It really took me a bit to get into this one, but once I did, I was hooked! Ryan and Harper are fantastic leads, and the supporting cast is truly one of the best. Truly enjoyable read.

Work-place romance/second chance/enemies to lovers all in one. This was described as The Hating Game meets Beach Read and while The Last Word is a more closed door version, it's an accurate description.

Starting out it was hard to connect with Harper and the descriptions of the journalism world but that was quickly overcome. She is a quirky, kind, hard-working character who puts her career first. Ryan is slightly awkward, nerdy, thoughtful, and Harper's biggest cheerleader. The banter/straight up arguments between Harper and Ryan were fun, but didn't really turn a corner until halfway through the book.

I wasn't a HUGE fan of the repeating drama/miscommunication as I feel with the growth Harper and Ryan showed throughout the novel they could have handled it and the aftermath better, although it did lead to some significant growth for Harper.

All in all a fun read, will read more by Katy Birchall in the future.
3.5 stars
0 spice

4 ⭐️

✨Quick synopsis: Harper Jenkins is the Celebrity Editor for a glossy weekend magazine and is known for getting tight-lipped A-Listers to open up during interviews. When her ex, Ryan, is hired to work alongside of her, Harper has to confront their past and the feelings she still has for him.

✨ My Thoughts: This a fun workplace romance full of banter and drama. I found myself laughing out loud at some of the things Harper & Ryan said to each other. The characters are well developed, I enjoyed the growth of Harper and her work ethics, the London setting, and the busy journalism life that was tied in.

Read The Last Word if you like:
🌟 second chance romance
🌟 enemies to lovers
🌟 witty banter
🌟 opposites attract (He’s neat & quiet, She is messy and the life of the party)

Pub Date: May 2

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This was a really enjoyable read. Harper was a very personable and charming main character. I loved how great she was at her job and how committed she was to telling people’s stories. Her messy slightly chaotic approach to time and order made the neat freak in me 😬 but she was funny and relatable enough to make me enjoy her and all her messiness.

I really liked her and Ryan and thought they had great chemistry. I love a slightly awkward male lead. I especially liked how much he respected and appreciated how good a writer and a journalist Harper was. It was good to see the build up of Harper and Ryan’s relationship in the past intermingled with their reconnection in the present. Some solid supporting characters as well throughout in Mimi, Shamari, Cosmo (urgh) and the terrible parents who helped bring life to Harper’s world (4 ⭐️).

The Hating Game meets Beach Read in Katy Birchall's enemies-to-lovers romcom The Last Word , about a young journalist who puts her career (and her heart) on the line when her former work nemesis is hired in her newsroom.

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 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 who will get the last word?

Really enjoyed this story. Will recommend to others.

3.5/5 stars
0/5 spice (closed door)

Tropes:
Rivals to lovers
Grumpy/sunshine
Second chance
Forced proximity
Co-workers
He falls first
"It always been you" vibes
Single POV

This one was entertaining and had some fun banter. Ryan and Harper had the chemistry and the tension. I would have loved to read Ryan's POV, even for just one chapter. Those emotional moments would've just been *chefs kiss* if I could hear his inner thoughts. But it worked out in the way it was written.

I wasn't too happy about the way Harper reacted to the third act break up, but she made up for it and showed growth from her "failures." She really could have listened to Ryan more, but she had major trust issues. Ryan stayed true to his personality and didn't shy away from apologizing when he needed to. He was a classic grump but had those "special smiles" just for her...*swoon*

There was tension between Ryan and Harper, but because it was a closed door romance, you only read about the kissing. Would it have been great to get more spice? Yes... But that's my personal preference, and I still enjoyed this book without it.

Overall, I would recommend this book for fans of second chance romance and closed door romance.

I received an ARC from Netgalley and St. Martin's Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own and offered voluntarily.

