Welcome to Litsy!

Patrick is back, this time traveling in Europe with his nibblings ahead of their fathers wedding in Italy. It‘s been 5 years, and their bonds is still very strong. While Patrick is trying to help the kids open up to this new next chapter in their family‘s lives - a stepmother while always missing their mother- Patrick is also reflecting on the passage of time, and getting older. A pick for me, but admittedly not as good as the first.

Another one I listened to over the summer. I love GUPs adventures with his niece & nephew. This time he‘s helping them prepare for their dad getting remarried. The audio is narrated by the author.

Hard to compare to the first Guncle book because that one was so refreshing and beautiful and this was more a rehashing of everything, walking through the same exact emotional speeches…but I still mostly enjoyed the ride. I don‘t want to be overly critical because I think it‘s hard to measure up to #1.

This was so good! It was wonderful to catch up with these beloved characters a few years later. I love that it includes the complexity of healing from grief and how that ebbs and flows even years later. Moving on and allowing one‘s self to experience joy again can come with mixed feelings. Letting new people love you can be tough and this book handles these themes with grace, beauty, and all the feels - often with laugh aloud humor. Wonderful!

Book 204 of the year.

Finished on Wednesday. Took me a minute to grasp the Google sheets wizardry for #HauntedShelf 😝 Grabbed 17 word search words on this book alone. Counting this one as a series recommendation. I love these characters! I have really enjoyed this series and hope book 2 isn‘t the end. Also I really enjoyed Rowley‘s narration on audio and was surprised to only find he has narrated his own work. #SkeletonCrew ⬇️

Book 71🎧 4⭐️

Not quiiiiite as cute as the first Guncle, but still super adorable and definitely worth the read🤍

Patrick and the kids head to Italy for his brother/their father‘s wedding! 😬

9-20-24: My 33rd finished book of 2024! The Guncle Abroad is the sequel to the very popular The Gungle. Gay Uncle Patrick and his niece and nephew are traveling through Europe to get to the kid‘s dad‘s wedding in Italy. The kids are not in love with this situation so Patrick has to teach them all about love languages in the hopes that by the time they reach Lake Como he will have succeeded in making them see the light.

3.5 ⭐️
Good, touching, and funny in spots. I liked the first in the series better, but this one is worth a read/listen. I liked seeing the progression of the characters and loved the Sound of Music callouts (it‘s one of my favorite movies 🎥).

9-8-24: Starting a new one. So excited for this!

Love these characters! GUP (Gay Uncle Patrick) is back dispensing wisdom to his niece and nephew when they are uncertain about a new stepmom. I liked the original most, but it was fun to see what happens years later in book 2. The beginning has them traveling through Europe-fun! The middle of lagged but the ending made it worth the read. Just a sweet, warm fuzzies book about love, family, and letting more people in. 😊

I loved the first Guncle and didn‘t realize I didn‘t need a sequel until I listened to it. It didn‘t seem like Patrick grew up at all in the intervening five years and he seemed too self absorbed this time. I think it was the L‘aunt drama.

There were some things that were a bit ridiculous about this book — Greg‘s fiancée and the over-the-top wedding plans, and Patrick‘s stupid jealousy that lead to him leaping to incorrect conclusions— and the ending should‘ve come much earlier. Overall, the book was fun though, so I‘ll give it a pick. #audiowalk

No I was not floating in my tub reading, sobbing and laughing out loud. At all. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I‘ve mostly been watching the Olympics all day, and I‘m always thrilled to see Ledecky swim. I‘m really thrilled for Paige Madden though — she‘s from Mobile, AL, and swam a great 800, taking bronze! I did walk this evening and listened to The Guncle Abroad. I hope Patrick gets over his ridiculous jealousy. #audiowalk

It was fun to revisit these characters and I liked that there was five years between the end of the last book and the start of this one. I think the end dragged on a little more than it needed but otherwise, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.

I can‘t decide if I like this better than The Guncle yet, but I‘m only a couple of hours in. This is set 5 years after the events in The Guncle. Maisie and Grant want Patrick to help them stop their father from remarrying. The renovations in the little weight room are already complete, so I got to use it today. #audiowalk

#AboutABook #FromTBRList
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

I went for lighter with my new #audiowalk book since my hold on this conveniently just came in. I just started working out periodically in this little weight room next to the track. It‘s now closed for renovations. 😭

@Catsandbooks #BookBracket

Several choices for favorite but listening to this with my husband and our comments along the way pushed this one ahead of the others.

Maybe i would have given this a so-so but in the middle of a gastrointestinal storm in my house (just the kids) this was the kind of light read i needed. It was great to be back with GUP, Maisie and Grant and I enjoyed their travels through Europe. The family situation and tension between the kids, their dad and their dad‘s fiancée felt a bit forced and unnatural - but i get that its difficult with sequels. Great humour & fun new characters.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ I was thoroughly charmed by The Guncle, and figured I probably wouldn‘t like this as much, and I was right. I found this one uneven with some sudden plot changes (not twists so much as just odd decision making), and I ended up just being annoyed by the MC for a bunch of it. If this was the first book, I wouldn‘t have sought out a sequel. Between a pick and so so.

