Thank you to NetGalley and Harper 360 for providing this book, with my honest review below.

I love Lindsey Kelk’s books as there doesn’t seem to a be a bad one, she is just a guaranteed great story with heart, characters who are light and funny, and excellent writing every time. Of course I was not disappointed with Love Story which continues her stellar record.

Love Story introduces us to Sophie, a teacher and low key romance writer of the most famous book out there right now. Sophie hides her identity as the author due to her parent’s very high brow book ties (her father is a publisher of very serious books, her mother a literary critic of very serious books), but when Sophie attends her father’s big top birthday weekend all bets are off. Post drunken karaoke and blow up with her publisher’s creative director, Joe, she is shocked to have him arrive for the wedding weekend and stuck with him in her family’s shed turned dream cottage for the duration. While he is absolutely gorgeous and sweet, he says some jerky things early on and doesn’t want a relationship. Very quickly we see the two’s chemistry and are laughing at their shenanigans and banter…. Until the weekend goes in the wrong direction thanks to horrid exes and secrets revealed.

I loved the humor in this story and the way the plot’s main conflicts could have been very real (if you wrote a spicy book would you want your parents and boss to know as first instinct?). I couldn’t put this down and can’t wait for more, but especially encourage you to read this if you want a strong romantic comedy and are intrigued by a writer slipping in her own perspective and experience with a genre that can have conflicting opinions associated with it.

I loved the premise of this story. We all love our romance novels so one about a romance author is a fun spin.

The book flowed so well and I genuinely couldn't put it down. That being said, I wanted more, more depth into the characters and more into the resolution

Lindsey Kelk brings her trademark humour, a touch of satire and Taylor Swift references to 'Love Story', a love story about love stories and how its a derided genre.

Daughter of two literati and publishing titans, school teacher Sophie the secret author of a blockbuster romance novel. The only two people who know are her agent brother William and her godfather publisher Malcolm. That is, until Joe, Creative Director at her publisher crashes her celebratory lunch with Malcolm and promptly guesses who Sophie is. Throw in Sophie's lost laptop containing her long-awaited second book and a weekend birthday party in the country with the who's who of publishing and Sophie finds herself caught in the madness while trying to hide her simmering attraction to Joe and big secret.

I really enjoyed this book and I liked the budding romance with Joe, who finds himself baffled that he's found himself falling in love on first sight. I hated the way Sophie and her parents let spoilt 18-year-old younger sister Charlotte get away with everything from stealing Sophie's handbag and generally just going through her stuff. I found her absolutely insufferable and thought she needed to be taken down a peg or two. That said she was so well written. For me, though, the highlight was Sophie's relationship with her brother William.

I think its Lindsey Kelk's wittiest and spiciest. Kelk makes some very sharp observations about the publishing world (cackled at the name of Sophie's publisher who bared a very close resemblance to Kelk's) and literary snobs.

However, at times, I think this book is too heavy-handed in making its point about the romance genre and how its derided because women love it. I think this is partly because I've lately read a lot of romance books about romance books/authors that the meta-ness of it all is becoming old. At one part of the book, Kelk spends half a paragraph listing real-life romance authors and tropes are called out as they happen. And while sister Charlotte's dialogue, while spot on characterisation of a Gen Zer, also belabours the point about woman and romance. For a book that will be read by this same audience, surely this is a captured audience?

Thanks to Harper 360 and NetGalley for the ARC.

2.5 ⭐️

If a book cover has an endorsement by Emily Henry on it, then I know (or hope) it’s going to be good. I had high hopes for this book but it ultimately just was not it for me. I almost gave up reading it due to how much I did not connect and truly disliked the main characters in this story but ended up finishing it. I actually liked the pop culture references and love an enemies to lovers moment but had a hard time feeling the love between Sophie and Joe.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC!

Lindsey Kelk is one of the queens of romance who never ceases to amaze me with her heartfelt and entertaining romcoms. Especially when she adds obnoxious, very eccentric family members into the equation, so much is guaranteed. I have to admit I never resist the charm of my favorite tropes: forced proximity (separated by curtains is a great tribute to "It Happened One Night") and enemies to lovers! (Later it added love at first sight and he fell first tropes that I don't much enjoy, like main character Sophie Taylor does, but they still blended perfectly into the entire formula I truly enjoyed.) There's even Montague vs. Capulet-like fight between enemy families that made me guffaw a lot!

