Book Review Time

To Sir, With Love by Lauren Layne

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Penpals with a modern twist. A dating app. Can you really fall in love with someone you’ve never met just by talking to them via a dating app? What about also falling for someone in person? Can you fall in love twice?

Pros:
-I loved being able to see the “texts” or dating app messages at the start of most of the chapters. I love the Sir/Lady banter.
-Gracie Cooper! She is so relatable as a character. She’s funny, smart, insecure, loves her family, ambitious, and just a REAL person!

Cons:
-I think if this was slightly an open door romance it would get six stars, but even without that it does get 5. Probably doesn’t count as a true con 😂
-I honestly only didn’t like that there wasn’t more. I think the conclusion was perfectly timed and you could easily expect it to happen at the end, but I wish it wasn’t so done after that. The epilogue was great and fun, and I’m glad we found out a few details for after the ending of the book, but still I would have loved to have had a little more before the epilogue. Maybe I liked Gracie and her man a little too much!

My thoughts:

I’m reading the first chapter, thinking okay this may or may not be good can’t really tell. Then chapter 2 and I fell in love with Gracie! I love a relatable character. I love reading about a 30-something women who has real problems and is also funny. I loved that she liked Big Bang Theory, that she loved being an aunt to her friend’s kids, and she also appreciates a good baggy shirt to wear around her house! I also loved throughout the book that you could almost tell what Sebastian was thinking without really having to have chapters from his POV. I almost just wish Gracie had caught on earlier to the mystery mate’s identity so we could have had more time of them together. I just know it would have been the sweetest moments. I also loved that we even got a happy ending for for the side characters which made everything even sweeter! The epilogue was perfect, loved the information we found out! Maybe a lot to only be a year later, but I think with Gracie and her mystery mate it works! I loved all the character development from Gracie as far as what she wants in life, what she wants in her family life, and in her career. She was just the perfect heroine for this romcom!

Thank you Netgalley, Gallery Books, and Simon and Schuster for this early release for To Sir, With Love in exchange for an honest review.

Will repost review to Goodreads, but will post to Instagram and Amazoncloser to release date unless instructed otherwise!

To Sir, With Love is the perfect comfort romance to curl up with on a quiet day. The banter between Sebastian and Gracie is cute, and the messages between Sir and Lady are downright adorable. However, while Layne provides a happily-ever-after ending, I felt that the entirety of the book could've been only the first half of the story. I kept waiting for what I thought should have been the climax of the action to occur, but it doesn't happen until the final chapter. Overall, To Sir, With Love is more Hallmark than what I was expecting, but still a good read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Gracie is the owner of Bubbles & More, a champagne store in New York City. Bubbles has been in the family for many years and Gracie inherited it after her father passed away. The store has been struggling to stay a float for many years but Gracie has a hard time letting go of it. Enter Sebastian, who wants to buy her out of the store front to build a high rise in it’s place. Of course, the two immediately butt heads about it and Gracie refuses to give it up. BUT, it’s not just your traditional enemies to lovers romance. Gracie is also talking to a man on a dating app that who she has never met. She affectionately refers to him as Sir. Will Gracie and her family keep the store? Will Sebastian and Gracie fall in love? What about Gracie’s love letter relationship with the mystery man?

I adored all of the characters in this novel. Gracie and Sebastian are great leading roles and Gracie’s family and friends are enjoyable characters as well.

The New York City setting and the idea of a store front dedicated solely to champagne made my heart soar.

The book was compared to You’ve Got Mail and Love is Blind and I think that encapsulates it perfectly. Seriously, you won’t want to miss out on this read.

Gracie Cooper is a struggling business owner who is still single after waiting on her fairy tale ever-after kind of love to come along. She meets Sebastian Andrews, who wants to tear her business apart, and a faceless “Sir,” on a dating app, and tries to reconcile her feelings for both while keeping her business afloat.
When I saw Lauren Layne had a new novel coming out, I knew I had to read it. The Pre-Nup was one of my favorite romances last year. This was one of your typical enemies-to-lovers romance inspired by “You’ve Got Mail” with a lot of fun along the way. The witty banter was there, you found yourself yelling at the characters to reveal their true identities, perform certain actions, and just get together! I adore the friends to lovers trope, so I am a sucker for this kind of book, especially if I’m in the mood for something light and fun. This novel didn’t disappoint, I only found myself wanting a bit more character/relationship development as it moved a little too quickly.

