ARC Review: The Last Word

Thank you @stmartinspress for my copy of this book - it’s out now!

This book is a combination of some of my favourite tropes - workplace romance, second chance love story, enemies to lovers - swoon 😍

The burn on this one is slow but so worth it! Harper and Ryan are so meant to be, I was rooting for them from page one. There were so many moments throughout the story where I would have given anything for a dual POV, I was dying to hear how Ryan would be reacting internally to what was happening.

Harper made some big mistakes throughout this book, it made me want to pull my hair out. Despite this, I did love how she was an imperfect character that was still likeable despite her flaws. Her other relationships throughout the book are so deep, I felt like it really showed her character and kept me rooting for her even when I wanted to throw my kindle across the room 😂

Read this if you:
- Love a dramatic birth story that brings people together
- Are a believer in love at first sight and second chances
- Would fake a raffle for the sake of blossoming love

A workplace romance, will it be a second chance romance for Harper and Ryan or another heartbreak? Great read.

I loved the premise of the story, who doesn’t love an enemies to lovers, second chance romance, set in the workplace? This should have been my perfect cup of tea. Unfortunately I never fell for Ryan the way I should have.

For me to really love a romance I need to fall for both characters completely. I never felt a reason for Ryan to be a love interest when all he ever gave me was secondary character energy. There I said it. He wasn’t as dynamic or interesting as the author wanted him to be.

He completely allowed the woman he was interested in to get repeatedly degraded at work and did literally nothing to stop it. He withheld truths (to protect her), but ended up making it worse… twice. Really besides their playful banter I never felt the moment the two characters realized they were it for each other.

I wanted to like this more but I really think this would be better served as *sigh* womens fiction. Take out the romance aspect and serve up more women supporting women and you have a story of Harper creating a new life for herself after her professional and personal life implode. I think that would have been more interesting.

I wanted to love this one! And I think I would have if the FMC hadn’t grated on my nerves so bad. I mean… this woman was a train wreck.

Ryan was swoonworthy. Loved that man. He was sweet, considerate, just a big cinnamon roll of a man. Harper on the other hand was messy, and jumped to way too many conclusions.

This entire book was basically one big third act breakup and I just couldn’t get into it because of that. I need Harper to speak to people and not be so high strung and neurotic.

This novel did reach my expectations from its description! I truly enjoyed reading it. It was equally funny and romantic. At the beginning, I had a little bit of difficulty seeing the direction of the plot line because it was slightly journalism heavy. However, the banter between our two MCs definitely made up for it. I would definitely reccoment this book as a quick and easy to read romance novel.

I love Katy Birchall books so was very much looking forward to this one! Unfortunately, I just didn't connect with the story and it was a bit slow moving to get through. I didn't fall in love with the characters like I usually do and the story felt like it could have been tightened up a good bit.

Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC of this book!

✨The Last Word by Katy Birchall✨

Genre: Romance
Pages: 384

📚 Harper Jenkins is at the top of her game. A brilliant, determined journalist with a well-known knack for getting tight-lipped Hollywood stars to open up to her, Harper loves her job as Celebrity Editor at a newspaper’s glossy weekend magazine and has the best contacts in the business.

But when her awful boss hires talented reporter Ryan to be the new Features Editor, Harper is furious. Because the two have met before: a decade ago, they were interns at the same publication, where they fell into a whirlwind romance…until Ryan betrayed Harper, and they never spoke again.

Thrown together in a busy newsroom, their dynamic is a disaster from the start. They can’t agree on anything and bicker constantly—Ryan can’t bear how chaotic and messy Harper is; Harper finds Ryan’s condescending nature infuriating. They clash over who’s writing what article, and fight over who’s going to which event.

Yet as they’re forced to spend more and more time together, Harper realizes she may have misjudged Ryan and can’t help but feel a spark growing between them. Long buried feelings start to resurface and, when they’re thrown together on
a romantic press trip abroad, their chemistry comes to a head.

But all is fair in love and magazines, and with the news that layoffs across the department are imminent, Harper is left to wonder: who will get the last word?

