Title: The Book Swap
By: Tessa Bickers

Genre:
Fiction, Women’s

Red Flags:
Bullying, Death, Mental Health, Mild Graphic Content, Trauma, Loss, Grief, Escape
(for some readers - small mention of LGBTQ)

Summary/Review:
A year after the loss of her best friend, Erin is still grieving. She has struggled through most of the year, and now finds herself unemployed. As she is sorting through her things, Erin accidentally donates one of her favorite books, which has a memory of her best friend in it. She frantically goes in search of the book, and to Erin’s surprise her annotations have annotations of their own. Erin begins a book swap with someone else…

This story was a fast paced, quick read. I felt the characters were more one dimensional. I felt the relationship with Erin and her sister had more depth than the “mystery man.” I felt his family relationships had more depth as well. I felt the ending was lacking and I was disappointed. I would not classify this book as a romance, rather women’s fiction, with elements of trauma, forgiveness, and second chances.

Thank you Tessa Bickers, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader Copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

#Thebookswap
#harlequintradepublishing
#Tessabickers
#reluctantreaderreads
#advancedreadercopies
#netgalleyreviews

Unfortunately this one wasn't for me, I probably would have DNF'd if it wasn't sent to me for review :( The writing style wasn't my favorite, and all of the characters were really unlikeable. I usually like an enemies to lovers plot, but the romance didn't kick in until the epilogue and what James did to Erin was HORRIBLE, like I would go full scorched earth if a man did that to me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for sending me this book!

I enjoyed reading The Book Swap by Tessa Bickers. You will fall in love with all the characters. I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and given freely. Happy Reading!

The Book Swap by Tessa Vickers was a breath of fresh air. There seems to be a flood of books lately about books and libraries, and so many Romances as well. Yes, this book checks those boxes, but it is so much more. The Book Swap deals with heavy topics such as lingering grief, childhood trauma, and family issues. The affects of these things on our main characters is realistically and tenderly depicted, interspersed between a storyline featuring a mutual love of books and a developing (possibly romantic) relationship. The author tells this story well!
Thank you to NetGalley for the Advance Copy to review. I truly enjoyed it.

After dealing with the loss of a loved one, Erin is still trying to figure out how to navigate life's challenges. During a cleaning spree, she accidentally donates her annotated copy of To Kill A Mockingbird to the local free library. Erin returns to the library to find that her copy is missing. When she returns again out of desperation, her book is back with new annotations from a stranger inviting her to meet him in the margins of Great Expectations. And so, their pen pal relationship begins. What she doesn't know is the mystery man she is starting to fall for is actually someone from her past. Erin must confront their history and decide if she wants to take the plunge.

This was a sweet read. I loved all of the literary references. If you're a book connoisseur, you will love reading this. Also, I wish I could find a pen pal through a Little Free Library! Wouldn't that be so cute? I loved seeing these characters fall for each other through the margin notes within literary classics. Both MCs have some demons they must face and I enjoyed seeing the character growth. I will say Erin got on my nerves a little bit because she just always felt so sorry for herself, but that is something she eventually comes to terms with and is able to learn from. All in all, cute read with a literary flair.

What a depressingly cute story!

Erin and James, both from the same small town have both relocated a short drive away to London. Their lives have been falling apart since they fell apart. Life works in mysterious ways and they come back into each other's orbit, they just don't know it yet. Will they find out? ... and if they do, is a second chance even an option?

This book was not what I expected, in the best way possible. The beginning is all sad, no love. It got to the point where I didn't know if I could keep reading and as if Bickers knew exactly what I was thinking the plot shifted to a much lighter story. Some heavy elements still appear in the second half of the book but are decreased dramatically.

For the majority of the book, it was hard to gauge how long Bonnie has been gone, but I think that is a great representation of true grief. Sometimes it feels like someone has been gone a day, the grief still fresh and overwhelming, and the next day you conquer the grief just to be back to square one the next. Bickers does a fantastic job describing the grief process and the guilt that can come with it.

My favorite element of the story (other than the book swap itself) was the light shone on men's mental health. It's no secret that men's mental health is something that is not talked about nearly enough. James's mental health journey throughout the book was fantastic to read about.

The Book Swap is a true second chance enemies to lovers romance. Nothing annoys me more than books marketed as "enemies to lovers" romances where they are enemies for approximately 10 pages. I am happy to report this is not the case. This was a great debut novel from Bickers, I cannot wait to see what she does next!

