Attachments: A Novel

Remember when the internet was rather shiny and new, before it took over our phones and seemingly every aspect of our lives? Attachments is set in that brave new world of 1999, when the looming specter of Y2K had many worried that should the computers stop, so would life as we know it. Lincoln is a late twenty-something computer expert, hired to be the swing-shift internet security officer at The Courier, where instead of building firewalls he's tasked with reading every e-mail that gets flagged as "work inappropriate." When an e-mail is flagged, the sender is (supposed) to get a warning -- multiple violations leading to employment termination. But when e-mails from Beth (the film critic) and Jennifer (a copy editor) come across Lincoln's desk, he can't bring himself to turn them in for violating the newspaper's internet policy. To the lonely and lost Lincoln, their friendly, irreverent banter is a lifeline, and before he knows it he's become invested in the lives of two women he's never met, much less ever seen. The more time passes, the more Lincoln finds himself becoming invested in his unseen co-workers' lives, and falling in love with the romantically-challenged Beth. But can a relationship where two individuals have never met -- where Lincoln's work allowed him to "eavesdrop" on private conversations -- have any hope of a real-world future? I cannot believe it's taken me so long to read this book. I feel as though I can barely articulate how much I adore Rowell's sparking, sunny, warm-hearted debut. Attachments made my heart positively sing. This frothy confection of a novel is the very definition of sheer, unmitigated reading joy -- Rowell stitches together late '90s nostalgia, wonderfully real, flawed and authentic characters, and creates perhaps the most refreshing, delightful boy-meets-girl story that I've ever read. I'm not even exaggerating -- this slim little volume hits all the right notes in my view, an absolute treasure and joy to read. Rowell alternates between Beth and Jennifer's e-mails and chapters in third-person from Lincoln's point-of-view. With roughly half the novel in epistolary format, as such it is an extremely fast-paced read. I think it was a stroke of brilliance to tell Beth and Lincoln's perspectives in two different formats, though we're somewhat more limited in Beth's perspective since it is more limited by the parameters of any particular e-mail. The prose chapters weave together the gradually-forming picture Lincoln begins to make of Beth, and how he responds to the humor and raw honesty in her missives sheds as much light on his character as the carefully meted-out backstory Rowell reveals through Lincoln's home life and reminscences. Given the fact that Lincoln gets to know Beth by essentially spying on her (nevermind that his job demands the intrusion), it's all the more amazing that Rowell has succeeded in crafting one of the sweetest, most winning romances I've ever read on the page. It's so refreshing to read a contemporary romance about genuinely nice individuals, characters who became almost friends. One can argue that Attachments is predictable, but I would counter by saying that its the best kind of predictable you could hope to meet. We *know* the happy ending is coming -- it's required by the tenets of the genre -- but the charm and appeal is in how Rowell takes the reader on Lincoln and Beth's journey. The fact that these characters are so nice, so authentic, so genuine, is what kept me turning pages, cheering for their triumphs, aching for their heartbreaks. Rowell's compelling, well-drawn characters, coupled with a razor-sharp sense of humor and snappy prose transforms what could have been just another run-of-the-mill, standard boy-meets-girl story into something sparkling and memorable, a standout for its warmth and heart. I finished this book a few days ago and unlike my norm, I couldn't bring myself to review it right away. This was a story that wended its way deep into my heart, a treasure to savor. And frankly, in re-reading this review I feel like I've barely touched on the magic and charm of Attachments. I adored this book. From the opening e-mail to its swoon-worthy conclusion, this novel captivated my imagination as I lost myself in Rowell's winningly retro debut. Her charming novel is a treasure sure to speak to any romantic's heart, running the emotional gamut from heart-wrenching to laugh-out-loud funny (I literally couldn't stop smiling the entire time I read this book). Attachments is a love letter to dreamers, a joy-filled world I loved losing myself in and can guarantee I'll revisit at the earliest opportunity. This one's a keeper. :)

