Author Poppy Alexander’s latest is the BATTLE OF THE BOOKSHOPS set in a small seaside town, Portneath, close to London. The main characters, Jules and Roman, are back in the seaside town of their childhood after having spent time in London and America, respectively. Much to Jules' dismay and annoyance, Roman decides to open a shiny, bigger, better bookstore in front of her family’s almost 100-year-old, only bookshop in town. It is apt, though, as their families have been at war for centuries. However, with this modern generation, things are about to take a turn as they ready themselves for a battle between their bookshops during the upcoming tourist season. Also, the current generation might not really be in the mood to carry on the torch of a centuries-old war since sparks between them are never short of fireworks.
Jules works in London at a small publisher, struggling in the same position with a dragon of a boss who’s always breathing fire down her neck. With her great aunt in need of her support after an accident, Jules visits for a weekend to look after her aunt, who literally brought her up. The dragon boss strikes hard, and Jules finds her London publishing dream goes up in smoke. Without a job and her aunt and their family bookstore desperate for help, Jules finds herself determined to fight for their beloved bookshop and go to war with the handsome Roman.
With each new day, they come up with events and tactics to make their shops shine and earn more. In the midst of everyday battles, the duo fall for each other and decide to date, keeping work and personal life far from each other. Soon, they are dating, going out with Roman’s friends for a couple of group outings, all the while doing the best for their respective shops. However, soon the ages-old family feud rears its head, and with Roman knowing more than he’s sharing with Jules, things complicate. There comes a time when Jules fights for their relationship despite everything going on between their families, and even when Roman chickens out.
Amidst it all, Jules is not only determined to save their beloved bookstore but also make her aunt's dream of a cottage home a reality. While it’s clear towards the end that Jules is the one winning not only hearts but the bookstore game too, tragedy strikes and brings the two closer than ever. A new reality sets in by the end of the bookstore battles, where everyone gets what they wished for and more.
I enjoyed the small town vibe, especially when there are books, age-old feuds, old witches making their presence known and helping the needy.
The characters, though especially that of Roman, were lukewarm, to be honest. Jules, her great aunt and their ancestors win the story and bookshop battles unanimously.
If you are in the mood for a little retail bookstore fight, a romance and witchy ancestors all set in a seaside town during the colder months, do pick a copy soon and enjoy a cosy reading time.
A charming literary-themed novel about a young woman determined to save her great-aunt’s beloved bookshop from extinction by the shiny new competition—which also happens to be run by the handsome son of her family’s rivals.
The cute, seaside town of Portneath has been the home of Capelthorne’s Books for nearly a hundred years…
The shop, in the heart of a high street that stretches crookedly down the hill from the castle to the sea, may be a tad run-down these days, but to Jules Capelthorne, the wonky, dusty world of literary treasures is full of precious childhood memories. When her great-aunt Florence gets too frail to run it alone, Jules ditches her junior publishing job in London and comes home to make the bookshop’s hundredth birthday a celebration to remember.
Jules quickly discovers things are worse than she ever imagined: The bookshop is close to bankruptcy, unlikely to make it to its own centenary celebration, and the lease on the building is up for renewal. With a six-figure sum needed, the future looks bleak.
To make matters worse, the owner of the property is the insufferable Roman Montbeau, from the posh, local family who owns half of Portneath. The Montbeaus and Capelthornes have feuded for years, and Roman has clearly not improved since he tormented Jules as a child. Fresh from a high-flying career in New York, he is on a mission to shake things up, and—unforgivably—proves his point about Capelthorne’s being a relic of the past by opening a new bookshop directly opposite—a shiny, plate-glass-windowed emporium of books.
Jules may not be able to splash the cash on promotions and marketing like the Montbeaus, but she’s got some ideas of her own, plus she has a tenacity that may just win the hardest of hearts and the most hopeless of conflicts.
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