Last Couple Standing

<img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1573936775i/28460267._SX540_.jpg" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"><br><i>Many thanks to Ballantine Books for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review</i><br><br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4fuajpbSnI&amp;feature=youtu.be" rel="nofollow noopener"> <img src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1592872468i/29690957._SX540_.jpg" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> </a><br>The romance genre has its problems which I discussed in my latest booktube video that you can <i> <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4fuajpbSnI&amp;feature=youtu.be" rel="nofollow noopener">click here</a> </i> to watch) but there are occasionally books like these that break down the problematic tropes. <br><br>Skip to <b> <a href="https://youtu.be/N4fuajpbSnI?t=637" rel="nofollow noopener">10:37</a> </b> to here my thoughts on this specific book and what it does to push back against problems with the romance genre.<br><br>--------------<br><br>And now, an interview with the author!<br><br>What inspired you to start writing?<br><br>I’ve been writing since I was a kid—like third and fourth grade. I used to write little stories in pencil, complete with my own terrible illustrations, and read them aloud to my parents. Nothing in particular inspired me to do it other than the fact that it’s what I wanted to do. Writing has always been wired into my personality. Still is.<br><br>Who inspires you to continue writing?<br><br>At this point, writing is simply what I do, and it’s my job. So, I don’t need much inspiration. However...<a href="https://tuckerthereader.wordpress.com/2020/01/09/an-interview-with-matthew-norman/" rel="nofollow noopener">[READ MORE]</a><br><br>------------<br><i> <b> <blockquote>”Relax,” she said. “You’re just a married man going online under a fake name to find sex. What could possibly go wrong?”</blockquote> </b> </i><br>What do you think the answer is?<br>1. A lot<br>2. A ton<br>3. So much<br>4. All of the above<br><br>If you guess, 4, all of the above, you are right!! <br> <br><u> <b>So, what’s this book about?</b> </u><br><i>Last Couple Standing</i> follows Mitch and Jessica. They are apart of the Core Four, a group of four men and four women that met in college. They all graduated at the same time. Got married at the same time. Had kids at the same time. And now, got divorced at the same time. Mitch and Jessica are now the only remaining couple who hasn’t gotten a divorce. And they intend to keep it that way. They just don’t know how. After much discussion, they come up with an experiment. They will have sex with other people. There are a few rules.<br>1. No repeats - You can’t have sex with the same person twice. <br>2. No one you know, etc. <br>As the experiment continues, Mitch and Jessica begin to encounter obstacles and soon begin to learn what it means to truly love someone. <br> <br>I haven’t read that many middle-age (as in age 35+ not the middle ages with diseases and stuff) romances but I can still confidently say that this one is the best. <br> <br>It covers so many important topics such as How can humans deal with their innate desire for sex? Where is the limit for who you interact with and how? And many more important questions. The marketing paper that came with my ARC said that this is a great book club book and I totally agree. This book comes up with so many interesting questions that can be discussed and dissected for hours. <br> <br>My only complaint is that it wasn’t as sexy as the synopsis made it out to be but other than that, I loved it.<br>Final note. This book takes place in Baltimore, MD area which was super cool. The characters literally went to places that actually exist and that I’ve been to. So, that was cool.<br> <br>Bottom Line:<br>4.5 Stars<br>Age Rating: [ R ]<br>Content Screening (Mild Spoilers) - Educational Value (0/0) ~ Positive Messages (4/5) - [Love conquers all, Marriage/Love isn’t just about sex] ~ Violence (1/5) - [Character kicked in the privates] ~ Sex (3/5) - [Brief, fade-to-black sex scenes] ~ Langauge (3/5) - [F**k, sh*t, d*mn, *ssh*le] ~ Drinking/Drugs (3/5) - [Alcohol consumption] <br><b>Trigger and Content Warnings</b> - Divorce, Losing loved ones<br>Cover (3/5) ~ Characters (4/5) ~ Plot (4.5/5) <br>Publication Date: March 17th, 2020<br>Publisher: Ballantine Books<br>Genre: Romance/Contemporary<br><br>---------------<br><br>The moral of the story is... LOVE IS F**KING MESSY<br><br>also, this book is good and my evidence is that i read it in the span on two hours<br><br>---------------<br><br>omg, this book sounds like everything i've ever wanted in a middle-aged romance. i can't wait<br><br> <br>| <a href="https://Goodreads.com/tuckeralmengor" rel="noopener">Goodreads</a> | <a href="https://tuckerthereader.wordpress.com" rel="nofollow noopener">Blog</a> | <a href="https://Pinterest.com/tuckeralmengor" rel="nofollow noopener">Pinterest</a> | <a href="https://linkedin.com/in/tuckeralmengor" rel="nofollow noopener">LinkedIn</a> | <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1JLAbHwaeQ5YwayF3UhjWw" rel="nofollow noopener">YouTube</a> | <a href="https://instagram.com/tuckeralmengor" rel="nofollow noopener">Instagram</a>