The steamy chemistry that set most of the chapters on fire between Sophie and Joe was brilliant! Hate at first sight slowly turns into lust when they first meet under the wrong circumstances: when Sophie makes a secret meeting about her book, perfectly hiding her identity using the pseudonym Este Cox, she's ambushed by the creative director of their publishing company, the smug, privileged, but also hot-as-hell Joe Walsh, who's questioning the identity of the author and mocking her book. Sophie doesn't leave without a fight, even though she has a train to catch to her family's countryside house to celebrate the festivities of her powerful editor father, who has already secretly shared his activity spreadsheets and invited tons of people created to irritate her.

Sophie stays for lunch to share a few shots of Baileys with the disgusting-at-first-sight Joe Walsh while their pissing contest banters take an extra turn. They continue day drinking, finding themselves singing duets on the stage of a karaoke bar. But drinking fuels the lust, and hatred forces Sophie to dramatically leave the bar to hop on her train.

When she's ushered by her brother William, who's also her agent and one of the few people who knows her secret bestseller identity, at the train station, she realizes she forgot her tote bag carrying a special edition of her book, her drafts for her second book, and her laptop! This is truly a disaster! Anyone who finds it will also discover the secret identity she's kept from her very literary snob parents: her criticizing editor father and harshest book critic mother who easily end authors' careers. And let's not forget her 19-year-old sister Charlotte, who is spoiled and extremely self-absorbed, recently opened a bookstore, conducts marketing campaigns as a BookToker on TikTok, slams books, and is interestingly a big fan of Sophie's "Butterflies" (Sophie is not sure her sister would highly defend her book if she found out her big sister wrote it!)

When William and Sophie arrive at the family house, Sophie thinks she can manage only a few days without killing anyone, plastering a smile on her face as her parents talk trash about her book in her vicinity (what if they find out she wrote it?!) Yes, she knows her father is a typical drama king wearing clown costumes to emphasize his sarcasm towards the literary world, her mother keeps spoiling her younger sister, creating disasters in the kitchen, and gossiping with her pretentious bunch of friends, while her sister Charlotte makes it her biggest mission to reveal the real identity of Este Cox on her TikTok account, nosing around Sophie's belongings. They've also invited her least favorite misogynistic, xenophobic uncle and aunt! Her father even invited her ex C.J.: the same man she knew as Colin and dated, lived with for five years, and even financed so he could concentrate on his book, who then stole her book idea and, as soon as he had a publishing agreement, dumped Sophie. The reason? Well, he became too famous to date a small-town school teacher.

But this is not the only disaster she has to get through. Her father also invited his arch-nemesis Geoffrey with a secret agenda, and Geoffrey's son decides to join his father: his son is none other than Joe Walsh! And that's not all: her father forces them to share a cottage because there's not enough space at the house for their guests! Oh boy, you think this is the last straw! Nope, this is just the beginning because it seems like Joe Walsh has found out her secret and, interestingly, he calls a truce and helps her keep it safe! But why? Does he have a secret agenda other than getting into her pants? Well, she can let him do that even though she highly doubts she can trust him, but sparks keep flying, attraction is palpable, and she doesn't know where to stop. Oh boy, does she even want to resist his charms?

Overall: It seems like the end part of the book is a little rushed and a big conflict is solved a bit faster than expected, which made me feel there could be a sequel because I had some unanswered questions in my mind, and it felt like there should be more adventures awaiting them. I wish there would be another book! I'm so open to spending more time with Sophie & Josh and Sophie's eccentric family! (In the beginning, I found them too irritating, but they kept growing on me! William is an exception, whom I loved from the first chapter he was introduced.)

I highly recommend this very entertaining romcom! It's captivating, funny, and so much fun is guaranteed! I'm looking forward to reading more Lindsey Kelk books in the near future! She never disappoints me!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper 360 for sharing this entertaining romcom's digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc! It was a cute romance with lots of fun pop culture references sprinkled in. The romance was palpable! I can’t wait to read more by this author!

I can not begin to express how much I enjoyed this book! Even though I felt personally attacked throughout the book, I was laughing almost the whole time because something was either relatable or just genuinely funny. Sophie is an author to an erotic novel, but she can't let her parents know. Both her mother and father are both well known in the publishing/critic industry and would be ashamed if they knew their daughter wrote such a novel.

