A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston

A professor of literature finds herself caught up in a work of fiction… literally.
 

Eileen Merriweather loves to get lost in a good happily-ever-after. The fictional kind, anyway. Because at least imaginary men don’t leave you at the altar. She feels safe in a book. At home. Which might be why she’s so set on going to her annual book club retreat this year—she needs good friends, cheap wine, and grand romantic gestures—no matter what.
 

But when her car unexpectedly breaks down on the way, she finds herself stranded in a quaint town that feels like it’s right out of a novel…
 

Because it is.
 

This place can’t be real, and yet… she’s here, in Eloraton, the town of her favorite romance series, where the candy store’s honey taffy is always sweet, the local bar’s burgers are always a little burnt, and rain always comes in the afternoon. It feels like home. It’s perfect—and perfectly frozen, trapped in the late author’s last unfinished story.
 

Elsy is sure that’s why she must be here: to help bring the town to its storybook ending.
 

Except there is a character in Eloraton that she can’t place—a grumpy bookstore owner with mint-green eyes, an irritatingly sexy mouth and impeccable taste in novels. And he does not want her finishing this book.
 

Which is a problem because Elsy is beginning to think the town’s happily-ever-after might just be intertwined with her own.

Charming, cozy, and exceedingly clever, I thoroughly enjoyed Ashley Poston’s A Novel Love Story that delivers on its creative premise. Beyond Eloraton’s warm vibe, this book is filled to the brim with numerous book references and has a lot going on beyond the focal romance plot thread. I generally liked The Dead Romantics and thought The Seven Year Slip was great, however A Novel Love Story is easily my favorite and has solidified Ashley Poston’s work for me. Well-written and lovingly crafted, this is an easy recommendation for anyone who like romance (particularly high-concept ones), cozy/easy reads, or even light touches of magical realism (a genre I typically do not care for).

When this book was announced, I automatically added it to my reading list purely based on the premise which is one of my favorite tropes if done well. From the start, the story reminded me a lot of the BBC’s miniseries Lost in Austen which also features the main character being transported into their favorite literary world, in that case being Pride and Prejudice. A Novel Love Story doesn’t have the luxury of working off a popular established piece and has to work a lot harder with its exposition and planning, however I thought it was done remarkably well. The level of detail and thought put into the fictional Eloraton town and Quixotic Falls series had me interested in reading the world’s lore books themselves. Besides Elsy/Eileen and “Anders”, Poston also had to write at least four additional couples with varying backgrounds and dynamics. I was impressed with how distinctive all four of the Quixotic Falls heroines and their love interests were as well as planning out both Elsy’s story as well as each of their own. Each story has a unique storyline, conclusion, and one is even mysterious absent in Elsy’s presence, all fitting perfectly into Quixotic Falls’ establishment lore.

Beyond the feel-good, almost perfect nature of Eloraton and obligatory romcom hijinks/banter, what kept me invested was the soft mystery and investigative element. As Elsy explores Eloraton and discovers what is similar and different from what she’s previously read as a fan, there’s a lot of interesting mini mysteries beyond the romantic development. Where in the timeline of Quixotic Falls is Elsy, is this a figment of her imagination (or did she comically crash her car and is dying in a ditch on the side of the road? Her words , not mine), why does each day move forward yet the town seems trapped in a state of suspended animation, and who is Anders really? A character that Elsy cannot recall ever being referenced in the original book series, was he meant to be a character in the ill-fated final book the fictional author never finished before she passed away? Why does he have knowledge of events seemingly outside of Eloraton? Why does he insist that Elsy not disturb the town or cause ripples in the story? I didn’t expect these surprisingly compelling mystery elements when I originally picked this up to read and I was thrilled at how ambitious Poston went with it. Without giving away any spoilers, the courtyard of statues introduced mid-way through was a plot element that I loved and thought was genius in execution.

