Kate Clayborn lives in Virginia, where she spends her days reading and talking about all kinds of great books. Kate loves to hear from and connect with readers—follow her on Twitter, on Instagram, and on Facebook. Visit her at kateclayborn.com to sign up for her newsletter. You can find more of my reviews of Kate's work here.
Sixteen years ago, a teenaged Will Sterling saw—or rather, heard—the girl of his dreams. Standing beneath an apartment building balcony, he shared a perfect moment with a lovely, warm-voiced stranger. It's a memory that's never faded, though he's put so much of his past behind him. Now an unexpected inheritance has brought Will back to that same address, where he plans to offload his new property and get back to his regular life as an overworked doctor. Instead, he encounters a woman, two balconies above, who's uncannily familiar . . . No matter how surprised Nora Clarke is by her reaction to handsome, curious Will, or the whispered pre-dawn conversations they share, she won't let his plans ruin her quirky, close-knit building. Bound by her loyalty to her adored grandmother, she sets out to foil his efforts with a little light sabotage. But beneath the surface of their feud is an undeniable connection. A balcony, a star-crossed couple, a fateful meeting—maybe it's the kind of story that can't work out in the end. Or maybe, it's the perfect second chance . . .
I love how Kate always sets a vivid scene. This book opens on a flashback, when a teenaged Will catches sight of Nora for the first time—it's a memory that's never faded for Will for reasons that become clearer as the book goes on, and because of that, it's such a powerful image to begin with. As you read, echoes of that scene appear throughout the book, which is so gratifying, because we all experience life through echoes. On top of that, Kate creates this beautiful community of people in Nora's beloved apartment complex, a cast of characters full of big personalities surrounded by truly horrendous wallpaper. I felt so placed inside the scene during Love at First, and I attribute it to Clayborn's attention to detail, and how she focuses on setting and place just as much as character development.
Speaking of character development, it's so fun to see Nora and Will learn and grow throughout the book. Nora shows her love for people through loyalty, and Will shows love for people through taking care of them, which allows for a series of mishaps, misunderstandings, and seriously vulnerable conversations. Once you get to the point in the book where the title appears, you'll no doubt tear up like I did. I love how, as Nora and Will learn from each other and the people around them, their mannerisms and communication styles evolve. Will's picking up the old-time words (ought) from Gerald, the way Nora's language echoes her grandmother's as a way to keep her alive (well!), and even the way the narrative itself plays on this fun use of language—it's so heartwarming, and proves that Clayborn is the true master of the "show, don't tell" technique that proves to be so powerful in her writing.
Love at First is full of tropes we know and love in the romance genre, including rivals to lovers that turns friends with benefits, love at first sight, one character taking care of the other when they get sick. Clayborn is always able to combine tropes in a way that feels natural and organic. I love how because Clayborn can balance well-defined romance tropes with vulnerable conversations and both the minutiae and big picture of everyday life. By doing so, her romances always feel so real, like her characters are real people and that this is the type of romance that exists in our lifetimes. It's so powerful and meaningful to me, and is why I will read everything she writes and recommend her work to everyone I know.
If you can't already tell, I will be reading as much Kate Clayborn as I can get my hands on, so stay tuned for more of my reviews of Kate's work!
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
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