I should mark this as a DNF but I'm going to post this instead. This book had promise. It should have been at least a four star read. If it would not have had the use of the "F" word so much I would have finished it. It started out slow but I was willing to keep going until I just could not take it anymore. There is no need to over use such an ugly word like this one.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

I wasn't expecting the book to end like this. but it did have a slow start to it and picked up a little in the middle of the book.

I was thinking this book would be cutesy, but it also touched on topics like grief, depression, and mental illness. I didn’t have an issue with this, it was just different than what I was expecting. There was some cute boy likes girl/girl likes boy mixed in. I didn’t connect with this book as much as other romantic style books I’ve read and I wasn’t as excited to read it. Not a bad read (and I believe this is the first book by this author) by any means and I’d definitely check out other titles she puts out in the future. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

Let me set the scene: you accidentally donated your favorite book to a little library. You go back and find your book with new notes in the margins. That is what happens to Erin Connolly. She begins a friendship with a Mystery Man between the margins of several books. I LOVED THIS book! Erin is in her 30s but is still struggling to find a job/career she enjoys for several reasons and her Mystery Man is in a similar situation. They connected through their love of books.

This book was so sweet and was such a unique way of covering hard topics such as loss and depression. The juxtaposition of a rom-com and grief in one story was beautifully done. This is my first book by Tessa Bickers, but I will definitely be reading more!

The perfect book for book lovers.

So, I picked this book up once and it didn't resonate with me after the first chapter. I put it down and knew I would come back to it later. When I did, I couldn't put it down.

I would say it leans a bit more women's fiction than romance in the sense that we don't see the MC's on page together as much a we might in a typical romance.

The literary references and they way that fall in love is ever book lovers dream. I would highly recommend this one!

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for an arc. All opinions expressed are my own.

This is a story for book lovers everywhere. Erin accidentally put her annotated copy of To Kill a Mockingbird in a little free library. It is her favorite book. When she goes to retrieve it, the book is gone. The book returns from someone who has also annotated the same book. This starts a trading of books that are classic. While reading the comments they get to know each other. What will happen when they actually meet?

This is a book that is full of the love of reading. Erin is a character that is grieving and this colors her whole world. She cannot seem to get on with her life. Will this bookish friend help her to move on or is she permanently stuck? You will have to read the book to find out. I really enjoyed this book as I am definitely a book lover. I would highly recommend reading this book.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #TessaBickers, and #GraydonHouse for a copy of this book.
#TheBookSwap

The Book Swap is a book for book nerds. It is a second chance romance of two high school friends, Erin and James, who had a falling out and then years later, unbeknownst to them, they start exchanging books and notes via a little free library. They communicate by writing notes and questions in various classic novels and leaving them for each other to find. This was adorable and heartwarming. I loved how they signed off with things like “meet me at Wuthering Heights”. I loved how these two have lived through and were currently living through tragedy and tough times and these book conversations were getting them through it. So clever and so sweet.

I’m not sure what I expected of this one, but it didn’t meet whatever goals I had in mind.
Erin, quite frankly, was annoying and had a lot of issues. Very self-centered. I understand grieving, but the majority of the book centered around her deceased best friend which just kept taking away from the plot.
James I actually liked and pitied for most of the book.
The whole realization after the library exchanges fell flat for me, as well as the fact that they both just kept meeting by chance, it seemed way too set up.
The ending didn’t do it for me either.

I loved that they both wanted to chase their dreams, I wish more of their journeys had been in here. I wanted to love it, but I just don’t.

If you are a book lover who enjoys the classics, you will love this romance book. A lot of the great love stories are mentioned and quoted in this book. Told in dual pov as well as well as past and present timelines, you have these two main characters who each have a lot of stuff going on in their lives but they manage to find each other through books. What starts off as a simple mistake leads to them two interacting via books they pull from the local littel free library. They write notes to one another without know who each other are. Little do they know they actually know each other very well. I will say it took me a bit to get into this book as I felt it started off slow. It did gradually get better as the book went on. It ended up being a cute story with a happily ever after.

I severely enjoyed The Book Swap! At times it reminded me of much of what I loved from Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, but with books instead of video games.

Highlights: Two people find their way back to themselves... and to each other, through the magic that is literature. The concept is so fun - how often do we walk past and patronize the Little Libraries in our neighborhoods? What if it led to something more? I found the back story to the main characters to be complex yet deliberate.

While some plot points seemed obvious, each page shared a story worth hearing regardless of where I thought it might end up. Would absolutely recommend The Book Swap to friends and honestly may have to re-read myself!

Unfortunately, this one wasn’t for me.

Erin is very selfish and seems to have only slight character growth. She is seeing a therapist but there is little mention as to what she is learning in therapy.

Her and James have virtually no positive interaction during the entire book besides a few notes to each other written in the margins of books. That’s it! They only see each other in person a few times and Erin is horrible to him every one of those times. It makes absolutely no sense why James would be in love with her…he was briefly friends with her in high school, they had a falling out and haven’t spoken since.