Her journey leads her to cross paths with a guy named Joe. He works for the publishing company that her novel is under. I loved their relationship throughout the book. They were so quick with their snarky come backs which constantly left me laughing.

Sophie's father has a 60th birthday party with quite the questionable guest list. Her father's frenemy, his son Joe, her ex CJ, and several other family members attend. What could possibly go wrong? Will her family find out her true identity as the author Este Cox?

I personally loved all of the mentions of authors, book titles, and other tid bits that I could relate to or understand. Did I start reading a bunch of popular booktok books when I first started reading? Yes. Was Iron Flame one of my favorite books? Also yes. I don't even want to mention the minotaurs. This novel was just downright humorous the entire time. I would LOVE to see a special editon of this book with sprayed edges so that I can add it to my growing collection.

Thank you so much Netgalley, Lindsey Kelk, and Harper360 for an ARC! This was one of my favorite books this year. 5/5🍓

I wanted to love this book so much. I was so excited, I loved the cover and the description. I unfortunately didn’t love it. It was okay. The story itself moved pretty quickly but the characters were questionable and I found myself getting annoyed fairly quickly.

Fans of enemies to lovers romance books need to pick up Love Story! This is the book for you! A must read!

This book was so much fun to read. I love books where we can escape. I especially love the author and I'm glad I pre-ordered this book. I love the romance genre and it was fun to get a behind the scenes of the publishing world. I laughed and cried. The characters were lovable and hilarious.

It's such a weird description an overrated book. I think books and authors deserve the hype. Let's hype the books we love and that help us feel things.

~Romance, Enemies-to-Lovers, Secret Identity, and more!~

Love Story by Lindsey Kelk follows Sophie Taylor, a teacher by day and secret romance writer by night. Hiding behind the pen name Este Cox, her debut novel Butterflies is an internet sensation and enormous success. The problem? She worries about what her parents and the school she works at might think if they find out. After a run-in with the handsome but infuriating marketing director Joe Walsh and losing her bag that would reveal her secret identity, Sophie heads to her hometown for her father's birthday. Only to discover Joe is there and there is only one bed. Will Sophie be able to find her bag and keep her identity a secret? Will Joe and her keep things civil?

2.5| First, I wanted to like this book. The cover is gorgeous, and the title is adorable. The book's premise is unique and one I was excited to read. Unfortunately, this book just fell flat for me. I found the love interest, Joe, unlikable and condescending. While he had some redeeming qualities later in the book, I could not get over their first encounter. As in most contemporary romance novels, the enemies-to-lover trope just doesn't work. There isn't a valid reason for Sophie to hate Joe until later in the book, making her seem overly judgmental. I didn't feel Joe and Sophie had much chemistry at all. Most of the story happens within three days, so the characters don't have much time to evolve. While I'm not against the Insta-love trope, it unfortunately didn't work well here. The characters seemed one-dimensional, and I wish I had seen more of their good qualities instead of just their issues and insecurities. I did enjoy some of the side characters. William’s character was fantastic and one I wish I had seen more of. I also loved Sarah and the little of her backstory we got to see.

I found Sophie frustrating. I wish she would have just stuck up for herself. I often just wanted her to say something, even a tiny thing, to stick up for herself. She was so much of a pushover at times I had to put the book down. I mainly felt this with her sister, who I found incredibly distasteful—instead of giving in every single time, I wish she would have stood her ground against her. Besides not liking some of the characters, I found this book hard to read. I don't mind a couple of well-placed pop culture references, but there were so many that it was too much. Some of them worked well, but there were too many, which took me out of the story. The sentences were long, and I felt I had to reread them constantly because I didn't know what it was saying. While I enjoy detailed descriptions, it felt like too many words in one sentence without anything breaking it up. Some descriptions, especially about nature, were beautifully written, but too many words made it overwhelming and confusing. I also felt the story didn't feel complete. I wish there were an epilogue to wrap everything up.

Overall. I wanted to like this story. Unfortunately, too many things just did not work for me. Some parts were enjoyable, like the banter, but I found most of the characters too unlikeable to enjoy. The concept of the story is excellent and I wish I enjoyed it. This book was not for me, but I'm sure others will love and enjoy it.

this was meh, the fmc drove me insane and made it difficult to enjoy the story. it had potential but fell flat. the pacing was nice with good humor but the instalove wasn’t for me.

