You need to suspend belief a little when you read this one, because the main premise is a bit unbelievable. As is some of the drama surrounding it. But it is such a fun story! It's full of humor, (closed door) romance, and hint of mystery. I thought the writing and pacing were great and I loved the quirky side characters and all of the talk of books! And I definitely wish that Cobblestone Books was a real place - the events sound like so much fun!

"The banned bookshop of Maggie Banks" is an absolute must-read for all booklovers. Although it is hard to believe, that the protagonist did not like to read in the beginning, it turns out, that this is the perfect way to show the magic of books and in how many ways they can change and shape a life. The way Maggie manages the bookshop like a pro right from the start was a bit unrealistic, sure, but it is a fun novel, after all, so we can let that slide. Characters to adore, a whole lot of books and a little thrill to add to the mix make for a entertaining story you want to snuggle up in. Encouraging and positive!

Maggie Banks forges her own path. So when she arrives in Bell River and slips into the role of Temporary Manager for her pregnant Bestie at the town's sole and barely successful bookstore, as a non-reader, knowing nothing of the small town's "prestigious" author and historical celebrity(?), it seems like a daunting task, unlikely to reveal and further Maggie's next employment prospects. But with an extreme amount of creative thinking, charisma, some sketch and rule breaking and a town full of book-loving backup, Maggie manages to break, build, reveal and create magic in the history and dusty shelves of Bell River.

I very much enjoyed this title and was so eager to curl up with a cup of coffee and dive in every day. This would be an absolutely perfect book club title and offers fantastic discussion topics. I loved the uniqueness of reading about a non-reader! Authors tend to write to booklovers. It was so refreshing to read a main character who did not start out as a hardcore reader. The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks would appeal to many types of readers, and while it contained a romance aspect, it was also a mystery, a story of friendship, growth, community and the importance of addressing historical erasure of marginalized groups in order to increase awareness, education and support. A beautifully written title that is equal parts accessible and profound.

I was provided with an electronic copy of The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks by Shauna Robinson through Netgalley and appreciate the opportunity to read this title in exchange for an honest review. I will certainly be keeping an eye out for Robinson's next releases, and I won't even have to buy them on the down-low from the backroom at my local bookshop from someone like Maggie, but will be able to, no doubt, purchase them right out front with the Bestsellers!

This book was so fun and exciting! Maggie is helping run her best friend’s book store while she is on leave. In 3 short months, Maggie has transformed the stuffy bookstore into a place people want to be and it is actually turning a profit. However, everything she is doing to be successful could get her fired. I love Maggie’s spunk and the people of Bell River. Also, I have read a LOT of books that center on bookstores, but this is the FIRST I have read with an African American cast of characters. I love it!

This was a sweet story about a town going thru a crisis that is very relatable to the current time. I enjoyed the sweet characters and the story of this charming town. A great book for young adults!

Shauna Robinson knocks it out of the park with her new contemporary fiction The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks! The characters in this story will grab you from the start. Maggie Banks is a hot mess looking for her place in the world. Always the free thinker who never actually thinks most things through. In Maggie's mind rules are made to be broken and boy does she break them when she arrives in Bell River to help keep her friends bookshop going while she's away on maternity leave. As Maggie settles into her new role and realizes the bookshop is banned from selling anything written in this century, she gets creative and takes matters into her own hands. Never really a reader herself, she dives into rom-coms along with recommendations from her new love interest Malcom. She makes friends with authors who in turn help her breathe life back into the stoic town of Bell River.

This book offers a little bit of everything. The character development of Maggie, mystery, romance, friendship and self discovery. Highly recommend this endearing book that will make you wish you were having coffee in the bookshop with old friends.

I reviewed this book voluntarily thanks to and ARC from Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley.

I think this book has become one of my favorites.
I have no words to express how much I loved this book.
The story of Maggie, a girl who feels like she can't find her direction in life, she feels like she's been left behind and everyone knows exactly what to do and she seems to be the only person in the world who doesn't know what to do with her life. And she arrives in this town that has a quite famous literary history and starts working in this bookstore where they have quite a few restrictions, she begins to meet new people, a series of things begin to happen that make both the bookstore and her new job that she has become quite fond of are in danger, Maggie has to do whatever it takes to save them.
She decides to form an underground club, putting on a series of events to celebrate the books people love. But not everything will go as she has planned.
This book had me hooked from the very first moment. It's a very laid back, fun book. Seeing Maggie through this whole experience, seeing her growth throughout the book.
Also that the books as such form a very important part of the story, it tells us about the power they have, how these stories have changed us, and that we can read whatever we want and it doesn't make us a better or worse person.
This book celebrates the love of books, the expressiveness of opinion, finding yourself even when it seems you have no direction.
The truth is that I saw a lot of me in Maggie, and it made me think about a lot of things.
As I said, it's a very relaxed book, very funny and on top of that it leaves you with quite an important message.
It has definitely become one of my favorites.
Thanks to NetGalley and LibraryThing for giving me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Banned Bookshop of Maggie Banks by Shauna Robinson is an easy, well-paced read. It is so nice to find a tightly edited book that doesn't lag in the middle or leave a lot of loose ends. Maggie is a great character that I can see a lot of people starting out in life identifying with. She has ideas a outvwhat she likes, but not a clear plan. I love the crisp writing and the storyline. I was definitely cheering for Maggie. I would love to read her next adventure in Bell River.

