I requested this for consideration for Book Riot's All the Books podcast for its release date. After sampling several books out this week, I decided to go with a different book for my review.

While I did mostly enjoy the book, it's not one that I'd read again. I couldn't get past Rosie's personality/inability to move beyond Jane's part in the lease situation. I sort of fell in love with Jane and felt bad for her much of the time. I'll keep reading Lacey's work but this one fell sort for me.

Enemies to Friends to Lovers and a Little Dog Too!
Rosie grew up in her mother’s bookstore and when she died it became hers. She runs it along with her best friend and her dog is a store fixture too. She has become flirty online friends with her favourite author, the reclusive Brie and sometimes wishes it could be much more. Jane works for her father’s property development company during the day but spends her nights secretly writing under her pen name. She dreams of the day she can become a full time author and maybe even let someone other than her sister know about her secret life. She has an online friendship with a sweet woman and wonders if maybe she could be the woman of her dreams….When Rosie meets Jane when she contacts the owners asking why her lease won’t be renewed and when finds out they are going to tear down the building, she is crushed! Jane feels so guilty and tries to help Rosie find somewhere else for her store. Soon a friendship develops and feelings deepen. Will Rosie be able to separate Jane from the family business and what will happen when Rosie learns who Brie really is?

I adored the heck out of this cute, sweet, low angst, full of feels romance!!! It was so well written and had so many feelings. I loved the characters, both main and secondary. I liked how I was able to lose myself to this tale. I loved Jane and watching her struggle was heart breaking but the romance was so worth the pain. The book was over too soon (I would have liked a thousand more pages, lol), but it ended so very well. I loved this book so much I got the audio book so I could listen to it too! I am definitely going to look up more books by this author! She’s fantastic!

A LGBTQIA+ spin on a classic story!

I've really enjoyed the author's shift to Sapphic Romance for a while now, but I think that this is the best one yet! It's got a good mix of angst and sweetness, and flows at a good pace. I was rooting for Jane and Rosie quite a bit! Lia was another character I got heavily invested in, so I can't wait to see what happens in her story next! I love that there was a happy ending for Jane and Rosie, and love seeing the representation of the LGBTQIA+ community in this book! It's not a story to miss!

This was a cute book that has similar plot as the movie 'You've got Mail.' I remember not liking that movie very much. But that was not the case with 'Read Between the Lines' This version of that story seemed more believable to me. I loved the deception of this and waiting with anticipation for the reveal.

A wonderful read for over the holiday period. This enemies to lovers romance told through a dual perspective is a captivating page turner. There is something for everyone in this one.

While many have compared this movie to the movie You've Got Mail, it's honestly been too long since I saw that movie to make any comparisons. What I can tell you is that this was an enjoyable f/f romance between two very different people. I won't say it's a case of opposites attract more so to say that Jane had two very different personas, the one who did what was expected of her in the family business by evicting Rosie from her bookstore. And the other, the successful author that connected with Rosie and her love of books. Not necessarily the best foundation for a new relationship but it definitely ended up working for the purposes of this story! But it was fun to see how both characters evolved over the course of the story and their relationship.

When I saw the premise of enemies in real life and friends online, I was instantly hooked. I adored this story between an author and a bookstore owner, who's also the biggest fan. As someone who loves books, this setting is perfection!

It was really fun and Rosie and Jane a lot chemistry from their first meeting. Rosie is so sweet and energetic and a pro at helping people find their new favourite books. And Jane is corporate businesswoman and a secret romance author. They have sparks both offline and online, also I really liked how the reveal is not dragged out too much.

I mean it's sapphic romance inspired from You've Got Mail!!! Need I say more? Also I've been reading books set around Christmas recently and it was a pleasant surprise to find out that Read Between the Lines is also set around December.

The secondary characters were great and I'm really excited for Lia's book (Rosie's best friend) which has fake dating and you know I'm a sucker for that!

*ARC provided by the author via Netgalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review

Rachel Lacey starts off a new series, Ms. Right, with the first book titled “Read Between The Lines”, with Rosie Taft and Jane Breslin navigating their love story. Book addict and bookstore owner Rosie Taft meets her online friend and favorite author Brie in the persona of Jane Breslin wherein her Dad’s company is responsible for demolishing the building that houses Rosie’s store. After several misunderstandings, insecurities and dates leads to Rosie and Jane finding their happily ever after.

