If you love the Tv show Love is Blind then you’ll love this book. Instead of talking to each other through a wall they are pen pals who build an emotional relationship with each other before ever seeing each other. I loved the relationship Zuri and Nicco built as well as all of the paper making history. This was the first book I have read by Kilby Blades and I can’t wait to read more!

An interesting look at online dating and dating apps. Filled with humor and laughing and possibly finding the one.

This was a really fun and sweet romcom. Loved the characters. It was a little slow moving in the beginning, but I ended up loving it.

Thank you to NetGalley & Entangled Publishing for this eARC in exchange for my honest review

As it was some time ago, I tried out a new author, my eye was drawn to the cover of Looks Good on Paper, And the blurb made me request it.

The story is about two brothers, who run a family business in producing paper, in Italy. Their last name is hilarious: Fabric are They produce (fabricated paper with care.. And the story is sweet and funny: Alessandro is the (temporarily) CEO of the business and Nico is on leave, due to personal problems. Alessandro is happy to hand over the writing of letters to his brother. The Pen Pal programm they have invented requires them to regularly write with Zuri, a customer service employee on the other side of the world. 0 Nico, who has been living as a recluse for months now, to avoid further scandal with his ex, the letters are a form of freedom. He can confide in Zuni in a way, he has not been able to do ever. But then, Zuri gets a possibility to travel. And what better destination then to visit her pen pal from Italy? Surprisingly, Alessandro is nothing like the person Zuri had imagined after all their letters. And now, he has to go on an unexpected business travel, leaving Zuri alone with his brother, Nico. Strangely, Zuri feels a lot more attraction to Nico then to Alessandro. Nico doesn’t know what to do: should he come clean to Zuri and tell her, he is the one she was writing letters to? Or should he keep it a secret, as Alessandro has asked him to?

When the train personnel goes on strike in Italy, Zuri finds herself stuck with Nico for a few more days. While learning everything about the art of creating paper, Zuri can’t help but wonder, what would have happened if she would have met Nico as a pen pal instead of Alessandro.

But as you know: something that looks good on paper, isn’t necessarily good in reality…

A great retelling with a twist. And definitely with a better ending than Cyrano the Bergerac. Loved it. Four out of five stars from me and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled for the ARC of this novel. This was a rote romance novel and I did enjoy it for the most part. To be honest, I started skimming closer to the end as I wanted to see how Nico's divorce from Vanessa would resolve itself and more about Zuri's learning about paper. It is always nice when both main characters need to go through growth in order to be worthy on one another rather than it always be the female protagonist who has to change. Some of the Italian characters seem stereotypical to a lowly American but hey stereotypes have a basis in reality. For me, it was very middle of the road.

A calm slow paced love story. I found Zuri's character relatable, working as a customer care person and battling her family problems. She feels realistic and well worked on. The fact that the hero and heroine haven't met and just talk through letters is interesting in today's world of text messages. Despite the chaos in Zuri and Nico's life, there's something really calming about this love story. I believe it's the pace of the story. But if you are a fan of/ are used to intense love stories where there's always something happening right from the beginning, this can turn out boring. This story will require you to be patient and see how real love blossoms.

Absolutely yes! I really enjoyed reading this novel. The characters were fun, it held my interest, and provided an escape from reality. I would definitely recommend!

I love a good epistolary romance, and this was no exception. It was a super sweet, very unique story. The imagery in this one was just unreal - I truly felt like I was IN the story.

There was something incredibly considered about this book which I thoroughly appreciated. The attention to detail whether it was about the process of paper-making or local foods, or why someone loves the things that they do, made this all the more believable, engaging and oh so special. Kilby’s incredible experience as a writer really shows and sets this romance apart from many others I’ve read.
I also really appreciated how the author deeply understood just how meaningful culture is to people. I have found this sorely lacking in a lot of American novels I have been reading of late. Delightfully, this book understood something that was deeply important to me and it really made me shine. The plot points, which I also won’t spoil, were just so fun. Simple, clever and executed so I really believed them. I’m so ready for this to become a film and I wish I could be the one to make it!

A calm slow paced love story. I found Zuri's character relatable, working as a customer care person and battling her family problems. She feels realistic and well worked on. The fact that the hero and heroine haven't met and just talk through letters is interesting in today's world of text messages. Despite the chaos in Zuri and Nico's life, there's something really calming about this love story. I believe it's the pace of the story. But if you are a fan of/ are used to intense love stories where there's always something happening right from the beginning, this can turn out boring. This story will require you to be patient and see how real love blossoms.

