I know to expect something good when I pick up a Kate Clayborn romance and I'm delighted to say that this one definitely will stay in my memory as a heartwarming, sweet, sexy, captivating and uplifting story.

Teenaged Will Sterling experienced both the best and the worst moments of his life one afternoon in Chicago - the best because through his blurry vision he saw, but mostly heard a young woman who captivated him and the worst because it was the day when he lost his youthful optimism and had to grow up too quickly. Years later, Will, now a doctor practicing at a local hospital, has inherited the apartment in the building where he visited that day upon the death of his estranged uncle, and the mother hen of the long term tenants is none other than the girl of his dreams, now grown up into a beautiful woman, Nora Clarke.

Will has no intention of keeping the apartment where his dreams were shattered and Nora has no intentions of letting it to go to a parade of strangers as a rental without a fight. What follows is a delicate dance between two people who want different things, but also want each other.

With an eccentric cast of characters including the other tenants, Will's supervisor (a divorced doctor whose ex-wife happens to be in the real estate business), Nora's co-workers and friends, the author weaves a tale that will alternately make you laugh out loud and bring you to tears. Banter contrasts with quiet emotional talks as Nora and Will try to find a way to each get what they want without hurting the other, and finding love along the way. I won't be at all surprised to find this on a list of best romances of 2021, including possibly my own.

A copy of this review will be posted at sale sites during release week.

When Will first visits the Chicago apartment building he inherited from his uncle, his only thought is to sell it as soon as the year his uncle required he keep it expires. He refuses to live there due to the bad memories associated with it, except for one shining exception: the young girl he saw on a balcony tossing cherry tomatoes at the squirrels who strikes his very heart and soul, a feeling he’ll never forget. Although he never got the chance to speak with her, Nora is the one bright spot in a day when Will lost everything. When he finds her 16 years later, living in her late grandmother’s apartment and looking out for the older tenants who are like family, he realizes that his plans to rent the apartment short-term will make him the enemy. Despite Nora and the others’ attempts to sabotage his efforts, the two are drawn to each other.

Clayborn has such a way with words. Describing their first pseudo-date on a Lake Michigan beach and discovering the comfort and joy they find in each other’s company, she writes, ”Between them, the jacket-tablecloth had wrinkled up, a dozing chaperone.” So much of their relationship is conveyed with looks, limited words, and intense feelings that can’t be hidden. However, the path to happily-ever-after is strewn with the baggage of childhood neglect and abandonment for both of them, and Will is determined to avoid falling into the “rash, reckless, selfish” love he witnessed between his parents (as described by his uncle on that fateful day). Out of fear that he might follow in his parents’ footsteps, he spent his adult life proving that he could be stable, measured, and in control, going on to become an ER doctor. It will take a great deal of persuasion on the part of friends who care for him to get him to accept that there isn’t just one way to love.

There’s so much packed into this beautiful, enemies-to-lovers story: genuine emotion, a subtle romance with mild sex scenes, selfish parenting, and a colorful cast of secondary characters who offer a platonic, at times parental, kind of love. This is a very worthy follow-up to Love Lettering, and you won’t be able to help being charmed by the well-meaning extended family. Highly recommend!

I received a complimentary ARC of this book Kensington Books from through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Kate Clayborn has a talent of creating characters that are relatable, flawed, deep, and approachable. It’s hard to find novels that draw you in and make you want to be friends with the characters, and Kate has made the task look easy. The storytelling makes you want to move in with Will, Nora, and the rest of the residents.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC.

Rating edit: 4.5 stars.

I loved this book! Very interesting plot. It's so sweet and heartwarming. It's so funny and so sad, at times. And I loved Will and Nora (especially Will). And their endearing conversations. (As the author said, 'Good manners and pleasant conversations).

I loved the writing style, it's very engaging.

'and he couldn’t just hear the grin in her voice. It was like he could feel it, like she had her mouth pressed right against his chest.'

Even the portrayal of supporting characters are very interesting and realistic. I particularly enjoyed the Will-Dr Abraham moments (apart from Will-Nora monents, of course).

Overall, a very good, entertaining and engrossing read!

As a big fan of Kate Clayborn's book "Love Lettering", I was ecstatic to find out that she had a new book coming in 2021. And boy, let me tell you, Love at First does not disappoint! If you like mutual pining, a short-lived frenemies-to-lovers situation, and a cast of quirky side characters (in this case, elderly neighbors wreaking havoc on our MC's plans), then this is the book for you.

