I really enjoyed The Last Word! I’m a huge fan of enemies to lovers romances, and this was no exception. The author’s style is very descriptive, so you feel like you are really there. It was a bit slow for me to start but once I got into the story I couldn’t put it down! This isn’t as formulaic as a lot of romances are where there’s a random fight 85% in. There are twists and turns through the whole story. Thank you so much to St. Martin’s press for providing me with an advanced reader copy!

If you like enemies to lovers workplace romance then this book is for you!

Harper is a strong, independent woman and a very talented journalist who is excelling in her career. It’s her number one passion and she’s kind of put her love life on the back burner to advance in her career. When her boss announces Ryan as the new co worker on the team she can hardly believe her eyes! They have quite the history, and I loved how the author gives little flashbacks here and there to reveal how they met and what went wrong. I loved all the tension and flirty banter between them as they adjust to working together again. The book heavily focuses on Harper’s career and day to day activities, but you of course get some romance as well! This was a cute story and I really enjoyed it!

Thank you so much NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the early gifted copy!

Sexy, cute, and fun! New author for me and was happily surprised with how much I liked this genre! Would recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press - Griffin for the ARC of this book in exchange for a honest review.

I really enjoyed reading Katy Birchall’s “Wedding Season” last year so I was excited to be offered this book. One of the things I like about her books is that the heroine always rescues herself, and while there is romance, there’s also a lot of self growth in her book. Harper Jenkins and Ryan Jameson are such relatable and likeable characters that you’re totally willing to overlook the fact that they communicate horribly, which was my only negative about this book.

The plot is your standard enemies-to-lovers trope. There’s no groundbreaking twist or plot line but Birchall knows how to weave a good story and you could easily devour this in a day if you have the time. There is some intimacy in the book but it’s pretty tame, more like a fade out situation so it’s a safe option for those that don’t like the steamier options out there.

Solid 4 stars. A safe bet when looking for a nice romance to cozy up with.

second chance romance with enemies to lovers type deal. and i really liked it. i think the office type romance is fun too, though i hated the miscommunication trope. harper is lovely and i was rooting for her the entire time, so happy at the end with the career choice. the romance was also cute too.

Harper Jenkins is at the top of her game. She has connections and an uncanny ability to connect with people, making her an excellent celebrity journalist. She’s frequently frustrated by her decidedly less-than-stellar boss but is otherwise content at her job, sitting nestled between two friends in the office. She’s content, that is, until one of her friends takes a position at another publication. And Ryan, a fellow journalist and former love interest, takes that friend’s place. As the Features Editor. At the desk right next to Harper’s.

This one gave me The Hating Games vibes from the looks Ryan gives Harper (that she misinterprets) to the way they react to each other’s desks to the one-upmanship style of their bickering—both wanting to have the last word. It has the workplace, forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers, opposites-attract scenario like The Hating Game but with a second chance romance twist added in.

I adored their chemistry (emotional and otherwise), the sweetness of their whirlwind romance backstory (until things fell apart for them, of course), and Harper’s drive and relatability. I adored Ryan (full stop).

I received an advance copy from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.

Enemies to lovers is my favorite writing tripe. This book is perfect and I loved every second of it. I can’t wait to read what’s next from the author.

Harper Jenkins is a messy, chaotic, and brilliant Celebrity story editor whose family finds her lacking compared to their careers in law. She has amazing connections which land her multiple exclusives due to her caring nature and non-malicious articles that her boss Cosmo has no respect for and lacks understanding of the importance and difference between her pieces and gossip.

She has a boyfriend, some great friends, and her dream job until her boss hires Ryan to be the new Features Editor. Cue the constant bickering, shameless competing, and the spark of rekindled feelings?! Yup, that's right! They met 10 years ago when they were interning together and what started in nearly the same manner led to a whirlwind romance that ended when Harper was betrayed.

Now 10 years later those feelings which seemed long and buried are resurfacing and she is realizing she may have judged Ryan incorrectly. Just as they are growing closer and revealing their feelings layoff rumors begin to surface and she can't help but feel like history may be repeating itself...

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book. I enjoyed this book! All the stars Harper gets to interview are so cool and I love how personable she gets with them! I wasn’t the biggest fan of how Harper treated Ryan. I understand she was still angry with him but the way she fought with him on everything seemed childish to me. I also felt like she was angry with him for so long over something that didn’t seem that crazy to me at first, but when the twist happened I really understood where she was coming from. I enjoyed the back and forth between Harper and Ryan and was so happy to see them finally get their happy ending! I was really proud of Harper when she stood up for herself and branched out I felt like she had changed in the best way.

This was a fantastic book! I loved that there was not only the love story between Harper and Ryan, but there was the love story between friends and the family resolution story within. I didn't feel that entire book was fluff like some romantic comedies. The build of Harper as an amazing journalist who is quirky and always late, but can get people to love her instantly makes you want to root for her the whole way through. Tying in Ryan and Harper's history as Harper though up the memories was such a creative way to tell the story without having to do so chronologically. It felt so natural. The way Ryan didn't like Liam and how that made the reader begin to see that Liam may not be this great guy Harper assumes him to be was genius, The podcast idea coming from Juliet and as the reader takes in what Juliet says, it forms the idea of the podcast at the same time as Harper. Katy never let Harper back down from who she was and what she wanted. That is what the reading world needs. Characters who aren't afraid to be themselves, even though others around them disapprove. It is relatable. It's funny, it's sad, it's happy, it's romantic, and it's inspiring. I found myself very invested in Harper and where she was going next and wanting so much for her, as if she is a real person, a real friend in my life. While not living in London made it harder to picture the places and the language was a bit different from what I am used to, it did not in any way limit my love for the story. The Last Word is going to be a big hit! Very well done.

