I loved Beth's first book, The flat share, and The switch is just as good a read.

The switch kept my mind of the current situation that is going on around the world and I'm sure it will help other readers as well.

A great uplifting book.

A million stars.

Oh my gosh, I loved this book so much!

As with a lot of people at the moment, I have a LOT more spare time = more time to read. However I've been struggling to get into any of my tbr books because of the stress/anxiety. I've been desperately looking for something that'll help me SWITCH off and this did just the thing!

I knew I'd love this as soon as I read the synopsis - Leena (29) and her grandmother Eileen (79) swap lives for two months after Leena is given a sabbatical. Leena has a high-flying consultancy job in London whereas Eileen lives a (seemingly) quiet life in the countryside. Leena needs a break to destress and Eileen is looking for love - will the swap help them achieve this??

This book made me happy, sad, angry and everything in between. Just an absolute delight and I highly recommend it, especially if you loved The Flatshare. It's everything I'd want from a follow up.

In need for a feel good book with all the chaos going on around us?

Look no further … The Switch by Beth O ‘ Leary has you covered! Although, it’s not out just yet, but it is available for pre-order now. Coming April 16th! Thank you to @QuercusBooks for my advance copy.

The story follows, grandmother Eileen, and granddaughter Leena, who ‘swap’ lives for a few months! 79 year old Eileen now finds herself living the London city life, and Leena, on a break from work, is now in a small rural town … very different to what she is used to!

It’s adorable, cute, and had such a feel good vibe about it. I really enjoyed the alternating point of view chapters between Eileen and Leena. Their personalities really came to life throughout the pages.

I fell in love O’Leary’s writing style in her first book, The Flat Share, and you’ll find the same easy flow, fun writing style in The Switch!

Such an uplifting book getting ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me!

You guys going to be reading this? (you definitely should be!)
.

4.5 stars
I loved this book.
It was the perfect escape that I didn’t knew I need and I just couldn’t stop reading.
The writing and the mixed characters are adding so much to this great story.
It’s definitely a must read book for everyone.


Thanks to the publisher and the author for my review copy.

Simply Gorgeous and Uplifting!

Last year I gushed over The Flatshare, well in my opinion Beth O'Leary has exceeded my expectations even more with The Switch, and believe me I'm going to be spending the remainder of the year (and longer) raving about this beautiful, heartwarming book, and recommending it to every reader I encounter.

When wound tight, workaholic Leena Cotton experiences a panic attack during a big presentation her company orders her to take two months leave. Dreading the endless time on her hands, Leena heads to Yorkshire to visit her grandmother, Eileen.

Meanwhile, Eileen Cotton is searching for love, companionship, and craving a little excitement, but it's slim pickings in her tiny village of Hamleigh-in-Harksdale.

Then, Leena suggests a novel idea, why not swap places for eight weeks? Leena will move into her grandmother's house, and take on all her chores, responsibilities, and community projects to keep herself busy, and Eileen will live it up in London, sharing her granddaughter's flat with her two roommates - she's bound to encounter heaps of men in a city of nearly nine million? It's the perfect solution with hilarious, entertaining, heartwarming and swoon-worthy results.

The Switch completely embraced the notions of family, friendship, belonging, bridging the generational gap, taking a gamble and stepping outside one's comfort zone, and community spirit. Reading it this past week has been an enthralling and soothing experience. Even though Eileen and Leena don't swap identities it does share common themes with movies like Freaky Friday such as placing yourself in someone else’s shoes and the highs and lows that come with it, as well as a new appreciation for the person they're replacing and all they do, resulting in an even closer relationship.

Light in tone for the most part, but like The Flatshare, does incorporate serious topics such as grief, loss, loneliness, domestic abuse, mental illness, unhealthy coping strategies, and cheating. Eileen and Leena were both wonderful and interesting, and both their stories were affecting and relatable, and the characters they came into contact with – memorable and magnificent. The two settings encompassed all the idyll and beauty of a tiny English village and it's quirky and charming characters, and the ‘buzzing with energy' non-stop, fast-paced exhilaration of London life.

I guarantee The Switch is going to capture the hearts and minds of readers everywhere. The perfect choice to curl up with this April.

I'd like to thank Netgalley, Quercus Books, and Beth O’Leary for the e-ARC.

Publication Date: 16th April, 2020.

The Switch was my first Beth O'Leary book so I was very thankful to NetGalley and Quercus Books for an advanced copy.

This is a delightfully warm book, full of women with guts that I couldn't help but fall in love with.

The story follows one woman and her Grandmother who swap lives and what ensues is a heartwarming, funny, and uplifting read. This is a story of grief, of love and loss, of friendship and good old fashioned community spirit that made me feel immersed and not want to put it down.

I thoroughly recommend this book for the perfect read to enjoy and make you feel like your somewhere else.

A great 4/5 from me.

