I enjoyed this audiobook as a light, easy read/listen. I’ve never read this author before but would do so again when in the mood for this type of book. The characters are likable and the story is amusing.

A great premise that made me think of how many different directions this story could have gone if you gave it to a handful of authors across genres. In this case, Lipman takes a breezy approach with a dash of humor and mystery and a bit of romance to make a good beach read.

Emma Lewis is floundering a bit, She's moved back home to her small Massachusetts hometown of Harrow and taken over her parents' estate sale business, even though it wasn't really what she had in mind as a career. And on top of that, her parents have retired and found her a tenant to inhabit the family home with her, a widower and retired math teacher, Frank, who is a friend of her father. It's a bit awkward at first but the two end up working out their lives cohabitating and even working together in the estate sale business. Emma finds herself interested when the top cop in town makes a visit to warn them about selling liquor when they inadvertently sold a bottle of schnapps at a sale. And Frank admits to a bit of a liking for Luke's mother. His own philandering wife was struck by lightning and died on the golf course. They even agree with one another on getting a dog and both of them are thrilled with adopted-from-the-pound Ivy.

When Emma lands a client who wants to sell the contents of a large estate in town, she's thrilled. But there's more to it than just a large bed and breakfast. The property was also actually a 'house of ill repute,' frequented by many high paying male clients and condoned by the police chief, the owner's husband. While there are a lot of great items to sell, the sheer amount is overwhelming. And while the owner is thrilled with publicity for her former business, her former husband wants to be involved and absconds with some of the valuable furnishings which he's claimed.

Emma and Frank have their hands full with this one. Emma's parents even come back to help, deciding to stay and take the business back over themselves. Emma and Frank have each found romance though with officer Luke and his mother, Connie.

This one is both a light romance and a humorous one. A nice beach read.

First of all, thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to listen to this newly published audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I feel divided on this book. It started very promisingly with the development of Emma's relationship with Frank. Their dynamic was sweet, and their interactions remained the highlight of the book.
I guess I'd initially thought it was a romance, but after about two hours of listening I decided I'd been mistaken and that it was actually a mystery. I kept waiting for someone to get murdered, but after another two hours of listening, it became clear that it wasn't gonna happen.
At the end of the day it was a book about an estate sale and little else.
Yes, there was some slight intrigue, but most of the question marks in the story were cleared up instantly. There were also two romantic relationships, but the Emma/Luke arc didn't really land for me; their eventual commitment didn't feel interesting or earned, and I found myself liking Emma's character less and less as the book went on and she became increasingly single minded about snagging her next estate sale (and not in a way that led to any character growth...)
All of this was a shame because:
The writing was phenomenal! Lots of fun, distinct characters that felt intentionally placed and easy to envision. The setting was charming, and there was a lot of small town humor that added to the overall cozy atmosphere. I feel like all the ingredients for a really good book are here, except for the most important one: a plot.
Let me not neglect to mention that the narrator was fabulous.

This is a cute little cozy romance! I've always enjoyed Elinor Lipman's work...this one was maybe not my favorite of hers, but it was a fun, quick read!

This was a fun, lighthearted story about an aimless daughter who takes over her parent's estate sale business when they retire. There's a heartwarming intergenerational friendship, some romance, a mystery, a cute dog sidekick and lots of small town drama. Good on audio and worth the read if you're in the mood for something with humor and heart. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thanks to HarperAudio & NetGalley for providing an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Meh.

This is my first Elinor Lipman, and I am underwhelmed. Rom-com? Not really; the romance is kind of a foregone conclusion, and about as unromantic as you can get. It's nearer in spirit to a cozy mystery - there is a bit of suspense, and PLENTY of wacky characters (too many? Yes), but probably most cozy readers wouldn't be thrilled with the brothel tag sale (or the occasional F bomb).

Emma (I had to look up the character name, as she, and the rest of the characters, is a bit forgettable) is a bit of a failure-to-launch woman. She takes over her dad and stepmom's estate sale business after they decide to retire. "Hilarity" ensues, especially when she sees an opportunity to do business with the owner of a large, fancy house that's on the market, which turns out to have been a house of ill repute that was an open secret (somehow everyone but Emma knew).

I feel like this plot could have been really funny, and not just cute, in the right hands. These are not the hands, though. Swing and a miss for me.

2.5 stars rounded up

✨My very first audiobook was way back in 1997 when I had an hour commute to work. You could rent audiobooks at Cracker Barrell and return them to any location nationwide. I picked up ISABEL’S BED by Elinor Lipman and proceeded to listen to it twice I enjoyed it so much. Since then, I think I have read every one of her books either in print or on audio. I’ve loved them every one.

✨This one was certainly no different with all of the humor and heart I’ve come to expect from this author. It was a fast, lighthearted and funny read. I definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a fun romantic comedy.

🌿Read if you like:
✨Romantic comedies
✨Estate sales
✨Found family
✨Lighthearted reads
✨Family dynamics

🎧I loved the narration by Piper Goodeve @pipergoodeve. She voiced the various characters with such individuality that I forgot I was listening to only one voice. I will definitely be searching for more audiobooks with her narration.