Like Poston’s previous novels, I also liked that these books are not just about finding romance in places where you least expect it, but also having her characters go on a journey of self-discovery in the process. I appreciated that A Novel Love Story not only had Elsy discover herself and heal throughout the story, but to a lesser extent, also Anders. Despite being told entirely from Elsy’s POV, Poston was able to have a good amount of character growth in Anders as well and I found it refreshing that his backstory didn’t hinge heavily on a traumatic childhood or past ex-partner (I’m getting really tired of this common and typically poorly written trope of a embarrassment prone and heart on her sleeve girl fixing these seemingly broken and edgy guys). The plot twists involving his identity and involvement in Eloraton pleasantly surprised me, as well as the reveal of the haunted toilet in the renovated Daffodil Inn (at one point I guessed the deceased fictional author Rachel Flowers was secretly haunting the toilet of her own written setting, wouldn’t that be a wild development).

Like her past books, the writing is a nice balance of quality without being overly flowery or excessive. I found a lot of Elsy’s internal thoughts and Poston’s writing to be perfectly catered to millennial/older genz young adults, with many resonating strongly. Here are few select quotes:

“(Obviously you can rely on your friends. Obviously I’m not saying you can’t, but there is always a limit of how much before you’re a burden.) And in the end you just… sit on the couch, and cry. At least alone, no one is there to watch.” -Elsy “I hated him, I realized. No vehemently, but just a light hate. A casual dusting of hate. Enough hate that, if he were standing at the edge of a cliff, I’d seriously debate pushing him over. I wouldn’t, but the temptation would be there.” -Elsy “She scowled. “Ghosts should stay dead. It was a total cop-out. And they fell in love way to fast. It was too insta-love-y for me. And? No one says doggo anymore.” -A bookclub member

The last one is not a particularly insightful quote, but a fun easter egg jab at her own book The Dead Romantics. I don’t know if it was intentional or not, but it also sounds exactly like so many hilariously and poorly-written Goodreads reviews (swap ghosts for Anders’ green eyes and you have some exact reviews for this very book). Speaking of Dead Romantics, while it’s not a required read to enjoy A Novel Love Story, there are several fun references that will reward the faithful readers (oddly, I didn’t notice any major references to The Seven Year Slip for comparison, though I may have missed them). Both Florence Day and Benji Andor make cameo appearances (Florence is a published author and Benji is friend and member of Elsy and Prudence’s online book club, putting this book chronologically after the events of Dead Romantics) as well as references to Ann Nichols and other authors within Poston’s established literary world. Anders’ bookstore selection and commentary on romance novels also has a few subtle nods to Poston’s other books.

Most of the important outline for the fictional book series is established well and is seamlessly interwoven with the present narrative as the book progresses. However, occasionally it sometimes feels like we’re introduced to revelations in the book series as they are happening, while the same events could have had more impact if the reader was aware of these details ahead of time. For example, a reveal that one of the core couples may not be as happily-ever-after would be more surprising had I been more familiar with the characters and relationship as written in the book. Some of Elsy’s early fan-freak-out moments as she encounters her favorite books’ settings and characters in real life would feel more relevant with more of a background introduction. However, I think Poston ultimately played it right and at a safe happy medium, with just enough background into the books given without the exposition and beginning getting weighed down by excessive details. I personally would’ve like more time with the books prior to Elsy being trapped in them, but I realize that some readers with less patience or a short attention span wouldn’t feel the same way; particularly since this is foremost a romance novel, not a mystery/fantasy/living Westworld type of book.

With a fun and creative hook and a plot that delivers on it, A Novel Love Story is one of the easiest books I’ve read this year to hit the five star rating early-on, and to maintain it through its conclusion. I loved the high-concept premise and the excessive attention to detail with the book within a book planning. This is the ideal romance novel for my taste that has an original plot, doesn’t rely on pop culture speak/references, elements beyond straight romance, and has a satisfying, and at times, unpredictable conclusion. It’s so well-crafted, any romance reader who doesn’t like this has to be blind to quality and deserves to be banished to Eloraton’s perfect fantasy town for a week, cursed with Gail’s slightly burnt burgers and hot sauce that’s slightly too hot to be pleasant.