“The Flatshare” by Beth O’Leary. Wow what a book.

It’s one of those stories that you just want to keep on reading. Picture this... you have a toddler, you work long hours and even though you are completely and utterly sleep deprived “this book” has been sitting on your shelf for a bit, looks to be a light reader and the perfect 30minute escape before bed.

However! Instead of reading a few pages or one chapter, suddenly you are pushing through to the next and the next and the next chapter... until falling asleep. The next morning you wake disorientated, still clutching the book. Now the simple thing would be to start the day and get ready for work, but it’s just too tempting to read just one more page. Than suddenly you are reading the last sentence in the book. Has this ever happened to you? No?

I picked up this book thinking it seemed like a light, cute and quirky book - which most of it, it was. It had some fluffy scenes, unexpected twists, funny interactions, and cliff hangers. I adored all the characters and their self growth.

I just can’t believe that the book came to an end. What am I suppose to do now??

[** I received a copy of “The Flatshare” by Beth O’Leary via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 
Thank you to publishers and Netgallery for the opportunity to review this book.]
#TheFlatshare #NetGalley

You know when everyone in the world seems to have read a book and you haven’t? Well that’s how I felt about The Flatshare. Now I have finally read it I’m pleased to say it exceeded my high expectations for it.

It starts with a very unusual premise and once which made me think a lot about how it would really work. Leon has a flat, a one-bedroom flat. He needs more money for something very important to him and so he advertises for a flatmate, but not only that, a bedmate! Leon works nights though and spends weekends at his girlfriend’s so the lucky person can have the flat evenings, overnight and weekends, with Leon only being there in the day to catch up with sleep. What could go wrong…….?!

Well, quite a few things actually. I had to smile at Leon’s consternation at all of Tiffy’s belongings around his man-flat, all her unusual clothes and snazzy beanbags. In a one-bedroom flat it must have been quite cluttered. And yet he finds himself warming to this woman he’s never ever met. They start to get to know one another through post it notes left stuck to practically every surface and it’s just the most wonderful and heartwarming thing to witness.

I think this is a book that in different hands could have been twee and fluffy. It isn’t that at all. It’s so humorous but also goes into serious subjects as well. There are one or two truly horrid characters but thankfully there are a lot more lovely ones. Tiffy and Leon are an absolute delight to behold, and Tiffy’s friends and Leon’s brother make up the fabulous cast of characters. The least said about Justin, Tiffy’s ex, the better!

I can’t praise this book highly enough. It’s full of charm and wit, it has a clever and original storyline and the most gorgeous characters. If you want a book that leaves you with a massive smile on your face then look no further, The Flatshare is your book (if you’re one of the very few people who haven’t already read it, that is!)

Having broken up with her boyfriend and not for the first time, Tiffy is still living in his flat.  But having just heard he is now engaged to his new girlfriend! it's time to realise it's finally over and to move on, or in this case move out!!  However, everywhere is so expensive and those places she can afford are..... well 'hellholes' as her friend calls them.

Leon, a palliative care nurse who works nights and spends every weekend at his girlfriends, is looking to make some extra money.  In order to do this he has decided to advertise for a room-mate, or in this case as the flat is a one-bedroom flat, a bed-mate!  A curious situation to say the least but as the new occupant will use the flat between 6pm and 9am and Leon there between 9am and 6pm they will never have to be there at the same time, and with Leon's girlfriend keen to be the one to make all the arrangements they don't even have to meet!  A fantastic plan.....surely??

This was such a fun read.  Short, sharp chapters with lots of dialogue makes it a super quick read, which lead me to think why on earth hadn't I read this sooner??

The character's are all so wonderfully portrayed that you can't help but like them.  All except one or two but I will leave you to read about those!  They are quirky and funny yet down to earth and totally believable.

As Leon and Tiffy don't actually meet for some time they start to leave post it notes for one another and with Tiffy's energetic, enthusiastic and quirky personality rubbing alongside Leon's more quieter and shy nature the 'coming together' of these two characters makes for a lovely story.

