This was a really light hearted and easy to read book. I loved he characters and the story was definitely a very original concept! I usually read a lot of crime so it was really nice to read a book like this. The writing was great and I had a smile on my face throughout!

The Flatshare isn't the type of book I usually enjoy but I was pleasantly surprised with this book. The characters are very likeable, very sweet and very relatable, without being too cheesy. Sure, the plot is predictable and you could see what was going to happen from a mile off but the author had a great way of making you care and read on, regardless. The POV flipping between Tiffy and Leon worked really well and gave the reader a great opportunity to love and get to know both characters individually and the sub-plots weaved throughout the main story were nicely done. A very easy read and would happily read more of Leon and Tiffy's adventures!

A feel good read which will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy. Leon and TIffy are quirky, colourful and likeable characters with a strong set of supporting characters behind them.

An easy to read book which you could easily demolish in on sitting.

4 stars,

Thanks to NetGalley, Beth O'Leary and Quercus Books for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book.

It was a bit of a random idea... two strangers sharing a bed - but once i had got past that.... it all flowed lovely.

Loved the main characters!

What a great read! A well developed plot with fabulous characters and a good mixture of lightness with shadows that grow into the plot. I love the fact that everything is not spelled out for you in the first chapter, the seeds are sown, and everything comes out as it should, giving the book a great pace. I loved the different styles of conversation, from the post it notes to a film script. Overall, I totally enjoyed this book, highly recommend it!

It's a situation that doesn't seem entirely unrealistic these days. Tiffy has broken up with her boyfriend and can't afford London rent by herself. Leon works nightshift and advertises for someone to share his one bed flat on the premise that they'll never see each other. It's not a surprise that romance blossoms but this isn't an overly predictable love story. I sped through this one in less than a day and found it a really light hearted and touching book. I suspect this might be one of the feel-good smash hits of 2019!

An utterly delightful story! Highly original, clever, warm, uplifting and absolutely laugh out loud hilarious! The characters were well-drawn and gorgeous, the writing sparkled, the side stories were heartwarming. What a wonderful debut!

I really enjoyed reading The Flatshare by Beth O'Leary. It was extremely engaging; the short chapters kept me hooked as I always wanted to read just one more. I loved both Tiffy and Leon and their friends and family. And I thought that Beth O'Leary did a wonderful job of creating two such distinctive voices. The unfolding and developing plotlines were excellent and the drip feeding of information, not something I always enjoy, worked particularly well. I have no hesitation in recommending this book. It's easy to read without being facile. And it'll make you laugh and cry.

I really enjoyed this book. It was intriguing from the start, I suspected where it might go but couldn’t quite see how it might get there so was one of those couldn’t put down until I find out ones.

Tiffy needs somewhere to stay and fast. Leon needs some extra cash and fast. Hence the flatshare arrangement - albeit not a normal flatshare by any manner of means. I enjoyed the build up from strangers to friends and Tiffy’s personality lends itself to the romantic, whimsical storyline. In a world full of smart phones it was a nice nod to good old fashioned courting.

Leon’s POV is a bit strange it’s very ... staccato. It’s like a journal almost, not fully formed thoughts, sentences or dialogue. Stick with it though becuase it’s a great read.

I adored this book. I read it in one day, once I'd started I really didn't want to put it down. The characters are wonderfully written, I quickly fell in love with both lead characters and wanted to spend as much time in their world as I could. The book is sweet and charming, there's a lovely romantic story that develops so slowly and perfectly through it. I really enjoyed the way the story is told from both Tiffy and Leon's perspectives, their voices are both captured so well and brought a lot to the development of their characters. The supporting characters are also given plenty of time and room, by the end of the book I was already imagining and wishing for companion novels to tell their stories too.

I really loved this book. Tifany and Leon were fantastic characters and blossomed as the book went on. It was a great story and even though you knew how it was going to end, there were so many twists and turns and little side stories which kept you entertained. I love the writing style too - easy to read, very funny and I would definitely recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley for my free preview copy.

Tiffy and Leon share a flat and they also share a bed but Tiffy and Leon have never met.

