Lunch Tales: Suellen by Lucille Guarino
Lunch Tales: Suellen by Lucille Guarino is an engaging and heartfelt novel about Suellen, a young attorney navigating her career, complicated relationships, and personal growth.
At its core, Lunch Tales: Suellen is a story about survival — emotional, physical and relationship survival. Guarino makes Suellen feel real, like one of my girlfriends — she’s flawed, funny and trying to navigate through life like the rest of us, which makes her journey so compelling and relatable.
Love and Friendship with a Dash of Angst
One, if not my favorite, element of this book is Suellen’s relationship with her coworkers. These smart and savvy ladies seem to have a bond that rivals the women of Sex and the City. Of course, they are at work, so switch out the cosmos for a cup of coffee! Their lunchtime conversations are filled with humor, gossip and heartfelt advice, making them feel like a group you’d love a chance to sit with at their table. Whether they’re venting about work, navigating love lives, or just being there for each other, their friendship adds so much warmth to the story.
Unfortunately, life isn’t just about fun lunch breaks. The book also delves into Suellen’s tumultuous relationship with Steve, a guy who’s as charming as he is toxic. Guarino captures the rollercoaster of emotions that come with being in a relationship that’s both exciting and exhausting. Watching Suellen slowly realize her worth and take control of her life is one of the most satisfying and cathartic parts of the book. Suellen is a woman you can’t help but root for. While reading I just wanted the best for her.
As if Suellen didn’t have enough on her plate, a shocking medical diagnosis turns her world upside down. Faced with her own mortality, her tendency for self-sabotage kicks into high gear, making it even harder for her to accept love and support. Her lunch friends at the law firm become a much-needed lifeline, offering unwavering support and well-meaning advice, but even they can’t save Suellen from herself. Nor can the man who has fallen in love with her. In the end, only she can find the strength to fight for her future.
A Must-Read You’ll Truly Connect With
Guarino’s writing is sharp, engaging and full of heart. The pacing keeps you hooked, and the mix of humor, drama and emotional depth makes it tough to put down. Lunch Tales: Suellen is an engaging read that keeps you rooting for its flawed yet fiercely relatable heroine until the very end. By the time you turn the last page, you truly feel like you’ve been on a journey with Suellen — one filled with lessons about love, friendship and self-worth.
If you love stories with strong friendships, personal growth and a main character you can truly connect with, Lunch Tales: Suellen is a must-read. It’s funny, emotional and incredibly real — one of those books that makes you laugh, cry and reflect all at once.
Lucille Guarino loves emotion-heavy stories with resilient female characters who are as realistic as they are inspiring — such as in her Amazon bestselling debut, Elizabeth’s Mountain. She holds the record in her family for reading the most books, writing the most stories, and giving them some of the funniest fall fails. Having lived most of her life in northern New Jersey, she now lives in South Carolina with her husband, and close to her two daughters and grandchildren. She delights in embarrassing her kids… and now her grandkids. She loves road trips, touring the countryside, and talking to the locals. If there was ever any doubt about her fear of heights, standing before the Grand Canyon clinched it.
Her newest novel, Lunch Tales: Suellen — scheduled to launch in February of 2025, was the Grand Prize winner in A Woman’s Write 2023 writing competition. Suellen is personal for her, depicting the trials and tribulations of so many women, each a champion in their own story. In creating characters for her novels, she will advocate for them — whatever their struggle or sacrifice, so that hopefully their ‘real life’ stories can champion others.
