Book Review: Not Quite by the Book by Julie Hatcher
I DEVOURED this audiobook in 1 day! Liked it so much, I bought a physical copy! It if was not for some of the language used in this book, it would be 5 stars. [5-6 F words, some S words etc.] But it was not so much language that it took me out the story too much.
We have Emma Rini as our main girl here who needs to take time for herself. Her sister is pregnant with her first baby, her parents are about to retire and travel and Emma is just taking everything in stride by being the one who continues to take care of everything! I related to that SO much because I am always having to take care of my parents/brother's stuff it seems like and try to keep the family together.
Emma can't remember the last time she was on a vacation or a romance worth anything. Her parents assume she will take over the shop without a break so she decides to stand up and take that break she needs. She loves Emily Dickinson so she finds a manor house outside Amherst where Emily resided and she gets off the grid for 6 weeks there, to learn how to rest and enjoy life without all the stress of family and work stuff. She struggles with some of the off the grid things though -- like being able to start a fire and take care of the manor's issues. In comes the handsome grumpy architect renovating the manor who is helping take care of the issues at the manor, Davis. They form feelings as things progress...but she has a secret admirer sending her flowers and letters too...is it Davis or someone else?
My favorite bits of this were the parts of Emma trying to dive into writing, letters, poetry, gardening, reading, and just enjoying her time at the manor. I loved the resolution between her and her family and the bookshop elements. I also loved the slow burn between Davis and her. They grew to really like one another. There were a few parts of their relationship I didn't love -- some things in the end, but overall I still loved their relationship together.
I also don't know much about Emily Dickinson and have never read her poetry, but this made me want to read some of them!
Looking forward to more women's fiction by Julie!
Thank you to the publisher for an ALC of the book to listen to and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Content: cursing 5-6 F words, some S words, mentions of the universe type stuff etc.
Amazon: [on KU and audio KU as of 3/17/25] https://amzn.to/3XVgixU*Amazon links are affiliate links and a commission may be earned on items purchased from these links.
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