thank you Harper for Love Story, I had a lot of fun reading this.
TL;DR: A fun, lighthearted romance set in the publishing world, packed with favorite tropes, witty humor, and a style that really worked for me.

Kelk is an author I love for both her humor and her romance, and her sharp, edgy asides always hit the mark. I found myself laughing out loud a few times! As a fan of books set in the publishing world, I especially enjoyed the fun nods to the bookstagram and BookTok communities, along with the quirky but relatable family dynamics. This was a perfect weekend read—exactly what I needed when I wanted a good laugh, a solid enemies-to-lovers story, and a book that didn’t take itself too seriously (in the best way possible).

My only minor quibble is that there are a lot of tangents—family drama, time with a best friend, a budding romance, a hidden secret identity. It all flowed into a style I enjoyed, but I can see how some readers might find the bookstagram/BookTok elements a bit much (I thought they were spot-on and hilarious, though!). Others might feel that the range of side characters and secondary plots could be overwhelming, but for me, it helped flesh out the family dynamics and tied into the main plot seamlessly.

In short, it’s a fun, engaging read that struck the right balance for me!

I thought this was pretty good but not really four star worthy for me. It took me awhile to Chet through because it didn’t hold my interest even though it’s not that long at all. I found the romance to be odd. I don’t mind a instalove troupe but only when the story is more of those characters and not really focusing so much on the extra plot. This had the instalove but then didn’t really spend a lot of time with it which made their romance not be exciting and believable.

While "Love Story" wasn’t a perfect read for me, I can easily see why it could be a five-star favorite for others. The sharp banter, heartwarming moments, and eventual emotional growth offer plenty to enjoy, even if the family dynamics and pacing weren’t to my taste. If you’re a fan of Lindsey Kelk’s humor and enjoy the ups and downs of enemies-to-lovers romances, this book might be what you’re looking for.

For me, it’s a two-star read, but for those who connect with the character arcs and can overlook a few frustrating family scenes and real-life references, it could easily be a five-star experience. Everyone’s love story is different—maybe this one will be your favorite.

For the full review: please check my blog Setp. 20th at 10 am Pacific Time.
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This was my first Lindsey Kelk book (unfortunate, I know) and I LOVED it. The humor, the British references, the pop culture references, it was all amazing.

The hidden identity aspect of things for the main character was so much fun, and her family being so disrespectful and insufferable (mostly the sister) made you realize exactly why Sophie wanted to keep her pseudonym a secret.
The banter was out of this world. Not only between the love interests, but everyone in this book had the perfect dry humor that makes me cackle and I adored it.
I especially loved that Love Story was essentially a love letter to the romance genre and a challenge to the stereotype society has set that romance is lesser than. As a romance lover, the feeling of needing to defend my reads is so relatable, since some people don’t consider romance a “real” genre and it was so empowering to read something that completely flipped that stereotype on its ass.

I read this as an ARC, but it was absolutely the kind of book I will be buying immediately as soon as I find it in the wild because I fell completely head over heels for it and it needs to live on my shelf.

Thank you to Harper360 for this gifted ARC via NetGalley.

I love an enemies to lovers romance and this was no exception! So good!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Cute. I liked the main love interest and mostly liked the protagonist. But I really had issues with some of the other characters, especially her sister (felt like there were other ways to have everyone find out than by Charlotte constantly going through her things, but maybe that's past trauma from younger siblings going through my things talking here) and at times, her parents too. Seemed a little rushed and more of the instalove trope that I'm not a huge fan of, but it was a quick read and I overall enjoyed it.

I LOVED this book! I have a soft spot for a book about books and writers and it was such a delight seeing Sophie and Joe find the path to their happily ever after. The story was a genuinely funny romcom, full of antics and silly side characters, balanced with enough swoons to have me giggling and kicking my little feet. I also loved that underneath all of that, there was a beautiful message about learning to trust yourself and your dreams and an almost academic defense of why romance novels are important as an art form. So good and such a delight!

3.5 stars

This book was a rough rating for me because there were parts I really liked but also parts that had my eyes rolling and gave me a bit of the ick.

Sophie is hiding under a pen name and, of course, the one person she has to trust to not out her is her newly named nemesis Joe. That’s a pretty compelling premise for a romance and I was sold right away. I also loved the underlying tone of taking romance back for readers. How it fought back against the stereotypes people push on romance readers. Some other parts that worked for me were the banter and the side characters (mainly William).

