This is a very tame and cutesy romance between our female lead, who is trying to save her father's champagne shop from the property developer company our male lead works at. It's all very fluffy - and while this makes it easy to read, this definitely won't stick with me. Ultimately, I couldn't really get into it because I couldn't connect - nor would I likely be friends with - our female lead. She's into champagne, Disney princesses, saccharine paintings of cocktail drinks against a NYC backdrop and is a hopeless/helpless romantic - right up to the point of immaturity. Add in some insta-love and a lack of romantic development...I'm a pass.

<i> I voluntarily obtained an eBook version of this book free from Netgalley and Galley Books in exchange for an honest review!</i>

This book was such a happy read! It's going to be a great summer read. It's truly a modern day telling of You've Got Mail as the description suggests. Gracie is a romantic at heart who dreams of a fairy tale romance. She works at a wine shop she inherited after her father's passing. Her quest for love leads her to sign up for a blind dating app that works on the premise that words and conversation are the key to falling in love, not so much photos and looks. She meets a intriguing man on the app who she corresponds with. Away from the app, Gracie meets businessman Sebastian Andrews who seeks to buy out Gracie's shop for new developments. Gracie refuses to sell as she does not wish to abandon her father's shop. Sebastian continues to find his way into Gracie's life. Through the book, Gracie discovers what is important in her life and that sometimes reality is better than the fairy tale. This is a sweet read with little to no angst. The books is billed at as loud out loud romantic comedy but during the read I did not find it to be all that comedic. Entertaining, yes but would not consider it to be a romantic comedy read. The secondary characters in the book are wonderful and help improve the story. An enjoyable read that I would recommend for those looks for a happy sweet romance (think hallmark movie, I can totally see this as a hallmark movie)

Lauren Layne's "To Sir, with Love" is a adorably predictable romance with extremely adorable characters. What's not to love about this known vs. unknown love story?
Gracie is so full-hearted and just lovely. She is jovial, she is bubbly without being annoying or fake. She is, like so many of us, the people pleaser, and most importantly, the family peacemaker and glue that holds them all together. Unfortunately, when you are being all those things for everyone else, sometimes you lose part of yourself along the way.
Sebastian is only revealed in glimpses and interactions. It's clear (to the reader) that there is a connection on the anonymous app between them, but then that's not the mystery to solve, is it? It's the pining, the waiting, the hope for the HEA that is to come. I like that Gracie isn't swept off her feet by his stability and wealth. I enjoyed the scenes where he's in her tiny apartment, assessing her brother's presence or just hanging out before the art show while she is getting her make-up done. Gracie is so relaxed and comfortable with him, despite their bumpy (but not tooooo rocky) history and it is just the sweetest thing.
Perfect escape and easy read for the beach, the pool, the airplane. No uncomfortable moments that would cause teary eyes around strangers. Loved it!

2.5⭐️

By all accounts, I should have absolutely loved this book. It’s got the trifecta: enemies-to-lovers, rom-com, inspired by You’ve Got Mail (aka one of the best and most romantic movies of all time). Yet, I couldn’t not have been happier to wash my hands of it by the end.

Usually I’d try to write up a little summary, but if you know the movie then you know everything that’s going to happen in the book. Except instead of being utterly charmed you’re left with the urge to chuck the book at the wall.

The main character, Gracie, gave me the “ick” from the very first chapter. She is poised to be this whimsical hopeless romantic but rather she comes across as a manic pixie dream girl with a Cinderella complex. Eating mustard on eggs is not a personality trait, nor is it quirkily endearing to be so obsessed with a fairytale that you go to a business meeting dressed in a Cinderella-esque gown that is better suited for a junior prom. She is so incredibly immature for a 33 year old woman it was pretty unbearable at times.

The biggest let down of this book was the inability to craft a compelling romance. She is torn between her online love interest, Sir, and her real life crush, Sebastian, however neither romance is well done or interesting. The messages between “Sir” and “Lady” are done sporadically through out the book and don’t have nearly enough content to show how these two are drawn to each other. And then their in-person meet cute can be summarized as of the instalove variety. Literally, Gracie goes on and on in the moment they lock eyes that he is destined to be her person, it’s “the moment”™️, it’s the eyes locking zing factor. And it’s terrible.

