This wonderful book made me feel weirdly seen and weirdly cliche. Like my early naughts, emo heart was more normal, but also way less unique and original that I thought.
About the Book
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Twelve years after a disastrous, failed marriage proposal at a punk rock concert, Caleb and Sadie meet again. Sadie has left her fast-paced job in the music industry and moved home to Florida with her 11-year-old daughter, Scarlett. When Scarlett asks to try a sword fighting club she found online, her instructor is none other than Sadie’s armor-clad ex. The spark is still there, anyone can see it, but things are now… complicated.
Caleb and Sadie must figure out if a second chance at love is possible or if some obstacles are too big to overcome. After secrets from their past are revealed and a path to reconnection emerges, Caleb’s unexpected family drama threatens to upend everything again. Is love always a disaster? Or will Insta-famous peacocks, meddling babysitters, and homemade suits of armor be enough to prove to Sadie and Caleb that lightning can strike twice?
My Thoughts
Sadie and Caleb were somehow a blend of my spirit and also a weird blend of me and my husband. I was an emo, artsy writer with a good splash of nerdy (band, books, etc.). My husband was a gamer with a big nerdy-cool vibe. He was who he was and at that point wasn’t changing. That’s how I read Caleb – he’d changed before and wasn’t doing it again.
While we managed to make our first chance stick, otherwise their relationship reminded me a lot of ours – cute, witty banter, sweet romance with some deep emotional baggage. A different set, but we’ve all got some. The setting also reminded me of home being set in Florida, which is similar in a lot of ways to south Louisiana.
But Caleb and Sadie, as relatable as they were, aren’t the only brilliant characters in this story. Each one is hand-crafted to make this a gorgeous, hilarious rom-com perfect for the emo/goth/punk kids of the early 2000s. You know who you are. The ones who got drunk at house parties listening to Panic! and Death Can and the Postal Service. The ones who painstakingly chose outfits with the right balance of black and white or black with a pop of color. Who drew on black eyeliner – not always on our eyes.
If you’re looking for a healthy dose of nostalgia, this is an excellent read! Even the children in this one were especially delightful. Often the children are overlooked or not explored, but these children are real people with motives and personalities that I’d love to see grow!
This is the second music-related book I’ve read lately and I knew the songs on the other one – they were classic old-school songs. But this was the soundtrack of my own personal coming-of-age story, so when I’m having feelings it’s what I cue up!
Who’s It For?
If you’re a former emo/scene/punk kid or similar or if you’re still one – in practice or at heart – you’ll love this book and the nostalgia it brings on. Heck, you might love it even if you just loved one of us. This is a sweet rom-com with a hint of “Parent Trap” around it and a whole lotta early naughts culture wrapped up in a modern-day love story. Music lovers will also get a kick out of the musical references, and there’s something for all the nerd-lovers and Renaissance Fair enthusiasts as well!
Content Warnings: Adult Situations, Adult Language, Infidelity, Drug Abuse, Alcohol Abuse, Pregnancy, Rehab, Domestic Abuse, Parental Loss, Child Loss, SI, Child Harm, Child Abandonment
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Pictures of me in college when I first found my love of bands like My Chemical Romance, Death Cab for Cute, Panic! at the Disco, and the Postal Service. Essentially every band listed in the book “Love’s a Disaster.”
Question of the Day
What was the soundtrack of your young adult life?
About the Author
Andrew Knott lives in Winter Springs, Florida with his wife, three children, and assorted pets. His writing has been featured in The Washington Post, Parents Magazine, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and Human Parts, among others. He is the founding editor of the parenting humor publication Frazzled on Medium. He is the author of Love’s a Disaster, a novel, and Fatherhood: Dispatches from the Early Years, a collection of parenting essays and humor pieces. You can typically find him emptying the dishwasher or sweeping off the trampoline for his kids.
Amazon US: https://a.co/d/gULb9tc
Bookshop US: https://bookshop.org/a/25511/9798988635437
Amazon UK: https://amzn.eu/d/8E65eys
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209592954-love-s-a-disaster
Author Website: https://www.explorationsofambiguity.com/about
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Published by Amorina Carlton. Award-winning American author, Amorina Carlton, is currently working on her first novel. You can find more about her published work and works in progress on the home page. She also serves as the PR/Marketing Lead for Ravens and Roses Publishing, and reviews books, mostly by other indie authors, here and on Bookstagram.