📝For fans of The Hating Game by Sally Thorne, this is right up your alley! An enemies-to-lovers workplace romance filled with witty banter and lots of tension.

💫Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for my ARC💫
For more book reviews, please follow me @literaturewithalatte

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for early access to this story!

This is a fun enemies to lovers, workplace romance as well as second chance romance. I think I liked Ryan more than Harper but overall the characters were all enjoyable, Mimi was a great best friend! I enjoyed the flashbacks in the timeline, keeping you guessing on how things happened in the past to end up with the present situation between Ryan and Harper. I loved the end result with her family and sister, it felt like most of the elements in question were wrapped up nicely at the end of the story. I will continue to read anything Katy Birchall writes, I think this was a solid 4 star for me (her first book The Secret Bridesmaid was a 5 star for me, for comparison).

Would recommend to friends who like all things British. If you enjoyed The Hating Game this is very similar in workplace banter/enemies/rivals working toward the same positions/goals! I thoroughly enjoyed the setting in England!

I loved the Secret Bridesmaid by Birchall, so I was excited going into this - and I was not disappointed! This has easy, breezy summer read written all over it. I couldn't help but root for Harper and Ryan from the very beginning, so I loved the arc of their story, and Birchall has a gift for storytelling! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love you to the dynamic between Harper and Ryan, I love a second chance romance. I love enemies to lovers books in this was done so well. I did find that their banter got a little repetitive and redundant at times but overall I really enjoyed the their characteristics.

As much as it pains me to DNF one of my most anticipated reads of 2023 this just wasn't the book for me. Both of Katy Birchall's previous works had me laughing out loud and loving all of the characters but this one did not. Harper was one of the most petty people I have read about. I love a good enemies to lovers but this one was just absurd. Additionally I am 67% of the way through the book and the events talked about in the synopsis have not happened yet so I am a bit confused. However the main reason I have DNFed this book is a bit of a spoiler so do not continue reading if you do not want to risk it.


I HATE cheating plot devices and the way it is used in this book are pointless and turned me off from reading further. I do not care if her boyfriend was cheating on her, it does not excuse her from kissing Ryan. The whole situation could have been avoided and added absolutely nothing to the plot. Then her friends were like "how could you just leave after kissing him" umm that is what you took away from that story not that your friend is a cheater?!

I will look into her next book since she is one of my auto buy authors I just could not with this book.

"The Last Word" by Katy Birchall would be an excellent recommendation for someone who likes a slow-burn workplace romance. Harper is a three dementional character whose personality jumps off the page. Her eccentricities and quirks, as well as her overall behavior, really make her standout as a someone we'd associate with in real life. She also infuses her sunshine and positivity into every single interaction, leaving you with a smile on your face and some warmth in your heart.

My concerns with this book was pacing. The story started SO slowly to me that I almost lost interest. I thought this was being marketed as a romance, but unfortunately I didn't even realize who the romantic interest was until about 40% into the book. I would have liked to have some interaction with Ryan and Harper sooner to build more tension.

Finally, I think that Harper's anger toward Ryan was a bit over the top. considering he didn't really engage with her at all. Her animosity didn't feel realistic in the sense that it was so one-sided. There was nothing for her to feed off of.

Knowing that this was a slow burn would have been nice to know up front, but now that I know the author's style I'll know what to pacing to expect for next time.

PS. Liam Sucks.

The Last Word by Katy Birchall
.
Work place rivals to lovers? Yes please!

This is the story of Harper who is a journalist at a magazine. She has worked hard to get where she is. So when Ryan is hired to work right next to her, she is furious! Because there is history there, and if he betrayed her once he won’t hesitate to do it again.
.
This was a fun read that I flew through. I loved how sweet and empathetic Harper was at her job! Her interactions with all the celebs she interviewed in the book made me so happy. Her rivalry with Ryan was entertaining to read. And it was really fun to see them relax and start to work together towards the middle of the story.
.
4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Would definitely recommend for a fun read.

