This is the second time I read something by Beth O'Leary (granted this is her second novel) and I am now a true fan of her genre. I know that the moment I pick up her book it is bound to make me feel better, make me relax and ultimately even deliver a meaningful message across. The Switch for me was a wonderful little treat, keeping me company at night and making me immerse myself into the two main characters' lives. It was sweet, heart-warming and uplifting that I will for sure be recommending to my friends and family. If you're looking for a feel good novel, this is it!

I love Beth O’Leary’s books and this is the second one I have been lucky enough to review. A granddaughter and grandmother swop houses for a short while and experience a whole range of different experiences and emotions throughout the time. It looks at relationships, dealing with the death of a loved one and how that can impact on your life. It also shows the importance of getting involved as it can change lives. A fab read. Thank you for letting me review this book.

I loved the Flat Share - I couldn’t put it down. I wanted to enjoy this book so much, but it wasn’t what I expected it to be. I know I shouldn’t compare two different stories - but I expected to be as gripped to The Switch, but I struggled with it.

The stories of Eileen and Leena’s adventures whilst also grieving for Carla and worrying about Martha were enjoyable, but I wasn’t sure about Eileen’s switch to live in London. It didn’t seem like something a 79 year old would do. But it was nice to read all about Eileen’s adventures - ans also that internet dangers were highlighted. The conclusion of their stories appeared to happen too quickly though.

Thank you to Netgalley for advanced copy of this book.

The Switch, takes you on a witty and uplifting journey between London and Yorkshire as Leena Cotton is forced to take a sabbatical due to making a big mistake at work. She decides to switch places with her grandmother, Eileen, who wishes to fulful her dream of living in London after her husband has recently left her.

The 2 month adventure has lots of postives for both Leena and Elieen and ultimately allow them both to see the imortant things they have in their life. It is quite a predictable read but it is light and humorous. It reminded me slightly of The Holiday, with the switching idea.

Whilst I did enjoy it, for me the Flatshare was much more of an interesting idea and kept me enaged more. It hasn't put me off Beth O'Leary's books and I would like to try more of them but this one was a lot slower paced and I struggled to keep focus. 3.5 stars.

Completely fabulous! So refreshing to find a book where no one generation has all the answers, where everyone can learn from each other and where an older character is as cool and sorted as Eileen. Loved the idea and loved the execution. Have been recommending far and wide and look forward to featuring in the Gransnet book club

When I heard author Beth is writing a new book I immediately wanted to read it as soon I get the chance and I'm very thankful to Quercus Books for granting my wish with a review copy.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Flatshare like several other readers and have not yet found an equivalent romantic fiction till date. And she has done it again with this book, although it's nothing like her previous novel. Beth O'Leary has managed to create unforgettable lovely characters in her book that could become your new best friends for life. That's how I feel about the Cotton woman, all of different ages, each unique and relatable.

I see so many readers comparing the book to Holiday (it's a lovely movie!) because of the swapping plot but I feel there's more depth to the story than the movie. There's something for all women in this book that could be understood and related to, with the extraordinary characters involved.

I was totally looking for a feel good book to read, so I don't care how cheesy the book ended. It was just what I wanted and I'm so glad I chose to read this one at this time! It's my first book for 2020 and I wish the author all the best.

All opinions mine.

An easy beach read - won't win any prizes but likeable characters and an easy to follow plot. Didn't enjoy it as much as the author's previous book

After reading The Flatshare, I knew that I wanted to read more from Beth O'Leary. The Switch has bumped her up to my list of authors whose books I will automatically buy without even bothering to read the synopsis.

The Switch is a beautifully written story about two women, grandmother Eileen and granddaughter Leena (a nickname for Eileen), who are both stuck in their lives after the death of Carla, Leena's sister. After Leena is sent on a forced sabbatical by her boss, they decide to switch places for a few weeks: Eileen will move to London in pursuit of adventure and a second chance at love, and Leena moves to a tiny village in the Yorkshire Dales in pursuit of rest and a chance to fix her relationship with her mother Marian. Throw in trendy flatmates, online dating at 79, nosy neighbours and village committee meetings, and you end up with both women feeling like the other Eileen left some pretty big shoes to fill.

Despite the grief that's present throughout the book, this was a funny and charming story about family and community. The narrative switches between Eileen and Leena with every chapter, which means you constantly get a different way of looking at events and characters. This helps to make the setting and the characters feel more realistic, more alive.

