Meg is at the peak of her career, she is a talented Lettering artist and is in a very delicate moment of creative blocking. This and the indifference her best friend has shown her, has only made everything worse. She has never felt so lonely and discouraged in her life even when she had to face a very complicated situation in the past because in the past her friend gave her full support at the time.





Reid is tired of New York, after his marriage went downhill, he began to realize that the work he had was not quite what he wanted for his life and is beginning to question his stay in the big city. His passion for decoding numbers eventually brings him closer to Meg in a very unusual way.





By telling Meg that he doesn't like New York, he ends up giving her an idea of ​​how to try to cure her creative block and then begins their journey of self-awareness and resilience.




I really liked the story and the way it was built. I was very surprised because I would never imagine the cause of the behavior of either Emily, Meg's friend, or Reid's. I also loved the way the writer made the analogy of numbers and letters how these little details made the protagonists fall in love with each other and perceive New York in a different way than they saw apart.

What a surprise this book was to me, I struggled at the start for no other reason as it was boxing day. A busy week at work brought me to the start of this loving story that will grow on you as you read. The author's description had me seeing the drawings of the words she was describing. I was not a fan of the long long inner monologues a time when all I wanted by an answer to the question given or the action. The characters grow as well as the story to a twist I just did not see coming at all. A great way to spend a holiday day.

So if you find you are not connecting with this book straight away give it a bit more time around 45% in it had me hook line and sinker to the very end.

Set in New York City you will meet Meg Mackworth a calligraphist who has witters block with a big client pitch in the near future to be ready for. the story is told in Megs POV which I enjoy to what I have recently been reading.

Reid Sutherland walking back into the shop where they had first meet almost one year ago, wanting answers to the secret message she left in this Wedding program.

A friendship soon formed between the two as Meg is determined to make Reid love the City she has come to call home. She needs her own inspiration to get her next job finished so they play a few walking games around the city to discover a new love of the city they live in.

Thank you to Kensington Books and Netgalley for this Advanced Reader Copy. All thoughts and opinions provided are my own.


READING PROGRESS

Love Lettering is a fantastic new novel by Kate Clayborn. Meg is a graphic artist, who makes a living designing custom planners for a building clientele in New York. One day, Reid walks back into the shop she used to work in and reveals he knows her secret- she hid little markers in the wedding program for his cancelled wedding and wants to know why. The story that follows is just lovely- part rom com, part love letter to New York. The novel kept me hooked from beginning to end- which had an ending that surprised me. The characters are so well developed that I wish I could look up Meg's art online. If you are looking for a delightful New York story, try this one- you won't be disappointed!

3.5 Understanding the Code Stars
* * * 1/2
I found this book to be interesting due to my own interest in the art of writing and doing script. To use this as the focus of a story and how code was inserted to the invitation was clever. The added suspense and love story was a bit slow and drawn out but in the end, came together.

I received an ARC of Love Lettering (December 31) from Kensington Books via NetGalley. What follows is my fair and honest review.

TL;DR: If you read contemporary romance, you’re going to want to pre-order Kate Clayborn’s Love Lettering. (And there’s a great pre-order package if you order from Fountain Bookstore!)

If that isn’t enough convincing enough, here's a quick summary and full review:

Meg is a calligrapher, known as the Planner of Park Slope for her work designing planners for clients. But once upon a time, Meg also designed wedding stationary, work she gave up for reasons she is unwilling to share. But when Reid, one of Meg’s last wedding clients, walks through the door of her shop, he seems to know exactly what she’s done. The secret reason she won’t design any more wedding invitations. And a year after Reid’s wedding-that-wasn’t, he’s looking for answers. What Meg and Reid find together is more than either could have anticipated.

I loved Love Lettering, even though contemporary isn’t usually my go-to romance sub-genre. Meg and Reid are a great opposites-attract couple, and I thought the conflict(s) they face together are believable and realistic. I also enjoyed how Meg grows as a person, mostly independent of her relationship with Reid.

One quick note: the novel is written in first-person POV from Meg’s perspective, so if you don’t that writing style, this novel may not be for you. While I did find myself wishing for more of Reid’s perspective throughout the book, it didn’t ruin the novel for me. And without giving too much away, after reading through the ending of the book, I can see why leaving Reid’s perspective out is probably the best choice for the story.

I highly recommend Love Lettering for contemporary romance readers, or for anyone looking to give the genre a try.

Well, I thought this would be right up my alley, but this was just an okay read for me. I found it to move at a really slow pace, and I can’t say that I ever really connected with the characters. Both characters are quirky and very hard to relate to. Reid loves math and Meg loves writing. It was also very technical about writing and coding, which was interesting but somewhat hard to understand. Finally, there was a surprise twist at the end that I was not prepared for and I’m not entirely sure really fit the book. However, the epilogue was cute and a great end to the story. I think the concept of the story was creative and different but ultimately, this one didn’t pull me in as much as I’d hoped.

* ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Love Lettering - what a fantastic, geeky, nerdy and unexpected love story! I had no expectations going into this except knowing it was about a person who was a hand lettering artist.

I absolutely LOVED this book. LOVED. Meg and Reid were such great characters! Throw in the geekiness of different fonts, the love of various signs - both hand lettered and not, and the awkwardness of people who don't always feel they fit in and here you have Meg and Reid.

I don't know that this book is for everyone, but for those who enjoy a slightly different take on life, Love Lettering is probably for you.

It would be so easy to give away too much of this story if I continue to rave on so I'm stopping this review now. Just give this book a try. You may enjoy it and like me, fall in love with the geekiness that is this book. I will definitely be looking for more from Kate Clayborn in the future.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and author for approving my request for an ARC. All thoughts in this review are my own.

This book started out great, sweet story with rich characters and a quirky premise. Then it just... fell off a cliff I skimmed through most of it because it was very slow and plodding. An okay read.

This book is so charming. I loved every single one of the characters and would love to see more of them. A sequel with Sibby's story would be so great. I love how this romance was presented and it was slightly steamy at times, but not unnecessarily so. Along with the romance though, I really enjoyed the other story lines. I was so engaged with this story and didnt want it to end. This is the perfect lighthearted read to start out the year.

This was a little tougher to get into than other Kate Clayborn novels I have read but once I got into the rhythm of the novel, I ended up enjoying it tremendously. I look forward to her future offerings. It was a nice slow burn of a novel.

Believable characters who develop throughout the plot.
A plot that was, although slow at times, never boring.
I appreciated the details about, and hence research into, lettering. Made the main character so much more real to me.

Wonderful writing! I'm sure I'll read more from this author.

A solid 4 on the steam-o-meter, Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn was also a tender stranger-to-friendship=to-lover romance. To be honest, Love Lettering surprised me. I wasn't sure about how a book about a professional hand-lettering artist would read, since it's such a visual medium and books are just...words. But to my delight, it worked incredibly well, due in large part to Clayborn's wonderful descriptions.

I liked the two main characters--Meg and Reid--a lot, and I found the progression of their friendship relatable. (I fell in love with my husband quickly, feeling things much sooner than I thought I "should.") I loved the walks they would take--Meg showing Reid how to love NYC, Reid helping Meg break through her creative block by making her search into a game.

The idea of "signs" features heavily in the book--physical signs around the city, but also signs that a relationship is doomed or signs that its time to move on or fight harder. Despite it feeling a bit repetitive, I liked how the signs were woven throughout the narrative.

There were elements that felt a bit far fetched--like the whole FBI thing--but they were used as plot devices to move the main relationship along, so I understood their purpose. I appreciated how the hurt and the need for forgiveness were not simply glossed over but addressed instead. It felt like they were building an honest, healthy relationship. And the female friendships were also 100% relatable.

Overall, I would definitely recommend Love Lettering to my contemporary romance friends. Now I'm going to go teach myself how to draw pretty letters.

Love Lettering is a wonderful romance for any fan of the genre. The characters are well-rounded and fun while the storyline offers up a unique twist to the typical romantic situations. The author provides plenty of details that are specific to a career field and it allows readers to engage and enjoy what is happening in the novel. The main characters are adorably likable and easy to pull for. Kate Clayborn is a talented novelist, and I will be reading her novels future to come.

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Publishing for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I was provided a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest and fair review.

I haven’t read anything by this author but I’ve heard so many wonderful things about her novels from the podcasts I listen to. And I’m very glad I was able to read this one first specifically. This book was a love letter to journaling, art, and calligraphy all tied into one wonderful love story about a mathematician and an artist. Meg was so wonderfully endearing and charismatic. Her journey to self-empowerment in this novel was wonderful to see first hand. And Reid was so vulnerable and heart-wrenchingly perfect as a hero, his devotion and love for Meg was evident in the novel as it progressed and their relationship and chemistry really leaped off the page. Their love story and how it developed by walking the streets of New York and looking at hand-painted signs was a great idea. The writing is so beautifully done, it’s almost lyrical in how the characters and their stories are written. And decorative journaling is very on trend right now so the book is very well timed. Some pieces of the book weren’t an exact right fit for me. Overall though I really enjoyed this book a lot, it was extremely swoon-worthy and a wonderful read. I would definitely recommend it!

Love Lettering. Hard to get into the story. I didn't binge the book but still worth reading (check out the other reviews). Just hard to connect with the content.

Kate Clayborn's books are not light and fluffy. They take me a while to read and I usually cry at least once. They are, however, the sort of book that makes me think a lot about how we connect as humans and what it means to start over, to stand still for a moment, to redirect the trajectory of a relationship or a life.

Love Lettering is beautifully written, which means that the pervasive sense of loneliness that marks the first half of the book had me thinking "yes, I too miss having close relationships with other humans. I, too, am struggling to connect to the art I once loved." And I sat and felt lonely until Meg, the main character and POV character, started to connect and regain hope. It's the best and worst part of a good book, sharing emotions with a character.

