Review by Booklist Review
Macdonald's debut is a charming novel of mistaken identity set in a delightful Seattle bookstore and filled with lovable characters. April decides to be brave and leave a note for the used book salesman, Westley, to start an old-fashioned romantic correspondence. Little does she know that Laura, a local fashion expert and single mom, finds the note instead. While the two women are corresponding, both believing that they are writing to Westley, he becomes more involved in a movie that is filming at the store, even acting as a stand-in when the lead actor leaves the set. Other booksellers all have their own story lines: one is a fantasy writer, another is a flamboyant young man who sets his sights on the movie set's stylist, and Julia, the bookstore owner, is just trying to keep these movie people's hands off her books. It is a little slow-paced, but the satisfying nature of the second half is well worth the wait. New friendships blossom and romances bloom in this feel-good read that is a must for those who believe bookstores are special places.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Seattle Times critic Macdonald debuts with a lively tale of three dissatisfied people linked by a Seattle bookstore. April, single at 33, laments the isolation of working from home for her tech job. She decides to leave a note for her crush in a book at the bookstore where he works, reasoning that "you just have to throw something out into the world and see what happens." Westley, the bookseller, is oblivious to April, and though he loves the store, he feels destined for bigger and better things. During a movie shoot in the store, he throws himself into his role as a background character. In a comedy of errors, 40-ish widowed single mother Laura, a fashion consultant, finds April's note in a book Westley sells her and thinks it's for her, and that he was its author. Neither April nor Laura knows Westley's name, and the trio's continued correspondence yields a series of false starts and humorous twists. Macdonald shades in the details of her protagonists' lives with colorful depictions of their friends and relatives, quirky coworkers, and awkward former lovers. It's a diverting slice of life. Agent: Allison Hunter, Trellis Literary. (May)
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Review by Library Journal Review
DEBUT Westley, an unassumingly handsome bookstore employee, is at the center of Seattle Times art critic Macdonald's debut novel about books and friendships, set in a Seattle bookshop and full of references to the hit 1993 movie Sleepless in Seattle. One of the shop's customers is April, a work-from-home real estate promoter, who decides to attract Westley's attention by leaving an anonymous note in a used book she is returning for store credit. Laura, a young widow with a seven-year-old daughter, is desperate for a copy of the same book for her first book club meeting and buys April's copy before can Westley inspect it. What results is more notes left in specific shelved books, and both women thinking that it's Westley who's writing to them. A subplot involves a Hollywood director filming a low-budget movie at the bookstore, with Westley as a stand-in. The happily-ever-after in Macdonald's novel is a new circle of relationships formed among the bookstore's employees, its customers, and the movie crew. VERDICT Ideal for fans of thirtysomething second-chance love stories with appealing secondary characters.--Joyce Sparrow
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
An anonymous note left in a used book creates a surprising love triangle in Seattle. April knows she's become a bit too isolated while working remotely for an online real estate company. Her only social interactions come from awkward blind dates and apologetic texts from busy friends who have left her behind. Perhaps it's this loneliness that causes her to take drastic, romantic action. She leaves an anonymous note in a book she sells to local bookstore Read the Room--it's meant for the eyes of the cute flannel-wearing man who works at the used-book counter. But that cute employee, Westley, doesn't see the note before putting the book--Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz--on the shelf. Instead, it's found by widowed mother Laura, who thinks it's Westley's way of covertly communicating with her, and she responds by leaving a note in a copy ofThe Hunger Games, as April instructed in her original letter. Westley, meanwhile, has no idea why women are staring at him from the young adult section--he's focused on a movie that's filming at Read the Room. As April and Laura unwittingly leave each other letters, the many characters in the bookstore's orbit get to know each other and unlikely connections form. In her debut novel,Seattle Times arts critic Macdonald writes her own love letter to bookstores, and the community and comfort they can provide. The writing has the feel of a British rom-com, despite the Seattle setting, which gives the story a cozy air. Although there are romances brewing, the story is ultimately about the courage it takes to go after the life you want. A perfectly charming read for devotees of the written word and anyone who's ever hoped to find love in a bookstore. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
