This was such a cute and fun rom com! I loved the setting, story and characters. Frankie Brown, a.k.a. Georgina Justice is the perfectly, imperfect regency romance heroine and when she's dumped and her publisher sends her to England her story gets even more intriguing. In England, she meets 17 year old Eleanor, the young mistress of the manor house renting out a room while her brother, the Viscount is away. When Graham enters the scene, sparks fly and the story gets even better to the reader.

I really liked the setting from NYC to escape to England. That alone makes this a fun rom com. Eleanor is the perfect foil to her serious brother and a great ally to the heroine Frankie. Frankie is real - struggling any woman in real life from a break-up though hers is tabloid news. Frankie's backstory is relatable to anyone who has ever wanted to grow from the expectations one might have from their childhood upbringing to become something more. The manor house is idyllic and tragic at the same time. I'd love to transport myself to this place to see an English house/castle as described in the book. I really liked how the author herself is a Regency Romance author and writes a modern rom com about a Regency Romance author.

The author does a great job with Frankie's emotions post break-up to a new romance. I loved scenes where Frankie gets to play dress-up in vintage clothing. Revealing Graham's family history is also interesting and how all of that is built into the story. Dialogue between the three main characters - Frankie, Graham and Eleanor is well done - it's both comedic and emotional at times because of the backstories of each character.

I recommend this book for adult readers. There is a loss of a child mentioned in the book which may trigger some readers along with the losses of parents and a friend in tragedy. The losses add to the emotion behind the story and enhances the backstory of the characters. The book has some passionate kissing and several emotional scenes. There are also some tragic family stories that might be a bit much for younger readers. Overall this book has a lot packed into it's pages and balances tragedy, romance and humor all in this book.

I enjoyed the book and couldn't put this one down. I'm glad I took a chance on a new to me author with this ARC via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I have been a fan of Kim Duffy's historical romances (written as Kimberly Duffy) in the past- her book The Weight of Air is in fact an all-time favorite of mine- so I was very excited to see that she had written a contemporary... and it absolutely did not disappoint! First of all, with a title like this, a good meet-cute was an absolute must, and this one certainly delivered that. I loved it. Georgina (real name Frankie) is a regency romance author who needs to get away from the public eye after a public breakup with her ex-fiancé. She finds herself taking a trip to a Georgian manor in England, owned by Eleanor and her brooding brother (and real-life viscount) Graham. I won't tell you exactly how these two met for this first time... but it was definitely cute! The stories that made me fall in love with reading as a child (one of which-Mandy by Julie Andrews- is actually mentioned in the book), are those stories that had these homes that are full of history and secrets and maybe even some ghosts and I loved seeing those elements in this story with all the stories of Graham's family and property. There was a lot to love in this story, and I look forward to seeing what happens next in the series.

The Meet-Cute Manuscript is a closed-door romance with kisses only and no language.

**ARC received via Netgalley for consideration. All opinions are my own.

Delightful! I loved every minute of it! Engaging story, wonderful characters, I could not put it down! (In fact I read into the wee hours of the morning to finish it.)

In The Meet-Cute Manuscript, we meet best selling Regency author Georgina Justice (aka Frankie Brown) who has reinvented herself after her difficult upbringing, and is now engaged to one of the most eligible trust fund bachelors in the country, until she isn't. Her very public break up leaves her unable to write her signature romances, so her agent and best friend Ashley sends her to live in a Georgian Manor home in England for a few months to get past her writers block. Ashley makes the reservation under Frankie's real name for some anonymity. Young 17 year old Eleanor Phips-Harington has booked her reservation without telling her older brother Graham Michael Phips-Harington, Viscount Rosebury.

The weaving of the story Frankie is writing with the story she is living was so much fun. Her heart loved all the history of the manor home, the family going back generations, the trunks of old clothes, the formal paintings on the walls, and even the ghost stories Graham told her to try to get her to leave. "He'd thought to scare her away with the family ghost, but it seems as though she's the one with the power to terrify him." Frankie loves the manor home with it's special rooms including the ballroom and the conservatory, and especially how Graham and Eleanor's history went so far back, when she didn't have anything like that with her family.

I highly recommend this captivating story set in England, the sweet and swoony clean romance, with the fun that comes along with grumpy/sunshine and opposites attract tropes.

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for allowing me to read an early copy. All opinions are my own.

