Love by Degree

by Debbie Macomber

Love By Degree by Debbie Macomber released on Mar 25, 1987 is available now for purchase.

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Chick Lit, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Audiobook, Harlequin Romance

188 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1987

About the author

Debbie Macomber is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and one of today’s most popular writers with more than 200 million copies of her books in print worldwide. In her novels, Macomber brings to life compelling relationships that embrace family and enduring friendships, uplifting her readers with stories of connection and hope. Macomber’s novels have spent over 1,000 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Fifteen of these novels hit the number one spot.

In 2023, Macomber’s all-new hardcover publication includes Must Love Flowers (July). In addition to fiction, Macomber has also published three bestselling cookbooks, three adult coloring books, numerous inspirational and nonfiction works, and two acclaimed children’s books.

Celebrated as “the official storyteller of Christmas”, Macomber’s annual Christmas books are beloved and six have been crafted into original Hallmark Channel movies. Macomber is also the author of the bestselling Cedar Cove Series which the Hallmark Channel chose as the basis for its first dramatic scripted television series. Debuting in 2013, Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove was a ratings favorite for three seasons.

She serves on the Guideposts National Advisory Cabinet, is a YFC National Ambassador, and is World Vision’s international spokesperson for their Knit for Kids charity initiative. A devoted grandmother, Debbie and Wayne live in Port Orchard, Washington, the town which inspired the Cedar Cove series.

Reviews

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

i read this older harlequin after seeing new debbie macomber books in the stores right now. it's definitely an 'older contemporary' in that it's very dated. i enjoyed the first couple chapters of the book quite a bit, but then i got frustrated with not having any of the hero's perspective and a heroine who was TSTL (he drove a porsche and therefore he doesn't love her? WTF!).
i also had huge problems with the fact that although the heroine's supposed to be a modern day (1987) wonder woman who can clean the downspouts, rewire outlets and bake apple pies in addition to attending class, she basically turns into an insecure doormat when the hero shows up. not to mention the fact that he has a GIRLFRIEND, actually an "almost fiance," but they both seem pretty fine with the heroine being the hero's bit on the side until he finally realizes he luurves her.
i threw this book at the wall when i finished it.
hope macomber's more recent efforts have more likeable protagonists.

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love By Degree is the 25th romance novel by popular American author, Debbie Macomber. Ellen Cunningham has gone back to college. She’s a little older than her college housemates (three young men), but by looking after them (in a purely domestic way!) her rent is affordable. But then Reed Morgan turns up. It’s his house, and he’s none too impressed by his younger brother’s enterprise in renting out the empty rooms. He’s especially annoyed about Ellen’s presence. But could that be because he’s so attracted to her? As far as Ellen’s concerned, though, Reed’s off limits: he is practically engaged to the gorgeous Danielle. Another sweet, fun romance in classic Macomber style.

[Sugar Mami · Rating 3 out of 5]

Those two heads really gave me the desire to give both of them a stick in the head at various moments in the story ... the only thing that I really loved was that she had a loving relationship while he have a relatations with Danielle ... not all women have accepted that ... everything goes ... at least he had the initiative to break his courtship ... but it's a fictional story and everything goes always ... at least he had the initiative to break his courtship ... because he would have finished with two houses ... the wife's ... that of the lover ... ufffff ... a simple and entertaining story to spend an afternoon ... I give three stars ....

[Ladyp · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up at the library on a whim and started reading it right away!
Oh my gosh why did lots of someones dislike this book so much?
This story made me smile :) I loved it and laughed out loud so much while reading it!
i love reading Debbie Macomber books, she makes my day!
This book was so funny and what is so wrong with the story being old-fashioned? Old-fashioned is still in style ladies so there!

[Garnet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read MANY of Debbie Macomber’s book, this is by far my favorite so far. The story is quite realistic and not the “are you kidding me” typical romance novel. No explicit sex scene and it still held my interest! Good use of character development for all roles.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Early book by this author .. entertaining. Less emotional and more practical, nice.

[Court · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plot-wise, I think I would honestly rate this 2.5 stars, but I rounded it up to 3 since I really liked the three guys Ellen lived with haha. Their relationships with each other were great!

I was honestly kind of disappointed with this novel as Debbie Macomber is one of my favorite authors! I always love any book of hers that I read, but this one fell flat for me.

The ending was okay though. I think I would have liked this a bit more if there wasn't the whole cheating plotline - I did not like that part of the story. Reed's girlfriend was a bit unlikable when compared to Ellen, or could have been if she had been more prominent in the novel, but even so, I don't think that's a good reason for someone to be unfaithful. Whether you're happy or not in the relationship, break up with the person before making moves on another.