It's not all fluffy and light as the book deals with a number of more sombre and serious issues.  Tiffy's ex and their toxic relationship, Leon's naturally moving place of work and the story line of Leon's brother all made this book far more than I expected.

A delightful read that I would recommend.  Only wish I had read it sooner!

Absolutely fell in love with this book as soon as I started reading it. Had to cancel plans and just finish the book. Am now bereft that I've finished it so quickly!

Perfect for Jojo Moyes or Marian Keyes fans.

I listened to the audiobook of this, which was absolutely excellent. Two brilliant narrators, and the difference between them made it so fun! Hardly ever have I read a romcon with such strongly drawn characters. The tension was drawn out and out until I couldn't stand it. Then they met(!). One that I will be rereading in the future.

This is another wonderful novel that I very much enjoyed. The story is told from the viewpoints of both Tiffy and Leon – they flat share but they’ve never met! This premise sold me on the book and I’m so pleased to say that the novel lived up to that premise. I love how these two people communicated through a chain of post it notes, and how they gradually came to know each other so well before they ever met. There is more depth to this novel than I was expecting, and some difficult issues are dealt with. It made it all feel more real to me though and I appreciated that. This is such a gorgeous novel and it’s another one that I highly recommend.

I must admit I was a little hesitant about this book. It fits neatly into that horribly named chick-lit genre which I loved in my twenties but now I'm definitely much older there's just not enough murders in them to keep me interested. But I like the premise and was interested to see how it would proceed.

There's something delightfully old fashioned about this book. There's a coyness to the sleeping arrangements which feels like a millennial Rock Hudson and Doris Day film plus the notes between Tiffy and Leon reminded me of The Shop Around The Corner. But despite that it is still very routed in the 2010's. There's a few interesting side plots, some of which I wish we're explored more such as the Johnny White plot. But this left me feeling all warm and tingly, just like a good old fashioned (but still current!) Romance should.

Wasn't able to read and review book before it was removed from my e-reader

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...

I love love love this book. It one of my favorite books this year.
I loved the story, the whole setup and especially the characters. I was super involved in their story and was rooting for them from page 1!
Highly recommend the book!
Go read it now!!

One of my favourite books of 2019, The Flatshare is a phenomenal debut that had me abandoning all of my work because I couldn't bear to put it down. Beth O'Leary is a star of the future (and of the present!) and I am desperate to read her next book.

One of the best debuts I've read!

Well this was just such an amazing read and one that totally took me by surprise!

I’d actually tried to read this a few months back and how the Leon chapters were written felt so jarring at the time that I put it down and if I’m being honest when I first picked this up again I felt the same but let me tell you after about 50 pages i didn’t even notice it anymore and ugh omg this was just so sweet!

The characters are are all so standout and just brilliant to read about and Leon and Tiffy are just so damn sweet, their post it note, slow burn get to know each other romance was just so lovely and I loved every minute of it, even the side characters were fun and witty and so supportive of Tiffy.

Another thing that I loved about The Flatshare was that it had so many other threads to it, Richie being one which I loved, and really good themes about healthy relationships.

Just a total standout romance cannot recommend this enough and I actually can’t wait to re-read it so excited for Beth O’ Leary’s next book The Switch!

ARC acquired from the publishers via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, also purchased my own copy.

I found this book quite funny because I know people who could be the characters in this book. It was really good and I have been recommending it a lot to people as a holiday read.

Such an original concept for a storyline. 2 people living in the same flat sharing a bed and doing it on a rota. I enjoyed this read and would recommend it as a holiday read

Bloody loved it! Warm, funny, sweet and romantic - the absolute perfect rom com. It has so many of my favourite tropes that I love in fanfic and I read the whole book with a sappy smile on my face.

I started to read this book thinking it was simply a rom -com but I was pleasantly surprised. I didn’t want this book to finish.

