Book Review: The Messy Lives of Book People by Phaedra Patrick
The Messy Lives of Book People
Author: Phaedra Patrick
Published: May 31, 2022
Audiobook
Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: August 3-9, 2022
Jessica’s Rating: 4 stars
Book Description:
Have you ever wished you were someone else?
Mother of two Liv Green barely scrapes by as a maid to make ends meet, often finding escape in a good book while daydreaming of becoming a writer herself. So she can’t believe her luck when she lands a job housekeeping for her personal hero, megabestselling author Essie Starling, a mysterious and intimidating recluse. The last thing Liv expected was to be the only person Essie talks to, which leads to a tenuous friendship.
But when Essie dies suddenly, a devastated Liv is astonished to learn of her last wish: for Liv to complete Essie’s final novel. But to do so Liv will have to step into Essie’s shoes, and as Liv begins to write, she uncovers secrets from the past that reveal a surprising connection between the two women–one that will change Liv’s own story forever…
Jessica’s Review:
This was an intriguing book! We see a bit of the relationship between reclusive author Essie and her employee Liv, but then Essie dies unexpectedly…
Essie’s will contains her last wishes, many that are quite different and unexpected, with one of her wishes being that Liv finishes her final novel. This novel is part of an extremely popular series, one of which Liv herself is a fan. In addition to finishing the novel, there are secrets that Liv must keep from everyone, including her husband. We see Liv in essence become Essie by taking over writing the novel and in some aspects of taking over Essie’s life. Through this journey Liv learns more about herself and the past of her favorite author Essie Starling. We see a change in Liv who then discovers an unexpected connection between the two.
I was interested in reading this one due to the title and cover: The Messy Lives of Book People. Oh yes, we ‘book people’ can have messy lives; and Essie’s definitely was and Liv’s becomes so! When I first realized this was going to be another ‘someone else needs to finish the author’s current WIP (work in progress) for x reason I wasn’t sure what to think. This is the third novel in the past year I have read with that trope, but all of those novels are different genres. I ended up being surprised with this novel and really enjoyed it!
If you are a book lover at all I say you need to read this one!
Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK**Published in the UK as The Book Share**