CW: depression and suicidal thoughts

When editorial assistant Nora is slapped with a pay cut, she takes a part-time job with a rival publisher to help stay afloat. It's a great opportunity that could lead to a full-time position as an editor. But she makes a few missteps along the way: she lies to her new boss about quitting her old job; she poaches minor clients from her full-time employer; and she misleads author and potential boyfriend Andrew about his publishing opportunities. Struggling with mental health issues and trying to balance a house of cards, how long can she go on before it all falls apart?

This book starts off as expected based on the cover and description: chick lit about a twenty-something trying to make it in the big city, struggling with career and love. Then, without warning, it takes a dark turn into depression. Nora is sympathetic throughout, despite some of her questionable choices (the company she works for is horrible). She's young, idealistic, and in desperate need of a change in perspective. Andrew was delightful, and I would have liked to see more of their relationship. Ultimately, this is a story of Nora growing up and learning that the world doesn't work quite the way she thought it did, but that's okay.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I enjoyed this one much more than I expected. I don’t tend to love books about the publishing industry, but this proved to be the exception. A masterful debut!

This story contains very stressful situations - money, job insecurities, work conflict. Yet the writing style was oddly soothing despite that. It was a nice contrast. I could not put it down. I connected with the main character who feels like her happiness level can never reach above a three.

Despite what the illustrated cover might suggest, this is not a snappy little rom com. I think it barely fits in romance, actually - I’d put it more in literary fiction. It was poignant and thoughtful, and more about Nora’s life and personal growth than her relationship with Andrew. Andrew was a wonderful character and my favorite scenes were with him.

There’s a lot about career choices, corporate dynamics, work culture. I was very invested but I don’t know if other readers would be. There are a lot of details about office politics. I kept feeling like so many situations could be letters to Ask a Manager.

The title drew me to this debut novel because I am a sucker for books about books. Based on the cover, I expected a light rom-com but MUST LOVE BOOKS definitely leaned more towards women’s fiction.

Nora Hughes feels stuck in a job in publishing that feels increasingly like a dead end. She’s overworked, underpaid and extremely stressed. Worst of all, she’s losing her love of books. Nora knows she needs to make a change but has no idea how. After a series of questionable choices put her on a new path, all she can do is hope everything works out for the better.

I found the author’s handling of Nora’s mental health struggles and her fight to discover her own self worth to be very accurate. As hard as it was at times, I felt like I was really inside Nora’s head and feeling what she was feeling. The exploration of the publishing industry and the challenges faced by women and people of colour was also very well handled.

A solid debut from a new author I will definitely read again. Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for the advance reading copy.

You know how they tell us not to judge a book by it’s cover? Well, I should have listened when I picked up this one. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the book but for some reason I assumed it was a light romcom, possibly about a couple who connected over their love of books.
It was about books, more so in the publishing world, yet there were some heavy topics in here, such as depression, suicide and self-doubt.

I’m glad for these mental health topics as it was nice to have the character come across as a bit more ‘real’ than ones who seem to be happy ALL the time.

While I enjoyed the book and the mental health aspect of it, there were some parts that felt slow and I didn’t feel engrossed enough. It kind of fell in to the ‘It was good & I would still recommend it but I just didn’t love it’ category.

I quite enjoyed Andrew and Nora’s relationship. I also really enjoyed seeing Nora grow throughout the novel and take control of her own life and decisions. It’s a good book to read if you’re feeling trapped in your job.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I started this book I expected a light romcom which it was actually not. it was a romance in many ways but on a deeper level it was about self reflection and dissatisfaction with one's self. The author created a farily likable character in Nora Hughes then slowly pulled back the layers to reveal someone who was actually quite unhappy and then I felt that some of the themes took a sudden turn. As a reader, I would ahve liked to see some of this being addressed. Mental health is a health crisis that deserves to be discussed, written about, and talked about but in this book we were constantly on the very edge of identifying what was going on with Nora. This was a lovely book as is but as a reader I wanted a little more exploration on that subject.

The romance with Nora and Andrew Santos was adorable. They were such a great pair. He was charming and lovely and beyond understanding.

This book is perfect for anyone who loves romance. This debut novel is a must read for anyone. It tackles lighter subjects but also hits on mental health.

Nora's stuck. She's been an assistant at a publishing house for business books for five long years. It's not what she though it would be but she can't seem to get free. Now, she's got a real problem because her salary has been cut and she can't afford her rent. But there's one bright spot- Andrew, an author who is both nice and. well, hot. When an old colleague who has moved on offers her the opportunity to do part time work, Nora opts to double dip, thus imperiling both jobs and her nascent relationship with Andrew. This is interesting for the details about publishing but frustrating because of Nora. Her realization that she's only a 3 on the happiness scale impels her to make a significant change in her life. Although there are bright spots and some humor, this has an overall glum tone, unusual for the genre. And then there's the last line, which without a spoiler, felt canned. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Definitely relatable for anyone who has felt trapped in their job.

Nora Hughes is an Editorial Assistant at Parson's Press. When some of her coworkers no longer work at Parsons either because of layoffs or just finding a new job, she finds herself rethinking what she wants in her life. When Nora accidentally almost kills Andrew Santos, an author at Parson's he takes an interest in her. As their relationship grows Nora realizes that the relationship could benefit her as she moves up at Parson's.