This was a quick and easy read, despite the two narrators and the two very different settings. Eileen and Leena's journeys may have been a little bit predictable, but Beth O'Leary writes her characters with such nuance and care and love, you tend to forgive the lack of absolutely shocking plot twists.

When overachiever Leena Cotton is ordered to take a two-month sabbatical after blowing a big presentation at work, she escapes to her grandmother Eileen's house for some overdue rest. Eileen is newly single and about to turn eighty. She'd like a second chance at love, but her tiny Yorkshire village doesn't offer many eligible gentlemen. As both women start to explore themselves (and others) they will have to question everything they know to be true to them.

I am such a big fan of Beth O'Leary's writing style. It is so easy to read, with humour and lightness. While I did enjoy The Flatshare more than The Switch, it was a still a really lovely story. I loved watching both Eileen and Leena grow. Despite being years apart, they both had amazing adventures and growth throughout the story. If you're looking for a lovely, uplifting story, than I cannot recommend this enough!

This book is like sinking into a marshmallow cloud. I read it in one sitting. Told from the perspective of Eileen and Leena her granddaughter it covers a multitude of subjects from love ,grief,and age. With two very strong women as lead characters it romps along at a steady pace. Lots of laugh out loud moments as well as tears. I thought the Flatshare was good but this is even better.

A book to make you believe in relationships being the meaning of it all. I warmed to both "Eileens" and enjoyed the quirky premise, however unlikely it is that it could happen in real life! I loved the notion that struggling to deal with grief doesn't make us 'messed up...' it makes us entirely normal. A happy, life affirming read that made me smile at strangers in the street because we're all people, in this life together.

I really enjoy Beth O'Leary's meringue-light, sardonically funny writing style, but I didn't love this quite as much as The Flatshare. The thing about The Flatshare was that it felt like an entirely up-to-date romance, touching on the housing crisis and gaslighting, whereas The Switch didn't feel quite as fresh and original, despite the adorable characters. There have been a lot of books recently in which drifting young people make friends with an OAP and learn a life lesson and this felt very similar to a lot of those, although much better written than most.

New review- The Switch by Beth O’Leary
Eileen and Leena Cotton are grandmother and granddaughter. Leena is a Highflyer in a large company in London and is going through a meltdown following the death of her sister from cancer. So both decide to swap homes to find themselves again. Leena Swaps her technology with her gran taking her her old basic ancient Nokia in their New lives they both begin to live. Eileen discovers online dating whilst Leena discovers other people their lives issues and fresh air and open space learning to live again.

The quirkinesses of life and people makes you laugh and cry in equal measure - Beautiful read recommend this book to all. Fantastic book all round ! Loved it.

I loved Beth’s first book and was really excited to get an arc of her new one. It did not disappoint. An interesting premise with Leena and her grandmother Eileen temporarily ‘life swapping’ . I loved both lead characters and that it was a story told from the perspective of two different generations which you don’t often get in romance. Funny, warm and charming throughout. A really good read all round.

Thank you to Netgalley and Quercus for granting my wish to review this book.

Beth O'Leary has done it again. This book is every bit as spectacularly enjoyable as her first, The Flatshare, and I devoured every word of it.
Leena and her grandmother Eileen are both struggling with finding where they need to be after the death of Leena's sister, Eileen's granddaughter. When Leena is told to take a few months of work, no arguments, she's at a loss for what to do. Speaking to her grandma, she comes up with the madcap idea that they swap places for their two months. So they do. Leena relocates to Eileen's sleepy country village in Yorkshire, while Eileen moves into a trendy flat in London, to hit the online dating scene and take the capital by storm.
I absolutely loved this book. It was delightfully written, with two great main characters, and a wonderful cast of supporting characters also. Leena and Eileen both have some things to sort out, and as they explore their new lives, they get into all kinds of fun scrapes and scandals. It was really refreshing to read a book with an older character who's not lost her interest in sex, romance, and dating, and Eileen's forthright manner and Yorkshire ways make her experience in London unlike any other. Starting a social club for other lonely silver surfers in the shared area of Leena's building is maybe slightly unrealistic, but utterly heartwarming, and the neighbours that Eileen meets are delightfully diverse. I particularly liked the sole owner of a vehicle in the building, who offered some wonderful comic relief.
For Leena, in Yorkshire, this time is about finding herself, coming to terms with her terrible loss, and reconnecting with her mother. And if there's a handsome primary school teacher about, well, that can't be too much of a problem either.
What I particularly loved about this book was Leena's experience of dealing with her grief about her sister. Every time I read a paragraph which described their relationship and their final days together, my eyes started to burn and my throat welled up. Beth O'Leary writes so delicately, I was filled with compassion and love for my own sisters. But it never felt maudlin or overdone, just perfectly handled, giving us an insight into Leena's grief and her process of dealing with it.
There was so much to love in this book, both laughter and tears, and honestly I don't know how to review it all. I heartily, thoroughly recommend The Switch, and can't wait to see what Beth O'Leary does next.