The plot itself was kind of overdramatic sometimes, but it is a romance I guess. I can understand some of where Ellen was coming from, for sure, but there were some instances where I was like, what?

Overall, I didn't necessarily hate it, but I definitely didn't love it. If you were going to read Debbie Macomber, I wouldn't recommend this one to be honest. I don't think it's her best (although I know this was published years ago so she has probably just improved over time). Definitely read her latest books first!

[T'Shura Sinclair · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book.

[Meghan · Rating 2 out of 5]

dear God that's shockingly bad why are men all evil then proposing in the last chapter to your situationship/live in maid. no no no. run girl run.

[Glenda L · Rating 3 out of 5]

All of Debbie McCombers books are enjoyable ... this was a little slower than others. Easy read.

[Molly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute, fluffy short story rather than a book. A good read for a few do-nothing hours.

[Jeanne (love2cook) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute little story of 3 college boys and one older girl (Ellen) being the housemother in exchange for low rent. Then one of the boys older brother(Reed) shows up. He happens to be the real owner of the house they are all staying in. As you can imagine he none to happy with the arrangements especially Ellen. This takes place in November and December, but it seems to be a much longer period of time than 2 months. I enjoyed the story!

[Nehal · Rating 4 out of 5]

very very old fashioned. but loved her style of writing which brought a smile to my face at some antics by the college kids

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Small Town & Rural Fiction, Contemporary Women's Fiction, Contemporary Romance

[Chloe (Always Booked) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this as a part of the "Road to Love" bind up. It was cute for a 195 page story, but nothing extraordinary. I enjoyed it and thought the characters were well developed and the storyline was well paced, but the whole romance is founded and established through cheating so I just couldn't get behind it. He was cheating for a good majority of their relationship so I struggled to see him as the Mr. Perfect we were supposed to think of him. The ending was also really dramatic and something that would only happen in romance novels. I loved all the boys she lived with and thought that premise was really fun and unique. I'd recommend this if you're looking for a quick and easy romance.

SPOILERS AHEAD:
This book is about a girl named Ellen. She is an older college student living with 3 boys. She takes on a motherly role and cooks and cleans for the boys in exchange for them doing housework and pitching in financially. One of the boys, Derek, has a brother named Reed who owns the house. Reed has a job that requires a lot of travel so he's rarely around, but one day he shows up. He's not happy that his brother has rented out all the rooms in the house and he comes off as a big jerk. He's "practically engaged" to a girl named Danielle, but theres an instant attraction between him and Ellen. He and Ellen start a flirty romance and he takes her to his work Christmas party. While there she finds out that he only took her because his girlfriend was out of town. She unexpectedly shows up and Ellen leaves in tears. There's a minor break in their relationship but Ellen forgives him quickly and still just chooses to not ask anything about Danielle. She says its not her business but continues to hook up with him anyway.. Yuck. One day the cleaner calls and says Reed has a suit that is ready to be picked up and Ellen freaks out because he hasn't asked her to go to any party so she knows he's with Danielle. I don't understand why she freaked out because as far as she knows, they're still fully together and she's just his side piece. Anyway, she freaks and moves out and doesn't talk to him. A week later, he comes to her and says he and Danielle broke up after the Christmas party and he wants to marry Ellen so they get engaged and live happily ever after.
I guess the reason for the title is because Ellen is pursuing her teaching degree but she is terrible at algebra so Reed helps her. The reason he didn't ask her to go to the dinner party at the end is because she was studying for finals so her role as a student must be what inspired the title.

[Michael crage · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellently written book by Debbie Maccomber. For you expecting adventure or police or mystery, this is a romance, but very well written. The main character Ellen Cunningham, is a 2 year old woman who has gone to college. She finds living quarters with three young freshman where she acts as the housemother. Works out great until the owner of the house shows up. He had let his little brother live in the house to watch it while he was frequently away on business. The young brother decided to rent out rooms n the mansion tha was close to the college. You could tell from the very first time the owner and Ellen meet that they were going to end up a couple, but getting there was fun. A couple of things. I enjoyed the fact that it was set in Seattle since I spent many years in Seattle. Secondly, I was surprised when the author did not make a bigger deal of the fact that Ellen's widowed mother eloped shortly after Ellen moved out of the home for college.

[Brandi Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 2 in the double feature Learning to Love.

Nothing horrible about it but nothing great either. A quick read at only 194 pages. Knowing that it was written in 1987 makes the plot make a little more sense. At the same time I just couldn't get behind Reed's character. His emotions were just too all over the place for me. He was a jerk, he was nice, repeat over and over. I also didn't care for the Danielle story like. I did really love the relationship between the three boy housemates. The ending, well it was just a little too much too soon in my opinion.

