The story follows the journey of Natalie Carter, a successful but emotionally guarded career woman, and Sam Ellis, a charming, down-to-earth man who seems to have a knack for showing up when Natalie least expects it. Their connection, built on shared vulnerability and unexpected chemistry, grows into something neither of them anticipated.

Gilmore excels at crafting relatable characters, and Natalie is no exception. Her personal growth, from someone who is hesitant to open up emotionally to someone who learns to trust and embrace love, is handled with nuance and care. Sam, on the other hand, is the perfect counterpart to Natalie—compassionate, patient, and with just the right amount of humor to disarm her defenses. The chemistry between them is electric, and their evolving relationship feels authentic, making every moment together even more meaningful.

The pacing of the novel is well-balanced, with enough tension to keep the reader engaged without overwhelming the plot. Gilmore infuses the story with plenty of light-hearted humor, especially through Sam’s playful nature, which provides a refreshing counterpoint to some of the more emotional moments between the characters. This balance between humor and heart makes *Perfect Fit* a delightful read from start to finish.

What truly sets this book apart, however, is the emotional depth that underpins the romance. Gilmore doesn’t shy away from exploring the complexities of love, trust, and self-acceptance, allowing Natalie and Sam to evolve as individuals as much as they do as a couple. The emotional payoff is both satisfying and poignant, leaving readers with a lasting sense of fulfillment.

This book truly is a delightful contemporary romance that will appeal to fans of well-developed characters, humor, and heart. Clare Gilmore has created a charming, emotionally resonant story that lingers long after the final page.

Thank you so much to the publisher for my ALC!

This audiobook was so good! The story was so fun and so addictive. The main characters had so much chemistry together.

💜 Second chance
💜 Workplace Romance
💜 Close Proximity
💜 Ex best friends brother
💜 Slow burn
💜 He falls first
💜 Single 1st pov

This was a super cute romcom with emotional swoony moments. The he falls first trope is my favorite right now and this book nailed it! So many moments I was melting!!! I do think I would have enjoyed this more if I eyeball read it as well.

Thank you netgalley for this ALC

Sometimes, all the pieces of a story just fit together perfectly. That’s what you get with 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐅𝐢𝐭.

Josie is a determined CEO of her own fashion brand, headquartered in Austin, Texas. For most of her twenties, she has prioritized developing this company. Now, her biggest investor wants to hire a consultant from Manhattan.

What a surprise when Will Grant walks in. Will is Josie’s ex-best friend, Zoe’s twin brother. Will and Josie also have a bit of history; their kiss back in high school is what made Zoe and Josie 𝙚𝙭-best friends.

I loved watching Josie and Will move from a working relationship to lovers (kind of a second chance). Will is kind, patient, and thoughtful, while Josie is a workaholic and self-critical but tired of being alone. The author did a great job with these characters, the romance, and the female friendships. It displayed that you must be allowed to continue on your path of self-discovery for healthy relationships.

This is a fun, uplifting, and relatable read that includes workplace banter, work travel, and people with history who finally get that shot at love. It's a delightful escape into a world of romance and self-discovery.

🎧Katharine Leonard’s narration of the audiobook perfectly evoked all the emotions. It was a great complement to the physical copy.

Thank you partner @stmartinspress @smpromance and @claregilmorewrites for this gifted copy.

Thank you @recordedbooks #rbmedia for the gifted audiobook.

This was actually the perfect romance for me, it was a really fun read.
I love a good rom-com, but my preferred types of rom-coms are the ones that are also going to make me sob and really connect to the characters' backstories, and this very much did that. Both of the main characters are absolutely flawed individuals, but they come together and make each other better just for being part of each others' lives, and that is the best sort of romance story in my personal opinion. There was so much character growth, both individually and with the relationships in this book whether they be romantic, platonic, or familial. I absolutely loved it.
The chemistry between them was palpable from page one, and the banter was great.

Fans of Emily Henry/Abby Jimenez/etc will love it. I am sure I have several high school girls that would enjoy this book. It ticks all the boxes for a romcom read. This is my first read by Clare Gilmore and I will definitely look for more.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the digital arc.

Will and Josie are very fun, likable characters that you want to root for! The backstory of a long ago shared kiss just adds to the fun of the story. A bitter sister, even more of a fun twist! The fact that it's set in Austin just was the icing on the cake for this Texan. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC, the opinions are my own.

