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Back After This

A Novel

Author Linda Holmes
Hardcover
$28.00 US
| $37.99 CAN
Ballantine Group | Ballantine Books
On sale Feb 25, 2025 | 320 Pages | 9780593599259
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From the New York Times bestselling author of Evvie Drake Starts Over and Flying Solo, a podcast producer agrees to host a new series about modern dating—but will the show jeopardize her chance at finding real love?

“Romantic, smart, and exactly the book we all need right now. I adored this.”—Annabel Monaghan, author of Nora Goes Off Script

“You’ll sink into this story and never want it to end.”—Elissa Sussman, author of Funny You Should Ask

Cecily Foster loves to make podcasts. She fiercely protects her colleagues, dearly adores her friends, and never misses dinner with her sister. But after a disastrous relationship with a colleague who stole her heart and her ideas, she’s put romantic love on hold.

When the boss who’s disappointed her again and again finally offers her the chance to host her own show, she wants to be thrilled. But there’s a catch—actually, two catches. First, the show will be about Cecily’s dating life. And second, she has to follow the guidance of influencer and newly minted relationship coach Eliza Cassidy, whose relentlessly upbeat attitude seems ready-made for social media, not real life.

Cecily would rather do anything other than put her singledom on display (ugh) or take advice from the internet (UGH). But when her boss hints that doing the show is the only way to protect a friend’s job, she realizes she has no choice.

To make matters more complicated, once she’s committed to twenty blind dates of Eliza’s choosing, Cecily finds herself unable to stop thinking about Will, a photographer she helped to rescue a very big and very lovable lost dog. Even though there are sparks between the two, Will’s own path is uncertain, and Eliza’s skeptical comments about Cecily’s decision-making aren’t helping. On the one hand, Will seems great. But on the other hand . . . don’t they all?

As Cecily struggles to balance the life she truly desires and the one Eliza wants to create for her, she finds herself at a crossroads. Can Cecily sort through all the advice and find a way to do what she loves without losing herself in the process?
“I can’t imagine a more delightful meditation on the value of listening to your own voice in a loud, loud world. Back After This is romantic, smart, and exactly the book we all need right now. I adored this.”—Annabel Monaghan, bestselling author of Nora Goes Off Script

“Back After This is a sweetheart of a novel—fun and warm, full of Linda Holmes’s signature charm. You’ll sink into this story and never want it to end. The dialogue is sweet and snappy, and the characters so real you could touch them. There’s so much to love in this book: dreamy men who do backflips, found family, the perfect revenge, and an adorable dog. What more could a reader want?”—Elissa Sussman, bestselling author of Funny You Should Ask

“Hugely uplifting and hilariously funny, Back After This is the kind of smart, grounded romance that’s made Linda Holmes one of the most beloved voices in fiction. She’s just so good.”—Katie Cotugno, New York Times bestselling author of Birds of California

“Back After This is a propulsive, heart-warming journey through the difficult—and often petty—world of podcasting. I gobbled this book up in a single night, enchanted by Holmes’s all-too-real characters and their dogged pursuit of love. This book is a much-needed distraction—a fun, exciting, and sexy reprieve from the real world. I cannot wait to recommend it to all my friends.”—Kelsey McKinney, host of Normal Gossip and author of You Didn’t Hear This From Me

“Holmes clearly knows a thing or two about the world of podcasting, as she’s one of the hosts of the popular NPR show Pop Culture Happy Hour, and she fills the book with details that give listeners a peek behind the curtain. . . . An altogether charming and delightful romance full of laugh-out-loud lines.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Holmes once again crafts an engaging, appealing tale of a woman coming into her own and learning to leave her people-pleasing ways behind. But it is not just Cecily who readers will connect with; all of the cast members are fully realized, with their own motivations and insecurities. Blending witty humor, a tender romance, and true character growth, this is a winner.”—Booklist, starred review
© Cassidy DuHon
Linda Holmes is a novelist, a pop culture correspondent for NPR, and one of the hosts of the popular podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour, which has held sold-out live shows in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere. She appears regularly on NPR radio shows including Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition. Before NPR, she wrote for New York magazine online and for TV Guide, as well as for the groundbreaking website Television Without Pity. Her first novel, Evvie Drake Starts Over, was a New York Times bestseller. In her free time, she watches far too many romantic comedies, bakes bread, plays with her wonderful dog, and tries to keep various plants thriving. View titles by Linda Holmes

About

From the New York Times bestselling author of Evvie Drake Starts Over and Flying Solo, a podcast producer agrees to host a new series about modern dating—but will the show jeopardize her chance at finding real love?

