Midlife Revivals: Second-Act Romances
Is She Really Going Out with Him by Sophie Cousens + more
Without any intention on my part, I’ve stumbled into a new romance subgenre: the midlife, post-breakup (or divorce) romance. I loved Mhairi McFarlane’s If I Never Met You but assumed the situation was a one-off.
Then I read Personal Best by Jonesy Elise, a writer I met at the fabulous Bay Area Book Fest. In this delightful book, 30-something Saoirse “Sir” Hooper takes up with her personal trainer, who ends up training her on a lot more than a stationary bike. Unlike McFarlane’s book, this steamy romance includes a lot of kink and self-discovery in the bedroom.
After finding Is She Really Going Out With Him? by Sophie Cousens, I realized the second-act romance is a thing—and I’m totally hooked.
Common arcs in second-act romances and why I love them
While each of the three books is very different, what they all have in common is a single POV female perspective, an age gap with a younger man, and a rediscovery of something of themselves the main character has lost. In each of these books, the ex initiated the breakup and found another partner, so our heroine is smarting, her ego bruised, her idea of what her life should be shattered.
Though I haven’t been through a divorce, I’ve experienced plenty of breakups (almost always being the one broken up with—ouch), and part of the appeal of these books is the delightful revenge of an older woman going out with a young, attractive, and talented man (they are always talented). In addition to the happily ever after, these books offer a portrait of a woman picking herself up after loss, reorienting her self-image, and reclaiming parts of herself she’d lost in her prior relationship. That makes the second-act romance, if done well, a soul-satisfying read.
A sparkling revival
Is She Really Going Out With Him? follows Ann Appleby as she tries to navigate shared parenting of her two children while saving her job as a reporter for a regional magazine. As the magazine threatens cutbacks, her competition is Will Havers, a young and ambitious writer who seems ruthlessly bent on advancing his career.
When Ann ends up writing a dating column where she has to go out with dates chosen by her children, it becomes an exercise in friendship and redemption. And when her last date is a weekend away with Will—well, you can guess what happens.
One of the best things was Sophie Cousens’ luscious prose as she describes Ann’s gradual unfolding as she allows herself to flirt with Will.
“A long-forgotten part of me is waking up, and it feels wonderful, like emerging from hibernation into a spring full of possibilities.”
She doesn’t expect to end up in a relationship, but the act of opening herself to the connection is redemptive for Ann.
- Humor level: some lovely comedic tropes but generally more delighting than funny
- Spice level: closed door
- Tropes: enemies to lovers, age gap, divorce, children from another relationship, second act
Personal Best by Jonesy Elise
- Humor level: physical comedy, my favorite!
- Spice level: hot, hot, hot
- Tropes: age gap, divorce, second act
On a personal note, my first book is on submission and publishers look at things like social media follows and newsletter subscriptions when they’re deciding which books to publish. All my newsletter content is free for my subscribers—and you’d be helping bring another romcom into the world if you hit subscribe.
