Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. Despite very much being in a phase of reading this genre of book (big fan of these cartoon-style covers), I struggled with this one. I didn't feel invested in the characters or their story, although I think the concept was a good one.

2.5/5 stars

I can see why some people would enjoy this book, but it just wasn't for me. I didn't like either of the main characters very much and wasn't invested in their relationship. Maxime's aggression didn't sit well with me and I'm not really one to believe the whole "he hurts everyone but her" trope. Overall, it wasn't a book for me.

Also, using a false sexual assault allegation as a plot device really turned me off the book. Not something that should be done in 2021.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Collins UK / One More Chapter for the eARC for review.


______

TW: Suicide


I'm going to chalk up some of the pacing issues to the fact that this is a book translated from French.

Still.

This book is about a ~bad boy~ a-list actor who, after beating up a guy at a nightclub for the 50th time or something has to do COMMUNITY SERVICE (for some reason, instead of, you know, jail) at Sarah's dying bookshop in small-town France. She's ~pure~ and ~shy~ and Maxime just KNOWS she's too good for him 😤 so he tries to keep his distance.

If you could read the notes I made as I read this, I think you would laugh. Here are the highlights:

Spoilers!

At one point, Maxime says something to the likes of "Sarah calmed me," which honestly just reminded me of those ridiculous tiktoks where the guys is about to punch the mirror and when the beat drops to the song, his girlfriend / wife appears in front of him to catch his fist and give him a hug.

Damien (Maxime's childhood BFF) is so involved in negotiating Maxime's punishment? This guy literally beat a guy to a pulp and is being accused of sexual harassment (the encounter was consensual BTW, but those were the charges), and his agent and lawyer were just like "you know who we need? Max's old friend who owns a VINEYARD to come in and talk to the judge"

HUH??

Damien also negotiates several furloughs during Maxime's community service (community service?! for those charges?!!!) WHO IS DAMIEN AND WHY ARE THE POLICE NEGOTIATING WITH HIM??? It literally makes no sense soz

The first few chapters are out of order. like, we see Maxime on his way to Chateaurenard after Damien tells him about his community service BEFORE we get Sarah's POV of Damien coming to her with the offer to have Maxime do his community service at her bookshop??

On a more serious note, there were lots of issues with this relationship. It's toxic AF. Maxime goes on and on in the beginning about Sarah's childlike innocence, how sweet and shy she is, and how SEXY he finds that 👀

Maxime has major jealousy, anger and violence issues, but it's okay because Sarah ~changes~ him. He's also a major player and slight misogynist in the beginning, going so far as to describe an encounter with a woman at a club as boring because she didn't put up more of a challenge. And an actual quote from his chapter:

"I didn’t really care about what she was feeling – I just wanted her body and to do whatever I felt like with it."

Can we have problematic characters who have real and meaningful arcs in a book? For sure. But this is straight up gross and I'm not convinced meeting the ~right woman~ would "fix" a guy like this. Ah, but it's okay, because Maxime has a secret heart of gold 🥰🥰 and inner shame 🥺🥺 because he can't read 😢😢 and has daddy issues 💔💔



I signed up for this ARC because of the premise of enemies-to-loves in a bookshop!!! Should have been a fluffy, fun, quick opposites-attract romance. But we got a (TW!!) suicide subplot???

Don't waste your time on this one. Sorry. Cute cover, though!

Sarah is a shy book shop owner, and ends up with film star Max helping out in her shop as community service when he gets in trouble for fighting again.

As much as neither of them wants this to start with, eventually they become friends. What will happen when it is time to return to real life for both of them?

Max is a bad boy actor who always finds himself crossing the line. Sarah owns a bookshop and is your typical bookworm who lives life on the safe side. Max has pushed his luck one too many times and ends up getting assigned community service which happens to be at Sarah’s bookshop. Sarah and Max couldn’t be more different but something keeps pulling them together.

This book wasn’t for me. I didn’t like the main character Max. The book was really just blah. The characters didn’t really develop and some unnecessary parts that left me questioning why they were even included.

Even though this book wasn’t for me, you may enjoy it. It’s an easy read and does have the bad boy good girl romance vibes.

I liked the description of this book more than I enjoyed reading it. The setting of a bookshop owner and the bad boy movie star had potential. Unfortunately, it fell into the trope of an angry man who has to be pacified by the woman. Why do women have to be the ones to take on the brunt of an unstable, angry male character?? Why can't the angry man get some help, like go to therapy?

