The Library of Borrowed Hearts

The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore has a beautiful cover and an even more beautiful story. This is my first book by Lucy Gilmore and I absolutely loved it. The author has managed to create such interesting and developed characters. While all the characters are lovable in this book except for maybe Chole’s mother, it is Jasper and the Sampson siblings that stole my heart.The dual timeline alternating between Chloe’s timeline in the present and Jasper’s timeline in the 1960s helped weave the story well. While the love story between Jasper and Catherine was beautiful. It was the bond between Jasper and Chole that I loved. I especially liked how the ending was not picture-perfect but more realistic.This heartwarming book has it all- whirlwind romance, love notes, unexpected friendship and found family.This is a book that tugs at your heartstrings and is a perfect read for those who love romance, found family and books about books.

Picture this: a couple in the 1960s fall in love writing notes to each other in library books and almost 60 years later, a young librarian discovers them and takes it upon herself to get to know more about this couple by compulsively going through all the books with their correspondence. So, when she gets hold of a copy of Tropic of Cancer(if you haven’t heard of this one, it’s only a Google search away haha. Reader discretion advised teeheehee) and her grumpy curmudgeon of a neighbour wants to buy it off of her for a lump some amount, she begins to wonder why. What follows is a super wholesome, tearjerking, heartwarming, I-so-badly-want-to-give-them-all-a-hug tale that will leave you with a sense of relief and contentment. This is one of those books best experienced than read about and I would urge you to pick it up right away!Now that I’ve given you a rundown of the plot, where do I begin? There are so many things I love about this book that this would end up being an essay instead of a review, hehe!Firstly, who doesn’t love a fierce, independent woman of 24 who works shifts at the library while also taking care of her three younger siblings? As someone who had to grow up too soon, Chloe’s struggles have been portrayed with realistic nuance and there are times when you just want to jump into the book just to give her a helping hand. The author doesn’t shy away from packing those punches and shows how harsh life can be. Chloe is a very likeable protagonist who works super hard to keep her siblings fed and cared for after their mother walks out on them and if anyone says one ill thing about my favourite girl, I will riot! 😤And Chloe’s siblings! Trixie with her girl-bossing attitude, Theo with his million explosive experiments(and personality, if you will) and my ultimate favourite boy Noodle with his huge, huge heart will live rent-free in my head, and in my heart! Their antics will make you giggle and smile and you will wish for siblings like them too!This might sound a bit unrealistic: what are the odds that you chance upon a book from the 1960s in the library basement in the discard pile which happens to have conversations between lovers from the 60s and what are the odds that one of them happens to be your neighbour? BUT, hear me out: that’s the whole point of books right? We read about things that don’t happen in real life but wish they did!The dual timeline did wonders to this book! The romance between Catherine and Jasper was so pure and untouched and extremely, extremely realistic. Full of emotion and sacrifice, it is undoubtedly one of the best romance subplots I have read! The present storyline features Chloe and her quest to find out more about Jasper and Catherine and trust me, there are some plot twists in there that will have your jaw on the floor!Dysfunctional family rep in books is something that requires finesse in execution and the author handled it perfectly. Lucy has knocked it off the park! The struggles, the trauma, the aftermath. Seamlessly done. Kudos!Books about books have a separate section on my TBR because they’re always high priority! Books form the foundation for this story and are also its major highlight. The first thing I do when I visit a new city is hit up bookstores and libraries and the fact that this book revolves around a library made me pick it up instantly!A big takeaway from this book is the fact that we are so quick to judge someone on face value and first impressions that we sometimes forget to try and get to know them. And who doesn’t have layers? I am a sucker for fleshed-out characters and Jasper is a well-written one! As you progress through the story, you will find yourself warming up to him as Chloe and the mini hooligans do. Who knew that rude, old man who happens to be your neighbour would one day become one of your favourite people on the planet?And who doesn’t love a dash of good romance in an already wholesome book? The blossoming of romance between Chloe and Zach had me smiling and blushing! Zach and his major golden retriever energy obviously made him enter my book boyfriends list! Hehe! Not only does he add comic relief to the book, he gives Chloe a much-needed shoulder to lean on and if I could ever be grateful to a fictional character, it would be him!This review would be incomplete without giving a huge shoutout to Pepper and Lonnie Pakootas! Both of them were the epitome of besties in their respective times and as someone who cherishes and greatly values woman friendships in life, I was definitely rooting for them! Pepper is the best friend we all need in our lives!If you’ve read my review(essay rather) right up until here, I hope I’ve convinced you enough to pick up what is definitely one of my favourite books of 2024! This is a book I cannot recommend enough! Bless yourself and your heart by picking this one up! In the meanwhile, I shall try getting my hands on a copy of Tropic of Cancer, wink wink!Huge thanks to Penguin India for sending me a copy for review!