This was an absolute gem to read! I devoured this with quickness, I could NOT put it down. I loved all the pop culture references and the banter and comedic relief had me crying from laughter.

Love love love!

Add this to your TBR now!! I absolutely devoured this sweet, and incredibly darling love story. It was just too good!! I was not wanting it to end.

A book about a writer in the romance genre, and her own love story?! What a cute idea; I really enjoyed this one!

Sophie Taylor has written the hottest, international, bestselling romance novel, but no one knows she wrote it. She released the book under a pseudonym. A chance encounter with Joe Walsh, the marketing director at her publishing company, sends her life into a tailspin. Will she decide to come clean to the world and her family to take credit for her writing? And what will Joe Walsh have to do with it?

I have read a couple of Lindsey Kelk’s novels, and her writing always makes me laugh. She has a great sense of humor, and I always love the chemistry between her main characters. Sophie and Joe had great chemistry from the beginning. This was definitely Lindsey Kelk’s spicest novel to date, and I loved it!

I would recommend this romcom to all romance lovers!

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper360 for the ARC of this novel; all opinions are my own.

El libro es una crítica a como son tratadas las autoras y lectores de romance, en como se les hace menos por no leer según la gente cosas
que no aportan nada, como la situación cambia si quien escribe romance es hombre, él nunca será ridiculizado ni juzgado.
La idea es buena, lamentablemente el desarrollo es un desastre.


Sophie es maestra y en secreto es una exitosa escritora. Su padre es un importante editor y publicista, su madre una famosa crítica literaria, ambos son snobs literarios, se la pasan haciendo comentarios mordaces sobre cómo los autores de romance son una vergüenza, por tal razón Sophie guarda el secreto sobre su libro.

Por el cumpleaños de su padre tiene que ir a su casa, ahí todos los invitados son personas que tiene que ver con el mundo literario. Todos se la pasan burlándose de la escritura Cox, de su libro y como es una desgracia para el feminismo 🙄 , sin embargo, cuando Joe en un intento de ayudar a Soph dice que él es Este Cox, mágicamente cambian de opinión, le plauden y alaban que sea un hombre tan conectado con sus sentimientos y que ayude a los mujeres a expresarse.

Todo el libro vemos como sus padres la menosprecian, la hacen menos por ser maestra, dejan que su hermana menor la pisotee. Los odie a los tres.







La parte del romance tampoco me gustó,

Joe trabaja para la editorial que publica su libro, cuando se conocen él no tiene idea que ella es Cox y dice cosas groseras sobre su libro, resulta que también es un snob literario. Uno pensaría que Sophie se alejaría del tipo, pero como está guapo decide ir a tomar, coquetean, platican, luego le muestra que es un idiota misogeno y al parecer el tipejo tiene poderes mágicos porque segundos después de mostrar sus verdaderos colores ella casi lo besa.

Toda su "relación" se basa en lo físico y la atracción.


Calificación: 2.5⭐️


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sophie has a big secret and when she returns home to her spend time with her bookish family things come to a head. She has to make a split decision, fill her enemy in on her secret or tell the truth. He’s the least person shed tell under normal circumstances but she’s desperate. Her family cannot find out she’s Este Cox the bestselling romance author the entire world is desperate to unmask.

This felt like a love letter to all the romance readers. For the fans of Lindsey Kelk, “Beth O’Leary, Fallon Ballard, Ali Hazelwood, Sarah Adams, Hannah Grace, Lucy Score”, the list goes on. The bookish community better get ready because its a good one.

Joe pushes all her buttons, some good others not so much but ebbing stuck together for the weekend quickly brought them closer. They can relate to one another, trying to make their own path in the literary industry without their parents. Their sexual chemistry is palpable, the forced proximity making it all the better, you can’t help but root for them. Although there are layers to the story mainly due to Sophies use of a pen name. Her family is very opinionated and navigating that isn’t an easy task.

The balance between comedy and romance is incredible, one of the things Kelk always excels at in my opinion. This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and will most likely end up being one of my favorite 2024 reads. Can’t recommend it enough.

Read this if you like
⚡️Enemies to lovers
🛏️One bed trope
🩷Romance
🌶️Spice
🎤Pop culture references