An enchanting historical fiction that will have you going through all the emotions. Set in wartime England the characters are well developed and the heroine instantly likeable.

If you're searching for a cozy yet profoundly moving historical fiction novel, look no further than The Booklover's Library by Madeline Martin. Set against the backdrop of early World War II England, this novel effortlessly blends historical depth with heartwarming storytelling.

Emma, the novel’s resilient protagonist, has faced unimaginable loss in her life. Yet, her iron strength shines through as she navigates the turbulent times, supporting and loving her daughter, Olivia. Emma’s journey is one of both personal and emotional recovery. Martin masterfully crafts Emma's evolution over the years, portraying her growth with nuance and authenticity. As Emma finds solace and a sense of belonging at the Booklover's Library, it becomes clear that her journey is as much about self-discovery as it is about survival.

The novel beautifully captures the essence of hope and friendship amidst adversity. Emma’s interactions with her new friends, including the delightful side character Tubby, add layers of warmth and charm to the narrative. The library itself becomes a symbol of refuge and renewal, mirroring Emma’s own path to healing. As the story unfolds, the camaraderie and support Emma finds in this close-knit community become a beacon of light in the darkest of times.

The relationship between Emma and Olivia is particularly touching, showcasing a mother’s unwavering love and sacrifice. The novel doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities of war but balances them with moments of joy and human connection. Emma’s eventual discovery of love and happiness, despite the hardships she has faced, offers a hopeful and satisfying conclusion.

Madeline Martin’s storytelling is both engaging and inspiring, making The Booklover's Library a must-read for fans of historical fiction. The book’s themes of resilience, friendship, and the transformative power of community will resonate with readers long after they turn the final page.

I wholeheartedly recommend The Booklover's Library to friends and followers on Instagram. It’s a heartfelt tribute to the enduring strength of the human spirit, wrapped in the cozy embrace of a beautifully crafted historical setting.

Madeline Martin always does a great job with literary WWII novels. I enjoy the bookshop and library settings in her books. This one takes place in a lending library that requires a membership from its patrons. It was really interesting learning about these! I also thought the book did a great job of showing the emotions of mothers and fathers as they either sent their children to the English countryside or brought them home. There were so many unknowns and I can't imagine how difficult this was for families. I loved the characters, especially the neighbors that soon become friends. The book did seem a bit repetitive and slow at times, but there was enough action to keep me going.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Madeline Martin for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

Grab this historical romance on September 10th!

While based in England during WWII, this is not a war book. This is about love and home even during unimaginable times. Its a book about mothers and their unending love for their child.

I adored all the characters in this novel. I really loved the bond between Emma and Olivia, as well as the rest of the "family". I laughed and cried and felt all the emotions.

Lovers of historical fiction/historical romance/romance, grab this one. Easy 3.5 star read.

Thank you to Hanover Square Press and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book and the way it was written. The POV of a widowed single mother and her gut-wrenching choices about keeping her daughter with her or sending her away with the other children of Britain is so beautiful. Add in the challenges of being in a country entering WWII, rations, and the fact that married women and mothers (married, widowed, or unmarried) are not supposed to work and the challenges tackled in this book are numerous. Friendship, found family, and books abound. Delightful, emotional, and handled well.

Loved this book so much! It takes place in England during WWII. Emma’s father owned a bookshop but after he died the bookshop burned down. Emma really had no options as she had a daughter, was a widow and not allowed to work. Women who were married or widowed or had children were not allowed to work. But the manager at the library inside Boots the Chemist decided to take a chance on Emma and hired her. But Emma was set for heartbreak as all children were sent to the rural areas to keep them safe during the war. The characters were delightful!
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I'm always a little hesitant about choosing books that center around wars, because they can be particularly depressing and sad. This book references issues about WWII from the perspective of a UK woman, without overshadowing the characters so beautifully developed throughout. Be sure to read the author's note after the Epilogue, for further information regarding elements the story.

I Ioved the story, the characters, the setting, and basically everything about the entire package!

Madeline Martin's book, The Booklover's Library, is a must-read! It takes place during WWII in Nottingham, England. In the beginning of the book, Emma is a widowed, single mother raising her seven-year-old daughter Olivia. Despite the survivors benefits from her late husband's death, Emma barely makes ends meet.

Slowly, Emma is forced to sell possessions she holds dear. As a child, Emma never had the opportunity to know her mother, as she died when she was a baby. As a result of an unfortunate fire in their bookshop, Emma's father died.

