The Lamplighters Bookshop by Sophie Austin

I'm probably not going to be able to make tonight's meeting. The book was a gentle read with enough historical background to give some authenticity to 1899 yet not annoy me with the author 'showing off' and giving a history lesson. The characters were likeable although not everything they did felt plausible. I felt the book was in 3 parts. At first it felt like Elizabeth Bennet from Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice had had a revamp without any of the wit or real historical context of the Austin novel. I found I had to push through that to read the main body which was warm and engaging. The end part was totally predictable so, for me, felt a little flat. All in all a relaxing, easy read but not one to go back to and re-read in the future. 6/10 float.

I'm probably not going to be able to make tonight's meeting. The book was a gentle read with enough historical background to give some authenticity to 1899 yet not annoy me with the author 'showing off' and giving a history lesson. The characters were likeable although not everything they did felt plausible. I felt the book was in 3 parts. At first it felt like Elizabeth Bennet from Jane Austin's Pride and Prejudice had had a revamp without any of the wit or real historical context of the Austin novel. I found I had to push through that to read the main body which was warm and engaging. The end part was totally predictable so, for me, felt a little flat. All in all a relaxing, easy read but not one to go back to and re-read in the future. 6/10 float.