Anyone who has weathered the breakup of close friends knows the trauma it inflicts. So, I loved the premise of this book. Four couples, known as The Core Four, have been friends since college. In the space of one year, three of the four couples get divorced. And with all that carnage, the fourth couple find themselves questioning their own marriage. <br /><br />I immediately appreciated Norman’s writing style. It’s basic but it just rings true. “They were solid. They were dependable. Stable. Safe. They were the Subaru Outback of married people.” There are numerous of these comparisons that I found myself highlighting, one after another. <br /><br />This book has a sly, dry humor to it. Not the laugh out loud kind, but the nodding, yes, I get it kind. Well, except for the ending. The ending is laugh out loud, tears rolling down your face funny. <br /><br />And you can tell Norman definitely comes from Baltimore, or Smalltimore, as he knows it’s called. Hell, I could even tell which private school he used as the basis for where Mitch teached. <br /><br />I loved the characters, all of them. I loved their foibles. I really wanted Jessica and Mitch to find a way to keep their marriage together even as I knew their “evolution” plan made no sense. I even wanted Scarlet to get her act together. And poor Luke. What a sweetie. Mitch has a poster with Kurt Vonnegut’s eight rules of writing. Number two - “ give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.” Norman gives you an easy four if not 12. <br /><br />So, five big stars for this lovely, fun, relatable book. <br /><br />My thanks to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.

Can you save your marriage by tearing it apart? Matthew Norman's new novel, <b> <i>Last Couple Standing</i> </b>, attempts to answer that question.<br /><br />They were the Core Four—four couples that met and paired up in college and remained inseparable friends. But 15 years later, one by one, the couples are breaking up, leaving Mitch and Jessica the only couple still together.<br /><br />While the two don’t feel unhappy with each other or their relationship, although raising two kids and working can be exhausting, they worry that they, too, will fall prey to whatever brought their friends’ marriages to a halt. There has to be a way to inoculate their marriage and save their relationship.<br /><br />The more they think about it, they realize the biggest problem for their friends was the desire to have sex with other people. So what if they head this off at the pass and allow experimentation—won’t this quench the desire and then let everything get back to normal?<br /><br />They go so far as to set ground rules and approach everything methodically. No one they know, no repeat performances, etc. But they don’t count on handsome bartenders, recently divorced neighbors, coincidences, misunderstandings, and how the flush of desire actually feels with someone other than your spouse. Will this experiment save their marriage or actually destroy it?<br /><br />This is a fun, moving, and thought-provoking book about relationships. The characters were real, flawed people who feel familiar, and while you’ve seen this story before, Norman’s wry humor and his ability to create emotional upheaval without real melodrama sets it apart.<br /><br />This has movie or television adaptation written all over it!<br /><br />Check out my list of the best books I read in 2019 at <a href="https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2019.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2019.html</a>. <br /><br />Check out my list of the best books of the decade at <a href="https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/my-favorite-books-of-decade.html" target="”_blank”" rel="nofollow noopener">https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2020/01/my-favorite-books-of-decade.html</a>.<br /><br />See all of my reviews at <a href="http://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com</a>.<br /><br />Follow me on Instagram at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/" target="”_blank”" rel="nofollow noopener"> https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/.</a>

