(3.5 stars, rounded up to 4)

"The Keeper of Lost Things" by Ruth Hogan is a charming and heartwarming novel that offers a poignant exploration of love, loss, and the power of second chances. Hogan's character development is exceptional, with each character possessing a unique and memorable personality that adds depth to the story. Set against the backdrop of a quaint English village and the eclectic treasures found within Anthony Peardew's collection of lost objects, the atmospheric setting adds a sense of whimsy and nostalgia to the narrative, inviting readers to embark on a journey of discovery and redemption.

Hogan's writing style is graceful and lyrical, with prose that sparkles with wit and tenderness. The plot of "The Keeper of Lost Things" unfolds with a gentle pace, allowing readers to immerse themselves in the lives of the characters and the mysteries of the lost objects they encounter. While the pacing may occasionally lag, the novel's blend of intrigue, humor, and heartfelt emotion makes for a thoroughly enjoyable read. The relationship dynamics between characters are beautifully portrayed, adding depth and complexity to the story and leaving readers with a sense of connection and warmth.

Overall, "The Keeper of Lost Things" is a delightful and uplifting novel that celebrates the beauty of human connection and the transformative power of kindness. Hogan's skillful storytelling, richly drawn characters, and evocative setting make for an enchanting reading experience that is sure to leave a lasting impression. Whether you're in need of a heartwarming tale to lift your spirits or simply love a good story, "The Keeper of Lost Things" is a treasure worth discovering.

Anthony Peardew picks up all kinds of bric and brac on his walks, and is a self-proclaimed keeper of lost things. He keeps everything in his study under lock and key. Many years ago, he lost a treasure belonging to his deceased fiancee Therese and he’s never forgiven himself. When Laura applies to be his assistant, she falls in love with the house called Padua. Reeling from a divorce, she needs time to heal, and this house provides just that. As Anthony nears the end of his life, he decides to leave the house and the contents to Laura - with the stipulation that she return as many of the lost things she can to their owners. With the help of the gardener Freddie and a “new friend” Sunshine Laura embarks on trying to returning the lost things to their rightful owners. There are mini back stories on some of the items - the most enduring is one of Eunice and Bomber. How it all comes together at the end is very satisfying. I listened to the audiobook, and really enjoyed it. A feel good story with a lot of heart - a very good debut from this author!

Anthony Peardew lost something and someone special to him years ago. To "make up" for the loss, he begins to collect items he finds and track and write stories about these items. He end up with quite a collection and it is up to Laura, his personal assistant, to reunite them with the original owners.

Positives:
Short chapters
Multiple timelines
The magical setting of a quaint house, cups of hot tea, finger sandwiches and lemon curds repeatedly throughout giving it a "delightful" feel
Great concept of a book-the keeper of lost things- we can all relate to losing that one special item and wondering what ever became of it.

Negatives:
Many different sideplots and characters
A bit slow paced

It was one I have been wanting to read for awhile and I am glad I finally did.

The characters in this book are lovingly brought to life - Anthony the writer who grieves for those who’ve lost something, Laura his helper who finds a new life with some unlikely friends and the amazing Sunshine who holds true to her name.

The book was sweet, funny and thoughtful as it follows Laura on a journey to find herself. Great, easy read.

Thanks to William Morrow and Book club girl for this free read. The keeper of lost things - Anthony Peardew. He has collected lost items and catalogued them in his own home for years. Once he passes, it becomes Laura’s job to try to reunite those items with their owners. It’s a cute story about finding items, friends and new hopes.

It took me a long time to get into this book. I didn't feel a connection with any of the characters.
I didn't quite understand the shorter stories that were included. I started skipping them. The writing was good though and I can understand why so many did enjoy this book.

This one just wasn't for me. I really tried to get into it, but it didn't grab my attention. I really struggled to pick it up and read it.

*Thank you @williammorrowbooks for the copy in exchange for an honest review. Review not posted to Amazon/Goodreads because less than 4 stars or DNF.*

The Keeper of Lost Things was a sweet story with very enjoyable characters. It was one of our book club reads and enjoyed by all of us.

The Keeper of Lost things

A Novel

By: Ruth Hogan

Publisher: William Morrow and Custom House, William Morrow

Publish Date: 21 February 2017

General Fiction (Adult)/ Literary Fiction/ Women’s Fiction

#TheKeeperofLostThings#NetGalley

100 Book ReviewsProfessional Reader

I would like to first thank both NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me to read and review this book.

