Thank you to NetGalley and @OneMoreChapter for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Read Between the Lines is a charming, low stakes mystery that delivers just the right mix of humor, heart, and slow-burn tension. Kat Fisher is a romantic at heart, working as a librarian and hoping her online match is the real deal until she realizes she’s been catfished. What follows is an unexpected partnership with Leo, a gruff ex detective who’s as annoying as he is useful.

The plot is more about the characters than the crime, and that works in its favor. Kat and Leo’s dynamic feels believable plenty of clashing personalities and playful back and forth, with a chemistry that builds gradually rather than rushing into anything. The story leans into its cozy vibes, and while the pacing is on the slower side, it never drags.

Emily Kerr does a great job balancing light romance with a bit of intrigue. The dialogue feels real, the side characters are endearing without being overly quirky, and the ending lands exactly where you want it to.

If you're in the mood for a feel good read that’s smart, funny, and quietly romantic, this is the book for you!

4.25 Stars!

#NetGalley, #OneMoreChapter, #ReadBetweenTheLines, #EmilyKerr

Shout Out to Netgalley for this cute arc read. From a librarian to detective.......IF this isn't an example of "love is literally staring at you in your face", then I don't know what is. hahahaha.........This was such a cute story. From possibly being catfished, to taking down a fraudster. Dom had it all planned out it seemed, and scammed a bunch of people in hopes to have his dating app be successful. Surprising turn of events is when his old friend found out what he was doing with his voice recordings........crazy how scammers think and are so prepared for any outcome. Anyways, it sure helped boost Kat's confidence and she got her man in the end.

This one was not for me. I felt like it was mis-genred, if that's a thing. If anything it was a mystery, with romantic elements. The MCs took WAY too long to acknowledge one another. It was exhausting.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an early copy to read and review.

Read Between the Lines is a standalone title with an enemies-to-lovers or grumpy/sunshine feel to it. It’s a good story, a bit of a slow-burn romance combined with a mystery element.

Kat is a librarian who has entered the world of dating apps, looking for that special someone.
Unfortunately, she’s run into a man who on the surface seems perfect… perhaps, too perfect when red flags start to appear. Leo is a former police detective who is now doing research in Kat’s library on opening his own business. They clash constantly, but when Kat decides to track down the man who tried to scam her, they enter into a partnership that could lead to exactly what she’s been looking for.

Read Between the Lines by Emily Kerr is a fun story with engaging characters. It’s a good story, even though the pace, at times, seemed slow for me, and the romance is on the lighter side. Still, their investigation provided a few chuckles and some emotional moments.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley, and I sincerely thank the author or publishing house for their trust. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*

“Read between the lines” by Emily Kerr is a mysterious, rom com. In this book you follow the main characters, Kat and Leo as they navigate an investigation and their feelings toward each-other. This swoon worthy novel starts off slow but quickly picks up throughout the storyline. This story will have you kicking your feet and highlighting everything.

Set in Oxford, the story follows Kat Fisher, a librarian whose head is always in the cloud and a hopeless romantic. For the last two months, she has been speaking with a guy, Brian, who she met on a dating app. The only catch? They haven't met in person as Brian is in the army, and has currently been stationed abroad, but is finally returning to Oxford and is looking forward to going out with Kat on their first date. As Kat is getting excited for her date while working at the library, she stumbles across Leo, a grumpy ex-cop who can't keep his dirty feet off the library furniture. As Kat is about to leave the library to meet Brian for their first date, he sends a message saying he can't leave the army base as he has no funds and if she could send him some money. Red flag alert. Leo, listening in on the conversation, states that this is a common catfish tactic and starts to get Kat upset. The smart move would be just block and move on? But Kat decides to get Leo to use his former cop skills as they pair up as Sherlock and Holmes to solve the mystery of who is Brian and how can we stop him.

I can't tell if I didn't like the book because the author is British and I just don't understand British personalities/humor, or if the book was just not great. Everything in the book was just so literal - everything was explained rather than shown, which just added to the boringness of the book. Kat was one of the most annoying characters I've read in a while - I can't remember how old she is supposed to be, but god her rigidity and weird (not cute quirkiness) behaviors was incredibly off puting. Also how at your grown ass age would you chat with a man on an app for two months without meeting. No one with any common sense or self worth would do that, especially if you are trying to find a meaningful relationship. That is just what made this book so unrealistic for me. The romance between Kat and Leo felt forced, the spark was non-existent. Both characters spoke waaaaaaay too formal - once again, not sure if that is a British thing, but I was just in London and had multiple convos with locals and it was easy going. I feel like the author should have done dual POVs instead of just keeping us in Kat's head.

I absolutely adored Read Between the Lines! From the very first pages, I was hooked by the sharp humor, the heartwarming characters, and that delicious slow-burn romance between Kat and Leo. Their banter had me grinning, and the Oxford library setting made this story feel like curling up with a cozy blanket and a cup of tea. Emily Kerr strikes the perfect balance between charm and emotional depth. I especially appreciated the layers of vulnerability behind the laughs—and the unexpected mystery woven into the plot was the cherry on top.

I loved the book so much that I went straight out and bought her debut novel, Duvet Day. If it’s even half as delightful as this one, I know I’m in for another treat. Highly recommend to fellow romcom lovers, especially if you’re a fan of stories with brains, heart, and a dash of literary mischief.