3.5 stars!

I will definitely continue to read more from this author. I enjoyed this book and all of her romances!
Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

'To Sir, with Love' is a nostalgic dose of an all-time favourite rom-com of mine - Nora Ephron's You've Got Mail - done with the storytelling bones of the movie, set in a somewhat similar context and written with the same light-hearted sprinkling of fairy dust and wistful cuteness as you'd come to expect of Lauren Layne.

The uplifting sweetness that comes out of 'You've Got Mail' and the incarnations prior Ephron's version is captured perfectly: the fictionalised, romantic version of New York and the specific population of indie shop owners that Layne writes about, the closeness of family and their banter, the intruder who eventually becomes the object of kismet in Gracie Cooper's life, even as she struggles juggling a virtual stranger and a man who should be her enemy. With the added Disneyed-sheen of fairytales and Gracie's love of the feel-good cartoon characters that weave a common thread of turning her fantasies to bleed into reality, how is it then not possible to read this with your feet (mostly) a few inches above the ground the whole time?

As a story told only in Gracie's POV however, we get her longing and yearning, her general optimism about life in general, but it does dim the connection between her and Sebastian somewhat when the weight of the latter's affection and regard becomes a desperate guessing game of inference as you try to read between the lines. Consequently, the ending is one that's a foregone (and happy-ever-after) conclusion, but one that isn't quite the sort that leaves you with the sated fullness of a satisfying book binge.

'To Sir, With Love' then, is perhaps Layne's personal and affectionate homage to unforgettable rom-coms past; to those who align themselves with this particular romantic vision, then Gracie's and Sebastian's journey is one that you'll already know well and will want to read over and over again.

Overall, I heart Lauren Layne books. However, I have mixed feelings on this one.

The Good:

I read To Sir, With Love in practically one sitting. It was a the perfect lazy afternoon read. While predictable, I want predictable in my rom com books. A little predictability is a perfect way to escape the unpredictable real world for awhile. There were some lol moments that made this book fun. It felt like a modernized update of You've Got Mail and was overall enjoyable. However.....

The Bad (TW/spoiler warning):

There is a side plot of the main character's sister having infertility issues. The character goes through the acceptance phase and then spoiler alert....

Magically ends up pregnant. I was really disappointed in this whole plot. Especially the ending. There has been a trend in books recently to have characters accept infertility only to have an "oops" pregnancy happen that is frustrating.

Thanks to #NetGalley for the copy of the book

Such. Such. Such. A good story. I devoured it in only a few hours. I loved how actually healthy the relationship and relationship development between Gracie and Sebastian was from start to finish. I obviously didn’t want it to end and wanted to see more of their relationship together but the ending was perfect.

Can’t wait to pick this up on Pub Day!

I saw the You’ve Got Mail reference and jumped right on this reading train *toot toot*. I really enjoyed this modern take of all the movies that have come before. That being said it was almost too closely related, almost. At some parts it sounded like they were quoting the movie verbatim and it was a slight turn off. I was secretly hoping there would be a plot twist towards the end. But alas I was wrong.

I related soooo much to Gracie as I am also a middle child and was constantly trying to keep the peace growing up. A lot of her insecurities are my own. So much so that I was a bit shocked and kept peering out my window to see if anyone was there.

I would highly recommend this read to those who are fond of this storyline. A big thanks to Netgalley for the chance to review this book.

4.5/5
This book was such an easy, fluffy, cute read. I adored every minute of it! I’ve been waiting for this book since Lauren Layne announced it and I was not disappointed.

➵ Gracie and Sebastian are perfect for one another. They have such good chemistry and their banter was really entertaining. I especially enjoyed their earlier interactions where they were both extremely witty and quick.

➵ Gracie was such an interesting heroine. I love everything about her. Same goes for Sebastian. He is probably one of my favorite LL love interests. He’s sweet and caring and overall a very likable and enjoyable character.

This book was one of my most anticipated reads for 2021 and it certainly did not disappoint.

ARC kindly provided by Netgalley for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this book. This author continues to provide me with wonderful stories. This was such a beautiful and heartfelt love story. I definitely recommend this book.

