The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman was one of my most anticipated reads for this summer, and I am so thrilled to have finally read the book! Just judging by the summary for the book, I knew I would love it, AND I DID!

One of the things I love most about this book is how much I related to it. The main character, Nina, and I have SO much in common, and it was interesting to see so much of myself in a book character! (Though I am definitely a bit more introverted, especially around people, but I totally get it, Nina.) Nina was great, and I very much enjoyed reading the story from her point of view. Also, I love her love of books as well!

The storyline for this book was super cute as well, and I was hooked as I flew through the pages. I love that Nina participated in trivia nights, and was in so many different book clubs. (I would totally do this if any were available in my area, but alas, I have yet to find one.) This also made the story relatable, and I loved it. Through in some great secondary characters, and this was just an around fun book!

Overall; The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman was just the book I needed to read at the moment, and I’m SO thrilled to have read it and added it to my collection! I loved the characters, and the storyline, and being able to relate to so much in the book, and it was all really great. I definitely need more books like this in my life, and I will most definitely be keeping my eye out for more books by Abbi Waxman in the future!

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill is an enjoyable story for audio book lovers. Why do I mention audio when I usually don't? I think it's because if I'd read this book, I'd notice many of the grammatical issues. This book had a lot of "he said, she said", which happened ad nauseam. Interestingly though, I still liked listening to this story of the every peculiar and sometimes lovable Nina.

The host of relatives were a hoot and the romantic element was sweet.

Four Stars: A cute book with a quirky heroine who must deal with the fall out when her quiet, bookish life is upended.

Nina has a great life. She works in a bookstore where she gets to hang out with friends and be amongst her favorite things in life: books. Then her quiet bookish world is turned upside down when Nina learns that she is not exactly an only child anymore after her absentee father dies and leaves her as a beneficiary. Nina discovers that she has half siblings, aunts, nephews and nieces. Even worse, they live close by so she will have to come face to face with them. Then Nina is confused even further when her kick butt trivia team goes against another team and they lose. Nina can’t believe that she finds herself drawn to Tom, her trivia nemesis. How can she be attracted to a man who smells like wood and doesn’t like books? How can Nina right her bookish world?
What I Liked:
*Abbi Waxman is an author who knows how to make you laugh with her likable, quirky characters. This time Ms. Waxman brings us Nina Hill an introverted bookworm who loves to make lists in her planner, avoid people and read. If you want a laugh out loud contemporary book this is one to read.
*I adored Nina. She is easy to understand and like, especially if you are an avid reader. Curling up with warm socks and a good book is Nina’s idea of the perfect evening, as well as mine. I could totally relate to Nina. I adored her quirks and her tendency to talk to her cat, Phil, but what I enjoyed the most was watching her grow and adapt. It was truly delightful to see Nina creep ever so slowly out of her shell and transform. She is an absolute joy!
*I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the complicated dynamics of Nina’s new family. It was hilarious to watch Nina try and learn to deal with her instant family after years of being an only child. There were instant connections, some head butting, and then in the end understanding as strangers with the same DNA learned to call one another family.
The romance was adorable. I loved that it started out as an attraction. Then there was lots of awkward stumbling, hilarious moments and growing and changing and then connection. It was cute!
*I adored the humor. There are so many funny moments in this one. I especially enjoyed Nina’s lists and her quirky behavior. She made me laugh.
*If you have read Abbi Waxman’s debut novel: The Garden of Small Beginnings, I highly recommend it, you will enjoy reconnecting with the characters from that book. It was delightful encounter these fun characters again, especially Claire.
*The ending was cute and satisfying. It made me smile.
And The Not So Much:
*I was disappointed that there wasn’t a bit more exploration into Nina’s family. I enjoyed the complex relationships, and I especially liked watching Nina find her place. I just wish there were more.
*Parts of the story were completely predictable, but that didn’t cause my enthusiasm to wane.

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill is a delightful, feel good read perfect for bookworms and for those who want something light and fun. This book made me laugh. I loved the quirky characters, the list and all things bookish. If you haven’t picked up a book by Abbi Waxman, I urge you to try one. This book was a lot of fun!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.
Posted@Rainy Day Ramblings.

I loved this book! Nina is totally my sister from another mother. I was not as fond of Tom, in the end, I felt he acted really childishly.

Full review coming on my blog, will update this space when I have that link.

I loved that this book focused on a younger protagonist. Oftentimes, it seems that "bookish" reads are focused on the older set and this middle-aged reader was glad to see some younger blood featured! It was a bit of romance, some whimsy, and a splash of the magic of books and learning. Loved it!

