As someone who is a NJ librarian, I was very excited to read this book. Throughout the book, I felt that I could relate to many of Nan's library experiences, especially the need for more space, the need to constantly move around collections, and the need to protect our youngest patrons at all costs. There were many chapters that I found intriguing and hoped that the author would expand more on the topic. These chapters typically ended up cutting short and not flowing well into the next chapter. I had the most love for Nan's landlord, Immaculata, because honestly who doesn't want to be brought amazing, mouth-watering food on a whim?!

There were so many characters to keep track of that I had to keep scrolling back to remember who was who. The characters that ended up having "larger roles", such as the mysterious patron who left books around the library, didn't have much detail written about them...just what the reader "needed to know". This made these characters almost seem insignificant, even when they played "larger roles".

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read and review the e-ARC of this book!

The New Town Librarian is queer, slice of life, women's fiction. The book focuses more on the vibes than having a very structured plot, which threw me a bit. As I read, I kept searching for the plot, but it turns out this is a more character-driven book. It was different from most of the books I enjoy, but overall, it was worth the read. The last part of the book really picks up, but the first part was unfortunately a bit of a slog for me to get through. The bulk of my motivation to finish was to be able to review the ARC I received, but I am glad I finished.

Nan is a fifty-year-old librarian who has not advanced in the library hierarchy since her first job. She has a comfortably uncomfortable life, and she self-soothes by applying to jobs based upon location and imagining a future there. She ignores the qualifications for the jobs to which she's applying, so she's unsurprised when she doesn't get called in for interviews. The book kicks off with her applying to a job for which she is qualified (by virtue of the Board searching for young blood to shake up the small town library). She then proceeds through life, constantly wanting change but unsure how to really make it happen. The remainder of the plot is Nan floating through the trials and tribulations of being a librarian and finding ways to thrive in a small town.

Joe and Immaculata, her landlords, are probably my favorites among a fun cast of characters. Immaculata doesn't take no for an answer, barging into Nan's life like a wrecking ball. The town cast is absolutely great. I had some trouble connecting with Nan, especially her more acerbic thoughts, but I enjoyed her character growth.

Some spoilers in the content warnings below.

Content Warnings: some self-medication with alcohol (although not to the level of abuse/dependency), character death, hypochondria, and for some reason the I & + were excluded in LGBTQIA+ (but the rest was there - it stuck out to me for some reason).

While I will say this book picked up a lot in the second half, so much of this just felt cringey and awkward. The entire storyline with T, while I understand it's purpose for character arc, was so uncomfortable I had to stop reading at some points. There were plotlines that were started and dropped, barely revisited 100 pages later with an unsatisfying conclusion. I feel like this book needed to be streamlined or focused in a little better.
All that being said I really like a lot of the plotlines and in general liked Nan as a character, even if I didn't always agree with her. Even still, as a traditionally published book I was surprised by a lot of the things that were allowed to remain through editing.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

Rounded from 3.5 stars. This book has a solid foundation but needs some editing to fight it up. There are a lot of different storylines that started and then just died. Way too many. The main character is relatable and I love her honesty.

I don't know, I really wanted to like this book more than I did but I just had so much trouble getting into it. As someone in the library field I enjoyed all the accurate ins and outs of working in a public library but I think it got a little too stuck in the details of some of it. It said a lot without actually moving any plot forward for a long time. Overall I was just left with a meh feeling. I enjoyed reading it but found myself without any really strong feelings towards any of the characters or the plot.

Strong vibes of:
🏡 Small Town Romance
🍀 Starting Over
📚 Lesbrarians
🥰 Books as Therapy
🌶️ Spice
🌈 Gay

The New Town Librarian is ultimately a love story to books with a side of queer love story. It follows 50-something lesbrarian Nan as she moves to a small town in New Jersey to run the local library. But it’s not all quaint and idyllic — the library is housed in a former town jail, a board member is determined to make things hard, there are mysterious messages being left in library books and oh, there’s a hot butch deli owner who’s a tempting fling when Nan is desperately trying to break her hookup habits and find a healthy relationship. It’s a journey of her getting out of her own ruts, finding her people through books, and helping more people find themselves and their people through the power books. It’s a sweet story of love, found family, and self growth with books as the backdrop and throughline.

If you’re in the mood to fangirl over libraries this is the book for you. It certainly was the book for me!

I enjoyed this one! 50's, single, queer librarian who gets a job she isn't quite qualified for with some great comedy. The writing style isn't generally what I jive with but the premise and humor kept me engaged.

This was a lot of fun! A queer, cranky librarian moves to a small town to run a barely functioning public library and shenanigans ensue. Great comedic timing, wonderful cast of characters, and a lovely display of librarianship and how libraries can impact a town. Timely and delightful

I enjoyed the small town and the fun characters there. However, it took some time to have any feeling towards the main character. I understand that character growth takes time but all the emotional feel good or bad was in the last half of the book. If I didn’t need to review the book, I wouldn't have finished it. As soon as we got to the good stuff it hit all at once, I laughed, literally cried and felt the joy, pain and love of the characters. I wish more of that was throughout the book as a whole.