Find all of my reviews at: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/">http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/</a><br><br>4.5 Stars<br><br>After watching the marriages of all of the other couples belonging to their friend group “The Core Four” disintegrate, Mtch and Jessica come to the conclusion that perhaps desperate times truly do call for desperate measures and decide the solution to a happy marriage might come in the form of a . . . . <br><br><a href="https://lunapic.com" rel="nofollow noopener"> <img src="https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1586185057ra/29241683.gif" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> </a><br><br>What could possibly go wrong????<br><br><a href="https://lunapic.com" rel="nofollow noopener"> <img src="https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1586185057ra/29241684.gif" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> </a><br><br>So I owe both NetGalley and Matthew Norman a giant apology since I’m the one who requested an early copy of this, held on to it for an age and then actively avoided it because when I finally got around to reading the blurb (you know your girl is all about a cover, and this was a good one), I assumed it would not be my cup of tea. I have no idea why I decided to take the plunge yesterday, but holy crap am I glad I did. I read this author once before (<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1651438673?book_show_action=false&amp;from_review_page=1" rel="nofollow noopener">Domestic Violets</a>) when the library didn’t have the book of his I actually wanted (<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28959148-we-re-all-damaged" rel="nofollow noopener">We’re All Damaged</a>) and was a bit underwhelmed. This time? Oh yes indeedy are the comparisons to Jonathan Tropper spot on and I effing LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVED this. After wrongreadng a book on Saturday (due to a plethora of reasons, I’m sure, but bad dialogue was definitely one of them), this little diddy was a breath of fresh air come Sunday and I sat on the deck for the afternoon and sucked it right up. I loooooooooooove dialogue driven stories – especially witty dialogue that just flows without attempting to try too hard – and this one was near perfection. I also love realistic marriages and children and ensemble casts so this had soooooo many things going for it. And yes, the subject matter of cheating is absolutely one I generally avoid, but this book covered this hot-button issue with feeling and humor that made my end-of-book reaction simply . . . . . <br><br><a href="https://lunapic.com" rel="nofollow noopener"> <img src="https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1586185057ra/29241685.gif" class="gr-hostedUserImg" loading="lazy"> </a><br><br>As it reminded any happily-enough married person reading it that . . . . <br><br><b> <i>On your side of the fence, the grass is green as fuck. On this side, there is no grass. There’s just booze and sadness and fucking designer jeans.</i> </b><br><br><i>ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, NetGalley!</i><br>

I probably shouldn't have read Matthew Norman's upcoming love/comedy novel <b> <i>Last Couple Standing</i> </b> a month before my wedding, but it was such a funny, interestingly different romance novel. I was not expecting to really enjoy this book as much as I did. The story centers around Jessica and Mitch Butler and their marriage. Out of all their friends, Jessica and Mitch are the only ones who haven't gotten a divorce—but their marriage is getting a bit stale. The couple is nervous that they'll be the next couple to call it quits, because their lives have become so mundane. The couple decides that they'll open up their marriage—a <i>relaxed marriage</i>, as they call it. What could go wrong?<br /><br /><b> <i>Last Couple Standing</i> </b> is a hilarious, yet all too real depiction of monogamy, divorce, and interpersonal relationships. Is monogamy overrated? The jury is out on this topic, but I truly enjoyed seeing Jessica and Mitch open their relationship up, and witness their tribulations as they ventured on. <b> <i>Last Couple Standing</i> </b> is more of a comedy than a sexy romantic novel and it's very lighthearted. This book is non-stop belly laughs and overall a fun ride. <b> <i>Last Couple Standing</i> </b> is definitely a good book to read when you are getting bored or overrun by darker, twisted reads. This light read will keep you thoroughly entertained until the last page.

