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carolineselina's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Cancer, Grief, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, and Toxic relationship
linesiunderline's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was a book I picked up on audio when it was first released and for whatever reason (British narrators usually really work for me), it didn’t click at the time.
I’m so happy I gave it another try because it was exactly what I needed at this moment and I loved it the whole way through.
You might enjoy this book if you tend to love stories about older people continuing to discover themselves and to live rich lives. Think The Lido, Eudora Honeysett, Lilian Boxfish… Also, if you enjoy a story about community, small town life, and all of the funny, complicated things that can happen in such places, this read will give you that.
In tone, I was reminded of the titles I’ve read by Jenny Colgan - light romance, gentle insights about life, a little heartbreak, happy but still believable endings.
Oh, and this book has SO many cups of tea in it, if that gives you a sense of how cozy and heartwarming it is.
I adored it!
I’m so happy I gave it another try because it was exactly what I needed at this moment and I loved it the whole way through.
You might enjoy this book if you tend to love stories about older people continuing to discover themselves and to live rich lives. Think The Lido, Eudora Honeysett, Lilian Boxfish… Also, if you enjoy a story about community, small town life, and all of the funny, complicated things that can happen in such places, this read will give you that.
In tone, I was reminded of the titles I’ve read by Jenny Colgan - light romance, gentle insights about life, a little heartbreak, happy but still believable endings.
Oh, and this book has SO many cups of tea in it, if that gives you a sense of how cozy and heartwarming it is.
I adored it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Chronic illness, Grief, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Alcohol, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
marionlundqvist's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child death, Grief, Infidelity, Terminal illness, and Death
Moderate: Domestic abuse
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
litokeland's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Sexual content, Gaslighting, and Terminal illness
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
lani's review
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Terminal illness
Minor: Domestic abuse and Infidelity
awpatton's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Grief, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Emotional abuse
Minor: Alcohol, Car accident, Dementia, Mental illness, and Gaslighting
rosienotjen's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
therobinjoyce's review
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
Wow...I am so sad. I'm completely underwhelmed at this book. I'd heard so many raving reviews about it but it really disappointed me in all aspects.
Eileene's character was supposed to be lovable and quirky but they just came off as ditzy and impulsive. Leena was supposed to be the young MC heroine we follow and root for but when her attitude and imbecility force her to be such a vanilla, boring character, it's hard to feel drawn to her and invested
The plotline with Eileen's looking for love was so wierd and, while mildly tolerable for the most part, almost utterly boring. The way she seamlessly integrates into city life and everyone (even the mean-spirited, reclusive neighbours) just jumps to her aid and side when she needs it is both unrealistic and idealistic. That leads to almost all aspects of her interaction and narrative throughout the book feeling bland and boring...because it would never happen in real life.
The relationship between Leena and her mother, too, was so boring and felt extremely forced. It felt as if it were a plot device used to try and show Leena's growth over her sadness and vulnerability but instead showed her as a spoiled, obnoxious, weak character and I hated it.
Next we come to Leena and her romantic relationships.
<Spoiler> First, her romantic and interactions with Jackson. For a man who has been hurt before, and now pining for his daughter she sure gives him a rough time. I mean, from page 1 I could tell that Ethan was a bad character and saw all the red flags in both his and her actions and words but it takes until over page 300 for her to believe anyone and figure this out. The moment he had made those ageist comments at the neighbourhood watch meeting that would have been a big red flag. Let alone the fact that he never saw her, only wanted sex, and when he couldn't get his way he lied and bombed his way out of there.
The whole fact that Leena was with him me I could SEE this going on soiled this whole book because any woman with any self respect and self worth would have recognised this. Some may argue that this is character development and it fitted within the plot and character arc but personally, if I can tell someone is sketchy and the MC is still with them then the whole book is ruined because here we have a floppy, weakling of an MC. Imho, Jackson deserved so much better and when she rejected him at may day (if I was him) I would have told her straight that her bf was sketchy and not gone running to London after her when she finally dumped him. I mean, that whole fact, that Jackson knew he was sketchy, said nothing, was strung out for ages while Leena was with Ethan, but then ran after her like a puppy dog when she returned to London just
made me lose all respect for him...
That ending was also, too anticlimactic.
All in all, I would not recommend this book. The synopsis made it sound like a beautiful, modern day, light version of The Holiday but instead it supremely underwhelmed my expectations and I felt cheated of my time and energy for devoting 3 evenings to reading this book.
Eileene's character was supposed to be lovable and quirky but they just came off as ditzy and impulsive. Leena was supposed to be the young MC heroine we follow and root for but when her attitude and imbecility force her to be such a vanilla, boring character, it's hard to feel drawn to her and invested
The plotline with Eileen's looking for love was so wierd and, while mildly tolerable for the most part, almost utterly boring. The way she seamlessly integrates into city life and everyone (even the mean-spirited, reclusive neighbours) just jumps to her aid and side when she needs it is both unrealistic and idealistic. That leads to almost all aspects of her interaction and narrative throughout the book feeling bland and boring...because it would never happen in real life.
The relationship between Leena and her mother, too, was so boring and felt extremely forced. It felt as if it were a plot device used to try and show Leena's growth over her sadness and vulnerability but instead showed her as a spoiled, obnoxious, weak character and I hated it.
Next we come to Leena and her romantic relationships.
<Spoiler> First, her romantic and interactions with Jackson. For a man who has been hurt before, and now pining for his daughter she sure gives him a rough time. I mean, from page 1 I could tell that Ethan was a bad character and saw all the red flags in both his and her actions and words but it takes until over page 300 for her to believe anyone and figure this out. The moment he had made those ageist comments at the neighbourhood watch meeting that would have been a big red flag. Let alone the fact that he never saw her, only wanted sex, and when he couldn't get his way he lied and bombed his way out of there.
The whole fact that Leena was with him me I could SEE this going on soiled this whole book because any woman with any self respect and self worth would have recognised this. Some may argue that this is character development and it fitted within the plot and character arc but personally, if I can tell someone is sketchy and the MC is still with them then the whole book is ruined because here we have a floppy, weakling of an MC. Imho, Jackson deserved so much better and when she rejected him at may day (if I was him) I would have told her straight that her bf was sketchy and not gone running to London after her when she finally dumped him. I mean, that whole fact, that Jackson knew he was sketchy, said nothing, was strung out for ages while Leena was with Ethan, but then ran after her like a puppy dog when she returned to London just
made me lose all respect for him...
That ending was also, too anticlimactic.
All in all, I would not recommend this book. The synopsis made it sound like a beautiful, modern day, light version of The Holiday but instead it supremely underwhelmed my expectations and I felt cheated of my time and energy for devoting 3 evenings to reading this book.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual content, Death, Grief, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Infidelity, and Emotional abuse
emilygigs's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, and Infidelity
Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Terminal illness
opinionsofawolf's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It took me a little bit to get into this one because I didn't really like Leena (Eileen the younger), and the plot point of a sibling death is just not one I usually go for. However, Eileen the older kept me around, and I ultimately enjoyed the read. I do think that I in general enjoyed Eileen's chapters more than Leena's though.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Infidelity, and Domestic abuse