Sometimes a book can be really well-written, but it just doesn’t do it for me. The Book Swap is one such book. I struggled to get through it, hoping for the happily ever after that readers depend on in romances, but the longer I read, the less I liked the female main character, Erin. I thought both Erin and James were immature and so burdened by their traumas that it really stunted their emotional growth. They both dealt with mommy issues and the cancer death of their mutual best friend, but their utter lack of communication (vs. the tired miscommunication trope) and Erin’s selfish unwillingness to let James explain his actions and forgive him just annoyed me.

The premise of a romance building between two strangers who share ever-increasing parts of themselves in the margins of books found in a London little book library should have been a slam dunk for this romance-loving librarian, but the narrative was just too bogged down with grief, job dissatisfaction, James’s mother’s bipolar disorder, and Erin’s mom’s betrayal. As a former educator and parent, I really hated reading about James’s bullying, and couldn’t fathom why no adults in his life put a stop to it. They both should have been in therapy in their adolescence, another failure on the part of their parents. Even when Erin’s (ironically) psychotherapist sister forced her into therapy at age 30, it was clear that it wasn’t doing her any good in terms of her grieving and stubbornness in holding on to others’ past transgressions. Pretty much everyone in the book is either miserable or making others so. Bottom line, I just found this book depressing and, if I’m being honest, somewhat triggering. Speaking of, there should be trigger warnings for death, bullying, mental illness, and abandonment. Not recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Grayson House through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

I'd like to first thank the Harlequin Trade Publishing for a Netgalley of this book, for review.

I enjoyed this book from debut author, Tessa Bickers. I love how the story focuses on a love of books, but there is also a very complex story going on at the same time.

I really loved seeing the love of books that both of the main characters had, and all of the nods to the classics. It was fun seeing the dialogue between characters being written in the margins of books they would pass between each other (I'd say it kind of gave off You've Got Mail vibes!). I also loved the mention/appreciation of the community library (basically a Little Free Library).

I think the cover is a bit deceiving because it looks like it'll be a light romcom, but the book covers many potentially triggering topics such as:
- death of a close friend/grief
- mental health
- Bullying
- Trauma
- Familial issues
- Mention of suicide

⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book managed to balance the right amount of cheesiness as well as some more serious and heavy topics.

I loved how many books were referenced. I especially love that two of the books talked about a lot were two that are incredibly important to me— The Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Great Gatsby.

The idea of connecting with someone through notes in the margins of books is so incredibly romantic.

However, I did not really like our MC Erin— I found her incredibly immature and even insufferable at times. I can empathize with the things she went through but I had a hard time understanding some of her behaviors.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read. I am sucker for books about books

I was so excited when I saw a romance book about books! Sounded like the perfect book for a booklover; however, this book was not at all what I expected. I went in expecting a romance, when it feels a lot like an Emily Henry book; we have a lot about life and little about love in this one. It goes on to address grief, loss, strained relationships and that just wasn't what I was looking for so I had a hard time staying engaged in this book and connecting with the characters.

Overall I think if you are a book lover, have read a lot of classic literature, and want a book that is more in the Emily Henry realm of general fiction with a hint of romance then this book might be for you!

Thank you to Netgalley, Tessa Bickers, and Harlequin for the advanced copy of this book to share my honest thoughts.

Quick. Cute. Predictable.

Erin is having a hard time letting go of the past. Her BFF died a few years ago and she's holding on to her grief. James feels an obligation to take care of his mother, since it's his fault she is the way she is, according to him. Erin and James have a past but do they maybe have a future too?

I loved the notes in the margins. Very cute way to connect with someone else. I enjoyed this book.

I read this over the holiday weekend and absolutely loved it! The characters were so perfectly flawed and a joy to read. I went through so many emotions, right alongside them. There are alternating POVs and some glimpses into their pasts to help us understand how James and Erin got to where they are now. Friends turned enemies, turned secret book swappers, think You’ve Got Mail with books! There are so many great life lessons contained in the book as well as some heavy topics that the author includes in a content warning at the beginning. I don’t want to divulge too much, as it would ruin the book, but it really hits on parenthood, friendships, relationships, career choices.. just to name a few. It is a heartfelt book that I believe will resonate with so many readers. I am in disbelief that this is Tessa Bickers’ debut. I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us next!

