A gorgeous new romantic comedy about taking chances and realising your dreams.
Libby Quinn is sick and tired of being sensible.
After years of slogging her guts out for nothing at a PR company, she finds herself redundant and about to plough every last penny of her savings into refurbishing a ramshackle shop and making her dream of owning her own bookshop become a reality.
She hopes opening 'Once Upon A Book' on Ivy Lane will be the perfect tribute to her beloved grandfather who instilled a love of reading and books in her from an early age.
When her love life and friendships become even more complicated – will Libby have the courage to follow her dreams? Or has she bitten off more than she can chew?
Libby Quinn is sick and tired of being sensible.
After years of slogging her guts out for nothing at a PR company, she finds herself redundant and about to plough every last penny of her savings into refurbishing a ramshackle shop and making her dream of owning her own bookshop become a reality.
She hopes opening 'Once Upon A Book' on Ivy Lane will be the perfect tribute to her beloved grandfather who instilled a love of reading and books in her from an early age.
When her love life and friendships become even more complicated – will Libby have the courage to follow her dreams? Or has she bitten off more than she can chew?
The hopes and dreams of Libby Quinn was a truly beautiful heart wrenching read that had me weeping in parts - but mainly it had me filled with Joy.
We meet Libby just as she is starting an exciting adventure, she has finally purchased a shop and plans to turn it into the bookshop of her grandads dreams. After always been sensible, shes got this one chance to make her dreams and that of her late grandads true. Opening Once Upon A Book would complete that, but with limited time and funds - its not going to be the easiest task.
What i did discover about Libby is she is determined, she wants to get her own happy ending and is putting her soul into this shop, however by doing so it does limit the time she has for her best friend and boyfriend, but well things with Ant have always been a little bit casual and Jess will understand.
Things are not as clear cut though and things start to cause a bit of tension between Libby and her life, but then we also meet the new neighbours on Ivy Lane and it is all is a bit hectic. Especially when one of the neighbours is a charming barman named Noah...
" 'Books will always be your friend, Libby' he'd said. 'They will transport you to a thousand different worlds. Different times. Mythical creatures, magical monsters, good and evil, scary and funny".This book was lovely, i liked the fact the chapters were book titles, the pure joy of books was mentioned throughout and really appealed to the true reader in me. I loved the characters throughout, especially Harry who runs the local shop and has a soft spot for Libby, he was just a delight.
The relationships between all the characters were well constructed and all had a meaning to them, even if some were more longer lasting than others, it doesn't mean that they were not important. I also adored the fact Libbys grandad was remembered throughout the book, so despite not been there he was the heart of the story and the mentions of him had tears weeping out of my eyes.
I honestly loved this book. Its for readers with a dream - and it really does warm the heart. I mean i could babble on more but why not give it a read below and see what you think...Ive included the purchase link too!
*I was gifted an e-arc for the blog tour*
Purchase Link: https://amzn.to/32fcf1C
Libby
hadn’t slept at all well. A fizz of something – excitement or
nerves, or maybe both – had kept her awake most of the night.
She
was finally doing it. Chasing her dream. The dream she had shared for
years with her beloved grandad. Her heart ached a little when she
thought of him, but she knew he wasn’t really gone. He was still
beside her. He always would be.
She’d
assured herself of that as she reached for her very battered copy of
Great Expectations
and started to read through it. She could almost hear his voice as
she read, remembering the first time he had opened the book – which
was already well-loved, its spine broken, pages yellowed – and read
it to her. Inviting her into the world of Pip and Estella and the
incomparable Miss Havisham.
Nodding
to the picture of her grandfather, Ernie, which sat on the dresser of
her childhood bedroom, Libby stopped reading long enough to whisper:
‘We’re doing it, Grandad. We’re finally doing it.’
When
she eventually put the book down, still much too early for any
right-minded person to be getting up, she stepped into the shower and
allowed herself to mentally run through the to-do list in her head.
First
of all – pick up the keys. That was the most important bit. That
was the bit that made her stomach somersault. That was the bit that
allowed her to push all and any worries about what she might find
when she finally opened the doors to her new property on Ivy Lane
aside.
Sure,
the shop didn’t look like much now. In fact, it looked, from the
outside, as if it might be better to knock it to the ground and start
again. But Libby could see past the chipped rendering, the peeling
paint in the window frames and the yellowed newspaper lining the
inside of the windows of the corner-plot premises. She could even see
past the broken downpipe from the upstairs flat, and the overflowing
guttering which looked like it housed its own ecosystem. She could
close her eyes and imagine what it could be.
As
soon as her best friend Jess had called her, telling her the shop she
had often dreamed of owning was finally up for auction, Libby had
known exactly what she wanted to do with it.
She
wanted to do exactly what she had always talked about with her
grandad. What they’d always said they’d like to do ‘someday’
but never really thought they could – not when life became more
about being sensible than taking risks.
Libby
Quinn was tired of being sensible. Of never taking risks. There was a
yearning for something more inside her and this was her chance to try
and find it. She’d turn the ramshackle shop into her very own slice
of heaven – where the heady smell of books would mix with the warm
aroma of coffee and cake – and a welcoming atmosphere for everyone
who crossed her threshold. She’d create an oasis of calm in this
little side street for book lovers just like her.
The
timing of Jess’s phone call couldn’t have been better. Libby had
been tending Grandad Ernie’s grave and telling him all her news, as
she did every week. She’d been asking him for a sign about what to
do with her life next, when her phone had buzzed to life.
Tears
had pricked at her eyes as Jess spoke, and Libby had felt goosebumps
rise on her skin. ‘It’s our shop, Grandad,’ she’d said, once
she’d ended the call. ‘The one we said would make the perfect
bookshop!’
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Author Bio –
Freya
Kennedy lives in Derry, Northern Ireland, with her husband, two
children, two cats and a mad dog called Izzy. She worked as a
journalist for eighteen years before deciding to write full time.
When not writing, she can be found reading, hanging out with her
nieces and nephews, cleaning up after her children (a lot) and
telling her dog that she loves her.
She has met Michael Buble and even kissed him. It was one of her best ever moments.
She
believes in happy ever afters.
Freya Kennedy is
a pen name for Claire Allan, who also writes psychological thrillers.
Social Media Links –
http://www.claireallan.com/
Newsletter sign up:
http://bit.ly/FreyaKennedyNewsletter
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