As I said in my interview with the author, Love Lettering feels like three love stories in one - love of a passion turned career, love of a place (Brooklyn), and love of a person. It's an opposites-attract romance between two people at turning points in their lives. They're on very different paths, but when they intersect, it's fascinating to read. The main characters literally walk the streets of Brooklyn, playing games with letters and signs, finding tiny places to eat delicious food, sitting on a bench when Meg has debilitating cramps. (Reid is a considerate human with strong morals and I loved how he just gave her ibuprofen and kept her company.)

One note - there are several repeated phrases throughout which will either make you smile or irritate you. I'm in the former category, but repeated callbacks are something I know isn't for everyone, so I figured I'd mention it. Reid has a "triple take face," looks like he's from Masterpiece Theatre, has a facial expression Meg deems a "swoonsh," and people are described with font attributes.

I could describe this book for hours, but instead I'll leave you with a favorite passage, which takes place the first time the two have sex. Reid is a numbers person, he graduated at 15 and went to college and grad school for math. He still works in numbers. Meg is a letters person, think of words and phrases and the  lines and curves of letters as she moves about in the world. In this scene, she's just told Reid how she has a difficult time reaching climax with a partner. He asks her to show him what she likes, so she does.

"He watches, his tongue darting out to lick at the corner of his mouth, his eyes hot and focused, and I know he's seeing me, reading me, cracking this code I'm leaving, letters on this page for him alone, and suddenly I have a new, powerful rush of feeling, a different sort of passion: I hate every man who ever made me feel I shouldn't say what felt right. I hate the way they didn't try to understand. I hate the way they made me feel demanding and difficult for asking them to do something they hadn't figured out on their own; I hate the way they got frustrated and impatient and wounded."

Reid, studious and intense, watches and learns. Meg, careful and cautious, lets herself be vulnerable.

It's lovely, just like the rest of the book.




Suzanne received a copy of this book from the publisher for review.

I received an advanced read chapter of this book, which I loved, and I was so glad that I was also granted the full ARC from Kensington Books via Netgalley. This is a very creative story about Meg Mackworth, a woman who has turned her lettering skills into a business. Meg hand letters signs, journals and has just started hand lettering wedding invitations and programs. When she first meets Reid and his fiance to plan their wedding paperwork, Meg has a feeling that this wedding will not last. As she weaves the beautiful swirls and artistic touches into each letter she also weaves a secret message into the program- a message she is confident no one will ever notice, but she is wrong. The one person who shouldn't notice the hidden message, the groom Reid, does figure out the coded signs of a doomed marriage and now-a year later-he is back in Meg's shop wanting to know how she knew his marriage wouldn't work. Meg and Reid may have had an awkward start to their friendship, but are their signs that this friendship might turn into something more? This is a really creative story with more depth than a traditional "meet cute" romance. This is a must read!

Meg Mackworth does lettering for a living. It's amazing how she thinks in font styles and associates feelings with her doodles. She has this habit of putting hidden messages in her output and is currently facing an artist's block. Reid Sutherland is a numbers guy. To say that he is good with patterns and codes is definitely an understatement. They first met when Meg did the wedding program for Reid and his fiancée, Avery. Fast forward to almost a year, Reid is back in the shop where Meg works and confronts her about something. This confrontation leads to a series of meetings between a girl who breathes letters and a guy who sees numbers.

This book is everything I wanted. Everything is on point - the romance, the humor, the conflicts. All the characters are relatable even when a few of them are not likable. I like that the book is feminist and LGBT-friendly. Love Lettering is indeed a fit title because this is a story about different kinds of love (passion for what you do, attraction to and falling in love with your partner, solid friendships, and even self-love) and how you make these relationships work. I enjoyed reading this in Meg's point-of-view because she gives life to each letter and each word. I was touched by how this book was written and I can honestly say that Meg and Reid are #relationshipgoals. Trigger warnings include cheating, divorce, sex.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for a copy of this wonderful book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC.

I liked it but I can’t say I loved it. It took a really long time into the book to get invested into it. But I liked what was happening in the last 30% of the book as that part had all the amazing stuff, secrets, scandals, etc. For those heavily into lettering and numbers, it is an interesting backdrop throughout the entirety of the book. For those not into it, the settings can be a bit too much. Meg’s characters is a really interesting one especially how she builds her career is impressive. This one is a slow quiet story. Overall a decent read for those looking for contemporary romance.

4.5 stars!

Love Lettering is a quiet kind of love story - the kind that starts slow and uncertain but will ultimately sneak up on you and catch you in the feels. Meg and Reid are an unlikely pair (probably partially attributed to the fact that she designed the wedding program for his now cancelled wedding) but their differences compliment one another beautifully in this story. Love Lettering is about finding yourself and someone who loves you for that, while navigating career paths and friendships that don't always make life an easy ride.

For those who like a fast-paced steamy novel, this may not be the romance for you - but it grabbed a hold on me and didn't let go. There are one or two red hot scenes but this one is fairly tame in this regard!