Tiffy is recently single and she is forced to find a room,however she can’t afford one.
She finds an ad for renting...a space in a shared bed!
Leon needs some money and had decided to rent his bed.
Tiffy and Leon make an arrangement to share it but not at the same time:Tiffy will be using the bed during the night and on weekends and Leon during the day. It could not go wrong,right!?!

Tiffy and Leon never meet in person,however they start to leave notes on post-it around the flat. I would not spoil the rest of the story as it is very funny,intriguing and even scary but you can imagine that at some point the two bedsharers meet each other and from that point the story develops..

I fell in love with the two main characters,their peculiarities and personalities.It is already difficult to live in a shared apartment,imagine sharing one of the most intimate things...a bed.

I appreciated that themes such as controlling love,gaslighting and justice were treated in the book in a serious way.The darker side of the story is equally important and makes the reader reflect.

The story flows very easily and you really want to turn page after page as you were a friend of Tiff,waiting to know the latest gossip in her life.

Totally recommend this book,especially as a summer read!

There is nothing I love more than the 'Oh no, we have to share a bed!' trope in rom-coms and boy oh boy did The Flatshare deliver on that! Not only did the characters fall in love but *I* fell in love with them. Both Leon and Tiffy are equally fantastically fleshed out and complex characters, and I was completely sucked in by their love story.

I really enjoyed this book and found it amusing at times. A very unique plot and I loved the notes between Tiffy and Leon. They were often fab! Tiffy is a really interesting character, quirky and often off the wall. She contrasts perfectly with Leon. The writing was great and made me laugh out loud at times. I'll definitely look forward to reading more from Beth O'Leary!

A fabulous feelgood 5 stars

I read a lot, even more now that I blog, so when a book comes along that really wows me I am excited and The Flatshare is one of those books.

I totally fell in love with Tiffy and Leon and could not read fast enough to discover if the Flatshare idea would work or not. It is a funny and feelgood book but there is also darker side when Tiffy starts to experience flashbacks to a time in her life when she was not happy.

The characters in the book were a mix of lovely and loathsome. I will leave it to you to find out which is which as I loved discovering this for myself. There was one point in the book when I frightened my cat Sookie pictured below when shouting No! at the turn of events.



Sookie did forgive me and I continued to read this wonderful tale. I loved the quirkiness of Tiffy and how her eccentricity and kindness really shines through.

This book has it all and it will be going into my books of the year. It will be one that I will be recommending vehemently as it was a total joy from beginning to end and I was genuinely sad when I finished it this morning.

Thank you to NetGalley for the copy of the book which I read in return for a fair and honest review.

what a feel good book! really enjoyed reading this. loved the post it notes, but more than that i loved how the author wrote about serious issues but without taking away from the story or going off topic

brilliant book great British humour

I'm so in love with this incredibly cute story. The writing is superb. The Flatshare follows a woman who finds herself nursing a broken heart, and no roof over her head. From there, she finds an advert online for a flat-share. Except it's also a bed-share with a man named Leon. They won't be there at the same times, for he takes the night shifts, so she goes for it and finds she gets a lot more than she bargained for...

This book makes me want to dish superlatives and speak in exclamation marks, exclusively! Best romance I've read in some time: uplifting, funny and super-empowering (in a casual, almost understated way.) Has those cute laugh-out-loud moments, close-the-book-and-squeal moments, and plenty of learning moments. It was interesting how the relationships in the book were contrasted: one that is caring and easy and the other, messy and painful. I was also pleasantly surprised by the thoughtful and honest conversations within the book: there's a lot to gain from it.

I stayed up late reading this one and woke up earlier (basically I didn't sleep). It was worth it! A truly delightful debut- I can't believe it's a debut novel at all!

General thoughts:

-Love-notes: I couldn't get over the idea!
-Made me wish this book didn't come with an ending. Or that there was a full-blown series I just didn't know about.
-Reminded me that the perfect romance does exist. (At least in someone's head.)
-Perfect for fans of the debut novel Our Stop, by Laura Jane Williams.

I received this book for review consideration through Netgalley. All opinions are mine and completely honest.