If it has a bookish setting, count me in! I love a quick romance and this book delivered. I love the writing style and the premise to this, meeting your idol and them not being exactly what you imagined. This book doesn't have the spice, but it's a sweet story with characters that grow on you. I read Lauren Kate as a teen and was excited to see she is publishing adult romance as well!

I definitely recommend this book.

Thank you #Netgalley for providing me an ARC for my honest opinion

This was the sweetest rom-com I've read this year. I know it's only the end of February, but still, I think this book is so good.

By Any Other Name has everything I want in a romantic comedy:
-A super sweet romantic interest
-Supportive friends with memorable personalities (although they could have had more agency outside of what Lanie was doing)
-Quirky outings
-A love of books and literature
-A wholesome romance that makes my heart swell

Absolutely in love with this one. Please read it when this book officially comes out on March 1st!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a review!

I will be the first to say that I judge a book by it's cover. I am working to undo that, but old habits die hard. So, when I was approved for By Any Other Name, I thought it was going to be a steamy rom com about the publishing world. I was definitely off! It was a fun, largely clean book about America's favorite romance author (Noa Callaway) and Laney, Noa's new editor. Noa is Laney's literary idol and Laney has corresponded with Noa for years and struck up a genuine friendship since she worked with Noa's previous editor. Unfortunately, Noa has writer's block and Laney is promoted as long as Noa can write the next best seller in only 3 months time. Laney offers to help which is when Laney discovers that Noa is actually Noah, a man. So crazy! Can you imagine if some of the world's biggest romance writers were duped for years?
While shocked and upset, Laney soon grows to know the real Noah and starts to fall for him.

I really loved this book's concept and I loved how pure and honest their friendship turned to love was written. I also loved how NYC was a secondary character, and I just really loved that aspect of the story. It would have been fun to have some chapters from Noah's perspective. since he has clearly loved Laney for some time.

I loved it. Every single page, every word. Every character, friendship, adventure. I just finished and I don’t want it to be over.

As a lifelong lover of romance books and someone who works in the industry, it makes me some how fictional books depict both. But this did it oh so well. A new take I’ve never seen before, told respectfully and beautifully.

I’d also do almost anything for a copy of Lanie’s fall in love in NYC list. Pllllease add it to the book.

By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate is a very sweet read. If you need spice, this isn't the best pick for you, but it's super charming. This book helped me get over a reading slump and think it'll be a delight to anyone who picks it up. It combines catfishing and the Cyrano trope into a new thing then twists it. Very fresh and lovely. I definitely recommend this.

By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate

Lanie works for a publishing company that represents one of the most popular romance authors of all time. She has been a fan of Noa Calloway since she was in college and it’s always been her dream to work with her. The problem is that Noa has writer’s block and is late delivering her latest manuscript. Noa is elusive and difficult to deal with and if Lanie can’t get her to finish her book then she can kiss her job goodbye. It’s a shock for Lanie when she finally meets her idol only to find out that she isn’t at all what Lanie expected.

This was a quick and entertaining read. This is my first book by this author and I really liked her writing style. I loved Lanie’s relationship with her grandmother, her best friends Meg and Rufus and even Lanie’s fiance, Ryan. The author spends a good amount of time fleshing out the characters in the beginning of the book so we really get to know them.

I love books where the characters are authors or part of the literary world. It adds such a fun, inside look into the process of writing and publishing a book. The romance in this story is top notch…I was swooning. I’m not sure if enemies-to-lovers is a good way to categorize this one as the main characters are never enemies…it’s more a misunderstanding that they slowly get over. There’s definitely a slow burn and no spice, which was surprising because there were a few moments that felt like they were about to get heated! The romance makes up for the lack of spice though, and I really enjoyed the slow burn.

This book was pretty short and the ending was abrupt! I loved the way it ended, but I really wanted more time with them as a couple. An epilogue would have been perfect! Overall I really enjoyed this and will be on the lookout for more books by this author.