With so many other amazing Debbie books out there I would pass on this title alone. But...if you find Learning to Love at Goodwood for .99, go for it, the first book is cute!

[꣑ৎ sue (hatter-pendragon version) ꣑ৎ · Rating 1 out of 5]

i know this book was released in the 80’s and i shouldn’t be complaining about it over outdated themes but goddamn this author had a serious case of pick-me-ism.

the second hand embarrassment i felt for the heroine was almost too unbearable. the way she willingly put herself in a one-sided competition with the mmc’s girlfriend? goddamn, she was constantly comparing herself to her. she shamed the girlfriend for not being ‘motherly’ as opposed to her. she was even so bitchy to the girlfriend when the gf was perfectly kind to her. like girlie, who do you think you are? she’s the one who’s being cheated on??

final thoughts: this book is better once i accepted that it’s just a romance novel from the side-chick perspective.

[Debby · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a cute story.

She is a student. She lives in a house with three other students.

She does the household chores and the cooking for all of them, but in return for that she only has to pay 10 dollars a week rent for her living there and the guys are all nice guys, so I don’t think that’s a bad deal.

The H is the older brother of one of the students. The house is his.

What bothered me a little bit, is that he didn’t immediately break off his relationship with the OW after kissing and dating the h. He was a bit of a cheater then and the h went along with the cheating, knowing he has a girlfriend.

[Patsy Shamblin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love By Degree

This book has the correct name. Love ran from hot to warm . I loved the way she would get down and then spring right back up without losing it and saying or doing something she would regret. She had to really love her husband with the way he never finished anything he started. This book is full of love, understanding and forgiveness. I would give it 5 stars because I didn't want to put it down. Another Debbie Macomber great book!

[Laura Aase · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple satisfying story. Ellen goes to college as an adult and finds a room in a house full of freshmen boys. She cooks and does some laundry and has super cheap rent Enter Rees, the owner of the house and older brother of one of the boys. Sparks fly, but he is in a relationship with the beautiful and cold Danielle. Will they end up together? Would have liked an epilogue and more development of the pasts of the characters.

[Maura Mann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Older college student falls for rich, older brother of one of her housemates. Quick, light read. Its an older book and comes off as dated. Early on in the book, I loves that Ellen was strong- she went to school, basically cooked and cleaned for all her male roommates while also doing maintenance. Somehow, mid-book, she falls for the guy and becomes so insecure. The ending was predictable and the marriage proposal just seems very sudden.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute

Ellen is living in a big house with 3 college students, sort of like a dorm mother. Reed, who owns the house, comes home unexpectedly and isn’t happy to find them all there, and even less happy with his younger brother who had invited the others to share the space. Once all misunderstandings are cleared up, all is well. Fun story, left me smiling.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confusing & fickle

This is a story that was very confusing because both characters were so fickle. There were scenes that made no sense, while other sense made both characters look very foolish. I'm not even sure why they even tried to see each other besides the chemistry. Slightly below average read, about a 2.5.

[Peggy Draper · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were some parts of this book that I truly enjoyed but the main romantic male was disappointing - neanderthal that never changed and the female was strong except where he was concerned and let him treat her as a 1950's dingbat. If you are looking for a light read with an abrupt disappointing ending with nice side characters read on. Otherwise skip it!

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish. Got about 50% before I decided I couldn't handle anymore. It could have been a great story, but it was terribly written - no character development, rushed storyline, and not well written scenes. And this book was written in 2020, but it's set in like the 90s and it was weird. Overall, I was very disappointed.

[Amy Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This romance was a sweet story with engaging characters. The relationship is less problematic than in some romances from this time frame, and the emphasis is on emotion more than passion. The main problem is that there wasn't much real conflict. If the hero and heroine had talked a little more openly, their romance would've been smooth sailing. Decent, but not compelling.

[*CJ* · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Love by Degree" is the story of Ellen and Reed.

Sort of comedy of errors, in which the heroine moves in with three young men and basically works as their housekeeper while studying. One of the men's brother is the hero, who initially takes objection but soon falls for the heroine. The story is them courting and miscommunicating.

Ok one time read.

SWE
2.5/5

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Debbie Macomber but this story was short and without much depth. The characters were not strongly developed and the main idea was weak. This story did not grab me as Debbie Macomber's stories usually do.

[Susan Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect End to Summer

As usual, a delightful beach read. The story flows smoothly and the book is over before you know it. Characters are well developed and you can easily imagine the situation. My only concern was that it was just a bit too predictable.