This was a lovely story to read. I loved the setting and how 2 people came together that really didn't like each other from.the start. And how family was key and how they helped a.mother and daughter come together before she died. It was a really lovely book to read I loved the characters.

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I’m a big Julie Shackman fan so this was an auto-pick for me and as soon as I got my copy I dived right in. I fell in love with Lexie and this story in the first few pages, Lexie and her story just connected with me, I think just the being let down on her deserved promotion struck a chord with me (having been through something similar in the past) and just resonated so well. I loved her personality and attitude, demanding her leave (so wish I’d been able to do that) and when she got home to her mum and grandad, her mum had her favourite meal on , I was almost crying in relief to be home too !

That’s what I love about reading, someone else’s story (be it fiction or true) can connect with you on a level that is so much more than non readers can , that sometimes is more real than connections you get from real life, books and stories I think understand me more than some people. I don’t know if that makes any sense or is sad, but it definitely feels true to me.

The Bookshop by the Loch was a welcome return to reading for me, although I had been reading on and off over the last couple of months, this was a book that made me love reading again, not that I have ever disliked it, but over the last month or two during a difficult time, I haven’t always felt the joy or love I would for books I would usually rave about. It was a me/life thing, not the books. But Lexie and her world brought that magic back, that pleasure and joy, the emotions, thank you Julie and all the other authors who make sad times that little more bearable, that bring some joy and ease when their isn’t much in real life. While there are times I struggle to read or connect with what I know are fabulous books, I will never not appreciate the difference reading and books bring to life.

I know this review seems probably a bit odd, random and erratic probably, but it sums me up lately. However, what I can say is that this book will make you smile, laugh, cry and connect with it and the world, make you feel a bit better about life and the world even if it’s just while you read, that’s something very special and I wouldn’t give that up for the world.

Thank you Julie and authors everywhere

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

When Lexie Dunbar misses out on a promised promotion in the Glasgow Publishing Company where she's worked for the past five years she is devastated. She returns to the small highland village where she grew up to spend time with her mum and grandad and rethink her life choices. When she sees the village bookshop is closing down she is upset as are many villagers. Trevor, the owner, offers Lexie the chance to manage the shop and gives her a year to make it a success. This could be problematic as Trevor's nephew ends up using half of the premises as an art gallery and they don't see eye to eye. Meeting feisty octogenarian Celeste Matthews adds spice to Lexie's life while the return of her errant father brings turmoil. There's a lot going on in Bracken Way! #netgalley #thebookshopbytheloch

I received an E-ARC with a request for my honest review.

This uplifting romance is set it Scotland and follows Lexie Dunbar who when her life takes an unexpected turn in her publishing career, returns to her childhood home.

When she is given the opportunity to re-invent her favourite local bookshop to stop closure she is torn, but soon jumps at the chance at the challenge.

With the arrival of the bookshop’s nephew Tobias who is an artist, tensions rise as Lexie finds herself having to share the shop and change her original plan.

Will she succeed at turning the bookshop around? Will Lexie warm to Tobias?

This romance is uplifting, even through all the challenges the characters face in their lives and the choices they must make.

The setting of the book sounds such a beautiful place, and perfect for this romance storyline. The small-town feel brings all of the characters together, even with the secrets awaiting to be uncovered.

There is an entwining storyline which helps bring the characters together in an unexpected but heart-warming way.

Overall, an uplifting romance with a woman’s challenge of saving her local bookshop.

Thank you so much for this ARC. It was very cute! I wasn't familiar with the series before, but it seemed to stand up well on its own. Fans of the series will likely love it. I was hoping for a bit more romance, and more about the bookshop! The writing was good, and overall I enjoyed it. Thank you!

The Bookshop by the Loch ticks a lot of boxes. A picturesque setting, a lot of family drama and a slow-burn, sweet romance.
Lexie pulls at your heartstrings right from the beginning as she faces the mortification of being publicly passed over for a promotion. She asko has a sad back story where her father abandoned her and her mother when she was little. So it was that I had a great wanting for her to succeed massively in her new venture and as a freelance editor.
Chances come rolling for Lexie in the form of managing the local bookshop and as a freelance editor. Having to share the space with Tobias caused functions in the beginning but they quickly became good friends. His grouchiness wasn't long-lived as they bonded over familial problems, secrets, tensions and drama. Lexie's father turns up out of the blue after twenty-three years to cause further upset.
The added storyline of Celeste's book and her connection to the area was an interesting addition and I enjoyed her storyline as much as Lexie's.
I was rooting for Lexie and Tobias all the way through and it was a lovely and heartwarming moment when it all worked out for them.
This is an uplifting story of love and forgiveness.

