I was pleasantly surprised by this book, I really loved it! It was so funny and sweet with just a touch of magic. I thought Delphie was a fab character and I related to her a lot. This really made me laugh out loud and I liked the slight twist of an ending. Really looking forward to reading more from Kirsty!

Delphie Bookham dies very unexpectedly at age 27 much to her outrage and annoyance! To add insult to injury, Delphie meets Jonah - her soul mate - in the afterlife waiting room - only for him to be sent straight back to the Land of the Living as he wasn't supposed to die yet!
Her afterlife therapist Merritt offers Delphie the chance to go back to the Land of the Living to try and find Jonah, but she only has 10 days and she must persuade him to kiss her. If Delphie succeeds she will stay alive! The only catch is that Jonah won't remember meeting her and she doesn't know his last name..
I really enjoyed this book, it was funny and very entertaining and a real page turner. I will definitely be seeking out other books by this author.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for the review copy.
#TheLoveOfMyAfterLife #NetGalley

Ahh, now this is exactly what I needed to read. 5* hands down.
This book will make you laugh out loud and will keep you reading until the small hours in the morning.

When Delphie chokes to death on a microwave burger whilst wearing rather tatty PJs her main reaction is embarrassment that she could die in such a plebeian fashion. When she comes to, she is in a surreal 'waiting room', which looks very much like a laundromat, with a young woman called Merritt. Whilst trying to wrap her head around the idea of being dead and simultaneously in a laundromat, Delphie accidentally runs into another person, a devastatingly handsome man called Jonah who seems similarly smitten by Delphie. However, Jonah hasn't actually died, he is just in a very deep sleep caused by dental anaesthetic, and soon disappears. Horrified that she has met her soulmate only to have him taken away, Delphie and Merritt come to an agreement, Delphie has ten days to find Jonah and get him to voluntarily kiss her, if he does she can stay, if he doesn't then she must return and help Merritt test her dating service for the recently deceased. The catch is, she doesn't know his last name and he will have no recollection of their meeting.

Returned to where she came from, at first Delphie thinks it was all a surreal dream, until Merritt sends her a number of sharp messages abut time running out. With only ten days left on earth, Delphie realises that she has let childhood bullying (admittedly by her BFF) ruin her life, so much so that she has no friends, no love life, in fact she has only kissed one man (and that wasn't very good). Her only sort-of friend in Mr Yoon, the non-verbal elderly Korean man who lives in the same block of flats, who she drops in to visit daily to make sure he hasn't left the gas on or a burning cigarette in the ash-tray.

Initially this felt very like slapstick comedy (I'm not a fan) as Delphie runs from one bizarre situation to another trying to meet the elusive Jonah, but along the way she starts to make friends and/or enlist the assistance of a motley group of people she encounters along the way and the humour calms down. I loved Delphie's grumpy downstairs neighbour who gets roped into helping with the quest and demands a favour in return.

Overall this was a fun romance.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

This is the first book that I’ve read by Kirsty Greenwood ans I’m now looking to see what else is there! I really enjoyed this book. Characters were lovely, plot was good and I love rom coms!Delphie was just so likeable! Highly recommend.

In a freak accident involving a microwaveable burger, introvert Delphie finds herself in the afterlife. Her "afterlife therapist" tells her she can live again, provided she finds and kisses her soulmate in the next 10 days. And so begins the journey - you can imagine trying to find friends in the capital city is no small feat so to find a soulmate and getting them to like you enough to kiss you, will be next to impossible. But what do you do when your life depends on making it happen?

The premise was an interesting one and I was taken by the author's fun and quick witted writing style, which meant I finished this in a couple of days. There were so many one liners that had me laughing out loud and in fits of giggles, featuring brilliant moments requiring Delphie to be bold and she delivered on the basis she had nothing left to lose, if she died. All the characters were sweet too and overall I did enjoy the read. The only downside for me was after a while there were far too many near misses which made the story drag to the point I didn't enjoy the plot twist at the end as much. A shorter story with that ending would have been perfect imo - kudos to the author for that ending too and the message - Kirsty Greenwood did a brilliant job with character growth so the bond/loss between the main protagonists felt very relateable and I was rooting for them to get their happy ending. I know alot of people will love this one so would still recommend.

Thank you @netgalley @randomhouseUK and @cornerstone for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Out on 20 June 2024.

This was the most joyful, uplifting book I've read in a looooong time. Delphie (what a name!!) is dead - taken out by a micro burger, but death has other plans for her, and she's forced to confront the fact that her life was not as full and happy as it should have been. Seeing her change and grasp life with both hands was gorgeous. She's such a warm and funny woman that you can't help but love her and the cast of wider characters - Cooper, Mr Yoon, Aled, Frida, etc. were all lovely, too. The build-up to the ending had me panicking a little, but Merritt was always going to ensure it would go to plan! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Kirsty Greenwood - I'm off to read more from this fabulous author!

