This book got off to a good start. The pace of the story was quick. However, I am pretty disappointed in the characters. None of them had solid time to develop into anyone you could love/hate/root for. In fact, I despised atleast a few. I was disappointed that none of the characters who had ample opportunity to redeem themselves actually did. It was honestly just a disappointing read.

First book by this author. The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore follows the lives of four siblings, a young outdoorsy man and one grumpy old neighbor as their lives intersect and intertwine. Almost Librarian, Chloe Sampson works her butt off to support her three younger siblings and keep their crumbling house from falling down around them. After their mother left without an explanation, Chloe quits college mid-library science degree to move home and win her siblings back from CPS. She works, helps with homework, budgets, fixes the house and occasionally has to deal with grumpy octogenarian who lives next door to retrieve a stay frisbee or two. While cleaning out the library's basement she comes across an old book with love notes in the margins and uncovers a sixty year old love story. Meanwhile she meets Zach, a survival instructor and sometimes EMT, who helps Chloe unravel the love story as she works to find out more about the lovers. Turns out that each character needs the others support, whether they know it or not. This story was lovely, heartbreaking, funny and thought provoking all in one. Thanks to netgalley, the author and publisher.

Lucy Gilmore's writing is like a warm hug. I love the characters, the story, and the writing.
Family. Love. Books. Multiple POVs.

3.5 stars

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book! I enjoyed the literary aspect of this, and getting snippets of their tale through the years!

This was such a great read!
I love books about books and I also love dual timelines so this was fab for me!

This was a cute read, but found the plot to be a little slow. I love stories that revolve around libraries / books / and stories, but I didn’t feel connected to any of it this time around unfortunately. There was a lot going on with the multiple subplots and storylines, but many were of no consequence so I felt that I was meandering.

I would still read this book for a cute book to read. It is a bit of a love mystery, so you might just love it.

The story is sweet and heartwarming with a charming premise, but it felt predictable and the characters lacked depth. While enjoyable, it didn’t stand out or offer much originality beyond the usual romance tropes.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for a review copy of The Library of Borrowed Hearts in exchange for an honest review! The Library of Borrowed Hearts is a heartwarming story set in two timelines, unfortunately for me it was a little too slow paced for my enjoyment.
Chloe is a librarian and finds herself caught in a predicament when she finds library books with notes in them from the past between two lovers, this sends her on a scavenger hunt of old novels as she solves this tragic love story's mystery.

She is also struggling to be a maternal figure for her three siblings who she has custody of, and of course there's a cute man that enters her life at the same time.

There is dual timelines, two love stories, lots of subplots and characters. I found myself a bit unengaged throughout. Definitely could be a me problem, but this one just wasn't a fav.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

Lucy Gilmore writes in such a way that it leaves me thinking about the story for ages afterwards. It's passionate and you genuinely feel for the characters in the book.

After I finished reading, I just sat and processed for awhile - This is a really good book and the fact that it left me sitting and thinking definitely is an indication of a good read for me.

A fun and cute bookish romance/family drams rooted in a mystery. I think anyone who loves books would enjoy this title!

I enjoyed this book very much,

I am not opposed to a well written slightly dual timeline story and this book was able to carry the story through well with the dual timeline where the past POV chapters did a good job supplementing and explaining the holes in the present POV chapters as they discussed the past. This type of book always has the potential to go into the realm of soapy and predictable but it did not do so and the ending really felt believable and realistic, The struggles of the characters were relatable and universal, and he literary thread was touching :)

oh be still my heart! I really loved this one. I loved the characters but honestly the story line was perfection. there isn't one thing I would change. I can't recommend this one enough.

The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore. Pub Date: April 30, 2024. Rating: 4 stars. In this charming novel centered around an old book that has ties to the past through notes scribbled throughout it, the reader is taken on a journey of love, friendship, relationships and a love of books. Chloe is the owner of this rare older book and her cranky older neighbor wants to buy it from her. This sparks a whirlwind journey through the past in which Chloe gets to know her cranky neighbor as he was a young man romancing a young female. This was heartwarming, lovely and packed all the positive feels. Perfect book to put you in a feel good mood. I really enjoy this author's novels. Thanks to #netgalley and #sourcebookscasablanca for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Any book that will celebrate the power of libraries and the communities they cultivate are a win for me. Thank you for this advance copy!

I really enjoyed this book. I was under the impression that it was a romance and while there was some romance, I felt that the romance was secondary to the mystery of the plot as well as family relationships and friendships. I appreciated the character development and that multiple characters experienced growth. I enjoyed the parallels between the two love stories. I was happy to see Jasper open up and form bonds with all of the children. Overall a great read.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the chance to read an ebook of "The Library of Borrowed Hearts" by Lucy Gilmore. I had a feeling deep in my heart that I would love this book, and I was absolutely right. I recommend this book for the cozy slow burn lovers, or any fan of women's fiction. This book was so cute and refreshing, and even the cover is adorable! Multiple plot lines, multiple characters, what's not to like? I am a sucker for found family tropes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lucy Gilmore for this arc! This book was great, but not everything that I wanted it to be! It was a struggle for me to finish; I think the concept was good but I don't think it was executed well enough for me.

The writing was not bad, which is why I know it was definitely the pacing and the plot for me.

Struggling librarian, curmudgeonly next door neighbor, and a rare edition book with a secret. What more could you ask for! This was such a heartwarmingly fun read. I was afraid this book would be too similar to the author's Lonely Hearts Book Club, but was pleasantly surprised. The literary scavenger hunt gave a nice hint of mystery to keep me going (I'm not a big romance reader).

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

My first ever book by Lucy Gilmore was the lonely hearts book club nd I loved it so much that I had such high expectation for this one. It wasn't a bad book or story, nor was it not well written but it wasn't as good as her previous book.

I loved Cloe and her siblings and their next door neighbour, Jasper Holmes, an old grouchy grouch. What I c ouldn't really understand was the ending of his and Catherine's love story.

Other than that, it was a good read.