As much as it pains me to DNF one of my most anticipated reads of 2023 this just wasn't the book for me. Both of Katy Birchall's previous works had me laughing out loud and loving all of the characters but this one did not. Harper was one of the most petty people I have read about. I love a good enemies to lovers but this one was just absurd. Additionally I am 67% of the way through the book and the events talked about in the synopsis have not happened yet so I am a bit confused. However the main reason I have DNFed this book is a bit of a spoiler so do not continue reading if you do not want to risk it.


I HATE cheating plot devices and the way it is used in this book are pointless and turned me off from reading further. I do not care if her boyfriend was cheating on her, it does not excuse her from kissing Ryan. The whole situation could have been avoided and added absolutely nothing to the plot. Then her friends were like "how could you just leave after kissing him" umm that is what you took away from that story not that your friend is a cheater?!

I will look into her next book since she is one of my auto buy authors I just could not with this book.

"The Last Word" by Katy Birchall would be an excellent recommendation for someone who likes a slow-burn workplace romance. Harper is a three dementional character whose personality jumps off the page. Her eccentricities and quirks, as well as her overall behavior, really make her standout as a someone we'd associate with in real life. She also infuses her sunshine and positivity into every single interaction, leaving you with a smile on your face and some warmth in your heart.

My concerns with this book was pacing. The story started SO slowly to me that I almost lost interest. I thought this was being marketed as a romance, but unfortunately I didn't even realize who the romantic interest was until about 40% into the book. I would have liked to have some interaction with Ryan and Harper sooner to build more tension.

Finally, I think that Harper's anger toward Ryan was a bit over the top. considering he didn't really engage with her at all. Her animosity didn't feel realistic in the sense that it was so one-sided. There was nothing for her to feed off of.

Knowing that this was a slow burn would have been nice to know up front, but now that I know the author's style I'll know what to pacing to expect for next time.

PS. Liam Sucks.

The Last Word by Katy Birchall
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Work place rivals to lovers? Yes please!

This is the story of Harper who is a journalist at a magazine. She has worked hard to get where she is. So when Ryan is hired to work right next to her, she is furious! Because there is history there, and if he betrayed her once he won’t hesitate to do it again.
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This was a fun read that I flew through. I loved how sweet and empathetic Harper was at her job! Her interactions with all the celebs she interviewed in the book made me so happy. Her rivalry with Ryan was entertaining to read. And it was really fun to see them relax and start to work together towards the middle of the story.
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Would definitely recommend for a fun read.

I liked this book but I went in having high hopes. The Secret Bridesmaid (her other book) is one of my favorites. I finished it in an afternoon and it had me laughing out loud the whole time. This book was decent. But just not as a good as the other one. Which is a bummer.

Full of classic tropes - enemies to lovers, second chance & workplace romance, I was hooked right away and found the dual timelines equally interesting. I loved how smart, strong and determined Harper was and thought Ryan was a swoony main male character; I would have loved to have his POV! I also loved the London setting and side stories about celebrities and Harper’s family. Overall I would recommend this one!

GENERAL INFO

Date Published: 5/2/23

Date read: 5/17/23

Format: Kindle

Source: e-ARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Page Count: 376

Setting: London

Genre: CR, Rom-Com

Tropes: enemies to lovers, opposites attract, office romance, 2nd chance romance, forced proximity

Standalone/Cliffhanger/Part of a Series: standalone

HEA/HFN ending: HEA

Epilogue Included: yes, 1 yr. later

Character(s)POV Spoken: h Harper, 1st person narration

BOOK DESCRIPTION

Synopsis/Plot Summary:

Harper Jenkins is a brilliant, determined journalist well-known for getting Hollywood celebrities to open up to her. When her boss hires reporter Ryan Jannson to be the new Features Editor, Harper is furious. They have a sorted past from 10 years ago that ended badly. Now they must work together without killing each other.

M/F-M/M-M/M/F-etc: M/F

Representation: journalists, celebrity

Contains Cheating:

Contains Children: no

Flashbacks: yes, July 2012 when Harper and Ryan meet as interns


CHARACTER DESCRIPTION

Hero: Ryan Jannson

Hero Description: Features Editor. Quiet, neat, punctual.

Hero Likability Rating: 4

Heroine: Harper Jenkins

Heroine Description: Celebrities Editor. Chaotic, always late, but great at her job getting celebs to open up.

