This was such a fun audio experience. I loved the narrators and the care that they put into this story.

The dichotomy of this story was so refreshing and delightful. I loved the differences between the Eileens and their stories. I'm definitely going to be reading The Flatshare now.

It's the second book I've read or better said listened by Beth O'leary, and I can't help but appreciate the way each character goes their own way touching on so different themes to get to the end of the book and leave the reader with a smile in his face. Is not what I expected by a switch of life, nothing with magic as I think it was, make me think a little of "The Holiday" movie , a grand mother and her gran daugther sweap houses and phones,wearing and walking in the others shoes
.
Eileen and Lena are two wonderful characters, I suffered a bit on Lena's side, I cry a little too, but she also made me laugh a lot. It is a good book to accompany with cup of tea, so enjoyable and it beautiful narrated

“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 long-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. So they decide to try a two-month swap.”

I enjoyed this book. It’s an original plot with interesting and relatable characters. It’s was interesting to see how three generations handle a big loss and how they coped. The only negative is that the “catfish” part seemed to be added just for the sake of an extra paragraph or two.

I liked the narrator, she was a good fit for the story and setting. It was easy to distinguish between characters which is always a plus!


DISCLAIMER: I received this audiobook free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the audiobook... looking forward to reading more books from the author.
I think is a unique concept that I couldn't get enough of.

Loved this audiobook. Daisy Edgar-Jones and Alison Steadman were perfect voices for the characters of Leena and Eileen and the dual narration that we saw in O'Leary's debut novel was equally as effective and absorbing for the readers of this story. Leena and her grandmother Eileen decide to switch their lives after a year of immeasurable and hidden grief after the death of Leena's sister Carla. As Leena decides to press on with her high paying, high demand job in London as a PR Executive her turmoil catches up with her and she is advised to spend two months leave to recoup. In contrast, Eileen is also in a slump after the death of her granddaughter and the abandonment of her husband for another woman shortly after, looking for excitement and romance in her small Yorkshire village where the pick of men is slim, and the hot drama at the local 'neighbourhood watch' meetings consist of mainly biscuits and squirrels. The two ladies switching their lives gives them a chance to heal, reflect, and ultimately become closer once again.

O'Leary carves out all of the characters in her novel with charming wit, I found myself laughing out loud at the bold and brass members of the Hamley neighbourhood watch and Leena's trendy and modern London friends. I was absolutely consumed in the narrative and finished the novel in just under two days. I would absolutely recommend for a delightful pick-me-up and some laugh out loud fun.

While I love the aspect of The Switch I felt it was a little too unrealistic. I kept getting “The Holiday” vibes from this book. Although I did enjoy the connection the grandmother and granddaughter had.
I listened to this via audiobook and I wasn’t a fan of the telephone conversation parts. I think the narrator tried too hard to make it sound like you were listening on the phone.
Other than that it was a cute rom com.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

This was delightful, if not a bit unrealistic. It definitely gave me “The Holiday” vibes, but I liked the family aspect of it. My favorite sections were the grandmother, Eileen’s and all the neighbors in her town that Leena got to know. Very charming read with some heavier topics like grief and betrayal that were pretty well done.

Beth O’Leary does it again with a great story about intersecting lives.

The dual narrations in the audiobook suck you in and give life to the alternating perspectives. Both narrators portrayed their respective roles in a way that keeps you engaged while also clearly understanding who you are listening to- moms of toddlers that often have to hit pause will especially love this because it helps you jump right back in after refilling goldfish for the millionth time!

The Switch by Beth O’Leary is an enjoyable easy read that is perfect for the current climate we are living in. I sometimes need stories that let me escape everyday life and worries - I call them “brain candy” and this one fit the need perfectly.

The two stars of this book are grandmother Eileen, who is newly single and about to turn eighty, and granddaughter Leena, who is ordered to take a two-month sabbatical from work after blowing a big presentation. Eileen and Leena decide a change of scenery will do them both some good and they swap residences. Eileen moves to the artsy area in London called Shoreditch, and Leena moves to a quaint little village in the Yorkshire Dales. I don’t know why I connected so well with Eileen, but she reminded me of my grandmother, who was fun-loving and everyone’s favorite “grammy.” The Silver Shoreditch Social Club is definitely something my grandmother would have loved!

