds of love. The love of a child and parent, the love for friends, the love between bickering siblings, and, of course, romantic love.
It was honestly the perfect book for me at this time of my life. I couldn’t put it down, and as I write it’s 5am and people are getting ready for work, that’s how hard it was to put this book down. It made me laugh, like a lot, it made me cry so much, and it made my little Grinch heart swell three times its size. I completely related to Florence as someone who wanted to escape and live out her dreams, but who struggles to succeed. The sibling relationship between her, Carver, and Alice was incredibly accurate. I loved Bella and all the side characters, too. It’s also nice that even though her dad was dead the whole book, he almost seemed like a living character through the words and actions of his loving family.
It was so beautifully written. I adore Ben and Florence. Their love and chemistry was just… *chef’s kiss*. They couldn’t touch, y’all, but it was the most romantic shit I’ve ever read. It was also incredible how the Day family just celebrated life and death. It made me so happy to see this family that is surrounded by death constantly, just be happy and bubbly and functional. There was so much love and color in their lives. I can also appreciate the dark humor since my family jokes about death and such.
Sometimes, for me, it seems silly to have a book where everything is normal in the world except the main character can see/speak to the dead. I quickly got over that with this book since Poston wrote it so well. I loved the corniness and silliness of it. It’s got a nice Just Like Heaven vibe to it, too. It takes a talented writer to make me appreciate the use of clichés. And though I could predict the end, and knew it was a romance, I still felt like it could’ve had a bittersweet end to it, and yet the end still took my breath away.
All in all, READ THE BOOK.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Child death and Murder