The Husbands is a new novel by Holly Gramazio with a premise that just begs to be read. Lauren, our protagonist, comes home one night to discover a husband in her London flat—she doesn’t know him, and definitely doesn’t remember getting married to him, but the photos on her phone provide proof she can’t ignore. After much confusion, and a little experimentation, Lauren comes to the conclusion that her attic is some sort of magical magnetic forcefield that produces husbands for her. Whenever she sends a husband up into the attic, a new one comes out, and her life changes along with him. At first, of course, she’s horrified. Is this her life now? Pretending to love a stranger until it feels normal? But once she learns the rules, Lauren starts to enjoy herself a little. One husband makes her coffee in the morning, another is some sort of millionaire that whisks her away to their country estate, and yet another has an American accent that makes her weak in the knees. And, if anything starts to go south, she sends the guy back to the attic in a jiffy. The only problem is, she can’t keep doing this forever… eventually she’ll have to find a way out of this husband loop, but how do you make a decision when the possibilities are infinite?

There’s something about a story with a surprising science-fiction-y spin that’s just so fun, and this novel is no exception. For the most part, the book reads like your classic romantic comedy; Lauren is a young, relatable woman navigating the world of dating (or rather, husbands), and Gramazio writes with a comforting blend of hilarity and heart. But, with the addition of a magical, husband-producing attic, the novel takes on this exciting, unexpected sheen. In fact, Gramazio is also a game designer (this is her first novel!), and so the concept and “rules” of the attic feel especially inventive and considered. At times, the novel felt a bit longer than it needed to be, but never so much that I wanted to stop reading. And along with the witty writing, creative plot, and heartfelt characters, I loved imagining what Gramazio may have been trying to illustrate with her attic—the endless swiping of dating apps, perhaps? The Husbands is a delightful escape from reality, with a thought-provoking premise to boot.

I’d recommend this book to…

• Anyone who loves a novel that blends genres, and makes you laugh, think, and blush… it’s similar in style to This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub
• Anyone who can’t get enough of characters stuck in wacky, time-bending situations… it’s similar in theme to the movie Groundhog Day
• Anyone looking for something playful, cheeky, and surprisingly deep… it’s similar in tone to Good Material by Dolly Alderton