On the other hand, while I really liked Sophie and Joe together there were some scenes that felt forced, as if there was zero chemistry between them. I’m not a huge fan of insta love but I feel it can be made bearable when done right, sadly that wasn’t the case here. Also, I’m all for current day references but I feel like it got a bit excessive and unnecessary.

After loving The Christmas Wish I was very excited for Kelk’s latest. As much as I really wanted to love it, it sadly ended up being just average for me.

Read if you love:
❤️ Instalove
🇬🇧 UK setting and slang
🛏️ One bed
💖 Forced proximity
🤫 Secret identities

Thank you HarperCollins360 and Netgalley for my gifted copies in exchange for an honest review!

Reading 'Love Story' is like grabbing cocktails with your best friend! The writing felt effortless, and I thoroughly enjoyed the humor and well-placed pop-culture references spanning from TSwift to Pride & Prejudice, which felt so fresh and relevant!

In ‘Love Story’ our main gal, Sophie, is a contemporary romance author of a very steamy bestselling debut novel and is afraid to claim it as her own due to the polarizing nature of the genre. I appreciated how Lindsey Kelk addressed this complexity head-on and named some of my favorite romance authors while doing it!

What I loved:
✅ The story jumps RIGHT IN and you quickly meet both Sophie and Joe… BAM!
✅ Laugh Out Loud Humor –– especially from Sophie’s brother William (my fave character)
✅ Realistic character developments from both Sophie + Joe
✅ Plot Twists that I did NOT see coming – WHOA!
✅ Enemies to Lovers with spice, tension, and witty banter
✅ A cringy Ex who held her back… and gets what he deserves, #KARMA

Some quotes that made me SMILE!
- All I had to do was not kill my sister, pray that William was able to locate my bag with the manuscript before someone published the sequel on Reddit, avoid my ex, survive the rest of the family, keep my secret identity a secret, come up with a better ending for my book and never, ever let myself be alone with Joe bloody Walsh. How hard could it be? ‘Morning.’ …It could be impossible. 😳😆
- ‘Did you want something?’ I asked, eyes on the ground. It wasn’t safe to look at him, like the Ark of the Covenant or the sun or the sell-by date on a bag of Mini Eggs you find in November when you’re on your period. There were some things we were better off not knowing. 😜
- I’m not saying everyone’s husband needs to be able to explain how the Hadron Collider works but at least find a partner who knows Lord of the Rings is fiction and not something that happened a very long time ago.’ 🤣

THANK YOU Lindsey Kelk, NetGalley, and Harper360 for the Advance Reader e-Copy in exchange for my honest review!

If you’re looking for a highly entertaining, funny, ode to the romance genre, this book will not disappoint!

Sophie is a secret romance bestselling author who writes under a pseudonym because her family is full of literary snobs in the publishing industry. As she navigates her father’s birthday party complete with family drama, her ex boyfriend, and a new attractive coworker who knows exactly how to get on her nerves, she struggles to keep her secret under wraps.

I thought this was a super fun book, and I liked the references to other romance novels, pop culture, and current trends throughout. It felt very relevant and fresh, and it was extremely entertaining the whole way through. If I could rate the plot of the book separately from the romance aspect I would, because while the plot was fun and interesting, I felt like the romance was not well done. It was really secondary to the main storyline of Sophie’s novel and secret writing career. I didn’t feel a connection between Sophie and Joe at all, and didn’t really understand why they were interested in each other beyond physical attraction. Everything Joe said felt cheesy and fake, and I didn’t buy any of it. It was actually kind of ironic that the character in the book had a super popular romance novel that everyone was gushing over, when the romance in this novel was not good. I did feel like the book wasn’t trying to take itself too seriously, and the main character even said she “hates the instalove trope” (which is what this book was). While the characters seemed over dramatic and unrealistic, and many of the events were over the top, it still made for a very entertaining read. It was kind of like watching reality tv - you’re just in it for the drama and entertainment value, and not because you believe any of it is true to real life. Overall, I would recommend it because it’s fun. If you’re looking for something more swoony and heart wrenching, this is probably not for you.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.
Sophie is a breakout star in the romance world and she doesn’t want anyone to know. Daughter of a publishing powerhouse couple she’s embarrassed to admit she’s written the number one book of the genre for some reason. She has no self confidence that her family will be supportive of her books, so she lives in the shadows.