Somehow “Read Between The Lines”, did not deliver to me the complete prowess of Rachel Lacey. It is a good read albeit the chemistry and intensity that I normally enjoy in her books. I wish she had given more depth to her characters Rosie and Jane, and developed their relationship with more maturity as mature women. I actually had more fun with Lia than Jane and Rosie. But I also have to give credit to the way she played out the outing of Brie to her family. Seemed very practical and realistic.

It’s a good romance read for sure and most readers would definitely enjoy the story.

Received an ARC from Montlake via NetGalley for an honest review

Rosie loves books, she is more than happy to run the bookstore, her mother left for her.
She is only missing HEA, like in the books, she reads. She is very happy about online friendship with Brie, till she finds out, she can loose her bookstore because Brie's family.
I did enjoy this book.

So Cute!

Rosie is devastated when she learns that she is being evicted from her bookstore by a property developer who have bought the building. When Jane is passing by Rosie’s shop one day she can’t believe a book she has written under her pen name is displayed in the window. When Rosie learns that Jane is not only her favourite author but works for the company taking away her store, and Jane learns Rosie is the fan she has been chanting to online, things get complicated.

This was too cute, and reminded me a lot of those fantastic 80s and 90s romcom films you can’t help but smiling at and watching every time they are on. What I loved was the ‘You’ve Got Mail’ vibe this story had and how Rosie and Jane were just perfect for one another but weren’t going to realise why until the truth was known and they started really talking about who they were.

I was hooked and really enjoyed the story. Despite some heartbreaking moments, I couldn’t help but root for happiness for both Jane and Rosie, not only together but in their dreams and what they wanted from life. There were many moments shared that were just the cutest, and for most of the time my heart actually broke for Jane. She really was conflicted, stuck between a rock and hard place in much of what life kept throwing at her, but she was determined, and with love and encouragement from Rosie was able to really strive for her dreams. Undeniably, Rosie was just a sweetheart. Her enthusiasm for her store, and books (especially Jane’s) was infectious. When Rosie was upset and devastated about things, you were really emotionally moved as the reader and could feel her pain.

A great story that was most enjoyable. I recommend the story to anyone who loves a romcom with lots of heart, cute moments, a touch of drama.

I thought this book was so cute! It's an enemies to friends to lovers story and it felt very believable. Rosie and Jane probably would never have met IRL but work was the catalyst. I enjoyed the challenges these characters had to overcome and the growth that happened within. There was definite chemistry between these two, even Rosie's friends could see it! While they met because of work circumstances, there were many things they had in common and life had a funny way of bringing them together. These two helped each other and were a support system for one another. I enjoyed their relationship, the struggles they had and loved seeing them bloom.

I enjoyed reading this book which is about a Rosie who is about to lose her bookstore and Jane who is a property dealer but a writer at night who is texting a fan but there is a connection that both can't seem to part away from. This is probably one of my favorite lesbian romance novels which I realized I haven't read a lot of. I enjoyed the story plot line which is kind of like a great movie idea but a story I never knew I need to read in a book. The pacing was well done with this book but I have to say that the story dragged a little or I think the main conflict should have been dropped in the middle of the book instead of towards the end. I won't spoil but that's pretty much the only problem I had with the writing. There were some great story conflicts that were thrown into the book which will keep on wanting you to read the book. I enjoyed the setting taking place in New York and a bookstore being involved.

This book has both Rosie and Jane's pov. I enjoyed both characters as they are both so different but I can relate to each one. I felt very connected with both characters in some way and their character developments made me love them more. There were also some great side characters in the book and I loved Rosie's roommates. I can sense their stories coming up soon and I can't wait. I also enjoyed Jane's sister who was very supportive of her career and she was a type of person everyone needs in their life. Now the romance part. This book has enemies to lovers romance which is my favorite trope and amazing in the book. There were some steamy scenes but I really enjoyed the romantic connection between the characters.

The ending was well done but I can sense another story happening. I'm so glad to have read this book which was truly amazing and one of my favorite lesbian romance novels. We need more books like this and I will for sure be reading Lacey's upcoming novels. I did have have a minor problems with the book but overall this was very close to a 5/5 star read. I recommend this to fans of Casey McQuiston and Tanya Bryne.

As happens every so often, I found myself liking Read Between the Lines more at the end than at the beginning.