“Romantic, smart, and exactly the book we all need right now. I adored this.”—Annabel Monaghan, author of Nora Goes Off Script

“You’ll sink into this story and never want it to end.”—Elissa Sussman, author of Funny You Should Ask

Cecily Foster loves to make podcasts. She fiercely protects her colleagues, dearly adores her friends, and never misses dinner with her sister. But after a disastrous relationship with a colleague who stole her heart and her ideas, she’s put romantic love on hold.

When the boss who’s disappointed her again and again finally offers her the chance to host her own show, she wants to be thrilled. But there’s a catch—actually, two catches. First, the show will be about Cecily’s dating life. And second, she has to follow the guidance of influencer and newly minted relationship coach Eliza Cassidy, whose relentlessly upbeat attitude seems ready-made for social media, not real life.

Cecily would rather do anything other than put her singledom on display (ugh) or take advice from the internet (UGH). But when her boss hints that doing the show is the only way to protect a friend’s job, she realizes she has no choice.

To make matters more complicated, once she’s committed to twenty blind dates of Eliza’s choosing, Cecily finds herself unable to stop thinking about Will, a photographer she helped to rescue a very big and very lovable lost dog. Even though there are sparks between the two, Will’s own path is uncertain, and Eliza’s skeptical comments about Cecily’s decision-making aren’t helping. On the one hand, Will seems great. But on the other hand . . . don’t they all?

As Cecily struggles to balance the life she truly desires and the one Eliza wants to create for her, she finds herself at a crossroads. Can Cecily sort through all the advice and find a way to do what she loves without losing herself in the process?

Reviews

“I can’t imagine a more delightful meditation on the value of listening to your own voice in a loud, loud world. Back After This is romantic, smart, and exactly the book we all need right now. I adored this.”—Annabel Monaghan, bestselling author of Nora Goes Off Script

“Back After This is a sweetheart of a novel—fun and warm, full of Linda Holmes’s signature charm. You’ll sink into this story and never want it to end. The dialogue is sweet and snappy, and the characters so real you could touch them. There’s so much to love in this book: dreamy men who do backflips, found family, the perfect revenge, and an adorable dog. What more could a reader want?”—Elissa Sussman, bestselling author of Funny You Should Ask

“Hugely uplifting and hilariously funny, Back After This is the kind of smart, grounded romance that’s made Linda Holmes one of the most beloved voices in fiction. She’s just so good.”—Katie Cotugno, New York Times bestselling author of Birds of California

“Back After This is a propulsive, heart-warming journey through the difficult—and often petty—world of podcasting. I gobbled this book up in a single night, enchanted by Holmes’s all-too-real characters and their dogged pursuit of love. This book is a much-needed distraction—a fun, exciting, and sexy reprieve from the real world. I cannot wait to recommend it to all my friends.”—Kelsey McKinney, host of Normal Gossip and author of You Didn’t Hear This From Me

“Holmes clearly knows a thing or two about the world of podcasting, as she’s one of the hosts of the popular NPR show Pop Culture Happy Hour, and she fills the book with details that give listeners a peek behind the curtain. . . . An altogether charming and delightful romance full of laugh-out-loud lines.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Holmes once again crafts an engaging, appealing tale of a woman coming into her own and learning to leave her people-pleasing ways behind. But it is not just Cecily who readers will connect with; all of the cast members are fully realized, with their own motivations and insecurities. Blending witty humor, a tender romance, and true character growth, this is a winner.”—Booklist, starred review

Author

© Cassidy DuHon
Linda Holmes is a novelist, a pop culture correspondent for NPR, and one of the hosts of the popular podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour, which has held sold-out live shows in New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere. She appears regularly on NPR radio shows including Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition. Before NPR, she wrote for New York magazine online and for TV Guide, as well as for the groundbreaking website Television Without Pity. Her first novel, Evvie Drake Starts Over, was a New York Times bestseller. In her free time, she watches far too many romantic comedies, bakes bread, plays with her wonderful dog, and tries to keep various plants thriving. View titles by Linda Holmes

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