I picked this book because the description of a small town librarian had me intrigued! I LOVED this book. I loved Nan's story, especially her descriptions of life in her small-town library. I found her accounts to be so spot-on. I only wonder if non-librarians will get it. Nan was fun to root for as she makes her way in her new leadership role. I found the romance aspect inspiring-I love second chance love stories! Nan is a character I will not soon forget-I feel like I had so many "me too" moments (not the movement, but the "I can relate-type:)

Reading books with middle aged queers is my jam! But this was my burnt toast.

Main characters don't need to be likeable, but this one was annoying rude, especially to children.

Fifty-year-old queer (and single) Nan Nethercott is a quirky, wisecracking librarian with a mediocre career and no love life. She randomly applies for library jobs she's not qualified for, and lucky her! She ends up landing the position of head librarian in a small New Jersey town.

So she moves from her crappy job in Philly to no-name Jersey. She moves in to the upstairs apartment with a bizarre couple living downstairs. Immaculata, the landlady, just barges in all the time, cleans, cooks, and slowly becomes a good friend without Nan realizing it. As Nan takes charge of the (very bad) library, she finds her footing through dealing with the challenges she faces. She inadvertently makes friends, and ultimate ends up finding herself in this heartwarming and delightfully weird novel reminiscent of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.

If anyone is interested, the sex stuff is almost non-existent in this book, besides some oddball flirting. Even if you don't normally like lesbian stories, it's not much a part of this story, other than the fact that it's one more reason she often feels alone and alienated from others. But seriously, her personality is enough on its own! 😂

If you enjoy quirky and like reading about people who've spent their whole lives lost finally finding their way, this will be a delightful read for you! ❤️

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I thought this would be something I loved, but the plot was very slow and we don’t meet the woman Nan ends up with until almost the very end of the book. I appreciate the attempt to depart from a normal rom-com plot, but I felt like there wasn’t a lot of buildup to their relationship and we didn’t really get to know Sophia well enough to be that invested.

https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/b20bf2e4-7f85-4c55-8ac4-8135b06111d8

The New Town Librarian is a heartwarming and humorous tale about Nan Nethercott, a witty and slightly anxious librarian, who embarks on a fresh start in a small town. As she adjusts to her new life, she encounters amusing challenges, including an eccentric landlady, mischievous kids causing chaos at the library, and mysterious notes left by an unknown reader.

Despite the hurdles, Nan forms surprising and endearing friendships while seeking genuine love. Through her journey of self-discovery, she learns to confront obstacles with creativity and determination, leading her to a sense of belonging and purpose.

With clever humor and relatable characters, The New Town Librarian is an engaging and uplifting read that celebrates the power of resilience and the beauty of finding joy in life's unexpected moments. As Nan navigates through the ups and downs of her new life, readers will be charmed by her unique perspective and inspired by her pursuit of happiness and genuine connections.

I loved the set up and the main character. I am always excited to see queer characters and characters over 40. A lot to enjoy about this one. Was slow for me to get into but over all very good.

This book spoke about the courage to do new things and stepping out of your comfort zone. The author never strayed from the plot and they kept me wanting more. I love the LGBTIAQ+ aspect where they weren’t scared to push those boundaries on the pages. They made sure the main character knew exactly who she was and wasn’t afraid to be herself.

I loved that the protagonist is 50 and queer. And a librarian moving to a small town from a big city! She is really having to reevaluate life as she once knew it, and isn't so fond of new things. No worries, sometimes we need others to help push us into new experiences and living arrangements. Can I find some landlords that bring me food and homemade wine? Please!?

I really enjoyed this story of a middle-aged librarian looking to make a change in her life by making the move to become a big fish in in a small pond. Librarian saves the library is always a fun trope, but this book gives so much more. I love all the different characters that Nan comes into contact with. The way that she builds up a group of friends in this new place is so real and relatable. I love her relationship with her landlords and book club. If I have any complaint about this book, it's that it was too short. I think that more time could have been spent delving into some of the different relationships. In general though, it is a solid slice of life story.

Look, right off the bat, I was excited about this book. As a library science student, it just appeals to me and what I like. I was a little sad to see Nan characterized in the way that she was. She didn’t feel like most librarians I know, and her judgmental view of “fantasy worlds” felt dismissive in a way that I found uncomfortable.

It was generally a decent read, but it kind of felt like a book that was more vibes than plot, which in most cases is I don’t mind. It was fairly low-stakes and feel-good, which I enjoyed, but I’m not sure that I would read this again. This book did offer a nice moment of escapism with a variety of feelings.