Good Reads Synopsis:

Lime green plastic flower-shaped hair bobbles—Found, on the playing field, Derrywood Park, 2nd September.

Bone china cup and saucer—Found, on a bench in Riveria Public Gardens, 31st October.

Anthony Peardew is the keeper of lost things. Forty years ago, he carelessly lost a keepsake from his beloved fiancée, Therese. That very same day, she died unexpectedly. Brokenhearted, Anthony sought consolation in rescuing lost objects—the things others have dropped, misplaced, or accidentally left behind—and writing stories about them. Now, in the twilight of his life, Anthony worries that he has not fully discharged his duty to reconcile all the lost things with their owners. As the end nears, he bequeaths his secret life’s mission to his unsuspecting assistant, Laura, leaving her his house and all its lost treasures, including an irritable ghost.

Recovering from a bad divorce, Laura, in some ways, is one of Anthony’s lost things. But when the lonely woman moves into his mansion, her life begins to change. She finds a new friend in the neighbor’s quirky daughter, Sunshine, and a welcome distraction in Freddy, the rugged gardener. As the dark cloud engulfing her lifts, Laura, accompanied by her new companions, sets out to realize Anthony’s last wish: reuniting his cherished lost objects with their owners.

Long ago, Eunice found a trinket on the London pavement and kept it through the years. Now, with her own end drawing near, she has lost something precious—a tragic twist of fate that forces her to break a promise she once made.

As the Keeper of Lost Objects, Laura holds the key to Anthony and Eunice’s redemption. But can she unlock the past and make the connections that will lay their spirits to rest?

Book Review:

I gave this book 4 stars. I will be honest that at first, I wasn’t sure if I would like the story. As the story progressed it got better, and I was invested in the characters. As the synopsis says Laura is recovering from a bad marriage and has no skills to make a living but Andrew hires her as his assistant and takes her under his wing. As he gets older and really doesn’t want to continue with his life, he makes plans to make sure Laura has a place and means to take care of herself. He leaves he a letter with instructions.

Eunice is in love with her boss who happens to be gay. She has nowhere else to go and really doesn’t want to. She has made Bomber (her boss) promises that she intended to keep but something happens along the way that has postponed that promise.

As I was reading this story, I wasn’t sure why there were two main characters, but as you read you realize that they will come together at some point. I really enjoyed the stories that Andrew (Laura’s boss) wrote about the lost items. I like the friendships that happened between the bosses and their employees. They were one big happy family. I cried near the end as the story was coming to an end. I am glad that things worked out the way they did.

I recommend this book, but realize it is slow at the beginning and a little confusing.

The Keeper of Lost Things had a really good premise. Anthony Peardew experiences a loss at a young age, so for the rest of his life, he collects lost items he finds. After marking each item and placing it carefully on a shelf, he also creates a story about the person who owned the item. For me, about 40% into the story, the plot fell apart. It turned into somewhat of a ghost story with random sub story lines that were developed unnecessarily. I wanted to know more about the lost items, and his plan to return them to the owners. I kept reading hoping everything would tie together, but unfortunately it didn’t.

This book took me a long time to get into.
I didn't feel connected with any of the characters and the short stories within the book really annoyed me, as I saw no value in them.
Once sunshine entered the book, I started feeling a better connection with the characters and started liking the book better. (I also stopped reading the short stories)
Overall not a bad book but not one that excited me a bunch.

Ruth Hogan skillfully intertwines 2 parallel stories with humor and an extremely satisfying end. After Anthony loses a medal given to him by his late wife, he vows to return all lost items he finds to their rightful owners in hopes that someone will return the medal back to him. Anthony is unable to complete this mission before the end of his life but passes on his estate and this responsibility to his friend and assistant, Laura. Laura, her neighbor, Sunshine and Freddy the gardener work together to fulfill Anthony's promise to his wife. The other story told in the novel follows Eunice in the 1970s to present day as she works for her best friend. Their friendship revolves around their love of movies, dogs and doughnuts. I would recommend this book. I enjoyed the wit, the great writing, the small stories about each of the lost items sprinkled throughout and the resolute ending.