This isn't the sort of book I normally pick up but the blurb completely grabbed me, and this felt like a novel that could easily be adapted into a movie or TV series, and in all honestly I felt like there were some Good Place vibes. Delphie is a brilliant MC and I absolutely loved her and the romance in the novel. Its a fast paced, highly engrossing novel with enough comefy and emotional moments to keep you in check. It is quite difficult to label this one with a genre but it is definitely a genre I'd read again! Thank you!

I’d never read anything by Kirsty Greenwood before this. And it’s safe to say, I will defiantly be reading more!

First things first, I couldn’t put it down. I read the first chapter and I was hooked.
The style of writing, the characters and the humour just slot together nicely, it’s such a fun, happy, fast paced but warm read. I enjoyed the mix of characters and the community. I cannot say too much as I don’t want to give anything away, just trust me, if you like a romantic comedy, this is for you.

Overall, a really loved this book. Just what I needed. I cannot wait to pick up a physical copy of this one. I will definitely be recommending it to anyone that will listen!

Thank you to @netgalley for allowing me access to a copy of this read in exchange for an honest review.

Pub Date 20 Jun 2024

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for this copy in return for my honest review.

A quirky rom com that had me laughing out loud! I devoured this within the day and the author now has a new fan! Can’t wait to read more of their work:

Wow. The Love of my Afterlife is a masterpiece. My first ever ARC and I am truly honoured to have read it. Kirsty Greenwood is a sensation.

The Love of my Afterlife takes a stunning look at the fragility of life and the importance of love and community. Themes of grief, love, friendship, community and gratitude weave themselves beautifully into a truly life-affirming tale. It encourages its readers to embrace the people around them who may have been trying to play a role in their lives but who have been shut out, even in a big, scary, cold city in London. In contrast, it also teaches you that it is okay to release those people who are undeserving of your time. A quote that I will be saving for a rainy day: "If people want to go, sometimes it's easier to just let them."


My favourite thing about this book is definitely the multitude of characters, from such different walks of life who all brought me so much joy.

Merritt is one of my favourite characters of all time. She is chaotic and romantic and optimistic. She sees the beauty in both life and death, and truly wants the best for everybody (added bonus if she can mix some drama in there too though).

I think I could probably talk about Delphie all day. I am sad to say that a large part of me relates to her. There are so many quotes that I highlighted that were truly tragic but that hit home for me so intensely, particularly "All your days looked exactly the same as each other. You were so alone." With that being said, the hope that I felt throughout the story as Delphie began to involve herself in her community, make friends and fall in love is second-to-none. The irony is that I sat home tonight and devoured this book instead of going to see my favourite band because I was afraid of going alone. The New and Improved Delphie would never have done that. Merritt would be heartbroken to see me do that.

Greenwood's ability to make me root for Cooper even though I knew that Delphie falling in love with him could potentially kill her was exquisite. I found myself genuinely writing notes saying, "Don't go to Jonah!" and "I swear if Delphie goes to find Jonah, I'll sue." At the end of the day, am I happy with how it all worked out? Of course, but there were definitely some moments that had me yelling at my phone as I read.

My only cons: some of the dialogue was slightly stunted in parts, particularly when a character was talking to themselves. In those instances, you'd expect the dialogue to be less formal, which wasn't the case. Also, though his true intentions turned out to be honourable and innocent, Aled creeped me out a fair bit at first. There was a clear breach of GDPR with him texting Delphie and that ain't cool.

I am truly in awe of The Love of my Afterlife. I will be recommending it to everybody, and I cannot wait to purchase my own physical copy as soon as it is released. Thank you so much to Penguin Random House UK and Cornerstone for this opportunity.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Views are my own.

This story uses all the romance tropes liberally - let's see how many you can count! Normally I'm not a fan of tropes but the author uses them so cleverly and deliberately to further a story, that it's a delight.

Delphie is a young woman who seems to have given up on life and on her painting. She goes to work and she checks in on her elderly neighbour, but that's about all she does. One day, she chokes on her microwaved burger and finds herself in a white room resembling a launderette where a cheerful woman named Merritt tells her she's her afterlife therapist. Before she can quite grasp that she is dead, another person arrives - a beautiful man who she feels drawn to in a case of insta-love. Before he can tell her his full name he is pulled back to Earth as he was only unconscious from dental sedation. Merritt allows her to return to Earth for a second chance and creates a contract that if she finds Jonah within ten days and gets him to kiss her, she can stay alive.

Enter Cooper, her grumpy neighbour, whom she hates but harangues to help her with finding Jonah (Enemies to... that's the one). The two spend more and more time together as a consequence of fake dating and forced proximity tropes. We even get the having to share a bed and love triangle scenarios, as Delphie is still hellbent on finding Jonah and getting in ever more strange situations to do so, ranging from a live drawing class to a dance event to gatecrashing a posh charity ball. The more she forces herself to do, the more friends she makes, and she even confronts her childhood bully. We also find out why Cooper is so grumpy - five years ago his twin sister died and he hasn't been able to write books since.

