Novelist
New From Marilyn Simon Rothstein
“Nobody conveys the heart, the dysfunction, and the humor of family life like Marilyn Simon Rothstein. Who Loves You Best is a smart, hilarious novel with a charming New England setting, a narrator you’ll never forget, and an ending so pitch-perfect, it will have you cheering along.”
––Amy Poeppel, author, The Sweet Spot
“I adored this book! Funny tears. Happy tears. Family dynamics on steroids. Marilyn Simon Rothstein brings all the feels in this warm, wise, and at times, laugh-out-loud funny Gram-com, courtesy of a brilliant cast of women, all struggling to ‘come of age’ in their own unique ways. Rothstein’s ability to infuse messy real-world situations with humor is an absolute gift, and Who Loves You Best is her best work yet. Utterly delightful!”
––Barbara Davis, author, The Echo of Old Books
"If you don't laugh while reading Marilyn Simon Rothstein, you're dead inside."
––Kristan Higgins, author, A Little Ray of Sunshine
MEET MARILYN
Marilyn Simon Rothstein is the author of four novels, WHO LOVES YOU BEST, CRAZY TO LEAVE YOU, HUSBANDS AND OTHER SHARP OBJETS, LIFT AND SEPARATE. She grew up in New York City, earned a degree in journalism from NYU, began her writing career at Seventeen magazine, married a man she met in an elevator and owned an award-winning advertising agency for more than twenty-five years. Marilyn is an engaging speaker who has addressed thousands of avid readers--from Dallas to Atlanta to Miami to Memphis. Invite her to entertain at your literary event.
"Rothstein’s genius lies in her keen observations, richly developed characters, razor-sharp ability to expose family dysfunction at its rotten core – and most of all, her unparalleled laugh-out-loud humor through love, loss, hope and healing.”
—Lisa Barr, author, GODDESS OF WARSAW
BOOKS
 |
|---|
 |
 |
 |
Crazy to Leave You
The worst day in Lauren Leo's life may be the best thing that ever happened to her...
“Reading a book by Marilyn Simon Rothstein is like sitting at the fun table at a wedding, listening to all an insider’s funny stories about the blessed event’s guests, and those she unsparingly tells on herself. Marilyn Simon Rothstein makes me laugh—and reminds me that even in a comic novel, the emotional dynamics in a nosy, tight-knit Jewish family with three competitive daughters can be as twisted as they are laughable. In Rothstein’s third hilarious novel, we follow the victim of a brutal hit-and-runaway groom, a bride with a ticking biological clock and a brilliant Manhattan advertising career. Despite her bona fides, this abandoned singleton has no way to spin the mortifying situation she finds herself in—dumped at the altar by a weakling who announces his plan by texting her sister. Will she ever love again? Will she ever stop eating to fill the hole he left? You’ll find out, and if you’re like me, you’ll be waiting for this author’s next book.” —Thelma Adams, author of The Last Woman Standing and Bittersweet Brooklyn
 |
|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
HUSBANDS AND OTHER SHARP OBJECTS
After a lifetime of marriage, Marcy Hammer is ready to get herself unhitched—just as everyone else in her life is looking for a commitment. Her new boyfriend, Jon, wants to get serious, and her soon-to-be ex-husband, Harvey, is desperate to get back together. When her headstrong daughter announces a secret engagement to Harvey’s attorney, Marcy finds herself planning her daughter’s wedding as she plans her own divorce.
Now with two huge events on the horizon, the indomitable Marcy soon realizes that there’s nothing like a wedding to bring out the worst in everybody. From petty skirmishes over an ever-growing guest list to awkward confrontations with her sticky-fingered new in-laws, pulling off the wedding is going to be a challenge; seeing her divorce through is going to be a trial. And trying to make everyone happy might prove to be impossible—because in the end, Marcy alone must make a choice between something old and something new.
Who Loves You Best
A woman drops everything to spend more time with her grandchild, only to discover new truths about herself. A humorous, heartfelt, feel-good novel from the author of Crazy to Leave You.
For Jodi Wexler, a Florida doctor with a flourishing practice, only one thing’s missing: the chance to spend more time getting to know her eight-year-old granddaughter, Macallan.
When Jodi’s restauranteur daughter asks her to watch Macallan in the Berkshires while she takes care of some business out of town, Jodi can’t say yes fast enough. Neither Jodi’s podiatric patients nor her just-fired, suddenly retired husband can keep her away. But when Jodi arrives, she discovers she’s not the only grandma at Lisa’s house. Lisa’s mother-in-law, Di—a hard-nosed real estate agent—has moved into the house. What’s more, there’s Grannie Annie, the twenty-seven-year-old girlfriend of Lisa’s oddball father-in-law. They’re not the only surprises. Lisa’s marriage is faltering even as her new restaurant is taking off.
As the competition for Macallan’s attention among the three “grandmas” increases, Lisa drops a bomb about her life that changes everything. Under pressure, and determined to help her daughter, Jodi must choose her next step. Her decision surprises everyone—Jodi, most of all.
 |
|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
LIFT AND SEPARATE
Marcy Hammer’s life has been turned upside down. Her husband, the head of a global brassiere empire, didn’t think twice about leaving her after thirty-three years of marriage for a 32DD lingerie model. Now Harvey the Home Wrecker is missing in action, but Marcy’s through thinking about what a cliché he is. What she needs now is a party-size bag of potato chips, a good support system, and a new dress.
Striking out on her own is difficult at first, but Marcy manages to find traces of humor in her heartbreak. Even while devastated by Harvey’s departure, she still has her indomitable spirit and her self-respect. She has no intention of falling apart, either, even when her adult children drop a few bombshells of their own and she discovers a secret about her new, once-in-a-lifetime friend. Life may be full of setbacks, but by lifting herself up by her own lacy straps, Marcy just may be able to handle them all.