I would firstly just like to say a big thank you to Rachel’s Random Resources who very kindly forwarded me an arc copy of this book, for my kindle, in return for my honest review.

The Bookshop By The Loch is actually book number six from the Scottish Escapes series but can very easily be read as a stand alone without any problems at all.

Lexie’s most favourite place is her local book store called Book Ends. When she learns that it is going to be sold, she just knows that she has to do something to help…

The characters were all very realistic and down to earth and I could relate to each and every one of them.

I really enjoyed the enemies to friends trope and it was heartwarming and romantic too, with that all important happy ending…….

Another enjoyable read in this series. Beautiful setting and good characters make this a happy feelgood read that you can easily read as a standalone if you haven't read the others in the series

This is a great series and this addition just adds to it! Lots of love, family matters and secrets! Well written and recommended.

I always enjoy Julie Shackman's books, but this one seemed to be a bit too full of people, side stories, spin offs.....It is one of a series but can be read on its own. There were one or two examples of poor editing/grammar etc which always irritate me. However, the book was a pleasant read with the main characters interestingly portrayed, but not one of my favourites. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read and review the book.

This is the sixth book in the Scottish Escapes series, but it can be read as a stand-alone. I highly recommend reading the other books if you are looking for clean and charming escapist romances. I have been enjoying this series. It continues to capture my attention and heart. There is a lot of beautiful depth to this story. When you first start reading this book, it gives off those charming romantic vibes, but as the story progresses, you realize there is so much more to it. There are so many layers that exist within this book. This book deals with complex and messy family relationships, friendships, health issues, and how people deal with life's crises. There are moments that will tug at those heartstrings, and you will love it. All the characters feel real and relatable. I loved being with every character in this book. They are all dealing with something, and watching as they wade through those life troubles, you can't help but build those connections with those characters.

I am a fan of small-town romances and loved this book's small-town charm. The added bonus is that we get to spend time in a bookshop. I am a sucker for those romances that take a struggling business and breath new life into it. That transformation promotion is pure catnip for me. This is a clean, slow-burn romance. There are some fabulous scenes with these two together that will warm your heart. I love a good enemies-to-lovers romance, and Julie did a great job incorporating this trope into her story. The romance between Lexie and Tobias is not always the story's main focus. Their growing relationship is woven throughout all of these secondary stories that are happening at the same time. I enjoyed how the romance was structured in this book, and it fits well with the overall vibe of the story.

The Bookshop by the Loch is another heartfelt and gorgeous romance by Julie Shackman.

Thank you, One More Chapter and Rachel Random Resources, for sending us an arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Bookshop by the Lock by Julie Shackman is a romance with a little substance, as well. All families have secrets,; some are more widely known that others. When Lexie Dunbar was passed over for a promotion in her job as an editor for Literati publishing, she took what leave she had accrued and returned to Bracken Way to stay with her mother and her grandfather. She didn’t know what her plans were but she placed some ads as an independent editor just in case. As she was walking through the village, she came upon the bookstore that had been her grandmother’s and her happy place for many years, just as the “to let” sign was being hung. Heart broken, she confronted the owner, Trevor, and the words and phrases that fell from her mouth were all ideas on how to strengthen business, until he interrupted her with an offer. He had the money, if she would do the work. They’d give it a year. Things got complicated from there. His nephew appeared, angry about the new arrangement, and before she knew it, she was sharing the space with an art gallery. It was good art, she had to admit, but the artist seemed sullen and morose and she was not happy.

Lexie was ready for something new, it turned out. She was glorying in the success when some new people appeared in her life: her estranged father, for one. And a lovely old lady named Celeste, for another, along with her daughter, Maeve, who appeared to get the both of the to help fulfill some items on her mother’s bucket list: have her portrait done and have an editor look at a novel she had written. This family had secrets, as well. Celeste was eighty years old and had lived a full life. The novel was semi-autobiographical and well-written, Lexie had only a few changes. The portrait was coming along nicely and business at the book store was booming. What a book: chock full of endearing characters, each with their own issues, and a good storyline to match. Shackman has done these people justice as they laid their lives on the line for their audience. Thanks for a terrific novel!

