A Well-Read Tart

A Food and Book Lover’s Blog

Book Review of A NOVEL OBSESSION

I bet Naomi, the main character in A Novel Obsession, has "crazy eyes." She has to have crazy eyes. Because, it sure doesn't take long for her crazy to start coming out.   What's A Novel Obsession about? I stumbled across A Novel Obsession when I decided to take a writing workshop taught by author Caitlin Barasch. The story’s premise intrigued me right away: twenty-something Naomi stalks her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend under the guise of...

Book Review of THE PRINTED LETTER BOOKSHOP

I picked up The Printed Letter Bookshop after tossing aside four #DNFs in a row. Mercifully, this charming story by Katherine Reay was exactly what I needed to pull me out of my reading slump. This novel follows three women -- Madeline, Janet, and Claire -- who are all lost in some way or another. One is searching for what she wants to become; one is trying to come to terms with the life she lost; and one is trying to reclaim the life she's...

Book Review of THE LOST FOR WORDS BOOKSHOP

Introverted bibliophiles, this one’s for you. Loveday Cardew from The Lost for Words Bookshop is your mascot, your spirit animal, your kindred spirit. She is all of us who prefer books to people, solitary reading time to in-person socialization. And, you will love her. Eventually. Loveday is a bit of a hedgehog -- she's prickly, bristly, and not at all what you would expect from a literary heroine. She’s defensive and surly, with a sense of...

Book Review of THE BOOKSHOP ON THE SHORE

Did anyone else feel the earth move?  Sorry, that was because of me. I just added a Jenny Colgan novel – The Bookshop on the Shore -- to my DNF pile. *Gulp* It’s no secret that I adore Colgan’s novels. The Bookshop on the Corner (or, The Book Shop of Happy Ever After, if you’re in the U.K.) was my first foray into the wonderful world of Jenny Colgan. Although I didn’t love it, I liked it enough to read The Little Beach Street Bakery,...