Fun and sweet, Looks Good On Paper is modern take on Cyrano de Bergerac complete with snail mail pen pal letters.

I loved the way Zuri and Nico get to know each other and become so connected through their letters.

This story is original and entertaining. It has just a touch of angst, an easy and really enjoyable read.
-5 Stars-

Zuri loves paper, gardening and solving business problems, besides that her life is a little messy. When she start a pen pal exchange with a man In Italy…is it to good to be true? Nico and his brother run a paper empire. When his brother decides to to the pen pal exchange…Nico decides to help him. As Zuri and Nico write to each other and open up to each other they are still trying to figure out their crazy personal lives. What happens when she gets a chance to go to Europe? What will happen when they finally meet. This was a cute read with fun characters. They each had their own set of problems but put their passion into writing each other. I would definitely read another book by this author.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The book that we bring you today tells us the story of Zuri, a girl who works as a telemarketer in the complaints section of a dating website, where she has been working for several years to be able to pay off the student loan she requested.
She has it clear that she is not going to find love through a dating app, because of everything she listens to daily. And she believes in traditional love, the one by letters.
When one of her favorite companies that manufacture paper organizes a pen pal, she signs up without thinking about it and, surprisingly, she will be writing with the CEO of the company, but she doesn't know.
When the CEO receives the first letter, he asks his brother, Nico, for help, since he doesn't know English very well. And he tells him to write the letters for him, creating a long period of correspondence with Zuri.
When Zuri decides to take the trip she's always wanted to Europe, she asks her pen pal if they want to meet (he's from Italy) and he's delighted with it. What will happen when they meet? Will Zuri find out that the name on the cards is not the same man she is talking to?

I must say that this book called me a lot it's summary and I knew, that this book was going to catch me. And literally, that's how it has been, I think I've never read so many pages of a book in English in a row.
Because at first, it seemed a little slower to me while the author was presenting the whole book to you, but then the book picked up intensity and you wanted to know what was going to happen between the two receivers of the letters and if they were going to do the right things.
A love by correspondence, who used to be love, that everyone wants to have one just as beautiful and romantic.
We see the evolution of the protagonist on that trip to Europe and how she opens and closes chapters that she should have closed a long time ago. As this trip gives her to think and get away from her whole life, it helps her to find herself. That train trip going through all the important places where paper is made has to be a beautiful adventure to do.

This was a very well written and interesting book. The author appears to have researched the background details in depth; this was a little too much information for me (just my personal preference). Nonetheless, this did not take away from the romance in the story. If anything it added to the real life aspect, that is the story was authentic not very superficial.

All in all, I loved this book and will definitely recommend to others.

Thank you to NetGalley & Entangled Publishing for this ARC. 

This book was a fun jaunt through Italy & the world of paper-making. While Looks Good on Paper wasn't life-changing, I enjoyed the time I spent with Nico & Zuri.

Here's what I liked: 
The premise of this book was intriguing, particularly as someone who is a total sucker for letter-writing. Bonus points for the additional intrigue of the brothers swapping identities. The pacing of the story was good; it moved along without feeling rushed or drawn-out. Likewise, for the romance, Blades gave Nico & Zuri the breathing room to be friends first before the romance started, which I appreciated immensely.

Romance novels are often deemed "simple." But those of us who read the genre know full well that this claim is a complete lie, as there are often many subplots happening throughout the course of the novel. Looks Good on Paper was a lovely change because there were really only two storylines happening throughout the novel, but that gave the reader the ability to really get in deep on both storylines rather than just having them as surface-level plot points. 

As someone who has a compulsive need to know things, I adored learning about the paper-making process. It never occurred to me that paper-making is an art form in and of itself, but I am sincerely grateful to Kilby Blades for helping me realize how much time & effort goes into quality paper. Stationery has always been a passion of mine too, so this novel was an all-around excellent learning experience. Another lovely thing about this book was the setting. You can really never go wrong with Italy as a backdrop, & the country lent itself really well to this story.

Over the course of the novel, Zuri wrestles with forgiving a past wrong & seeking closure from the guilty party. She also handles conflict with Nico's ex in a very mature way, which is always refreshing.