I am such a sucker for enemies to lovers AND workplace romance. This book was so much fun and I really enjoyed reading. It felt a bit slow at times, but overall I loved.

I absolutely loved this book. Fast paced and fun. Enemies to lovers workplace romance with really fun character development of not just the main characters but supporting characters as well. Birchall’s witty banter had me laughing out loud several times. Highly recommend for a quick, fun read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this book! It was whitty, light and funny. Great read as I finished in one weekend. I would reccomend to a friend.

This book reminded me a bit of a British version of The Hating Game. It was a generally interesting, but I kept getting annoyed with Harper and her tendency to get so mad at Ryan for something that wasn't his fault. You would think she would have learned from the first time, but 10 years later she does the exact same thing. It was slightly ridiculous and Ryan certainly deserved better. All in all, I enjoyed it enough to read to the end, but it wasn't a favorite for sure.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. The Last Word comes out May 2, 2023.

DNF @ 20%

I found this to be unreasonably slow. She's just working? The entire time? The two main characters do not have a real conversation until 20% in, which feels like a long time to wait for a romance I'm supposed to buy into.
They are both pretty hostile and it seemed obvious where the plot was going and neither of these characters made me want to care.

Thank you NetGalley and St.Martin for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

The Last Word is a second chance romance, combined with enemies to lovers, combined with a workplace romance. Phew, hitting all the tropes!

Harper is an amazing celebrity journalist who truly cares about telling people’s stories. Years ago, she and Ryan met while interning together. Their internship ended in anger as one stayed with their first journalism job and one had to move home and find a different place to work. When Ryan is hired to work side by side with Harper once again, she is furious and full of plenty of petty, snarky comments. Their colleagues take note of the electric chemistry between the two, and maybe they will decide they don’t really need to be enemies.

I love a good snarky comment, so I had a ton of fun reading this book. Can Harper be extremely petty and juvenile at times? Absolutely, but it is usually hilarious when she does (like when she and Ryan get into a foot race to see who can get to the tube station first). The competitive drive is strong in both characters, but Harper tends to get far too defensive at times, making me root more for Ryan than for her.

I loved the dual timeline, getting to see the pair in the past when they first met. I would have loved to have had Ryan’s POV as well, especially during the conflict in the book. I’m still not sure what he was thinking there!

Oh, one last thing- Harper is a disorganized mess, and the descriptions of her flat and her desk and how she couldn’t find anything we’re about to give me anxiety 😂 She is a realistic character who fumbles about, forgets everything, and often has to stop and buy something because she forgot it, but she also has a heart of gold and is fantastic at her job.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was my first book by Katy Birchall, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! It made for a great vacation read. It didn't feel like a typical rom-com as I felt like the work aspect took priority over the romance, and I was really more invested in Harper's career. I did like reading about her success as a celebrity editor and the interactions that she had with various celebrities. Though Harper could be pretty immature at times and her and Ryan's bickering got a little old after a while, I did enjoy the evolution of their relationship, their banter, and their chemistry.

If you like the second chance romance, enemies-to-lovers, workplace romance tropes, I'm sure you'll enjoy this one!

Ryan is the new Features Editor at Harper’s magazine and also happens to be the ex that betrayed her when she was interning at her first publication. Ten years later, Harper has yet to forgive him so she is more than horrified to learn that she will have to sit next to him every day. The two are complete opposites and spend every chance they get bickering over the tiniest things.

Both MCs are journalists—I really enjoyed this angle and seeing them at work. Harper is the magazine’s Celebrity Editor and there are a lot of people in her life that don’t take her stories seriously (including her own boss and family). She is fantastic at her job though and I loved seeing her continuously prove everyone wrong like the badass she is.

I did enjoy this one overall. I thought it was funny, interesting, and charming but would have loved a little more chemistry between Ryan and Harper. I thought they were cute but also felt like something was missing—my dislike for the miscommunication trope may be factoring in here though because both characters frustrated me at times.

The Last Word by Katy Birchall started off slow for me, but quickly picked up and held my attention to the end. It is the story of Harper, a top-tier celebrity journalist and Ryan, another journalist, but also her nemesis. These two have a rocky past and are now tasked to work together, which starts the bickering of enemies with a huge infusion of chemistry. The only problem is while they know they can't stand each other, the two can't see that they really could be a great pairing. This is a fast-paced, fun rom-com that I would recommend for those looking for an entertaining story to immerse themselves in.

Honestly there are few things better to me than the vibe of “I can’t believe I like YOU 😒” and that is here in spades. Coworkers/enemies/friends to lovers. Reluctance. Second chance. You want a trope it’s here and it’s ready for you!

The one trope I do not like is the miscommunication trope and that one is a heavy hitter here - HOWEVER I know that is just me so it doesn’t make me like the book less, it just makes me mad at them 😂 sit down and talk to each other you absolute walnuts. I loved watching their friendship grow both times around and see them become better versions of themselves because of their interactions with each other.