Trigger/Content warnings:
Workplace prejudice, parental emotional abuse

The Last Word follows Harper, a journalist who works the celebrity beat at a magazine where her boss finds her trivial despite the work she brings in and the rave reviews on her interviews. She's always late, she may have forgotten a shoe, but she's high energy and cares a lot about what she does. Harper is happy to choose work over anything else, love included. Enter Ryan, another journalist who Harper knows from way back in her intern days who also happens to be the reason love is kind of dead in her eyes. They now have to work side by side (again) and sort through their troubled history which is hard to do because they can't seem to stop bickering!

I really liked Harper and Ryan, they had a good connection and great banter. Harper was a bit immature at times in her quest to get the last word, but I found that easily forgivable given her other personality traits. Ryan was your typical cinnamon roll - sweet and lovely on the inside, but a bit brusque on the outside. I enjoyed the two timelines the story followed and how the final conflict tied into their origin story, so to speak. If you like an office romance, you'll like this one!

Up until almost the 20% mark, there were barely any scenes between the main couple. The focus had been on Harper's job. I didn't like Harper. She was kind of a mess - always late to everything, losing things, disorganized. Ryan and Harper worked together for the same newspaper. The bickering went beyond what I think it should have between them. In scenes where Ryan was sweet to Harper or decisions were made by their boss, she often still thought he was out to get her. She was too harsh towards him and it was aggravating after a while. Some of his compliments she took as insults.

There weren't really any relationships I was interested in. Harper wasn't close to her family and her boyfriend through the first part of the book didn't treat her well.

I loved this book! My friend wrote me and asked me if I liked The Hating Game… when I told her I did, she said, read this… same zibes but better!

This story had me laughing, and I could not put it down! It was a very quick read because I was dying to know how it would end!

I received a digital copy of The Last Word via NetGalley to read and review.

I definitely got The Hating Game vibes while reading The Last Word BUT I will say I enjoyed The Last Word quite a bit more. This is enemies to lovers as well as second chance and I flew through the pages.

The Last Word by Katy Birchall
Pub Date: May 2, 2023 🗓️

I absolutely LOVED this book! This was my first book by Birchall and will not be my last! I felt such a strong connection to the main character, Harper, and just want to meet someone like her in real life, because I feel like she would be my best friend. The character development was so strong and I cannot recommend this book enough!

The description of this book compares it to The Hating Game and I feel like this is SPOT ON! I loved The Hating Game and I love The Last Word! I felt like I flew through this book because I could not stop reading it. Harper, the main character, is a journalist, who is well liked by all, except her boss. She does her job well, despite being messy and usually late. What I love about her character is that despite her flaws, she gets her work done and does it WELL. When she finds herself working at the same publication as Ryan, a co-worker/love interest from her past, she has to decide if she can trust him again after their past working relationships turned sour. I loved Ryan almost as much as I loved Harper.

I also loved the background related to Harper’s parents/sister. I felt like this added so much dimension to the story and felt it added so much!

Read The Last Word if you like:
💙Enemies to lovers
💙Second chance romance
💙Amazing character banter
💙Perfect supporting characters
💙A perfectly imperfect main character

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Katy Birchall, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of The Last Word!

Posted on Instagram on April 8, 2023 (Currently Reading): http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
Posted on Goodreads on April 10, 2023: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram (full review) on May 2, 2023: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Instagram (mini review) in April 2023: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on May 2, 2023
**-will post on designated date

Spoiler-free review
The Last Word by Katy Birchall was such a cute read! The characters were so refreshing and not obnoxiously quirky at all. I couldn't help but root for Harper on her journalist adventures. Ryan was so loving and sweet, I wish more book guys were like him. Definitely a "he falls first" and "second chance" romance, which are kind of my favorite. They had me giggling and rolling around with their cute moments. I was in a tiny reading slump but I think I'm cured. This was my first book from Katy Birchall and I will definitely be checking out her other books!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Griffin for the advanced e-copy in exchange for an honest review!

Another fab book from Katy Birchall! The Last Word is part romance, part women’s fiction and we’re treated to the crème de la crème of tropes: enemies to lovers, workplace, and second chance!

