I could not get into this book. Maybe it was the wrong time, but I just couldn't feel a connection to the main character. It felt a bit flat and so did the characters. I DNF, but maybe I should try it again another time!

This book was honestly perfect! You can't go wrong with books, books, more books, a quaint Irish village, and a super hot Irish love interest. Cute romcoms set in bookshops are my thing, and this one was an absolute delight.

I also loved that this book took on some more serious topics like grief and toxic family relationships. By the end, I was in tears. I hope everyone else loves this one as much as I did!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was really enjoyable, but it was nothing new. The plot was very predictable to me, and it didn't really keep me engaged throughout the story. I liked the characters well enough, but they didn't make a lasting expression. All in all it was a decent read, but I can't heartily recommend it.

Love at First Book is a must-read summer book that is going to thoroughly entertain you with all the feels. It was humorous, heartbreaking, emotional and loving. Emily Allen is taking an opportunity to escape the confines of her life in Martha’s Vineyard, to work for her favorite author in Ireland as her assistant, and also work in a bookshop. What librarian wouldn’t love about this job? Emily has come a long way to put herself first after caring for her mother ever since her father left her mother years ago. With the help of her therapist, she’s off on an adventure for a year and she isn’t going to let anyone or anything deny her this chance to live a little. When she finds out that her bookshop boss is the author’s son, Kieran Murphy, she’s attracted but also annoyed that he doesn’t want her there, and is given the most boring job of cataloging inventory of the bookshop. Working for Siobhan Riordan is a dream come true since her series got her through her teen years and wants to help her finish it with one last book. When she is put in the middle between mother and son, she faces a greater challenge of keeping a secret. Falling in love wasn’t in the plans, but when the idyllic small town and its inhabitants slowly creep into her heart, she finally feels what a mother’s love is and what it means to stand on her own.

Love at First Book is an enemies-to-lovers story, a story of self-love, a story I couldn’t put down and one I didn’t want to end. I wanted to re-read it as soon as I was finished because it was leaving me with a ‘book hangover.’ I first met Emily in the author’s last release Summer Reading and she is the best friend of the protagonist Sam. She’s grown so much and learned to set boundaries with her mother that you see that she needs to start living her own life and not for anyone else. The working relationship with Kieran is tense at first especially with their banter to have the last word, and the challenges they play to out-quote the other with quotes of their favorite books. I’m such a book nerd that I loved it every time they did this. I’m totally gushing over this story because I loved it that much. It is a book that is an automatically on my list of best book of 2024 for this reviewer. Jenn McKinlay has done it again and a story I highly recommend.

Very cute book, reminiscent of Jenny Colgan's books. Scotland, bookstore, main character leaving her hometown to make a new start. It's a good, cuddle up with a blanket and hot drink sort of book.

A beautiful love story set in a quaint Irish village is a sure fire way to get me interested in a book! I thought Em and Kieran were both well-constructed, honest characters. As much as I don’t typically like a workplace romance, they were so magnetic that I wasn’t upset by it. I was also absolutely dazzled by the rest of the townsfolk. I loved to see the village come together for Siobhan.

My biggest issue with the book was not the book itself but the way it was advertised. If a book is going to heavily feature dying and grief I really prefer to know that going in. However, I thought the storyline was handled well and it certainly stirred my emotions. Siobhan was the highlight of the book.

Love at First Book was so cute. I will for sure buy for the collection. I know some patrons will love this.

This book was so so cute, and it was a great book to get me back in my contemporary swing! I have been trying to dip my toes more into the small-town romance genre, and this book was a perfect addition to this subgenre for me.
I have never been to Ireland, but I thought Jenn McKinlay did a fantastic job creating mental imagery for this setting - the town, food, and ambiance were very clearly portrayed to me.
Slow-burn and enemies to lovers are two tropes that I will eat up every single time, and this book was no exception to this. I found both Emily and Kieran to be charming and easy to like, and I wanted more of them by the end! They were both very realistic and complex, and their outside relationships were very relatable.
I would definitely recommend this book as an easy contemporary read!