Heroine Likability Rating: 4

Secondary characters:
Mimi-Harper's bff
Cosmo-Harper's elitist boss
Juliet-Harper's estranged sister

H /h RELATIONSHIP INFO

OW/OM/Exes: Harper's ex Liam-dated 3 mos

Cheating Before/During/Outside H/h Relationship: no


AUTHOR OVERVIEW
Katy Birchall
New or read before & any favorites: new author

PERSONAL OVERVIEW

Overall Rating: 4*

Do You Recommend This Book: yes

Will You Re-read This Book: yes

Would You Read More Books by this Author: yes

I picked up The Last Word by Katy Birchall as I have read her other books and love her writing. The Last Word is a lovely read with funny characters.

Harper works for a weekend magazine with an infuriating boss. Harper loves her job and does very well at it. Her happiness changes when her boss hires Ryan with whom Harper has a past. They had a whirlwind romance until Ryan betrayed Harper. They now have to work together in close quarters falling into old times again. When cuts loom at the paper, will it affect them?

I really enjoyed this book. It is a little slow starting but I do notice that with her books. She likes to establish the characters before really diving in. The characters are well thought out. Ryan was a little aggravating at first but grew on me. I liked Harper's spunk and that she gets along so well with the people she interviews. Katy Birchall is a wonderful author and really pulls the reader into the story. This one isn't as deep as The Wedding Season but it was a lovely read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katy Birchall, and St Martin's Press for the e-ARC. This review is my own opinion.

I recevied a advanced copy of the last word, from Netgalley for my honest review. I liked the duel time frame of Harper and Ryan and the second change romance... I found it some times predictable however a fun read!
3.5 stars ! ! !

Overall I enjoyed this one. I liked all the journalism talk as I haven’t read many books about that topic.

I really loved Ryan. I thought he was super caring and sweet. Harper on the other hand, I was no a fan of. She was immature and just all over the place and unprofessional. I wished we had Ryan’s POV because I was getting a little over Harper by the end.

Mimi and the other characters were great and I loved Ryan’s parents. It was still enjoyable despite my annoyance with Harper.

Very cute rom com where Ryan and Harper former interns who had a messy brief romance find themselves to be coworkers again. Harper and Ryan seem to not get along but underneath it all do they love each other?

Enemies to lovers is such a tough trope. It can be great and it can be not so great. For me The Last Word fell somewhere in the middle.

I didn’t love Harper, at times she felt very immature especially at the beginning. She grew on me near the end, when it was more work focused and the discussion around her interview style. I really enjoyed Ryan and would have loved some chapters from his point of view! But for me what made The Last Word just middle of the road, was the miscommunication. I always hate when it is used as a plot point, because I always find myself yelling/thinking/saying … just talk to them. So for me, that was just ehh, especially when it was history repeating itself for them.

Overall this was a quick, cute, office enemies to lovers romance. Thank you St Martin’s Griffin and Netgalley for the eARC copy to read and review.

This is my third Birchall book and I have really enjoyed each one! She writes such fun, strong, but realistic female main characters that are so easy to identify with. The other thing I adore about her writing is the supporting characters - you will fall in love with every one!! I would say her books lean towards the women’s fiction side of romance … and I love them!

What to expect::
•Quirky main character
•Celebrity journalist
•Workplace romance
•Second chance
•Enemies to lovers (twice!)
•Opposites attract
•London setting
•Great friends/side characters
•Annoying boss
🔥One open door scene, mild details

I gave The Wedding Season by Birchall 5 stars last year, so needless to say I was excited for her newest book, which I ended up enjoying a lot too!

The banter between the main character and the love interest was very entertaining, and contributed to their enemies to lovers story arc. And while I felt the MC, Harper, was a bit immature at times, she always won me back over with her good natured, charming personality.

Also, there were some great secondary characters in this, and the friendships between the characters all felt genuine and believable. Sometimes the main romance in a book can overshadow or stunt the development of secondary characters, but Birchall did a good job of balancing it all out.

As I kind of mentioned, there were moments where I found myself a bit annoyed with the main character, but if Harper had no flaws there would be no growth in her throughout the book, so it by no means reduced my enjoyment of this.

I think I like the romance in this one more than the romance in The Wedding Season, but overall will say that I liked this one slightly less overall.

Definitely pick this up if you like enemies to lovers, workplace romances, and likeable characters! Thanks so much to St. Martin’s Press for allowing me access to the NetGalley arc of this. All thoughts are my own!