Most recently I finished reading “The Bookish Life Of Nina Hill” and the entire time I was thinking how is this notttt a movie yet!
This book would make the perfectttt next RomCom. It touches on so many important subjects, such as mental health and stereotyping, along with family diversity and single parenting, and it floats around with romance in a way that is light and airy and perfect as a romantic comedy.
And let’s not to mention all the amazing references to Harry Potter.... when @nerdybooknurse lent me this book and said I’d love it strictly for the HP references alone she wasn’t wrong!

This book got me right out of my reading funk and sent me straight into reading “Waiting on Tom Hanks” by @kerrywinfrey which I have been SO excited to read for so long! I have a feeling when I finish that book I’m going to be saying that one needs a movie adaptation too.... (maybe with a guest appearance by the man himself?! @tomhanks)

A fun and quick read. It was an odd, though not displeasing, combination of literary references and old-fashioned aesthetic (for example, the chapter headers) and casual writing style.

I received this book as an arc. I have enjoyed reading about Nina who reminds me of my Asperger son who loves trivia. Nina's life revolves around trivia until she has to let other people in her life including her step-family that she didn't know existed. I would recommend this book to people who like chick-lit books.

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman is a 2019 Berkley publication.

Sweet, witty, clever and whimsical- my kind of people- in my kind of book!

By some standards, Nina may seem a bit eccentric. But, truly, she just likes her job and her books and a solid routine. She may be a classic introvert, but she hangs out with her friends and competes in trivia competitions.

However, her quiet, ordered life turns topsy-turvy when she is informed that her father, a man she never knew, has passed away, and she has been named in his will. Suddenly there are lawyers, and a slew of relatives invading her life- none of which fit into her carefully constructed day-planner.

Nor, does dating, it would seem, although there is an interested party- except it’s Tom, her main competition on Trivia Nights. If this weren’t enough to rattle her, her job at the bookshop is in jeopardy because her boss can’t pay the rent.

Although, Nina does her best to avoid the lawyers and new family members, and genuinely tries to pencil Tom in for a date night, she isn’t having much luck on either count. Will Nina ever be accepted by her new family? Will her day planner ever make time for poor Tom? Will the bookshop sink or swim?

I new I would love this book!! The characters are easier for me to relate to than the ‘loudest person in the room’, voted most gregarious types- and of course, who doesn’t love books about books?

I’ve never been to trivia night, but it certainly sounds like a lot of fun- although I’m not that knowledgeable or competitive. Everything about this book is executed perfectly- pace, dialogue, characterizations, and tone. It’s light, but has depth, is poignant, but mostly it’s a fun, feel good story anyone can enjoy. I loved Nina’s life so much, I felt a bit wistful, wishing I could find fit into the mix of work, family, and friends that make up her charmed life. The ending was the cherry on the cake and left me grinning from ear to ear!!

This is just an all-around great story about the truly important things in life and staying true to oneself while adapting to life’s inevitable changes. Of course, us bookworms and introverts will find this book highly relatable, maybe seeing a bit of ourselves in this story, which makes it even more charming and touching!!

All the stars for this one!! (Did you ever doubt it?) That's makes three for three for Ms. Abbi Waxman

Nina Hill lives an extremely bookish life, with her bookstore job filling her days, her planner with scheduled reading time filling her evenings, and her trivia hobby on the side. She's perfectly happy in her little bubble, but then suddenly this only child of an absentee single mother finds out that she has been named as a beneficiary in her unknown father's will - and that she has a huge family she knew nothing about. Getting to know this family, along with a potential love interest in a rival trivia team, means that Nina might have to finally come out her shell... but can she be convinced that this real life can live up to the magic of fiction? The tone reminded me a lot of The Garden of Small Beginnings, the previous book by Abbi Waxman that I have read - a mix of quirkiness and wry humor and self-deprecation that makes for a fun read but sometimes starts to wear on me a bit with the constant clever turns of phrase. It almost makes characters feel less real to me somehow. I also found that this one was almost too full of things: the bookshop and literary references, the trivia stuff, the long-lost relative stuff, the romance part, the frequent pop culture references. Chock full, but I guess that is in keeping with Nina's character and life - and I also can't deny that it's hard not to get drawn in when I find a character who likes books and office supplies as much as I do. Overall, a fun one for readers who love books about readers, or introverts and type-A people who will enjoy seeing things they love reflected in Nina.