Here's what I did not like: 
Alessandro was needed to set up Zuri & Nico's storyline. I get that. But beyond that, he's pretty unnecessary. He's sort of like an anti-hero, but that's not the right word. I was overall pretty apathetic towards his involvement in the story.

I am aware that you need conflict in stories. But I really hate lying. Obviously, the story wouldn't have been very long if Zuri had shown up & Nico said, "Hey, it was actually me writing the letters & I think we should be friends," but I do personally prefer a partnership based on honesty rather than subterfuge.

Looks Good on Paper is an excellent choice for anyone who loves handwritten correspondence, Italy, & paper-making, or some combination of those three things.

Looks good on paper is a great romantic novel. It took me a few minutes to get into the book but I did love the characters and setting I could see this book as a movie playing in my head. It is well written and will keep you turning the page as you read more and more.

Rating 4/5
Plot 4/5
Spice 1/5
Writing 5/5
Character Development 4/5

[I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book]

“Looks Good on Paper” by Kilby Blades tells the story of Zuri Robinson and Alessandro Fabricare. All Zuri has ever wanted was to find a relationship that felt real to her and dating apps never worked. Zuri feels like her twenties are slipping by as her life has been filled with non-stop chaos (e.g. a terrible job and family drama). Her feelings change when she exchanges letters with a charming man from Italy called Alessandro Fabricare. However, Alessandro is not who he says he is. Nico Fabricare wanted to help his brother, Alessandro, as he isn’t eloquent in the English language. Nico decides to write a few letters, however the more that Nico writes to Zuri, the more he falls for her. Now Zuri is on her way to Italy to meet Alessandro and Nico is running out of time, to tell the truth, and win over the girl who’s been pining over the wrong Fabricare.

This was such a sweet and unique and entertaining novel! I love the pen pal trope especially when there’s that big reveal of who’s behind the letters (which we got)! I love how much the two main characters had in common and even seeing them together when Zuri visits Italy was a delight to see!

I was completely taken with the book from start to finish!

The FMC was lovable, well rounded, and I loved how she stayed true to herself throughout the book.
The letters she wrote to her mother and stepfather were amazing and pulled all the heart strings- her boundaries were the star of the show 🤩

The MMC was so cute and I love how he used Italian throughout without the story needing to stop to translate everything. The miscommunication/mistaken identity was handled in the least cringy way possible and I loved to be able to see into Nico's head about the identity issues.

TL;DR- I now need to travel to a small town in Italy and learn all about paper

The idea was so so good! I particularly loved the letter exchanges at the beginning. When Zuri decides to speak her mind through letters later, the build-up of her connection to writing and comfort for expressing herself through words makes her character so complete!

The reason I give this book three stars is the side characters of the story are not very developed, and I think their constant appearances without giving them much depth take away from the story. Alessandro ends up becoming a classic spoiled younger brother who just doesn't want to be there, and Bianca becomes something of a caricature villain. Maybe having Bianca set the brand back by making bad deals or her being the one dragging Nico's diverse settlements to make herself needed would have been some motivation. It just wasn't very clear what she was doing besides that Nico did not like her.

I did like the Nico-Zuri connection. I like that she didn't just forgive him at first, and I appreciated her writing him a letter and speaking her mind. Feeling the hurt and not shying away from the ugliness of the situation added a lot of emotional depth to the situation. Her "break up" letter to her stepfather was also a breath of fresh air, and so was the letter to her mother.

Overall, it was a fresh take on the mistaken identity Cyrano trope. While not my favorite read and a need for some added depth to the side characters, it was a fun adventure through love and paper manufacturing!

I have been a Kilby Blades fan since her first book. Her books are perfectly edited, always full of true respectful love, and involve people with one or more deep passions. This story involves Zuri from Oakland, California, whose most intense passion is paper. Wouldn't you know, she's pen pals with another paper enthusiast, Nico, living on the other side of the Atlantic in Salerno, Italy. Only she knows her pen pal as Alessandro, who is Nico's brother. She does not know that the two are young men in their early thirties, heirs to a widely marketed, 350-year-old paper company that started the pen pal program. Why Nico is writing for his brother or how Zuri falls into a bit of fortune from her lousy job as a service rep for a startup dating app and now can afford a trip to Europe are important parts of the plot. But, as always, it is the mystical, the magic, of the shared passion that begins to effect change in the characters. They begin to recognize their value, see new opportunities in their lives and develop the courage, forgiveness, and boundaries to create changes in reality. I highly recommend the pleasure of reading this book!