2024 Reads Continued

TGA - just as good as TG, if not better. I await a 3rd

TG - Vamps & human exist together. Very much a police procedure with a ending set up for a sequel. Was a very quick read

MOTN - Just ok. Like THATL, one of my least favs from Sager

HE - Cracking read! Probably his best so far

#WeeklyFavorites

This one had LOL moments & I needed those. Audiobook was really well done.

I enjoyed the first Guncle book and thought this was a cute sequel. It‘s nice to check in with the characters, especially Patrick and his niece and nephew.

Laugh out loud moments were greatly appreciated! New characters to love but Gup, Maisie & Grant are the reasons I loved this one and the first book.

This was as charming as the first one! I really enjoyed the setting and the new characters, but I loved revisiting Patrick, Maisie, and Grant 🩷

Oh I loved this!

🎧📖 I adored the first book. This was a decent follow up.

I wanted to love it as much as the first one but found it hard. Im@not sure if maybe it‘s because the kids were alittle older, or the setting, but it just didn‘t grab me the same way!

I loved The Guncle, and this is a worthy follow up to the original. Patrick takes the children while his brother prepares for his upcoming wedding. Along the way, Patrick tries to teach them the meaning of family and love. This book was a lot of fun to read and had some pretty funny lines. If you are younger than 50, some of the jokes may not make sense. The ending seemed a little cliche, but overall, I had a great time reading this.

A solid follow-up to Rowley‘s first Guncle book. We drop in five years later as Patrick takes the kids on a European tour before their father‘s wedding. They‘re all older and are covering some new emotional territory as they struggle to accept the life transitions ahead. Gup has more life lessons for the kids, the European destinations are fun, and a there‘s a heartwarming, satisfying ending.

I‘d argue that this is even better than the first book. But, you have to read the first one to get all the background and inside jokes. Another laugh while you cry book.

A trip to the dentist = a stop at my favorite bookstore! Snagged this signed copy!

I wanted to enjoy this more than I did. I thought the first Guncle book was a near-perfect funny contemporary fiction book. It was sweet rejoining Patrick, Maisie, and Grant five years later as he takes them around Europe to learn about love ahead their father‘s wedding in Italy. I just didn‘t feel that deep love and empathy for the characters that would‘ve cut the cheese. However, bonus points are awarded for incorporating the 5 Love Languages!

My daughter and I listened to this on a roadtrip. She had not read the first one and was still able to follow along just fine with a quick summery. Not sure I loved it as much as the original but it was still a delightful read.

3✨ There is a lot of heartwarming moments as the adults and kids navigate their feelings. Changes are really good at bringing up old hurt. As they go abroad and travel as a family they work through their thoughts and feelings. It does also have humor like the first one, but it‘s hard to beat an original.

As delightful as the first book.

So happy to have a sequel to The Guncle! Just like the first one, it's the perfect blend of humor and emotion, full of delightful characters.

Not sure how much reading I‘ll do as this spot is a little too comfortable.

Finally reading in my happy place! The weather has not been cooperating. Yesterday it was 56 degrees! Next week 90s. But today is a pleasant 73 and sunny. I‘ll take it. #summerreding

I adore this book! This is somehow nothing and everything like the first one. I love this whole family so much. I‘m thinking there could still be one more Guncle story in there. Oh my heart! I even cried at one point. So beautiful and wonderful and perfect.
#TheGuncle #TheGuncleAbroad #StevenRowley #PrideMonth #5stars #adore

🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈just having these wonderful people@back in my life was soothing to my soul. My heart is filled and hope is in my heart. I love love love love all things GUP! Can we have another sequel pretty please!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Very cute, if predictable, follow up to The Guncle. A few years have passed with Grant and Maisie entering entirely new phases of adolescence. Their dad is on the verge of remarrying a woman of which they are not too keen. GUP is there for the kids just as he was when their mom was sick.

I had fun with this grid really wanting to read each book. Tagging the one I wanted to support so much that I pre-ordered it.

5* = Loved It, want to shout out loud about this book! I do/will own/keep a physical copy. A+
4*= I liked it, would love to discuss. Solid B
3*=Meh, no need to discuss. Avg C
2*=Nope D
1*=DNF F

A good sequel. I love Rowley's writing and narration. And I'd love to have a GUP in my life 😁

#audiobook

#SeriesLove2024 @TheSpineView @Andrew65

"And that's how you do it." The Guncle Abroad was everything I want in a sequel: spending time with characters I love but making it fresh. I laughed. I cried. I sang along to The Sound of Music. And that ending was perfection. ?????

I lost WiFi for 24+ hours only to have it restored and 10 minutes later a transformer blowout took my power along with it my elusive WiFi. That was perfect reason to settle in with my preorder delivered this morning! I didn‘t anticipate this story, set 5 years after The Guncle, would match the magic I felt for the original. It didn‘t but that‘s okay. It's a fun ride as Patrick comes to terms with his nearly 50-yo self with Grant and Maisie.

The second verse is not the same as the first . . . but it is also funny, warm, and delightful. Read my full review here: https://debbybrauer.org/#the-guncle-abroad-the-guncle-2

Today—May 21—is publication day!

#NetGalley #PenguinGroupPutnam #TheGuncleAbroad

I got the audiobook this morning and am already 20% in. I have laughed a bunch and even snort laughed once! I can already tell I‘ll be sad when it‘s over.