I LOVED this book. I absolutely devoured it. This is a book that I’m going to be thinking of and remembering fondly for a long time and will probably (definitely) need to reread it since it was that good.

Casey Maitland has just gotten turned down for a new job at her company and learns that the guy who got it, Alex Harrison, is the CEO’s son. She spends the next month or so hating him on principle, but then slowly gets to know him and finds that they fit together better than she thought. There are many hurdles they have to go through together - problems at their company and secrets to go along with that, family and father issues for Alex, and most of all, knowing that their relationship has an end date due to Casey’s long desire to transfer to the company’s London branch.

At first this book felt a lot like The Hating Game with the co-worker enemies to lovers, but then it developed into something much more unique and beautiful. The narration was great, the writing style was amazing. I loved the side characters and their own quirks (especially Miriam and Brijesh!) and love love loved Casey and Alex’s love story.

This book was honestly such a joy to read. I loved it so much. Such an amazing debut novel from a talented author. I’m so excited to see what she has coming next!!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Clare Gilmore for the eARC!

This is absolutely my new favorite book. It was written so well, the balance between the workplace drama, the romance, Casey finding her stride and Alex finding his was done so well. I am a sucker for a workplace romance so obviously I knew I was going to like this, and it was just so much better than I could have imagined. I loved every part of it.

The characters, and not just Casey and Alex, has so much depth to them. All the relationships were so important. The way Casey and Alex spoke to each other. They made sure that they knew they were important, to each other and otherwise.

They decided on casual, she was leaving in a few months anyway and he had other plans. But the way it was literally never causal for either of them?? Casey specifically was trying so hard to convince herself that their whole relationship was causal, that they weren’t dating, and she was keeping a secret from him so they couldn’t be serious?? Except they WERE. And they were so freaking good together. “You’re my dream girl”. The way Alex SAW her, and not just because she wears her heart on her sleeve.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!! I preordered this before I even got an ARC because I knew I was going to love it. Needless to say I am VERY excited to have this in my hands come October.

Love Interest was a bit more serious than I expected in a good way. I loved getting to know the characters and seeing how the story developed

Fun read that I had trouble putting down. Loved all the characters,ver descriptive locales, and the story flowed well for me.
Surprised to read that this is a debut, very well written in my opinion.
Would definitely like more from the author and possible further from this story line (maybe a book for Miriam 😁
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC

This book was really cute. I liked the MC’s a lot, and their love story was sweet. The Condé Nast-like publisher setting was interesting as well. Knocking down one star because I feel like the climax and resolution were a bit rushed, the story dragged a little at times, and I feel like the author really wanted the reader to know her support of various social issues, which became distracting for me. Overall, a fun read, and I would recommend.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for my ARC!

This was such a fantastic debut! I loved the concept of the workplace romance, and Casey and Alex were such fun characters. I loved their banter and dynamic and was rooting them from the very beginning. I love Casey's side quest to find herself, I think that is such a great thing to see in a MC and enjoyed getting to watch her growth throughout the story.

I loved this book.

Casey works in finance. She recently applied for a new job at the company, but Alex is hired instead.
I thought the workplace aspect was interesting. They work at a media company in NYC that oversees different magazines, YouTube channels etc. This leads to some fun content.

The author does a good job of describing the different locations in this book so that you really get a feel for them and what the characters are experiencing.

The character development is phenomenal. There is so much personal growth. They each have fleshed out backgrounds. Their work and personal lives are detailed, so it really feels like we're getting the full picture. There is some spice in this one. The romance was so sweet and beautiful. I was so happy for them.

I highly recommend it if you're looking for a good enemies to lovers or workplace romance.

I look forward to reading more by this author.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher, St Martin's Press, for allowing me to read an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The writing was great and I really liked how well-rounded the side characters were with their own stories, but this didn’t feel like the typical romance to me — which isn’t a good or bad thing, just a little different than I was expecting.

I think there are people who will love that change of pace and I did appreciate that romantic love wasn’t the be-all-end-all for Casey, that she was invested in her job and in following her dreams to live in another continent, but for me it also had a bit too much personal angst for something marketed as a rom com.

The secret she felt she had to keep from Alex; starting a relationship with an end date; leaving her friends, her home, moving even further away from her family who she seems close with but also hadn’t seen in 2 years to move to London (which seemed to be great for her, just stressful/sad for me!).

There were some great “twists” (not hairpin curves, just things that make you realize things aren’t always what they seem), lines and call-backs, and the relationship between Casey and Alex was really warm and lovely. I think it just comes down to feeling a bit anxious throughout the whole book because it felt like—even knowing that there had to be a HEA—something bad was coming/she was keeping something from someone she was developing an emotional connection with, which makes it kind of hard to develop intimacy. (It all turned out okay of course, but I usually like a bit more stability.)

Wow. I'm absolutely blown away by this book. I have read a LOT of romance in the last few years, but for me this book has embodied the feelings of falling in love better than anything I have read.

The premise is fairly standard for a contemporary romance. Casey and Alex are both twenty-somethings that work for the same Buzzfeed-esque media company. Casey applies for a promotion that Alex receives in her place, because he's the son of higher-up in the company. Casey hates Alex's guts at first, but as they get to know each other, cracks form in their walls and they can't help falling in love.

But my gosh, what a romance. It's not a slow burn in the sense that there's plenty of spicy times throughout, but I've never seen such a realistic slowly-falling-in-love in a genre romance novel. The desire and the curiosity and the insecurities and the obsession you attempt to ignore... Maybe I'm telling on myself, but it made me just want to grab my husband and sob for the sake of love.

