Good Grief

by Lolly Winston

After her husband dies, Sophie Stanton struggles to get through a day at her public relations job. She leaves California to start over near a friend in Ashland, Oregon. There she gets to know Crystal, a teenager who could use someone in her corner.

Contemporary Dark comedy Dry wit

From the publisher’s blurb

“A brilliantly funny and heartwarming debut about a young woman who stumbles, then fights to build a new life after the death of her husband.”

Read the full description at Grand Central Publishing

Search on Amazon

Paid link · We earn commissions from qualifying Amazon purchases. Affiliate disclosure

What makes it funny?

At a grief group, everyone around Sophie is in tears. She sits dry-eyed and reckons a grief counselor must look forward to tears the way an orthodontist looks forward to straight teeth.

The comedy at work

Sophie wants to look as composed as Jackie Kennedy. Inside her head, she’s writing titles for grief manuals and translating a look from her boss into an elaborate threat involving a desk drawer. Her private narration gives her room to be flippant even when everyone expects her to hold it together.

Try this if…

There’s a lot here for readers who like stories about people who find unexpected company after a loss. Sophie’s friendship with Crystal makes room for the troubles of a teenager and a woman in her thirties.