Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Ms. Birchall for the opportunity to read an ARC of this title. An honest review was requested but not required.

This was billed as a readalike to "The Hating Game" and I guess it SORT of is that, although there are less pranks and little microaggressions here and more outright bickering (which I found a bit childish). Frankly, their squabbling over the last word was so frequent and so heated that it made ME a bit uncomfortable and I felt sorry for the office staff that would have to squirm while these two babies were duking it out.

Short aside: Harper is a quintessential Manic Pixie Dream Girl™, which is my personal unfavorite character type and which annoyed me relentlessly. I tried really hard to be objective about this, because it's not fair to downgrade a book because of personality differences between reader and main character, but it is what it is. Consider yourself warned, if you are also a person who strongly dislikes MPDGs™.

Anywho. I found myself more interested in Harper's career, and her personal growth in her relationship with her family members, than in her relationship with Ryan. Frankly, it's just his bad luck that he was put in an extremely awkward position, twice. Could he have handled it better? Sure. Was Harper's reaction extra Extra? Uh. Yes. (A reaction completely in line with her MPDG™ status, IMHO.) They were cute enough together but I was much more invested in Harper's podcast and her freelance career, not to mention her reestablished relationship with her sister. One thing I will say for Harper: she is CLEARLY very good at her job (a good thing, when you're a workaholic). I will admit to rooting for her to succeed professionally and to give that turd Cosmo what he deserved.

A cute, well-written story like all of Birchall's work I've read so far, but I think I personally have preferred her other books, romance-wise.

This is the third spring in a row that I've read a new release from Katy Birchall, and I've loved each book (The Secret Bridesmaid, The Wedding Season, and now The Last Word).

While her books are technically rom-coms, they aren't so saturated with romance that the plot feels predictable. I loved the characters in this book, especially Harper, and I was so happy with the ending and epilogue!

I definitely recommend grabbing this one for your summer reading.

3.75 stars

If you enjoy rivals-to-lovers with a dose of “he’s been crazy about her all along,” The Last Word is going to be a new favorite.

Typically, I like dual POV in romance because I like to have the insight into both characters. However, in this book, author Katy Birchall absolutely make the right decision and writes the entire story in Harper’s POV. As a reader, you really understand the way that Harper thinks, which can be as charming of an experience as it is infuriating. There were a couple of times during my reading when I didn’t quite see how Harper had gotten to the place that she was, but as a whole, I think the story was entertaining.

Overall, this is pretty minimal on angst, and more comedic in tone. And it definitely feels evocative of books like The Hating Game.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

Set in London Harper Jenkins is a dedicated journalist covering entertainment and is a Celebrity Editor at newspaper. She is very fair to those she interviews and respectful of her sources to them. Her boss doesn’t get her or the value of celebrity news. She also is easily dismissed by her parents who are both lawyers. This seems more general fiction as so much is focused on her reporting and getting interviews. But of course it is a romance too. Enter hunky Scandinavian Ryan Jansson. He is hired on as the new features editor. She doesn’t fess up to her co-workers that they have a past. Ten years before they were interns at the same publication and competitors for the same job. They also had a steamy weekend before going their separate ways.

This has a little of the Hating Game vibe as she tries to keep Ryan from the features she is writing. Ryan is sweet and a little too tongue tied. I’d have liked him to speak up about their past earlier and I wanted him to speak out against the misogynist treatment from their boss. But overall this is entertaining and very enjoyable. I’ve previously enjoyed The Wedding Season and The Secret Bridesmaid from the author and can I will continue to look for future books.

4 stars!

I thoroughly enjoyed "The Last Word" by Katy Birchall. The story starts off a little slowly, but it gradually blossoms into an intriguing, compelling enemies-to-lovers, second-chance workplace romance that I was invested in all the way. I liked the main characters, Harper and Ryan, both together and individually. They both grow tremendously as people by the end of the book, and they have terrific character arcs from start to finish. I found their bickering to be funny and silly, but I can see why others might be put off by it. There is also a fabulous supporting cast of characters here. My one complaint is that this is a fairly predictable story. It doesn't deviate from the winning enemies-to-lovers formula much, but it's written so well that I didn't mind at all. Author Katy Birchall made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion with her quippy, entertaining writing. I also loved Karen Cass's audiobook narration! I thought she had a fantastic wit about her, which gave authenticity to these characters and made them feel more realistic than they may have otherwise. She's a fabulous narrator! Overall, I liked this book way more than something like, say, "The Hating Game," perhaps because the characters are so much more enjoyable and so much less toxic. Give this one a read ASAP!