🎧Audiobook Review 🎧
Thank you SMP Romance for the gifted physical copy! Thank you NetGalley and RBMedia for the audio!

Perfect Fit
Clare Gilmore @claregilmorewrites
Publishing Date: October 29, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🎧 Narrator: Katherine Leonard 🎧

This was a really enjoyable romance! Some tropes you can expect to find here:

🩷 Second Chance Romance
🩷 Workplace Romance
🩷 (Ex) Best Friends Brother
🩷 Forced Proximity
🩷 Small Town
🩷 Cinnamon Roll FMC
🩷 Successful and Driven FMC
🩷 Strong Female Friendships

I really loved the dynamic between Josie and Will. Will is high quality book boyfriend material. Josie is a super driven and successful business owner who is still learning balance, priorities, and what’s really important in life. The friendships throughout this one were really nicely done. The communication between characters was so so good, and the absence of a miscommunication/lack of communication was a breath of fresh air. And can we please get a round of applause for NO third act breakup?! 🙌🏻

This was my first book by Clare Gilmore and it definitely won’t be my last.

🎧 I read this one mostly with my ears and Katherine Leonard was fantastic!!! She really did a nice job making the characters dynamic and the listening experience a pleasant one!

Thank you NetGalley and RBmedia for the ARC of this audiobook for my honest review

A really cute romance. Definitely a light and happy one cause I was smiling the whole time. The business side made it extra interesting. The characters were lovable and the plot was cute and simple. I recommend.

I'll be publishing my review on Goodreads and StoryGraph 5th January and on Tik tok most likely will add to a monthly wrap up post with review the beginning of February

I received an early edition of this audio book in exchange for my review. The narration was smooth and easy to listen to even through character changes. This is a perfect lighthearted story and was just the respite I needed from my typical thriller genre. I appreciated the writing and the imagery Clare Gilmore supplied. This is definitely up there on my list of great easy reads

As a girl who sews, and is a part of a generation very aware of mental health issues and burnout, as soon as I heard the premise of Perfect Fit, I knew I would enjoy this book. What I didn't anticipate though, was how much I would fall in love with this author's writing. From page one, I started falling in love with these characters, as I found them to be written with such sincerity. And while I really enjoyed the romantic plot line and the all the yearning, I also loved Josie's individual arc regarding mental health. I found that Clare Gilmore perfectly balanced the tone of this book, including both heartwarming, and realistically sad moments. In that sense, this story reminded me of Emily Henry's writing. I definitely recommend picking this one up!

This book was so swoony! The MMC was the epitome of a man written by a woman, and the love and support he gave the FMC was just so heartwarming to read. The whole thing felt like a warm hug, and that FMC really deserved a break. There were some really poignant messages about work/life balance and self love and burnout that all felt like they resonated, even though I’m not a startup CEO.

5 stars

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the story for this one and could relate to the female lead through our the story and I think s lot can do that

Loved getting to know Josie and follow her growth throughout this book. I felt like I was listening to a real life story. Thank you for keeping it real Gilmore!

Clare Gilmore writes the way I want to write! I loved her first book and found Perfect Fit to be a delightful second book! I found the characters to be wonderfully complex and lovable. There was something so comfy in watching this second chance blossom. I really enjoyed the narrator too!

I feel like this book is going to be my personality for the next few months cuz I freaking loved it, and I'm gonna keep recommending it!!

Josephine Davis takes the crown of being the craziest workaholic I've ever seen! She cannot stay without doing anything work related for even a moment, and also happens to be her worst critic. Because of her people pleasing and overthinking nature (so relatable), she's constantly getting anxious even for small things. But all this anxiety seems to stem from the thought of not letting her business go down the drain, and I can definitely understand why she feels that way. She started her business when she was going through a hard time and has worked her ass off to bring it to the current position, so the thought of losing it because of a small misstep terrifies her.

Even though Jo is heavily focused on her work, she doesn't forget to spend time with her friends. She's the sort of person who'd even die for their friends, and that made me admire her so much cuz we all know that such friends are hard to come by these days!!! And it was so heartwarming to see her make amends and reconnect with Zoe, the twin sister of Will Grant.