But for the most part, it was lovely, charming little town, overflowing with books, and just beautiful! Em and Kieran are extremely cute and well suited to one another. What a lovely love story LOVE AT FIRST BOOK was! Adorable, literary, tiny towny, Irish, humorous, sparkling, sweet, and a little heartbreaking. Reading this was so much fun!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for sharing this wonderful book's digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions.

If you like a book with witty banter, charming Irish settings, and heartwarming romance this book is for you.
It will have your emotions all over the place.

A bookish romantic comedy - yes, please! Love at First Book takes place in a quaint Irish village and I loved the atmospheric setting. Librarian Emily Allen leaves Martha's Vineyard to take a job at a bookshop in an Irish village, and soon she finds herself facing off with the owner's grumpy son. Her role involves helping at the shop, but also serving as an assistant to her very favorite author, and helping her write her final book. Emily grows closer to Siobhan and her son both and finds herself fitting in and feeling like she has found a family by the end of the book. A great read with heartfelt moments galore.

So Jenn McKinley is known for her cozy mysteries or her romcoms, but this is neither--it is something much much better. It starts out as what the reader thinks is a typical romcom--haters to lovers, and the story of Kier and Emily (Red) is wonderful--their repartee is marvelous and I could listen (read) their conversations all day. But it is the overarching story of Emily's favorite author of all time (and Kier's mother) that makes this book special. I don't want to ruin this book for anyone, so suffice it to say I cried and cried during the last few chapters, first because I was devastated and then I was so happy. I think this is a new style of writing for Ms. McKinley and I LOVE it. The parent-child relationships are explored for a whole new dimension in writing. My only complaint and one that I can certainly live with is that Em's relationship with her mother is not resolved completely, but I guess that is ok as she will always have Siobhan to look to as a mother figure. This is a great read that absolutely one started, cannot be put down.

I thought Summer Reading was a great (and ir was!) but Love at First Book simply blew me away.

First, the small Irish town setting was perfection. The people Em meets both good and bad made the story come alive. It was wonderful time getting to see Em adapt to the small bookstore she was working in, as well as working with her idol to edit her final novel. The whole thing was a true experience. One filled with a lot of heartache, it made me sad at many times but brought so much joy and beauty around In the end. I loved watching. Kieran accept Em and then following their story. Love at First Book was a stunner. I loved it and it will be one I come back to for comfort down the line as well.

This is a really lovely, heartwarming romance book with a lot of depth. While the romance is super compelling and I was definitely rooting for it, the other plot points are what make this book truly great. The book deals with intense topics such as grief, toxic parental relationships, mental illness, and so much more. It is anything but surface level. I loved getting to see the main character navigate such a large life change, moving to another country and working with her literary hero, while also finding love. This book was honestly wonderful.

I felt transported to Ireland by this story! This felt like a hallmark movie and I mean that in the best way possible! We have the classic tale of American woman fleeing her life and moving to a small Irish town, where she of course is embraced by the community except for one grumpy man, who also happens to be her new boss at the bookstore! I ate this up, he gives her a nickname and onlyyy calls her that until a devastating fight and he uses her real name for the first time, it cuts to the core! This is a cute, romantic tale but also had a lot of depth. Emily moves there because she is obsessed with this author who takes her on as an apprentice while she struggles to finish her final novel. The author is the grumpy boss' mom and I loved the relationship between all three of them, Emily has a very toxic mother so it was lovely to see her bond with Siobhan and get to actually feel motherly love. It was quite sad at the end but ended on a happy note that I loved!

4.5 - This book felt like a warm hug and gave me all the feels. I really enjoyed watching Em grow into herself and discover what she was truly capable of in life without her AWFUL mother and being on her own.

The book felt like what I wish a certain author would be like and it was brave of her to offer up to be an assistant and then have the author take you up on it! The Irish setting was lovely and Ker is a swoon-worthy romantic partner and their banter was fun.

I cried a couple of times because I felt very connected to the characters. I wish we had more of the side characters and more bookstore interactions, but overall this was a great read. Although why is there a cat on the cover and no cat in the book?! Haha.