First of all a huge thank you to netgalley and Harper Collins for the opportunity to read this book.

i thought this book was going to be a lovely romance and was super excited for it. Just one problem: I couldn’t get into this book at all.

The main character, Max, wasn’t likeable at all. I didn’t connect with him in any way and it just made the story so unappealing that I couldn’t continue.

As always, I do recommend you give this a shot if you seem to like the description

The Bookshop of Forgotten Dreams is the love story between Max, an A-list actor with some serious anger and impulse control issues, Sarah, a shy bookstore owner from a small village. After his latest brawl lands him in jail, Max is sent to the hometown he fled years ago to serve out 2 months of community service by living and working with Sarah, who is in desperate need of help saving her beloved bookstore. The pair start off in the wrong foot when Max has trouble concealing his resentment and disdain for his current predicament. And Sarah is reserved and uneasy in his presence. But they quickly discover the simmering chemistry between them is impossible to ignore for long. But can they make it work long term once their time together is over and Max returns to his acting career

The translation on this book, originally in French, was superb and really well done. If it wasn’t for the names, places, and just a few odd phrases, I never would have guessed this wasn’t originally an English publication. Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins/One More Chapter for the advance copy!

One of the most poorly written books I have ever read. The plot was thin, the characters one dimensional and the writing horrible.

3.5 - This was a very cute story. I enjoy a grumpy guy main character paired with a happy female main character. I know this was translated from French, and you could definitely tell. I don’t know if it was the original versions the translation, but the writing felt pretty stilted. It was a fun enough story to get past that. I liked the main characters were both complex and that they weren’t (completely) magically fixed in the end just because of their relationship. I do wish there had been a bit more evolution of their relationship shown between Maxime being so grumpy towards the beginning to him suddenly wanting to be with Sarah.
I do have to say I don’t feel like the cover image fits the story and characters at all (aside from the large stack of books). It seemed like they were both described as having dark hair, hers is supposedly curly and he tends to dress in black. The illustration of the two people n the cover don’t fit that at all, in my opinion.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would potentially check out something else written by this author.
Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for allowing me access to this eARC for my honest opinion!

Thank you to NetGallery for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

What makes this book different from all others? And why should anyone care?
To be honest, I thought this is going to be Midnight Library-ish or The Shadow of the Wind-ish. But it wasn't, and I'm glad. This is about an actor who has so much anger inside him and his way to loosen up a bit is to physically assault people around him. And because of that, he was sent to do a community service by helping Sarah, a bookshop owner with lots of financial problems and struggling to try to keep it together.

It surprised me that this book was actually changing point of views between Sarah and Max in every chapter - which was confusing at first. Normally we would have a name or indicator at the beginning of the chapter, but then I got the hang of it. Nevertheless, it was easy-to-read, engaging, and I would find myself not being able to put the book down. Although I didn't fall in love with the characters, there were some points/scenes that left a pang in my heart. The plot twist had me. Overall, it was a delight to read and something I would recommend to my friends.

This book had a slow start for me, but once I got invested, I WAS INVESTED. At first, I thought the character of Maxime was just annoying. But he really ended up growing and I appreciated seeing him grow and learn to love with Sarah.

Sarah was a sweetheart. She was so open and wore her heart on her sleeve. She was EXACTLY what Max needed. Though I must admit, I might have given up with such a grumpy love interest.

It was pretty great seeing Max get feelings before he was willing to admit it. He was so jealous of her with Frederic.

Sarah also stood up for herself when necessary which is always the sign of a strong female protagonist!

This book was a sweet read with a great opposites attract trope. If you love a shy wall flower falling for a scary bad boy actor then pick this one up!

Also, there was some spice!

4/5

The Bookshop of Forgotten Dreams by Emily Blaine is about a bookshop owner, Sarah and a “bad boy” actor, Max who meet when Max is sentenced to 2 month community service at the bookshop. It’s a very cute, fast read. I thought Sarah and Max’s chemistry was good and I loved how loyal Max’s friends were to him. Overall, a good read!

This was a lovely romance story. A little far fetched but I enjoyed reading it and would definitely read more by this author. The story follows Maxime, a famous movie star, who ends up doing community service after one fight too many, and Sarah a reclusive bookshop owner. Although very different people, they are thrown together and it seems both can help the other. Thank you to netgally for the early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Writing this review hurts. 🥺 I had so many expectations from this book ~ a story about a bookstore near Paris? That's what dreams are made of. But meh. The Bookshop of Forgotten Dreams fell short for me.

