Read Between the Lines
Ratings16
Average rating3.2
From award-winning author Rachel Lacey comes a playful romance about a Manhattan bookstore owner and a reclusive author who love to hate--and hate to love--each other. Books are Rosie Taft's life. And ever since she took over her mother's beloved Manhattan bookstore, they've become her home too. The only thing missing is her own real-life romance like the ones she loves to read about, and Rosie has an idea of who she might like to sweep her off her feet. She's struck up a flirty online friendship with lesbian romance author Brie, and what could be more romantic than falling in love with her favorite author? Jane Breslin works hard to keep her professional and personal lives neatly separated. By day, she works for the family property development business. By night, she puts her steamier side on paper under her pen name: Brie. Jane hasn't had much luck with her own love life, but her online connection with a loyal reader makes Jane wonder if she could be the one. When Rosie learns that her bookstore's lease has been terminated by Jane's family's business, romance moves to the back burner. Even though they're at odds, there's no denying the sparks that fly every time they're together. When their online identities are revealed, will Jane be able to write her way to a happy ending, or is Rosie's heart a closed book?
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I don't usually mind (or know?) if authors are using a self-insert...this one just felt a little too on the nose. And some of the descriptions (sex scenes in particular) were...weird. I did like the characters - not on a deep level that got me crying when it was all said and done, but on a superficial “hey these gals are cool” kinda level. So...just okay. Wanted it to be awesome because, hey, maybe I'm a little like the author as a reader who likes to see fellow lesbians on the page. Ooooor the cover took me in. Or, or, or...but it was just average.
I wanted to like this book. There were so many things about the premise that appealed to me, but ultimately it was a chore to slog through, and after two months of forcing myself to pick it up, I'm calling it quits. I thought Jane could do better - Rosie actually irritated me, and their relationship came across as kind of toxic. The supporting cast had very little depth, and I even found myself struggling to remember who was who a couple of times. The sex scenes were lukewarm at best. And the third act conflict felt unnecessary.