Thank you to NetGalley, Katy Birchall, and St. Martin's Press/St. Martin's Griffin for providing me with an ARC copy of this book! All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for my review.

If you’re looking for a book with an enemies to lovers, second chance office romance, then definitely check this one out!

I could not stop reading this once I started. It was amazing to see Harper at the top of her game and becoming the most highly sought after celebrity journalist, and Ryan became so funny when he came out of his shell.

But personally, Harper started to grate on me when she seemed to be constantly looking for an argument with Ryan. She would explode with every little thing instead of just taking a moment to assess the situation. And it kind of seemed unprofessional to me that she was doing this at work. I understand her boss falls into that “man who thinks a woman’s job is pointless and a man could do it better” trope, but she should have just quit and moved on.

Aside from that I really enjoyed this one. It was a slow burn romance that not only had her rediscovering her feelings, but also rekindling her relationship with her estranged sister.

I highly recommend this one!

I have been trying to read several of Katy Birchall’s previous books for a while (still sitting on Libby waiting lists), so I’m very happy I was approved for a review copy of The Last Word. I really enjoyed it now I’m very excited to read her previous works!

This workplace, second chance romance, sort of enemies to lovers was really a lot of fun, and such a unique, interesting story. I loved every minute and the dynamics of the friendships that Harper had with her coworker friends was really good. Her immense dislike of new coworker Ryan stems from a past that is explained along the way, and starts to make more sense as you read - told in a few brief flashbacks.

She is a star celebrity reporter for a magazine where the new boss didn’t understand or value what she does and how much readership her articles brought in, and constantly belittles her. He brings in her former work co-intern and fling from 10+ years ago as a new features editor and starts giving all of her assignments to him… and she sees the writing on the wall. Too bad her former attraction was coming back to the surface - but she has a boyfriend, so that’s got to be just a trick of the imagination.

The comparison (in the blurb) to The Hating Game and Beach Read is spot-on, but I’d also argue Dirty Headlines in the mix. A great mash-up feeling of these three books by three great authors, but of course it’s a unique one all its own, written by a great author and I can’t wait to get my hands on her others. I definitely recommend this to all romance readers, especially fans of her other books and those who have enjoyed the ones it’s been compared to - it was really very good! Solid 4-star.

I received an advance review copy from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press (St. Martin's Griffin), and this is my honest feedback.

Harper and Ryan. Classic enemies to lovers. Maybe. They profess to hate each other. But do they?

I really enjoyed Harper being a celebrity columnist. Her job clearly was very important to her and I enjoyed the behind the scenes of that.

The romance part was juts okay for me. I kept wanting something more. It dragged on so long until we got the them actually being together. But I liked both characters and their storyline outside of romance was very interesting to me.

I had both ALC and ARC copies. I found the audio more engaging for sure. I enjoyed despite the slow start and would read this author again.

Many thanks to NetGalley, MacMillan Audio and St. Martin's Press for the ALC and ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to the author, Katy Birchall, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for giving me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book will be published on May 2, 2023.

Majority of the time, I try to go into a book knowing as little as possible. If I had known this was going to be more of a general fiction with a romance, I think I would’ve enjoyed it better.

The beginning was a little slow for me because we got into her work life and I wasn’t expecting it and at the time I didn’t care for it. But as the story went, her work life got more interesting and I enjoyed that.

When the romance started to come in I was enjoying the banter, but as it went, the FMC became insufferable. It got to the point where she was bickering with the MMC just to bicker with him and it came off as immature. When it came around to why they stopped talking in the past and present timeline, I was annoyed because of the miscommunication and that she was talking to at him instead of to him.

Despite that, when they were being friendly, I really enjoyed reading about that. I liked that the FMC realized that the MMC wasn’t trying to be rude or stand-offish, he was just an introvert. I also enjoyed that they finally came to understand each other even when they are complete opposites.

Harper Jenkins is at the top of her game as a Celebrity Editor focused on building relationships and getting the stars she interviews to open up to her. Her former work nemesis Ryan Jansson is hired as the new Features Editor and is a fast favorite of her boss who fails to see the value in her work. Ten years have passed since what almost was between the couple, and as Ryan and Harper continue to be thrown together, Harper realizes Ryan is so much more than she’s given him credit for.