This book has such a nice little story. It sheds light on the importance of reading a wide variety of books and had many cute character interactions. Not all of the characters, even the main character, were completely likeable, but it was good story to escape into for a while. I was left wishing I had a quirky bookshop near me!

This was a quick and easy read. I loved the characters and the town of Bell River.

I was cheering for Maggie all the way in this one. There were a few quirky things but I can overlook them. The beginning made it sound like there was a darker side to this story (evil lurking) but that was short lived. Overall a fun book for people who love books and stories about bookstores. A little romance, great friendships some drama and a happy ending made this a fun book to read in one sitting.

Thank you to the publisher, author and Net Galley for the ARC of this book.

Such a good read! The characters are likeable and fun (except for the villain, of course!), and the sleepy little town setting made me want to travel there for a visit myself. I was really pleased with the pacing of this novel, and the plot overall was easy to follow and enjoyable.

Maggie's kind of a disaster, floating between jobs and never quite finding her place. So she says 'yes' when her friend, who co-owns a bookstore, asks her to cover the shop for a few months. Ah, but complications! The bookstore is in a tourist town focused on the works of famous author Edward Bell, and the other bookstore owner is the the head of the Edward Bell Society. Under his iron hand, the shop is generously stocked with Edward Bell books, but only classics are allowed on the shelves - absolutely nothing written after 1963. How will Maggie sell enough books to keep the place afloat? Obviously, she'll host clandestine events parodying the classics, while selling romances, science fiction, and mysteries secretly out of the back room. Wouldn't you? It's going to be great, as long as she doesn't get caught.

I really enjoyed the characters, the setting (a small town full of lovable secondary characters), and the impending disaster that was obviously coming but that didn't make me less eager to see how it would unfold. Great escapism on a day when I needed it badly.

A sweet and fun small town romcom! I love a good bookstore setting & getting to dive into the community that surrounds it.

Maggie has been a barista, a dog walker, and office coordinator, and practically everything in between, and each new job leaves her looking for more, wondering why everyone else seems to have the responsible adult thing figured out except her. So when her best friend offers to let Maggie take over her bookshop while she's on maternity leave, she accepts, hoping for nothing more than to help her friend and buy some time for herself to figure out what she really wants to do. She's not much of a book lover, and she's definitely not into the "classics," which is all that the bookstore sells on order of the owner, who's determined to keep the entire town devoted to the legacy of its most famous author. She is, however, a people person, and Maggie quickly befriends the majority of the small town's inhabitants. She's also a rule breaker, so when the store starts losing money, she hatches a variety of fun side plots to covertly sell more modern books and connect the bookstore to the community. Hijinks ensue, culminating in the discovery of a secret that will forever change the town's literary landscape.

This was a feel-good story for any book lovers, and a fun way to pass the afternoon. I loved the bookstore events, and I'm always up for a small dose of very quickly untangled literary mystery. There is a romance, but it's almost incidental and more than little undeveloped (as are pretty much all the characters, but it's still pretty fun). This reads like it should be a romcom, but it's light on the romance; so much so that I didn't even realize the love interest was being set up to be the love interest at all initially. The events with the authors and illicit bookselling kept me interested, even if the initial set up was slightly unbelievable -- why would you purposefully limit a store's capacity without a real game plan for making a niche catalogue profitable? Sounds like bad business. As a book lover myself, I do wish Maggie had discovered a little more love for reading by the end of it all, but I did like the Stars Hollow vibe of the town and the community she built.

If you love reading books about bookstores, this is the book for you. Maggie has agreed to run the Edward Bell bookstore while her best friend is on maternity leave. Edward Bell is a famous author and the town is dedicated to his legacy. The bookstore isn't allowed to sell any books published after his death. Maggie comes to town and, without meaning to, sets about making the bookstore and the town return to present day. A great feel good read.

If you are a fan of Gilmore Girls or other stories set in quirky small towns, then this book is for you. The book centers around Maggie, who comes to the town of Bell River to help her friend run the bookshop. There are very strict rules about what can be sold in the bookshop so she starts an underground book group. While there is a romance in the book, the main focus is on Maggie’s friendship with Rochelle and on Maggie’s growth as a reader and a person.

Overall this was a cute, enjoyable read perfect for people who love books set in bookstores or the bookish world!

I loved this book! The characters have a lot of charm, as does the after hours book club. I enjoyed the tension between the perceived value of classic vs. contemporary literature, especially with romance which is often not taken seriously. It’s engaging and hit all the right notes for me.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.
I was so excited to start this book, the promising was really fun but when the plot moved forward because “there is nothing wrong with me but the doctor wants me to stay in bed rest just because” it lost me. But I know other people will love this book, it was just not for me

I'm looking forward to reading more books by Shauna Robinson after reading this creative and interesting book. I love the way the main character evolved throughout the book.and how the author worked out the problems she had. I was rooting for her the entire time. Very enjoyable read.

Really enjoyed this novel! It’s a fast, easy read with a very pleasant plot and likable characters. I found Maggie to be very relatable and I read this in just a couple days because I could not put it down. It’s great!