Thank you to Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to be an ARC reader for this book in exchange for my honest review.
My first thought about this story is that using a free little library as the main feature of this story is not only genuine but made the story 100% more appealing to a book lover like myself.
Erin is in a rut. She is depressed, can't find her way, and is in a downward spiraling cycle of depression. Her family has issues, her career leaves her feeling less than adequate, and she misses her deceased best friend, Bonnie. The only thing that is priceless to her is her copy of To Kill A Mockingbird with a special message inside of it from Bonnie, and it is annotated by her with so many thoughts and notes. Erin accidentally donates it to a little free library and searches it frantically, hoping someone returns the precious book.
James isn't living his life to the fullest. He feels like he is just going through the motions with his job, family, and life. Until he comes across Erin's book in the little free library. Her notes in the margins of the book sparked something in him, and before he knew it, he was replying to her throughout the book and returned it, hoping she would see the book. At the end of the book, he included an invitation to join him in the next book... this contined... back and forth... until they finally discovered each other's real identities.
Wow, just wow! This book is so unique, and I loved every minute of it! The happy ending was a bonus! I highly recommend this book to all book lovers. You will adore it!

Thank you to @netgalley @htpbooks @htphive and the author for the gifted e-book.

I went into this book thinking it was going to be a lighthearted romance. Instead, I found a much deeper and more profound novel.

Narrated from the perspectives of Erin and James, the story delves into the tragedies they have faced, overshadowing the romantic elements. Both characters are grappling with family issues and struggling with their own self-worth. They are stuck in unfulfilling careers and are burdened by their family's demands. But what really drew me in was the moment Erin began exchanging classic books with a stranger. Their correspondence led to the sharing of innermost thoughts, pushing both of them to pursue new directions in their lives. I was captivated by how annotated books connected these characters and unveiled their shared history.

This novel is a beautiful exploration of self-discovery, the acceptance of our flaws, and the enduring love for family, friends, and those we may have lost along the way. Be mindful that it does touch on themes like mental illness, bullying, and death, which made the characters both unlikeable and endearing at different points in the story.

If you're in search of a meaningful and introspective read, look no further. This compelling book is set to be published on September 3rd.

This book was not what I expected. I expected two people who traded notes in margins who actually knew each other to meet and fall in love. While that is what we got, it actually didn’t happen until the last 2% of the book.

Most of this book was about a few things: (1) James’ life now, his family, and what happened between him and Erin and Bonnie when they were younger; (1) Erin’s life now, her awful job, talking to her dead friend, and her family. Most of the book focused on most everything else and less about the romance.

They exchanged books at the library with notes in the margins. This was a really cute idea. Unfortunately, it was just overdone. It should have stopped sooner and then have them figure out it was someone that they knew sooner.

The way that it was written was a little difficult too. Sometimes the scenes change from present to flashback and I couldn’t tell what was happening. It just felt very disjointed.

I will say this – there is a lot of discussion on grief, and it is handled very well. I just wasn’t prepared for that based on the description of the book.

I really wanted to love this book, but it just fell short for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! This was a unique story and I enjoyed it! Erin was hard to root for at times, but I loved reading through James’ POV. I also love books set in London.

The book was advertised as a cute rom-com but it had a lot of heavy topics that took away from the romance aspect of the story. I think the author had good intentions for the story but I think it was a bit too much at once. I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would.

If you like “You’ve Got Mail,” you’ll likely enjoy this book as it revolves around characters writing back and forth to each other through books in a little library. In similar fashion, the main characters know each other and have a love-hate relationship in real life. Heavy on the hate. This story has a few added twists of a mother with a mental illness and shared loss of a beloved friend, as well as formative years filled with challenges, which is a nice take.