What the book is about: Rosie inherited her mother’s bookstore, Between the Pages, and couldn’t be happier about her job. She’s a huge book nerd and loves nothing more than recommending the right book to the right person. When she’s not working, she chats, via Twitter DMs, with Brie, her favourite lesfic author. Rosie might even have a crush on Brie… They talk about everything, except their real identities. When Rosie gets a letter from Jane Breslin, property manager at Breslin Property Development, letting her know the bookstore’s lease won’t be renewed, all she tells Brie is that she had a rough day. She doesn’t tell her either about the hot suit-wearing woman who came into the store with her adorable niece. Little does she know that both Brie and the sexy aunt are actually Jane Breslin…

For the first time since I started reading Rachel Lacey’s books, it took me a pretty long time to really feel invested in the story. Maybe because this was marketed as a You’ve Got Mail inspired enemies-to-lovers romance, and I’m not a fan of the movie (I do love Lubitsch’s The Shop Around the Corner, however). I liked both MCs but I didn’t feel the chemistry and while I wasn’t bored, I wasn’t captivated either. Once Jane and Rosie realise who the other is, however, the chemistry is much more obvious, and I really felt the connection.

Read Between the Lines starts indeed as an enemies-to-lovers romance, but it’s mostly opposites attract, with Jane being an introvert and Rosie an extrovert. Jane is sweet but awkward and Rosie is always trying to find the bright side of events. She’s an optimist and a go-getter, and even when she’s scared of losing her beloved bookstore, she keeps looking for ways to beat the odds. Her best friend Lia is wonderfully supportive, as are her other roommates and friends. Jane doesn’t have friends but she can always count on her sister to cheer her on, even against their parents’ will.

I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, and until that happened, I couldn’t let myself fully enjoy the romance. This feeling of dread wouldn’t leave me. I was actually relieved when it happened because it made sense and also it didn’t, which is kinda what life is about, making do with things that don’t make sense. And the characters could finally work on fixing things. Whether they’d succeed or not was never a real question, since romance demands a HEA or HFN, but how they would, and whether I’d believe it, was.

Rosie and Jane are meant to be together, and them being apart could only last a little while. Their love is too strong and too real, and they’ve addressed their issues from the beginning. They didn’t fix them from the beginning, however (hence the sense of dread), which wouldn’t have been plausible anyway. The ending could have felt rushed but because of what made me uneasy before, it didn’t. I’d been worried as I was reading, that I wasn’t enjoying the story as much as I had hoped. But in the end, it worked. Everything that kept me on my toes, even as it all felt very mellow, led to this ending. I closed this book with a really good feeling.

<i>I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.</i>

I love both the Shop Around the Corner and You’ve Got Mail, so this was a must read for me and Lacey didn’t disappoint. The relationship development between Rosie and Jane is sweet and perfect for both characters.

This was such a fun read! If you are a fan of 90’s romantic comedy films, you are going to love Read Between the Lines. Lacey acknowledges the inspiration for this novel came from the classic rom-com, You’ve Got Mail. Lacey puts her twist on things to make them fresh, fun, and exciting.

Rosie Taft runs her family bookstore, and she loves it. Books, customers, connecting with people who love books as much as she does. Everything is threatened when Jane Breslin delivers notice her family’s company won’t be renewing the lease intending to demolish the building Between the Pages was housed in.
One bright spot in all of this is the fact Rosie can talk with her favorite author Brie online over Twitter.

Brie is a timid author who hides behind her penname and doesn’t make public appearances.

Life takes a wild turn when the world of Rosie, Brie, and Jane all crash together. No matter how angry Rosie gets with Jane, she can’t fight the attraction she feels towards Jane. Even with the turmoil of what it may mean for her business, Rosie finds her self drawn closer and closer to Jane.

Rosie is the sweetest and most determined character. Her enthusiasm for books made me excited to read again (this year hasn’t been my best reading year so to be excited about reading is huge). There were a few moments she irked my nerves, but I could understand her reactions.

Jane, I have a special place in my heart for Jane. As an author, who also writes under a pen name, I felt for her. She wants to please her family, but she wants to be a full-time author as well. She wants to help, but then she ends putting her foot in her mouth. A lot of people look down on romance authors, but this genre is such an amazing genre full of readers and authors who want to see the happiness of the world.

