Reviews

The Messy Lives of Book People by Phaedra Patrick

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bookph1le's review against another edition

2.0

This book was okay. The first couple of chapters really grabbed me, but then Liv's behavior became weird and borderline obsessive. I also found her husband really off-putting because he diminishes her so much, and I kept wondering why her sons, both of whom are grown men, seemed utterly incapable of taking care of themselves. I also didn't find the book within a book very compelling.

aennis394's review against another edition

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Don’t jive with liv

baa_baa77's review

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3.0

I love Phaedra Patrick and really wanted to love this book. And I was interested in the story so 3 stars it is. But the characters were all flat and boring, like cardboard cutouts of a good character. Which was off putting in a book centered around an author and her beloved character. I wanted more whimsy and love and joy. Instead Liv and Essie and Georgia & everyone just left me feeling defeated and depressed.

kirsto515's review

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hopeful reflective

4.0

Sweet. Light. English cleaner works for famous author. Comes in to herself. Good mystery.

spatterson12's review

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3.0

This has been sitting in my TBR for more than a year because I was certainly judging a book by the cover. I was expecting it to be a little pretentious and more literary fiction with a monocle.

I had upcoming travel, so figured it would be best to pack this in my carryon for the flight and finally read it. Turns out it’s a really light read.

I can’t explain it, but reading The Messy Lives of Book People put me in the headspace of reading when I was in like 4th or 5th grade. Where the content is so light, the chapters fly by, and things just work out for the main character. There’s not a lot of depth or suspense. The logic isn’t really there and you’re just in the moment reading about these characters.

It was fine. I didn’t hate anything, I didn’t love anything. I could also sense some correlation with The Devil Wears Prada having watched that recently. A woman gets sucked into her job and starts to ignore her partner, putting her career before everything else. A woman of power is viewed as a terrible person to the outside, but has layers underneath that somehow everyone is secretly in love with (ehh that might skew from The Devil).

One thing that truly bothered me and why I marked this as a spoiler - how does Liv not know when the anniversary of her dad’s death was???

Liv is a maid for three different households, one being that of recluse author Essie Starling. Essie has taken a special interest in Liv often leaving Reese book club picks out for her to read. When Essie unexpectedly passes, it’s revealed that she has requested Liv to finish writing her 20th and final book.

Liv quits her other jobs and hides Essie’s death from everyone, including her husband and mother, for six months as she edits the draft and collects her checks. While writing the final chapters, Liv starts her own investigation to discover who Essie’s one true love was and finds a way to interconnect fiction and real life.

lmsokol18's review

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lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Did not like this one. Writing was a lot of “telling not showing,” with too many similes and everything overexplained. I did not like any of the characters or find the twist to pull the story together.

Everyone is just accepting that the author is dead and Liv will edit the book on Nov 1? I would highly recommend 7 Husbands of Evelyn Hugo over this.