A unique opportunity unfolds when Emma is utterly distraught, unsure of how else she will provide for herself and Olivia. Despite the marriage bar that extended to widows with children, Emma is secretly allowed to obtain employment at the Booklover's Lending Library. Every aspect of life will be changed by this change encounter and opportunity. It will be a challenge to keep Olivia safe while her mother is away at work because she is so young.

The Nazis have invaded London. As a result of the war threat in England, Olivia is evacuated to the countryside. On three separate occasions, Olivia would be sent away. Emma soon established close relationships with those in her tenement house, as well as co-workers and library patrons due to being separated from her daughter. When Emma was without Olivia during these months, she remained busy making recommendations to patrons at the lending library. Emma also enrolled in the WVS (Woman's Volunteer Service) to further the war effort at home.

This book is filled with love, loss, twists, turns, and happy endings.

Emma Taylor, a young widowed mother, has to make the tough decision whether or not to send her daughter, Olivia, away from the city as Hilter moves his troops into England. In addition to taking care of Olivia, Emma works at The Boots’ Booklover’s Lending Library and volunteers with the Women’s Volunteer Services. Widowed mothers not being allowed to work causes Emma to be extremely secretive about Olivia, but when she begins to open up she creates her own little family who loves and looks after both her and her daughter. Emma ends up falling in love and creates her own version of happily ever after.

I enjoyed:
- The relationship between Emma and her daughter, Olivia.
- The details given to all the characters’ lives.
- Emma’s happily ever after.

I disliked:
- How long it took for the book to pick up. The first half dragged a bit.
- The reason for the misshelved books at the library. It was a bit anticlimactic for me.

Overall, I thought this was a very cute read and enjoyed the writing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing | Hanover Square Press who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A magnificent piece of historical fiction. Madeline Martin has found a niche that is totally working for her. The story is set in England during WWII and told from the point of view of the main character Emma. It is poignant and emotional as the characters try to function under the threat of war. The plot is superbly executed and has elements of romance as well as a little mystery. This is an expertly written and interesting story that should not be missed.

Emma is a widowed mother trying to keep her daughter safe during World War II. When in need of employment, Emma comes across the Booklover’s Library. She gets the job and struggles between working, keeping her daughter safe, and surviving.

Rating: 4/5 stars. ⭐️

Publish Date: September 10th 2024

I enjoyed reading this. I often look for historical fictions that are heart warming but also devastating and maybe even a little romantic at times. This hit the mark for me.

I thought Emma was a well written character. I felt her emotions and felt for her when she kept having to decide how to protect Olivia.

The friendships in this were nice and the bit of romance as well. I think having things like this when a book is discussing a heavy topic such as WWII, are needed to almost “cleanse” from time to time thought the story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Madeline Martin, and Hanover Square Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Booklover’s Library by Madeline Martin
Set during World War 11, The Booklover’s Library focuses on the life of Emma as she navigates trying to care for her daughter financially, physically, and emotionally. The friends she meets at The Booklover’s Library will shape her and change her.
I liked that Emma had concerns and fears and even though she saw others make mistakes, she cautiously thought the best of them. She made deep friendships at a time when survival could cause many to only look within.
Surprisingly, Mrs. Pickering was my favorite character. She was spunky and thoughtful.
There were several characters in The Booklover’s Library yet they were well developed so that I never felt confused. They interacted with each other in a manner that supported Emma and held their own.
I loved the whole book. I could have read the book in one day but wanted to savor and enjoy it.
NetGalley and Hanover Square Press shared an Advanced Readers Copy with me. It was my pleasure to read The Booklover's Library and share my review.

This book was so informative and lovely

Emma is a single mother in 1931 she was raised by a single father till the day there bookshop went up in flames. At that time it is not proper and wrong to have married women and widows working. However Emma is raising a daughter Olivia and is in need for a job. When Emma comes across the book lovers library she lies that she is a not married or a mother and gets the job. With the help of her neighbors and the people of the library she realizes she doesn’t need to be alone. When war breaks out and Emma gets a letter to send her daughter away she is struck with the hard choice of keeping her or sending her away.

I didn’t know a lot of things what were written in this book I recommend this.

