Found it quite hard to believe that a teenage girl would instantly be able to pick up her grandmother's writing style and write a bestselling novel, only to still fantasise about her school crush.

I loveeeed the writing! Tilly was such an interesting character and the romance was so sweet. Also, the library scene!! this was super cute and I just loved the pace- it wasn't too slow and made me feel all the emotions!

This is a quick light read to devour in one or two sittings when you're snuggled in a cosy spot and wanting easy entertainment. The story is predictable, but I ended up rooting for the characters and enjoying the meet-cute. Not particularly memorable, but I enjoyed the few hours I spent lost in the book.

I had such high hopes for this story, it sounded fun and i thought it was going to be a perfect YA read. I enjoyed the start but then I felt the story took too long to get to the actual action of the narrative and I found myself just not as interested half way through unfortunately. I think the story had a lot of potential though and maybe someone who enjoys a slower paced book will enjoy it.

A very sweet and fluffy story, but unfortunately around 30% it got a little too much for me and I DNF'd at 35%

I feel like maybe I was the wrong audience for this. It felt kind of childish, and the protagonist, Tilly, was irritating. I just didn't like a lot of the messages this book sent out. It clashed with me.

The characters are truly what drives this story. Each one is uniquely well-developed, I'm writing this review a while after finishing to had to look up the names but once I did it all came flooding back and I remembered them.

I especially loved the relationship between Tilly and her gran. I felt sad for Beatrix and what was happening to her although the morals around her and Tilly's writing relationship were a bit shady.

There were also a couple of plot points that were a bit too predictable which knocked off a star. Otherwise highly enjoyable.

This story has one of the most unique, interesting plots that I have ever found in a young adult novel and it immediately sucked me in with its enticing, interesting premise. What bookworm doesn't want to read about a girl writing for a hugely popular author (let alone a member of the family)?! The plot centres around a lot of different issues from high school drama to how to make appropriate mood boards to help you write a story. As the novel progresses, we see our lovely main character create plots, jot down ideas, research, make mood boards - it's a lot of fun to read and it is inherently inspiring. I found myself feeling extremely inspired whilst reading this one and I felt the need to write something after this; to the point wherein I felt inspired enough to consider writing my own novel, which definitely speaks for the quality of the novels crafting. I think Katy Cannon really nailed writing a character who loves writing and who is working on a novel.

This is a novel that I would recommend going into semi-blind, because I think the synopsis gives away a lot of the story and I think it would be extremely exciting to read without knowing the synopsis and having only the title. I think that would've heightened my excitement even further; but apart from that I can't fault the book. It is extremely well written, the characters are fabulous, the issues brought up throughout are captivating and well dealt with and for me, the plot is extremely unique and gripping. It was a massive amount of fun to read!

What a sweet story and an ideal romance that explores engineered and organic feelings. I love Tilly’s relationships with the two leading men, but my favourite partnership has to be the one she shares with her grandmother.
The familiar love is what brought the whole thing together for me and actually has me hoping there may be a sequel.

This is a nice read.

Tilly Frost is the granddaughter of a famous romance novelist who she has been assisting to write her books since she was a kid and now her grandmother wants her to begin her own story while having no experience of love at all! Entertaining reading ensues.

I liked the characters, I feel like they could have been a bit more fleshed out in their moments, however how they all react to one another is really good. Particularly I found Tilly’s family who have a nice dynamic in the scenes they appear of this book - it feels right, it feels like a family and I like that in this book especially as it’s so rare to see the grandmother/granddaughter relationship in fiction, I liked the book for it.

The storyline is good, for quite a short book, this book takes a little bit of time to get started in my opinion however when it does pick up it really is good and the romance plot blossoms really well as the book goes on. I highly recommend for fans of books such a Geekerella or Fangirl.

A novel set in England? Yes please?
A love story without a particular meet cute and a fun and sarcastic antagonist? Double yes please.
This novel had everything made for a good love story and it managed to greatly succeed in creating a cute and fun reading world.

I did have some trepidation going into this novel - reading the synopsis didn't help that but as a secret romantic I was hoping for the best when I requested it and I can say I wasn't too disappointed.

The characters were fun, witty and easy to follow (three great things for love story characters) and I managed to get pulled into their lives really easily.

The plot was cute and fun and infact the entire novel managed to put me in a happy, motivating writing mood and I was able to gain so much inspiration that I wrote for several days straight after reading.

However as a writer myself, my one complaint about is the way the protagonist kept reiterating the need to live what she wants to write and I find that to be untrue as many write nothing of what they know and still find that they are successful novelists.

I would definitely recommend this novel to any romantics out there and maybe to those who dont believe in love with the hope that it might just inspire.

I love a good fluffy contemporary, and, whilst I didn’t dislike this book, I didn’t love it. It was just a bit too fluffy for me!

How To Write A Love Story started off really well, but by about 20% I was starting to get bored of all the romance and writing, unfortunately! I just found the character of Tilly to be a bit flat and was just waiting for that something more to happen. That said, it was a really easy book to get into and was a fairly quick read so I would recommend it for someone looking for something light and quick to read!

DNF @ 31%

I can't actually explain how disappointing I found this book. I loved And Then We Ran when I read it last year and was so excited to be approved for this one but oh my word it's terrible.

