Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren

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Love and Other Words Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (4/5 Stars)

When beautiful writing carries a weaker plot… but still makes you feel things.

⚠️ Content / Trigger Warnings

  • Explicit sex scenes

  • Brief discussions of drug addiction

  • Reference to sexual assault

  • Grief and parental death

🚨 Spoiler Warning

This review includes a FULL plot summary and ending spoilers. Proceed with caution (and emotional preparedness).

Why I Picked Up Love and Other Words

Let’s get this out of the way first: I love Christina Lauren. Truly. Deeply. Devotedly.
(And yes, I know Christina Lauren is the pen name for Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings—two brilliant humans.)

That said… out of all the Christina Lauren books I’ve read, this storyline is one of the weaker ones for me. 😬
Still good? Absolutely.
Flawless? Not quite.

The Big Issue: Miscommunication, My Old Enemy

If you and I are bookish friends, you already know this about me:
I. Do. Not. Love. The miscommunication trope—especially when it drags on for years.

This book hinges on a misunderstanding that could have been resolved with:

  • one honest conversation

  • one returned phone call

  • maybe… emotional bravery?

And yet… 11 years pass. 😐

That said, I seem to be in the minority here. At the time of writing, this book has a 4.21 ⭐ rating on Goodreads, which is honestly impressive.

What Christina Lauren Does Exceptionally Well

Even when the plot didn’t fully work for me, Christina Lauren’s strengths were still on full display:

✨ Gorgeous dialogue
✨ Emotionally tender moments
✨ A soft, sweet love story
✨ Writing that feels familiar in the best and worst ways

Their books definitely have a similar “vibe,” but when it works, it really works.

Plot Summary (FULL Spoilers & Ending Included)

Structure

Love and Other Words is told through alternating chapters of “Then” and “Now,” plus a prologue and 46 chapters total.

THEN: Teenage Love & Favorite Words

Macy Sorenson loses her mother to cancer at age ten. She and her father live in Berkeley, California, but they also spend weekends at a second house in Healdsburg, where Macy meets her neighbor, Elliott.

Their friendship is built on:
📚 a shared love of books
📖 language and literature
💬 asking each other their favorite new words

Macy is emotionally guarded—especially about her mother’s death—but Elliott gently helps her open up, including gifting her Bridge to Terabithia (yes, that book 😭).

As they grow older, their friendship slowly turns romantic. Macy hesitates, afraid of ruining what they have and aware that they don’t fully know each other yet. Eventually, she agrees to be Elliott’s girlfriend, and while her father is away, they have sex for the first time, deepening their bond.

NOW: Eleven Years Later

In the present timeline:

  • Macy is a pediatric resident

  • Elliott works for a literacy nonprofit

  • They haven’t seen each other in 11 years

  • Macy is engaged

  • Elliott has a girlfriend

They unexpectedly run into each other at a coffee shop, reopening wounds neither has healed. Macy insists the past is over… until she clearly realizes it isn’t.

She invites Elliott back into her life—introducing him to her friends and fiancé—and soon comes to terms with the truth: she never stopped loving him.

Macy breaks off her engagement to Sean and accompanies Elliott to his brother’s wedding, where the emotional tension finally explodes.

The Reveal: What Happened 11 Years Ago

On New Year’s Eve, a drunk Elliott calls Macy and impulsively asks her to marry him. Macy isn’t ready to have that conversation over the phone, and Elliott—hurt and intoxicated—hangs up.

Macy drives to the party to talk to him in person and finds Elliott passed out naked, with his friend Emma lying on his chest.

Devastated, Macy leaves. The next day, while driving with her father, she’s so distraught that he focuses on comforting her and doesn’t see another car coming. Her father is killed in the crash.

Macy completely shuts down:

  • She never tells Elliott what happened

  • She never returns his calls

  • She emotionally disappears

Elliott, meanwhile, believes Macy abandoned him. He can’t bring himself to be with another woman for years and never stops loving her.

The Ending

In the present, Macy finally tells Elliott the truth. Elliott explains that he was so drunk that night he believed he was with Macy, not Emma—and he never knew about her father’s death.

They grieve together. Macy finally lets herself cry.
They forgive each other.
They heal. ❤️

In the final chapter, Elliott suggests they move in together and asks Macy her favorite word.

Her answer?

“You.” 🥹

Final Thoughts

Despite my frustration with the plot, I can’t deny this:

💔 The emotional beats landed
📖 The writing was beautiful
💞 Teenage Macy and Elliott melted my cold little heart

So while the plot didn’t carry the book, the characters and dialogue did.

⭐ Final Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
And yes—that’s still very high by my standards.

If You Liked Love and Other Words, Try These Next

📚 Every Summer After by Carley Fortune
📚 People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
📚 One Day by David Nicholls
📚 The Light We Lost by Jill Santopolo
📚 Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

💬 Have you read this one? Did the miscommunication trope bother you—or did you eat it up emotionally?
Let me know, because I’m genuinely curious 👀📖

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