This one was very average to me. It was unfortunately a book that I know I will forget immediately and not remember details of; this is in part, likely, due to the fact that it seemed like not much was happening/there was not much of a plot. It is definitely more of a character focused novel, but I feel like parts of the relationships that I wanted more of (like Chloe and Zach) were missing. Chloe and her siblings were my preferred subject of the book, but I felt it focused too much on Jasper and Catherine, which I sadly didn't find super interesting. Overall, it was fine, and the ending was wholesome; I can understand why some readers would really enjoy this one- it just was not for me.

I enjoyed the perspective changes within the parts of the story and flashbacks. I was able to get to the know the characters well, but did not feel much of a connection to them. Some parts really dragged for me.

Não lembro de outra leitura que, ao menos esses tempos, tenha me deixado tão dividida no que pensar à respeito. Sentimentos mistos é definitivamente uma expressão apropriada para o meu estado após terminar de ler The Library of Borrowed Hearts, porque entre coisas que gostei e outras que me incomodaram, ainda estou processando esse enredo.

Digo o enredo porque, antes dele, os personagens até que se assentaram bem pra mim, e até então também consegui me envolver com um ou outro deles, e afins. Jasper foi o que mais me surpreendeu por, ainda que não tenha amado ele, ter me feito apegar à sua história, nas duas linhas do tempo da trama. Chloe também teve seus bons momentos, apesar de sua passividade com a situação familiar me dar nos nervos às vezes, mas era compreensível se certa forma, ela estava num misto de perdida e acomodada. Noodle também me cativou, queria guardar num potinho.

Catherine, por outro lado... não sei definir. Ela é outra do elenco protagonista, que se apresentou meio de surpresa e até me ganhou inicialmente pelo seu desejo de viver a vida de verdade, sem as fachadas impostas pelo pai e tudo mais, e achei bacana todo o seu plot se desenvolvendo com os livros e Jasper, mas ao longo da leitura ela me incomodou. O que era pra ser um auge de romance na trama, na passagem de tempo que se segue de 1960, desenrolou-se numa história que por vezes mais pareceu um passatempo da parte dela. Enquanto sabia das consequências de se viver um romance como o deles e assumia os riscos, Jasper mostrava uma maturidade que ela, por outro lado, me deu a entender levar como uma brincadeira. Sim, ela teve seus motivos e sim, eles faziam certo sentido, mas... muita coisa se perdeu ou foi interrompida por causa disso, e no final não mudou muita coisa do que se ela tivesse feito diferente, acho? Não sei, foi um romance triste de se ver, especialmente por como o Jasper ficou por tanto tempo após ele e mesmo até pelo final do livro que, em suma, ainda pareceu meio jogado.

Pareceu uma espécie de romantização de certos tipos de abandono, pra mim. Enquanto alguns são criticados, como o da mãe de Chloe, ainda que não tratados devidamente - ela entra e sai de cena sem nenhuma punição real pelo o que fez, não importa o quão sério tenha sido, tipo ???? -, outros, como o da Catherine em relação ao Jasper e tal, são colocados como altruísmo, porque ela queria o melhor dele, mas no fim a decisão dela não ajudou ele realmente - e nesse ponto entra a discussão que ele deveria sim ter tomado uma atitude mais positiva na vida e não só se acomodado nela, o que é real também, mas ele ainda foi muito afetado por ela.

Não sei, foi uma leitura bem confusa. Se os primeiros 40% fluírem muito e me envolveram, os 60% restantes se alternaram muito e eu sigo dividida, agora, no que achei desse livro. Uma pena porque o plot tinha um potencial bacana de abordagens diversas e todo o contexto de livros citados pelos personagens, mas ficou meio na superfície em alguns tópicos, enquanto outros foram aprofundados sem muito nexo ou equilíbrio. Enfim... fazer o que?

If you can’t tell, I’m obsessed with books. I can read them all day and own way too many. Knowing this, is it any surprise that I would try and seek out books about people who love books like I do? No, this isn’t a surprise at all. However, calling this book a book about books is a simplistic way of looking at it. This book is about so much more.

Switching between points of view and dual timelines, it was great to read about Chloe following the trail of love notes she found in some old library book, and it was interesting to read the romance unfold from the lovers point of view. That’s where it gets interesting though; one of the lovers is Chloe’s curmudgeon next door neighbor who’s roped into her family dynamic against his will. All the characters together, while very different and not without their own struggles, all have a large impact on the story. It’s hard to classify this one; it’s not just a romance, it’s not just a mystery, it’s not just a book about books. It’s all that and more!