A bookseller told me this was one of his favorite reads of 2024, so I thought I would request an ARC. Much thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing/Graydon House for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I went into The Book Swap expecting a cute, heartfelt, epistolary novel that takes place in the margins of books two people exchange at A Little Free Library. While The Book Swap does follow that basic premise, it’s heavier and less romantic that deals with themes of grief, loss, finding your true passion in life, and escaping in the pages of a book.

The book follows our FMC, Erin, and MMC, James, who used to be best friends in middle school (along with a girl named Bonnie) and had crushes on each other, but James does something that Erin can’t forgive. They never really speak to each other after that. Later in their late twenties, the pair begin (unknowingly) exchanging notes in novels with each other, and feelings develop. What will happen once they discover they’re really foes?

I struggled a bit with the second chance romance angle because the two of them never really were together to begin with, but maybe that’s just me. James was bullied quite brutally in the book and has a mother with bipolar disorder whose mania appears a lot. She blamed James for her disorder, and he really internalized it. I found that surprising as well because bipolar disorder is readily thought to be genetic, but childhood trauma has lasting effects. I felt bad for him.

Further complicating matters is that the best friend, Bonnie, has recently passed away from cancer. Erin really struggles to find herself. While I enjoyed her journey to get there, I was confused because she sees Bonnie as a ghost in her room and talks with her. I wanted clarification because this book isn’t paranormal or speculative fiction–is Erin imagining it? It didn’t work with the rest of the book, for me.

All in all, I didn’t love The Book Swap, but I didn’t dislike it either. The book does feature several classic works of literature that many readers will have read or enjoyed, and I loved the LFL aspect of writing notes in annotated books. I also really enjoyed the side characters and how they complemented Erin and James as they grew. The ending is a happy one (felt a little too convenient for me), but if you want to escape into the pages of some great books and get some banter and read about some heavy topics along the way, then this book may be for you.

I was really excited to receive this one due to the cover and the description. However I felt this book was very hard to get into, and once I did I really did not enjoy the characters. The story fell a little short and the characters were rude/hateful. I was expecting more of a comfort read.

Thank you for the arc!

This was not for me or it was my mood. Either way I struggled thru this. The writing had me confused at times and I just couldn’t follow along. It had hallmarky vibes which I was loving but I was bored and it was just not flowing properly for me to really enjoy it. Not gonna fault it too harshly and I may even try to read it again at some point.

Erin finally decided to quit her job. She knows she needs to do something new, she just has no idea what. When she accidentally donates her heavily annotated copy of To Kill a Mockingbird containing a memento she can’t be without to a local little community library, she’s devastated. She checks this little library daily. It is soon returned back to this little library and it is full of new comments. This opens up secret conversations with a mystery man!

Erin is a bit of a hot mess. She is still grief stricken and she has some issues she just can’t shake. Then there is James. He is struggling through life as well. His mother is bipolar and he blames himself for it. But, both of these characters struggle to come into their own. And they do it separately for the most part, or rather, they have no idea they have helped each other through their margin notes.

Parts of this book are brilliant! I loved the book references and the way they wrote notes to each other is adorable. This is very unique and creative. Then there are parts that are just a tad slow, the beginning especially.

This story is more than just a love story. It encompasses grief, heartbreak, bullying and family issues. So, it will definitely give you lots of emotions!

Need a wonderful romance with tons of book references…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

I’m sure this is a great debut but I just cannot get into it. Something about the writing style had me struggling and I was not drawn into the characters. Felt like way too much of a slow burn for me. DNF.

Not gonna lie, I almost did not finish this book. But I am so glad I did! Once I hit the 18% mark, I was hooked and had an impossibly difficult time putting it down. I loved how Erin and James reconnected through the margins of books, not realizing who the other was. I loved how much they came to realize how important their imperfect families meant to them and the growth they made through their careers in this story. I have always said it’s better to have a job you love that makes you happy than a job you don’t enjoy and makes you rich. The author nailed so many important aspects in life that we don’t appreciate in today’s world. I look forward to reading more Tessa!

I really could not get into this book no matter what I did which is disappointing because the plot did look promising and exciting :( will be giving it another try soon

Im going to be honest, with the slow start of book, i wasn't sure if I was going to finish this book. I'm glad I stuck it out as I ended up really enjoying it. I really enjoyed James characters but had a little bit harder time connecting with Erin. I felt she was very self centered the majority of the book, im glad she finally was able to figure herself out.

4 stars

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.