Super cute. Enemies to lovers. Harper and Ryan. That is all lol. Thanks NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC!

This book was just plain fun! I love enemies to lovers workplace romances. The London setting was the perfect backdrop to this story. The romance was thoughtful and playful, and the friendships were rich. They added an extra layer to the story that I really appreciated. This was a fun, witty romance that I think many readers will enjoy.

Not going to actually leave a star rating (3 here for neutrality since I need to leave a star rating) since I didn't finish this book, but that speaks for itself. I saw some really good reviews of this one, and I'd been excited to receive an e-ARC of it from the publisher, but sadly I just didn't connect with the story at all. It felt slow, and kind of superficial- I don't feel like I have any understanding of the motivation for any of the characters even after getting over 30% of the way through the book. Also the dialogue just felt a bit juvenile, so I decided rather than trudging through I'd just DNF. It's too bad but it just wasn't for me!

Harper Jenkins is a brilliant journalist and she loves her job as celebrity editor at a weekend magazine – despite the fact her boss belittles her work. But she’s thrown for a loop when the new features editor turns out to be the man who betrayed her years ago.

Ryan soon wins over everyone in the office – except Harper. Of course, they’re thrown together in some awkward situations and have a chance to set old stories straight. As they do, they discover maybe their old spark is still there.

This book is called “The Hating Game meets Beach Read” and that feels apt. I absolutely loved Harper (even if her constant disorder made me itch) and loved seeing a female protagonist who had found her calling. And Ryan was an absolute doll. Their (fairly one-sided) rivalry was fun.

I don’t always enjoy books that go back and forth between the past and present, but this book had the right amount of flashbacks. It was interesting seeing Harper and Ryan move past their past and get to know each other as adults.

There also was a tiny sub-plot about Harper’s family. I’m always interested in family dysfunction and I thought author Katy Birchall wove it into the story very well.

I was a super fan of The Secret Bridesmaid and thought I would absolutely adore every book written by Birchall going forward.

This is my second read and I hate to say it but I was disappointed.

It was and ok read but just felt extremely slow to me. Slow reads just take all my interest and throw it out the window.

The Last Word by Katy Birchall
Rating: 4 stars
Pub Date: 5/2

The Last Word by Katy Birchall is an enemies-to-lovers, contemporary workplace romance that is perfect for fans of The Hating Game. The story follows Harper Jenkins, a successful journalist who has made a name for herself by getting celebrities to open up to her. But her world is turned upside down when her former flame and nemesis, Ryan, is hired as the new Features Editor at her newspaper's glossy weekend magazine.

Harper and Ryan's dynamic is tense from the start, as they constantly bicker and argue over everything from article assignments to event coverage. However, as they spend more time together, Harper begins to see Ryan in a new light and realizes that she may have misjudged him. Long-buried feelings resurface, and their chemistry sizzles as they're thrown together on a romantic press trip abroad.

The Last Word is fun and engaging, with witty banter and a lot of romantic tension. I loved the workplace setting, the strong female friendships, the alternating timelines, and the “he falls first” vibes.

Read if you like:
*Second chance
*Workplace romance
*Strong FMC
*Books about writing
*Celebrities

Birchall's writing is sharp and entertaining! I loved watching these total opposites fall in love and I can’t wait to see what else Birchall has in store for us! Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press for my advanced copy to read and review.

Oh, how I loved this book! Katy Birchall never disappoints, and THE LAST WORD is no exception.

One thing I love about Katy is her ability to write real, rounded characters that have dimension. Harper does not exist to be a love interest, her friends don't exist only to talk about her problems with, and Ryan does not only exist to be a hot guy we all adore. (Even though he does a great job of that). This fundamental is one of the reasons Katy's books work so well- you can feel that her characters have lives beyond the page and those lives have shaped them. In most cases, not meeting the love interest for about 20% would be frustrating- here, it lets us get to know the kind of person Harper is and the kind of person we want to be with her.

Although this does take longer to get going that her previous works, I adore the pacing. We're really allowed to settle in, and the tension, especially when Ryan really starts to feature in the story, is DELICIOUS. This is definitely a slow burn, but their relationship, from that messy enemies/rivals/hate-you-but-not-really to love, feels so real and seeing Ryan and Harper learn about each other and discovering their past is worth the wait. This is one of the only dual-timeline novels I've enjoyed in a long time, and although I did guess a few elements, they're tropes I still really enjoy. My kudos to Katy for writing yet another delightful summer romance.