Definitely Thriving

Definitely Thriving follows the life of Clemence, a woman whose life is a bit of a mess after she sabotages her own marriage. She returns home to the Roncesvalles neighbourhood in Toronto with plans to find a new life with more substance and without interruptions from romance and other such nonsense. 

With a quirky array of well-drawn secondary characters, a wonderfully flawed main female character in Clemence and an unexpected love interest, readers will enjoy following Clemence’s as she figures out who she is without society (or her family) telling her who she SHOULD be. I’ll admit that I had hoped for a different couple, but the pair who made it in the end was a wonderful surprise.

Peppered with humour and well-turned phrases that made me smile, this is a an Eat Pray Love kind of story … well, except for the love part (and add in a grumpy landlady). What it does have is charm and a relatable character who finds joy in the imperfect and allows herself time to pause, to stumble and make mistakes yet finds herself thriving despite not having it all figured out yet. 

Final Thoughts: quirky, delightfully awkward and endearing

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to the publisher for the paperback copy of this book which was given in exchange for my honest review. 

My Rating: 4 stars

Author: Kerry Clare

Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Canadian

Type and Source: Trade paperback from publisher

Publisher: House of Anansi Press

First Published: March 17, 2026

Read: March 9 - 17, 2026

Book Description from GoodReads: The heartening and hilarious story of a woman who doesn’t have it all figured out just yet.

After accidentally-on-purpose exploding her listless marriage by being discovered in bed with the next-door neighbours, Clemence Lathbury returns to her hometown resolved to build a life for herself that is good and substantial, to become the kind of sensible woman who won’t be distracted by frippery and romance. It’s supposed to be Eat, Pray, Love, without the love part. But no woman is an island, and soon Clemence finds herself embroiled in neighbourhood drama; beginning a crusade at the local bookshop; becoming adopted by a well-groomed, one-eyed cat; and being forced to admit her attraction to two very different men—each a romantic lead in his own right. But how to choose? And never mind the complications of her quirky family …


A novel about friendship, community, and church jumble sales, Definitely Thriving is a celebration of people who are perfectly imperfect, and all the love and support that’s required for one woman to make it on her own.