Lost For Words: This bookshop keeps many secrets [Paperback] [Apr 20, 2017] Stephanie Butland
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I don't think the author intended it for the book to be looked at this way by a reader, but I'd rather felt that this book is suited to be put under the 'thriller and suspense' genre as well. It was these parts of the book that really kept me going. Flew through I did, and I managed to complete this within three days!
This book has been on my to-read list for years. I remember trying to find it in my local library as an ebook back then, but it wasn't available. Now it is, and I am so glad.
Lost for Words is worth the wait. It has everything a bookworm would love: a bookshop, poetry (I'm actually not too interested in this, but it has a lot of significance in this book, which I found unique), old books, and... well, just books in general. We have a bibliophile for a MC too, and she takes that passion to another level as well, tattooing her favourite quotes onto her skin.
Loveday (it took me a while to get used to the fact that this was her name and not her surname) has been working at Lost for Words, a second-hand bookshop, for years. She prefers books to people after all, and can't imagine herself anywhere else. It is her safe haven from a horrible past, but when things from before are suddenly making an appearance, to remind her, her sanctuary is threatened.
Loveday, after having been through such a past, has become a recluse. She's anti-social, with the only person she's comfortable with, to a certain extent, her boss, Archie. She is likeable in a broken sort of way â a bit of a badass, knowing not to take shit from anyone. If anything, her past has moulded her into an independent woman who knows how to protect herself. She knows what she wants, and what she doesn't. That being said, especially since she already knows what she doesn't want, it was horrible of her to pull someone into her life when she never intended to be invested in the relationship in the first place, thus making me dislike her. And it might be because of this aspect of her that made me see her as somebody who makes use of her bad past and therefore her 'bad' personality as an excuse to doing what she did.
The romance aspect of this failed terribly, because I honestly didn't feel much for Loveday and Nathan. I think it's because it feels more like an afterthought to the story. There wasn't enough for a proper build-up of a relationship between these two. If it weren't for the 'suspense' in this book, and the mystery of who it was constantly sending Loveday reminders of her past, I probably wouldn't have liked this book as much.
The plot didn't seem to be getting anywhere at the beginning. What I read were constant flashbacks, which broke up the present story quite a lot, rendering my reading experience sub-par. There were already chapters dedicated to Loveday's past, so adding more to the present story felt a bit messy. But once the reminders started coming in, and more characters started showing up, that was when the plot started solidifying, allowing me to read with a goal in mind. There is a lot that this book has packed altogether. Mental illness. Violence. Forgiveness. It was very much a roller coaster ride through life's suffering, and how people could survive it all despite everything.
This book has been on my to-read list for years. I remember trying to find it in my local library as an ebook back then, but it wasn't available. Now it is, and I am so glad.
Lost for Words is worth the wait. It has everything a bookworm would love: a bookshop, poetry (I'm actually not too interested in this, but it has a lot of significance in this book, which I found unique), old books, and... well, just books in general. We have a bibliophile for a MC too, and she takes that passion to another level as well, tattooing her favourite quotes onto her skin.
Loveday (it took me a while to get used to the fact that this was her name and not her surname) has been working at Lost for Words, a second-hand bookshop, for years. She prefers books to people after all, and can't imagine herself anywhere else. It is her safe haven from a horrible past, but when things from before are suddenly making an appearance, to remind her, her sanctuary is threatened.
Loveday, after having been through such a past, has become a recluse. She's anti-social, with the only person she's comfortable with, to a certain extent, her boss, Archie. She is likeable in a broken sort of way â a bit of a badass, knowing not to take shit from anyone. If anything, her past has moulded her into an independent woman who knows how to protect herself. She knows what she wants, and what she doesn't. That being said, especially since she already knows what she doesn't want, it was horrible of her to pull someone into her life when she never intended to be invested in the relationship in the first place, thus making me dislike her. And it might be because of this aspect of her that made me see her as somebody who makes use of her bad past and therefore her 'bad' personality as an excuse to doing what she did.
The romance aspect of this failed terribly, because I honestly didn't feel much for Loveday and Nathan. I think it's because it feels more like an afterthought to the story. There wasn't enough for a proper build-up of a relationship between these two. If it weren't for the 'suspense' in this book, and the mystery of who it was constantly sending Loveday reminders of her past, I probably wouldn't have liked this book as much.
The plot didn't seem to be getting anywhere at the beginning. What I read were constant flashbacks, which broke up the present story quite a lot, rendering my reading experience sub-par. There were already chapters dedicated to Loveday's past, so adding more to the present story felt a bit messy. But once the reminders started coming in, and more characters started showing up, that was when the plot started solidifying, allowing me to read with a goal in mind. There is a lot that this book has packed altogether. Mental illness. Violence. Forgiveness. It was very much a roller coaster ride through life's suffering, and how people could survive it all despite everything.
The Lost for Words Bookshop had the quirky characters that I am drawn to. I really enjoyed the setting of the bookshop and the way the story unfolded.I read this in between our bookclub reads and it was perfect for that!
Super quick light and fluffy read. I really enjoyed the writing style and the humour in this book. A tragic backstory with a comedic presentation. I will certainly tackle another of Stephanie Butland's books. As a book dealer, I especially loved the references to 'book dealer lingo'. I actually picked up a few ideas and tips for my own business! :)
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