Book: The Flatshare
Author: Beth O'Leary
Pages: 400
Read on: Kindle
Read in: 3.5 hours
Plot Summary: Tiffy Moore needs a cheap flat, and fast. Leon Twomey works nights and needs cash. Their friends think they’re crazy, but it’s the perfect solution: Leon occupies the one-bed flat while Tiffy’s at work in the day, and she has the run of the place the rest of the time.
But with obsessive ex-boyfriends, demanding clients at work, wrongly imprisoned brothers and, of course, the fact that they still haven’t met yet, they’re about to discover that if you want the perfect home you need to throw the rulebook out the window.
Things I Liked:
1. I love me a good romance read! I love it even more if there is some amount of character development thrown in and a nice little character arc for each of the protagonists! So, I was super happy to read The Flatshare because apart from being super cute and fluffy, it also had interesting character arcs for both Tiffy and Leon.
2. The premise of the book is very interesting and relatable. Post the 2008, economic recession, young people everywhere are struggling to make ends meet, especially, in the insane real estate markets in big cities like London, New York, Shanghai, Mumbai, Melbourne etc. So, the premise of a boy and a girl sharing a one-bedroom flat in a unique manner is totally realistic! Leon works as a nurse in the night shift at a Palliative Care Unit and Tiffy works in a publishing house for DIY and Craft books. So, she is at work when Leon is at home and vice versa. The two, hence, embark upon this post-it based communication system, which is super charming. I love the notes they leave each other and how their friendship is formed through these short missives left all over the house.
3. While this is a rom-com-ish kind of a book, but what I really like about it is that both Tiffy and Leon are carrying heavy burdens of their own. Tiffy has just been dumped by a controlling, emotionally manipulative man and Leon's little brother has been wrongfully accused of armed robbery and is in jail. I really liked how each of these issues is handled and resolved in the book.
4. Tiffy and Leon are such cute and likeable characters. Tiffy is very kind hearted and always goes above and beyond to help those around her. Leon is, in many ways, a typical older sibling. He is quiet, introverted but fiercely protective of his younger brother- Richie. Leon is not some alpha male, but he is the one, who helps Tiffy face her ex and overcome the gaslighting and abuse that she'd been through.
5. Tiffy and Leon's friends are also such sweet characters! I love a book with good people! There is also a cute sub-plot about Leon trying to find the long-lost (like World War II long-lost) love of one of his patients from a war. He, actually, goes all over England looking for the right Johnny White, who his patient had fallen in love with during the War; the ensuing shenanigans are also quite funny.
Things I Didn't Like: Not one thing! This is a really great book!
Rating: 5/5
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