Will is a workaholic doctor who inherits his uncle's apartment, the same apartment he visited once as a teen and fell for a girl he never actually met. Nora (surprise, the girl) has recently become the caretaker of her grandmother's beloved apartment building when Will comes in and threatens her idyllic status quo. Hijinks, friendship, and a sweet romance ensue. This is the perfect read for those awful quarantine winter days, when we've hit new lows in a lengthy pandemic. Read this. You'll feel better, swear.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an eARC of what is sure to be one of my favorite romances this year!

A simple and enjoyable love story for all romance addicts.

It has many of the elements in the love plots that we like so much, true love, enemies to lovers, internal discussions with being and impossible love.

enjoy reading this story.

This was a sweet and fun novel. I read Love Lettering previously and loved it just as much. If you are looking for a heartwarming and leaving you smiling book, then this is for you.

I received a copy of this from Netgalley in exchange for fair and honest review.

Love at First is the newest book by Kate Clayborn and it’s out on February 23rd. Do yourself a favor and pre order it now! Thanks to Netgalley and Kensington for the advanced review copy. This is the third book I’ve read by Clayborn and I have loved them all. Just like with Love Lettering, this one opened in a unique way that kept me hooked from page one. The intimacy between Nora and Will builds slowly and organically as they work their way from strangers with opposing interests to one of the sweetest couples I’ve read in a while. Some things I really loved about this book:

- this cover 😍
- a swoon worthy sickbed scene (I really can’t get enough of these)
- one of the purest bromances I’ve ever read
- a group of neighbors set on sabotage through kindness
- a great slow burn with very good home improvement related steam (HOT)
- the characters staying true to their opposing convictions despite falling in love
- the I love yous
- the found family
- a very memorable grand gesture

Love at First is seriously so so good. I’m already predicting it will be a 2021 favorite. I get teary eyed from a lot of things but the ending of this made me actually cry. One of those shocked gasp sobs that pop out when you feel really moved by something. I’ll include the synopsis below. This was easily a five star read for me and I hope you all pick up a copy!

Will inherits his estranged uncle's apartment and plans to offload the property and get back to his life. Until he meets Nora, who lives two floors above and won't let him ruin her close-knit building. 

This was such a sweet, slow burn romance. I liked the chemistry and tension between Nora and Will as they were obviously intrigued by one another but also on opposite ends of a conflict. I also appreciated their neighborly feuding -- it was charming but never over the top (and did it better than The Cul de Sac War in my opinion). They're both dealing with their own emotional baggage but learn how to heal and move forward with their lives.

I also loved the emphasis on your chosen family and the community shared by those in the apartment building. The cast of characters were all quirky but wrapped themselves around your heartstrings as they cared for both Nora and Will.

Overall I recommend if you want a sweet love story that handles deeper topics of grief and forgiveness.

Love at First scratches a lot of romance itches: love at first sight, enemies-to-lovers, childhood love, found family, and a truly incredible sick bed scene. The writing is really beautiful, and we get excellent interiority with Nora and Will - we spend a lot of time inside their heads, so I felt like I understood who they were and what their motivations really are. We get to really experience Will and Nora falling in love, and it's a beautiful and emotional journey.

There were a few, small parts that kept me from fully loving the book. I don't like that Will is actively trying to gentrify their building and it's totally excused--once Nora finds out why he doesn't want to live in the building, it's completely fine, as though he isn't betraying and displacing a community.

I also found Will's relationship with his boss, Dr. Abraham, really uncomfortable. Will and Nora both have really unhealthy relationships with their bosses and lack boundaries, but Dr. Abraham takes it to another level, overstepping and getting very personal, but it's never brought up as a problem. If Nora's boss is crossing a line by calling well after work hours, why is Dr. Abraham allowed to corner Will and ask him personal questions? It was a strange dynamic.

Kate Clayborn’s Love at First is one of those books that you immediately feel has wrapped you up in a warm hug, and in which the characters and their story creep gradually and unobtrusively under your skin and wind around your heartstrings.  Ms. Clayborn is one of my few go-to contemporary romance authors, and this book demonstrates yet again exactly why that is; this is a beautifully understated but gloriously romantic love story full of poignancy and tenderness featuring fully-rounded, supremely relatable characters with ordinary, everyday lives and ordinary, everyday problems.