Max, the male lead, was just terrible. I mean, sure there are lots of characters in fiction who are not perfect ~ but in this case, the character development didn't happen at all. I spent half the time wanting to push some sense into Max by shaking him by his shoulders 🤷 His violent character didn't bother Sarah and all, even though it's such a huge red flag. That's when things started going downhill for me. I had to DNF halfway. :(

The portions about bibliophiles and readers were the only part I liked. 2.5 💫 for that only.
* I received a review copy from the publisher*

I honestly loved the premise of the storyline in this book. From the.beginning, you have an idea of what the ending might be but the book throws some good curveballs that keep you engaged. I really liked the characters, the setting, and the theme around a love of books. Definitely add this one to your summer reading list!

Maxime is an actor in the French film industry who struggles with anger issues. When he flirted with some guy's fiancée one night, his anger got the best of him, and he beat him to a pulp. After spending the night in jail, he must choose between going to prison or returning to his hometown for two months to help out a certain someone.

Sarah is the owner of a bookstore that is on the verge of closing. She inherited the store from her grandmother, and she lives above it in a little flat. When her financial position becomes too much for her, she considers closing the store.

What she doesn't realize is that her friend Damien, who is also Maxime's best friend, has devised a plan to assist her. For the next two months, Maxime will be assisting Sarah in her bookstore. Isn't it simple? No, not at all.

They are two very different people who are drawn together by showing each other their true selves. Despite the fact that their relationship isn't perfect, it's clear that they make one other happy and are the best for each other. But what will happen when his time comes to an end? What exactly is the source of Maxime's rage? Is Sarah willing to give up her bookstore just so she can return to Paris with Maxime when his two-month deal ends? Well, you'll have to find out for yourself :)

*Thank you to NetGallery for the ARC in exchange for an honest review*

The Bookshop of Forgotten Dreams, a book in which I saw myself represented as a fictional character and where I learned that all I want in life is to own a second-hand bookshop with a small café.

When bad boy Maxime messes up big time, he's sent away for 'community service' at Sarah's bookshop. The two couldn't be more different and they don't like each other at all. But Sarah needs the money that comes with taking Maxime in and Maxime needs to get on good graces. The story spins into a hate-to-love romance where Maxime and Sarah fall for each other, hard. But will it actually work out?

I have to say that I adored the writing. The pacing felt very comfortable and very accessible. Even though the plot was a little predictable (I mean, the good girl falls for the bad guy, who doesn't love that trope?) I was addicted to this book. I couldn't stop reading and before I knew it, I'd finished the book.

I loved Sarah as a character, mainly because she's me if I'd ever open a small second-hand bookshop in France (which is a dream, trust me). Buying more books than she could ever hope to read, being a hopeless romantic based on everything she's read about in books, Sarah was everything I hoped for in a fictional character.
Maxime was a standard bad boy, but I did enjoy his character and I quite enjoyed that we got to read his POV as well. He had plenty of character growth and was actually a big softie. I loved the pair that he and Sarah made.

Overall, I think this book was very well done. It's definitely one I'll be recommending to other booklovers looking for their next romance to pick up.

This was a cute take on ‘good girl meets bad boy’
Max, the over the top, aggressive MMC, with a need for fighting and a very clear anger problem, meets Sarah, our quiet, shy, awkward bookseller and things spiral from there.
I love to see growth in characters. Everyone removed from their comfort zones and truly challenged to be better people. And while some growth did occur, I don’t know how much of it was genuine. If you removed them from the situation, would they still? I’m unsure.
And some of their characteristics were skewed in a way that was slightly unbelievable.
But other than that, this was pretty good. Nicely paced.

Bad boy actor meeting shy introverted bookshop owner? I am sold! This is a romance story set in a small bookshop in a small town in France. I absolutely adore bookshop settings in feelgood and romance. It usually captures the love for books and the importance for books in peoples lives. I really liked the female main character, she is shy, introverted and just loved books. Could relate (especially about the book hoarding. I definitely do not own 800 unread books. Definitely not).

I think the author really managed to do a good work with the characters chemistry and story. In my opinion it was well written and really grippingly written. I have had a lot to do in my life and felt at first not really like reading the book. But I picked it up and I became hooked from the first page. It was exactly what I needed right now in my life in regarding to reading. I really can recommend this to any romance reader, I think it will be hard not to fall in love with this cute setting. An easy five star read for me.