James’s mother has very severe mental illness and is absolutely awful to James. She says the cruelest things to him and, while it’s the mental illness doing the talking, not one other person in his family seems to care. His dad and his brother do absolutely nothing to protect him during his mother’s tirades against him. His dad is supposed to be this sympathetic character but he let James go through terrible bullying at school and by his mom.

I just had a really hard time connecting with these characters. I found them to mostly be pretty awful to each other throughout the book. I didn’t really find that this was a romance at all; maybe more women’s fiction? I know this is a debut and I think that it isn’t bad for all that. But it wasn’t for me.

I really enjoyed this book. I ended up listening to the audiobook due to time issues and maybe that helped. The narrators were awesome and really fit the characters.

I can see how people wouldn't love this, it's definitely more of a general fiction book than a romance. There is a love interest but the story mostly focuses on the events of the two characters and things that happened when they were children. as long as you are in the mindset of a good, fiction read and not a romance, you'll fair well.

Thank you so much to HTP, the author and Netgalley for this ARC. I am leaving my review voluntarily and honestly.

The Book Swap is a sweet, feel-good story that’s perfect for a cozy afternoon. It’s about two strangers who accidentally swap books, and from there, their lives slowly start to intertwine. The whole book has a fun, lighthearted vibe, and it’s full of little moments that make you smile.

The characters are relatable, and you can really feel the connection they build over time. If you love books about books (and who doesn’t?), you’ll probably find this one pretty enjoyable. It’s the kind of read that just makes you feel good by the end.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Erin had been mourning the death of her best friend for the past few years. Feeling a bit adrift, she decides to clean house and accidentally donates a beloved book holding a postcard from her friend to a free little library. When she tracks down her book, she finds that someone had responded to her margin notes. As they continue to swap books, their relationship grows, but this mystery man is no stranger to Erin. He was once a good friend who she vowed never to speak with again. When all is revealed, will Erin be able to forgive her former friend for what happened in the past?

I loved the idea of the book swap. The way Erin and Mystery Man met in the margins of so many wonderful books. These comments went beyond the books and allowed them to reveal pieces of themselves. And what a blessing it was for them both.

Erin was not only grieving the death of her friend, she was wracked with guilt and also grappling with forgiving her mother for what happened many years ago. At the same time, Erin was sort of going through the motions and not really living. She stayed in living situations she did not like, in a job she did not like, and in a hook up she did not like. Thank goodness she found Mystery Man because she really needed something to push her out of this limbo she was stuck in. Mystery Man also had a lot to deal with his in life and in his past, and it brought me great joy that they were able to find each other.

Both of the book swappers have fabulous story arcs. They embark on finding and chasing their passion while also making positive changes in the present and come to terms with their pasts. Both were definitely in a better place post book swap than they were before, and I was left feeling happy and hopeful for them.

Overall, this was an emotional and touching story of love, friendship, forgiveness, and second chances. It was about opening your heart after it's been broken, showing grace, and the power of books.

You’ve Got Mail, but with a little free library instead of an AOL account.

There is nothing, and I repeat nothing, that I love more than a book that is a love letter to books. I also am a major sucker for a Ryan/Hanks movie. I immediately requested this eARC because obviously, this was promised to be that. And that part of this novel definitely was executed well - a romance that buds through a love of annotations and books passed back and forth anonymously? Count me in. However… the characters here felt very surface-level and just plan unrealistic at times. They dealt with very heavy, serious topics, but still somehow seemed to be unlikeable, immature, and self-centered. Couple that with a burn that was just a bit too slow for me, and you get a pretty average romance. 2.5 stars from me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was an okay book. I did enjoy it, but I was expecting more. I was not a fan of the way the two main characters acted towards each other. Erin was holding on to a grudge waaaay too long, and she didn't even want to give James a chance to explain things to her. I really liked the book swap part of the story, and found the choice of books interesting.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC! I did enjoy the premise of this book, and I think if you like deeper meaning books and not just a fluffy romance, you'll enjoy it. Tessa's writing is very captivating, and the book contains a pretty heavy grief aspect but does it very eloquently. If you enjoy Emily Henry books, I could see you enjoying this. You have to get through the first bit of it being slow before the book picks up, but it's worth getting through.

"Don't be fooled by the cover—what looks like a breezy romance packs a punch with some deeper, heavier themes. Erin, our leading lady, is super relatable, though not always the most lovable (I mean, girl, get it together?). Meanwhile, James...this guy totally stole my heart, and honestly, he deserved so much better. The supporting cast? Absolute scene-stealers! I’m hoping for a sequel just to see where they all end up. Now, about that ending... James was way too forgiving, and Erin? She needed a serious growth moment and a redemption tour! All in all, it's a solid 3 stars from me. Big thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

I thought this book was just okay. I think the premise is cute, but the execution just wasnt there for me. I think the characters were incredibly surface level even as they were dealing with pretty deep issues.