Scan barcode
goodbyeskyharbor's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
booksandbargains's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
This was a really solid 4 star book! Its a slice of life type book where we get little snippets of all these different characters lives shown through 24 hours in a 24/7 cafe.
mollyhyland's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
slow-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
2.5
emmgdr's review against another edition
Very 'slice of life' kinda book. Not very gripping.
markalkman's review against another edition
2.0
I absolutely loved 'The Lido' and 'The Island Home' but unfortunately, this was not it. Even the writing didn't do it for me, which is a shame, because I usually really enjoy Libby's writing.
There were too many random characters I didn't care about, splitting up Hannah & Mona's story the way Libby did really didn't work for me, the flashbacks were mostly meh and not all of them added anything to the story... and the ending was rushed and it didn't make me feel anything. Maybe because I didn't give a sh*t about the characters in the first place. This is supposed to be another celebration of friendship, just like The Lido was, but this definitely didn't feel like one. At least, not to me.
There were too many random characters I didn't care about, splitting up Hannah & Mona's story the way Libby did really didn't work for me, the flashbacks were mostly meh and not all of them added anything to the story... and the ending was rushed and it didn't make me feel anything. Maybe because I didn't give a sh*t about the characters in the first place. This is supposed to be another celebration of friendship, just like The Lido was, but this definitely didn't feel like one. At least, not to me.
daybreak1012's review against another edition
4.75
Ever since reading Ms Page's book The Lido, I have been wanting to try another of her books to see if it would measure up. I wasn't able to find this particular book anywhere in my local library system (a rare occurence!) but based on how much I loved my first venture into her books, I went ahead of found a secondhand copy.
What I liked about The 24-Hour Cafe:
Characters you can fall in love with - This appears to be a great strength for this author because this was one of the aspects that I particularly enjoyed in the other book of hers that I read. Her characters have depth, are lovable even though flawed, feel incredibly real, and almost immediately feel familiar to me.
The perfectly chosen setting - Upon completion, I cannot think of a single better setting to be the vehicle of this story.
Positively brilliant format for telling this story -The fact that the span of the majority of this book took place over a single 24-hour period, and yet didn't: I am still shaking my head in pleasant disbelief at how Ms Page executed this in such a unique fashion. Furthemore, it never lagged or failed to push the plot forward or got lost in the weeds. I am simply impressed by how it came together and I cannot imagine her using any other format.
A testament to friendship - What captured me in The Lido was how effectively Libby depicted the importance of community. The 24-Hour Cafe was an ode to friendship: its birth, how it is its own kind of love story in our lives, the ways in which we can take it for granted, the question of its survival when it is pitted against our lifelong dreams.
The background of the main story - I mentioned both the characters and the setting, but this feels separate to both of those, even as it overlaps both of those things. In the background of this single day within the confines of the cafe, as one might expect, there was a steady stream of characters the reader meets briefly. I have no idea how she pulled this off, but for the snippet-encounters we get with the patrons of Stella's, these peripheral characters are perfectly fleshed out with entire mini-plots that fit in with the book's personality and made sense within the context of the plot in a way I don't know how to adequately explain, other than to say they somehow belonged.
An epilogue that was precisely what I needed it to be - I don't want to spoil anything about it, so I will simply say that this was the ending I didn't know I needed and it was so satisfying.
What I didn't care for:
I can't think of anything - I sat here contemplating and truly cannot think of anything I would change.
Worth noting:
Possible dealbreaker - There are only the vaguest of bedroom references, but there are several instances of curse words being used. Not a ton, but there all the same.
It's really hard when you fall in love with the first book you read by an author, because everything you read after that will be measured by the bar that has been set. The only thing that gave The Lido a slight edge was that I loved the sense of community that was its own character, it was such a strong component of the story told. Having read and loved two books now by Libby Page, I have already added more of her work to my TBR, and I won't hesitate to purchase them if I have to.
Characters you can fall in love with - This appears to be a great strength for this author because this was one of the aspects that I particularly enjoyed in the other book of hers that I read. Her characters have depth, are lovable even though flawed, feel incredibly real, and almost immediately feel familiar to me.
The perfectly chosen setting - Upon completion, I cannot think of a single better setting to be the vehicle of this story.
Positively brilliant format for telling this story -The fact that the span of the majority of this book took place over a single 24-hour period, and yet didn't: I am still shaking my head in pleasant disbelief at how Ms Page executed this in such a unique fashion. Furthemore, it never lagged or failed to push the plot forward or got lost in the weeds. I am simply impressed by how it came together and I cannot imagine her using any other format.
A testament to friendship - What captured me in The Lido was how effectively Libby depicted the importance of community. The 24-Hour Cafe was an ode to friendship: its birth, how it is its own kind of love story in our lives, the ways in which we can take it for granted, the question of its survival when it is pitted against our lifelong dreams.
The background of the main story - I mentioned both the characters and the setting, but this feels separate to both of those, even as it overlaps both of those things. In the background of this single day within the confines of the cafe, as one might expect, there was a steady stream of characters the reader meets briefly. I have no idea how she pulled this off, but for the snippet-encounters we get with the patrons of Stella's, these peripheral characters are perfectly fleshed out with entire mini-plots that fit in with the book's personality and made sense within the context of the plot in a way I don't know how to adequately explain, other than to say they somehow belonged.
An epilogue that was precisely what I needed it to be - I don't want to spoil anything about it, so I will simply say that this was the ending I didn't know I needed and it was so satisfying.
What I didn't care for:
I can't think of anything - I sat here contemplating and truly cannot think of anything I would change.
Worth noting:
Possible dealbreaker - There are only the vaguest of bedroom references, but there are several instances of curse words being used. Not a ton, but there all the same.
It's really hard when you fall in love with the first book you read by an author, because everything you read after that will be measured by the bar that has been set. The only thing that gave The Lido a slight edge was that I loved the sense of community that was its own character, it was such a strong component of the story told. Having read and loved two books now by Libby Page, I have already added more of her work to my TBR, and I won't hesitate to purchase them if I have to.
readingspells's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this lovely book. Sometimes you just need something gentle and wholesome and this book ticks that box perfectly.
Despite it being listed as a romance on Goodreads it is not in the conventional sense of the word. It is really a love letter to female friendship and to London too. Libby really does capture the big city so well, the way it moves through a day, and the lives of the people who move with it. If you like people watching, if you look at people and wonder who they are, and what their stories are then the 24 Hour Cafe will speak to you.
I actually enjoyed many of the vignettes of the cafe customers almost more than the main story between Hannah and Mona and I really loved that at the end we circled back round to some of them to tie up their little stories.
Also the ending for Hannah and Mona was really lovely. Despite their friendship fracturing I loved how the author moved them through that to a positive, happy ending.
Despite it being listed as a romance on Goodreads it is not in the conventional sense of the word. It is really a love letter to female friendship and to London too. Libby really does capture the big city so well, the way it moves through a day, and the lives of the people who move with it. If you like people watching, if you look at people and wonder who they are, and what their stories are then the 24 Hour Cafe will speak to you.
I actually enjoyed many of the vignettes of the cafe customers almost more than the main story between Hannah and Mona and I really loved that at the end we circled back round to some of them to tie up their little stories.
Also the ending for Hannah and Mona was really lovely. Despite their friendship fracturing I loved how the author moved them through that to a positive, happy ending.