📚 This was my first read by Emily Kerr & I really enjoyed it. It was a lovely romance but with a fun mystery that kept me turning the pages.

🚔 I found Kat to be very relatable & an easy to love leading lady. She was cute, fun, vulnerable & smart. I liked her hopefulness & determination to do the right thing. She was strong-willed & learning to trust her gut & go after things.

📚 Leo was equally a wonderful leading man. His fun banter with Kat had me giggling & his protectiveness made me smile. He cared about her & wanted to look after her, which I think is so important & sweet. There's nothing like a man who pays attention to a woman's feelings & who cares about her fully.

🚔 This was a great compelling read, that kept me guessing even though I did have my suspicions early on. It was exciting seeing how Kat & Leo worked together & I loved seeing their relationship blossom.

📚 If you're looking for a sweet romance with a bit of a who-dunit twist, you'll love this book!

Kelly

This story has an interesting premise to it, as Kat is on the hunt for the scammer who made her his target. With the help of Leo, she’s turning detective to identify the culprit and get justice. It was lovely to see a library setting which had a fantastic sense of community. Kat herself has really low self esteem and Leo is working on himself right now which makes for a really slow burn. I would have liked to see a bit of chemistry between these two as they were giving me strong friend vibes for the majority of the book, and pair that with how they really don’t seem to understand each other/communicate well, it didn't quite hit the mark for me but it was an easy enough read.


I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.

Kat and Leo were so much fun to follow and this book was a lot of fun. I am looking forward to see what Kerr does next.

A cute romance/mystery. Set in the cozy literary Oxford. A librarian Kat Fisher has an online relationship with someone on a dating site, but then it goes wrong. And she meets an ex-police officer who helps her investigate.

It was a very fun and cozy read. Filled with fun book references. It was a bit of a slower paced book, but that worked perfectly for the story. It mixed romance and a mystery very well. In my opinion being quite realistically written characters. They did miss a bit of chemistry. Nevertheless they were extremely loveable characters. I thought the plot line was very interesting and well executed. Having some very funny parts as well.

Overall I really enjoyed this read and would definitely recommend for a nice and light read. Even with the investigation plot line.

This was a quick read and the concept was interesting. Wished to see more chemistry with the main characters but overall it was fun.

I was intrigued by this book when i fist saw it. Once i started reading, i fell in love with the characters of kat and leo. At times i found kat a little stuborn and rash in her divisions and actions, but leo's calm and collected personality balanced it out perfectly. The pining made my heart squeeze as i felt for the characters. I especially resonated with kat and saw myself in her and i am glad she got the happy ending she yearned for. All in all it was a very cozy and sweet romcom with a little detective twist to it.

4.5, this was an interesting read. I wasn't expecting the storyline of this book but it was thoroughly interesting to see how it played out. Leo and Kat were an interesting duo. Ex Detective x Librarian, GrumpyxSunshine. I loved their banter back and forth and that from the beginning Kat was herself with Leo and they got to know each other through this investigation and the scammer surprised me too.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for this arc.

3.5 Stars

If you want a short, quick read this is just that. As this is so short there isn't much depth to the characters and the plot is fun but simple.

One of my favourite parts about the characters is how sweet and empathetic they are to most of the side characters.

Read Between the Lines is such a charming romance story! It follows Kat on her investigation to oust her romance fraudster with the help of former police detective, Leo. As these two opposites spend more time together, they slowly develop their own confidence and fall in love.

There were moments in the novel where the craft could be improved. There was a lot of telling rather than showing, information dumps and clunky dialogue - but overall they didn't detract from a really lovely story.

I wanted to like this but instead I had to talk myself into finishing it. It just felt incredibly dull and Leo and Kat had absolutely no chemistry. A swing and a miss.

After being nearly scammed on a dating app, Kat decides to take matters into her own hands and track down the culprit, and who better to help her in this endeavour than handsome ex-cop Leo.

A sweet slow burn romance which is a bit less bookish than the title and cover would have you believe. I found some of the dialogue a little stilted and monologue-y, but the characters were lovely (especially some of the library regulars) and the setting was beautifully cosy. Not much depth to be found here but a cute rainy day romance suitable for any gentle reader.

Librarian Kate had joined a dating app but found herself almost suckered into giving money over "for charity". Determine to find out who the anonymous person behind this she enlisted the aid of Leo, a former police officer, whom she knows from his visiting the library.
I enjoyed the mystery side of this story as the pair try to find out who really is behind this scam whilst there is a touch of romance between the two. Not for those who prefer real whodunnits or more romance, but, for me at least, a story that I enjoyed. 4.5* rounded up to 5*.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, however this did not influence my review of the book and I subsequently purchased it on release.

This was cute and had its moments, but overall it didn’t quite hit the mark for me. I loved the idea of a bookish romantic who works in a library Kat had such potential to be super relatable. And the Oxford setting? Chef’s kiss. But the chemistry between Kat and Leo didn’t fully land for me. Their interactions felt more awkward than charming at times, and the whole “he spreads his stuff around the library” thing was weirdly off-putting instead of endearing.

There were some funny and sweet moments, and I appreciated the cozy vibe and lighthearted tone. I just didn’t feel super connected to the characters or the romance. If you’re looking for a quick romcom with a bookish angle, this might still work for you it just wasn’t a standout for me