Reviews

Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley

undervmountain's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted fast-paced

4.0

 Words In Deep Blue has two stories, and many stories in between, all bound up and told within the walls of Howling Books, Henry's second hand bookshop.The author managed to recreate the sense of walking into a familiar old bookshop perfectly and I was reluctant to leave when the last page ended.

There are two main stories here, one told in a dual narrative between Henry, who's just broken up with the girl he chose over Rachel, and Rachel herself, who hasn't spoken to Henry in three years since she left him a letter confessing her love before moving town, a letter he never replied to. Now Rachel's brother is dead and she finds herself back in Howling books, working alongside the guy she believes wronged her.

This is a truly magical story of grief, love, friendships and books. It's a story of growing up and learning to move on, even if it seems impossible. It's about finding love in the most unexpected of places and learning when it's time to let go of someone. 

hey_hail's review

3.0

This one, while not bad, had a really rough first half. It takes its time getting off the ground, which is not great for a book that’s under 300 pages. The second half it’s is bread and butter.

lauren_michelle's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective 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

sam_hartwig's review

4.0

I think I might have loved this more if I had listened to it on audio book. The beautiful words may have come alive more for me if I heard them spoken aloud.

In saying that, I'm in no way disappointed, it was filled with so many beautiful quotes and characters who had so much heart. I did guess half way through about who was writing letters to George, but maybe that was intentional on the author's behalf.

Speaking of letters, I love a book that has letters in them and this was done perfectly. The letters were my favourite part of the book. I'd love to see a Letter Library, and read the messages people leave behind.

I have been meaning to read this for a very long time, and luckily it was chosen for this month's book club book so I had a reason to finally pick it up. I will be interested to hear what the rest of the girls think.

withlovenour's review against another edition

5.0

I absolutely loved this book. The story is scattered with literature references and is heartwarming. The relationship Henry and Rachel have with one another as well as themselves is uniquely inspiring as they grow as people.

mesiosteu's review against another edition

5.0

منتظر کتابی بودم که بتونه مجبورم کنه تا بی‌وقفه بخونمش و توقع نداشتم که این کتاب همون باشه. لذت بخش بود و مهم تر از اون -لااقل برای من- کلیشه نبود و باعث شد گاردی که بی‌دلیل (یا حداقل با دلایل ناکافی) نسبت به ژانر عاشقانه داشتم رو کنار بذارم.
با شخصیت‌ها ارتباط خوبی گرفتم اما بیشتر با کتابفروشی انس گرفتم؛ طوری که از سرنوشتِ ناخوشایندی که به نظرم داره احساس ناراحتی دارم و دلم برای لتر لایبرری تنگ شده و باقی می‌مونه.


خیلی‌ها قوانین جهان هستی را سرهم‌بندی کرده‌اند و تو هم کورکورانه داری با آن می‌چرخی.
- صفحه ۳۱۹

از این فکر به فکری دیگر می‌رسم: اینکه او در تمام زندگی‌اش تناسخ داشته. او خود را در افرادی که دوستشان داشته به‌جا گذاشته؛ و همچنین در چیزهایی که دوست داشته.
- صفحه ۳۲۱

aida28_1a's review

emotional lighthearted reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

jennywrennn's review

3.0

This was pretty good. I think for a light summer read, this is perfect to take to the beach and sit outside on a summer day.
I liked that the story revolved so much around books - although I wish stories like this wouldn't always focus on classics? I find when I read a book that's about books, or even just when a character has a favourite book they talk about, it's always a classic - Dickens or Bronte or Austen or Hemingway. It can get a little pretentious and a little unrealistic - however I will say that the focus wasn't TOTALLY on classics, and they even mention The Fault In Our Stars, so that was nice.
I loved the romance - Rachel and Henry were so sweet together - but the back and forth got a liiiiiittle tiresome. I mean, all romance has to have obstacles, but this dragged it out a little too long for my taste- it got to the point where I was like, 'Just explain to each other already! Enough with the misunderstandings and inability to talk about your feelings!' - BUT their sweet moments together were SO sweet that I can forgive that.
I loved the underlying plotlines

Spoiler

with the death of Rachel's brother and the sale of Henry's book store

- I thought these were well thought out and brought some more deepness to what could have otherwise been a very fluffy 2 star beach read - luckily it wasn't. 3.5 stars for me. I won't be putting this on my favourites shelf, but I might toss it in my bag on the way to the beach next summer again.

aliceb0505's review against another edition

5.0

Snälla alla ni som läser det här(typ 2 pers) läs den här BOKEN!! Du kanske inte älskar den lika mycket som jag eller ens tycker om den(vem är du?) men det är en så vacker bok att jag tycker att alla borde läsa den.

kalfried's review

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75