How to Fall in Love with a Man Who Lives in a Bush - by Emmy Abrahamson (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

The International Bestseller

For readers of quirky Scandinavian fiction comes this charming and witty debut novel by Emmy Abrahamson--perfect for fans of Jonas Jonasson.

Love stinks. Or maybe it just needs a shower . . .

Vienna: famous for Mozart, waltzes, and pastry; less famous for Julia, a Swedish transplant who spends her days teaching English to unemployed Austrians and her evenings watching Netflix with her cat or club hopping with a frenemy. An aspiring novelist, Julia's full of ideas for future bestsellers: A writer moves his family to a deserted hotel in the dead of winter and spirals into madness! A homely governess loves a brooding man whose crazy wife is locked up in the attic! Fine, so they've been done. Doesn't mean Julia won't find something original.

Then something original finds Julia--sits down next to her on a bench, as a matter of fact. Ben is handsome (under all that beard) and adventurous (leaps from small bridges in a single bound). He's also sexy as hell and planning to shuffle off to Berlin before things can get too serious. Oh, and Ben lives in a public park.

Thus begins a truth stranger than any fiction Julia might have imagined: a whirlwind relationship with a guy who shares her warped sense of humor and shakes up the just-okay existence she's been too lazy to change. Ben challenges her to break out; she challenges him to settle down. As weeks turn to months, Julia keeps telling herself that this is a chapter in her life, not the whole book. If she writes the ending, she can't get hurt.

But what if the ending isn't hers to write?

From the Back Cover

Vienna: famous for Mozart, waltzes, and pastry; less famous for Julia, a Swedish transplant who spends her days teaching English to unemployed Austrians and her evenings either watching Netflix with her cat or club-hopping with a frenemy. As an aspiring novelist, Julia's full of ideas for future bestsellers: A writer moves his family to a deserted hotel in the dead of winter and spirals into madness! A homely governess loves a brooding man whose crazy wife is locked up in the attic! Fine,
those books have been written. That doesn't mean Julia won't think of
something original.

Then something original finds Julia--sits down next to her on a bench, as a matter of fact. Ben is handsome (under all that beard) and adventurous (leaps from small bridges in a single bound). He's also sexy as hell and planning to shuffle off to Berlin before things can get too serious. Oh, and Ben lives in a public park under a bush.

Thus begins a reality stranger than any fiction Julia might have imagined: a whirlwind relationship with a guy who shares her warped sense of humor and shakes up the just-okay existence she's been too lazy to change. As weeks turn to months, Julia keeps telling herself that this is a chapter in her life, not the whole book. If she writes the ending, she can't get hurt.

But what if the ending isn't hers to write?

Review Quotes

"This quirky Swedish love story is the antidote to all of those Hallmark movies you've been bingeing." -- Elle Canada

"In Julia, Abrahamson has created a heroine who is smart, funny and very likable--someone you would like to befriend. While it's tempting to dismiss How to Fall in Love as a simple 'happily ever after' love story, Abrahamson's clever writing makes it a worthwhile read." -- Winnipeg Free Press

"Utterly charming and laugh-out-loud funny. This is a total pick-me-up of a novel. Adored it." -- Susie Steiner, author of Missing, Presumed and Persons Unknown

"This heartwarming tale of self-discovery is filled with many laugh-out-loud moments. Julia is a very relatable character, despite such quirks as taking street surveys and donating plasma, and while her growth is sometimes slow, it is always endearing. Readers who relish an easy, enjoyable read will enjoy this, and the moral of Abrahamson's story--look beyond the surface to see who a person really is--is presented humbly and delicately, inspiring a smile of satisfaction with its conclusion." -- Booklist