Although set in the present and the recent past, The Lost For Words Bookshop took me back to a world I left behind when I stopped reading British Classics. I imagined the Bookshop to look like something from that era and enjoyed all the characters I met in the story—well, except for Rob.

Loveday is a complex introvert whose issues unfold slowly as the reader gets to know her. She is taciturn and therefore not given to displays of affection, but she is loved by Archie, her employer, who understands her and helps to save her from herself.

The story is rife with secrets Loveday keeps close to her chest and it is a patient and generous soul that helps her to look beyond her tragic past and reach for love.

I liked Loveday's voice and the conversational tone of the book. Also, the trips into the past and then back to the present. Though a long read, I enjoyed every minute of it and appreciated how the poetry included dovetailed with the story.

Booklover, bookworm, booknerd, bibliophile--whatever you prefer to be called--this is a book for you!

“Who wouldn’t rescue a book?”

Touching read about a bookseller with a dark past who finds solace in books. When she finds a lost book, she doesn’t expect to connect with its owner in a way that forces her to come to terms with her difficult childhood. This is an enjoyable, poignant story that pulled at my heartstrings.

Loveday likes books more than people. Books mean so much to her that her tattoos are of her favorite first lines. She is 25 years old and has worked in the same secondhand bookshop since she was 15. The bookstore and books are her comfort zone; the reader doesn’t know exactly why Loveday hides amongst books and the little bookstore. Her life is quiet and she relishes in her routine. As much as she tries to stay away from people, there’s something about her that seems to attract them to her, especially the crazies.

It is not until Nathan, who is a poet and magician, comes into her bookstore to claim a lost book that she slowly starts to let down her guard.

I absolutely loved reading this--the main focus is on Loveday's traumatic childhood, which is slowly revealed. Since this is primarily a character study, there isn't much action but Loveday's character held my attention. The mystery of her childhood kept me intrigued, although the more I learned the less I wanted to know as what is revealed is pretty awful.

Loveday is a likable and witty character, and I could identify with her relationship with books. And of course, I loved the role of books and the bookshops! I really liked how Butland used books to help bring Loveday's emotions to the surface. It has some very dark moments but there's a lot of whimsy, wit, and love woven in to lighten the tone. I highly recommend!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review.

This was a sweet and fun romp of a read. The writing was crisp and creative and I really enjoyed it. I have ordered a couple copies for the library I work at. Patrons will love this one!

The Lost for Words Bookshop is like reading about an old friend. A friend that you have often wondered “how did she become this person and what has happened to shape her” kind of person. Loveday is a character you want to protect and hug. And her surrounding cast was just as lovable. I am not a poetry kind of person but I enjoyed these poems. Maybe I should try more. All in all a fabulous read

4 stars (release date June 19, 2018)

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. The writing is very engaging, the characters interesting and the story compelling. Loveday is a young woman with a painful past that works in a book shop and keeps to herself. She prefers books to people and tattoos the first line of her favorite books all over her body. When a magician/poet worms his way into her life and heart at the same time she receives three mysterious deliveries at the book shop, will Loveday finally confront her past and learn to move on?

This book is a quick read and hard to put down. I highly recommend you read it.

Lovejoy Cardew, her boss Archie, and her boyfriend Nathan are very lovable characters. I "love" books. I so enjoyed reading about how books "saved" Loevejoy and connected her to Archie and Nathan. This is a "fell good" book at the end, but characters go through realistic challenges that require courage and self reflection.

I appreciate the opportunity from the publisher and NetGalley to read this book.

Loveday is such an unlovable character, or so she wants you to believe..

Loveday is a straywaif, or that is what her boss and only real companion, Archie, refers to her as. I adored her from the get-go. I loved hearing about her parents, and then we go to real time, where she works at the bookshop. A girl after my own heart. I wouldn't be brave enough to get tattoos but I love the idea! She has two different boyfriends that she has be with. Rob is bipolar and then there is Nathan. So you have the romance woven in, as well as a mystery about who is leaving her mom's books at the bookshop.

Besides the romance woven in then you also have the mystery and the saddest topic, domestic violence.

I had to underline a few things in the book, so much of it was brilliantly written. "A book is a match in the smoking second between strike and flame." Sigh, it was over way too quickly and now I must wait for her next one. Please read this one, it is too good to miss out on!

