Love At First Book Review

It’s Pub Day for one of my recent reads, Love At First by Kate Clayborn. I received a free advanced copy of this book from NetGalley on behalf of the publisher Kensington Books in exchange for my honest review. This was a sweet read featuring a lovely cast of characters, though it started off rather slow for me.

Little Gold Book

Love At First by Kate Clayborn

Genre: Romance – Contemporary
Format: eBook
Date Started: 2/16/21
Date Finished: 2/22/21
Rating: 4/5 star

By Its Cover

Sparks. Sabotage. Adorable but nosy neighbors. This enemies-to-lovers romance novel will have you laughing and smiling! When Will inherits an apartment from his estranged uncle, he decides to list it for short-term rental. Little does he know that he’s now part of a unique group of neighbors who have become family over the years. Nora, spokeswoman for the building, plots to ruin Will’s plan before he ruins her adopted family and beloved apartment complex. But is the heat that develops between Will and Nora a result of anger, or perhaps something more?

In My Book

Contemporary romance has been hit or miss for me lately, so I was a bit apprehensive when I started this book. I haven’t read any of Kate Clayborn’s books previously and didn’t have any on my TBR, so she was an unknown to me. Sometimes this doesn’t work out so well, but this time it did! 

Kate Clayborn developed a sense of community in her book, one that I wish I could join! The neighbors were each unique, but I could feel that their love and respect for one another was genuine. Watching Will fall in love with not just Nora but the whole building was heartwarming. 

I have only one real complaint. The pacing in Will & Nora’s relationship was slow to start, with the romance not starting until halfway through the book. This left the rest of the book feeling a bit rushed, as I would have liked to see them find their way in the fledgling relationship more. I also didn’t fully understand their pasts and fears of relationships until they started exploring their relationship’s romantic side. Sometimes, I felt a bit annoyed with the characters because their motives were unclear to me. Now that I know this, it wouldn’t bother me so much during a re-read, so don’t let it stop you! 

This was a sweet romance novel well-balanced in romance, humor, trauma, and growth. It felt realistic, like these could be your neighbors or friends. A great read when you need a laugh and a pick-me-up mixed together. 

To Close the Book

This is a book that I would love to see as a series so that the characters can come to life. I can picture them each in my head so perfectly, as the author did an excellent job of developing a backstory for each character, even the more minor ones. 

Check out my other reviews here.

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From one Wordo to another, thanks for tuning in! See you next time! 

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