I listened to the audiobook version of this story narrated by Daisy Edgar-Jones and Alison Steadman, which I received from NetGalley and Macmillan Audio. Both narrators provided appropriate inflection and emotion in their performances and I enjoyed both of them immensely. I recommend this audiobook to anyone who remembers their grandparents fondly and desires a bit of brain candy at the moment.

Totally different to my usual reads but still a nice one. If your looking for an easy read/listen then The Switch is for you. It was a sweet listen if a little predictable. Slowed paced and not a lot of twists and turns but it’s not that kind of storyline. I really liked the quirky characters and they made me laugh out loud at times. Loved the narrators as it was great to have the different ones doing different characters. Worth a listen if this is your type of genre.

This is the story of Leena and her Grandmother Eileen. Life is not the best for both of them after losing Leena’s sister Carla, but a change in lifestyle soon opens up both their eyes.
I listened to this on audio and at first i wasn't hooked, the voices steamed strained and just not right. However, as the story went on, I didn't want it to end. The characters/Narrators grew on me and before long I had a favourite and each narrator did their character I found I was looking forward to it.

The whole book is about community and lifestyle in every way. It shows you're never too old, young or broken to change your outlook and be yourself rather than what you think others want. There is humor, tears worry and strife, just as in real life and the book takes you on a journey that you don't want to end.

Brilliant book and as i was able to listen in the car it brought on a whole new chanel of reading in a busy world.

A funny, romantic, endearing story of a grandmother and grand daughter who decide to swap living arrangements. Lena needs to escape her crazy exhausting job with some time in the country at her grandmother’s cottage. Lena”s grandmother decides she is ready to start dating but needs to go to London to enter the world of online dating. They both make new friends, have hysterical adventures, and come away with greater appreciation for each other. Lena also finally has a chance to deal with the grief of losing her sister to cancer. The narrators of this story are fabulous! Love the British accents and the dramatic reading. I couldn’t wait to put in my airpods and listen!

I've been following a lot of book blogs, making acquaintances and seeing what everyone else was reading. It was because of a post on Stephanie's Book Reviews that I picked up The Switch by Beth O'Leary.

From the publisher: "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 long-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.

So they decide to try a two-month swap.

Eileen will live in London and look for love. She’ll take Leena’s flat, and learn all about casual dating, swiping right, and city neighbors. Meanwhile Leena will look after everything in rural Yorkshire: Eileen’s sweet cottage and garden, her idyllic, quiet village, and her little neighborhood projects."

I had the privilege of listening to The Switch which was narrated by Daisy Edgar-Jones and Alison Steadman. I could not have picked better narrators for Eileen and Leena's story. Sometimes, when I'm listening to a British accent, I get lost in the accent and forget to focus on the story. The women both have such soothing, easy-to-listen-to voices that the time flew by while I was listening and I listened captively.

The Switch is an utterly charming book. Switching back-and-forth between Eileen and Leena's point-of-view. Sometimes that interrupts the flow of a book, but it did not in this case. While I enjoyed Eileen's point-of-view more, it was the characters in Leena's Yorkshire world, her grandmother's world, that made the book for me. How Leena handled all these "country folk" when she is a city lady makes for some great comedy. How Eileen, the "country lady," handles London makes for some real heart-warming scenes. How each of the women interact with each other's friends makes for great listening.</p>

There's a subplot that isn't mentioned in the synopsis: Leena's sister, Carla, died of cancer about 14 months prior to the swap, and Leena is still not dealing with it. It was probably one of the reasons for her breakdown at work. Her relationship with her mother is non-existent because of an argument over Carla's care. Throughout the course of the book, we get to "see" Eileen and Leena work Leena's mom back into her life, and let the healing begin.

There's another subplot involving Eileen and Todd, a man whom she meets through a dating app and has a casual sexual relationship with during her stay in London. I'm not a big fan of casual sex for any reason, so this was one of the only downsides of the book for me.

The Switch is highly recommended for those who love contemporary fiction, British fiction, coming-of-age stories, and really, anyone who wants to read a well-crafted book. Five stars.

I received the audio book through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

What a lovely book! The narrators were fantastic. I loved the characters, they were quirky, fun, flawed. This was the second book I’ve read by this author, and I love her!

