The Fine Print | By Lauren Asher

My thoughts

Narrative and Plot

The Fine Print is a hate to love romance told from both Rowan and Zahra’s perspective. The pacing of the book was quite fast in the beginning, but it felt stagnant in the middle. However, the last two chapters wrapped it all up quite quickly without making it a lengthy book.

Rowan is a rich man and his tone has that arrogance, which makes it a bit difficult for you to like him while Zahra’s sunshine attitude is easier to get behind.

Characters and Conflicts

Writing a workplace romance in these days is a trickier subject. It cannot at any point feel coerced. And while the story made it quite clear that the attraction was equal on both sides, there was very little communication to convey that. Rowan’s actions at the beginning won’t be that cute if you flipped the genre and viewed it as a thriller. It is borderline obsessive stalking. It reminded me of those insta reels which are captioned as “background score is everything” and then portray a 90s hero as a toxic stalker with ominous music.

The story acknowledges that his actions were wrong and needed work. But if Rowan was not so handsome and rich, would he be given a second chance?

By the end he does have a character arc and you cannot deny the chemistry at that point. However, the rocky start cannot be ignored at any rate. Also, Zahra is too trusting and open-minded. I did not see much of a character arc for her compared to Rowan. Be it Brady or Rowan, she relied on someone else’s confirmation to believe in herself. Zahra could have used at least one scene where she believed in herself without any external motivation.

Conclusion

Overall, The Fine Print was a one time romance read for me. If you can turn your gaze away from the slightly problematic start of the romance, you might actually end up enjoying this one.

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