This book is written to pull you in. The characters are well developed over time and the references to other books made me want to read them. A wonderful beach read or a break from the day to day. If you love books, a mystery and messy families you’ll love it too!

Chloe doesn't have it easy. What with her absent mother and her carrying the burden of raising three kids at age 24, alone. She LOVES her siblings and would do anything for them, but she's exhausted.Then she finds an annotated book which was obviously passed between a couple. She gets lost in the love story of 1960 and becomes curious enough to investigate more.Between venting to her grouchy neighbor and finding this book, she gets to know Jasper more (the grouchy neighbor in his 80s). He also reluctantly finds that he enjoys Chloe's family around. They get the old man to smile and chat before they know it Jasper becomes a part of the family.I love that they help each other grow and how by the end Chloe & Jasper would really be there for each other, as emotional support and more.There was some romance outside of the 1960s books. Very slow burn between Chloe and Zach, though it was obvious Zach was interested right away hahaIt was cute how he flirted, and spent time with her family and helped Chloe with the library books, etc. You could tell he was reeeally trying to win her over and genuinely fond of her entire family. Even patient with Noodles. Zach was so sweet and adorable 😍The ending for them isn't set at the end but I'm hoping for a HEA for them hahaBeautiful story of friendship, family, and extending kindness.I hated what Catherine did to Jasper and it made me like her less. Couldn't believe she even entertained the idea of another man either.....I kinda get why she did what she did but she had some nerve calling Jasper selfish. SHE was selfish and should have given him a choice. Poor guy went through so much, I honestly felt for Jasper. Catherine is the only reason I deducted 1 star 🙈 hahaLoved everything else about this novel and had some fun with the revelations at the end too 😊Highly recommend!

The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy GilmoreFiction, women’s fiction. Chick lit. Dual time line.Librarian Chloe Sampson has been struggling to take care of her three young siblings and to make ends meet. Chloe is cleaning out the basement of the library when she finds a rare book from the 1960’s. It’s filled with handwritten messages in the margins between two people, one of whom seems to be her cranky neighbor, Jasper Holmes. When Jasper gets involved with her siblings, caretaking and supervising,, it’s a surprise to all of them, but they seems to fit. They’ve made a new family. Then their mother returns and the whole family is turned again on its axis.A love story from the 60’s, a potential love in the current day, family unbuilt and built again. It’s an emotional journey with sprinkles and quotes from classic and infamous books made to apply to life then and now.You can be unique but also find similarities in the pages of the thousands and thousand of available stories.This book includes a number of different growing relationships both past and present. I sympathized with Chloe struggling to raise her family when she’s young herself. She is determined and strong. Her empathy had me crying. And Jasper. So cranky with marshmallow insides. And Zack, such a charmer.It may be a bit slow and underwhelming in the first half, but there are rich and heartwarming family ties in the end. But also know that not everyone fits and that’s okay too.Excerpts I loved:“You know, the thing I’ve always loved most about books is how they make it possible to live a thousand different lives.”“If you don’t like where you are, you don’t have to pack up your whole family and abandon everything you know and love. All you have to do is grab a different story from the shelf.”I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. Includes Reading Group Guide and list of the books referenced. This will be recommended to a couple of my reading groups.4.5

The courageous acts of a big sister giving up her life dreams to take care of her siblings. Intertwined with her love of books and finding a special secret love story within a novel.

Delightful read I thoroughly enjoyed that connected past to present, book quotations to romantic notes, and generations of quirky family life to heartwarming understanding and forgiveness. Loved this book.