The Switch

The Switch by Beth O’Leary
Reviewed by Tanya
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Oh, what a book! Thank you to @quercusbooks for this lovely read!!! Have you ever been apprehensive that your fave author won’t top their previous book?⁣ As a massive fan of #TheFlatshare, I was nervous about reading #TheSwitch but rest assured
it was totally amazing.
I normally can’t read books while on holiday (weird I know) but I couldn’t put this down while I was out in Kashmir. I can’t even explain it, it was the sweetest and most genuine story.⁣
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The story follows Leena and her grandmother, Eileen Cotton, who agree to swap lives for 2 months. Leena is ordered to take a two-month sabbatical after blowing a big presentation at work, and escapes to her grandmother’s place for some overdue rest. Eileen is newly single and about to turn 80. She'd like a second chance at love, but her tiny Yorkshire village doesn't offer many eligible gentlemen. So Eileen moves into her granddaughter’s flat complete with her flatmates: Fitz and pregnant Martha. Leena’s best friend Bee also becomes best friends with Eileen.⁣ The whole story is based around the absence that Leena feels in her life due to the death of her sister Carla (not a spoiler). The anger and grief stemming from this loss has caused her to mess up at work and put an enormous wedge in the relationship she has with her mum. ⁣
You won’t have read anything like this before! Eileen is such a charming character that I was honestly living for her chapters lol. She brings so much to the other characters and makes it her mission to bring isolated older Londoners together to form a little club in their flat’s little common room.⁣
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⁣So whilst Eileen is off living her best life in London, Leena moves into Eileen’s small village home in the Yorkshire Dales. Her grandmother has left her a long list of activities to take part in, including walking the local handsome bachelor Jackson’s crazy dog Hank, getting involved in the neighbourhood watch and helping to organise the annual May Day celebrations.⁣
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I absolutely loved this book and I think you will too!⁣