TELL. ME. MORE. (This is going to be an epic love story, right?)

I adore the premise for this book and had it ranked as probably my most anticipated 2019 read. The publicity and marketing around this book has been excellent; I don’t think there’s anyone who hasn’t heard about it (and if they haven’t then they are MISSING OUT.) The cover is also particularly stunning and will entice so many readers in. So thank you very much to Quercus for approving me on NetGalley and allowing me to read this delight early.

To explain the premise a little more – Tiffy and Leon have a mutually beneficial deal. Leon needs money to pay the rent and Tiffy needs somewhere to live and fast. Leon works nights and Tiffy works days and so they start to share a one bedroom flat and, with a strict timetable in place, have the flat (and bed) to themselves at alternate times. A pretty inspired idea, right?! Obviously, as with most excellent ideas, there’s always a few spanners to be thrown into the works and love to be found.

I started reading The Flatshare expecting something instantly beautiful and heart-warming but for me this book took a little too long to get started. Ok, that’s not a fair statement – what I mean is there was a lot of introducing and scene setting and I was ITCHING for the main characters to actually meet. It felt like it took a long time for that part of the story to get started but after they’d met and I finished the book, I had the chance to reflect on what I’d read and whilst I thought the meeting was still a little too late in the book, I realised that the build up made that first meeting even more sweeter. I think my problem is I have zero patience for any brewing love story. KISS THE GIRL, ALREADY.

The novel is told in alternating chapters between Tiffy and Leon and I also struggled with this a little when I started as they both had very different styles of storytelling so where I could get lost in the descriptions of Tiffy’s parts, I found Leon’s to be a little more jarring and hard to get into. HOWEVER, this was also something that improved as the book progressed and by the end I felt like I knew Leon inside out and could understand his chapters with much more ease and enjoyability. Plus I grew to learn his quirks and traits and realise now that he couldn’t have any other voice – it’s perfect.

Now, I don’t want to do any spoilers or ruin this book for those who are yet to read it but let me just say, IT IS CUTE TO THE MAX. I genuinely had little butterflies dancing in my tummy and a ginormous smile on my face as I read the last few chapters of this book. I was so invested in the characters and their story and felt a little cheated as I finished it – I WANT MORE PLEASE.

The Flatshare is an uplifting, comforting cuddle of a book with characters to fall in love with, a gorgeous central message and bucketful’s of hope. A true delight.

I would like to start by thanking the author, the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book. I absolutely loved it and once I started it I didn't want to put it down, the characters are so believable. It made me laugh out loud whilst also tackling some difficult issues that moved me to tears. I will be recommending it to everyone I know.

Fantastic. A novel idea, well presented, well written, easy to read and draws the reader in very quickly. Looking forward to reading more by this author.

I loved reading this romantic fiction by Beth O'Leary. It's a story about two people -Tiff and Leon- who have to share a flat due to money problems.

Although Tiff and Leon share a flat,they don't see each other ever due to their schedules and other reasons. This is a love story but the author has beautifully interwoven heavy topics like emotional abuse, unfair treatment of POC by the justice system,etc into it.

I loved reading it and I would love to read Leon's brother, Richie's story.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC!

I got interested in Flatshare because of its concept - a girl and a guy sharing a flat and a bed and never meeting? I definitely want to read about that.

I started this book expecting a cute, nice romance and I did get that but also a lot more than anticipated.

First of, I want to mention the fact that I wasn’t so sure about this book anymore when I started it for a few reasons like Leon’s POV that I found hard to follow because of its short sentences. But honestly, I am so happy I pushed through those small things because I got completely hooked on Leon and Tiffy’s adventures once I really got into the book.

I absolutely loved Tiffy’s character, her bubbly attitude and colourful clothes and eccentric job! And her relationship with both Leon and her friends was the best thing ever.
When it comes to our second MC, Leon, it took me a little bit longer to get attached to him but once your discover more about him and his life, well, wow, I’m all there for him.

The romantic relationship between Tiffy and Leon is the cutest thing in the entire world. It’s far from perfect but it’s real and full of feelings that will make you want to squeal while reading - which I did multiple times. Honestly , towards the end I could not stop smiling because of al the cuteness they both show and give us.