Liked:
- relatively tame romance which focused on romance over physical
- the realness of dealing with grief and mental health struggles
- the reality of how our parents actions can impact our lives for years into the future
- how serious bullying can be in school
- cancer can take a toll on so many relationships
- a bisexual and gay side characters where it wasn’t treated like a weird thing that needed to be called out, just normal. Nor were they treated like they were promiscuous.
- normalizing single motherhood
- normalizing stay at home fathers
- how suicide impacts everyone
- Use of literature to share with each other. It’s one of my favorite things about books as well.
- Perks of Being a Wall Flower

Disliked:
- how long it took for the story to get going. I definitely struggled to stay awake reading a few times. It took a lot to set-up the exchange, and it feels like maybe there was a way to condense it or perhaps intertwine it more
- everything “worked out” perfectly in the end. Everyone for most part paired up. The mental health struggles of James’ mother magically just became easier for everyone to handle.
- making Elliot seem like he left the family and was selfish when he chose to put his mental health first.
- so many different things going on with every person, it was sort of like traumatic experiences were a main plot device. It was a lot.


One thing particulate for me, and maybe it’s just my area but I feel like most little libraries rarely have many books, especially ones that people might want to read. lol. But I do enjoy calling attention to these little wonders and also how they often end up in disrepair. I hope people want to go check theirs out and maybe help it be in better shape. 💜

First thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I had a very hard time getting into this book. Initially I was intrigued by the concept, I love books about books. So this seemed promising. However it was not until I started reading that the concept of the book became a little lost on me. I ended up DNF"ing this book after only getting a few chapters in.

The formatting of the text made it difficult for me to read, I am not sure if it was because this was an ARC and so it had not been formatted yet for printing but it definitely impacted how I read this book. The writing was also not the best and I found it to be disjointed and choppy. Which in turn made for a difficult reading experience.

Overall, I was extremely disappointed with this book. Which was such a let down because I truly had been looking forward to this book.

This book certainly touches on some deeper topics, but I think it’s done in a very real way; very human. It was such a lovely read and honestly what I really needed as of late. I love when that mesh of real life and fiction happens. It makes the characters that much more relatable.

“Someone I should have made way more effort with just died and I blame myself. I was so focused on my job, I didnt notice a human being beside me was struggling.” - on suicide

I adore the way that Erin and her Mystery Man connected through books. So effing romantic!! All the stops by the little free library to read the margins. 🥰 I actually thought this was just going to be a cute little romance book and that’s it, but it was actually quite a bit more than that. And I’m so glad for it.

“Sometimes people are going through something you can’t relate to and you just have to show up.”

If I had to critique anything at all, it would be the writing a bit. I just felt that sometimes we were in a scene and then suddenly we’ve been ripped from the scene and we are somewhere else. For example, the characters will be having a conversation on the phone and the next thing you know she’s leaving her house and mentions the conversation she had earlier on the phone. No transition, just we are talking and now we’re doing something else. Keep up.

Other than that, this book was totally adorable and I would recommend it to anyone. Especially to those who are having a hard time and need to know that they are not alone in their feelings and that not everyone is perfect. Everybody makes mistakes it’s what you do after the mistake that counts. And that love can be found in the margins of life. ❤️

“And in that moment, I swear we were infinite.”
.
.
.
ʏᴏᴜʟʟ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ʟɪᴋᴇ:
•books about books
•romance
•family drama
•deep discussion

A heartbreaking, beautiful second chance love story. Not at all like you expect but it gives you everything you need. If you’ve ever felt lost after loss, like the world keeps spinning but you no longer have any sense of direction or purpose, to be afraid to love so deeply because you know what it’s like to lose it so you don’t bother with it at all, I recommend this book to you. Their invisible string of not realizing they’ve always been exactly what the other needs, but also that they both needed to grow and grieve before they fit back together is so beautiful. This book ripped my heart out and then put it back together with so much love. I was fully sobbing by the last two chapters. This perfectly encapsulates grief and love and what it’s like to struggle with forgiving yourself for something you’ve blamed others for for so long. The writing is done well, the content and topics covered are heavy but necessary and real. Overall, even though this wasn’t what I was expecting from this book it was phenomenal and I really enjoyed it.

My favorite part of this book is the cover.
I went in thinking it was going to be a cute rom-com, but it was not. There was no romance and no comedy. It was definitely more on the heavier side of book topics, which is not what the cover or blurb led me to believe.