Still not sure if this is a three-star or four-star book. The premise threw me off and was hard to get beyond. I'll be back with a full review.<br /><br />Full review:<br />Three and a half stars, rounded down.<br /><br />The writing in this book is fantastic, and for that reason alone it deserves three stars. It's the story that threw me for a loop because honestly, it's a subject that I really don't care for. I know there are a lot of people who have "relaxed" marriages or relaxed rules about marriage but that's just not my deal and I have a hard time sympathizing with couples who have problems following that decision.<br /><br />The characters were well developed and likable even, though I absolutely found myself liking Mitch more than his wife, Jessica. And there wasn't a lot to like in the other characters, honestly, because they played such a small role, other than to refer to them as the "Core Four" more than once, which grated on my nerves.<br /><br />And that bartender? OMG are you kidding? His whole story was absolutely unbelievable. You'll need some suspension of disbelief on this guy for sure. (The end of this book was absolutely absurd...every single bit of it, and it lost a star for that.)<br /><br />All in all a decent read. If you like chick lit and/or you don't mind reading about open marriages, you'll probably love this. It just wasn't for me so much.<br /><br />Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Last Couple Standing by Matthew Norman<br />Source: NetGalley and Ballantine<br />Rating: 2½/5 stars<br /><br />Jessica and Mitch are the last couple standing among their original group of four. Known as the Core Four, the group has known one another and been a group since college. With the pairings and marriages coming so naturally, no one, especially the Core Four ever thought there would come a time when they would be something other than together. <br /><br />Life and adulting suck . . . .<br /><br />Yes, life and adulting have a tendency to suck and a harsh result of the suckiness is Jessica and Mitch being the last couple standing. They have seen their friends fall apart, their marriages end, and their lives radically changed and it, quite frankly, scares the hell out of Jessica. Though Jessica and Mitch have no serious issues in their marriage, Jessica proposes a radical experiment, a sort of preemptive strike to keep their solid marriage from going the way of their friends. To Jessica’s way of thinking, if they get out ahead of the problem then there won’t ever be a problem and she and Mitch can go about their lives and live to tell the tale of their happily ever after. <br /><br />According to Jessica, each of their friends’ lives and marriages fell apart because of sex. With Mitch in agreement, Jessica proposes she and Mitch stray from their marriage and vows and have sex with other people in an effort to ultimately strengthen their own bond. In order to be fair, they set a series of guideline that will dictate the terms of the experiment and should not be violated by any party. According to Jessica, once the experiment is completed, she and Mitch will be stronger than ever and proof positive that some marriages are meant to go the distance. <br /><br />Though Mitch agrees to Jessica’s madness and even contributes his own thoughts to the rules/guidelines, he isn’t as certain as his wife is that this experiment even needs to take place. Mitch is happy in his life, he loves his wife, and their family is damn-near perfect. While having a free pass to sleep with other women sounds awesome on its face, the reality is far different than the fantasy. Mitch not only struggles with the idea of sleeping with someone other than Jessica, he actively works to avoid participating in the madness. Jessica, on the other hand takes her free pass and runs with it, right into the arms and bed of a sexy young bartender who desperately wants more than Jessica is prepared to give. The ultimate result of the experiment is a very public display of lunacy which results in a small car wreck, one swift kick to the balls, and everyone, including their young children, knowing their business. <br /><br />The Bottom Line: Oh, how I struggled with this book and it all comes down to one character, Jessica! I found Jessica to be a tremendously selfish, arrogant, and rather stupid woman. Rather than simply admitting her fears to her husband – a very understanding and accommodating Mitch! – Jessica concocts a ridiculous plan that will allow her to screw some young guy with zero guilt and/or consequences. This whole mess boils down to Jessica wanting to have sex with someone other than her husband and her selfishness threatens to destroy a solid and remarkably good marriage. Jessica wraps her plan in logical and psychobabble as a means of justifying her actions and, in an effort to support his wife and continue to make her happy, Mitch agrees to the madness. As the whole plan unfolds, Jessica’s selfishness becomes magnified and she becomes harder and harder and harder to like. On the flip side, Mitch is a rockstar and I wanted nothing but the best for he and his kids, even if it meant keeping Jessica and not kicking her sorry ass to the curb. At the end of the day, I can’t say I liked or even enjoyed this book. One bad character really can ruin a book and Jessica is a fine example of this. Finally, I don’t at all understand how this book is billed as “hilarious” and/or “heartfelt.” I found it to be frustrating, ridiculous, and the furthest thing from either hilarious or heartfelt. This is a novel of pettiness and selfish behavior that ultimately ends up nearly destroying something that is, in actuality, quite good. <br />

