About the Book:
Title: Meet Me in the Margins
Author: Melissa Ferguson
Page Length: 320
Publication Date: Feb. 15, 2022
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Synopsis: Savannah Cade is a low-level editor at Pennington Publishing, a prestigious publisher producing only the highest of highbrow titles. And while editing the latest edition of The Anthology of Medieval Didactic Poetry may be her day job, she has two secrets she’s hiding.
One: She’s writing a romance novel.
Two: She’s discovered the Book Nook—a secret room in the publishing house where she finds inspiration for her “lowbrow” hobby.
After leaving her manuscript behind one afternoon, she returns to the nook only to discover someone has written notes in the margins. Savannah’s first response to the criticism is defensive, but events transpire that force her to admit that she needs the help of this shadowy editor after all. As the notes take a turn for the romantic, and as Savannah’s madcap life gets more complicated than ever, she uses the process of elimination to identify her mysterious editor—only to discover that what she truly wants and what she should want just might not be the same. Melissa Ferguson’s latest—a love letter to books, readers, and romance—will leave fans laughing out loud and swooning in the same breath.
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My Review:
Meet Me in the Margins follows Savannah Cade, an assistant book editor and aspiring romance novelist, and Will Pennington, the new boss at Pennington Publishing where Savannah works. Will is demanding and a bit intimidating, and with the threat of consolidation looming, Savannah is determined to prove her worth. During a particularly hectic day, Savannah stashes her manuscript in a secret room at work. However, when she goes back to get it, she notices that someone made constructive notes in the margins. At first, Savannah is nonplussed, but she soon sees that the suggestions are good. With the help of her secret editor, Savannah reconstructs her manuscript, and when the notes start to become more personal, Savannah realizes she is falling for her secret editor. But who is it?
I knew I was going to love this book even before I started reading it. Between the cute cover and the premise of the story, I couldn’t wait to dive in, and I was right. Meet Me in the Margins is such a fun and sweet contemporary romance! Savannah and Will are great main characters, and I enjoyed their love story. They are both smart and determined, and I like how they develop a deep respect for each other. The more time they spend together, the more they see past their first impressions. Will is an honorable man of integrity, and he really listens to Savannah and makes her feel heard, which is unusual for her. I love how much he values her opinion. Savannah comes to realize that Will is not the arrogant and elusive man he initially appears to be. He is kind and caring and innovative. Their relationship is slow-building and burning, and their chemistry is great!
The story takes place at Pennington Publishing, and I absolutely loved that a smaller publishing firm was the primary backdrop of the story. Every time Savannah mentioned the ARC room, I salivated just imagining all those books! Plus, Savannah is surrounded by like-minded people who also love reading, writing, and everything book-related. What’s better than a book about people who are passionate about books?
There are some characters that aren’t part of the book industry, particularly Savannah’s family. They are difficult people, and I hated how unsupportive they were of Savannah. And Savannah’s ex-boyfriend, who became engaged to her sister, is horrible. It’s such an awkward situation, though Savannah handles it maturely. I like how this toxic situation helped Savannah to grow and learn what she wants and deserves in a relationship, but I didn’t find him or Savannah’s sister particularly likable. They definitely contrasted Savannah and Will well, as they are the exact opposites of each other.
Meet Me in the Margins is a super cute, fun, and charming contemporary romance. The book also addresses more serious issues like dealing with pressures at work, healing after a break-up, and trying to maneuver through difficult and unsupportive family dynamics and expectations. I think readers who like contemporary romance or rom-coms with great characters and messages will love this story. Thanks so much to NetGalley, Thomas Nelson, and the author for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.
Rating:
Favorite Parts:
- The romance.
- The publishing house setting.
I do love a book about books!! Great review!
Thanks! 🙂
This sounds so lovely! I love that the couple seems so mature. Though I think I’d spend more of my time dreaming of all the books Savannah gets to be surrounded by. Great review!
Right! I was drooling every time she went in that ARC room! lol
I really enjoyed this one, too! Savannah and Will have such a lovely, warm dynamic.
They so do! Glad to hear you enjoyed it too. 🙂
Oh, this sounds so great! 😍 I love a book about books and the idea of falling in love over a manuscript that they secretly work on together has my hopeless romantic book-lover heart swooning, haha! The whole family situation sounds terrible though and ugh, I hate that kind of dynamic but it makes me love the MCs even more. Great review, can’t wait to pick this up! 😃
The family was the worst! but the rest made up for it. 🙂
So glad you enjoyed this! I can’t wait to read it.
This book sounds even better after reading your review! Hope to read the book someday.
Thank you! I really enjoyed it!
Such a great review Julie. I have this on my TBR and really want to get to it soon. I also love the idea of falling in love over a manuscript. It sounds like Savannah is up against a lot, so it is great that she is strong enough to be positive. I am moving it up to the top of that mountain right now.
I think you’ll like it, Carla! It’s a good one.