The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan introduces us to Anthony who was exactly that, the keeper of lost things. He accidently loses a keepsake given to him by his girl. Before long, his beloved dies, leaving him so very lonely and wishing he had not lost the memento. Anthony begins picking up and keeping things people have lost, misplaced, or thrown out. You never know who might come along looking for it. Laura has inherited Anthony's place and is trying to wrap her head around how she will ever do Anthony justice in keeping the lost things.
While I can see the heartwarming story, this one fell a little flat for me. I really wanted to fall in love with this like others had. Special thanks to NetGalley,, Ruth Hogan, and William Morrow and Custom House Publishing for the advance digital copy in exchange for my honest opinion. 3.5 stars for me.

#TheKeeperofLostThings #NetGalley

This book was different from other books because after Anthony Peardew passes he leaves his dear friend Laura everything; grief, a challenge to make a new friend, and the job of returning all of the lost things that he acquired over 40 years. Laura is worried of living up to what her friend asked her but she sets forth to do as he asks.

This delightful book with its unique theme--hoarding lost objects--is filled with quirky characters you can't help but love. I enjoyed every page and especially the stories about the lost objects.

I’ve been really pleased with the books I’ve read already in 2022, and this is another fabulous book. It follows two women-Soline (our World War II heroine) and Rory (our present day leading art gallery lady looking for a new purpose in life after her fiancé goes missing).
When I say I gasped throughout the entire book-I really did. Revelation after revelation, through heartbreaking loss, and revelations. I was brought to tears when Rory realizes her connection to Soline-I truly became a believer in magic and the power of love. What an amazing story-an easy 5 stars for me.
This was an ARC from NetGalley.

I absolutely loved this book. For most of the book, 2 parallel stories ran. One a young woman that gets a job with a publisher, who becomes her best friend. The second story about a young woman, divorced with no real marketable skills becomes a housekeeper/assistant to an elderly man. The elderly man is the keeper of lost things, after losing his fiancé and at the same time losing a treasured keepsake that she had given him. He then begins picking up odds and ends that people have lost and writing stories about them. The book contains mystery, romance and even a ghostly presence.

When Anthony Peardew passed away he left all his worldly possessions and his collections of lost things to his trusted assistant Laura. The caveats were that she could not change the rose garden and she needed to try and find a way to reunite the lost things with their rightful owners.

Overwhelmed by the inheritance and feeling alone Laura does not know where to start. Then Sunshine knocks on her door. Sunshine is a young lady with Downs Syndrome that lives across the street. She begins to help Laura sort through the collection of lost things. Sunshine tells stories about the lost object; but, so did Anthony.

Freddy was Anthony's gardener and Laura plans on keeping him on. However, Laura finds Freddy attractive and this seems to make them both uncomfortable. Will a romance bloom?

This is a beautifully written story about friendship, supporting each other, learning from each other, and sometimes making friends family. You will not be disappointed reading this story.

Thank you @NetGalley for the copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

What an amazing story! This book grabbed me from the first page and didn't let go until I turned the last page just a hours later. There was so much that made this book interesting, intriguing and simply impossible to put down...great love, unrequited love, finding oneself, helping others with a little bit of the paranormal to go with it all.

I hesitated reading this one at first as the synopsis didn't quite grab my interest but when you open the pages, you simply fall into the beautifully written prose and the story line until you just can't pull yourself away.

The stories of the main characters, along with some of the back stories of the "lost things', were engaging and moving and I can't recommend this book enough. I will most definitely be looking for this author's next book.

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for a copy of this simply lovely book!!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

How many times do we lose things and never know what happens to them?

Andrew Peardrew, forty years ago, lost a keepsake of his beloved fiancée, who unexpectedly died the same day. The loss of his fiancée and the item impacted Andrew significantly and put him on a quest to rescue lost things and catalog the details associated with them.

Knowing he won't live forever and with a vast array or lost things, he has to identify someone to help him complete his quest to reunite these items with their original owners. Laura, a women recovering from a bad divorce comes into Andrew's life as his personal assistant and he decides to make her the person to take on this task, unbeknownst to her..

Upon Andrew's death, Laura is shocked to learn that Andrew has identified her for this task which truly seems impossible. Feeling obligated, she invokes the assistance of Sunshine, Andrew's neighbor and Freddy, Andrew's gardener, to help reunite the owners with their lost things.

The novel then outlines the connections between the people and their lost things and the stories behind the events. The stories were interesting, ranging from sad to happy and I enjoyed the development of friendships between Laura, Sunshine and Freddy.