I received a copy from the publisher in a goodreads giveaway in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Lost for Words Bookshop is a place of healing, hope and love. It’s the story of Loveday Cardew told in several different timeframes…present (Poetry), 2013 (History) and as a child (Crime) before the bad thing happened. Archie, the owner of the bookshop, is so much more than that to Loveday. He’s her protector, her friend and surrogate father. Loveday is a very private individual, not sharing much of her life with anyone, until she meets Nathan Avebury. Nathan introduces her to poetry night at a club; will she be able to share her poetry and her deepest thoughts/secrets with Nathan?

This story was so thoughtfully written. I rooted for Loveday and would have hugged her if she wouldn’t have cringed. I believe this book will stay with me for quite some time. I’m not ready to let Loveday go and would love to read more about her.

Compelling & heart-rending

A young woman named Loveday is on her way to work. She sees a book lying on the ground and she decides to take the book with her to her work, a second-hand book shop named Lost for Words. She wants to try and find the owner, so she hangs up a note by the window saying ‘If you are the (neglectful) owner of this book, come in and ask for Loveday’.
And that’s where story of Lost for Words begins.

The characters feel real and authentic. That’s one of the main reasons why I enjoyed this book so much. Loveday is an adorable introvert. She spends her time working in the bookshop, dealing with costumers and escaping into books. She is passionate about reading and she even has a couple of quotes tattooed on her body. The owner of the bookshop is named Archie and he reminded me of the father in the movie Big Fish. Archie is a remarkable man who tells larger-than-life stories about the time before he opened the Lost for Words bookstore. He is charming and extraverted and he makes Loveday feel safe and at home in the bookstore. Later in the book we get to know Nathan. He is a bookish magician / poet and he is gentle and captivating.

The book follows three different timelines to tell the story of Loveday. The timelines are arranged in chapters that are called ‘Poetry’, ‘Crime’ and ‘History’. The first few chapters I felt like I was reading a feel-good novel, but the more I got to know Loveday, the more heart-broken I got. She has been through a lot and her past has made her who she is today. The events that have caused Loveday’s childhood trauma are described vividly and the writing pulled me into this story emotionally. When memories from her past start to appear, Loveday doesn't know what to do. She never talks about what happened and she doesn't want anyone to know.

Lost for Words is a compelling and heart-rending story about a young woman who tries to deal with her past. The book is powerful and it has moments that made me want to cry, but also moments that made me laugh out loud. The book has some thought-provoking messages and it let me to think about trust and honesty.

This was a brilliant novel and I can’t wait to read more of Stephanie’s work.

4 out of 5 stars

This book is a perfect read for a bibliophile. Not only it’s setting, which is in a bookshop, but also how books can play an important part in your personal history, how they can help you forget your past and make sense of the world.

I liked how LJ’s character grew, how her relationship with Nathan was not blind love and stayed true to her nature and how she overcame her fears. For so long she had closed herself up that she didn’t understand when people actually cared for.

Archie was this perfect and constant person in her life for the longest time. He knew when not to cross a line and still be there for her. His death was heartbreaking and it made me cry.

This particular line kept coming up in the book where LJ says that you never know from the starting of the book how the ending will turn out to be. I thought this book will be a warm and fuzzy book about a bookshop but it turned out to be an emotional rollercoaster ride.

Oh Loveday!! This was such a lovely, poignant, beautifully-crafted tribute to books and tragedy and family - the ones we are born to and the ones we build for ourselves... Loveday is a delight - all sharp corners and rough edges, with just enough sandpaper to hand to keep her from being outright prickly. As her life story unfolded, I literally laughed, cried, and gave it a 10. Butland's writing is lyrical without being overdone . She tells painful truths without sugar-coating them, but also without making them unnecessarily brutal - recognizing, in a way that few do, that truth is brutal enough without our help, thank you very much...

I am a sucker for books about books and the people who love them, so this one was pretty much half-way to a great review from the blurb, cover, and title alone. But the characters are so amazingly spot-on, offering a blend of personalities and quirks and frailties and strengths that drew me in from the onset and never let go. I literally read through tears pouring out of my eyes (you'll know where/when - you'll be devastated when it happens too), but for every tear that fell there was a line or observation that made me laugh right out loud (or read the words I'd just read right out loud) because of their marvelous encapsulation of some emotion or experience of being that were described (usually by Loveday, who is an infuriating delight of a character).

