I wanted to like this one so much! Unfortunately I was a bit disappointed during the second half of the book. Sometimes the writing felt off, both in narration and dialogue, and I wasn't the biggest fan of Josie. This one had a strong start but then once the characters got closer the writing wavered a bit, perhaps I'm not a fan of how Clare writes intimate scenes.

Will Grant was a gem who respected Josie's feelings and needs in any given situation, but again sometimes the dialogue was a little off to me.

Overall the writing was just okay for me. I'd read another Clare Gilmore title in the future, maybe this one just wasn't for me.

I love Clare Gilmore and I love men written by Clare Gilmore.

Although this is definitively a romance, I'm here for the female friendships because that was so real.

Something I'm not here for? The ending. That was cruel and unusual, Clare. Normally you're funny but that prank was not a joke I'm laughing at.

Anyway, can't wait for October so I can laugh and kick my feet some more while I read the next one!

Loved this romance read! Loved this story! The characters were so easy to like and the there was great chemistry and a lovely romance between the characters! Definitely recommend reading this one!

[ 2.5 stars ] "Perfect Fit" was a decent read all things considered.

Josie is the CEO of her own fashion company called Revenant who wants to get her company B Corp certified ahead of the grand opening of its first physical store. To reach company goals, she's advised to hire a consultant. In enters Will, a blast from the past she hasn't seen or spoken to in many years since a fallout between her and her former best friend who also happens to be Will's twin sister. The two agree to be strictly professional but the attraction they felt long ago is still there, slowly burning brighter the more time they spend together.

I was on board in the beginning because I liked Josie's character and what she's accomplished for herself and her company. Will was okay of a character. I wasn't as invested in the romance between Josie and Will. Some things weren't clicking for me, which cast doubts on whether or not they were a good pairing.

Around the middle of the story, I started getting bored, not caring as much about what was happening but still having a small level of interest to keep reading. The last third of the book had all the feels and precious moments that renewed my interest and really brought things full circle.

Overall, I wasn't too into "Perfect Fit" but it's in no way a bad read; far from it. I think the strongest aspect of "Perfect Fit" was how the author structured the interpersonal and professional conflicts. I think readers will be drawn to that, the banter, and the thrilling attraction between Josie and Will.

Thanks again to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for the e-ARC to read in exchange for an honest review!

absolutley stunning. the next emily henry. this was heartfelt and tender and the best kind of romance. haven't read a book like this in YEARS

LOVED Gilmore’s Perfect Fit. It was fun, well written and the chemistry was steaming off the page! I will read her next novel; no questions asked!

This was my last book of 2024 and it may be one of my favorites! Will and Josephine’s second chance love story was so sweet. As someone who is currently experiencing significant burn out in my career, the overworked and overwhelmed feelings both characters experienced through the story was so relatable. Highly recommend this book for a new read!

Clare Gilmore is on my must-read list now! I highly recommend this title to adult romance readers. Fans of Emily Henry will enjoy this title.

Another swoon worthy romcom from Clare Gilmore! Will is the dreamiest MMC and quickly moved up my list of favorite book boyfriends. It was so refreshing to have a real/relatable FMC and no second act breakup. I will definitely be recommending the Perfect Fit to my friends!

4 stars.

I loved Clare Gilmore's last book, so I was excited to read "Perfect Fit." It did not disappoint! I found this to be a fast-paced, well-flowing romance with great banter, wonderful character arcs, delicious romance, and a terrific ending. I adored the main characters, Josie and Will! I will be thinking about them for a long, long time. They were stunning together. Will is top-tier book boyfriend material. My god, what a gent! Typically, I am not a fan of second-chance romances, but Gilmore makes the trope work so freaking well here, particularly because of the ex-best friend's brother trope attached to it. EEEEE!! The chemistry between Will and Josie is off the charts. I also liked the discussion of work/life balance this story has to offer. I swooned, I teared up, I laughed! What more can you ask for?

Thank you to NetGalley, Clare Gilmore, St. Martin's Pres, and St. Martin's Griffin for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

An enjoyable read set in the workplace....not my favorite book by Gilmore and a little predictable at times.

The Perfect Fit was the first book I’ve read by Clare Gilmore. This book contains enemies to lovers, friends to lovers as well as second chance tropes.

Josephine Davis spent most of her 20s building up her company fashion brand called Revenant. She had been so focused on building her dream company that she didn’t have much time to date or free time for herself. When her biggest investor asks Josie to hire a consultant, she gets the surprise of her lifetime - Will Grant. Will is the twin brother of her ex best friend Zoe. Josie and Will have not spoken since they made the mistake of kissing during senior spring break nine years ago. Zoe was so upset with both of them that she also had not spoken to Josie since their senior year.

Josie remembers Will Grant as moody and he always thought of her as shallow. To both of their surprise, they were very wrong about one another due to lack of communication and events happening in their personal lives back then.

I absolutely loved Josie and Will’s love story. Their attentiveness and attention to detail towards one another was so heartwarming. I also loved the way that they supported one another. They made space for the other person to succeed in their own career while being on the sidelines cheering them on every step of the way. They literally are each other’s Perfect Fit!

Clare Gilmore did an incredible job making both of these characters so relatable. You couldn’t help but cheer both of these characters on and want what’s best for them.

Overall, I thought this book was amazing! I would highly recommend it!

