Attachments

by Rainbow Rowell

Rebecca Lowman (Narrator)

A heartwarming and hilarious romantic debut about falling in love from afar.

It's 1999 and for the staff of one newspaper office, the internet is still a novelty. By day, two young women, Beth and Jennifer, spend their hours emailing each other, discussing in hilarious detail every aspect of their lives, from love troubles to family dramas. And by night, Lincoln, a shy, lonely IT guy spends his hours reading every exchange.

At first their emails offer a welcome diversion, but as Lincoln unwittingly becomes drawn into their lives, the more he reads, the more he finds himself falling for one of them. By the time Lincoln realizes just how head-over-heels he really is, it's way too late to introduce himself. What would he say to her? 'Hi, I'm the guy who reads your e-mails - and also, I think I love you'.

After a series of close encounters, Lincoln decides it's time to muster the courage to follow his heart, and find out whether there really is such a thing as love before first-sight.

• ISBN10: 1409120538
• ISBN13: 9781409120537
• Publish Date: 2 February 2012 (first published 1 April 2011)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 5 March 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Orion Publishing Co
• Imprint: Orion (an Imprint of The Orion Publishing Group Ltd )
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[Chelsea]

Quick Thoughts

1. My favourite Rainbow Rowell book. I actually enjoyed this one.
2. The situation was different and I liked that.
3. No typical romancy stuff here.
4. I wanted more. We didn't actually see much of the characters actually together. I hate that.

[Sam@WLABB]

I love you, Rainbow, you can do no wrong. Always creating interesting and captivating characters who are imperfect and real. Always giving us the romance without the sap and toothache. Always making me weepy and giving me the giggles, but leaving me with a smile and wanting more at the end.

[leahrosereads]

I really don't have words. This was just a magnificent book. I loved every bit of it, and I definitely prefer Rainbow Rowell's storytelling in this novel over the other two books I've read of hers.

Lincoln was adorably awkward, and I just thought it was great that both he and Beth were stalking each other. Maybe that shouldn't be cute, but it was.

Just excellent.

[Jo]

Originally posted on Once Upon a Bookcase.

I loved Eleanor and Park so, so much, I knew, even before I finished it, that I would read every book written by Rainbow Rowell from that point on. Attachments, Rowell's first book, was next, and although it's adult romance and not something I normally read, I just had to. And... wow. Simply amazing! I would normally give a summary of what a book is about, but the blurb does a pretty good job, so I'll just jump right into it. Attachments is such a fantastic book! It's funny and heart-warming, and just a beautiful, beautiful read.

Attachments is set in a newspaper office in 1999, Beth is a movie critic and Lincoln works in IT.. As well as reading emails for rule-breaking, Lincoln is also helping out preparing everything in case the Millennium Bug causes all computers to die. I studied Journalism at uni, my Dad works in IT and had to deal deal with the Y2K stuff himself. So I got this book. Despite everything being explained, I knew what a headache Y2K IT work was, and I know what a copy-editor, for example, is. Simply because I knew what I was reading about made this book so much more credible to me. However, no-one should be put off by the idea of journalistic terms or talk of computer work - none of it is all that heavy, and through the story, you find out what everything means. And none of it is the real focus of the story. The focus is Lincoln, Beth and Jennifer.

Attachments follows the life of Lincoln, a shy, socially awkward 28-year-old who hasn't had a girlfriend since he was dumped by his high school girlfriend at 19. He's never really got over the heartbreak, and dealt with it by continually going back to college, for another degree, another masters. Working in IT at The Courier is his first job out of school, and has moved back home to his mother's - as he was always living in dorms before. His older sister Eve is constantly on at him to move out and get himself a proper life; living at home with your mum, sleeping all day and working all night is not a life. In some ways, he agrees. Lincoln doesn't really know too many people any more, and is a little bored with his life. Reading the emails between Jennifer and Beth are a distraction from spending hours behind a desk with no real work to do, and only his thoughts.

We do not follow Jennifer and Beth. We read their emails along with Lincoln. Almost each alternate chapter is an email exchange between the two women. They'll be talking about their colleagues, or their work, generally making each other giggle, or they'll talk about more personal things; Jennifer's fears about pregnancy, Beth's relationship troubles, and feeling like she's behind everyone else her age. The two women are so fantastic; their personalities really shine through their emails; they're both incredible funny, especially Beth, and both have insecurities. They confide in each other, and as much as you want their chapters to come up to find out what's happening regarding something or other, you can't help but feel uncomfortable. Some of these things are real personal, and I felt like I was invading their privacy right along with Lincoln. And yet... it was almost like favourite characters on a soap, I couldn't wait for the next installment, and would have to remind myself that these women, within the context of the story, are real people, it's not something someone made it, it's their lives. And we - Lincoln and I - are snooping.

