Mrs. Nash's Ashes (26 in 2026 #9)

Author:  Sarah Adler Title: Mrs. Nash's Ashes Publisher: Berkley Date Published: 05/23/2023

Read Dates: 05/04/2026- 05/05/2026
Rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Mrs. Nash’s Ashes is a dual POV, dual timeline roadtrip romance. It’s mostly told from the perspective of Millicent, as she embarks on a journey to reunite her best friend with a long lost love, even if it’s in a highly unconventional way. There are a few chapters interspersed that are from the perspective of Rose (who eventually became Mrs. Nash) beginning in the 1940s when she meets the love of her life, Elsie. Rose and Elsie were not able to build a life together but, after Rose passes away, Millie is able to locate Elsie and is determined to take Mrs. Nash’s remains and her love letters to her. One travel SNAFU after another leads Millie to a roadtrip with Holllis, a grumpy vague acquaintance who doesn’t believe in lasting love, but feels obliged to help Millie of only to keep her from falling victim to her own hopeful and trusting nature!

This was delightful! I loved the bits and pieces of Rose and Elsie’s story, and loved all the mishaps and adventures that Millie and Hollis had on the attempt to travel from Washington DC to Key West! I enjoyed Millie’s trusting and optimistic nature and how she didn’t try to twist herself into knots to conform to others expectations. I liked how Hollis learned to roll with the unexpected and found ways to help Millie without making her feel like she was too much or a burden.

A starry-eyed romantic, a cynical writer, and (the ashes of) an elderly woman take the road trip of a lifetime that just might upend everything they believe about true love.

Millicent Watts-Cohen is on a mission. When she promised her elderly best friend that she’d reunite her with the woman she fell in love with nearly eighty years ago, she never imagined that would mean traveling from D.C. to Key West with three tablespoons of Mrs. Nash’s remains in her backpack. But Millie’s determined to give her friend a symbolic happily-ever-after, before it’s (really) too late—and hopefully reassure herself of love’s lasting power in the process.

She just didn’t expect to have a living travel companion.

After a computer glitch grounds flights, Millie is forced to catch a ride with Hollis Hollenbeck, an also-stranded acquaintance from her ex’s MFA program. Hollis certainly does not believe in happily-ever-afters—symbolic or otherwise—and makes it quite clear that he can’t fathom Millie’s plan ending well for anyone.

But as they contend with peculiar bed-and-breakfasts, unusual small-town festivals, and deer with a death wish, Millie begins to suspect that her reluctant travel partner might enjoy her company more than he lets on. Because for someone who supposedly doesn’t share her views on romance, Hollis sure is becoming invested in the success of their journey. And the closer they get to their destination, the more Millie has to admit that maybe this trip isn’t just about Mrs. Nash’s love story after all—maybe it’s also about her own.