But such is the persuasiveness of Merritt that I was also fully fixated on finding Delphie's soulmate who most definitely is not Cooper!

This book is everything. It is choc full with quirky, lovable characters, it is extremely funny and very emotional. There were twists at the end I didn't see coming and that made me cry - that hasn't happened in a while. I read this in one sitting. You will have a ball - solid five stars. This is my first Kirsty Greenwood book, but it won't be my last!

"... being alive is about experiencing the full gamut of emotions. If you’re not feeling pushed and pulled and scared and delighted instead of just safe, then you’re not doing it right."

Delphine dies, and when she meets the one in the afterlife, she is given the opportunity to return to earth and find him. If he kisses her, she gets to stay.

I don't want to enter into too much detail to not spoil the book, but this was an absolutely adorable read! Delphine is a bit too quirky for me, but I loved everything else.
The story has a great cast of characters, it’s lighthearted and fun.

It’s the true definition of a romcom! Absolutely recommended for the fans of the genre!

<i>I would like to thank Random House UK, Cornerstone and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I loved loved loved! this book. Sharp and witty, loved the main character. The book includes many of the well-known tropes in rom-com literature, but I thought it was very well done and based on a sufficiently different premise.

My main caviat is the "virgin to slut" conversion within a couple of chapters, which feels very far-fetched. Who seriously enjoyed sex THAT MUCH the first time? I wish we normalised more common first-time sex experiences in literature/movies/arts to avoid creating such expectations.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book.

The premise of "The Love of my Afterlife" was quite appealing as it promised an interesting angle of meeting "The One" in the afterlife and then returning to the living world to find him not only to find love but to evade death as well. Not very seasoned readers will quickly grasp the romance tropes that the author utilises - enemies to lovers, hotel room with just one bed etc. but what Kirsty Greenwood does is toying with them and an awareness of their cheesiness is noted through, making "The Love of My Afterlife" a bit meta.

The trap that Kirsty Greenwood (an many other romance novelists nowadays) fell into, was the point in which a lighthearted romance turns, albeit for just 2 or so chapters, into explicit erotica borderlining porn. Not only is it cringy (am I the only person out there fed up of portraying characters so uninterested in sex that they have an instant ability of explosive orgasms the moment they're penetrated?) but also so off the narrative that it basically feels copy-pasted from entirely different piece of work. I'm aware that this is the market expectation that the romance novels would include raunchy scenes but writing them so they're still in character and match the narrative style poses a huge challenge to authors who simply are not skilled in writing sex scenes, and this includes Greenwood. If she would've abstained (pun intended), I would've easily given this book 4 stars as otherwise it was quite a fun read.

This was my first read of Kirsty Greenwood's, and it did not disappoint! I loved the fast paced, sharp and witty writing style Kirsty has, and I cannot wait to add this book to my collection!

Immediately loved the characters - they were flawlessly written, so relatable and were definitely an eclectic mix!

After accidentally checking into the arrivals room in the afterlife (thanks to a cheap micro burger!), reclusive Delphie is tasked with redeeming herself worthy enough to return back to her life but only IF she completes a task! Getting a potential soulmate to kiss her of their own free will!

Pushing herself wayyyyyy way out of her comfort zone, she plucks up the courage to venture out and track down the love of her life - meeting lots of colourful characters along the way.

This is THE perfect summer romcom read! It had me howling, then teary eyed, then "awhh'ing" all the way through. Would highly recommend this to everyone! It's a beautiful, funny, heartwarming love story I didn't want to put down.

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the ARC of this book!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and finished it in a day. It had a really interesting and new-to-me premise: Delphie arrives in the afterlife, and whilst she's there, she meets her soulmate, Jonah, who is quickly sent back to the real world as he had arrived by accident. Delphie strikes up a deal with her Afterlife Therapist who loves romance stories, and gets another 10 days on Earth to find Jonah and get him to kiss her. She enlists the help of her grumpy downstairs neighbour, Cooper, and she tries to find Jonah in London. It was impossible for me to put this book down: it was a joy to watch Delphie's character development throughout the novel, and I loved all of the characters. The book had humour and romance and unexpected turns. I really enjoyed this book.

A very cute, heartwarming read. Some tough topics but I felt they were dealt with in a quite sensitive way. This is a book that doesn't take itself too seriously, and I quite enjoyed reading something so easygoing

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the DRC!

Great romance, easy to read and very entertaining. The story develops as expected but it does throw in a twist for good measure which is a welcome surprise and with well developed characters it even gets a few laughs out so definitely a joy to read!

I didn't really connect with this book .I think it was my fault for requesting a book that was not my usual read, and I found it to be too different from my usual thrillers or dystopian reads. I expect that fans of this genre will probably enjoy this book, so don't take too much notice of my review it is not my genre.