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fashioniq64's review against another edition
4.0
Pretty cute rom com. Kate Clayborn actually took time to develop the characters and their feelings instead of just instantly jumping to romance.
catalogthis's review against another edition
4.0
This ended up on my TBR list because it was mentioned as a winner in the "Competency Boner" category of the Heaving Bosoms 2020 Reading Embrace.
And with good reason! The romance genre has evolved quite a bit since I first swooned over Matt Farrell in Paradise, and one of the welcome trends is that people in these books have ACTUAL JOBS. Not what I call soap-opera jobs, which are just excuses to discuss romantic relationships while in different settings and wearing different outfits (unless the characters are in medicine or law enforcement, in which case the jobs are there for exposition). These are jobs that the characters spend a good chunk of their waking hours doing and/or worrying about. I'm not particularly fascinated by the specifics of Meg's career (I'm not following any hand-letterers on Instagram), but I appreciate that the specifics exist.
So I picked it up because of the competency thing, but stayed for the friendship thing. I really appreciated the fact that the other women in the book weren't simply sidekicks or rivals to our main character. Meg's fractured friendship with Sibby is just as central as her blooming relationship with Reid.
Bonus: between his old-fashioned manners and his letter writing, Reid gives off some very strong Mr. Darcy vibes. A good Darcy vibe will get me every time.
And with good reason! The romance genre has evolved quite a bit since I first swooned over Matt Farrell in Paradise, and one of the welcome trends is that people in these books have ACTUAL JOBS. Not what I call soap-opera jobs, which are just excuses to discuss romantic relationships while in different settings and wearing different outfits (unless the characters are in medicine or law enforcement, in which case the jobs are there for exposition). These are jobs that the characters spend a good chunk of their waking hours doing and/or worrying about. I'm not particularly fascinated by the specifics of Meg's career (I'm not following any hand-letterers on Instagram), but I appreciate that the specifics exist.
So I picked it up because of the competency thing, but stayed for the friendship thing. I really appreciated the fact that the other women in the book weren't simply sidekicks or rivals to our main character. Meg's fractured friendship with Sibby is just as central as her blooming relationship with Reid.
Bonus: between his old-fashioned manners and his letter writing, Reid gives off some very strong Mr. Darcy vibes. A good Darcy vibe will get me every time.
curlymunroe's review against another edition
5.0
Five stars is a rarity for me. So flipping good. Nicol Zanzarella completely and utterly nailed Meg's voice. I loved this book. I devoured the audiobook in a 24 hour period. I didn't want to stop listening, but I didn't want it to end. NYC is a background player in this wonderful story, and it makes me want to go back and follow the signs.
lewisforbes's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
home_for_wayward_books's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
birdjay's review against another edition
4.0
For more of my reviews, check out my blog.
Love Lettering was so so close to being as good as Georgie, All Along, but just barely fell short of achieving that goal. Meaning, I really really really loved this book. Our main character, Meg, shines off the page. She’s a delightfully sunny person with a huge huge sarcastic streak. She is a people pleaser who eventually realizes this about herself and tries so hard to change. She wants to be truthful to people without hurting them. She tries her best. She’s also a hand-letter-er? I guess? Is how you’d say that? She’s an artist, who specializes is handwriting, and she’s damn good. I wish we could have “seen” her work, but Clayborn does a fantastic job of describing it. So on one hand, we have Meg, a sunny artist. And on the other hand, we have Reid, a stoic mathematician. Two absolute foils of one another, so of course they fall in love.
Not to compare Love Lettering to another one of Clayborn’s books, Love at First, but what really worked for me this time was how over-the-top these characters were. They weren’t ordinary people. They didn’t blend into the background. They had strong personalities, and reasons for them. I missed that in Love at First, so that’s definitely why Love Lettering ranks above that one for me. The complete contrast between Meg and Reid was so much fun to watch, too. I kept picturing Meg in all these bright colors and patterns next to Reid, in his blue/black/grey suits. Reid does warm up, and open up to Meg, and we do get to know him quite well, but the foil between them remains the whole book. I enjoyed that. Neither one of them change who they are fundamentally, they just sort of…shift enough to let the other into their life. It was perfectly done.