I decided to listen to The Switch on audiobook since I enjoyed The Flatshare and wanted something fun. This book was a perfect summer read! When Leena has a panic attack during a presentation at work, her boss forces her on a 2 month sabbatical. She takes her grandmother, Eileen, up on the idea to switch places. Eileen lives in a quaint village with gossipy neighbors, but dreams of what it’d be like to live in London. Leena lives in busy London but now is getting away to live in Eileen’s house. This books brings so much humor and tenderness in the misunderstandings, first impressions, romantic relationships, friendships, and generational gaps. I love how Beth shows how we all have the same emotions and struggles whether we’re older or younger, whether we live in a big city or small village! This was such a charming and delightful book!

This was an interesting concept for a book. A nice, lighthearted read. My only suggestion is to edit out the "mouth noises" from the narration as it distracts from story.

I had such high hopes for this book! I had my eye on it for a while and have been interested in dipping into an audiobook finally, so I was quite pleased that The Switch was offered as a Read Now selection.

The premise is simple, which is refreshing when you need to switch (no pun intended) to a book like that: Leena has a disastrous presentation at work and is forced to take a two month (paid!) vacation. Her grandmother Eileen's cheating husband has taken off and she wants a new chance at love. But she lives in a small village and at nearly eighty, her pool of eligible bachelors is slim.

They decide to switch homes for two months. Leena will relax in Eileen's sleepy hamlet and take care of all of her "projects." Eileen will live in Leena's London flat and try her hand at dating apps. After all, in a city of over eight million people, there has to be a few gentlemen an octogenarian can snag.

I enjoyed this book. I found the narration to be good and it was a nice story for the background--I listened while crafting and had no trouble keeping up with the plot. I loved Eileen as a character. Leena, not so much. A little too judgy for me. I eyerolled when she went on an "oh he must be homophobic" and was pleased to see she put her foot in it with Jackson. Her insistence on pushing herself into the picture as soon as she arrives on scene (she thinks a tropical theme for the party is over the top, but Medieval Day is not?) left me cringing a little, and it took me a little while to be convinced that Ethan was actually her boyfriend. Maybe that just didn't come through clearly in the audio version.

Had this been Eileen's story entirely, I probably would have put this in the "loved it" category. It also should be noted that this isn't an action/plot heavy book. Not much at all happens. That was ok with me, because I like that sort of book, but I could see where it might be seen as a little boring to a different reader.

Thank you to Macmillan and NetGalley for providing this audiobook for review.

This was a sweet, easy to read, although a little predictable, story about Leena and Eileen, Granddaughter and Grandmother, who switch lives for 2 months. There were some dark themes - death by cancer, mental health, infidelity, but generally it was a fun journey for Leena and Eileen as Eileen navigated online dating in her 70s in the big city and Leena adjusted to country life.
I listened to an audio version of the book and it was nice to have the switching voices and it was easy to listen to whilst walking around as not too much concentration was required. I recommend if you want an easy read/listen.

My review: This was such a fun story with an unusual pair of heroines, a burned-out Londoner grieving the death of her sister and her 79-year-old grandmother from a small village near Leeds. I really enjoyed how they were both looking for more out of life, and how much they embraced each other’s lifestyles as they initiated the swap where Leena took over her gran’s responsibilities in the village while Eileen got herself on Tinder and flatted with Leena’s friends in Shoreditch. There’s a wonderful cast of friends and neighbours, all of whom I could see clearly in my mind, and although Leena infuriated me near the end, the ending was very satisfying.

I listened to the Netgalley audiobook narrated by the wonderful Alison Steadman (Pride and Prejudice‘s Mrs Bennet) and Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People), and although I thought Steadman was probably a little young to play a 79-year-old, they were both fabulous. (The Netgalley app, though, is horrendous and I do not recommend. It kept losing my place and sending me back to the very beginning, or if I paused in the middle of a chapter it would restart from the beginning of the chapter before. Very frustrating! I hope they fix that soon.)

Beth O’Leary is an author I will now keep a keen eye out for. I’m eager to read her other work.

***Disclaimer: This e-ARC was provided to me by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Huge thanks to them. ***

My rating: 5/5

Delightful, charming, and just what I needed to get back into audiobook listening. I adored this one (though a larger dose of romance would've been a cherry on top)