Lincoln is a guy who has had a rough time in the world of love. So he takes a job to help with internet security. This job happens to be at night, oh, and did I mention, he has to read the emails of those in the office that come back flagged. He is supposed to give them warnings, but...there is 2 girls that he just can't seem to warn. As he continues to read their emails, he finds out, he might be falling for someone that he has never even met.... This is such a cute story. I flew through it. As I am sick at home with strep throat, I had to do something to pass my time. I have been devouring books. I have always wanted to read something by Rainbow Rowell. I have heard so much about her that I just had to. I own both Attachments as well as Eleanor and Park. As Eleanor and Park sounds really cute, I had more of a pull towards Attachments. I decided that it would be my first book by her to read. I devoured the whole book in only a day. I had to keep reading. This book goes between following Lincoln's life as well as following the lives of Jennifer and Beth through their emails. You don't follow the girls life outside of the emails that are put into the story. You still learn so much about them since they were best friends. They put some pretty personal stuff in their emails not realizing that their emails are flagged most of the time. Lincoln, besides that fact that I hate his name, seems so wonderful. He is portrayed as a bigger guy, tall, little bit of a belly, but just naturally big. Not my type exactly, but I still loved him as a person. He is such a big teddy bear. He has problems with being social, but he tries so hard to change that, as well as a lot of other things in his life. His self-esteem is so low that it causes him to chicken out a lot, but it just makes you love him more. You root for him throughout the entire story. He deserves his happily ever after. Beth, seems to have the perfect life. The hot boyfriend, a place of her own, a great best friend, and a good job where she gets to watch movies all the time. But there is so much more that she wants. She has settled for so long. It is only a matter of time till anyone that isn't satisfied with their life breaks out of the shell and tries to fix it all. This book is set in so many different places, but it is mainly at the office where Lincoln is reading the emails. It does go between him hanging out with his friends though as well as through flashbacks of his life when he was with his ex-girlfriend. There is so much personal growth within the story. It is nice to have a realistic story with real struggles throughout the book. In life anymore, most of us sit on computers. We are very anti-social and just afraid of going out and doing anything to fix our lives. So the fact that you can fall in love with someone through reading emails is very possible, and I am sure it happens all the time. Some of my best friends I have met through blogging and have never met them in person. To me that means nothing, I know them just as much through emails, phone calls, and texting as I am sure I would in real life. I feel like it is that way with learning to find love online as well. It can come to you in all sorts of ways. Whether it is through the internet or just a casual glance when at the office or out on the street. It can happen anytime and anywhere. I also connected with all the characters because they are close to my age. Most of them are 28. I am 25, so I am not quite there, but I still deal with the same things. Wanting marriage, wanting to start a family, not sure if I am ready for any of that. Wondering if I am doing the right thing in my life. If I could get more somewhere else. I think it is something all of us go through when we get to our mid to late 20s. I love books that deal with teens and stuff, but I also love to read books with characters that are closer to my age. I tend to connect a little more that way. When I read YA books, I tend to do more of a flashback of my life, than of my life right now. I loved this book. It flip flops between the emails and Lincoln's life, but it does it in a way that it flows well. Sometimes weeks go by, sometimes just a few hours. You get sucked into the life of Lincoln and wish him the best throughout the pages. I can definitely see why everyone likes this author so much. her writing flows so well and it is easy to picture all of it happen. She gives more realistic stories. I think anyone out there who loves romance, or books that deal with getting older life struggles, this is the book for you. There is so much in the story that captivates you and holds you til the very end.

I'm not going to lie: it is not my favorite book of Rainbow Rowell, but it's definitley a great book. It has got all the great things that make her a great writer and that she was able to improve in her next novels. (1) Everything is real, from the plot to the places, from the characters to the feelings. (2) There is always bad and good parts, there is a choice; nothing is given or preexistent. (3)(because of 2) There is a way, a fight, a course - a learning. (4) There is a LOT of fun, of enchantment - it makes you believe the characters and the scenes are real, and it makes you want to be there. I'm no expert in books, but I know what I feel - and I never felt anything in reading like I do with Rainbow Rowell.

Rainbow Rowell is so so so good at capturing the feel of a decade (if I was smarter I'd say zeitgeist or something). The references to 90's culture and that weird, getting used to internet feeling, stir up this crisp recollection of those years, like you've been thrown into a frozen moment from your own memory. The characters are charming, endearing even. You find yourself falling for Beth just as Lincoln does. It's a real writers skill to enable you to know and like a character through emails alone, with no context, no internal thoughts, just type written dialogue. It's also impressive how you quickly learn to distinguish between the two email writers from their 'voices' alone, their personalities are wonderfully captured. I guess that sums up why I love this book so much, not just the engaging storyline or the romantic elements. It's the way that the moment and the people in that moment are completely believable, like they've been captured and frozen on the page. Wonderfully written, lovely book, fantastic author. Highly recommended.

I just wanted to take a peek at Friday Night...well got sucked in and finished it two days later. The book is funny, touching full of perky cute characters and a time where people started to get used more and more to cell phones and pc‘s. There were chapters I teared up - rough patches of life to get trough, sad endings, new beginnings(?!) and what I totally enjoyed also was that the protagonists are closer to their thirties rather than early twenties. There was an immediate connection. A romantic comedy and a bit of cheesy cuteness overload I absolutely recommend!

Me encantó este y todos los libros de rainbow rowell, tiene una manera de escribir muy buena. Muy fácil de leer.

This was such a simple and nicely written story. I love the way Rainbow writes her characters with such detail and love. And I always love the way she ends her stories. This was a joy to read and I was rooting so hard for Lincoln to overcome all the troubles in his life because I'm currently at a job I hate and want to quit it oh so very much because I'm surrounded by the wrong kind of people who I don't even interact with. So I might have felt this book a little strongly. Lincoln and Beth were likeable characters. Lincoln's circle of friends turned out to be nice and supportive. Lincoln's mom was very nicely written and I liked her interactions with Lincoln. And how reading Beth and Jennifer's conversation influenced Lincoln's thinking and daily life. "Do you find Tom Cruise attractive?" came out of nowhere and had me laughing so badly :D Rainbow writes all her characters with so much emotion and love that you can't help but root for them. This was my 4th book by her and I was reminded a lot as to why she is such a good writer. This book was set around the 2000's when the Y2K was going to happen and people made a big deal about it. So if you know anything about that, then it'll be fine. There weren't a lot of other references to pop culture to make you feel out of place. Overall, this was a short, calming read that can be easily read in a short span of time (i.e., binge-read in a day :) ).