Thank you so much NetGalley and St. Martins Press for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I went into this book completely blind and am so glad that I did! There were things that felt a bit unexpected as I was reading which kept me so hooked! This is a bit of a second chance, a bit of (reunited) friends to lovers, a workplace romance, all in one. Will and Josephine knew each other in high school and now almost a decade later they have a bit of a (re)meet-cute that leads to them working together. But neither of them have totally let go of the feelings they had in high school, and Will is DETERMINED to do right by her this time. And boy does he! Talk about boy obsessed…and I ATE IT UP! I absolutely loved this one!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a good read overall, and there is just a lot going on here to unpack! I liked that the FMC, Josie is portrayed as a strong, independent, ambitious career woman (and an aspiring vegetarian ;)) who has started her own company and is trying to grow it. Great set of friends as side characters. Loved the Austin setting and the scenes throughout the book. It was interesting to read about BTS details that is associated with running a sustainable company. It was great to see a supportive MMC, Will!

I did think the tension and banter between Josie and Will could have been explored a lot more. It starts off great and then fizzles out soon, IMO. The portrayal of Will's character lacked a certain punch and felt flat (in comparison to the character development of Josie). This could be because there were a lot of side characters to keep track of and somewhere down the line, there isn't enough room to explore Will's character. Don't know if it was just me, but I expected more scenes with Josie and Will's sister at least beyond 50% of the book when there's mention of reconciliation but we don't see much of that either.

My other gripe is about all the exotic places that Josie and Will take as part of their work trip. I was expecting a lot of vivid descriptions based on how the main characters would explore the cities. While some get a bit of mention, beyond just the name itself, sadly Bangalore is mentioned in name only. What is the point of throwing in some exotic city names, when the characters do not even leave their hotel room and we hardly get a flavor of the city altogether?!

Although I didn't love the book as I had expected it to, I still like the author's writing style and look forward to checking out her next!


Overall a 3.5/5

#PerfectFit, #NetGalley

This was the first book I have read by this author and I could not put it down! I found the story really cute and very entertaining. I love a good second chance and work place romance. Will Grant is literally everything! My only complaint is that I wish we had a POV from Will! I 10 out of 10 recommend it to others though!

Thank you Claire Gilmore, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the gifted copy!

What a charming contemporary romance. Will Grant is the perfect book boyfriend. Josie is a girl bossing CEO that can’t slow down for fear of failure. The couple are perfect for each other and it was a joy to be along for the ride.

I could have done with a little less ‘I’m the CEO’ talk other corporate-ness, but the romance was perfect!

Loved it! Predictable (and I say that with a lot of books, but honestly I love them and that's what makes it easy to escape through the book!). It was enjoyable, easy to read, and entertaining which is just what I need in a good book!

I wish I loved this more! I found the premise great and I actually liked the characters but it fell flat for me. I didn’t find myself wanting to constantly pick up the book like I usually do. I felt like the past wasn’t as big of a deal as they were making it.

I loved Love Interest and mostly enjoyed Perfect Fit while reading, so it’s taken a while to pinpoint why it left me unsatisfied.

Josie is the ultimate girlboss but the (older, male) investor is demanding she hire a consultant for her sustainable fashion business. Will, her high school best friend’s brother, who she kissed once and it destroyed the friendship, elbows his way back into her life to take the job. Other than this one pretty sus (and pretty big!) thing, Will is lovely. It’s Josie I don’t like - we’re told she’s this mega successful leader, but we never see it on the page. Moreover there’s a plot involving the media that is just handled terribly. Gilmore wandered into my biggest pet peeve, and the story never recovered for me. (LOOK AT ME, ROMANCE AUTHORS: JUST SAY NO TO BAD UNETHICAL JOURNALIST PLOTS. The beatings will continue until —morale— fictional representations of the press improve.)

I don’t want to oversell it: This is a mostly fun, mostly sweet second chance romance. I’m probably in the minority when it comes to my response to the FMC and definitely on an island about the journalism thing, so those caveats aside, can recommend as a light, quick read.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

While these characters were only in their upper 20s, I like Clare Gilmore books because they feel like grown up romances, with a focus on business settings and (sort of) the real world (more on that later).

It also features a great quote:

"I sometimes wonder how much of myself I let Corporate America take. How much I could take back if I stopped participating."

(If you work in Corporate America, that hits hard.)

Josie has been running her clothing business, Revenant, since college. She's now the CEO, and her business comes first, above everything. Will runs into Josie--literally, his bike hits her car--the two haven't seen each other since an ill-fated kiss in high school that ruined Josie's relationship with her best friend, Zoe, who happens to be Will's twin sister.

But, as Will discovers that Josie is on the search for a consultant for Revenant, he figures out a way to get the job, and the two wind up spending plenty of time together, even if he is based in NYC and Revenant is in Austin, TX.

Will and Josie ooze chemistry from the beginning, even if they refuse to act on it at first. It's almost as if that kiss was yesterday and not 10 years ago. Josie is a poster child for guilt and anxiety. After the incident with Will, she faced a lot of social media backlash, so she avoids it, taking each angry comment or negative news article personally. She wants to be all things to all people. Will, meanwhile, feels he breaks what he touches, particularly relationships.

The Austin vibes in this book are extra strong, and the diverse cast of characters is great, especially Josie's BFF/co-worker and her "Biker Gang" pals. Will seems like the perfect guy with basically no flaws, so you can't help but want him and Josie to get together.

My only issue here was that while I loved the business angle, as the story progressed, eventually it felt a bit like a fantasy world, with two folks in their late 20s with plenty of money and the ability to take leave from work, follow their dreams, etc. Not exactly typical of most mid-20s experiences anymore.

Still, this was a fun and different read, exploring the fashion industry and the trials of anxiety. It had some very smart commentary on the power of social media and the ability to go viral--for both good or bad.