Crazy To Leave You: A Novel

by Marilyn Simon Rothstein

Overview

“A heartfelt, delicious story.” —Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Magnolia Palace

From the author of Husbands and Other Sharp Objects comes a witty, bighearted novel about the happy accidents that lead to love and second chances.

Forty-one years old, the last of her friends to marry, and down to a size 12, Lauren Leo is in her gown and about to tie the knot. There’s just one thing missing: the groom. With one blindsiding text, Lauren is unceremoniously dumped at the altar.

In the aftermath, her mother is an endless well of unsolicited advice (Stay on your diet and freeze your eggs). Her sisters only add to the Great Humiliation: one is planted on Lauren’s couch while the other is too perfect.

Picking her heart up off the floor, Lauren turns to her work in advertising as she gathers courage to move on and plan her next step. She should know by now that nothing in life goes according to plan. What lies ahead is the road to self-acceptance and at long last feeling worthy. With a new way to measure love and success, Lauren chucks her scale—and finds a second chance in the most unexpected place.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781542034487
Publisher:	Amazon Publishing
Publication date:	05/24/2022
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	725,396
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Marilyn Simon Rothstein is the author of Lift and Separate, winner of the STAR Award for Outstanding Debut presented by the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, and a second novel, Husbands and Other Sharp Objects. She grew up in New York City, earned a degree in journalism from New York University, began her writing career at Seventeen magazine, married a man she met in an elevator, and owned an advertising agency for more than twenty-five years. Marilyn received an MA in liberal studies from Wesleyan University and an MA in Judaic studies from the University of Connecticut. For more information, visit www.marilynsimonrothstein.com.

Editorial Reviews

A fun, well-paced jaunt.” —Kirkus Reviews

“This fast-paced and entertaining story will appeal to those who like tales of women succeeding on their own terms.” —Booklist

“Poignant and funny, Crazy To Leave You is chock full of Rothstein’s signature fast-paced, smart dialogue and brimming with wit. A heartfelt, delicious story.” —Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Magnolia Palace

“Crazy to Leave You is the funniest book I’ve read in practically forever. Lauren Leo, who’s been jilted at the altar at forty-one, is sarcastic, lovable, brave, and drop-dead hilarious—in other words, perfect. As she makes her way through the humiliation of her postwedding world, not only does she have to deal with some pretty rough dieting decisions, but she’s also got some needy sisters, a judgmental mom, a crazy work life, and waaay too many wedding presents. Plus, there’s the really big question on everyone’s mind: Is anybody ever going to love her again? Trust me: this book will have you snort-laughing from page one. Do not be drinking hot liquids while you read.” —Maddie Dawson, author of The Magic of Found Objects

“I’ve been eagerly awaiting Marilyn Simon Rothstein’s next novel, and Crazy to Leave You exceeded my expectations. From some of the funniest one-liners I’ve read in years to a cast of all-too-relatable characters, this witty, heartfelt story of one woman’s attempt to live on her own terms after her fiancé leaves her lifted my spirits and reminded me of what a gift it is to have choices—even the kind that take some warming up to. This is exactly the book we all need right now.” —Camille Pagán, bestselling author of I’m Fine and Neither Are You

“With her trademark wit and wisdom, Marilyn Simon Rothstein brings us her most delightful and disarming heroine yet in Lauren Leo, a jilted fortysomething bride who finds her superpower. Fun, funny, and smart, Crazy to Leave You will keep you turning the pages and aching to offer your own shoulder to cry on as Lauren turns her tale of woe into a tower of strength. If you haven’t yet experienced the sheer joy of a Marilyn Simon Rothstein novel, this is a perfect place to start.” —Jamie Brenner, author of Blush

“Marilyn Simon Rothstein does it again with another star, hilarious heart-warmer about a girl who is driven from her current location of heartbreak to her final destination of love and sanity. You’d be crazy not to love Crazy to Leave You.” —Jennifer Belle, bestselling author of Going Down and High Maintenance

“Marilyn Simon Rothstein’s heartwarming new page-turner, Crazy to Leave You, has all the feels. Enter Lauren Leo—a brilliant advertising exec on top of her professional game who can’t get a break in her personal life. Over forty and jilted at the altar, Lauren berates herself and allows the critical, fat-shaming voice of her mother to echo relentlessly inside her head. Lauren’s journey is to stop weighing everything against a vicious scale, and instead to finally embrace who she is by learning that self-love and acceptance are truly the gifts that keep on giving. Rothstein’s genius lies in her keen observations, richly developed characters, razor-sharp ability to expose family dysfunction at its rotten core—and most of all, her unparalleled laugh-out-loud humor through love, loss, hope, and healing.” —Lisa Barr, author of Woman on Fire