📚Book Lovers
🩷 Long Lost Loves
🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒 Complicated Families
🌞 Reverse Grumpy/Sunshine

A charming, funny and sweet novel about the power of books to bring people together.

When Chloe discovers an old book at a flea market she notices writing inside the pages. On closer inspection, she realizes it is a conversation between her cranky, older neighbor next door and an unknown woman. Intrigued by the unfolding drama and curious about the history, Chloe is led on a scavenger hunt of books detailing their love story.

Gilmore has created a moving story about romance, love and the lessons we can learn by those around us. Readers of Freya Sampson’s The Last Chance Library and Emily Henry fans will love this upbeat story.

I have finally completed this book. This was a book that I found really hard to stick with, mainly because it felt quite slow to me.
The ending was really heartwarming but it all felt really cliche, and unfortunately I didn't really feel a lot of connection to the characters.

All that being said it was beautifully written and I loves the quotes and knowledge of books that were sprinkled throughout this story.

This one was not for me but I can see how this would well and truly be loved by many.

The Library of Borrowed Hearts felt like a hug for my soul! This whirlwind romance written into dueling timelines had me swooning and kicking my feet. I loved all of the literary references and the theme of found family. This is one of those books where I finished it and now stare blankly at a wall wondering what to do with my life now that it is over. My only critique is that I wish there was an epilogue! I had so many questions, so many threads I had hoped to see tied neatly with a bow, that I can only hope the lack of epilogue means a potential sequel?

I just finished The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore and here are my musings.

Chloe Sampson is struggling to make ends meet. Her mother left her and her three younger siblings and she is now in charge. Working in the local library is what barely pays the bills but when she finds a rare edition of a book she knows might bring in some extra money, she takes it home. Her crotchety neighbor offers her an obscene amount of money for the book which makes Chloe take a closer look.

The book has written messages in it. She realizes that her neighbor, Jasper, was definitely one of the writers. This triggers Chloe and the man who saves her brother, into a scavenger hunt to find more books by the love birds written inside the pages of some classic books.

The more she gets to know Jasper in the pages, the easier it is to get to know the old man next door. A man with sadness and loneliness in his eyes but begrudgingly starts to open up to Cgloe and her siblings. The unexpected friendship that blossoms between them, Chloe realizes that not all love stories start or end the same.

I think I was just as invested in finding those books as Chloe was. To know that Jasper’s lost love was something he never got over, decades later, was so heartbreaking. Thanks to Chloe finding and returning the book, it ended up opening Jasper up into letting people into his heart again. He spent a long time in utter sadness and it took remembering the lost love in a new way, not in darkness, to really start living again. The book reminded Jasper that he loved to read too. The book is loaded with family drama, romance and unlikely friendships.

It was amazing to get both timelines. Jasper’s past and how the writing got into the books and the present. It hit me right in the feelers. Chloe gave up her life to take care of her siblings and she didn’t realize just how much she is loved. I’m tearing up just typing this review.

It has some really sweet moments and some really deep parts and a chuckle or two. It was my favorite read of the month and that’s saying something.

4.5 stars. If you love women’s fiction books about books with a little bit of everything… This has to be your next read

Thank you to @netgalley and @sourcecasa for my gifted copy

I really enjoyed The Library of Borrowed Hearts! It's filled with different POV's, timelines and interesting characters! The storyline is sweet, engaging and full of interesting relationships. I didn't want the story to end and it left me wanting a follow up sequel! I highly recommend this book!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What’s not to love! An adorable cover, found family, hunky outdoorsman love interest, grumpy old man neighbor and a bulldog named gummy bear. Lucy Gilmore has once again written a charming story, previous was The Lonely Hearts Book Club. The Library of Borrowed Hearts is a duo timeline story involving a 1960 romance through books and a modern day librarian who finds one of the books.

This will be a great Summer Read 💗

Thanks NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for an early copy. All opinions are my own.

The main character of the book is Chloe and we understand quite quickly that she works hard to support her younger siblings after their mother ran away. We get to know her and her siblings while she discovers the old love story through the books. The story is told both in the present and in the past, when the texts in the books were written. It's interesting to follow the love story and we got more and more pieces to puzzle together.