Erin was a very grey character for me. She had qualities that made her both likeable and unlikeable. I flip-flopped between the two feelings throughout the entire book. By the end, she was neutral. She was very self absorbed and self centered, and she hadn't changed much by the end.
James was alright. He didn't do much for me. He was definitely a push-over, and that clashed badly with how he perceived himself. I did like how he regained his love for writing.
I had some issues with the bullying plot line. I wasn't understanding the reason for it. (I know bullies don't necessarily need a reason.) Because his dad was a famous musician who just up and quit? Because he was scrawny? Because he was there? And the lengths the boys went to, you'd think a teacher would have put a stop to it. Or someone would have. It was apparently an every day occurrence that had been going on for quite awhile. Someone of authority HAD to have seen or heard something. Also, the timeline was confusing. I didn't know if they were in the equivalent of high school or college, as both were mentioned at different points.
The way the pair connects was cute. I loved the idea of them getting to know each other through books and their thoughts and feelings about them. I know they knew each other from school, but they don't even really meet again until well past the half way point. And the burn was so slow in this book, it was practically nonexistent. I mean, the main couple kiss threeish times, and they're all within the last 5 pages. (But they are each sleeping with other people past the 50% mark.) The romance was definitely nil to none, so I don't know how they're suddenly in love and always had been by the end.
The story line itself was slow in a lot of places. The main characters spent a lot of time overanalyzing every tiny thing. And they both had a knack for making their lives harder on themselves.
Now that I'm thinking of it, this book really had 3 main characters: Erin, James, and Bonnie. The book pretty much revolves around Erin's grief over losing Bonnie. And I get it. Losing a best friend to cancer is rough. I really wish we had gotten more flashbacks of Erin and Bonnie. Really, we only got a handful, but we weren't shown enough about her for me to care about her as a character. We also see James's struggles with having a parent with bipolar disorder.
Georgia, Cassie, and Joel were really the stars of this book. I'd read a book about them.
James wearing Bonnie's high heels, jumpsuit, red lipstick, and a long blonde wig was a scene I did not need. It was very out of place and out of character for him. (As a guy who was bullied badly in his childhood and still struggles with those feelings, he would not have done something as bold as to dress in that way for fear he may be bullied again.)

TW: Childhood bullying, death from cancer, parental infidelity, mental health awareness, emotional abuse by parent (related to the mental health), heart attack - parent, depression, side character pregnancy.

Overall, the book was okay. The bad marketing and misleading book cover led me to read this when it's not necessarily a book I normal would.

2.5/5 rounded up.

(3.5 stars rounded up)
Erin is grieving the death of her best friend, and James is dealing with the heavy load of caretaking for his mother as a result of his mother’s mental illness. Both of them find solace in a little free library where they leave one another notes in the margins of classic novels anonymously.

I really enjoyed this debut! However, I want to caution readers to check content warnings carefully before diving in. The cover leads you to believe it’s a light rom com, but this book deals with many heavy topics including grief, loss, terminal illness, undiagnosed depression, bipolar disorder, suicide, and severe bullying. It really is a love letter to reading, teachers, and great works of literature more than anything. I loved the references to some of my all time favorite books like The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I also liked the focus of the little library in the story. I would have enjoyed more romance between Erin and James. The heavy topics were a bit too much and the book could have used more levity to balance them.

Thank you to Tessa Bickers and Harlequin Trade publishing and The Hive for my digital copy ARC as well as physical ARC and opportunity to be an early reader and reviewer.

THE BOOK SWAP – Tessa Bickers
Graydon House
ISBN: 978-1525836701
September 3, 2024
Contemporary Fiction

London, England – Present Day

A few years ago, Erin Connolly lost her best friend Bonnie to cancer and her death still haunts her. Every so often Bonnie shows up in Erin’s visions. Why? Because Erin felt guilty about not seeing Bonnie much while she had dealt with chemo. At the funeral, Erin ran into their former high school friend James Parr. She and Bonnie had broken off the friendship with James years ago, but apparently, he had been there for Bonnie while Erin had been absent.

