The characters in The Bookstore are so bright and colorful and live up to the quirky lives that indie bookstore employees often have. What instantly attracted me to this book was that it focuses on a young woman who works at…you guessed it…a bookstore. The main character, Esme, is obviously facing very difficult decisions in her life and she finds some answers to her questions at her workplace. She matures and changes a lot throughout the story, going from a confused school-girl, to a full-fledged adult. Though it is my opinion that the author was a little too heavy-handed on the sex scenes and the love lives of some of her characters, it may have been necessary to get crucial points across in her story as Esme gets into a little trouble because she is naive. All in all, this was a delightful read that reminded me of the at-home feeling I get when I walk into a cozy bookstore.

This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by Gallery Books

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language:  2 religious exclamations; 10 mild obscenities; 2 religious profanities; 1 derogatory name; 2 anatomical terms; 24 F-word derivatives.

Violence/Gore:  None

Sex/Nudity:  There are several instances where sex is mentioned casually, as well as “sex lives” being referred to; a woman is pregnant but not married; adults kiss multiple times, several of them are very passionate; a man touches his girlfriend suggestively; a man refers to a woman as more of a sex object than a woman; a man and woman have sex and the woman ends up pregnant; the main character mentions sexual need and desire multiple times; a “sex dungeon” is referred to, as are prostitutes; a man has a slight porn fetish.

Mature Subject Matter:

Pregnancy, interpersonal relationships.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

Adults drink beer and wine casually.