By the time I was a third of the way into The Bookish Life of Nina Hill, by Abbi Waxman, I already knew it was going to be one of my favorite books. From that point I was torn between wanting to consume every delicious word, and wanting to savor it for as long as I could. It will definitely be a book I re-read.

The main character, Nina Hill, lives a quiet life working in a bookshop, and filling her spare time with bookclubs, trivia nights, and planned evenings alone to read. She lives in a quaint neighborhood in LA with her sweet, quirky cat named Phil. She likes her own company, and her life, and isn’t looking for more relationships. But they find her anyway.

While I’m in love with Nina Hill, the supporting characters are completely wonderful as well. The dialogue throughout the book is hilarious and real and I could picture myself being part of the conversations.

The book is all-round a joy to read, and if you haven’t read it yet, you should definitely add this one to your ‘to be read’ list! If ever I wished there would be a sequel to a book, this would be the one.

The audiobook is also completely fantastic, with narration by Jessica Preddy.

I enjoyed this book - it was a fluffy diversion, but unfortunately it seemed like a fantasy, the situations seeming pretty unrealistic (can a bookstore clerk really afford a cool old carriage house in LA?) Nina reminded me of myself in many ways, which is why a few times I really wanted to shake her, but all in all I enjoyed the book.

Nina Hill is the girl we all wish we could be - she does what she wants and when, no matter what others think of it, never upsetting or angering friends and family in the process. Not comfortable at a family gathering with the members feuding amongst themselves, get up and leave. Done with a conversation that is going nowhere, walk away. Others are throwing ice cream at each other in the middle of a protest, join in and throw your ice cream. Nina is enjoying her quiet life, reading books, working at a bookstore, and playing trivia with her team, when her life is upended with startling news that her father (whom she never met or even knew existed) dies and leaves her with a large family who want to meet her. Add to that, the guy, Tom, she has been secretly crushing on, suddenly becomes part of her life. It's all quite overwhelming for Nina and she doesn't know what to do.

I tend to like to be alone, with my small family or reading, so I can relate to Nina well. She is a social introvert which caused some fairly hilarious scenes in this book. All of the family members are endearing in their own way, and Nina learns much about herself through meeting them. It proves the old saying, your can pick your friends, but not your family. Great light, easy read!

I finished The Bookish Life of Nina Hill in a single sitting and it was cute, quirky, and all-around adorable. Nina was such a relatable character and I loved seeing her figure out how to interact with the giant, slightly dysfunctional family that she inherits.

Plus I loved how Nina didn’t have to “fix” her anxiety to find her happy-ever-after. The romance itself was so fun! There were a few things about the plot that were over the top but they all worked so well. This is the type of book that leaves you in love with the characters and with a smile on your face.

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill is an absolutely charming and uplifting book that I would recommend for any reader looking for a fun romantic comedy.

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I loved this novel. Who doesn't love a quirky, bookish, main character? Nina is a bookseller, who is witty, sarcastic and has a penchant for trivia. I basically want her to be my best friend. One day a soliciter informs Nina that her father she never knew has passed away and Nina has a family she never knew. Nina has to navigate this, along with a little love story. This book was so charming and I laughed more than few times throughout the novel. I would definitely recommend to all.

It's a no-brainer for me to be excited about this book since this features an introverted heroine that works in a bookstore and loves to read. Working in a bookstore is like every reader's dream job and our girl Nina Hill is living said dream.

Nina had lived a normal life. Or so she thought, until she found herself smack right in the middle of a big family brought by her unknown father's death. It was quite the ride to see the hilarity that ensued along with it. Since Nina was an introvert, she had to navigate her way into her newfound family in which she was greeted with a mix of acceptance and indifference.

Besides being a bookworm, another thing that I think made me see myself in Nina was her enthusiasm with trivia night contests. While there are no trivia nights for me to join, I do have this knack of knowing the most trivial and random things. 

I found the romance between Nina and Tom cute but I think it needed more fleshing out. Although, overall I did enjoy seeing it unfold and the fact that Tom was literally the cutest fluff is a big bonus. The pacing was a little mixed, some parts were slow while some are paced good. But I can't deny the fact that I was totally drawn into this story.

Overall, this book tackled more about family dynamics and self-discovery rather than having a plot that focuses on romance. If you're into that, you might want to try this then!

4.5 stars

Wow, what a cute read!

Nina Hill’s whole life centers around books. She works in a quaint bookstore, runs book groups, reads voraciously and kills at trivia, and even schedules an evening every week where her planner says “nothing” but really that means reading. Nina’s life is quiet and content until she finds out the father she’s never known has passed away. Upon his death, Nina inherits an entire family of brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, and cousins she never knew existed, leading her introverted quiet life quickly into chaos.

