[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]
Summary
Laura is new in town and trying to get settled before starting grad school when her apartment building burns down leaving her alone in a strange city with no where to live and the clothes on her back. And wet clothes at that since she got caught in a downpour.
She finds herself at Knight’s, an independent bookstore where the staff take her in, helping her get warm and dry – and finding her a place to live.
As Laura gets to know her new housemates and friends, she starts to feel like she might find a “home” in LA. But her past – and her family – keep trying to drag her back to where she’s been
Review
I read The Bookish Life of Nina Hill a few years ago, and I completely fell in love – with the character, the story, and the writer. While I knew this was by the same author, I didn’t realized when I picked this up that I would be going back to this community and the characters I loved. What a treat!
While this is Laura’s story, there are threads woven in about the others living at the house with her. I was impressed with the author’s ability to build such a broad story while never losing the ultimate focus on Laura.
This is a romance, but it’s also a story of friendship, second chances, mental health, adulthood and independence, and so many other things. And I enjoyed every bit of it.
Aside from the fantastic cast of characters here, I loved this book for the humor. I laughed often – and loudly. One scene even left me cackling, with tears rolling down my face. It was a delight to spend a few hours with this collection of folks.
You don’t have to have read Nina to enjoy this, but I highly recommend you read both books, in any order. (Language, PTSD)
Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*
*♥♥♥♥½ = I loved it! Would re-read.