Monsters: A Love Story
A hilarious debut novel about a perfectly imperfect love story.
When Stacey Lane writes a feminist take on Frankenstein, she never imagines it will catch the eye of unbelievably sexy Hollywood star Tommy DeMarco. Tommy’s passion for her book—and for her, a recently widowed poet, mom, and certified mess—threatens to turn her life upside down, or maybe right-side up. From their first poolside meeting the two are set on a collision course as they go about making the book into a movie, making each other crazy, and making love, if only in secret. Fueled by desire, love, grief, expertly poured cocktails, and crackling dialogue, Monsters: A Love Story is a witty portrait of a relationship gone off the rails and two people who are made for each other—even if they’re not so sure they see it that way.
PRAISE
**Selected as a Summer Beach Read Pick by Harper’s Bazaar, The Associated Press, Purewow, and Refinery29**
“The unlikely romance between a feminist poet and the Hollywood heartthrob who options her book is at the center of Liz Kay’s entertainingly dyspeptic Monsters: A Love Story.” –-Vogue
“In the tradition of Lolly Winston’s Good Grief . . . this fast-paced novel will have readers immersed in the heady feeling of an alcohol-fueled affair with one of the sexiest men alive.” – Library Journal (starred review)
“Witty and so nimbly-worded, Liz Kay’s Monsters: A Love Story had me at hello. From the near-madcap improbability of the novel’s premise, to the punchy repartee and ping-pong banter between Stacey and Tommy, it’s impossible to resist the book’s charms. But don’t be fooled. This is more than a feelgood read. Because the truth is, it’s love that is a monster story, no? A tale of unknown creatures and dark circumstances. Like widowhood. Or single parenthood. Or the act of making art or love. Or simple loneliness. Or complicated loneliness. Liz Kay has written a heroine who resists easy explication but who demands our absolute attention. Poets, meet your new patron saint.” —Jill Alexander Essbaum, New York Times-bestselling author of Hausfrau
“A perfectly imperfect love story . . . Kay has created a heartfelt, sometimes dark but ultimately romantic story about what happens when two broken people come together.” – BookPage
“Monsters tells the story of two people who are made for one another, but can’t quite see that themselves because of all the baggage between them.” –Refinery29, A Beach Read Pick for Summer 2016
“Monsters: A Love Story is a smart, satirical feminist novel, but as the subtitle suggests, it’s also a romance. . . . Liz Kay cleverly takes a frazzled, recently widowed Omaha poet and mother and drops her into the boozy, razzle-dazzle of Hollywood moviemaking.” –ShelfAwareness
“I love to see truth in writing when it comes to love and relationships . . . [Monsters is] an electric, fast-moving novel, you will be drawn into the lives of these two unlikely lovers as they navigate a burgeoning relationship, coming out of their shells and embracing the people they swore they would never let themselves become.” – B&N Reads
“Monsters is an addictive read: a page-turner that is at once dark and uplifting, shocking and hopeful. Liz Kay’s book takes a sharp spin on the notion of fairy tale romance, arguing that love comes not through our best sides, but our worst. It’s all about confronting the demons within.” — Janelle Brown, bestselling author of All We Ever Wanted Was Everything
“This one will make you laugh and cry, but Kay’s debut novel, about a poet grappling with the death of her husband, is a must-read. A smart look at grief and how we bounce back from it, Monsters is fast-paced and completely addictive.” —Purewow, Ultimate Summer 2016 Book Pick
“Stacey, the narrator of Monsters: A Love Story, is a feminist poet in Hollywood—you got to love her for that alone. But you also love her because she’s sharp, tough, and honest. The novel’s wry insights into messy relationships put me in mind of The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P.and Emma Straub’s The Vacationers.” —Timothy Schaffert, critically acclaimed author of The Swan Gondola
“At the beginning of the novel Stacey is in darkness. But it’s a sad reality that turns magically around. Inspiring for women everywhere.” —Lucy Sykes, author of The Knockoff
“Monsters: A Love Story spins several tales at once—the numbing navigation of grief, the ambivalences of motherhood, and the seduction of a world that thrives on fantasy. Kay’s beautiful, spare prose lands us right in the heart of this complicated, wounded cast. But ultimately, this is a love story, how the meeting of kindred spirits is often as punishing as it is beguiling. When monsters fall in love, it is impossible not to watch, impossible to put the book down.” —Rebecca Rotert, author ofLast Night at the Blue Angel
“Monsters: A Love Story is a deeply felt and modern day spin on the fairy tale notion of happily-ever-after. When a young widow discovers that Prince Charming is just as damaged as she is, she’s forced to confront her own monsters and learn to love them. This is smart, fun, sexy writing.” —Mark Haskell Smith, author of Raw: A Love Story
“Monsters is smart, witty, hilarious, raunchy, irresistible, and full of crackling dialogue. At its heart, though, the story of an improbable love affair between a Nebraska poet and the hot movie star who optioned her book is a classic, heart-warming, romantic fantasy.” —Catherine Texier, author of Victorine
“Monsters: A Love Story reads like a seduction. I couldn’t stop reading, even through Stacey’s self-destructive snark and Tommy’s caddish cruelty. Somehow, I couldn’t help rooting for them. Monsters they may be, but vulnerable monsters with hearts full of yearning—familiar creatures, after all, despite their glamorous, outsized lives. Liz Kay has created a book full of beautiful monsters, just like Stacey’s; and now they’re mine, too, and I’m glad.” —Amy Hassinger, author of The Priest’s Madonna