About the Book

Dear Reader,

My name is Isabelle Louisa Edgewood—Izzy, for short. I live by blue-tinted mountains, where I find contentment in fresh air and books. Oh, and coffee and tea, of course. And occasionally in being accosted by the love of my family. (You’ll understand my verb choice in the phrase later.) I dream of opening my own bookstore, but my life, particularly my romantic history, has not been the stuff of fairy tales. Which is probably why my pregnant, misled, matchmaking cousin—who, really, is more like my sister—signed me up for an online dating community.

The trouble is . . . it worked. I’ve met my book-quoting Mr. Right, and our correspondence has been almost too good to be true. But Brodie lives across an ocean. And just the other day, a perfectly nice author and professor named Eli came into the library where I work and asked me out for a coffee. I feel a rom-com movie with a foreboding disaster nipping at my heels.

But I’ve played it safe for a long time. Maybe it’s time for me to be as brave as my favorite literary heroines. Maybe it’s time to take the adventures from the page to real life. Wish me luck.

Authentically,

Izzy

• Witty, hilarious, and heartwarming contemporary romance about book lovers
• A sweet, kisses-only romance
• An epistolary novel written mostly in emails and texts
• Stand-alone novel
• Book length: approximately 105,000 words
• Includes discussion questions for book clubs

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In My Opinion

Yes, I am behind the times with some of my reading, so I have made it a goal in 2023 to read one book each month that is on my tbr from last year or longer. This issue is simple: there is not enough time in the day/week/month/year for me to get to all the books I want to read. Including Pepper Basham’s 2022 epistolary novel, Authentically, Izzy.

Let me start by saying there is one thing I found a little out of touch with today’s culture (and the age of her characters) in the book and that was how often Izzy and her cousins emailed each other. With apps, texts, and social media, I think the main source of communication (other than face-to-face interactions) take place through those over email. But, those types messages are short and Izzy would never be able to communicate her heart and process through anything other than email. Also, my generation (Gen-X) does use email, so I enjoyed the exchanges.

This book had some laughable moments and some great exchanges between Izzy and her cousins as well as Izzy and Brodie. And I absolutely loved that Brodie and Izzy got to know each other as friends through their correspondence before they ever met each other. And when they do finally meet, it is worth the journey to get there because of the foundation they’ve built sharing themselves with each other.

I find it true that I am often willing to share more when writing to someone than I am in an in-person conversation. That’s partly due to the back and forth that happens naturally and the fact I don’t want to dominate the time, but also because sometimes it’s easier to open up when I am alone only facing a computer screen. Basham brought this out beautifully in Izzy’s story. And I am elated that Penelope and Luke (Izzy’s cousins) have their own stories coming.

Disclosure statement: I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.