I really like that there is a certain focus on family relationships and new, unexpected friendships. The relationship with the neighbor Jasper is initially very frosty, but it also develops. I think, however, that the pace could have been turned up a notch, or that the book could have been shortened somewhat.

Chloe Sampson is struggling in life, her Mum left and Chloe is now responsible in looking after her 3 younger siblings. Money is tight so when she comes across a rare addition of a book from the 60's, thinking she could sell it and finally be able to get a new dishwasher and a few things for her siblings, Chloe takes the book home.
It is not until her grumpy neighbour agrees to buy the book for a ridiculous amount, she realises there is writing on some of the pages, this leads her to a story that is decades old.
This book was set in two timelines, one was the present day and the other in the 60's. For me this book was only ok, I loved the idea of a love story told through annotated books but unfortunately it just didn't work. There were way to many literary references from classic books that I have never read or never heard of. It took some of the enjoyment out of this book.
There were also too many POV's, and I struggled to keep up with them.
The book in places felt rushed but in others it went into lots of detail which added nothing to the story.
What I did like was Jasper the grumpy next door neighbour, as the story unfolded we got to see Jasper not just as the grumpy neighbour but as a young man who was in love and got his heart broken.

4 stars!
Sometimes, we just have to pick up a book, open it and get together with the characters!
I love The Lonely Hearts Book Club because it has a lot of humanity in it. I guess that is Lucy Gilmore's signature- to write a book with varied and mixed complexity characters and a reader can just be with them, in their joys, their sorrows, their pain and their celebrations. The Library of Borrowed Hearts has multi-POV and split timeline about forbidden love, or should I say , the perfect love in the wrong time. This is a love story in a story and I can't help but enjoy every single bit of their journey. I love the children- their innocence, their expectations and their hopes. Who does not want a kid that is called Noodle! Jasper is your typical Mr. Loving Groucho that has lots of regrets and unhappiness in life. To read a book about characters love for reading and for books is like the ultimate jackpot and I highly recommend this book!
Special thank you to SOurceBooks Casablanca via Netgalley for the ARC in exchange of my honest opinion. I enjoyed this read!

Romance | Adult
{cover mage}
First, the book is set just an hour’s drive south of my town – cool beans! Second, it’s a romantic book mystery involving classic literature and marginalia – be still, my geeky heart. When Chloe Sampson finds a dusty copy of Tropic of Cancer in the discarded books stored in the basement of the Colville library where she works, she decides to sell the book in hopes of improving her disastrous financial position. At 24, she is the guardian for her three adorably troublesome siblings, after their mother abandoned them several years ago, forcing her to give up her college studies in Spokane. But leafing through the book, Chloe spots writing in the margins, and realizes the book’s value has just plummeted. She reads the marginalia and realizes it’s a flirty conversation between two people, J and C. When her cantankerous neighbour Jasper Holmes spots the book in her hands, he offers her an unsigned cheque in exchange. Chloe quickly realizes Jasper must be the J – who is the C? What happened to the sweet-sounding lover in the margins to turn him into the grumpy, lonely neighbour who terrifies her siblings? What happened to C? Jasper refuses to speak about it, of course, launching Chloe and her colleague Pepper on a literary scavenger hunt to find out. This dual timeline romance spans 60 years, as Gilmore, author of puppy-based romances and the book-themed The Lonely Hearts Book Club, slowly spools out the story from multiple points of view. The changing POV was distracting for me; I would have preferred a single omniscient narrator for both timelines. Additionally, I was disappointed in the too-convenient plot twists. I did like the pacing, however, and loved the way Gilmore wove in so many classics (she appends a list of them – more than 35!) from Lady Chatterley’s Lover to The Secret Garden. The library references are endearing for anyone who has toiled in the stacks, and I particularly appreciated the realistic approach Gilmore uses to describe struggling families and difficult personal decisions across the decades. Overall, a shade under 4 stars rounded up. My thanks to Sourcebooks for providing a digital reading copy through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
More discussion and reviews of this novel: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/179947229

The story started out with very vulgar content/language. I did not continue.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to preview this book.

I thought this was really well written and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future. I think it will find readers at our library, so we will definitely be purchasing for the collection.

Get your tissue ready-this tale of old and new love will tear you up and put you back together!

A dual timeline and multiple POV love story with a bookish heart and funny banter, this book will have you falling in love with its characters, setting, and low stakes intrigue. It’s really great at straddling contemporary literature and romance genres which makes it perfect for any former English major turned Booktok gal. The historical elements will rope in another chunk of readers, and the rest will enjoy the hunky lumberjacks. There’s something for everyone!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy. These opinions are my own.