To be vague and avoid spoilers -- there is an actual, meaty plot that doesn't feel contrived and actually has to do with the motivations and fatal flaws of Alex and Casey. I saw some of the signs of eventual conflict early on and I dreaded the "third act break-up," but there was enough of an actual plot point going on that it didn't feel contrived for the sake of the trope. (And, dare I say, there was enough of a twist to things that it didn't feel that trope-y at all.)

The secondary characters felt like real people as opposed to quirky stereotypes, despite the unarguably quirky setting of New York and Not-Buzzfeed. There are awkward missteps from youth and inexperience, but interactions that feel genuine to the 20-something experience and not belittling, or like one liners from Tumblr. The writing at times might be melodramatic or overly poetic for some readers, but I thought it was absolutely beautiful.

I don't know what else to say to explain my love for this book. I'm more of a Historical Romance reader than a Contemporary Romance reader, but this book obliterated all the things I usually don't enjoy about Contemporary Romance.

I love it. I can't believe this is a debut. I swear to God I need more books from Clare Gilmore.

My deepest thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this eArc.

I had a lot of personal issues with this book, namely that I really should stop reading books that are marketed toward young millennials. I did like the characters for the most part, and I enjoyed the main couple and their romance. However, it was impossible for me to ignore how irritated I got with all the little tangents Casey would have in her head. Very unnecessary and took me out of the book. These are my own opinions, and you may enjoy this book more than I did!

This was a fun work place enemies (kinda) to lovers book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to see what else Clare Gilmore will write.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/ St. Martin's Griffin for this ARC. ~I was given this book and made no commitments to leave my opinions, favorable or otherwise.~

Is there anything more romantic than a man asking what laundry detergent you use?

Apparently not.

This is a classic comfort-read romance for me. I was side-eyeing Alex and his fuckboy-esque mantras for a minute, but I was glad to see they were quickly explained and abandoned. There is a third act breakup--I didn't even realize they broke up at first!--and even though it's an imo overused trope, it felt slightly more earned than most. No miscommunication, so love that.

I was surprised to read that this is the author's first novel, because it reads like a veteran romance author. Thanks to her et all for the ARC!

10*stars. This is a perfectly written love story. I couldn't put it down. I loved it from beginning to end. It is a must read.

Delightful enemies to lovers workplace romance!

Casey Maitland is a finance wiz in Manhattan, looking to spread her wings into a more creative venture. Alex Harrison is the smart, handsome, and educated extrovert that swoops in gets the job.

Sparks fly and soon the will-they-won't-they had me cheering for them both.

I loved this book and loved the cute cover that came along with it. It was a cute novel - enemies to lovers trope which I love. This book follows Alex and Casey as they work together on a project. The banter back and forth was funny and I quite enjoyed how they grew closer and opened up to each other. Looking forward to reading the next book from this author!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

Casey is a great financial analyst, and she is hoping to be chosen as project manager. If she does well, she expects to get a job with her company in London where her mother was from. Alex seems to have it all; handsome, rich, and charm. He gets the job and Casey is assigned to help with the financials. He is loved by all except for Casey. She does her best to ignore him but his charm is hard to ignore. While Casey needs the project to go well, Alex wants to be successful to impress his distant father. This book was great. I loved that numbers were easy and fun for Casey. For many women, numbers are a challenge. Casey’s friends are a delight and as Casey and Alex begin going out, they are there for Alex as well. Casey’s two fathers offer a lot of love and support and they were great at creating a life Casey felt she needed. The relationship Alex had with his father was sad, he tried so hard to impress. I admired his ability to hide his feelings and stick with his work ethic. Great characters, lots of love and humor.

I looked up young actors for both lead characters and pictured Julian Kang as Alex and Emma Watson as Casey. So if this amazing debut becomes a movie someday, I called it.
Thank you to #NegGalley for an ARC of Love Interest by Clare Gilmore - release date #10.10.2023

Casey is a 24 year old financial analyst who wants a sexy role project managing a new division of the company… but even though she was told she was a shoo in, it instead goes to the board chairman’s son, Alex. Although he seems equally qualified, Casey hates him on principle, and I found the initial enemies part of this trope annoying. However, they soon put their differences aside and team up… both at work and also in a romance that builds slowly and realistically. Some of the workplace drama felt a little bit fake (the problems Casey and Alex were trying to solve felt like they would be well above the paygrade of 24 year olds, whether rockstars or not), but overall, I really enjoyed this debut novel.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

Casey is up for a new job at her company and is left disappointed when finding out the job isn't hers. Alex is the one who is hired the job. After finding out that Alex is also related to the former ceo and current chairman, she dislikes him even more.

Once getting to know each she finds out there is more to the story than originally thought.

I'm usually a huge fan of enemies to lovers but this one just wasn't it. While I liked Casey enough, I didn't care much for Alex. I think I would enjoyed this more if it was told in alternating pov.

Attention romance readers: I have an upcoming romance novel to keep on your radar.

Love Interest is a novel about Casey Maitland, a quirky Gen Z finance expert working in Manhattan for a powerhouse publication. When an opportunity opens for a Project Manager position opens, she throws in her hat.

The only problem….

Alex Harrison.

And romance readers, may I introduce you to your next book-boyfriend. 😉

This book surprised me in all the good ways. It started a bit slow, where I wasn’t fully invested in our MC right away, but that completely changed once we really started diving into the relationship between our Casey Maitland and her love interest Alex Harrison.

If you love rivals-to-lovers, co-worker romance, he falls first, rom-com make sure to check out Love Interest.

Happy Reading ~ Cece