We first meet Will Sterling when he’s around fifteen, and his mother has taken him to meet the uncle he never knew existed.  He has no idea why they’re there, and while he’s waiting outside the apartment block for his mother, he hears a girl’s laughter coming from somewhere above him.  He looks up to the balcony and even though he can’t see her clearly (he’s short sighted and needs glasses) Will is immediately captivated.  Something about her – the swishing of her sleek ponytail, her animated gestures, the sound of her voice – calls to him and he stands watching while he can hear his mother and uncle arguing in the background.

Sixteen years later, Will is a dedicated and hard-working ER doctor when he discovers that his uncle Donny has died and left him his apartment.  Will doesn’t want it – thinking about the things he’d learned that day so many years ago, or about his long-deceased parents stirs up too many painful, unresolved emotions – but under the terms of the bequest, he can’t sell the place for a year, so he decides instead to fit it out for short-term lets until he can legally dispose of it.

Unlike Will, Eleanora – Nora – Clarke has very fond memories of the apartment building where she spent so much of her childhood, and regards the other (mostly elderly) inhabitants as family.  The only child of two archaeologists who spent most of their time away on one dig or another, Nora lived with her grandmother during the summers and has, following Nonna’s recent death, come back to Chicago to live. Moving from San Diego, adjusting to remote working and struggling to cope with grief over her Nonna’s death has led to bouts of interrupted sleep, and now, a few months later, the hour between four and five in the morning has become her ‘Golden Hour’, a time for coffee and quiet reflection before confronting the day.  She knows the habits of her neighbours well, so when, on one particular morning, she wakes to hear someone else moving around on one of the balconies, she knows it must be someone new.  She ventures outside, and looking down, sees a man standing quietly, his handsome face cast in light and shadow from the glow coming from inside… and feels suddenly that this is someone she should meet.

Will and Nora engage in a short conversation, but they don’t see each other again until a few weeks later, during the meeting of the residents Nora convenes after learning of Will’s plan to let out Donny’s – Will’s – apartment to short term renters. She’s outraged – and the other tenants are worried – at the prospect of a steady stream of strangers coming and going, hating the idea of breaking up their close-knit community – and determines to come up with ways to get Will to change his mind.  She thinks if she can get him to see the unique qualities of the building and the people in it, he will fall in love with it (and them) too, and abandon his plan.

For the first part of the book, Nora and Will are at odds, he spending a couple of weeks clearing out and renovating his apartment, she trying to slow him down, put him off and generally make things difficult for him.  It’s a bit childish, sure, but for Nora, this is the family unit she’s never really had, and losing that on top of losing her Nonna is just too much to face.  And for Will, it’s the place where his life changed forever and he all he wants to do is leave behind the memories of the hurt and disappointment he associates with it.

But even though they want completely different things, neither of them can deny the strong pull of attraction they feel towards one another.  The chemistry between them is intense yet understated, and their interactions are awkward and lovely, a mixture of unutterable tenderness and raw vulnerability as they begin to learn about and love each other, slowly helping one another to let go of the things that hurt them and are holding them back.  I loved the way the author slowly reveals their truths – to the reader and to each other – showing not only how their pasts have shaped them but also their dawning awareness that those pasts don’t define them and that they can choose another path.

Nora’s neighbours are quirky and wonderfully drawn, as is Will’s uptight but insightful boss, and I loved the found family aspect of the story, the idea that we can choose who to love and surround ourselves with by sharing our hearts and our truest selves.

I had just two minor quibbles, which account for the A- rather than a full-on A.  Firstly, I didn’t care for the way Nora treats Will near the end; okay, so it’s a very stressful time but it still felt cold.  Also, I’m not a fan of romances where friends or family have to provide a very big nudge to get the protagonists to see what is under their respective noses; I much prefer them to work it out for themselves.

Apart from that though, Love at First is, quite simply, a delightful love story.  It’s not flashy or drama-filled; it’s a quiet, heartfelt and deeply emotional tale in which the romance builds slowly and organically, the character development is incredible yet subtle, and the regard and respect the two leads have for one another – even when they’re on opposite sides – infuse every page.  I’m sure Kate Clayborn’s many fans will need no urging to pick up this latest release, but if you’ve never read one of her books, Love at First would be a wonderful place to start.  Strongly recommended.