I love that Nina is so relatable. She’s quirky and loves books and reading and staying home. She has anxiety. She doesn’t love change, but rather plans her day and lives in routine. She feels extremely real, and I think that’s part of what makes this book so great. It’s like slice of life, with a curveball thrown in, and that really appeals to me.

The writing was very fun! The story is told in third person, but it almost reads like a stream of consciousness at times, with Nina crafting the most weirdly interesting theories, or having conversations with her cat where she imagines the cat talking back. Everything and everyone are just really enjoyable to follow. The only thing I wanted more of were the trivia nights, because I LOVE trivia, so that’s mostly a personal preference, and maaaybe just a little more development in the romance. The romance between Nina and Tom was so sweet and cute, but I wanted to see more of them together, interacting. Their scenes were great, and I think more would have definitely added to the story.

Overall, this is such a sweet, adorable read that any booklover will enjoy and find relatable.

*Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

3.5 stars. Nina as a main character was very relatable at times which made her very fun to read about. I enjoyed all the book talk, trivia nights, and her old and new relationships. A fun read.

I must admit that for some reason, when I started this, I had a hard time getting into it, so I put it aside.  It was surprising to me that I couldn't get into it because it's about someone who loves books and works in a bookstore. Someone whose opinion I respect and who likes a lot of the same things as I mentioned how much she enjoyed it, so I picked it back up.  I'm happy I did.  Looking back, I'm not sure why it didn't click at first.  It was probably just a mood I was in at the time.

Nina Hill grew up as an only child to a single mom who was frequently away with her work. As a result, Nina was practically raised by her nanny, and she never knew who her Dad was.  She loves to read, so as an adult, she has her dream job working in an independent bookstore. Nina is smart, socially awkward, anxious, and a compulsive planner.  She doesn't like to be spontaneous, which would take her away from her scheduled trivia tournaments and book groups, and she enjoys living alone with her cat, Phil.  Her life turns upside down one day, though, when she finds out her Dad has died, she has been named in the will, and now she has an extensive family who is at odds with each other.  It's because her Dad had three different families.

This book has a delightful cast of characters.  Nina is surrounded by supportive co-workers and trivia team members, and the supporting characters are as captivating as  Nina.   I also enjoyed watching Nina's development as she struggles to deal with the new family and a potential love interest. She gradually manages to start taking steps outside her comfortable, structured life.  I also loved the trivia aspect.  We used to play a lot of trivia, and my daughter and her husband are still on a regular trivia team.  It was fun reading all the bits of trivia mentioned throughout the book.  Recommended for book lovers and people who like books with interesting characters and humor sprinkled throughout.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for an advanced copy for an honest review.

I feel like The Bookish Life of Nina Hill took the bookish community by the storm, and it looks like with time it’s getting more and more fans.
I completely understand why’s that: it has the main character Nina who is completely in love with books so it makes her relatable to so many book lovers all over the world.
With her geekiness and particular sense of humour it’s no wonder she got under the skin of so many readers.

So when it comes to objective side of me, as I already stated, I understand why this book is so big (and trust me when I say, I wish it becomes only bigger with time, and I hope it will be translated to many languages so people all over the world could read about Nina).
However, when it comes to subjective side of me, I have to admit that I did not click with Nina’s sense of humour, didn’t understand reasons behind her behaviour at time, and I also am not a fan of pub quizzes so therefore this novel wasn’t my favourite.

What immediately won me, when it comes to the story, is it’s interesting narration. It was the highlight of the book.
It reminds me of old movies and I could hear the narrator’s voice in my head while I was reading, imagining it’s movie adaptation.
I think this book should have it’s adaptation one day, and I bet the movie will be better then the book itself (yes, I know how rare that happens, but sometimes it does).

I liked the family aspect of the story the best. I enjoyed reading about Nina’s new family and how she got to know everyone, her ups and downs when it comes to certain family members and overall how she found her place in this new to her world.

Of course, everything book related was a pleasure to read, as one would assume would be to a hardcore book lover.

However, as I already stated, I didn’t click with Nina nor did I care about pub quizzes and that (big) aspect of her life, which made me like this book less.
I understand it is 100% “It’s not you, it’s me” case here, but it is what it is.
I also didn’t swoon over her love interest (who’s name I already forgot even though I finished this book recently, which speaks for itself (and also tells you that my memory suck)).

Overall, this book was enjoyable ride that I would recommend to book lovers and readers who like to read about geeky characters.