This book took me a little longer than I would have liked to read. The first part of the book is very slow. I struggled with this book because I was not a fan of Nora. She wanted to change things in her life, but instead of making them she just sat back and felt sorry for herself. I am not one who doesn't read all of a book. But with this one I got to a point where I had to skim the pages in order to get through it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was drawn to this book because of it's title and I love books about books! I was really drawn into Nora's story and after reading 'The Other Black Girl' (another book about books) and was seriously let down, this one was a welcome read. It's not a love story, but there's a romantic element that played out really well. Nora works in publishing, but is not in her dream roll. She's struggling with a lot of things that was very relatable, including her own mental health. I guess you could say it was a book about self-discovery and re-finding oneself. A light read, but one that also touched on a heavy topic (depression). 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

The premise of this book was good, I enjoyed reading it for the most part but found some references completely irrelevant. Which then in turn put me off slightly.

The main character, on the whole, was likeable and you wanted the best for her.

I would consider another book by this author.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Thank you to the author, Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

To be clear: this debut effort is not a romance, nor is it lighthearted chicklit. Instead, it's a hard look at life for a young woman on a career path leading nowhere in a terrible job. What do you do when all doors appear closed to you? What do you do when your dream job turns out to be anything but, and you face some tough choices? The first half is a bit slow, but it picks up and I loved following the path the heroine takes as she is forced to re-evaluate, and figure out what makes her happy. I look forward to reading more from this author!

I’ll be honest, I did not vibe with the beginning of this book. Nora’s depressive moods were really dragging me down and the whole description of the editorial process was just plain boring in my opinion. Once Nora and Andrew started interacting more the book became more interesting and once Nora actually started working on herself then I really became invested in the story. If you have any sort of experience with depression you know how hard it is to take that first step and seeing Nora doing it was really beautiful and left me feeling all kinds of hopeful. Overall, I enjoyed this book, though I do think it starts of kind of slow and that the ending is a little abrupt. I do not think, however, that this is in any way a romance, as I’ve seen it shelved. It’s definitely Women’s Fiction.

I received an advance copy of this title in exchange for an honest review. I admit, I have a soft spot for these sort of lighthearted, contemporary romances. And the fact that it even had books in the title was a bonus. I enjoyed Nora as a protagonist and her mental health and existential struggles made her more dynamic. Not to mention she is a woman of color in a very white publishing industry.
I definitely think this book is intended for young women who may be trying to discover who they are, what they want in life and who to experience it with. That being said, I think a lot can be learned by her story.
Overall I enjoyed this book and will be purchasing it for our library.

This book was so much different than I expected, but in a pretty great way.

Nora is in what should be her dream job with a publishing company, but after five years as an editorial assistant; she not been promoted, she has had to take a significant pay cut while taking on more work, and she isn't interested in the kind of books her company is putting out. When she finds out about a part time freelancing position at a competing company, she enters into a conflict of interest by taking that position too.

When a best selling author comes up for a contract negotiation, she has to make some difficult decisions about her personal life, professional life, and what she wants for herself when all is said and done.

Don't let the cover fool you, this isn't a romantic comedy or a happy go lucky book. There are a lot of real discussions of mental health, of growing into oneself, and a really interesting look into the publishing world as a whole. That being said, those are the things that make this book so good. There is a romantic element. but it is balanced into the story of a young woman's journey of self discovery, rather than being the focal point.

This was a great debut from Shauna Robinson, and I'm looking forward to seeing what else will come from her!

Thank you to Sourcebooks for providing me an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

3 Stars! Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the copy.

Wonderful Debut by Shana Robinson! I was drawn to this story because of the title and description. I love books with a focus on book lovers. I thought this book was a little more of a women’s-fiction book than a romance book because it dealt with really heavy topics. I found the pace to be a little too slow for me and I didn't find myself absorbed in the story. I really enjoyed reading about Nora and Andrews's charm and humour.

Warning, I was expecting a fun and fluffy RomCom and got a deep and very heavy read. This book is about growth and finding yourself. A great debut from Shauna Robinson.

This book was not at all what I was expecting. Look at the cover and the blurb and now forget it because you are not getting a fluffy, light hearted read about a woman at a crossroads in her professional career. That's what it's supposed to be about but instead it's very heavy and self depreciating. That would be fine if it was clear but it's very misleading. Nora is very negative about her job and life but does nothing about it. Well she does take a second job with a rival publisher which is a no-no and it just snowballs into one lie after another after another.

While I was not triggered this book definitely needs a trigger warning as it deals with mental health issues, depression and suicidal thoughts.

I hope before this goes to print a TW/CW is added.

** Received ARC through NetGalley. Voluntarily reviewed **

Must Love Books isn't light-hearted and fluffy ... it's the story of pushing oneself beyond your boundaries, stepping outside of your comfort zone. Making mistakes and learning from them. It's the story of self discovery. It's about Nora, a woman who is at a crossroads in her life. Her job of five years has her overworked and way underpaid. Nora feels stuck.

Overall I enjoyed this book. Nora deals with a lot of really heavy feelings. I didn't feel that the synopsis really portrayed that and I found it misleading.

TW: Suicidal Thoughts. Depression.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark for my gifted copy!!

Nora is stuck in life and despondent.
She's about to celebrate her fifth anniversary at Parsons Press, but feels like there is nothing to celebrate.
Her co-worker and friend has moved onto a new job and the company keeps piling more work onto her coupled with a slash in pay.
It is a series of not great choices that catapults her into a position to force change.
And, along the way she finds that she is not alone on the journey.

Overall, this was a delight to read. There's a bit of romance, but it isn't super heavy. Rather, the focus of the plot line is more about finding oneself and making change.

I really loved how relatable Nora was despite unfortunate events happening to her. It just showed how realistic mental health could be.

This book made me take a step back and assess my mental state. And I realized, like Nora, you need all the support you can get.

This book gives us a little insight into the publishing world and how Nora navigates it. This book solely focuses on Noras growth and self discovery.

Trigger Warning - mental health issues.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for giving me a copy.