Will freaking Grant!!! - the man who has made me lose sleep, and the one who has officially taken up his spot among my top book boyfriends. It's so obvious from the start that he has fallen hard for Jo back then & hasn't moved on even now. But he tries to keep distance between them because Jo asked, and is such a man of manners! But what I liked most about him is his quietness!!!! Whenever Jo is going through a hard time or having an anxiety attack, he doesn't bombard her with questions rather he stays quietly by her side, offering her comfort and assuring her that everything will be fine. He's also the staunch supporter of Jo, he hypes her up during every step of the business and keeps reminding her of her worth.. it's so rare to find a guy who doesn't feel inferior to a girl boss, much less support her through every step!!!

Not to mention the fact that Will is a reader, cook, a great listener, and a man who's taken acts of service to the next level, tell me what more can anyone want from a partner?!!! He makes Jo feel at ease with him, and gives her the space she needs to make up her own mind and doesn't pressure her at any point of the novel. That's what made their slowburn of a romance more beautiful!!

The audiobook narrator has done a wonderful job of portraying the characters, I don't think I would've become this connected with the characters & their feelings if it weren't for the narrator. There were moments where I had to look at the ceiling to stop myself from tearing up, and that shows how good of a job the narrator has done!!!

This book made me realise that I'm an absolute sobbing mess for second chance romances!! Also, Clare has become my new favorite author and I cannot wait to read her backlist now!!

Huge thanks to NetGalley & RB Media for the audiobook Arc!!

4 ⭐
1 🌶️

second chance, best friend's bother, workplace

Josephine has been focused building her company. An old crush becomes a consultant for her business. They reconnect and reminisce. Emotional journey as they deal with the downfall of their past, rebuild their friendship and establishing a romantic relationship.

This book took me a little while to get into, but once I did, I really enjoyed it. It's not my favorite romance of the year, but after a string of so-so reads, this one was a refreshing change.
Josie was a relatable, driven heroine, juggling ambition with the challenges of burnout. And Will? Sweet, funny, and ridiculously good at his job. It’s impossible not to fall for him.
Their relationship felt so real : open, supportive, and free from unnecessary drama. It was just a solid, feel-good romance. Plus, the audiobook narrator was actually fantastic, which made the experience even better.

🪡I absolutely adored this book! I was hooked from the start and devoured it - going back and forth between the wonderful audiobook and reading the gorgeous physical book.

👗 I loved Josie as a protagonist. Her voice was clear and relatable - how much empathy she has for others, how much pressure she feels and puts on herself to constantly prove herself, how she puts her all into everything she does, and how she doesn’t allow herself to fall and be held and stand still. I loved watching her learn and grow and love; it all felt organic and beautiful.

🪡 I loooooved Will Grant, the man that he is. The way he was so patient and tender with Josie, the acts of service he constantly did for her (I can’t even begin!), and how he was there to catch her when she fell but also supported her standing on her own. I can’t, I loved it.

👗 I also adored the emphasis on female Freud ships throughout the book. Josie had such a good support system, and her friendship with Camila brought me to tears. It was such a highlight throughout the book, shining just as bright as the relationship between Josie and Will.

Overall, I loved this book, and I definitely recommend it! I’m also obsessed with the epilogue - particularly the last line. So good!

Thank you so much to st Martin’s press and NetGalley for the audiobook - I adored it! The narrator was so clear, added emotion, and was overall fantastic.

Unfortunately, I DNF'ed this audiobook at 36%. I've heard amazing things about Perfect Fit so it might have been the narration, but it just didn't hold my attention.. The FMC was not relatable and the narration was a bit overperformed. Maybe I'll end up going back to it someday, but for now I'm giving it two stars.

Josie has spent years building her fashion brand. When one of her biggest investors orders her to hire a consultant, she never expects it to be her ex-best friend’s brother, the boy with whom she shared a kiss with lasting repercussions.

While I have yet to read Clare Gilmore’s debut, 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵, I was ecstatic when both the physical and audiobook versions of this one made their way to me. And it did not disappoint.

I am such a sucker for second chance and workplace romance, both of which Gilmore executes well. My interest was piqued when it came to their history, and I found myself fully invested in figuring out what exactly had gone so wrong that it impacted so many relationships. And yet, I was equally intrigued with the present day storyline and how Josie and Will are able to reconnect as they work to help her company. Of course, the witty banter woven in throughout was the cherry on top.

🎧 I went back and forth between the physical book and the audiobook. While both formats work well, Katharine Leonard’s narration really helped to bring the story to life for me.

Read if you like:
▪️second chance
▪️workplace romance
▪️forced proximity
▪️ex-best friend’s brother
▪️he falls first
▪️Texas setting

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copies.