Moreover, although this is a nice romance book, the author does talk about some heavy subjects that are main focuses in Flatshare. Emotional abuse and the unfairness and wrongness of the legal system towards POC are two subjects that, I think, are not talked about enough in fiction books so to find both of them approached in Flatshare felt amazing although heartbreaking. So very big whoop to the author for choosing to introduce those subjects into her book.

To conclude, I can say I really enjoyed reading Flatshare with his strange but appealing concept and amazing characters. I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in romance or in a really good book, period.

I absolutely LOVED this! When you get past the ick of sharing sheets and into the love notes and leftovers you find yourself TOTALLY invested in this beautiful love story. The darker threads are entwined in the sweetness which adds credibility and realism without taking away the feelgood factor. Highly highly recommend!

This book is romantic, compelling, heartwarming and quirky. It’s told from the alternating perspectives of Tiffy and Leon. I don’t know how old they’re supposed to be, but let’s say they’re millennials. Their voices are distinctive and likeable. The basic concept of the story is that they’re sharing a flat in London – and indeed a bed – but never at the same time. You know this is leading to a happy ending before you even open the book, so the enjoyment comes from how their relationship develops and how their conflicts are resolved.

Tiffy has finally left the flat of her controlling ex-boyfriend, Justin. She’s moved into the flat of a stranger, Leon, who needs the extra income. The agreement (arranged by Leon’s girlfriend, Kay) is that Tiffy and Leon don’t meet; she has a day job in publishing while he has a night job as a nurse in a hospice. They don’t speak but even so, a friendship grows, based on home cooking and eccentric notes left around the flat. I won’t spoil the rest for you, but I will mention that Tiffy has brilliant friends and that Leon is trying to get justice for his brother. Although the romantic tension is a strong thread at the novel’s core, there are side plots which help to make the characters’ lives more rounded. The writing style reminded me of Andy Jones. I’m sure that if I was a more frequent reader of this kind of book, I would know of other comparable authors.

If you’re in the mood for a quirky rom-com, pick up The Flatshare and absorb yourself in the story of Tiffy and Leon. When reading this on the tablet at night, I literally had to force myself to stop reading and get some sleep. That’s how much of a page-turner this book is!

This book will be published on 18th April 2019. Thank you to the publisher Quercus for the advance copy via NetGalley.

NB - This review to be published on 2nd April 2019.

I’d heard such good things about this book so really excited to read it! I laughed and I cried, really great read!

I loved this book. Everything about it was great. From a slightly ridiculous starting point, of a shared flat which is used only at opposite times, the relationship between Tiffy and Leon really grew on me. I loved how distinct the two voices were, how clipped and sharp Leon's internal monologue was, compared to Tiffy's verbosity. The relationship between the two flatmates who have never met, but share a bed, was so gorgeously drawn, and the drawing in of their wider friend and family circles was gentle and subtle. Just getting over a bad breakup, Tiffy needs a place to live that's cheap and easy, and Leon's flat is the perfect option for her. Leon, working every hour he can get, and spending weekends with his girlfriend Kay, has the kind of space that Tiffy needs. As the two communicate through leftover food and extensive stacks of post-its, their relationship grew so beautifully that I fell in love with both of them as well.
I particularly loved Leon. While Irish characters aren't unusual in many of the books I read (largely because I read so many Irish authors), mixed-race Irish characters with mixed backgrounds growing up are much rarer. I particularly appreciated that Leon was mixed-race but still Irish, and that certain Irish quirks made it into his speech. Plus the mix of Ireland and London is one which pulls at my heart strings particularly, so it was always going to be a winner for me.
Quirky, cute, unusual, and really well-drawn, this romance is more than just two strangers developing a relationship through notes, and doesn't just cut off when the two of them meet. Instead, it continues on through their fledgling relationship, continuing Leon's fractured family relationships, Tiffy's struggle with her previous partner, and breaking the first rule of flatshares. Nuanced and developed, with a wonderful depth to it and so much heart, I raced through this book and can't wait to see what Beth O'Leary comes up with next.