“On the surface, Crazy to Leave You is a funny, lighthearted story. But underlying Rothstein’s signature humor and wry, engaging voice is the shattering dilemma of every woman who has ever believed that she is not enough—not thin enough, not successful enough, not loved enough. Lauren’s journey to loving herself is one to which we can all relate. I think every book club is going to want this one!” —Kerry Anne King, bestselling author of Other People’s Things

“Reading a book by Marilyn Simon Rothstein is like sitting at the fun table at a wedding, listening to all an insider’s funny stories about the blessed event’s guests, and those she unsparingly tells on herself. Marilyn Simon Rothstein makes me laugh—and reminds me that even in a comic novel, the emotional dynamics in a nosy, tight-knit Jewish family with three competitive daughters can be as twisted as they are laughable. In Rothstein’s third hilarious novel, we follow the victim of a brutal hit-and-runaway groom, a bride with a ticking biological clock and a brilliant Manhattan advertising career. Despite her bona fides, this abandoned singleton has no way to spin the mortifying situation she finds herself in—dumped at the altar by a weakling who announces his plan by texting her sister. Will she ever love again? Will she ever stop eating to fill the hole he left? You’ll find out, and if you’re like me, you’ll be waiting for this author’s next book.” —Thelma Adams, author of The Last Woman Standing and Bittersweet Brooklyn

“Heartfelt, captivating, and beautifully written. This is one of those rare books that leaves you feeling as if you’ve spent the day with a best friend. Rothstein is a master at creating flawed characters that make you laugh, cry, and fall in love with them.” —Bette Lee Crosby, USA Today bestselling author

“Marilyn Simon Rothstein returns with her inimitable blend of heartache, romance, and hilarity. Crazy to Leave You is five stars all the way.” —Patricia Sands, author of Drawing Lessons

“If you don’t laugh out loud while reading a book by Marilyn Simon Rothstein, you’re dead inside. Filled with everything I love in a story: a well-meaning, insanity-inducing family, gut-busting laughs, and a heroine who feels like a friend. Crazy to Leave You will be an instant classic.” —Kristan Higgins, New York Times bestselling author of Pack Up The Moon

From the Publisher

2022-03-16
A 41-year-old woman is spurred by romantic crisis to confront her relationships to food, body, and identity.

Career-driven Manhattanite Lauren Leo has drifted from one diet to another for as long as she can remember—subsisting, as of late, mainly on egg whites, steamed broccoli, and self-hatred. The daughter of a rigid, perennially size-4 mother who thinks “mayonnaise [is] the work of the devil,” Lauren grew up pressured to skip dessert; jealous of her naturally thin younger sister, Stephanie; and subject to relentless physical critique from her mother. By her long-awaited wedding to summer camp sweetheart Eric, Lauren has finally dieted herself down to size 12, and when he leaves her at the altar, she’s horrified that all her careful work has been upended. As she attempts to pick up the pieces of her life and throw herself back into her work at an advertising agency, Lauren returns to food with gusto, almost as though it’s a forbidden lover: surreptitiously chowing down greasy cheeseburgers in her wedding dress after being dumped; buying a dozen doughnuts for “the office” and polishing them off in her car. Things get complicated when her estranged older sister, Margo—a small-time actress with her own weight problems—shows up unannounced to stay at Lauren’s apartment, bringing up long-buried family problems. Meanwhile, she grows unexpectedly close with Rudy, a chatty driver assigned to her by the ad agency. As Lauren muddles through her changed life circumstances, she confronts the way food has affected everything from her career trajectory to family aspirations—and, when crisis strikes those closest to her, how to put her problems into perspective. This novel is a self-deprecatingly funny take on the standard career-woman–searching-for-love narrative—Lauren’s relationship with food is alternately comical and darkly affecting, lending the plot depth and dimension (which, in certain areas, could be pushed further). Rothstein’s characters sometimes slot into familiar molds, but they're consistently lively and fun to read about. Lauren is a highly relatable protagonist, particularly for anyone who has looked in the mirror and wondered, as she does, “Tell me, please: does this body make me look fat?”

A fun, well-paced jaunt.

Kirkus Reviews