Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

Attachments is the first adult novel written by Rainbow Rowell that I’ve read.  But it has the same playful yet serious spirit that I’ve come to love from her other novels.

It’s 1999 and Lincoln is living back at home with his mother in Nebraska.  He’s about 28 and has gotten a job at the local newspaper doing internet security working overnight hours. He hates his job and is wicked smart, but something happened in the recent past that has him doubting his self worth. Email is still a new thing and his main task is to read any emails that are flagged with inappropriate content and make sure it doesn’t happen again.

There’s not a ton of emails that get flagged, but there are a couple of guilty culprits that are always getting flagged: Beth and Jennifer. The problem is that Lincoln really enjoys reading their emails because they’re funny, smart, and so kind to each other. Before long, Lincoln finds that he’s falling for Beth, who has a rockstar boyfriend and feels totally out of his league.

Even with his strange hours, he slowly starts to befriend others at the newspaper.  The copyeditors, especially, given their strange hours.  As much as he tries, he just can’t stop reading emails from Beth and Jennifer, and he falls harder and harder for Beth.  He wants to talk to Beth so badly, but he can’t get past the thought that he’s been the creeper reading their emails and feels as though it’s unforgivable.

There are some really unforgettable and awesome characters in this book.  I literally laughed out loud in multiple places and there were times when I was wiping away tears. Not to mention, it was fun pretending like I worked in a newsroom for a little while! Oh, this was such a fun little summer read.  I just adore Rainbow Rowell!