This was a short and sweet read. At first I felt like the story was a bit rushed but as the story went on I better understood the timeline and how it fit the story perfectly. This was my first Lauren Kate story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Noa and La one’s story is a cute heart warming story where they both discover that they want the same things. I enjoyed watching the growth of their professional and personal relationship and how they finally realized what they both liked about themselves. I feel like we could’ve gotten more from the characters, but I’m also content with how the story developed and the ending for both Noa and Laine. I will say it had me planning a trip to Italy!

Sigh. I’m such a sucker for books about books.

By Any Other Name is such a delightful read. I finished it in one sitting. Lauren Kate’s flawless descriptive writing and the witty banter kept the pages turning.

Lanie and Noah’s slow burn, “enemies” to lovers romance is heartwarming and hilarious. The banter is witty and sharp and the supporting characters add to the story. The NYC setting was perfect.

While the relationship build up is incredibly romantic, Lanie’s character development felt equally important and necessary. There’s really not a lot to complain about. Lauren Kate’s writing feels like a hug that left me not wanting this beautiful contemporary romance to end.

Thank you Putnam and Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Holy f*** this book was so good! It starts a bit slowly and I could have done with less of Ryan but I don’t even care. I want a Noah. That ending! I mean I’m seriously fighting tears right now with how sweet it was.

This is a wonderful book and it is hard to say anything about it without giving away spoilers. Lanie is an editor for a smaller publisher in NYC and her biggest author is late submitting her next book. This book has just the right level of detail and has left me wanting to go see the sights mentioned in the book. Looking forward to reading more of Lauren Kate’s books.

I received a free copy of this book to review through NetGalley.

I really like this new trend of rom-com books and movies about writers. By Any Other Name is one such book. It is a slow-burn friends-to-lovers romance set in New York City. The main heroine Lanie Bloom, an editor, gets a once-in-a-lifetime chance to work with her literary idol and the writer who inspired her carrier, the very reclusive Noa Callaway. Noa is experiencing writer's block and Lainie is tasked with helping Noa to write and deliver the new manuscript on time.

I thoroughly enjoyed By Any Other Name. I loved the NYC setting and many Positano references. I loved Lanie and Noa's sometimes turbulent relationship, and I loved Lanie's friends and her hilarious grandmother. This book has zero steam, which usually is not my jam, but the romance was so good, I didn't even care.

When I saw this was Lauren Kate, the same Lauren Kate I read as a teen I was so excited to grab this ARC.

This book was so sweet and charming. When you think enemies to lovers the love interest is usually a lovable a-hole. But not this guy.

They say you aren’t supposed to meet your idols. What happens when you meet the person who literally changed your life and they aren’t the person you thought they were?

Well buckle up and settle in for this swoon-worthy story.

At the beginning of this book I very much found Lanie to be annoying. I admired her gumption and the path she took to fulfill her dreams but her determination to have the perfect man and love irked me. I did however love that she was Jewish because it’s not everyday I read about a Jewish FMC.

Noah was so darn cute! He wasn’t an asshole per say but he was super sarcastic and blunt which I loved. Noah is a man in love with love hiding behind his writing afraid to love again.

I loved that they developed this special relationship behind the scenes without really knowing each other in real life. The only reason this book wasn’t 5 stars is because I wanted more. I wanted more of them as a couple and exploring each other. I think we see soo much of them as friends and not so much as lovers.

I adored the twist on the novel in the end. It was so beautiful! This was a quick and happy read. I hope you guys enjoy!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Thank you Lauren Kate and Penguin Group Putnam for this ARC

I love a book with a bookish setting, so I was excited to read about Lanie, an editorial assistant at a romance publishing company who gets promoted to editor when her boss unexpectedly decides not to return from maternity leave. The catch is that she has to deliver a best-selling novel from an author whose draft is already months late. Lanie is excited and anxious about taking over editorial duties for her company's marquee author, romance giant Noa Callaway. She's never met the author before, but reading a Noa Callaway book in college was what helped Lanie develop her entire framework for love, something she struggled with after losing her mother. Unfortunately, when she meets Noa in person, she gets a huge shock, which makes it really challenging for her to keep everything on track to get the book ready and keep her promotion. I liked Lanie as a character, and loved her friends Meg and Rufus and her eccentric grandmother BD. This was a cute and quick read.