What a lovely read! There's nothing I love more than a pick-me-up and make-me-feel-good novel and Beth O'Leary's second book is exactly that. It's a story of loss, friendship, family, love and courage and I enjoyed it very much. Grandma Eileen was a fantastic character and made me feel like things don't end as we grow older. There's always love and things to fight for.

When Grandma Eileen switches lives with Granddaughter Eileen, both of them find and fill the gaps for each other that were left after Carla died. The characters are warm, old people are definitely interesting and capable of much good and much mischief, and the village politics is so well described you feel like one of them. I'd love to visit Eileen Cotton, but I wouldn't let her bake me any brownies. Nice romance to round it all out, very enjoyable read

This was such a lovely read. I was a fan of Beth O’Leary after reading The Flatshare last year so was really pleased to by accepted to read this.
Leena is coming to terms with her sister’s death and decides to use a work sabbatical to switch lives with her Grandma. She moves to Yorkshire and takes on the role of neighbourhood watch chair and May Day event organiser. Meanwhile Eileen, Leena’s Grandma spends a few months in London...something she didn’t get chance to do when she was younger. They both gain plenty from their experiences.
A really uplifting read which I really enjoyed and would definitely recommend.
Thanks Netgalley & Quercus

Firstly, I want to say thank you to Netgalley and Quercus Books for sending me an e-arc of this book. The Switch is on of my most anticipated books of the year, The Flat Share was my favourite of all time last year so this excited me so much!

The Switch did not disappoint. I really did enjoy this book. I was fairly nervous going into this book, after loving The Flat Share so much I was worried that this was going to disappoint me. I'm so so glad that it didn't. 

I would like to say that before you go into this book please be aware of the trigger warnings. 

TW: cancer, death, grief, domestic abuse and adultery.

I'm not going to discuss these at length because none of the above are problematic. I understand that they will effect different people in different ways, and that they need to be handled with care however I can assure you that they are dealt with in such a delicate way. Each and every one of the above topics are dealt with in the sensitive way that they deserve.

I don't really know where to start. I think Beth's ability to create such brilliant, loveable but also relatable characters really helps me to love her books so much. Within a few chapters I have built such a strong emotional connection to them, I just feel like they are part of my life. I can feel everything they are feeling and I share their emotions. I feel like this is a really unique skill to have and one which I wish more authors had. Eileen and Leena, god, where do I start! How amazing are they? I literally love them both so much, especially Eileen. What a wonderful lady. Can I adopt her? Eileen, come and live with me please ... we can kick the husband out, we don't need him! All of the side characters, in the form of Eileen and Leena's friends were also a delight ... even Albert!

The Switch is the kind of book that you will fall head over heels in love with. Once you pick it up you will not want to put it down. It is so uplifting and charming, a book very difficult to review as no words that I can find give my feelings any kind of justice. I loved the humour in this book, I loved the relationships, I loved everything. 

Did I love it just as much as The Flat Share? No, probably not. But it came super close and I couldn't wish for anything more from this book. I really don't know what Beth O'Leary is going to come up with next!

What a lovely uplifting story. I loved the flat share and this one didn’t disappoint. I’m only sorry that the story ended. I’d love to know what happens next, hopefully they will be a sequel

As a fan of 'The Flatshare' I was thrilled to receive an advance review copy of 'The Switch', and it did not disappoint in any way. London-based workaholic high flier Leena Cotton has messed up an important presentation at work and as a consequence been told to take an enforced two-month sabbatical. Instead of flying off round the world to find herself, she heads back to her home village of Hamleigh-in-Harksdale and swaps lives with her formidably fabulous grandmother and namesake, Eileen Cotton who in turn moves to London. They live in each other's homes, socialise with each others friends and even swap mobile phones. There is much humour and wit in the story as recently divorced Eileen Senior embarks on a string of internet dates and Leena forms a will they-won't they relationship with 'distractingly fanciable' local schoolteacher, Jackson, whilst trying to maintain a long-distance relationship with slithery go-getter, Ethan. There is so much to enjoy as the Eileens assume the mantle of each other's lives and begin the process of healing from the death of beloved sister/granddaughter, Carla.

In the acknowledgements, Beth O'Leary writes writes that she wasn't sure she could do this (write a second book) but it is so charmingly written and so self-assured that readers will be left in no doubt that Beth will be delighting us for many more books to come (hopefully).

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Beth O'Leary's second novel has two protagonists: Eileen and Leena, a grandmother and granddaughter, who decided to swap houses since both of them are going through a rough patch.

When I first read the synopsis of this one, I felt immediately curious to read it,

My favorite character - was Eileen. She is so amazing! She has a lot of attitude and she's so funny.

Leena was also a good character, but not as good as Eileen.

There's also some amazing romances in here.. Actually, my only problem with the book was that I wished we had even more romance in here.

I highly recommend it if you want a dramatic book, with a lot of humor and romance as well.

