Kirsty Greenwood's homage to romance tropes pulls out a few unique twists and turns, but never fully rises above a frothy romance and symbiotic relationships story. Before slotting this as a beach read or flight fanfare, there are a few surprises aside from, no surprise that the antagonistic neighbor downstairs and Delphie are destined to tango. Right off the bat our antisocial hermetic heroine, Delphie. dies after biting a burger chunk too big to chew. When Delphie "comes to" she's greeted by Merritt, her guide in the afterlife. Yes, the startling realization that she died sets in, and the reel of her life plays out on the screen much like the scene in Mel Brooks' film "Defending Your Life" with Meryl Streep. Delphie doesn't take it sitting down and somehow convinces Merritt there's been a mistake. Merritt offers a proposition to Delphie, should she find her soulmate within ten days and he kisses her, then heaven can wait and life will be great. Wait, you've heard this theme before as in Warren Beatty's rom/com with Julie Christie? Greenwood has fun with the proverb what she's looking for was in her own backyard. Oh, wait that's a take of a different color from another genre altogether. Greenwood generates lots of winks with her nods to the memes romance novels share. Delphie googles romance novel tropes and finds "the most popular romance trope is something called 'enemies to lovers.'" In addition to Valentine's Day, Greenwood favors Easter and plants lots of Easter eggs for the eager reader. Nora Ephron, the queen of modern romance was quoted saying, "I'd tell my younger self to put on a bikini and wear it night and day." Delphie wears a dress she's been saving for a special day and tells herself, "The way the dress made me feel has solidified the notion that I should have been wearing lovely dresses every single day while I had the chance." Besides romance, life affirming epiphanies beam throughout. "{Delphie} Marvels at the beauty of being alive." What I was living ten days ago wasn't a life at all. While I never thought my life was particularly special, these past few days have turned everything I knew on its head...somehow, I've felt more alive than I ever thought possible." After Delphie's departure from the afterlife, her escapades on earth in pursuit of her soulmate's kiss turn into a high spirited high jinx and social interactions that cause a symbiotic chain reaction. After rethinking "The Love of My Afterlife" I've reconsidered the predictable plot with its amusing magical twists to be a delightful summer after all. I found myself LOL. "There's something about laughing-it makes any awkwardness disappear."
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