I really enjoyed Harper coming into her own and finding satisfaction in how she values herself, rather than how she measures up to others’ expectations. I was disappointed in how the third-act break up played out and would have wanted to see more empathy from Harper. I loved Ryan’s character and that I know I would pick up more of him communicating his feelings along the way in a reread.

You’ll Find —
Enemies to Lovers
Workplace Romance
Second Chance
Forced Proximity


Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for the gifted digital review copy!

Compare it to The Hating Game and I’m gonna read it. I enjoy a good enemies-to-lovers or workplace rivals love story, and this one hits just right. Harper is a wildly successful celebrity journalist, a favorite among the stars for her sensitivity and in-depth personal interviews. When her overbearing and clueless boss hires her former work rival Ryan to join her in the newsroom, she’s taken right back to her internship ten years ago when they had a passionate love affair before he betrayed her. Determined to show him just how fine she is these days and how little he affects her, Harper and Ryan butt heads at every turn - him the uptight, condescending high-brow features writer and her the messy, chaotic celebrity editor. When they’re sent on a romantic press trip to Italy, they’re forced to admit to themselves and each other that maybe they’re misjudging the other and actually get along quite well. But when news breaks that there are potential cuts coming at the magazine, it brings back the past betrayals and the pair are left wondering if history is about to repeat itself or if they’ll manage to make it work this time around.

Read if You Like:
🥈 Second Chance Romances
🔥 Rivals/Enemies to Lovers
💼 Workplace Romances
✨ Celebrity Gossip
✍🏻 Writer MC’s

This one felt like a departure from Katy’s prior books and it just missed the mark for what I was expecting based on the way she wrote her prior books.

I found myself lacking being invested in Harper and Ryan’s story of a second chance at romance. I truly hated that the reason for their first break up was repeated into their second and felt like neither character had experienced any growth.

I did enjoy the ending and was so happy to see Harper taking control of her life and finding her place for success.

If you are looking for a solid second chance/enemies to lovers in a workplace setting I would recommend this one for that. Thanks so much to the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This book was so cute, I loved the characters and I loved the back and forth rapport between the characters, especially the two main characters. I think having them as journalists in the same kind or career was a bit of a different plot point I haven’t seen recently and I liked it a lot. Also, before Harper started a podcast at the end, it was actually my first thought. She would be great at a podcast. She’s great at talking with the people she interviews and really gets them to open up and establishes a great relationship with when. Actually, this great trait she has at talking with people, listening to them and giving them the benefit of the doubt is the reason why I actually really had a problem with her not giving Ryan the benefit of the doubt and allowing him enough time to explain his viewpoint or his side of things. Why is she great at that with everyone else but bad at that with Ryan? That was probably the only part that didn’t make sense to me. She was being way too dramatic about a lot of stuff related to him without thinking about how he feels. Overall, I really loved the book and would strongly recommend it.

Thank you Katy Birchall and St. Martin’s Griffin Publishing for the advanced reader copy of The Last Word.

This was a lovely read and I am rating this a 3.75 stars! This story follows our FMC Harper while she exceptionally soars within her position at the Narrative as the celebrity editor, while combating her Editor in Chief Cosmo for the importance of her role.

Enter Ryan, a previous co-worker with whom she has a tumultuous past, coming in to shake up her world, yet again. Is he going to push her for the better or for the worse?

This is a take on an enemy to lovers, workplace romance with some forces proximity. There are quite a few gripes thrown into this novel, with each one being pretty successful. The banter between our two main characters was very well written.

Overall, I found this story to be cute with some fun side characters.

Digital Advanced Copy received from the Publisher via NetGalley.

Ryan and Harper met while interning at the same newspaper and had a brief yet intense romance. Ten years later, they find themselves once again working side by side and the sparks fly as they argue their way through the day. If you’re into the Romance novel tropes, this checks a lot of the boxes (too many, for sure) but I did like the characters well enough for this to be an enjoyable reading experience.

This was such a cute and sweet read. I loved the journalist aspect I found it really interesting and fun. It starts off as enemies and lovers and workplace romance. I loved all the side characters. I didn’t love the third act break up, it felt a little immature. I loved the opposites attract vibes. Ryan was sweet but I wish he was more open about his feelings for Harper so we could have avoided some of the drama. I liked the side plot of her relationship with her sister and parents. It started off a little slow but it picked up.