In the present day, Erin is struggling to survive—between hating her job and life, as well as her guilt about Bonnie. After dramatically quitting her job, she decides to clear out her cache of books but accidentally gives away to a book swap depository a book that holds a dear memory of Bonnie. It even has Erin’s notes in the margins. After realizing her error, she goes back to see if the book is there, and it isn’t there for a few days. It eventually does show up but with additional notes from someone who then suggests a new book for her to read. This goes back and forth. They are literally writing questions and answers back and forth in the margins of the books. Yet, they haven’t met. Who is Erin’s mystery man? I suspect you already know the answer.

It turns out that THE BOOK SWAP is the debut book by Tessa Bickers and it’s an emotional read that keeps readers engrossed. Erin is affected by several things, from her best friend’s death to her tenuous relationship with her family. She is living in London, sharing a flat with a guy who sometimes uses her for sex. Unsatisfied with her job, she quits. But she has to pay the rent, so she looks for employment, yet she still feels unsatisfied. Deep down, readers will sense that she is looking for guidance from above as to what to do next. Meanwhile, Erin is enjoying the little flirtation she has going on with her mystery man. Halfway through THE BOOK SWAP, James realizes it is Erin, and he is stunned. All he has ever wanted from her was for her to understand what happened—and for her to forgive him. He wants their friendship back. But does he want more?

James is going through his own upheaval. His mother has manic episodes every so often, which means he needs to take time from his job to help his father take care of her. He doesn’t really like his job, except it pays the bills. James would rather be a writer and partway through, he finally starts in earnest the novel that has been percolating in his head for years. He was bullied as a teen, and it was Erin and Bonnie who befriended him. That is until they thought he had lied and betrayed Erin. Will he get the opportunity in THE BOOK SWAP to explain and get forgiveness from Erin?

THE BOOK SWAP is told from both Erin’s and James’s points of view, so readers learn early on about what is happening with the book swapping. They take their time working their way back to each other, but it isn’t an easy road. Erin and James have issues to figure out, and big in their agenda will be making explanations to each other. Don’t miss the drama and emotion waiting for readers in THE BOOK SWAP.

Patti Fischer
Romance Reviews Today

Overall, I thought this was a very cute book. It was emotional and gut wrenching at times, but also very sweet.

I wasn't fully invested until about 20% through when we got to the actual book swapping. Until that point, I wasn't in love with it. But the notes that James and Erin left for each other in the margins as Margin Girl and Mystery Man was the cutest. It was almost like a pen pal or a diary where they could be themselves and get out their deepest secrets. The individual back stories for James and Erin were nice because it gave insight into their motives for where they ended up in life.

I will say, that Erin was a bit annoying in my opinion just because of her harsh judgement and refusing to listen to James. But also holding on to everything in the past. As much as I understand it, you have to get over it at some point. James was similar, but less in the sense of holding a grudge, and more just trying to be the best person for his family and friends and trying to fulfill their goals for him.

I started this book in June, but because I felt it was a bit slow in the beginning and because I always read a bunch of books at once, it took me a while to finish. However, the last 40% made it so worth it. As soon as James realizes who he was exchanging books with, I was HOOKED! I finished the last 40% in one day. My heart hurt for the both the FMC and MMC. There is so much hurt in their story and the lack of communication was infuriating, but I am glad they get their HEA. I also loved all the literary references. I think I need to read “Th Perks of Being a Wallflower” now.

Woooooo, boy. This was a heavy book - extreme childhood bullying, (undiagnosed) depression, cheating, bipolar disorder, death... despite that, it had a happy ending. The characters were so easy to love, and the plot was interesting and fresh.

I really enjoyed reading The Book Swap, but it did feel like some things were left unfinished, and the ending felt very sudden. I also wish yhe author was more clear about how much time had passed over the course of the book - the formatting was a little wonky on my Kindle, but unless I'm mistaken, the only time there is a clear indication is the last chapter with "six months later". Like, clearly at least nine months pass in some part of the book!