The plot was just interesting enough to keep me interested — Meg has a creative block and is using Reid to help boost her out of it. There’s something going on with Reid, but you don’t find out what until the end of the book in a rather explosive way. (No, there is no cheating, in case some of you were worried!) The side characters are all well done, too, though I think the side-plot of Meg’s best friend was a little…idk. Contrived? Unneeded? I wasn’t the biggest fan of Sibby. You’ll understand if you read! Either way, no matter what, I really really loved Love Lettering. Four and a half stars.
Love Lettering was so so close to being as good as Georgie, All Along, but just barely fell short of achieving that goal. Meaning, I really really really loved this book. Our main character, Meg, shines off the page. She’s a delightfully sunny person with a huge huge sarcastic streak. She is a people pleaser who eventually realizes this about herself and tries so hard to change. She wants to be truthful to people without hurting them. She tries her best. She’s also a hand-letter-er? I guess? Is how you’d say that? She’s an artist, who specializes is handwriting, and she’s damn good. I wish we could have “seen” her work, but Clayborn does a fantastic job of describing it. So on one hand, we have Meg, a sunny artist. And on the other hand, we have Reid, a stoic mathematician. Two absolute foils of one another, so of course they fall in love.
Not to compare Love Lettering to another one of Clayborn’s books, Love at First, but what really worked for me this time was how over-the-top these characters were. They weren’t ordinary people. They didn’t blend into the background. They had strong personalities, and reasons for them. I missed that in Love at First, so that’s definitely why Love Lettering ranks above that one for me. The complete contrast between Meg and Reid was so much fun to watch, too. I kept picturing Meg in all these bright colors and patterns next to Reid, in his blue/black/grey suits. Reid does warm up, and open up to Meg, and we do get to know him quite well, but the foil between them remains the whole book. I enjoyed that. Neither one of them change who they are fundamentally, they just sort of…shift enough to let the other into their life. It was perfectly done.
The plot was just interesting enough to keep me interested — Meg has a creative block and is using Reid to help boost her out of it. There’s something going on with Reid, but you don’t find out what until the end of the book in a rather explosive way. (No, there is no cheating, in case some of you were worried!) The side characters are all well done, too, though I think the side-plot of Meg’s best friend was a little…idk. Contrived? Unneeded? I wasn’t the biggest fan of Sibby. You’ll understand if you read! Either way, no matter what, I really really loved Love Lettering. Four and a half stars.
thedreamweaver's review against another edition
5.0
I cannot remember the last time i read a book so lovely and sweet and beautiful and FUN. This is one of those books that makes me wish I had extra bonus stars to give. It's just so good.
So much creativity! Not just in the subject matter (the idea!), but also in the story-line (the walks! the games! the fights! the practice!), in the characters (unexpected depths!). The language, the descriptions, the bright splashes of colour, the almost tangible scent of stationary.
Ah! I can't do this justice. Let me just say this: It's my absolute favorite book of 2020. And right up there with The Notebook and Pride and Prejudice as my all time favorite romance books ever.
Go read it now if you haven't already. This ain't a story you wanna miss out on.
So much creativity! Not just in the subject matter (the idea!), but also in the story-line (the walks! the games! the fights! the practice!), in the characters (unexpected depths!). The language, the descriptions, the bright splashes of colour, the almost tangible scent of stationary.
Ah! I can't do this justice. Let me just say this: It's my absolute favorite book of 2020. And right up there with The Notebook and Pride and Prejudice as my all time favorite romance books ever.
Go read it now if you haven't already. This ain't a story you wanna miss out on.
brennie192's review against another edition
2.0
The premise is extremely contrived but readable enough. 2.5 stars.
thepuncess's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
nicole_kachmarek's review
4.0
Cute and charming! My second Kate Clayborn book and I’ve really enjoyed her love stories!