The changes that come over Lincoln, though, when he discovers that the new guy at work Beth has nicknamed "My Cute Guy" is actually him is so damn adorable. In some ways, Lincoln is still like a teenager; it's been so long since he's been with one, and to find someone finds him attractive - that all those emails about My Cute Guy were actually talking about him - he can't believe it. He has already started falling for Beth through her words - her heart, her humour, her honesty and sincerety - and to discover that she has somehow seen him without him realising, and actually fancies him. Well. It's enough to send his heads to the clouds. I am undecided as to whether I'm a little bit in love with Lincoln, or want to adopt him.

Attachments is such a sweet, beautiful love story! It really is amazing! I personally would have preferred a few more pages at the end, to see more of what happened once they had finally met properly, but it's still such an adorable story! I will most definitely be continuing to read whatever Rowell writes - YA or adult, those books will be mine!

[Rowena]

A great, great read. So glad that I finally picked it up.

[Ashley]

Nose Graze — Young Adult book reviews

OH MY GOD, YOU GUYS!!! Attachments was such an amazing surprise, and I adored it! I'll admit.. when I first read the synopsis, my thought was, "That sounds... weird... and a bit creepy." I wasn't going to read it. Then I read Fangirl (which I didn't even love) and when I finished it I bought Attachments straight through my Kindle app on my phone right then and there on a total whim. Afterwards I was even kind of like, "Why did I just do that?" But it happened, and then I read the book.

I guess I'll start by saying that I could totally relate to Attachments in so many unexpected ways. First, I related to the romance because I met my boyfriend online. In Attachments Lincoln falls in love with Beth before he even meets her, just by reading her emails. Well I fell in love with my boyfriend before I even met him in person. We just spoke online and I completely fell for his personality through there. So although the situations aren't identical, there are some serious overlaps and it was awesome. I got it. I completely understood why you could fall for someone based on personality alone, without spending a real second with them.

But on top of that, I even found myself relating to Lincoln as a person, which surprised me a bit because he's a guy and I don't usually connect to male characters that well. But I really saw myself in Lincoln. He's in his late 20s but he's kind of struggling with where he fits in in life. He doesn't know what he wants as a career, he's worried that he's just a zombie walking through life but not really living it, he's a bit awkward, and he's living at home with his mom. Now I'm not really any of those things, but I still really felt like I could see myself in Lincoln. I think it's largely the job thing. Lately I have been thinking, What do I want to do with my life? so when Lincoln had those thoughts, I totally understood them.

I almost feel bad for this, but I really enjoyed watching Lincoln dig himself into a deeper and deeper hole with Beth. Once he started reading her emails for more than just his job, he crossed a line. After that point, how could he possibly meet her for real without telling her that? But how could he tell her that without freaking her out? And he just kept digging a deeper and deeper hole for himself. It was kind of sad and entertaining at the same time. I just wanted to hug Lincoln because he was such a nice guy and I just wanted everything to work out for him!

And then there's Jennifer and Beth. I loved them both! Their back and forth emails were so much fun to read!! They were sarcastic, hilarious, pathetic, sad, happy... all of it! Their stories felt so genuine—like they were straight out of someone's real life. They made reading this book so quick and easy, because I just wanted more of their hilarious commentary and daily life worries.

Above all, Attachments just made me so happy. It made me love reading again (not enjoying the last few books I've started put me in a bit of a slump), and it just made me feel like everything in life will work out. This book left me in such a great mood and my whole experience reading it was just overwhelmingly positive. I always had a smile on my face or was laughing out loud. This might even be one of my new all time favourites! Also, it totally has me wanting to read more adult books...

[bumblingbookworm]

This review was originally posted on The Bumbling Bookworm

I have nothing but love for Attachments, it was such an enjoyable read and is easily among my favourite books I've read. It was quirky and sweet, yet serious when it needed to be.

Taking place in 1999 at the turn of the century, the Y2K fear was rampant. Enter Lincoln, the new IT guy at the company in question, whose job it is to make sure the company emerges from the crisis unscathed. Part of his responsibilities include reading flagged emails and sending warnings to the authors in question, and it's not a duty he enjoys. Enter Beth and Jennifer, and Lincoln's work suddenly becomes much more interesting.

Check out the rest of my review here!