What a heartwarming book! Having read and loved The Flatshare I was very excited to get into this and it certainly did not disappoint - more than just another romance, O'Leary has created another fun, entertaining and ultimately uplifting read.

The story of a grandmother and granddaughter, Eileen and Leena, who swap homes for 8 weeks and navigate aspects of each others lives while they try and re-find themselves, it is a story of family, grief, friendships and relationships that draws you in, sweeps you along and wraps you up nicely. Told from alternate perspectives, the characters are well drawn and it is refreshing to have an older woman who is determined to embrace life as such a central character, And it is not just the two main characters who come to life - the other characters all have a part to play and you care about them too. It is not all light and fluffy though - it also deals with some big issues that stop it becoming overly saccharine, though those do not get in the way of its overall charm and the feel-good nature of the book

Thank you to Netgalley and Quercus for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review..

When I requested an ARC of The Switch I thought it had the potential to be brilliant or a total disaster... I loved the author's first book and I was happy to find here some the things that I enjoyed so much in The Flatshare. Mixing a heavily emotional story with lighter and often funny topics is a good choice here, and I think both are done skilfully. My problem is that at some point the lighter topics took over the more emotional (and in my opinion more interesting) ones and the book lost a lot of its power in the second half. I loved seeing the different grieving processes of all the Cotton women but at some point the book started to focus almost exclusively on Eileen and Leena's love lives, and there were so many background stories going on that I got a bit lost. My second issue is that all stories are resolved too perfectly to feel real - I understand the value of a feel-good story, but the ending was downright cheesy and over-the-top.

So the result is far from a disaster, but not perfect either. Still, this is a really good choice for a heartwarming read when in need of an uplifting book with a heavy side of romance.

Absolutely beautiful! I wasn't sure Beth's new novel could beat The Flatshare but this was absolutely wonderful. Two characters, two generations, two stories but both were engaging and I loved them equally. This will certainly be a bestseller!
The Switch is a beautiful, heartwarming novel about the power of change, believing in yourself and how age is just a number!

Tje Switch was every bit as enjoyable as The Flat Share! The characters leapt from the pages and I ended up reading in one sitting!

Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy of this book for review.

Usually when I get a book on NetGalley, I try to read it close to the release date, so I can remember and talk about it when it comes out. But I just couldn’t resist. I wanted so desperately to jump back into Beth O’Leary’s writing and, let’s be honest, of course I’ll read it again in April.

The Switch tells the story of Leena and Eileen, a granddaughter-grandmother pair, who switch lives for two months for a bit of a shakeup to their usual lives. Leena is forced from work after a huge mistake, caused by overworking and ignoring her sister’s death; she moves away from London to reconnect with her mother and face the reality she’s tried to bury. Eileen is recently single and nearly 80, but has no chance at love in her tiny village; the chance to move to London will give her the lease of life that marriage took away.

In this book, Beth O’Leary creates two incredibly funny, strong women that narrate the book, as well as a whole cast of fully developed supporting characters. All the interactions are interesting and add to the story. There’s also an LGBT+ character who isn’t main, but certainly often appears.
It’s funny, happy and cute, but that’s not all. Just like in The Flatshare, this book also deals with some more serious themes. This time it’s grief. We’re told there’s no one way to grieve, and that grief doesn’t instantly disappear after a certain amount of time. Grief hits you at all times, prompted by the smallest memory. It’s something I’ve been fortunate enough to not have had to deal with, but it feels like it was done really well.
This book forms some strong relationships. Yes, there’s a romance and yes, I didn’t hate it, but romance is just one part of it. The more important relationships are formed between unlikely friends or in communities where first impressions are challenged.

I can’t wait to have an actual copy to pass around (and one in an extra large print for my nan!)