The chemistry between the two women, even when they were enemies, was intense. They were drawn to each other when they didn’t want to be. Which made their romance all the sweeter once it blossomed.

What I enjoyed about this, from both a reader’s and writer’s perspective, was the fact that we got to see their Twitter interactions. I’m a sucker for seeing letters, texts, emails in romance novels. You could feel the flirty undertones and the anxiety of their messages back and forth.

Bookstore owner Rosie is evicted by Jane's family business. However, Rosie starts chatting with er favorite author and starts to have feelings for her. Only to fins out that it is really Jane.
Needless, to say they have a bumpy, sweet and finally a HEA.
to Lovers

I’m a fan of Lacey’s books and this one is no different! It’s a solid romance inspired by You’ve Got Mail (which was inspired by Shop Around the Corner). Her nods to the film were fun and it’s always nice to read a romance about an author! Plus, so much book love!

My thoughts…

I’ve read several of Lacey’s books and I have to say this one shot to the front of the line for me. The romance is interesting and engaging from the start and the arc flows quite smoothly. Yes, it does resemble the classic Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan rom-com You’ve Got Mail, but everything beyond the story idea is all Lacey. Lacey takes the story concept and completely makes it her own. It’s sweet, a little bit angsty and very lesbian. I have no doubt this will tick all the right boxes for lesfic romance lovers. Indeed, it is every bit as swoony and irresistible as her editor claims.

There are a ton of things to appreciate in this romance, but the most prominent are the leading ladies. Both women are solid, compelling and very easy to like. Jane is a bit of an introvert and Rosie is a real people-person. They shouldn’t fit, yet they do—quite well in fact. Their love of books brings them together and provides a foundation for something more, and that something more is what really hooks the readers. Their romance is well-plotted, creatively told and entertaining from start to finish.

Read Between the Lines is a romance, so readers know they are getting a HEA at its conclusion. That’s no surprise. However, where Lacey really succeeds in keeping things fresh is the development of Jane and Rosie’s journey. She presents a romance that is tender, vulnerable and subject to outside forces that seem destine to undermine it. Yet, there is so much potential, it can not be denied. Readers ache for these two women. They long for them to find their well-deserved happiness. In fact, readers desire this romance almost as much as Jane and Rosie, and that’s why the conclusion is all the more satisfying.

Final remarks…

I loved the premise of this story and thought it was well-done and original, despite its comparisons to You’ve Got Mail. Lacey gives readers something special with this story and these characters. The dialogue is fresh and well-crafted. The characters’ emotions are laid bare and fully exposed, capturing readers’ hearts quite readily. The result is that readers connect to these leading ladies effortlessly and comfortably. Jane and Rosie are real and relatability in every way, and their romance is nothing short of heartwarming and wonderful.

Strengths…

*A great against-the-odds romance
*Nice twist on a familiar and well-loved enemies to lovers trope
*Well-developed, likable characters
*Well-told and well-presented
*Engaging and entertaining throughout

First of all, I want to thank Rachel Lacey for my advance review copy!

I discovered this book months ago browsing some goodreads lists, and both the cover and the blurb called to me. I knew I was going to love it and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it.

A sapphic enemies who are each other’s crushes because they’ve been texting for months under secret identities to lovers? One of them being a bookstore owner and the other one evicting her on her day job but being her favorite author when she writes at night? I don’t think you understand… I’m obsessed!

I loved the book. That’s it. Met online first is one of my top favorite tropes, and it was so well done here. The pacing was, in my opinion, perfect. there was a lot of time for Jane and Rosie to know each other and the build up of their relationship was amazing. They already had feelings but it never felt rushed or unreal because they had a solid background and once they discover who they really are, their relationship feels natural.

Aside from the romance, Rosie and Jane’s personal stories were so great, and I have to say Jane’s was so special to me. I love how she needed to take baby steps to embrace her true passion but she ended up being courageous and gaining some amazing friends in the way, and of course, the woman of her dreams. I was so emotional by the end! All of the friendships were as amazing as the romance, and that's what makes a book extra special for me.

I can’t recommend this book enough! Read Between the Lines is out in just a few weeks, on December 1st! Preorder now, add it to your tbrs, set an alarm, Whatever, but give this beautiful story a chance next month.

Ps. Lia and grace… i already know it’s gonna be hilarious!

Rating: 5/5
Steam: 2/5