Bryony, 34, is two things - a hypochondriac and a people pleaser. So when the guy she casually sees suddenly dies from a wasp sting and his family call her, thinking she was his great love, she plays along, thinking she can extricate herself after a while. But Ed's family is big, loud, chaotic and warm and they are almost impossible to get away from. But does Bryony even still want to?

This is a story told in dual POV, with Kelly, GP receptionist and Ed's sister-in-law being the second POV. To be honest, I had a hard time relating to Kelly's fertility issues and it added to the sense that nothing much was happening in terms of plot - just one woman trying to become pregnant and another woman trying to be less hypochondriac and people-pleasing. And both women trying to get a third woman out of a pyramid scheme.

And still, there are themes that are handled brilliantly. Kelly's tales from the GP waiting room and her impressions of the patients are hilarious and recognisable ("Alfred Itch Cock; self-explanatory" had me in stitches!) as is finding out that one of them is actually Bryony, a frequent flier due to health anxiety.

The topic of grief is handled very sensitively, acknowledging that everyone grieves differently. Lauren Bravo effortlessly manages to make certain strange decisions look plausible or at least understandable.

A special mention must be given to family matriarch Ann and how she has influenced her children's behaviour who only ever want to gain her approval. Though you must question the sanity of a mother calling her offspring Galileo, Ethelred and Antigone. It is almost inevitable that they rechristened themselves Leo, Ed and Annie!

This unusual book is filled with humour, hope and lots of awkwardness. It is a deeply emotional story dealing with friendship, family dynamics and the search for love and every kind of health, written in a light-hearted way. Despite some of the topics, it manages to be uplifting and relatable, though of course we would never read a self-penned poem at the funeral of a guy we hardly knew just to keep up appearances!