FRUSTRATION

Victoria is unhappily married to Eric, bored with the mundane tasks of domestic life like preparing dinner every night, and having sex with her husband twice a week. Set up by their parents it seemed more a marriage of convenience.

IMAGINATION

When she isn’t reading, she spends her time imagining the lives of those around her, and fantasizes about the ways her husband could die, so she could be free to live a different life-One without a husband who suggests that she might be happier if she gave up reading, and tried living in the real world.

TEMPTATION

When she sees an attractive man reading the SAME book as her, in her favorite coffee house, “Cafe Au Lait”
she becomes convinced he is her soulmate. She hopes to bump into him again over Lattes, or to master the art of levitation so she can visit him at night….

CULMINATION

Can she wish this relationship into existence and find her “happily ever after”?

The synopsis describes this story as a wickedly funny, black comedy….but humor is so subjective, and I didn’t laugh a single time-I just found it all to be a little bit strange…..

It’s a fun premise (with the exception of the levitation) and has some amusing pop culture references to books, movies and even lipstick 💄 colors, so I do think it will find its niche audience-but it just missed the mark for me. Be sure to also read the 5 star reviews to determine if it might be a better fit for you!

A buddy read with DeAnn. Did she enjoy it more? Be sure to check out her thoughts for additional insight!

AVAILABLE February 14, 2023.

Thank You to Harper Perennial for the gifted copy. It was my pleasure to offer a candid review!

I couldn't characterize this book if you gave me all the Jelly Belly jelly beans in the world, and I love jelly beans!!! It definitely has dark humor in it, which I appreciate. I mean, who amongst us hasn't thought of putting a pillow over their husband's head? Just me??? Well, then forget I said anything in case the police come asking!!! Our heroine is definitely unhappy in her marriage, and seemingly rightly so. Her husband thinks she reads to much!!! What the heck????? Throughout the book, she must have considered his death at least a dozen times - sometimes as a participant in said demise and other times just a recipient of the happy accident. However, one should always remember the grass may be greener on the other side, but that grass still needs to be mowed. She meets a stranger in a coffee shop and is convinced he is her soul mate and that just adds to her fantasies about being done with her current marriage and moving on to the next great thing. Just a very oddball little story.

This story is about a woman who felt trapped and stuck in a relationship, well relationships really, where she was expected to be someone else- and she hated it. That part of the story was compelling. The idea of Victoria dissociating in any way she could weather it be through her imagination or her books. While she was not exactly the most likable or good main character, Victoria was interesting and riveting and I could understand why she did what she did- even if I didn’t agree.

There were a few things about this book that were not exactly for me and definitely overshadowed other aspects of the book. The first was how much of the beginning of the book was just saying bad things about a book which was so obvious A Little Life, but was never explicitly stated. I don’t think i’ve ever read a book that spends so much time saying bad things about another book. Additionally, I felt the ending came out of nowhere- all of a sudden the book just ended. I liked the ending, a lot, but I found myself a little shocked that all of a sudden there was nothing else. Lastly, I don’t feel like Victoria was really a bookworm. I don’t know why because she claimed she always had a book, I just felt that I might have titled the book something else or maybe had a different, darker cover design, because I expected something completely different.

Yeah, I'm sorry, but this was a DNF for me. As much as I tried, I honestly couldn't get past the first chapter.

This was not the book for me. Intrigued by the concept, it turns out a good concept is not enough for a really digestible read.

I thought this was going to be a sweet romcom and was pleasantly surprised that this was in fact a twisty, weird, noir. Depicting a couple in a loveless marriage, the bookworm is an individual that uses her imagination for escapism in a fantasy life.

I really enjoyed this and would recommend for fans of “where’d you go Bernadette” and other similar novels.

Hello, this took me by total surprise. First, I admit, I judged this one by its cover. Thinking it might be a light, sweet read. Anything but! Reader, it will keep you on your toes in the best way. Victoria is an avid reader, her husband is a condescending jerk, her best friend is getting on her last nerve, her parents are way more interested in her husband than their own daughter, and her in-laws, well, they’re just gobsmacked by their tool of a son. Victoria’s world is turned upside down, or rather, she is turned on, when she sees Him in a café reading the same book she’s been reading. BOOKWORM is in a category of its own – with perfectly employed dark humor, naughty daydreams of ways your husband could die, and a surprising sinister ending. This is one of those books that the less you know going into it the better.

Congratulations, Robin Yeatman on this fantastic debut novel.

Thank you, NetGalley and Harper Perrenial for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a little too dry and weird for me, which I’m usually fine with but the side characters were a bit one note.

Victoria is given to flights of fancy. An active imagination – it’s a gift, right? A positive attribute?
Sometimes it’s an escape.

Massage therapist, reader of fiction, creator of stories (whether she realizes it or not), and wife of the supercilious Eric, Victoria does not show up for herself. Instead, she escapes into the stories she creates, and even we, the readers, can’t always tell whether a story is more than a flight of fancy. Is she really leaving her body at night for astral assignations with her potential lover?

Author Robin Yeatman is clever; in creating a heroine who likely has qualities shared by readers of Bookworm, she has made it much easier for us to connect with Victoria; after all, who among us has not created an entire imaginary daydream story, sparked by who knows what?