I liked this book but I went in having high hopes. The Secret Bridesmaid (her other book) is one of my favorites. I finished it in an afternoon and it had me laughing out loud the whole time. This book was decent. But just not as a good as the other one. Which is a bummer.

Full of classic tropes - enemies to lovers, second chance & workplace romance, I was hooked right away and found the dual timelines equally interesting. I loved how smart, strong and determined Harper was and thought Ryan was a swoony main male character; I would have loved to have his POV! I also loved the London setting and side stories about celebrities and Harper’s family. Overall I would recommend this one!

GENERAL INFO

Date Published: 5/2/23

Date read: 5/17/23

Format: Kindle

Source: e-ARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Page Count: 376

Setting: London

Genre: CR, Rom-Com

Tropes: enemies to lovers, opposites attract, office romance, 2nd chance romance, forced proximity

Standalone/Cliffhanger/Part of a Series: standalone

HEA/HFN ending: HEA

Epilogue Included: yes, 1 yr. later

Character(s)POV Spoken: h Harper, 1st person narration

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Synopsis/Plot Summary:

Harper Jenkins is a brilliant, determined journalist well-known for getting Hollywood celebrities to open up to her. When her boss hires reporter Ryan Jannson to be the new Features Editor, Harper is furious. They have a sorted past from 10 years ago that ended badly. Now they must work together without killing each other.

M/F-M/M-M/M/F-etc: M/F

Representation: journalists, celebrity

Contains Cheating:

Contains Children: no

Flashbacks: yes, July 2012 when Harper and Ryan meet as interns


CHARACTER DESCRIPTION

Hero: Ryan Jannson

Hero Description: Features Editor. Quiet, neat, punctual.

Hero Likability Rating: 4

Heroine: Harper Jenkins

Heroine Description: Celebrities Editor. Chaotic, always late, but great at her job getting celebs to open up.

Heroine Likability Rating: 4

Secondary characters:
Mimi-Harper's bff
Cosmo-Harper's elitist boss
Juliet-Harper's estranged sister

H /h RELATIONSHIP INFO

OW/OM/Exes: Harper's ex Liam-dated 3 mos

Cheating Before/During/Outside H/h Relationship: no


AUTHOR OVERVIEW
Katy Birchall
New or read before & any favorites: new author

PERSONAL OVERVIEW

Overall Rating: 4*

Do You Recommend This Book: yes

Will You Re-read This Book: yes

Would You Read More Books by this Author: yes

I picked up The Last Word by Katy Birchall as I have read her other books and love her writing. The Last Word is a lovely read with funny characters.

Harper works for a weekend magazine with an infuriating boss. Harper loves her job and does very well at it. Her happiness changes when her boss hires Ryan with whom Harper has a past. They had a whirlwind romance until Ryan betrayed Harper. They now have to work together in close quarters falling into old times again. When cuts loom at the paper, will it affect them?

I really enjoyed this book. It is a little slow starting but I do notice that with her books. She likes to establish the characters before really diving in. The characters are well thought out. Ryan was a little aggravating at first but grew on me. I liked Harper's spunk and that she gets along so well with the people she interviews. Katy Birchall is a wonderful author and really pulls the reader into the story. This one isn't as deep as The Wedding Season but it was a lovely read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katy Birchall, and St Martin's Press for the e-ARC. This review is my own opinion.

I recevied a advanced copy of the last word, from Netgalley for my honest review. I liked the duel time frame of Harper and Ryan and the second change romance... I found it some times predictable however a fun read!
3.5 stars ! ! !

Overall I enjoyed this one. I liked all the journalism talk as I haven’t read many books about that topic.

I really loved Ryan. I thought he was super caring and sweet. Harper on the other hand, I was no a fan of. She was immature and just all over the place and unprofessional. I wished we had Ryan’s POV because I was getting a little over Harper by the end.

Mimi and the other characters were great and I loved Ryan’s parents. It was still enjoyable despite my annoyance with Harper.

Very cute rom com where Ryan and Harper former interns who had a messy brief romance find themselves to be coworkers again. Harper and Ryan seem to not get along but underneath it all do they love each other?