BOOK REVIEW: The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary

BOOK SYNOPSIS

Tiffy and Leon share a flat.
Tiffy and Leon share a bed.
Tiffy and Leon have never met.

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.

MY SYNOPSIS

When Tiffy (short for Tiffany) breaks up with her boyfriend, he understandably wants her to find another place to live but her choices are limited.

Tiffy earns diddlysquat at her job working for a craft and hobby magazine. On top of that, she owes her ex-bf a bit of back pay on rent. She loves her job and doesn't want to quit, but neither can she afford to pay for a London flat by herself. Enter Leon's advert.

Leon is as a palliative care nurse at a hospice facility, but he needs extra income to take care of a family matter. Because it isn't really feasible for Leon to obtain a second job, as he works the higher paid overnight shift, he decides the best option is to procure a flat mate. This solution seems easy enough, as he'll occupy the flat when his roommate is working and he stays with his girlfriend on the weekend anyway. 

"I have a feeling Tiffy becomes 'our girl' easily -- she's the sort of person distant relatives and absent neighbors still like to claim credit for."

Leon's new flat mate is friendly, loquacious, goofy, and tons of FUN. Tiffy's bubbly personality, tall stature (six feet!), and funky outfits grab the attention of everyone around her. Leon, on the other hand, is kind, stoic, and likes to keep to himself. He's not a man of many words, and he often settles for the status quo to avoid change. In other words, Tiffy and Leon are polar opposites!

When Tiffy moves into the flat, they find creative ways to communicate and soon realize they've found an unexpected ally in each other.

MY TAKE

"There's more emotion here than at an airport arrivals lounge.
Love Actually was missing a trick."

Leon and Tiffy are utterly charming, adorable, and unique. In fact, unique is the perfect word to describe this book.

The plot is unique.

The characters are unique.

The writing format is unique.

Even their jobs are unique.

And, that's what really tipped the scales and made it a real winner for me. It's always refreshing to find a book with a unique storyline, especially when it comes to romance novels. 

MY RATING

OVERALL: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT: 👥👥👥👥👥

STORYLINE: 📚📚📚📚📚