It’s 1999 and Lincoln has just started a swing job as an “internet security officer” for an Iowa newspaper. Is he prepping for the Y2K changeover? Kind of. Mostly, he’s reading other employees’ emails.
Beth, the movie reviewer, and Jennifer, a copy-editor, know that they’re not supposed to use their work email for personal conversations, but when their messages get flagged for review Lincoln can’t bear to warn them. It’s not long before their witty banter and stories become his favorite part of the day.
After spending most of his 20s earning one degree after another, Lincoln is living back home with his mother. Still struggling with a break-up nine years in his past and unsure of his next move, Lincoln feels stuck. Everyone has an opinion of what he should do next – his mother, his Dungeon & Dragons group, his sister, even Doris, the old lady he’s begun sharing his lunch with. But as he struggles to get un-stuck, only one thing is clear: he is, improbably, falling for Beth. The problem? How could he possibly tell her?
I smiled the entire way through this book. Though, as with the best romantic comedies, you go through the whole story waiting for the big, heart-warming pay-off, the rest of the novel is just as good as that final moment. Like Lincoln, you get to know Beth and Jennifer only through their emails, which are funny and honest and, at times, heartbreaking. It’s easy to understand how Lincoln is drawn to their friendship. And Lincoln himself is a great character to root for – clever, kind, a little bit awkward, and completely aware of the moral ambiguities of the situation he’s gotten himself into.
If I were to describe Attachments in one word it would be "Cute." Cute in the best way; it is utterly relatable and never too sweet. It’s easily my favorite book I’ve read this year.