I don’t always love second-chance romance because I usually feel so sad about the initial breakup! Thankfully, Harper and Ryan’s relationship was really well done and they were able to grow up a bit in their time apart.

If you’ve yet to experience a Birchall book I like to think of her writing as similar to Sophie Kinsella, but a bit more sophisticated. There is romance, but the heart of the story is really about Harper and her job and relationships. If I had been expecting an in-your-face love story I might have been disappointed but I was craving exactly what I got!

Read this if you’re in the mood for:
💕A London setting
💕An imperfect heroine who is a bit messy but so lovable and very good at her job
💕Fab side characters
💕Fantastic banter
💕A grumpy uptight hero who has got it bad

PUB DATE: May 2nd
Thank you to St Martins Press for the ARC in exchange for this review.

Thank you NetGalley, Katy Birchall and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of The Last Word. This is my personal review.
I like romance books that are the enemy to lovers but for me to really get into the story I have to like the characters and Harper and Ryan were not very likable. They just did not mesh together for me to see them being a couple for very long. It kept me reading but I just did not like them enough to care what happens with them.

No thank you to any politically driven undertones. I read to escape and this felt like I was reading someone’s opinion.

The Last Word is Katy Birchalls’ latest novel and it was absolutely fantastic!

This story immediately drew me in with the main character, Harper who is a successful celebrity journalist and the funny situations she finds herself in when her boss hires Ryan, a man she’s used to intern with a decade ago that she had a brief but significant past with. Although Harper’s incessant need to always have “the last word” tended to irk me after a while, her loving heart was shown throughout the story that you can’t help but love her.

This book is one for all romance readers because it has lightheartedness when you need it, to more emotional and deep at the perfect times.

I really enjoyed reading this book! Harper and Ryan <3

Loved the plot and the characters. Enemies to lovers is one of my favourite tropes. If you enjoyed The Hating Game you would really like this book!

Thank you to @netgalley, St. Martin’s Griffin and Katy Birchall for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. Available May 2!

3.5/5 - This was a cute comfort read that I really enjoyed! It’s an enemies-to-lovers / workplace romance that has a fun cast of characters, punchy dialogue and a stress free storyline.

Harper Jenkins is the celebrity editor of a newspaper’s weekend magazine and is GREAT at her job. She is honest and comforting and has a knack for getting celebrities to open up to her. She’s also a workaholic and a total mess - she pretty much thrives in hectic chaos. You know from the start that she was burned by love early on and despite rooting for a happy ending for others, she refuses to imagine or pursue one for herself. When her ex-flame and rival, reporter Ryan Jansson, gets moved to her magazine, she is PISSED and they relentlessly butt heads. That is, until the truth is revealed, and Harper is forced to rethink everything she assumed was true.

This reminded me of The Hating Game in a lot of ways - which I liked, but had the same critique about - the back-and-forth banter was a little childish. I also didn’t think the “rift” between Harper and Ryan was that big of a deal, but can understand how their younger selves would have felt that way. Overall this was fun and entertaining, with little surprises but lots of laughs.

This is reminiscent of The Hating Game and Just My Type. However it wasn't as endearing as the other two for me. The bickering came off as petty and annoying most of the time. I found the main character, Harper, to have a tough personality to root for and found her quite annoying.

Rating: 3.75
Laughing: 2

I found The Last Word a bit slow, but really enjoyable. Enemies to Lovers is always challenging because I often find the conflict that makes them ‘enemies’ is a bit childish. In this case, I enjoyed their conflict, but wish Harper would have been a bit more mature and moved past it more quickly. I thought the third-act conflict was well done, and pretty relatable, which I don’t believe usually. I didn’t mind this conflict in the book, it felt right.

I really liked Ryan and found him to be endearing. There are some similarities here with The Hating Game, where ‘he falls first,’ and it’s pretty sweet.

I liked the premise of this story; I liked all of the trips and travel that happened in the book; it was just not a full four stars for me because I wish the pacing was faster.