One of my main issues with this was the element of blatant plagiarism- Tilly was going to write a book which would be published under her grandmother's name. Now I don't know if this is because I'm in the midst of writing my dissertation so I'm a but more sensitive to the issue at the minute but it really wound me up. In the 100+ pages I read, there was only one passing comment about this made by Tilly's best friend. Obviously, this may have been discussed later on in the book but I found it incredibly frustrating that this was ignored for the first 31%

Tilly immediately annoyed me with all her talk of 'I don't want a schoolboy I want a real man'. You are 16- any 'real man' you are after would be considered a paedophile. But then obviously along comes a sexy new boy and she makes the most ridiculous comment about him being the only boy of her age that she might stand a chance of being interested in. They didn't immediately enter a relationship but I got major instalove vibes from it- which is always a killer for me.

This is only quite a small thing but here is a quote that really wound me up: "Dad always had these lovely parenting ideas, which lasted until the twins actually got involved and Dad started trying not to swear. (Finn's first word was 'Pants')". On what planet is pants a swear word? I understand that publishers and some booksellers don't always like swearing in YA but pants!? Seriously!?

Tilly also made a lot of weird comments about SFF books, she consistently said that they were irrelevant and the only books that mattered were romance stories. It rubbed me up the wrong way- especially as most decent SFF has very human elements and the vast majority also include a romance at some point. Tilly's attitude towards SFF in general and her arguments with her schoolmate Drew were inane and irritating.

Also, all the talk of not being able to write a romance scene without having lived one seemed a bit off to me. There was a constant you-can-only-write-what-you-have-experienced vibe which I didn't like at all. If people only wrote about subjects they had actually experienced, literature would be nowhere near as interesting.

From what I read, I enjoyed Tilly's relationship with her grandma. It was sweet and supportive and the only good thing about the 100 or so pages I read unfortunately.

I do think that there are lots of people who will love this book- it's light and fluffy and clearly there's going to be a cute romance at some point. Unfortunately not for me, but I will still keep an eye out on Katy Cannon because I adored And Then We Ran so much.

The book follows the story of Tilly, who is still at high school and trying to help her grandmother write her next romance novel. She decides she is struggling to write because she has never been in love, so sets out to fall for the new guy at school, but things don't go according to plan.

Tilly doesn't date the boys in her school and has long thought of herself beginning to date when she's older much to the disappointment of her grandma who's a best selling romance author.



Ahead of her finishing her novel, Tilly's grandma Bea is struck down with pneumonia and unable to finish her work, Tilly tries to help her by finishing her work using her grandma's notes on the final book in her longest series so far.



Yet she never banks on her grandma approving so much of her work and she tasks Tilly to begin writing a book but Tilly has no idea where to start and so with her school being in full Valentine's celebration mode, sets about getting involved and inspired!



With her friends Rohan and Anja supporting her choice as they know it's her passion and desire to become an author, at school her book club helps her realise more about life and the way to develop her story as she realizes that newcomer Zach provides the perfect meet cute for Tilly that sparks her off into thinking up idea's. Drew, a fantasy book lover is always around just what is Tilly about to realize about love and boys? Also just what is happening to her grandma lately too? All the changes throughout the book and the journey Tilly goes on discovering about love is like most teens go through and health worries too are relatable and despite saddening the book, there's enough to enjoy and keep it fun and upbeat!



Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!

'How to Write a Love Story' is definitely a story for writers and book lovers. As someone who enjoys writing in my spare time, I found this hugely inspiring to get my notebooks out and start cracking on with my own! Showing the troubles with writers block, inspiration and almost desperation to get the story written - and written how YOU want it - it's realistic in some ways. I very much enjoyed this story, even if the beginning and middle part of the book was very slow. I was wondering when the story would pick up, but I did eventually find myself needing to know what happens, where Tilly goes with the novel she's writing, and the happening of her famous grandmother Beatrix Frost. Romances were adorable, friendship was believable (with the great subplot that went along with it!) and family aspects, what's not to like?
Inspiring, very sweet and enjoyable characters with a storyline that's a little something different,. Slow at times and maybe a little too long, but I found it a good reading experience.

'How to Write a Love Story' is a book that will win every bookworm's heart! Tilly is a granddaughter of a famous romance writer, now she is about to write her own book but in order to do so in a successful manner she needs to gain some experience first, and well... fast! She has a perfect plan to experience her very own love story but is it possible to plan real feelings and to find a proper person to fall for? If you wondered if there's a nice fictional boyfriend to fall for, well there is! But will Tilly choose wisely and find the perfect match for her? Lovely characters, gripping plot and an eccentric grandma will keep you reading till the very last page!

I have never read a Katy Cannon book before but I think I would definitely pick up more in future. This was a cute and fun read. Any story involving writers and libraries I am down for.
The story follows Tilly who has always looked up to her Grandmothers talent for writing Romance and in recent years has slowly become more involved in the editing and creating of these books alongside Bea. Tilly is tasked with helping create the new idea for her grandmothers next book, until that turns into writing the whole thing!
Tilly realises the only way to write a romance novel, is to experience her own.

I felt this book was extremely predictable but in a good way! Like Bea's books this story has you rooting for the characters you want together whilst misdirecting you. I related a lot to Tilly in a way I can't quite put my finger on and found myself frustrated with her as if she was someone I knew in real life. I also KNEW from the moment we had met all the characters who Tilly would end up with and thought we could have got to the point a lot sooner! I would have loved more scenes together with them.

Overall a cute romance and something that was super light and easy to read. Great for this time for this year! I just wish things were faster paced and that's what really let me down with this. Will definitely be picking up more of Katy's book in future.

3/5 Stars