Overall, this is a romance, but it focuses more heavily on how the characters deal with their issues than on the romance. I'd highly recommend to someone who wants a book that's light on romance but dives deep into characters overcoming their past and current struggles.

3.5 stars. This book was very different from what I was expecting. It’s definitely not a lighthearted romance novel based around books and note passing. There are heavy themes of loss, mental illness, and familial struggle in large part fueled by both of those throughout. It did end on a hopeful note, but getting there was a challenge for me. I hope that if others go in with a better idea of what to expect, they may have a more satisfying reading experience than I did.

Erin was a difficult character for me. I don’t want to say she was unlikable because she was very human and that’s normal, but she had a “woe is me, everyone else is to blame” chip on her shoulder for most of the book. She was very quick to judge and very resistant to accepting any kind of explanation or apologies when she felt wronged. I don’t want to speak on things I’m not educated or trained in, but it seemed as though she had undiagnosed mental health issues and with that sense, I found more empathy for her than I otherwise would have. I did appreciate her journey toward finding her career path, and she did come around to therapy which I think would ultimately be an immense help for her. She was showing a lot of positive progress by the end of the book.

James was a much easier character to feel sympathy and empathy for. His hardships in life were put upon him, not stemming from his own choices. He was far from perfect, but he had faced a great deal of trauma in his school days and witnessing and caring for his mom’s mental illness. He had his own one-track-mind perceptions about how life needed to be in order to see it as a success, and I was grateful to see his views change as the book progressed to a more understanding place of others choices.

As far as the romance between Erin and James went, it was really very minimal. Without saying too much about their history and in-person interactions, there is very little connection that plays out between them outside of their margin notes in the books they exchange. Again, like everything else, it does come to a welcome point in the end, but the book is really more about their individual journeys. Their book swap does play a role in motivating the changes they each begin to make in their lives, more so for James than Erin, but it was difficult for me to feel invested in the two of them coming together. That said, if the point was that I was *meant* to be more invested in the two of them sorting out their own lives before figuring out their relationship, the book achieved its goal.

QUICK GLANCE-
My format- ebook
Other Lengths- Physical (336 pages)/ Audio (9 hrs 10 min)
Spice: 🌶️ / Just kissing
Language: Moderate 🤐🤐
TW: mental illness, cancer, loss of a friend, suicidal thoughts

MY THOUGHTS-
The Book Swap was a sweet surprise and my favorite ARC I have read so far this year. This is Tessa Bicker’s debut novel, so I assumed it was a fluffy rom-com. I was soon corrected as she immersed us in grief, loss, and the struggles of trying to heal. The connections between Erin and James were really powerful and I loved all of the character development that took place. The Book Swap is such a beautiful story and so well written. I was truly invested in the characters’ lives and how they were woven together so neatly. Perfect, deeply moving, and a beautiful ending to wrap it all up!

🖊️ Mystery Pen Pals
💗 Heartfelt
😘Enemies to lovers
💔Second chances
📚 Books about books
💌You’ve Got Mail vibes
👥Dual POV (Erin and James)

Thank You to @netgalley, @tessabickerswrites, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for granting me access to an e-Arc of this book in exchange for an honest review

What a deep, great written work about grief and love. It was emotional and beautiful the whole way through. I will say this book does touch some heavier topics so if you’re going in for a light-hearted read, I would hold off. Great book overall!

While this book was hard to stick with at times, I did enjoy Erin and James’ story. Not every love story is rainbows and butterflies. Sometimes you have to get through the hard stuff to get to the good.

A second chance novel with a bit of romance. Erin's shocked when her copy of Mockingbird is back the little library and even more so that it's been annotated. Turns out James, who took and then returned it, is someone she knew as a younger person. Now, she's trying to cope with grief and change and he's dealing with his mother and her mental health issues. But they bond in the most unusual way- through notes in classics they exchange in the library. Know that this doesn't rely on those novels to propel the story but also that this is a good prompt to read any or all of those you might have missed. Both Erin and James (and Bonnie) are well drawn and realistic characters. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. It's not as light as you might expect from the cover but it's a good thoughtful read.