This was a lovely tale, populated by lovely (and occasionally VERY unlovely) people who begged you to listen and understand even when they appeared at their most prickly and untouchable. Butland has a marvelous ability to render personality - under her tutelage, her characters jump off the page and work their way into your brain (and heart) and force you to listen, even (especially?) to the things they aren't (can't bring themselves to be?) saying... Stephanie Butland is definitely on my Watch List.

This book tells the story of introvert Loveday Cardew, whose workplace seems to be her only haven and refuge from the world. Apart from her job at the Lost For Words bookstore, where she has worked since she was teenager, and her friendship with store owner Archie, she is pretty much a recluse. Socially awkward, she avoids building relationships of any kind much preferring the company of books, however it quickly becomes clear that there is much more to Loveday than simply being a shy loner.

The story jumps between the past and present, carefully weaving in detail about Loveday’s mysterious, troubled past gradually building a fuller picture of why she chooses to shut herself off from the world, physically and emotionally. Loveday’s tragic and trauma filled childhood has left her with no belief in herself and the inability to believe anyone else could want to be part of her life, meaning she keeps everyone firmly at arm’s length. That is until she is unintentionally swept off her feet by poet-come-magician Nathan leaving her with a heart-breaking decision to make -Should she risk everything and tell Nathan the truth about her past before someone else does?

This isn’t your usual light-hearted story set in a bookshop, which I admit I was kind of expecting, it’s much, much more. Filled with secrets and heartache this is a compelling story about love, loss and relationships which deals with a multitude of serious topics. I personally found the first part of the book a little slow, giving a lot of seemingly unnecessary background, however that information became invaluable when putting the whole puzzle of Loveday’s life together.

Beautifully written The Lost For Word’s bookshop presents us with a wonderful, yet meek female protagonist who takes us along on her journey of growth and self-discovery. This book evoked real emotion with its honest detail about Loveday’s situations both past and present and for me that is the indicator of a great book, there’s nothing better than having tears in your eyes as you read, realising how much a character’s situation has moved you. This is the first book I have read by Stephanie Butland and I really enjoyed her writing style, especially the poems that were dotted throughout the story. I loved this book and will be adding some of Stephanie’s other books to my TBR list.

Trigger warning for domestic violence.

Lovejoy Cardew is in hiding. She has good reasons for laying low. There’s the notoriety of what happened with her parents. There’s the lingering trauma of foster card. There’s the obnoxiously persistent ex-boyfriend. But when books from her past start to arrive at work at the beginning of The Lost for Words Bookshop, by Stephanie Butland, Lovejoy rethinks the wisdom of hiding. Perhaps the time to hide is over and it’s time for her to get angry and live.

I really enjoyed taking a peek into Lovejoy’s life. (Also, her name is the best.) When we first meet her, she’s a quiet employee of Archie’s York-based bookshop. She has an encyclopedic knowledge of the store’s contents and can find readers anything they ask for. The biggest annoyance in her life is Rob, a former boyfriend who won’t take no for an answer. Her biggest fear, we learn, is that she will be found out once more as the daughter of a violent father and a criminal mother. It takes several chapters for us to learn what actually happened; the writing moves luxuriously slowly. Some chapters are set in 1999, when Lovejoy is nine, in the last happy year she spent with her parents. Others are set in 2013, in the months when she dated Rob. The chapters in 2016 show Lovejoy as slowly falls in love with poet and magician Nathan—and as she tries to figure out who is sending her books that she knows her mother owned.

Some of this plot summary makes it seem like The Lost for Words Bookshop sound a bit like a mystery. That’s not really what this book is about. Rather, this book is about how difficult it is to break free of controlling, abusive relationships. The relationships in this novel are like frogs in boiling water. The wronged partner (with one notable exception) doesn’t leave immediately. They’re invested in the relationship. They believed their abusers’ apologies. They stay long enough to be hurt terribly. There’s no pity in The Lost for Words Bookshop, only understanding, for which I am very thankfully. Domestic violence is not used to create instant backstory or to raise the stakes for narrative tension. This book also offers a deep look at what it might feel like to be a secondary victim of domestic violence: it’s not just the partner who is physically and emotionally hurt, but also their children.

I really enjoyed the emotional depth of The Lost for Words Bookshop, as well as the thread of book love that runs through the entire story. I also loved watching the relationship between Lovejoy and Nathan as it grew. The epiphany that hits Lovejoy towards the end of the book is so satisfying that I would have liked the book just for the conclusion. This is a great, booky read.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, for review consideration. It will be released 19 June 2018.