Joe is… Joe? He’s handsome, also in publishing, and I don’t think I ever really figured out why Sophie hates him so fiercely. At times I felt the enemies to lovers was pushed way too much. But I also felt that way when there was a break and their lust for one another stared to take over.

I do wish that his final confession had not been at her very first book signing. She finally deserved to shine and I felt that him confessing his love to her in front of her first crowd really took the light away from her. He could have shown up in line later on or something and not stolen her moment after she finally told the world who she was.

Overall a decent read and I look forward to seeing what else this author comes out with.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sending me this ARC! Happy release day to this absolutely adorable book!

So first I would like to say I was torn on whether or not to rate this four or five stars. I had such a hard time at first getting past all the references to “booktok” and name dropping other authors, butttt when you realize the setting this book is taking place in it really does make sense and I actually really like how relevant it is.

As a romance reader people constantly make snide remarks about my reading choices and how I just read fluff, but romance (and smut) as a genre is so much more than that. I really appreciate the way this book approached that topic.

Also, this book had heart and was laugh out loud funny multiple times. The banter between Sophie and Joe is absolutely top tier. And the writing was so cozy. I felt like I was best friends with Sophie and we were just hanging out during this whole book.

Thank you again for the opportunity to read this book and I will be recommend it to everyone forever. I’m going to go read every other book by Lindsey Kelk now.

***4.5 STARS***

“Do you believe that exists? The all-consuming, overwhelming romance novel love?”

What does exist is another spectacular romcom by Lindsey Kelk who writes with such wit, depth and passion. Her newest novel Love Story will make you laugh out loud, swoon hard and fall further in love with the romance genre.

Sophie Taylor has written a bestselling romance novel under a non de plume. As a teacher and a daughter of parents who are big in the publishing industry, writing anonymously seemed like the best idea. Joe Walsh is a creative director for the same publisher that handles Sophie’s book and he inadvertently discovers her secret. He’s willing to help Sophie even though they have gotten off on the wrong foot.

A birthday celebration for Sophie’s dad turns into mayhem and hilarity as chemistry is burning, secrets are threatened and trust is crumbling. Sophie will learn that keeping secrets is lonely and isolating and that secrets kept from her are even more difficult to handle.

This book is a love letter to romance novels—I adored the shout outs to many favorite authors, the many pop culture nods and the wonderful mix of very entertaining characters. This is a fun, sexy and heartfelt novel, a must read for the devoted romance reader.

Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The bad: I think that the instalove storyline wasn't as believable as the author wanted. We didn't have enough chemistry building or real progression to believe that they were just about instantly from hate to love.

The good: I love the dynamics of exploring the relationship between a child feeling like they never impress or enough for their parents and what the reality might be, because I think we all are our own worst critics and may be at times projecting it a bit.

Overall: I did really enjoy the storyline in the end but there were some moments where I just couldn't fall into the story the way I wanted to. I'd still recommend the book - it's a fun read overall - but you have to stick with it to get to that point.

I'd rate it 3.7/5 if I could do partial stars.- I'm rounding up to 4.

I found this book to be utterly delightful! The characters are engaging and well-developed - Sophie is just adorable and completely relatable - and I really appreciated all the pop culture drops. It's funny, it's charming, and the third-act breakup is tense but not overwhelmingly so. Even in its most predictable moments - which, let's be honest, all romance novels have - the story feels fresh and exciting.

Overall, “Love Story” is a must-read for anyone looking for a feel-good romantic comedy.

I offer this honest review in exchange for an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper 360 for the ARC of Love Story by Lindsey Kelk.

Yet another author I’m experiencing for the first time and again falling in love with her stories. Now proceed with finding all her other books and devour them. Seriously though, I requested this one thinking it would be similar to all the other romcom type books and in short words it is. But it is also all romcom troupes tossed in there, plus make your main character Sophie a romance writer herself, it’s just delightful. I loved how Sophie’s books were spicier than this book so it was like a medium spicy level to it. Almost like a layered bit of spicy. And then the main male, Joe Walsh, the man you just want to love but you can’t help but hate and you really aren’t sure why…probably because he’s that type of guy! Just loved Lindsey Kelk’s way of writing about the very type of book she was writing. Fun and enjoyable read.