Review: LOVE AT FIRST BOOK by Jenn McKinlay https://bit.ly/4aMuEUV
Publication Date: May 14, 2024
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Reviewed by: Reading in Pajamas/ Donna
Rated 5 Stars

This contemporary romance was a pleasure to read. Set in Ireland with lovely villagers and a couple that were meant for each other. I loved Emily’s personality, and her inner thoughts were a fun read. Kieran was a little harder to get to know, but his gruff and dismissive attitude couldn’t hide the good man inside. I was quickly invested in their story. Their witty banter along with the love and friendship of those around them made me long to move to the village and join them.

Emily and Kieran have past family issues that caused insecurities they needed to work through. The story is written through Emily’s eyes, so it is her transformation that touched me the most. I liked watching her transform into the woman hidden inside. Their romance was a slow burn that was quite satisfying. I enjoyed it all and now need to go find a recipe for whiskey shortbread.

*Review copy provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review.


Kindle: https://amzn.to/4bMiMnk

A woman struggling to forge her own path moves to a small Irish village to help her favorite author finish a beloved children’s series and to work in a quaint bookstore/ coffee shop. But her handsome boss seems determined to make her quit.

There were so many reasons I should have loved Love at First Book but it was a miss for me.

Minor spoilers
The romance, picturesque setting, and fantasy of forging a friendship with a favorite author were not enough for me to get over the things I really disliked about this book. The abusive parent trope pulled me out of the story and just made the book sad. There’s a separate cancer storyline that-while it made sense from a storytelling perspective-also just made me sad. And I can’t stand when a female protagonist’s body image issues interfere with the love interests finally getting together! All of these issues were distractions that made the book unpleasant to read. I read romance for the fantasy and the escape. This book did not deliver that for me.

I love a book that makes me feeeeel and this one definitely did! My third book by Jenn McKinlay & I still think about and recommend Wait For It all the time but I have to say this one topped it and is my. new favorite by her❤ The writing is truly phenomenal and the characters, large and small, are all so lovable -- you'll find yourself pulled into this little found family and wishing you could visit them all for real. My initial draws (besides it being a Jenn McKinlay romance & therefore already knowing I was gonna read it) were the super cute cover, title, and the whole concept of flying across the globe to assist your favorite childhood author/hero finish the last book in a series that had a huge impact on you -- I mean, come ON! Who wouldn't want to read that?? Add in the author's hot grouchy son who seems to really not want our FMC there but simultaneously has fantastic chemistry with her, oh and is also her boss part of the time -- sold x10. I read this book days ago but couldn't figure out how to put my feelings down in a review and honestly I still can't but I really loved this book. I laughed, I cried, I wanted to crawl inside the story and be a part of it. It's such an amazing thing to me when authors can create such a descriptive and rounded world and cast of characters that the reader feels like it's a real place they can vividly imagine and the characters start to feel like friends and Jenn McKinlay really achieved that with Love at First Book.

Librarian✔️
Bookseller✔️
Author✔️
Gorgeous Irish village setting✔️
CASTLES✔️
Grumpy x sunshine✔️
Enemies to lovers✔️
Slow burn✔️
Brooding MMC with a sexy accent✔️
Special nicknames✔️
Forced proximity✔️
He's her boss✔️
Driving lessons✔️
... honestly I could just keep going with the little things I loved about this book but we'd be here for ages and pages, so let's just say I loved it all😜

I HIGHLY recommend this one if you love romance and emotions, specifically if you are cool with crying and laughing and a little swooning. It's charming and adorable, with minimal spice but maximum FEELING. Read, listen, do both, whatever but consume this story in some manner!!

However, for those who like to know the trigger warnings before starting a book please be aware of the following: toxic parenting, cancer, death, anxiety, hypochondria.

I voluntarily read & reviewed a digital ARC from Berkley via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Emily Henry is a librarian ready to leave her home in Martha’s Vineyard and travel. When she is hired by her favorite author, Siobhan, Em moves to Ireland as her assistant. Siobhan’s son, Kieran, owns a bookstore, and is as handsome as he is well read. Sparks fly between Em and Kier, but they have to get over some obstacles. An enjoyable romance, enhanced by the Irish touches and literary quotes. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.