You know those books that sweep you into the characters' lives, that make your heart ache and your brain think? Yep, this is that kind of book, the kind that I did not want to put down at night, no matter the time. The story begins when Loveday, a young woman who works in a bookstore, finds an abandoned book on the street and posts a note in the store window. Nathan, the owner of said poetry book, invites Loveday to a poetry reading...the story unrolls from there. Through the eyes of Loveday, we revisit the past: family life at a small seaside town, as their lives unravel; life in foster care; a violent relationship; and the small cadre of loyalists who surround Loveday and help her to heal from her past. Loveday has a wickedly British sense of humor, with hilarious asides to you, the reader, as she relates the story of her life. For those of us who love life in a book shop, who love complicated characters, who love exploring how the past impacts our present, who loves smart writing, this book is definitely for you. This is a feel-good, there-is-hope-for-a-better-tomorrow, and books-matter kind of novel.

4.5 stars
Holy Buckets! Stephanie Butland has created an engrossing and utterly absorbing read. I was hooked from the first page reading about Loveday, Archie and the others. I was about ¾’s of the way through and I was thinking, “This is a great book but kind of predictable”. Wow, was I wrong! A couple of twists I never saw coming. I adore it when an author surprises in a book and Ms. Butland shocked me not once but twice.
This book is just about perfect. The main character of The Lost For Words Bookshop (which happens to be the best name ever for a bookstore!) is Loveday, a woman who prefers books over people, I can totally relate. She carefully guards her secrets and her privacy. Loveday has created a world for herself, in which she is happy, yet strange things start to happen to her. Random books from her carefully guarded past show up. Who knows her secret? Her boss? Her old love or perhaps the poet she meets? The answer is shocking yet absolutely believable.
I highly recommend this book. The Lost For Words Bookshop is my first book by this author but it shall not be the last.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and Net Galley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

The story is built around a number of quirky characters, all of whom are connected to and by Loveday, an introspective, quiet, somewhat antisocial young woman who likes books more than people. Excellent, I can identify with the main character already! She works in a bookshop with the eccentric owner, Archie and her sometimes coworker, Melodie whom she doesn’t speak to much. Rob hangs around Loveday a lot, in a creepy, stalking way. Nathan walks into the store and into Loveday’s life quite unexpectedly. All of these individuals possess a secret and the remainder of the novel delves into the heart of each character’s story.
I really enjoyed this book! I loved the fact that much of the story takes place in a bookstore and that it provided a safe haven for the main character. It’s exactly how I perceive a bookstore, a place of escape, of safety, a place where you can be your truest self. I also appreciated the glimpse into Loveday’s world and her perceptions. She really does a lot of soul-searching and through it, the reader bears witness to her loneliness, sadness, and anger, all of which lead to her personal growth and eventual happiness. It was an interesting journey.
My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I received this book as a ARC from NetGalley.

Loveday Cardew, a young girl with a nose ring and the first lines of her favorite books as tattoos, likes books better than people. Given her difficult background, how can you blame her? Loveday keeps her feelings and thoughts to herself and Stephanie Butland develops strong and interesting characters who help Loveday get stronger and learn to get close to people. Loveday and Nathan cannot talk about their feelings, but they can communicate through the Wednesday night poetry sessions. The book cover and title might lead a reader to believe that this is a light, cozy story; it is so much more than that.

This book was a wonderful read. First off, any book that pay homage to bookstores or books, I am a sucker for. Add in a few quirky characters as well and I am 100% hooked. The back story of the main character Loveday unfolded in a very organic way and it was wonderful to see her start to engage with people and life as the story went on. I don't want to give too much away about the book, but this was truly a riveting read from beginning to end!

Loveday has had a rough childhood, and has built up walls around her to avoid further pain. Working in a bookshop for the generous and quirky Archie, Loveday is able to just exist until challenged to open herself up to magician poet, Nathan. This is not a lighthearted book as it does not shy away from some traumatic events, but is is a satisfying and intelligent story with plenty of heart. Recommended.

Loveday sounds like a character I could relate to. After reading I still think that. This is a brilliant read and very well written. This is an author I have not read before so did not know what to expect. I was delighted that I found a really good read. This book makes you feel every emotion through the words. A must read.