4:5 stars. Thank you to gallery books and Netgalley for sending me this arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own. To sir, with love is a cute romantic comedy and a very quick read. Gracie and Sebastian were quite cute and I loved seeing their banter but they were quite slow, which is why I’m lowering my rating. This overall was a very quick and enjoyable read (I read it all in one day).

Thank you to Lauren Layne, Gallery Books, and NetGalley for the ARC of To Sir, With Love. I’m honestly so sad that this book is over. I adored this swoon-worthy, romantic comedy. The best way to describe this book is an updated version of You’ve Got Mail mixed in with Lauren Layne’s captivating writing style. This might be my new favorite Lauren Layne book, which is a bold statement. I love all of her books, but I truly adored this one!

This review will be shared on our Instagram account closer to the release date!

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Gracie Cooper has some decisions to make about her career after her dad died. She joins a dating app and enjoys talking to a guy whom she has never met in person. I enjoyed the different characters in this book.

Swoon. This cute romance was exactly what I needed. The flirty banter between Sir and Lady would have made Nora Ephron proud and I love this modern take on You've Got Mail. While the book is on the shorter side, it was a nice change of pace in that the inevitable HEA didn't drag on too long.

This was a sweet slow burn romance. I felt like Sebastian's character development was sort of lacking, but Gracie more than made up for that with how fun of a character she was. I have been a fan of Lauren Layne for a while, and I love that she's moving in this slow burn direction - no less steamy than her other books but in a very different way!

Ahhh, another cute book by Lauren Layne. Loved this cozy, sweet, quick read book. Lauren Layne never disappoints and the latest, To Sir, With Love was another great read!
Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

WOW! To Sir, with Love was just the coziest romance and was perfect for a cold, winter month. Lauren Layne wrote the perfect romantic comedy. Gracie was so precious, and I love those characters that have such strong family ties. Sebastian was the perfect co-character. He was arrogant, but in such a good way. LOVED THIS BOOK.

There is something so alluring and wonderful about epistolary romances - ones that are told by writing letters between the main characters. In this case we have two people messaging back and forth in an app. The app is anonymous - designed to let the users get to know each other through messages without pictures or names. This will definitely remind you of You've Got Mail - or any of the other stories the author references in her note at the end.

Gracie is an artist following a path that isn't really what she wants. She runs a family business selling champagne that she inherited from her father. A business that isn't surviving in the current world. Her siblings aren't involved in the business - but all of them feel invested in keeping it going. She's very invested in the fairytale experience of love and doesn't want to settle for anything less. She's been messaging Sir on an app - and feels a connection to him unlike anyone else. When she meets Sebastian, the man who's company is trying to buy out her lease (which would result in closing her store), her connection to Sir is challenged - because she feels a definitely Zing! with Sebastian - even as she wants to hate him.

We don't get any part o the book from Sebastian's perspective - but we do get to know him very well. You can see Gracie's self-sabotage when it comes to him and see that her pre-conceived ideas of how things should go are being challenged by him.

I loved Gracie and seeing her perspective on all the things around her. She really shows a huge amount of strength when it comes to accepting Sebastian's company's offer. Even though emotionally she doesn't want to give up the business - she pushes past that to make a smart decision. She even handles everything through the lawyers so that she can preserve her growing relationship with Sebastian. I loved that the emotional, fairytale loving artist was the most professional of them all.

This is definitely a swoon and sigh worthy story.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, but these opinions are all my own.

If you were also pulled in by the comparison to You’ve Got Mail, dont worry you won’t be disappointed. From the very beginning this book promises a happy ending with some of the hallmarks of our favorite romantic comedies. There are chance meetings, underdogs and the promise that a connection made online may be even better when it sees the light of day.
Gracie runs a small champagne shop in the big city. She is struggling to keep her family legacy alive and while she doesn’t have time to mister right she does spend much of her time dreaming of her Prince Charming. Her fantasy is being fed with dreams of the mysterious Sir, she met on a dating app that purposefully hides the appearance of individuals, allowing them to form a deeper connection. The connection she has formed with this stranger provides a bright spot in her life as she attempts to keep Sebastian Andrews and his company from forcing her out of business.

To Sir, With Love was such a wonderful, cute read! I found myself wants to scream at Gracie that Sir was Sebastian though! 😂 4.25