Oh my goodness, I ended up enjoying this book so much more than I was expecting!! Enemies-to-lovers who have a constant battle of wits while balancing each other out perfectly to make them characters you quickly fall in love with and root for. These two had me kicking, screaming, and crying the whole way through and ultimately left me wanting to throw confetti around them and wrap them up in a big hug at the end. Lanie's character development was handled so well and I really appreciated that she was capable of growing out of her biases to make tough decisions that weren't excruciatingly drawn out throughout the book. Noah is a precious cinnamon roll that deserves all the love in the world and I'm so glad that his and Lanie's paths crossed! Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley, G.P. Putnam's Sons, & Penguin Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This in no way affected my review, opinions are my own.

DNF @ 44% / pg126

Everything was going fine for me until we got to the big reveal (which is heavily hinted to in the synopsis). The MCs reaction to said big reveal seemed completely disproportionate to me, and I was really struggling to care after page after page of her losing her mind over something that really didn't seem like THAT big of a deal.

In that same vein, the MC was super rude to the author after meeting them, and made pretty intense statements re: their character which seemed eye-rollingly unnecessary and not reflective of the interactions between them.

Maybe these things are sufficiently explained later on, but I was not invested enough to find out.

Lanie Bloom gets the opportunity of a lifetime to take over as Noa Callaway's editor for the next romance novel that's sure to sweep the nation. Noa is secretive and particular, and this promotion means Lanie will finally get to see behind the curtain and meet the person she's been emailing with for 7 years.

[SPOILER]

This book could have been SO GOOD, but the most intriguing parts of it felt unexplored. Noa and Lanie have been email friends for 7 years - they know intimate details of each other's lives - and yet the implications of finding out Noa's true identity for that friendship are never really explored. I also can't put my finger on it exactly, but Lanie's reaction to finding out Noa is really Noah felt odd. She never explores why she feels so tied to Noa being a woman and there's largely no commentary on this very gendered aspect of the book.

The book also needed an epilogue or something to tie up the loose ends. We don't know what happens after the secret is revealed or really anything beyond the confession of feelings between Noah and Lanie.

[END SPOILER]

Had some of the loose ends in this book been tied up more completely or in different ways, I would have rated it higher than I did. As is, I'd give it 3.5 stars. Entertaining enough to finish, but not ultimately particularly satisfying.

Content warnings: Death of parents, cognitive decline/Alzheimers disease

Thanks to Putnam and NetGalley for the gifted copy. All opinions are my own.

Loved this book! I couldn’t wait to find moments to sit and read. The main character was likeable, there were some surprises, some travel scenes, and a lot of dreamy NYC moments. It is a definite read again book for me. Thank you Net Galley for the advanced copy and to the author for the cute story.

#34. By Any Other Name - Lauren Kate. 02-20-22. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
What I loved about this book:
✨all the bookish behind the scenes and the book within the book
✨Lanie and Noah’s friendship first romance
✨Grandma BD, Meg, & Rufus
✨loved the ending but also hated it because I want more

This was a sweet romance even though it was all very predictable. Since it’s a romance, we all know who the mysterious author will turn out to be and that he and the heroine will fall in love and have a HEA. But the road there was fun to read and I especially liked the heroine’s group of friends and her grandmother who helped her cope with breaking up with one fiance and gaining a new boyfriend.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.

This book instantly gives you all the feels. It is fun, exciting and you can't help but root for Lanie. This book will have you laughing and crying. One of the best contemporary romances I have read in a long time.