Oh my word what an absolutely fabulous read this was. I was so excited to read this and yes it was everything I could hope for and more. Just brilliant,

Oh man, what to say about this book. I really enjoyed every minute of it! The world is light and charming and I particularly loved getting Eileen's point of view in this. It really kept the pages moving for me because I couldn't decide who I liked best, Leena or her grandmother, and I wanted to keep reading to get to their next chapters.

This is definitely a light read, but it still touches on deeper topics like grief and it's handled really beautifully. I'm so sad it's over!

This book is the embodiment of wholesomeness!!
The beginning was a little slow for me and i feel like the characters took a while to become solid. They were kind of 2D in the beginning but after the midpoint and onward it was absolutely amazing. I just have to say that i got so attached to all the characters especially the grandma and Jackson and Bee, and just generally most of them are so lovable and you just want to protect them under your wing because they are precious but at the same time they are flawed humans and you accept them as they are. I would say this is a story about rediscovering yourself after the loss of a very close person (not a spoiler) and that's where the wholesomeness comes in because we get so see how the granddaughter and mother and grandmother find a way to be close again after the death of their loved one ripped them apart and we also see the formation of new relationships and friendships and just mmm this book spreads warmth all over you while talking about some difficult topics like grief. The last 150 pages had me squealing from happiness and a little frustration which is what bumped this book from a 3 to a 4 for me. Also if you like small english village vibes then give this a go for sure.

trigger warnings: death of a relative, grief, cheating

So this might just be my perfect book, not only does it have a kick arse old lady Eileen as one of the two main characters, it also has some romance in and even a dog as a side character!!
Eileen and Leena are having a tough time since the death of their relative and so decide to switch lives for two months, now I wondered how this was going to work, but let me tell you Beth O'Leary is a genius when it comes to dual narrative books. Both main characters were so well formed and even the side characters had me falling for them.
It is hard to come back with a second book when the first took the world by storm, but my gosh Beth has done a great job - in fact (don't hate me) I even liked it better than The Flatshare.
Top marks, highly recommend.
My thanks to the Publisher who sent me this copy and made my year.

Another amazing book by Beth O'Leary. This is a fab contemporary about a girl living the hectic life in London who switches lives with her grandmother who lives in small village in the English countryside. It is an addictive and heartwarming read which will keep you turning the pages. I loved Beth O'Leary's first book and this book did not disappoint and suffer from second book syndrome. I can't see to see what Beth O'Leary produces next. Would recommend this to all!

I absolutely loved The Flatshare so I was delighted to get an ARC of this newest offering from Beth O'Leary.
She is an author who comes up with unique premises for her books and that is so refreshing to see.

Somehow O'Leary manages to write books that explore how two characters' relationships develop despite distance between them - i.e. in The Flatshare the two characters had never met but communicated through post-it notes and in this one Leena (granddaughter) and Eileen (Grandmother) undergo some real changes in not only themselves but their relationship with one another despite living in different places.

It also has an impact on the relationship Leena has with her mother (Eileen's daughter). All three women are dealing with the loss of Leena's sister and how each character deals with this bereavement is excellently written and feels so genuine and authentic.

The romantic lives of both Leena and Eileen are explored and I thought it was wonderful that Eileen had a more active dating life than her granddaughter. Thankfully, Leena concentrates on her own wellbeing and that is great to see in books aimed at women - not everything needs to be about the romance!

The book is very funny at parts and O'Leary manages to blend serious issues with really very funny scenes.

Once again, her cast of characters are vivid and so realistic that I had no problems visualising them and believing in them.

I did prefer The Flatshare more but this was a really unique, refreshing and uplifting read.

Thanks to Quercus and Netgalley for this ARC.

I’m not sure if I believe in love at first sight, but I believe in love at first sentence when it comes to books. I was charmed by both characters - the two Eileens - right away. As Beth said, I was well and truly Eileened. Every single character written by Beth is like a best friend and her stories are incredibly warm and cozy. Even the secondary characters, like the neighbours in Hamleigh or Leena’s friends in Shoreditch, are always funny and relatable, with interesting and realistic lives of their own.

The Switch is a story with an incredibly original and wonderful plot. I can’t remember the last time I’ve read about an elderly lady looking for love in busy London, and Eileen was a real character! Her granddaughter, Leena, struggled with things of her own - her high-profile job as a consultant, her relationship and feeling burnt out. I think a lot of us can relate to those issues and as such, it’s easy to truly feel for Leena and be able to step into her shoes. The story gets really hilarious as soon as they swap lives - Leena’s life in rural Yorkshire poses many new obstacles, and Eileen learns to navigate the high life in London, including trying out online dating!

Aside from being an incredibly warm story of trying to find yourself and love over 70, The Switch is also about mother/daughter relationships, friendship, grief and community. All of those are very important aspects of each of our lives and Beth tackles them with the incredible lightness of her writing style, making the reader fall in love with her stories from start to finish.