After a slightly too-rushed first chapter, the narrative is fascinating and engaging, with a couple of weak points. There’s no plausible reason given for Victoria’s complete lack of assertion with anyone in her family. No one has threatened physical harm and there’s no evidence of past trauma – yet the family dynamics are so backwards that when Victoria is thinking of leaving Eric, she broaches the possibility with, of all people, Eric’s mother. Because she refuses to assert herself, Victoria channels her anger and resentment into continued, desperate murder plots that always somehow fail, all while smiling her calm ‘spa girl’ smile and keeping a low profile.

Regardless, this was an effortless and intriguing read, with a clever ending in which Victoria’s best friend Holly plays a large part. Victoria’s infatuation with the mysterious Luke is interesting; who hasn’t built a fantasy around someone, then had to face a flawed reality? (Poor Luke; one fears for his safety if he doesn’t live up to the fantasy.)

Luke is secondary though; the true tension that drives the plot and pulls the reader along is Victoria’s tenacious fantasy of killing Eric. You’ll have to read the book to find out if fantasy turns to reality – and you’ll enjoy the read. Four stars for readability and easy engagement.

Imagine a book lover whose imagination is fueled by the world of books she inhabits, and whose mind carries her into the lives of others as she imagines them, sometimes accurately. Her imagined lives of people she meets in public, in cafes, pubs, on the street are fanciful and extraordinarily creative. But her constant dreams of finding freedom from a restrictive, confining marriage, too, are often wickedly fiendish.

The novel, Bookworm, is described as a black comedy, and it is entertaining as well as clever. We cheer for Virginia, up to a point, when she tries to find a new life away from a controlling, demanding, germaphobe of a husband. Her imagination carries the book, and I was surprised by the ending as well.

What actually pulled me into this book was Victoria's vivid imagination and it resonates with many readers like me who are constantly wishing things were different in their lives. It starts off as a light fun read but later I found it to be quite opposite. My main gripe was Victoria and how she literally liked nothing in this world except for a random guy who happened to be reading the same book that she had as well. From there, I knew I was not going to like her as she felt totally unrelatable. It is more of a dark humor and not for readers looking for sunshine.

3.5 stars rounded up. Slow build, with the main character evolving from mousy victim to scheming villainess. Clever long-game played in this plot.

Oof. I didn’t like that. The characters were awful and “humor” wasn’t funny. Just a bunch of miserable people being miserable.

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Perennial for an eARC.

Haven’t we all sunk deep into our dream worlds and wished things were the way we imagined them to be? For Victoria, that means a new husband, as hers isn’t who she wants anymore. As Victoria’s fantasies start to blur the line between reality and not, this comic noir explores the realms of if our dreams are really what we want in reality. Highly recommend.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC for an exchange for an honest review.

I really thought this was a good read.

This was a DNF for me. Despite the summary, which sounded great, and the cover, very compelling - I just couldn't get into it. Thank you to the publisher for the chance to read and review an advanced copy of the book.

The fun bright cover and the summary of this book unfortunately do this book a disservice. It's presented as a lighter hearted sassy romcom about how Victoria will "right the wrongs" in her love life by finally following her heart ... but this is not that book. Now don't get me wrong, I think this is a fine book but it's packaging is deceiving and it sets the reader up for failure. From my own experience, I went into this expecting an "Emily Henry but make it toxic" vibe and very quickly had to switch my mindset.

Victoria is a dark personality in an uncomfortable world. It's hard to root for her because she is so passive and never actively trying to resolve her situation. I've been in a relationship where my interests were not found to be interesting so the relationship between her and her husband made me pace, yell and be an all around grouch. The plot points are good and I liked the ending but wish Victoria was more tactful and actively manipulative. I wish the reader was more of an accomplice with Victoria rather than just seeing if/what lady luck has in store.

I was lucky enough to receive this as an ARC. Thanks to Netgalley, Harper Perennial and Paperbacks and Robin Yeatman for the opportunity to read and review this story. Bookworm will be published on February 14, 2023.

A dark comedy about a woman who is unhappily married and fantasizes about a man she sees at her local cafe. This "comedy" borders on sad at times.

1.5 stars, rounded up.

This book sounded like a light and fun rom-com read, but it was anything but and fell veeeerrryyyy flat for me. None of the characters were likable to me, in fact, I pretty much hated every single one of them.

The whole premise is that Victoria and Eric are stuck in a loveless marriage. Victoria's only escape is through reading, which Luke absolutely hates. In fact, at one point, he tells her reading is "unhealthy" for her and makes her stope reading for 2 weeks. That right there made me want to scream. How she didn't leave him IMMEDIATELY after being told that beats me. She quickly finds another escape when she sees "Him", a guy in a coffee shop who, after a minute of watching him, she is convinced they are soulmates. She then starts having out of body experiences where she travels out of her body and to his apartment to spend time with "Him" and learn more about "Him". And thennnn it just gets even more and more far fetched.

I hated the characters more and more as the book progressed. I really struggled not to DNF this one.

I received this ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This was pretty good! My first book from this author. I enjoyed the cover and the overall premise. Would be a cute gift,