The Flatshare: A Novel

MY RATING SYSTEM5 stars--WOW4 stars--would read again3 stars--was good, won't read again2 stars--read it, but didn't enjoy it1 star--didn't finish, it was so awfulDo I need to read books before this one: noCliffhanger: noSUMMARYTiff has to move out of Justin's apartment. He's always come back, but this time he's come back with a fiancée. Martin, coworker, offers his spare room at a discount. Gerty, barrister, and Mo, counselor, all of them best friends since college, help her look for a place she can afford. Tiff calls about a flatshare. Leon only needs it 9a-6p weekdays because he's a night nurse, so perfect for Tiff who's an editor.Kay doesn't want Leon to show his flat to a woman, so she does. Kay determines Tiff is unattractive so it's okay for her to be a flatmate, but she'll do all interaction with Tiff. Kay makes Leon ask her to stay at her place weekends. He talks about Richie, his little brother who's in prison though innocent. The attorney isn't moving fast for the appeal. Kay gets frosty.Tiff acts as the model for Katherin, an author of crochet books, on a cruise ship. She sees Justin in the back of the room, looking at her hungrily. Gerty, Mo, and Rachel, friend and coworker, don't like him because he'd been horrible to Tiff.At work, Leon helps Holly, a child with leukemia. He talks to Mr Prior about his WWII lover so Leon can find him before Mr Prior dies.EVALUATIONWatching Tiff heal from Justin is enlightening and empowering. She finds courage, suffers setbacks, and relies on her friends for support, learning, and more courage. She doesn't seem to have any anxiety or depression, any deflation of her ego; I don't know if that's accurate.Leon doesn't realize he's stuck in a dark rut with a controlling woman until Tiff shares some of her light. As he serves Holly and Mr Prior, and as Tiff talks (through him) with Richie, Leon finds courage to make changes, too.The author gives Leon and Tiff very different styles. Her chapters are normal in sentence structure and punctuation. His are as if he's writing case notes; for example, "Letter is crumpled in trouser pocket." He doesn't use quotation marks, either; for example:June: Your friend has arrived!Me: Thanks, June.June: She's in the Leisure Room!Me: Thanks June.June: She's ever so pretty.The overall theme is hope, keep struggling, hold on, there's light at the end of your night. It's well done.RECOMMENDATIONEveryone would benefit from reading this book.FAVORITE QUOTES[moving out] I’d sat for a while in the hall, staring at the multicolored mess of my favorite things spilling out from the cupboard under the stairs, and felt for a weird moment that if the cushions could breathe again, so could I.Why use one clause when you could use five? Strange, ridiculous, hilarious woman.“You hate me, don’t you? I’m top of your hate list right now.” “It’s my one lie-in and you’ve ruined it, so yes, you have climbed past Donald Trump and that Uber driver I sometimes gets who hums for the whole journey.”I don’t know how lawyers feel about you talking to other lawyers—is it like adultery?I find myself doing a stupid little awkward laugh I’m sure I’ve never done before. What an excellent time to wheel out a brand new awkward laugh.It can take people time to notice and process emotional abuse.“How painful is that, out of ten?” “I don’t know, like, six?” I’m really thinking *eight eight eight* but I don’t want to seem pathetic.“This Bella Swan is a very popular lady, for one who declares herself to be so unattractive. Seems every single man in the book who isn’t her father is in love with her.”There’s nothing like a man in a novelty T-shirt to brighten up your morning.Getting one of those lopsided grins from him feels like winning at a game I wasn’t aware I was playing.We take our usual route to the kitchen: doubling back past the color room to avoid the head of Editorial and the managing director’s desks, ducking behind the pillar by the photocopier so Hana won’t spot us, hitting the kitchen from an angle that ensures we can see if any senior members of staff are lurking in there.Think of the months of notes and leftover dinners, the never knowing her. Feels so different now I’ve met her. Can’t believe I wasted all that time—not just those months, but the time before that, the years of dawdling, settling, waiting.He’s where my mind goes when I’m feeling my best.“My sexual frustration cannot be stopping you sleeping. If that was possible, nobody would ever have been able to sleep in Victorian times.”Can’t afford to keep burning suits every time the legal system fails to deliver justice.Left to my own devices, I’m the sort of man who’d never walk through those doors. And where’s that ever got anybody?POSSIBLE TRIGGERS (SPOILERS)Sex: a few scenesLanguage: 33 F words, 59 Lord's name in vain, 33 S wordsViolence: stalking, bullying, threatening, violent tantrum, gaslighting, manipulating, drowning

I don't know why I kept this book in my TBR for so long, I feel so dumb. It's so far the best book I've read this year, and one of my new favorites.I was curios after reading the book description, such an unique and crazy agreement, Leon has the flat from 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday, Tiffy has it the rest of the time, never to cross paths!!! (Yeah as if)If you worry, like I did, how the heck they are going to interact and how the history will develop. Well, in one off the most nice ways I've read in a while, their little notes for one another were so nice to read, how their friendship developed, then how it starts to become something more even before they have properly met, how they learn about each other by observing the traces the other leaves behind. It does take a while for them to finally meet I will let you know, but the story is so engaging!!!I was a bit mad at Tiffy in the beginning when she would think/talk about her ex, thought she was being such an idiot and was quite annoyed, and then.... the author makes me understand all that she was going through and for most part she wasn't even aware at first, bit my tongue really good.Sorry Tiffy!So that tells how I loved how the gaslighting was explored, because if we are being honest is so easy to be judgmental when you don't know the full story, or when you are from the outside. But once I was let in all I wanted to do was protect Tiffy.The stalking. Almost ripped some pages here and there, and definitely needed a few stops to manage my anger at the ex.Leon won me fast, loved his character.My only complain would be about the last two chapter, felt like too much was happening at once and still some things that I'd have loved to know weren't properly addressed.

My biggest issue is Martin should have been fired. But I really enjoyed this. The emotional toll wad heartbreaking but somehow the book was filled with laugh put loud humor too. The heroes voice is a bit jarring in its lack of full sentences but actually works really well in portraying his personality once you get used to it. Definitely recommend

Loved this. Got hooked on from the furst chapter

funny

Fun, bright quick read, a sweet story.

Loved the premise of the book, as well as the twists and turns the plot took. Really didn’t want it to end! Hope to read more by the same author.

出版社勤務のTiffy、ホスピス看護師のLeon、ある事情があって部屋をシェアする事に。ただし、2人は日勤と夜勤なので会う機会はない。最初はこのシェアに違和感を感じたものの、そのうちに冷蔵庫やキッチンにメモをお互いに残すようになる。そして、ついに思いもよらぬ状況で初対面をする事になる。この場面、物語のハイライト、思わず吹き出してしまった。結果は分かりきっているラブコメですが、主役の2人をはじめ、Tiffyの学生時代の親友、職場の仲間、Leonの兄、担当する患者等、登場人物が皆ユニークでいい味を出している。ただTiffyの元彼だけはいただけませんが、、。