Love in the Cupboard

This is a joy! Funny and silly and quirky and a little bit delicious. It works, and we care about Tom and Faith and want them to get together. Lots of insight into Catholicism (not all complimentary). Third person, dual POV, so we can feel the feels.

There's slapstick, pathos, and a health disability rep for Faith's sister, Hope. There's kindness and caretaking, all so thoughtfully done.

Catholic priest Tom is naive and awkward but so appealing. Faith is insecure. They are both lonely and finding each other is the charm of this enchanting novel. No obvious tropes and an original premise. Engaging side characters, character growth. Everything you need in a funny, wistful rom com. Recommended!

Thank you NetGalley and the author for the ARC.

When Father Tom Sheridan encounters Faith in a dark cupboard, they share a kiss. He thinks he might have met the woman he wants to marry. However, when they meet in the office kitchenette, Faith can’t stand him. Yet all of her friends love Tom and urge her to give him a chance. Faith can’t tell them that she still thinks above the kiss she experienced in the cupboard.
A sweet romance with plenty of comedic moments. With several great characters, this was a fresh and quirky story.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

enjoyed this story and author. i found her on this platform and must read her any book of hers now. This was a good story. I was into it from the start.

I wanted to read this story because it mentioned a chronically ill character and others being gay in the synopsis. I've had quite enough of books that are awfully flat when it comes to diversity: when there is no variation in skin color, religion, history, or cultural background included. It doesn't have to be a theme, it is just that those flavors of life also need to be expressed.

The story started a bit slow, but when Perdita entered the scene... there we go! Made me laugh out loud with her dry remarks. And after that it picked up with a Miranda Hart kind of vibe, the weird and clumsy coincidences :)

And as this is a book in a series, I'm hoping that in a sequel we'll be finding out what life has in store for Caraleen...

Being a pwME myself (for well over eighteen years) there are two things I feel the need to emphasize:

1) a (partially) recovery has nothing to do with sports massages, those won't cure us from our troublesome health (I'm not saying that is what the author suggests, I just want to make this very clear indeed). It is either luck, or someone finds their personal, magic healing for which there is mostly no scientific evidence - but good for them being that blessed, ME is not something I wish on anyone to happen;

2) let me admit it felt a bit off that everyone was so supportive with Hope, no one doubting her story of physical and mental pain. The world is a hard place generally, and ableism is very much a part of that. This side of our society not being reflected in Hope's story was hard for me personally. Yeah, we all want a happy ending, but alas... that is not real life, is it? On the other hand, there is nothing wrong with escapism from time to time.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.

I enjoyed the unique plot of this book, which wasn’t what I expected.

Tom is a catholic priest who realises what is missing in his life is a wife and children. He leaves the church to follow his passion in photography. After returning home to his cold and bitter mother he meets Faith, and immediately falls in love. What follows is a slow burn full of miscommunications, secrets and revelations.

I liked the character of Faith, and her relationship with her sister Hope, who lives with ME. The impact of this condition is explored in a number of ways both for Hope and her desire to have a job, and Faith, whose relationships and studies are impacted as she acts as carer for her mother and Hope. While technically secondary to the romance storyline, I most enjoyed the other relationships- Faith and Hope, ‘the boys’, Miranda and Perdita. I was occasionally pulled out of the story because of the farcical elements, and I felt that Faiths friends and family were surprisingly mean to her at times, but I can see this appealing to someone who enjoys this flair for the dramatic in their reads. Overall an enjoyable read. Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

Quirky, zany, improbable but…

An unusual story about a Catholic priest, Father Thomas Sheridan, with a Jewish mother, who decides he wants to leave the priesthood, fall in love with a woman ,and have a family. He doesn’t want to be alone.
Of course things become super entangled and Father Tom ends up being coerced into doing wedding shots for a cop’s wedding day (strange story), counselling a gay couple, and meeting the woman of his dreams in a dark cupboard. Only that woman, Faith Goddard was having her own problems with her lying, cheating ex boyfriend, and a sister with ill health whom she’s supporting. Faith thought Cupboard Man and Tom the photographer were two seperate people. So what’s a girl to do when she likes them both, and doesn’t realize they’re the same person? And no, the lights haven’t been turned on in that dark cupboard, which strangely resembles more the Confessional than anything else.
The tale weaves a mind boggling complex dance with the degrees of separation more like three than six. Fortunately the misunderstandings, missed opportunities and misapprehensions came together rather satisfactorily to forge something new.
The Catholic Church has a few questions thrown it’s way about attitudes, homophobia, married priests and housekeepers.
I wondered where the story was going at first but as it wandered through bravely weird territory I found myself rather enjoying it.
An off-the-wall engaging rom com!

A BooksGoSocial ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

Very funny reading!
A story that should not happen but what happens in the cupboard stays in the cupboard.
Can you fell in love with somebody you have never seen?

Very funny and a little bit emotional.

Have fun reading!

The story was bonkers, as were the characters and I completely loved every moment. There were moments when the characters did absolutely bizarre things, like buying and sleeping in a hearse and this proved to be highly entertaining. There were plenty of laugh out loud moments throughout the book.

I read this as a standalone and I really liked how all the characters were connected to each other.

A very entertaining modern day sitcom. The book is full of laugh out loud predicaments. The lives and hopes of the main and the other connected characters are cleverly threaded together producing an entertaining comedy full of sub themes and addressing current day issues and modern day life. A good can’t put down book to take on holiday and get immersed in.

📱E-Book Review📱

Love In The Cupboard
Mari Jane Law

🌟🌟🌟🌟

This is book 2 of the Love and ...... Series. I didn't have chance to read book 1 first...and didn't really notice anything out of place, so this can definitely be read as a standalone - but, I loved this and definitely want to catch up with book 1 soon.

Father Tom has decided it's time to settle down and is looking for a wife. Faith has come from a bad relationship where she was betrayed. She needs an honest man if she's going to venture into a new relationship.

I loved our 2 main characters and the mad situation of them meeting in a dark cupboard. Upon meeting for real, they don't get on...but we know that things will change for them and are rooting for them throughout.

The writing style was brilliant and had me racing through this one. It was packed with humour and although you he'd on some more serious topics, these were balanced out with some laugh out loud moments too.

I am definitely going to make time to read back on book 1 - Love and Pollination - and can't wait to see more in this series and from this author.

This book puts the com in Romcom and is full of laughs and funny predicaments. A great holiday read that’s just light hearted and predictable but will also make you laugh. The characters relationship was done well and I haven’t read many before like this.
Thank you for this advanced reader copy :)

A delightful and heartwarming romance that explores love, faith, and honesty. When Catholic priest Father Thomas Sheridan meets Faith in a dark cupboard, he is immediately drawn to her and believes she could be his future wife. However, Tom is hesitant to reveal his true identity, leading to misunderstandings and complications. Meanwhile, Faith is captivated by the mysterious man she met in the cupboard, unaware that he is a priest. As their relationship develops, they must navigate their feelings for each other while also confronting their own beliefs and values. The novel is filled with charming characters, witty dialogue, and a touching exploration of love and faith.

This book was completely different from what I expected. It was good and different and it was entertaining and I enjoyed it.
I just reviewed Love in the Cupboard by Mari Jane Law. #LoveintheCupboard #NetGalley
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Amazing book!
I was thoroughly engaged throughout this book and I didn't want to put it down! The author captured my attention from the get go! Five stars from me :)

Well written and fun. Nice to see that it normalises some disabilities, whilst not trivialising the challenges carers face.Enjoyable light read.