REVIEW: Never Over by Clare Gilmore

Never Over by Clare Gilmore: As a rising songwriter on the edge of her first big break, Paige thought she had it all figured out. Armed with perfectly curated control and a drive to go after her dreams there was nothing standing in her way… well except feeling real heartbreak it would seem. All it took to topple her perfect plan was an offhand comment by a music exec, saying her songs lack any real emotion. Now on a mission to prove ever one wrong and show that her music is full of emotion, Paige enlists the help of her college ex, Liam. Well to be fair she didn’t exactly expect him to agree to her wacky plan; to date again just long enough for him to break her heart so that she can tap into the emotion her songs seem to be missing. However the one thing Paige did not take into account was for old feelings to come back roaring along with memories of everything that went wrong the first time. Now between late-night lyrics, stolen glances and a tour full of unfinished business, Paige has to decide what she’s really willing to risk for love and whether some endings are meant to start again.

Never Over was just perfection! This was the kind of book that made it impossible to put down with out guiltily reading one more chapter even when it was well past my bedtime. With its mix of heartache, humour and vulnerability this book reminded me why the “what if we tried again?” trope will never stop hitting in my books. Gilmore does a brilliant job in crafting to incredibly loveable main characters that just felt relatable and so easy to root on as they navigated their past feelings and the new ones forming.

I found myself really liking Paige, we can see right from the get go that she is serious about her passion for music, even if that meant having to put her heart on the line. I really enjoyed getting to see her lower her walls and allow herself to be vulnerable. I think the thing I loved the most was getting to the part where she is finally seen for simply being herself. Now for our charming hero, Liam. For all his outward charm and easy going nature Liam to is struggling to find his footing. As he begins to open up we see a man weighed down by regret and the sense that he failed the people he loved. The thing I loved about Liam was not that he needed to redeem himself but rather re-find his purpose.

I loved the build up between these two, it was almost as if they were both two halves of an unfinished song finally coming together. Their chemistry hums under every scene, equal parts longing and restraint as they relearn how to speak the same emotional language, allow each other to be seen without limitations or expectations. I loved the fact that there was no rush in their build up, they don’t immediately forgive each other, instead they sit in the discomfort, peel back old wounds and find new tenderness in the process.

I loved getting to follow Paige and Liam as they rewrote their love song in this tender and sweet second chance love story. A definite must read if you are looking for a cute story that has a lot of heart.
 

Book Info:

Publication: October 28, 2025 | St. Martin’s Griffin |

Twenty-five-year-old Paige Lancaster is one contract away from earning a living doing her favorite thing in the world: writing songs. But when a music industry professional suggests she might be holding back with her lyrics to lessen the heartbreak of an old flame, Paige doubts if her music is ready to be heard.

In a rare, impulsive move, Paige contacts Liam Bishop after four years of no contact to ask him for a small favor: date her, and then re-break her heart, all so she can remember what those big, songworthy emotions felt like. And since Liam is the one who first set Paige on this career path, he hesitantly agrees.

Across three months of Liam’s summer work travel, the exes are forced to share hotel beds, rehash the past, and date in the present, all while navigating the building attraction between them they both swore was the one line of their agreement they wouldn’t cross.

But when it becomes near impossible not to act on their rippling chemistry, and as ever intensifying feelings blur the lines of what’s actually real and what’s driven by the music, Paige and Liam will both have to decide what’s more important: art for the sake of it, or love over everything.