Let me start by saying that I think this cover image looks like a diaper and I have to remind myself every single time that it's a bed. Ha ha<br />Anyway, this is a pretty fast-paced book. I didn't like the overall premise, I am not one for cheating--and no matter how you package it by saying "understanding" or "open marriage" or whatever, it's still cheating in my book. I couldn't stand the Jessica character and the author's preoccupation with her breasts got super annoying after a while. I did like the Mitch character quite a bit and the rest of the supporting characters, especially the kids, were great. The witty, quick dialogue, particularly with the kids and the whole E.T. fiasco, drove this book and elevated it past boring to entertaining.<br />The overall message in the end is good, but I didn't like how they got there.<br />I listened to this as an audiobook and really connected with the narrator more than I probably would have if I were just reading it on a page.

So, from the first sentence you know to expect this story to be a train wreck. Yet, from the first sentence, it’s so engaging, you steal yourself for the heartaches you expect to come and you read anyway. The characters who make up the story are so engaging, and so well formed, you are immediately engaged in the story and begin hoping the train wreck won’t really be so bad.<br />As you read, the train wreck in the making is softened from time to time with some off-beat humor as well as some passages that smack of total reality about couples who fall in love, marry, and well into the marriage struggle to stay married for no apparent reason. It’s all highly plausible for anyone who has been married and gotten beyond the first years of a romantic love.<br />In this book, there are eight people who meet in college and eventually marry, forming a four couple unit. They are close knit in every way, socializing together, living close to one another, and being actively involved in one another’s lives. The story begins with flashbacks to how they all became a group, and essentially starts with where there are now, almost two decades into marriage and cracks starting to show. Without highlighting those cracks or recriminations on the part of splitting spouses, three of the couples break apart. This brings the story to the main focus of the story, the forth couple, Jessica and Mitch. Suddenly they find themselves as the last couple standing, and begin to question the energy in their marriage.<br />Most readers will find themselves rooting for Jessica and Mitch. They seem to be a perfectly suited, lovely couple and the desire is to see them succeed in maintaining their relationship. Perhaps the truth is, most readers also see Jessica and Mitch as the embodiment of what people want a “good marriage” to be. They want to see it succeed as it gives hope to those who want to have a successful marriage of their own.<br />There are plenty of “oh, no’s” in this book, as well as, “well, that’s just funny” moments. There are times when the reader may find themselves wanting to scream at the book “Don’t do that! Don’t you know that’s a huge mistake?” The characters and situations are real enough you want to reach into the pages of the book and grab them by the arm to pull them back from the precipice. Of course, it’s a book. You can’t. All you can do is read on and hope things turn out like you want.<br />I won’t give away the ending of the book. That’s something every reader should discover for themselves. I will say there are some truths uttered here, amongst the fiction, the angst, and the humor, that might be beneficial for couples to read before walking down the aisle. Or, barring that, when years after saying their "I do's"; that famous “seven year itch” hits, whether it happens at seven months, seven years, or even seventeen years. What I will say is, this is a book not to be missed. It is filled with human emotions and situations without taking the reader to an emotional brink. I might almost make it required reading for anyone contemplating marriage or divorce.<br />My thanks to Ballentine Books with Random House Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an advance digital reader copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.<br /><br />

A great book, but the premise was weird and uncomfortable when I put myself in the character’s shoes. It by no means took away from the beautiful writing, dynamic characters, and seamless flow from page to page.<br />Luke and Jess have been friends with three other couples since college. They were a well-knit group, went to each other's wedding, the wives met frequently for ladies' night out, and the husbands do the same. Then, the divorces started, until Luke and Jess were the last-couple-standing. Which set them on the proactive journey to prevent the same fate and spiralled into an “it’s ok to have sex with other people even though we are married” set of rules. LET’s just say this was where my discomfort grew...it didn’t stop me from finishing the book though. <br />It was a great read. 3.5 stars.