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A wonderfully written, delicate, sweeping romance about Will and Nora who’s love for each other gently blossoms even though they are adversaries at first with one holding on to history and family, and the other one wanting none of it.

It’s a love story as much about Will’s and Nora’s love for each other as it is about love for found family, making real human connections across generations & backgrounds, embracing progress and change, and finding courage to go after what we long for.

Despite this being an enemies to lovers book, I’d rate this as relatively low angst. The heat level is low to medium which isn’t my favorite but works perfectly here.

I’d like to include a content warning #cw about negligent parenting. It’s respectfully handled in the story but it’s referenced throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley & the Kensington Books for granting me the option to read this book ahead of the publication date in exchange for an honest review.

Love At First features two characters, Will and Nora, who are like two sides of a coin, both shaped by similar experiences, yet both choosing to shape their adult lives very differently in response. Their similarities lie in their childhoods, in which they both experienced being raised by parents who were pretty much disinterested in their children's lives. In Nora's case, this was because her parents' true love and passion was reserved for archeology. In Will's case, his parent were so wrapped up in each other, that there was no room in their lives for their own child.

Although her parents were pretty disinterested in her, Nora had a close, loving relationship with her grandma and inherited her condo. Because she spent every summer at the condo growing up, she has a close, familial bond with the other occupants of the 6 unit building, all of whom are much closer in age to her grandmother than to herself. Her roots run deep and she glories in the family she's created. Will, on the other hand, is rootless. He has no close ties to anyone, no close friends, no remaining family, and no romantic relationships either in past or in the present. When he inherits his uncle's condo in the complex where Nora lives, all he wants to do is get rid of it. He's only been there once, on the worst day of his life, and he has no desire to ever return. Unfortunately, his uncle included a provision that the condo couldn't be sold for one year, so Will comes up with a plan to renovate the unit, then rent it out short-term until the year is up and he can sell.

Inevitably, this puts him in direct conflict with Nora and the other residents. Will and Nora start out as adversaries, but neither can deny the spark that pulls them together. However, they both need to move past their grief over past relationships if they are to have any hope for the future. Kate Clayborn excels in creating three dimensional characters with flaws and quirks who nonetheless are genuinely kind and who bring out the best in their romantic partners, rather than the worst. The romance in this book was a bit of a slow-burn and it seemed a bit flat to me, but I think that's because both Will and Nora were so frozen in their grief that it was hard to feel much of a connection between them. By the end though they both seemed to be moving forward together.

Nora wakes up at 4 am, the golden hour. She enjoys and looks forward to that quiet, peaceful time before the sun comes up and the day gets busy. And the golden hour becomes a key metaphor throughout the book. I loved that, as I frequently wake up between 4 and 4:30. And I have worked to reframe my mindset to see it as a special time.

This book is a slow build, character-driven romance. The main characters of Nora and Will are well written and their growth as individual people and together is the focus. And the secondary characters living in their apartment building are equally well crafted. Each is unique and adds to the book.

I am never one for tales of instant love at first sight, but this slowly developed romance could make me believe some love is fated.

Thank you to Kensington and NetGalley for this ARC.

In this story of both romance and found family, two teenagers almost meet at an apartment building in Chicago. Will catches sight (loosely speaking, since he didn't have glasses yet) of Nora on a fateful visit to his uncle that changes the trajectory of his life. Sixteen years later, they have a real meeting at the same building under less auspicious circumstances. Will's inherited his uncle's apartment and wants to rent it out, avoiding the bad memories attached to the place. Nora's head of the building association and protector of her found family within. A feud develops as Nora tries to stop Will's plans through more and more creative means.

One thing I think this story does well is clearly explaining and demonstrating each character's internal blocks that slow down their developing romance. You understand what each is grappling with throughout. The supporting characters are also fully baked and fun, from neighbors to co-workers. My main hang-up was that where I understood and appreciated the characters, I didn't feel emotionally connected to them. They didn't rise to be more than the sum of their parts. I also think Will had a more complex backstory and deeper plot than Nora, and the disparity was a problem for me. However, I appreciated this well-developed story that didn't sacrifice substance on a quest to be snappy or funny and that had more plot than just the romance itself.

I decided on this book for my next read because I've been hearing a lot of good things about it. Plus, I'm always a sucker for a good enemies-to-lovers romance.

