Love Where You Work

by Anna Pulley

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I wanted to like this book. It definitely had potential and some interesting elements. As a whole though, I don’t feel like any of it really blended well together. None of the situations felt very believable and the characters weren’t well developed. They all mostly just felt awkward and I didn’t get attached to them or their difficulties.

All My Thoughts

May contain spoilers.

I really tried to enjoy this book, but it just sort of fell flat for me. My main issue was the fact that I just did not connect with the characters. I didn’t enjoy them and just couldn’t find myself investing in their lives. Clare was a bit more developed than Julia, but I feel like she was written with a bit too much of a flawed concept. She came off far too self-deprecating, especially early in the book. I understood she had a lot to overcome, but I didn’t connect with her enough to want to see those changes. Julia wasn’t any better for me. I felt like she had a bit less development. Both of these characters would act out of character at times, which could have been seen as character development, but didn’t seem to progress that person beyond that particular moment.

The story also just didn’t feel believable. There were too many times I just didn’t feel certain situations would happen, or certain characters wouldn’t act the way they did. I thought the whole concept of the company’s HR basically being forced to use the dating app system the company she works for made was just off-putting. It felt awkward and I couldn’t stop thinking about how uncomfortable this all seems, especially since part of the reason she was very forcefully asked was that she was a queer woman. The attraction between the two of them didn’t have any build-up either. The fact that it was instant and acted upon so quickly didn’t really work and the intimate moments were awkward. The drama that kept accumulating felt a bit unnecessary too. Clare’s anxiety/eczema, the workplace issues, Julia sabotaging Clare as she went on bogus dates for work, the blackmail about their relationship. There was a lot and too much of it just made it feel like it was meant to lengthen the story in a way it didn’t need.

Overall

This book had so much potential. The parts were there but they just didn’t fit well.