NOW THAT IT'S YOU

An ambitious chef learns the meaning of “too soon” when she falls in love shortly after her ex-fiance’s death—with his brother.

After leaving her cheating fiance at the altar, Meg Delaney arrives at the hospital to wish him well after a routine procedure only to discover that Matt Midland is dead and his mother still hates her. But his brother, Kyle, has always had a thing for Meg, and now might be his last chance to tell her. To make matters worse, Kyle’s mother is suing Meg for using Matt’s photos in her bestselling cookbook. Now Kyle and Meg must hide their love in unconventional places, such as the closet at Matt’s funeral reception, and share their grief over dinners made from her and Matt’s recipe book instead of the usual first-date small talk. While Meg serves Kyle wine, his mother’s lawyer serves her papers, and so on, until circumstances force them to decide if the time will ever be right for them to be together. The story’s strength is its authentic portrayal of the mixed feelings that follow a death—there are jokes as well as tears, and the family feud feeds on heightened emotions rather than hatred. If anything, Fenske (The Hang Up, 2016, etc.) is too apologetic about her characters’ delayed or seemingly inappropriate responses to grief. In the end, she says, finding the right partner is like finding a bra that “cups your boobs exactly the right way,” and Meg and Kyle are bra cups worth rooting for.

A funny, poignant reminder that the baggage our exes leave can’t stop love from moving us forward.