Life has never been easy for single mothers and their children, but late summer of 1939 was especially hard for young widow Emma Taylor and her daughter Olivia. With England on the brink of joining WWII, Emma is doing her best to provide for her child, but with her meager savings running low and prices rising, she is beginning to feel desperate. She would willingly work, but with a marriage bar prohibiting married women and widows with children from working most jobs, she is having a hard time finding a job that will enable her to earn a living, but still care for her daughter. Her luck seems to take a turn for the better when she happens to be in the right place at the right time – in this case, the café in Boot’s the Chemist store. She overhears a librarian resigning her position as she is to be married, and she takes the opportunity to ask about a position and is hired to work in the Boot’s Booklover’s Library – a Lending Library. But with war looming, even having a job, might not be enough to keep her daughter safe, decisions will have to be made about Olivia’s future, decisions that no parent wants to make. Keep your child close and potentially in harm’s way or send them away to live with strangers and hopefully away from air raids?

This story is a heartwarming and at times heartbreaking story of not only a woman struggling to keep her tiny family together during the war but rediscovering her own love of books and sharing that love with her daughter and the patrons of the lending library and maybe even finding a happy ending for herself. The story takes place at the start of England’s involvement in the war and gives the reader a glimpse of life in Nottingham during the terror of the blitz, as well as Emma’s volunteer efforts and her relationship with her young daughter, her friends, coworkers and library patrons. In addition to a fantastic story, fans of Ms. Martin’s novel, The Last Bookshop in London, will be delighted when Emma is sent to London and happens upon Primrose Hill Books and meets Grace and Mr. Evans. If you enjoy well-researched, emotional Homefront WWII fiction with relatable characters and literary references, then look no further, you have found your next read!

*I am voluntarily leaving a review for an eARC that I requested and was provided to me by the publisher/author. All opinions in this review are my own. *

The Booklover's Library was a solid four star book for me. Coming off a historical fiction that I literally could not force myself to finish, I was relieved to be drawn in to Emma's story from the start. I think probably the most interesting part of the story for me, was the conflict that Emma experienced with sending her daughter Olivia away and then bringing her back home (several times) to keep her safe from the bombing. Having read so many World War II novels, I've often read stories of families sending their children away to the countryside (both from the perspective of the child and the parent). I believe this is the first, however, where I read of a mother keeping her child with her for various stretches of time. Emma's turmoil over her decision(s) and her ensuing actions were incredibly relatable. I also loved the full cast of characters in The Booklover's Library. There were many minor characters (patrons of the library, etc.) that were still very well developed and Martin brought everyone to life.

The wonderful message of this book is community. Emma is a widow with a young daughter. She grew up with just her dad since her mother dies shortly after her birth. It was always Emma and her dad, and now Emma and her daughter, Olivia. Finding the Jo bay the Booklovers Library opened a door to a different world for Emma. She found friends, love, and community. Set during England in WW2, there are other factors that play into the story as well. An enjoyable read.

Thank you NetGalley, Hanover Square Press and Madeline Martin for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of The Booklover’s Library.
I was thoroughly immersed in this historical fiction story set in Nottingham, England during WWIi with Emma and her family. It is filled with emotion and beautiful writing about the difficulties of war and I felt I was right there with them. The Booklover’s Library was quite fascinating with how books were checked out by purchasing tiered subscriptions. Books were a rare treat and demanded respect which makes my heart happy.
This story did not center on the battles of WWIi but how people, especially women were treated, children were sent to the country for safety and how everyone worked together to survive. There were many twists and turns and I couldn’’t wait to see what happened next. There is tragedy, worry, optimism and healing and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Set in Nottingham, England with the backdrop of WwIi, this story follows Emma, a mother trying to make ends meet and keep her child safe. The characters that come alongside her only enhance her love and devotion and their support for Emma. Her love of literature and the setting of a library drew me in further to the story. The historical aspects woven into it brought the reality of the struggle of war to life. This is a beautiful story of friendship, determination, and love (yes there’s even a budding romance in it). Definitely worth another read!

The book follows the story of single mother, Emma, and her daughter, Olivia, in Nottingham, UK during World War II. Emma struggles with deciding whether to keep Olivia home or to send her away at a safer place in the countryside. She also faces all the difficulties of war while working at a bookshop. With several storylines, including a budding romance and the mystery of mis-shelved books, the book highlights the fact that reading is good for the soul.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

The Booklover's Library combines well-known backdrop of World War Two with a character-drive story following a widowed mother. The story is often sad, as the era was full of tragedy, and Emma is not exempt from the goings-on of the world around her. What I loved most was the honest look at her internal monologue, trying to do the best by her daughter at all times.