The first few chapters had me engrossed and looking forward to reading more. I had enjoyed reading about Will's past and how he and Nora came to "meet". I was looking forward to seeing how that initial connection would blossom and grow now that they had run into each other. But although the connection was there, I felt like it wasn't enough to convince me of this pairing. I like slow-burn romances, but I also need for the chemistry between the main characters to be a bit more obvious and for their connection to be well-developed. Although both of these were present, they really didn't jump-off the page for me. I soon lost interest in that element of the story and focused mainly on the secondary characters The bickering, sense of camaraderie and quirky ways of these neighbors was a treat to read.

In the end, I can't help but feel that having Will and Nora's connection and chemistry be more apparent would have exponentially increased my enjoyment of this story. All in all, an okay, cute romance.

Contemporary romance is always a toss up for me. It’s a genre I really enjoy but MOST of the time I find myself ROLLING my eyes, cringing at the mushy dialogue, frustrated with characters that just can’t communicate and annoyed with plethora of “coincidences.”

This book, however, NAILED IT. I did not cringe. I did not eye roll. I didn’t want it to end while also rushing to the ending to see what would happen for Nora and Will.

The story takes place in Chicago, but the apartment building the two live in is so charming it feels like it takes place in a small town. The pair are *hardly* enemies to lovers. It’s funny. It’s tender and sweet. There’s a sweet community of characters that are Nora’s and Will’s family by choice.

I really enjoyed my time with this one. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to read a sweet romance with some depth.

Well done 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington books for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. Such a treat to be able to read this one!

Love at First will be OUT on 2/23/21 and I highly highly recommend you add it to your TBR 💕

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

CW: loss of parents/loved ones, emotional neglect
Also... be aware that there is some steam! 🔥

I absolutely adored our leads and their journey both individually and as a unit (LOL). Nora and Will are just how I like my leads to be aka not awful people! This story is about 2 people with differing opinions about a major issue and how they learn to navigate and find a compromise that works. It was done really charmingly and left me feeling all warm and fuzzy inside. The secondary characters were charming and full of life, and I will miss them all. I also vastly appreciate that there was no redemption of the truly awful (thankfully few) characters that cropped up.

A charming book which I enjoyed it immensely.

Thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for the ARC

Love at First was simply fabulous! Kate Clayborn really created two wonderfully believable characters in Will and Nora. Their initial meeting as children was clever...even though they weren't both aware of it. Unfortunately, it was tragic that it occurred on one of the worst days of Will's life. This burden he endured made it very difficult for him to eventually give into love and allow himself to really live life.

Nora carried her own baggage. She was extremely close with her grandmother, but not so much with her parents. I was heartbroken for both of these characters in the way they had been treated during their childhoods. It definitely affected both of them into their adult lives. Nora and Will have a great enemies to lovers vibe with each other. I also found the secondary characters to be a huge part of this story and Ms. Clayborn created a wonderful group of them. They definitely were integral to the plot and enriched the feel of the book in general.

I believe this is a story that can speak to people in different ways. It's very subtle, but powerful. Open your heart to all of these characters when you read this book and you'll definitely be rewarded for it.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I have voluntarily chosen to review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

3 1/2 STARS

I loved the other Kate Clayborn book I have read (Love Lettering) so I expected to really like this book too. In the end it didn't quite do it for me.

THE GOOD:
This is an Enemies To Lovers story with plenty of sweetness and a lot of fate. The apartment building that the leas characters both own a unit in is filled with well-written and hopelessly endearing side characters that we come to love.

And the ending of the HEA is so swoon-worthy and so insanely heartfelt that you will close the final cover and sigh a contented sigh.

Clayborn tackles so really good topics like grief and loss as well as healing and forgiveness. Those topics were done well and with sensitivity and truthfulness.

THE NOT-AS-GOOD:
This book was pretty sad throughout and it read as fairly heavy. I guess the way the book was marketed led me to expect a lighter read. But if you're up for a bit of am emotionally fraught romance you will likely love this one!

As I mentioned, this is an Enemies To Lovers romance, but it has no bite at all. It's very light on the usual trope staples: snarky banter, clap backs, tricks, pranks, teasing, etc. It hardly feels like it belongs in this trope. More like "Reluctant Lovers".

Overall this was a pretty GOOD read, but not a great read for me.

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
STEAM LEVEL: Rated R
TRIGGERS: attempted parent abandonment, emotionally distant parents, death of parent, death of grandparent, elderly injury, estranged family

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.