I was a bit hesitant about the incorporation of regency England but it worked out.

I was hooked from the moment the story started because of her previous relationship and how it ended, however I have to say I wasn’t 100% in love with Graham, not my kind of hero for the most of the story.
What I did like is the HEA and how it all worked out for everyone!

Special thanks to Kim Duffy and Netgalley for this ARC.

The Meet-Cute Manuscript is a general adult fiction from beloved CF author Kimberley Duffy. This book follows the life of famous Regency author Georgina Justice (real name Frankie Brown). Through a crazy highly public situation, she dumps her bigger-than-life fiancé after catching him cheating in a social media video--but it creates a...well melt-down. So her agent sends her overseas to England for a chance to regroup and be able to write her next book. Turns out it's not quite a B&B as it isn't maintained yet. It's rather falling apart--but it's a gorgeous mansion in the style and era of Frankie's books. She decides she HAS to stay despite the resistance from the owner...

I loved the interactions between the characters. And I felt like the plot was pretty well done. One of my favorite scenes was when Frankie chastises Graham for not "understanding women". LOL. So so true.

I think Eleanor is my favorite character for the book. She had so much hidden inside and struggled to be seen as an adult and capable of making good decisions by her big brother. Her story was still sad once revealed.

I also enjoyed the story inside the story as Frankie tried to write her new book.

4 stars for this fun story

*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for a copy of this book. All opinions are 100% my own.

A cute blend of contemporary romance and regency England!

I enjoyed the premise and writing that brings the overall story to life - Frankie, a regency romance author leaves her life in NYC behind in exchange for a castle in England for two months to try and get over her broken heart and subsequent writers block. While there, she doesn’t just fall for the serious viscount but also his whimsical and driven sister, the idillic small town, and the version of herself she becomes while there.

There were times the story was a bit too over the top for my own taste, like when instead of just admiring she likes Graham she instead asks that he kisses her to help with ‘her work’ which is basically the start of their romantic relationship. I also found it a bit hard to track whose perspective we were reading given we jumped between Frankie’s and Graham’s without any introduction.

Thank you to Kimberly Duffy and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Such a beautiful love story! I loved the chemistry between our MC and Graham . It had modern elements of romance as well as historical/vintage vibe and that made for the most beautiful love story. I feel these two characters needed each others perspective and outlook on love/life to help balance each other out I highly enjoyed it. Will definitely be checking out Kim Duffy books in the future.

Thank you NetGallery and victory editing for the opportunity for me to review this book

The thoughts and opinions are my own.

Pre-Thoughts
- Regency rom-com in present day setting

Post thoughts
- Quite and atmospheric read.
- Good pacing and easy to follow.
- The beginning of each chapter did initially confuse me.
- Some aspects were slightly repetitive between the MMC and the FMC.
- Elanor was a great addition.
- Definitely needs a C/W for the mentioning of the loss of a child (not on page but discussed). it was quite unexpected and saddening.
- The ending was a great HEA.
- The FMC writing a novel over the course of the book is an interesting premise, almost like reading two books.


Overall it was quite a substantial read, covers a lot of heartache for all of the characters involved

3/5 stars

Tropes
- Grumpy X sunshine
- Regency vibes
- Dual Pov
-Slow burn

I will be posting this review on my goodreads.

There’s a lot to love about this story. The premise is really fun (after a heartbreak, a romance author goes on a working vacation to England to get her writing groove back) and I liked the three main characters. It is entertaining to see an author writing about an author, considering her craft; it was very meta.

At times, this book felt uncomfortable or over-the-top for me (for example, a literal skeleton in the closet and an unplanned pregnancy at fifteen, which is so young!). It felt weird for Graham and Frankie to fight and then kiss to give her inspiration for her story. The third act breakup also felt a bit unresolved to me.

Overall though, I enjoyed the story. There was some heartache to both Frankie’s and Graham’s past that gave the story more depth, and I appreciated the message that love can change people and give us hope.

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing Co-op for the free eARC! I post this review with my honest opinions. This review is crossposted on Goodreads and will be posted on Amazon within a week of the book’s publication.

Content notes: mentions of a “curse,” physical attraction, descriptive kissing, mention of miscarriage, a child goes missing, someone dies in a natural disaster, discussion of grief over parents who have died, discussion of gambling and childhood emotional pain, a character cheats on his fiancée