Love Story is an absolutely stunning story & the best book from Lindsey Kelk thus far! The story of Sophie & Joe is full of twists, turns & secrets to keep the reader turning the page. The book is filled with many laugh out loud moments & plenty of banter back and forth between all the characters. Sophie & her siblings are especially funny when together; they have some of the best comebacks for each other when together (I am a particular fan of William & his commentary!). Kelk focuses on a number of popular tropes but the enemies to lovers has to be the best. There is so much attraction between Sophie and Joe yet they constantly go back & forth on fighting the attraction to the other and hiding their true selves from each other. Kelk hits on points that are relatable to all readers while keeping it light and entertaining from the first chapter to the end of the book. And since this is a rom-com, the best is the happily ever after of the book. The romance is just perfect. This is a definite for all TBR lists!

Love Story by Lindsey Kelk is about Sophie Collins who is hiding a gigantic secret, she is the author of the most popular romance book of her time but is hiding it due to her literary snob of a family and wanting to keep her job as a teacher. Joe Walsh is the creative director behind behind Sophie or Este Cox's book and he figures out her secret. They immediately both dislike and like each other at the same time. Together they are both working hard to keep this secret during a big birthday bash weekend for Sophie's dad.

Let's start with what I didn't like, I deducted a star because the book wants us to think they are enemies but they were rivals at best at the start but like each other so quickly that the rivals plot is a little weak in my opinion. I also thought the book was trying to be really clever by inserting trope references and so many contemporary references that it will feel dated quickly. While those things bother me, it is still a 4 star read for me.

What did I like? I liked Joe a lot and even if her parents are true snobs, I thought they were charming. Now what I really did like was the third act, I thought that was excellent so you have to really stick with it. My favorite part of the book was the last 21% which took it from a 3 star read to a 4 star read for me. To be fair, I love it when the story just implodes and we have to figure everything out, I judge my books by how they recover and the recovery was great.

I would recommend this book to people who enjoy the following tropes: rivals to lovers, slow burn, and miscommunication. I would also recommend it to people who don't mind contemporary references. While I love T.S and Britney, I think others might not love the amount of references. However, if you just like a nice fun, pop-filled read then this is totally for you!

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper 360, HarperCollins, and Lindsey Kelk for giving me the opportunity to read this advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars!! Never before has a book so closely captured the feeling of the climax of Crazy Stupid Love, and yet here we are!!!!

Sophie Taylor has a secret- she’s secretly an international bestselling romance author, and only her publisher and agent know. She loves the romance genre, but having grown up in a family of literary giants (and giant snobs) has pushed her into keeping this a secret from them. On a fateful weekend celebrating her dad’s birthday, secrets are made, kept, and broken; confusing love runs rampant; and everything culminates at the bouncy castle. (Enjoy that as a chekovs gun)

Sophie is an inspiring, intelligent, empathetic, tough, and sweet main character. She knows who she is, understands the people around her and works to keep the peace with all the competing big personalities, and has a gentle romantic spirit. Being able to go with her on this journey to accepting how others feel about her, losing her fear of being perceived, and letting her heart take over a bit was such a fun adventure! She’s also absolutely hilarious, both in her internal musings and her banter with literary designer Joe (who just so happens to sneak an invite to this big shindig)! She is a bit of a pushover with her little sister, but her relationship with her brother was almost my favorite relationship in the book!! The two of them could drag anyone and I would laugh (and pray I wasn’t next)!

Thank you so much to Lindsey Kelly, HarperCollins (MullinsParker??), and NetGalley for a chance to read this in exchange for an honest review! Lindsey’s writing is always great and this was an extra special one!!

There’s so much to love in Love Story.

What sucked me into the book was how Lindsey writes family dynamics, honestly. The complicated dynamics felt real, from her parents to her siblings. The minute her brother picked her up to take her to their father’s party, that’s when I couldn’t put the book down. Maybe it’s because I can relate to the dynamics with my older brothers, but something about how you always become an annoying sibling when that ONE sibling is around at your parents house, despite how professional and adult you are… yeah. I loved that. The side characters in this book are lovely to read about. I just want to know more!

Now onto the actual Love Story of it all… this was SO cute. The pop culture references might get one some readers nerves but I loved them. The dialogue and banter felt seamless. The romance between Sophie and Joe starts as enemies to lovers but the chemistry and attraction was always there from the start (we love to see it). The only thing that knocked this down from 5 stars for me was how the ending felt a bit rushed. Couple that with the miscommunication? I usually don’t knock books down for the third act break up since it’s almost expected in romance, but the reasoning for it felt silly.

Overall, 4.5⭐️ still a cute book and I love Lindsey’s writing!