There was nothing in either the online messages or their in person interactions that made it seem like these two were destined to be together. They had no chemistry and weren’t given nearly enough time on the page to <i>develop</i> that chemistry.

I found many of the secondary characters to be more interesting and complex like the best friend and bold chef, Keva.

I wanted to love it, I really did! I tried so hard to get into it, but I was left really disappointed by a story I was excited to read.

A sweet and charming romance. I loved everything about Gracie. She willingly puts her own dreams aside and takes on running the family business, a champagne shop, when her father dies. The shop is not doing terribly well and a giant corporation wants to buy the business and turn it into a parking garage. Sebastian is the corporate representative, handsome but arrogant. There is lots of humour, fun and romance.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

You’ve Got Mail for the modern age. This is a delightful book that made me smile and laugh during the funny moments, sad and introspective at the tender moments (I’ve got my own career confusion happening right now), and happy at the sweet and sappy moments. I’ve never read a book by Lauren Layne before but I’m glad I read this one - it was a perfect read for me in this moment.


Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the arc.

Cutesy and feel-good, To Sir, With Love is just the book to curl up with after a long week. While a bit predictable, you see yourself becoming friends with the cast of characters without a hesitation. They’re just quirky enough to be memorable without being so over-the-top that you can’t picture someone you know in their place.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC.

You got mail meets modern dating in this adorable romantic comedy thats sure yo put a smile on your face.

I LOVED this book. It was seriously the perfect sweet romance. I read it in one sitting and seriously couldn’t stop smiling. The characters were so fun and the New York setting was familiar yet unique.

If you are a romcom fan I highly recommend this one.

LOVED IT!! This timeless theme is a favorite of mine and Lauren Layne updates it perfectly to the twenty-first century. The dating app and texting is the modern version of handwritten letters and emails.

You can feel the hope and anxiety build as Gracie interacts with both Sir and Sebastian. She realizes that she is falling in love with both men and doesn't know what she should do. Gracie is the type of person that dreams of meeting "the one". Even when she lets the the man (or men) she loves go because she thinks he is pursuing the love of his life, not knowing it is her all along, she still holds onto the dream.

I appreciate the book is told only from Gracie's perspective, so although you eventually realize Sebastian has figured out that Gracie is Lady, you focus on Gracie and her feelings. She is such a people pleaser, putting aside her career dreams, to take care of the family business without help from her sister or brother. When they reunite as the business is losing money and decisions are made as to what to do, Gracie doesn't hold it against them that she was the only one working to keep it going.

A heartfelt, feel good, believe in happily ever after book that I will continue to read again and again.

This book was absolute perfection. Lauren Layne has absolutely outdone herself with this modern take on "You've Got Mail" set, of course, in New York City. Gracie is running her family's champaign boutique while Sebastian and his family are trying to buy out the building. The results are a meet cute x 2 that would certainly make Nora Ephron proud.

To Sir, with Love was a cute, sweet, quick read by Lauren Layne. It is set in New York City, and it was nice to read a story that brought me back to the wonders of NYC life pre-pandemic. I am a fan of Lauren Layne, but this one just did not check off all the 4-5 star boxes for me. At around 33% through, I found myself wondering where the story was going to go, because at that point, I usually expect a little more interaction and heat between my H and h. I would recommend this to anyone who is in the mood for a light, clean romance.

Second chances, secret romances, and laugh out loud goodness. Fans of Christina Lauren will enjoy this fantastic storytelling. The novel seamlessly introduces the reader to a variety of characters, each charming and relatable. This romantic comedy checked all the boxes for me, straight up rom com goodness. Don't miss out on To Sir, With Love. It's a good time.