Katy Birchall's notched herself firmly into an auto-read author for me. Her latest book, The Last Word, rides the line more towards romance than her previous women's fiction stories, it 5/2, and is delightful.

A decade ago, Ryan and Harper were journalist interns battling for a permanent job at a magazine. They also had a few HOT days together until the outcome of their job war and they've resented each other since. Now, Ryan's a new editor at Harper's magazine and they still banter and fight, like good co-workers to enemies to friends to lovers to enemies to coworkers do.

What I loved -
*Such good, sparky enemy banter. These two could go rounds with their barbs and sarcasm and I was here for it!

*Loved the journalism aspect. It was my middle school/high school job goal and that part was very interesting to me. I also enjoyed the celebrity journalism angle.

*Fun side characters - those meddling co-workers.

*A sexy romance balanced with harder topics - workplace equality, print vs digital media, family relationships and expectations.

*The ending. I definitely cheered.

Overall thoughts -
While this book was pretty slow to start for me, it eventually picked up and was a very enjoyable read. The first part is very focused on Harper and her job, but it does set the tone for how important her career is to her and its impact on her life and relationships. The dual timelines from past and present were a good addition to understand their past circumstances and interaction, and served to explain a lot of Harper's behaviors. There's lots of tropes - enemies, coworkers, forced proximity - are well executed. I look forward to whatever Katy writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Thank you so much to St Martin's Press & St Martin's Romance for an advance copy of this book!

This book will be published on May 2nd.

MY GOODNESS DID I LOVE THIS BOOK! The banter, the angst, the tension between the two characters was just perfection. Growing up I wanted to be a journalist who interviewed celebrities so that being Harper's career, I immediate gravitated towards her character.

"I will not let Ryan Jansson have the last word."

I had read The Wedding Season by Katy Birchall last year and loved it but that was more woman's fiction and not to compare but going into this I thought it was going to be the same but nope this is definitely a romance.
It definitely made me laugh and had some relatable moments (How Harper feels about Liam's snoring is equivalent to how I feel some nights with my husband) and Harper's messy desk chaotic energy.

Harper is a fantastic celebrity journalist and is constantly trying to get her voice heard by her misogynist boss. She has a way of talking to celebrities and getting their story across which plays a vital role throughout the whole book. Ryan was hired as features editor and suddenly thrust back into Harper's life. Because what no one in the office knows is that 11 years previously they had worked together as interns. This book is primarily told from present day but we do get flashback moments of when they were interns and how they came together & then eventually fell apart all in a weekend.

"My parents aren't idiots, Harper. They knew exactly who you were to me."

Ryan, Ryan,Ryan. Another book boyfriend to add to my list. Harper is such a force that poor Ryan didn't know what he was in for. He knew that she was not happy in her relationship [with Liam] and left bread crumbs of clues of how he felt. In a way I felt bad for him because he was put in some impossible lose-lose situations and Harper was the sadly the one left out each time. This was a slow burn romance but the tension and the teases kept me interested and excited to keep going ("I was crazy about you. I told you. Right from the moment we met."). I just love their chemistry and how opposite they are but yet it worked perfectly. Also who doesn't want a significant other that is a cheerleader & biggest supporter. Their relationship was gradual and selfishly I would have loved some more spicy bits but that is just because I loved them both as a couple.

Harper had a difficult relationship with her parents and she knew and accepted it even if she didn't like it. I am glad she made the decision to take a step back and do what was best for her mental health. I love that Ryan offered his support to be there with her during her family dinners. And then in contrast, I love how welcoming Ryan's parents had been to Harper. I was happy to see Harper's sister came around and that they were able to start a new relationship.

I have not read all of Katy's backlist (yet) but if they are any more like this, I need them in my life.

If you are a fan of workplace enemies to lovers such as The Hating Game & Just My Type, you will love this book!

I love Katy Birchall and her writing style so much and this was not an exception. This was fantastic and one of the few I haven’t read yet but I loved it so much and kept turning the pages.

There is no denying the chemistry between Harper and Ryan when they are forced to work together, but is it the hatred Harper believe it is or something more? This story made me giggle. A quick easy read that left me with a smile.