I was invited to read The Bookstore by the Loch by Harper Collins US, One More Chapter. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #Netgalley # HarperCollinsUKOneMoreChapter #JulieShackman #TheBookshopByTheLoch

What a gem of a book! It is a fantastic read and had me hooked from the very first page. Thank you Julie for this great read.

Lovely book. It’s book 6 in the series. Great plot that plays out well. It’s well written. Lovely feel good book. Like all families there’s loss, love and secrets. Enough to keep your interest in this story. There’s a huge play on forgiveness in the book. Ties all in so well.

Books make the world go round and for a great cozy theme. With a great setting and books galore, Lexie is taking some time after a career disappointment to visit her family. Maybe everything DOES happen for a reason…

The Bookshop by the Loch by Julie Shackman

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

Lexie Dunbar is a book lover. And her favourite place in the world is her local bookstore, Book Ends. So when she hears that it’s going to be sold, Lexie decides she needs to do something to help.

Lexie’s plan to save the ailing shop is fully underway until gorgeous-but-grouchy artist Tobias Black arrives on the scene determined to turn the bookstore into an art gallery. Lexie is horrified, the last thing the quaint town of Bracken Way needs is a pretentious artist, even if he does seem to charm everyone but her.

Tensions continue to rise until Tobias discovers a shocking secret that shows they might have more in common than they realise. As sparks fly, can Lexie and Tobias work together, or will opposing ideas get in the way of them finding their very own happy ever after…

My Opinion

Lexie Dunbar is a book editor that loves books. So when her local book shop is up for sale she knows that she must step in. A dream for any book lover. This is part of the Scottish Escapes series and whilst I have read some of them, I haven't read them all but this one can easily be read as a standalone.

This is a cosy, heart-warming read and Lexie is a character that everyone can relate to. I started this book with little time to read and I found myself wanting to return to Book Ends whenever the opportunity arose.

Rating 4/5

Lovely story set in what sounds like a gorgeous location. I love any story that is set around books and bookshops. Great characters and good storyline that had me intrigued.

I love books about a character who loves books, works with books, or tries to save a bookstore- in this case all three, so that plus Scotland made it seem like this would be the romance for me. But I never really got into the book or the main character and ended up disappointed in this one.

After being passed over for a promotion she's not only worked herself into the ground for but apparently basically been promised, Lexie takes some leave from her job as an editor and goes home to visit her mom and grandfather. She's questioning her life, her career, and everything else. A few twists and she ends up agreeing to take over a failing local bookshop as manager and trying to save it instead of going back to her job in Glasgow. The store's owner's nephew, an obnoxious artist, first tries to stop her, then ends up renting part of the space as his gallery. Enemies to flirty happen faster than I could figure out why, other than it was what is expected. When Lexie has family problems Tobias shows he isn't a total jerk by being a good listener, but it was more like he had a personality transfer from the first person we met than getting an explanation (a la Mr Darcy) for his rudeness in the beginning.

After that there were so many side stories that the main story of a developing romance between Lexie and Tobias kept getting derailed, as did the save-the-bookstore plot. Interruptions and misunderstandings kept happening, new side stories threw new problems in the character's paths and by the end not everything was entirely resolved to my satisfaction but there was a rush to fix things so that Lexie and Tobias could fall into each other's arms. It was all a little scattered for me, and I'd have liked to see the book focus a bit more on the main characters, their feelings, and their development.

I have to admit I was also not a fan of the writing style. The random sentences of description in the middle of conversations or internal debates kept throwing me out of the story (and Lexie's POV) without adding anything to the book as a whole, and the more it happened the more annoyed I got.

Overall, all the things I wanted to like about this book weren't really main points to the story, and even the characters and writing style didn't really do it for me. I don't see myself trying another book by this author.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This is a cozy, easy read, clean romance in the Scottish Escapes series. It can be read as a standalone. The fun setting of a beloved but rundown bookshop in the small town, the nosy small town neighbors, the combination of art and books... it all combined beautifully to make a great story. I love how the relationship progressed between Lexie and Tobias from resentment and suspicion to friendship to attraction. It's definitely a slow burn of miscommunication and missed opportunities with a sweet ending, kissing only. And through it all they support each other through family issues and drama.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.