When a terrible moment means a change in your life

Synopsis

Welcome to the Happy Hartes Bookshop in MicklewickBay on the beautiful North Yorkshire Coast!

The Happy Hartes Bookshop has been a part of bookworm Florrie Appleton’s life as far back as she can remember. From the evocative smell of the books, to working alongside her beloved Mr H and his black Labrador, Gerty, there’s no wonder she calls it her happy place.

Living in a town she loves, with her family and group of close-knit friends nearby, life is sweet. Until one dreadful Monday morning, when everything is turned upside down and things are changed forever.

Devastated, Florrie finds herself thrown into an unexpected situation with handsome stranger, Ed Harte, owner of a pair of twinkly navy-blue eyes and a smile that has the knack of making mischief with her insides.

Despite being fresh out of a relationship, Florrie quickly finds herself falling for him, but she’s torn, reluctant to give her heart to someone who seems intent on not sticking around.

While her heart’s doing battle with her head, Florrie soon finds herself privy to a secret with Ed involving a heart-wrenching twist they could never have imagined.

Will love find a way to bring them together, or are they destined to go their separate ways?

My review

Florrie Appleton has never thought about leaving the town she lives in. She has her family, her amazing friends, a boyfriend that doesn’t make sparks fly around but he’ll do, and a job at Happy Hartes Bookshop.
Being a bookworm, Florrie has started working with love and passion at the bookshop as a weekend job when younger, and now she is still working there with the same energy fulltime.
Little does she know that one Monday morning, her whole world will turn around with a devastating discovery…
Because now she owns half of the bookshop, together with her boss’ estranged grandson Ed Harte.
And while she has many ideas to keep the bookshop a success, she doesn’t dare to give in the growing feelings she is cultivating for Ed. Because she cannot give her heart to someone who doesn’t know if he will be sticking around or not. 

Is there something better for a bookworm like me than reading a book about a bookworm, working in a bookshop, and perhaps even finding romance, and add a little mystery to it too?
That’s what I thought… 

So obviously I immediately liked Florrie. But not only because we have a shared passion for books, but because she just is such a nice person!
The way she looks after the customers of the bookshops, how she laughs and cries with her friends, and the way she takes Gerty in after their loss, these are just some of the examples to proof who Florrie really is.
Even the way she is reluctant of getting out of a passionless relationship shows her she thinks more about other people than herself. 

My heart broke when it was her who made the discovery that Monday morning, and her reaction shows us that Bernard was so much more than just her boss.
Bernard, the kind of grandfather everyone would love to have, making Florrie his ‘honorary’ granddaughter…
It made me wonder with such a great character, how it would be possible that he has such an ungrateful family… A family that broke all contact when they didn’t get things their way… 

But luckily Bernard’s kind character can be found in Ed’s character too. Because Ed decides he wants to know his grandfather, and that is of course the right decision, not only for the matter of the heart, but also that is great news for our own Florrie! 

This isn’t just a story about two people finding each other. But it’s also about people trying to figure out where they want to go with their lives. Because not everyone always knows what they want from life and what the right direction is.

And there I understood why Florrie didn’t want to invest too much of her heart in getting closer to Ed. Because what if he would just leave and leave her and her heart broken?

While it was lovely to see how feelings grew stronger, I also was very invested in the story of some side characters. Without giving too much away, their story warmed my heart and I was glad I was put on the wrong track for once, as the reality was even better than I imagined! 

I loved reading this book, with two lovely characters who both deserve the world, amazing friends that will make you laugh and a bookshop I wish I could spend all my time and money!
This story shows us that family doesn’t mean that there has to be a connection by blood. And that fighting in the same corner, even with a small diversion there, can be the start of a wonderful romance.