Librarian Chloe Sampson has been struggling, her mother deserted them years ago and she takes care of her three younger siblings, Trixie, Theo and Noodle. Chloe is tired of juggling credit cards to make ends meet, and she finds a rare edition of a banned 1960's book while cleaning out the libraries basement and she wonders how much she could sell it for?

Jasper Holmes lives next door to the Sampson’s and he’s the epitome of a grumpy old man, he’s a recluse and Chloe can’t believe it when he wants the buy the book. Chloe finds it odd, she looks closely at the novel, it has notes scribbled in the margins, between two sweethearts and they use it to communicate with each other. Chloe discovers it’s not the only book, she finds one more and she wonders how many others are floating around Colville. Chloe wants to uncover what happened between Jasper and his long lost love, they didn’t get married as Jasper lives alone and maybe it’s why he's rude to everyone?

The dual timeline narrative, alternates from present time and goes back to the 1960’s and Chloe discovers there's much more to Jasper Holmes, than the gruff exterior and he even offers to help her with Noodle, and they have something in common.

I received a copy of The Library of Borrowed Hearts from Sourcebooks in exchange for an unbiased review. Lucy Gilmore sets her stories around libraries, books and reading and it’s a winning combination. The characters in this novel are likable and most people will be able to relate to them and the social themes. Young love, unexpected friendships, breaking down barriers, financial struggles, raising children and everyone is different and that’s not a bad thing. I adored The Library of Borrowed Hearts, especially the quotes and references to classic books, and the author’s previous book The Lonely Hearts Book Club, I highly recommend both and five stars from me.

The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore
Fiction, women’s fiction. Chick lit. Dual time line.
Librarian Chloe Sampson has been struggling to take care of her three young siblings and to make ends meet. Chloe is cleaning out the basement of the library when she finds a rare book from the 1960’s. It’s filled with handwritten messages in the margins between two people, one of whom seems to be her cranky neighbor, Jasper Holmes. When Jasper gets involved with her siblings, caretaking and supervising,, it’s a surprise to all of them, but they seems to fit. They’ve made a new family. Then their mother returns and the whole family is turned again on its axis.
A love story from the 60’s, a potential love in the current day, family unbuilt and built again. It’s an emotional journey with sprinkles and quotes from classic and infamous books made to apply to life then and now.

You can be unique but also find similarities in the pages of the thousands and thousand of available stories.
This book includes a number of different growing relationships both past and present. I sympathized with Chloe struggling to raise her family when she’s young herself. She is determined and strong. Her empathy had me crying. And Jasper. So cranky with marshmallow insides. And Zack, such a charmer.
It may be a bit slow and underwhelming in the first half, but there are rich and heartwarming family ties in the end. But also know that not everyone fits and that’s okay too.

Excerpts I loved:
“You know, the thing I’ve always loved most about books is how they make it possible to live a thousand different lives.”

“If you don’t like where you are, you don’t have to pack up your whole family and abandon everything you know and love. All you have to do is grab a different story from the shelf.”

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. Includes Reading Group Guide and list of the books referenced. This will be recommended to a couple of my reading groups.
4.5

I received an advanced readers copy of this book from Netgalley (thank you Sourcebooks Casablanca)
Audience: Adult
Plot: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Keywords: Star-crossed lovers, love, found family, forgiveness, two time periods, librarians, books and reading

This is a romance story which takes place using multiple POVs during two time periods (1960 and modern day). It focuses on the thrill of new love, the sacrifices one makes for love, and forgiveness, for oneself and others for their choices.
Throughout the novel, there are multiple references to great literary classics — from Shakespeare to Brontë to Hemingway — which have direct influence on the story and the characters. Catherine, a librarian, and Jasper write notes to each other in several of these classics, and we get to watch as their love blossoms and grows. Chloe, also a librarian, discovers the notes 60 years later, and begins on a literary scavenger hunt to find out what happened to Catherine and Jasper. The reader also watches as the characters themselves seem to mirror the heroes and heroines in the classic stories they read.
The pacing of the novel was very good — and the chapters denoted whenever there was a POV or time period change, which was very helpful for me. The overall vibe of the novel reminded me of a Hallmark movie — where the romance was sweet and clean. Overall, I would recommend this novel to anyone who might enjoy classic literature, romance, and found family.