I have a bunch of Lauren Layne books on my TBR shelf but I haven't gotten to any of them yet so this was my first read by this author. And now I'm wondering what the hell I was waiting for.
I loved this book. I loved the writing, the plot (no stupid misunderstandings to push the story forward), loved the supporting characters and most of all I loved the hero and heroine. Gracie and Sebastian were not perfect, they were flawed and they each had their personal problems to deal with but they were a joy to read about. They were eachother's oposite but still perfect for eachother. Their interaction made me smile and feel all warm and fuzzy inside. The chemistry between them was sizzling. The supporting cast of characters was great, quirky and unique. And the story was interesting and kept me reading well into the night.
Ms. Layne wrote a lovely, heart-warming love story and I loved it! It is a perfect example of everything I love about romance and I'm looking forward to reading more books by Ms. Layne.

Weeeee! It's been a long time since I've had this much fun reading a book. I loved every little detail that added to the fairytale magic of this story. It was full of humor and heartache and longing. It was a pleasure watching everything unfold. I cried happy tears when I came the final page. I can't recommend this book enough. If you love romance, this book just might be your soulmate.

One of my favorite reads of 2021. Hands down.

To Lauren Layne, With Love.

Encore!

Thank you netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the advance readers copy.

I finished this book and immediately wanted to open it up and read it all over again. The absolutely perfect sweet romance, especially for fans of You’ve Got Mail. It felt like a first kiss, a solid warm hug, and Autumn in New York all rolled up into one sugary story. It’s predictable but in all of the best ways.

I am a little sad for this one and it may just be a "me" thing. First of all, I loooove so many of Lauren Layne's books! I was so excited by the premise here, because You Got Mail is my all time favorite, and I adore any book with the secret identity trope. I wanted to love this one so much.

So--it really could be me, but I ended up DNFing, sadly. (I may return to give it another go soon, perhaps the audio).

Essentially, I had a hard time connecting. I think Gracie's relationship with Sir felt unbelievable and their messages at each present moment way too on-the-nose. I think I just needed moreeee. Even at 25%, I know almost nothing about their relationship beyond basic 'telling'. I felt nothing unique and I couldn't see WHY they liked each other online so much. We are only told that they do, not SHOWN that they do.

Beyond that, Sir has a girlfriend, so it's odd to me that Gracie practically admits to being in love with his online identity even knowing that, and when she meets him IRL (beginning of the book), it's the same story. Girlfriend! But she thinks 'oh, he is magic, and his eyes are so aqua! He is the man I've always dreamed!" in a manner of speaking.

So I guess I'm just sad. I wanted to feel their connection online. I wanted to see a glimpse of their connection in real time conversations at the very least.

BUT! If you are looking for a light hearted, floofy read, this still may hit the spot. I think I'm just at a point where I'm craving a deeper dive into character when it comes to my romance reads these days!

Yes, this has 100% You've got Mail vibes. In fact, its a You've Got Mail retelling. In fact as I was reading Gracie, images of Meg Ryan kept popping in my head.

This is an adorable book and is great for anyone who needs to get their mind off life for a while.

Gracie Cooper is running her parent's shop Bubbles without the help of her siblings. She has also been talking to this mystery guy on a dating app where they get to know one another before they can meet and see each other. Gracie is certain this is her Prince Charming, but alas, his friends put him on it as a joke and he is actually in a relationship. Bubbles is not doing so hot. They are also getting letters from their landlord attempting to buy out the lease so they can build another skyscraper in New York City. After not receiving a response Sebastian Andrews decided to stop in. His piercing aqua eyes make Gracie think he is her prince charming until she realizes who he is.

This was a very cute, fun, easy read! I finished it in a day and stayed up way too late reading it. It did seem to follow "You've Got Mail" a little too close so you knew what was coming...but I still enjoyed it!

Love Gracie and Sebastian story. Gracie has her fairy tale love all the time, she know Sebastian is the one at first sight. Sebastian too was torn between this two womens that consumed his time and dreams. They found each other and knows it but doubts was true.
I enjoy reading this book and recommended. I received an ARC from Netgalley for a honest review.