I liked this book more than I thought I would and for different reasons than I thought I would. The blurb alludes to romance and crime, and there was both for sure, but the best part of this book was the relationship between Emma and Frank, the retired teacher who is practically forced on her as a boarder by her parents when they decide to move and leave her to run their old estate sale business. I could have happily read a book filled with more Frank and less Mankopfs, who were so over the top it got annoying. I also enjoyed Frank and Connie's romance more than Emma and Luke, so I guess I was totally Team Frank. Piper Goodeve does a great job narrating this book so that even when I was annoyed, I was engaged. Thank you to HarperAudio and NetGalley for the early listen in exchange for my honest opinion. 3.5 stars, rounded up.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute, quick read. The characters were enjoyable and the story flowed well. It was a bit too sappy and tied up way too conveniently at the end, but it was still enjoyable.

The narrator did a good job of emoting and voicing the characters differently.

Elinor Lipman can always be counted on for a fun read with a bit of an edge. This one is no exception. I thought the narrator was an excellent fit for the story -- she kept me engaged while listening, and her voice felt true to the feeling of the book when I picked up the hardcover.

3.75

With the exception of maybe another Eleanor Lipman book, none of which I’ve read, I can pretty much guarantee you’ve never read a book like this. It’s fairly lighthearted and feel good even though there’s a lot of loss and chaos going on in the town of Harrow, Massachusetts. Emma has a amassed her own ragtag family after her parents retired, gave her their estate sale business, handed over their house, and fled to the Cape. They also found her a roommate in the form of a retired high school math teacher and widower. Just what every early 30s girl-about-town wants.

I had a little difficulty following some of the sale elements and people associated with the “escort agency”/B & B and of course it is fairly absurd but I want to hear more (Literally. I listened to the audiobook.) about some of the characters—maybe even a prequel—and what they do next. I was not thrilled with Emma’s later professional path, but all in all, a fun and easy read/listen. Good narration that was appropriate for the book and characters. Not racy considering it is essentially about a brothel.

Thank you to Elinor Lipman, NetGalley, and HarperAudio for providing me with a free advanced copy of this audiobook for my unbiased review.

Happy pub week to Every Tom, Dick, & Harry by Elinor Lipman. This is only my second book by the author, but I am positive that I love her sense of humor and writing voice, and I’m thrilled she has a long backlist for me to dig into.

When Emma Lewis’s parents decide to retire to Cape Cod, they convince her to move into their house, take on a tenant—Emma’s recently widowed high school math teacher, and take over their estate sale business. When she has the chance to run what might be the company’s biggest sale ever at the town’s B&B, Emma discovers the business was a little more scandalous. And it turns out, many of the people in town knew exactly what was going on there after dark. Luckily there’s a new, cute sheriff in town—okay chief of police technically, but my way was more fun to write—who Emma can consult about how far she can legally go to advertise the sale. This quirky comedy was full of characters I loved and won’t soon forget, characters I didn’t like as much who were just as memorable, and two really sweet love stories.

There’s a lot going on in the one, and much of it feels a bit nutty and not entirely grounded. I really enjoyed that aspect, but I can understand how it wouldn’t be everyone’s thing. But as nutty as the story was, the relationships between the characters were just so lovely. I especially loved seeing how Emma and her boarder, Frank, forged an intergenerational friendship that was so sweet and supportive. If you’re looking for deep meaning and a lot of soul-searching conversations, this probably isn’t the book for you. But if you’re looking for a fun story with main characters you’d likely enjoy hanging out with—I sure would—definitely pick this one up!

Piper Goodeve narrates the book perfectly. She gives Emma a combination of practicality and sense of fun, and I was fully immersed in the book. If you’re an audiobook fan, I’d definitely recommend that route.

This audiobook was so much fun. A nice, cozy book with a bunch of laughs is just what I needed after several serious, dark books.

The relationship between the protagonist Emma and Frank is delightfully lovely. Everyone should have a relationship like this one in their lives.

The narrator is very good at keeping the book moving along.

I look forward to reading more from this author.

What an eccentric read that will leave readers wanting to give the book a hug and relieve a gentle sigh.

I found myself particularly loving Emma and her friendship with Frank, and how supportive they are through each other's different relationships. What spoke to me most about this book was how utterly charming how everyone was - definitely reads like a quaint village story. What a perfect pallet cleanser between some heavier reads.

I had never read a book by Elinor Lipman before, so I decided to go into "Every Tome, Dick & Harry" without looking up the synopsis. Right from the start, I really enjoyed the book—especially the developing relationship between Emma and Frank, which was the absolute highlight for me. Their dynamic was charming and engaging, and I found myself looking forward to their scenes together.

However, as the story progressed, I felt a major disconnect from Emma herself, as well as most of the other characters. I was particularly interested in her relationship with the chief of police and was hoping to be more invested in it, but unfortunately, it fell flat for me. I went into this expecting a cozy, feel-good relationship fiction novel—something along the lines of Jojo Moyes—but that wasn’t quite what I found.

That said, I do think this book will work well for other readers, especially those looking for something on the lighter side. As for the audiobook narration, Piper Goodeve did a great job distinguishing the different characters, but I occasionally struggled to differentiate between Emma’s inner thoughts and her actual spoken dialogue.

Thank you to Elinor Lipman, HarperAudio Adult, and NetGalley for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I received this book as an ARC from Netgalley.

The story started out cute and had me laughing at parts, but I felt like the direction ended up going all over the place. The characters are all lovable but there's just a lot going on here. I feel like there's a good story underneath everything but there's a decent amount of, meh, that you have to get through.