[Leah]

Beth and Jennifer know their company monitors their office e-mail. But the women still spend all day sending each other messages, gossiping about their coworkers at the newspaper and baring their personal lives like an open book. Jennifer tells Beth everything she can’t seem to tell her husband about her anxieties over starting a family. And Beth tells Jennifer everything, period. When Lincoln applied to be an Internet security officer, he hardly imagined he’d be sifting through other people’s inboxes like some sort of electronic Peeping Tom. Lincoln is supposed to turn people in for misusing company e-mail, but he can’t quite bring himself to crack down on Beth and Jennifer. He can’t help but be entertained — and captivated — by their stories. By the time Lincoln realizes he’s falling for Beth, it’s way too late for him to ever introduce himself. What would he say to her? “Hi, I’m the guy who reads your e-mail, and also, I love you”? After a series of close encounters and missed connections, Lincoln decides it’s time to muster the courage to follow his heart . . . even if he can’t see exactly where it’s leading him.

Attachments first came to my attention when the book deal for Rainbow was posted on the BookSeller. I’m not going to lie, the book sounded amazing, and at the time I was gutted we had to wait so long to read it! Fast forward two years and the book has finally been released! As well as loving the sound of the book itself, it also has one of the best covers ever. It’s bright pink, with greens and blues and there’s the silhouette of two people who are positioned so there’s a love heart between them. It looks amazing, it reminds me of the cover for One Day by David Nicholls and it’s just such a clever design. I was really excited to read the book when it arrived, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Attachments really is a special novel. It took me three days to finish, but at no point did I ever really want to put the book down. It’s a very addictive novel and I loved the fact that it was written both in email format and as a story too. You have Jennifer and Beth who email each other constantly and then you have Lincoln’s story running alongside it as it’s him who is reading all of their emails. I thought it was such a clever way of presenting the novel, kudos to Rainbow for doing it like that. It’s such an easy and delightful read that it seems as if it’s gone in a flash. Seriously, I feel kind of sad now that I’ve finished it because I was just so taken in with Lincoln, Jennifer and Beth.

What I loved best about the book was the setting. It’s set in a small American state, in 1999 right before the Y2k explosion and it was like a flashback. I was only nine when the world was panicking about all of the Y2k stuff but I remember it easily – who doesn’t? There was huge panic about the world ending and computers crashing and everything and Attachments brings all of that panic and excitement of a new Millennium back brilliantly. It’s a totally retro novel, and looking back it does seem embarrassing how crazy the world got over the Y2k bug but at the time it was like huge and Rainbow has managed to encapsulate that time brilliantly. Everybody who reads this book will be nodding their head at the panic of the newsroom, and then the disappointment when, actually, 2000 came in with little incident!

I must admit, when I heard Lincoln still lived with his mother, at home, my initial thought was “OMG what a loser” but I actually feel bad about that now because Lincoln is one of the sweetest characters you will ever meet. I mean, I love him. He’s like a proper gentle giant and I was wrong to judge him for living with his mother. I mean, Lincoln isn’t the coolest person you’ll ever meet – he struggles to meet new people, he spends his time playing Dungeons & Dragons but he’s too sweet to think of as a geek or as a nerd. He liked his life as it is, and I respected him for that. I absolutely loved Jennifer and Beth, too. We only know them via the emails they send to each other but they’re so honest and open that it’s as if you really know them. Both Beth and Jennifer were brilliant, I loved their friendship and I loved getting to know them. Another character who really made me smile was Doris, she works at the paper refreshing the vending machines and she and Lincoln end up having dinner together most nights and I loved her. All of the characters made me happy.

I loved Attachments. Honestly, it may have taken me three days to finish but I loved every page. I liked the story, despite the potential creepy connotations of Lincoln reading somebody else’s email, I loved the characters and I just loved the whole romantic notion to it. That’s right, I found it romantic that Lincoln fell in love with Beth just by reading her emails. I mean, really, isn’t that just the sweetest thing ever? The 90s references were absolutely ace and the paranoia over Y2k made me smile and remember it all as if it were yesterday. Attachments is one of the freshest, wittiest books I’ve read. I mean what’s not to love? It is the perfect Chick Lit novel with the most romantic love story probably ever. Rainbow Rowell is a genius, seriously. Rainbow has tapped into the zeitgeist of the 90s and has brought up a story that many people will be able to relate to, with characters that it’s so easy to root for. I can’t wait for Rainbow’s next novel, if her second novel is even half as good as Attachments then she has the potential to become huge in the world of Chick Lit!