The Book Boyfriend

by Jeanna Louise Skinner

“Let us find solace in the quiet…” Emmeline always dreamed of being an author, finding comfort in words and between the pages of her beloved romance novels, but a mental health diagnosis leaves her blocked and unable to write. Then she inherits a crumbling, second-hand bookshop from a mysterious old friend and Emmy discovers that magic is real. Maybe her fantasies about the heroes in her favourite historical romances aren’t so far-fetched after all? Lord Jonathan Dalgliesh is the handsome stranger-wielding a sword as dangerous as his Tudor past-who appears in Emmy’s bookshop asking for help. Together they must race against time itself to lift the curse imprisoning him inside an ancient. book. But when growing threats to Emmy’s safety are proved real and not another symptom of her illness, she must learn to trust her own voice again. Can she find the words to save Jonathan and her shop before tragedy strikes on the fateful final page? Romance-addict Emmy may be, but this damsel is about to kick distress into the Ever After.

Genres: Romance, Fantasy, Paranormal, Fantasy Romance, Fiction, Contemporary Romance, Audiobook

Paperback

First published October 27, 2021

About the author

Jeanna Louise Skinner writes romance with a sprinkling of magic. Her debut novel "The Book Boyfriend" is out in 2021 and she is working on a prequel. She has CRPS and ADHD and she is passionate about writing about people underrepresented in Romance, especially those with disabilities and chronic health conditions. She's also the co-creator of @UKRomChat, a much-lauded, Romance-centric live Twitter chat. She lives in Devon with her husband, their two children and a cat who sounds like a goat.

Reviews

[Kirsty McCracken · Rating 3 out of 5]

The whole concept of this was great, and I had a fun time. It was just missing a little, tiny something for me - in that way where you know there's nothing actually wrong or missing, but you also just know this wasn't 'It' for you, you know?

[Jude P · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the mix of characters dealing with very real world problems of grief and mental illness juxtaposed with magical curses and medieval knights trapped inside books. This is a charming book, with a very earthy, grounded, believable main character grappling with her mental health in a very realistic way. As a tall woman with a bit of heft and a sharp tongue, it was nice to read a character who with those traits. Books about bookshops and reading always appeal to me, and this was no exception. The writing style is really immersive and warm and the plot has plenty of twisty, magical mystery.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Brooklyn Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

The premise sold me immediately, bookstore owner meets a hottie who came out of a book? Sign me up! I also loved the representation of a plus-sized, tall heroine dealing with mental illness. Jonathan and Emmy's romance was a very slow burn that had me impatient at first, but there was soooo much groundwork with Emmy laid and the payoff ended up being worth it. I also loved the side characters. Especially the cat.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Tonya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creative and fun! I enjoyed The Book Boyfriend - terrific quotes, intriguing characters a little bit of mystery.

[Kelsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great debut romance for spooky season! It’s set in the fall, there is a magical curse, an eerie mystery (my jaw dropped), and some witchy shenanigans. It is also a slower, thoughtful tale about growing into who we are and what we want out of life, overcoming betrayal and adversity, and finding love again.

Quick Summary
Our heroine, Emmy, is having a rough time. She has recently received a mental health diagnosis, is coming off of a bad breakup, grieving the loss of an old friend, and has just inherited a crumbling, second-hand bookshop. Said bookstore happens to come with a cursed Tudor man who is trapped in the pages of a book about his life! Together, they must work to lift the curse and figure out who is threatening Emmy.

What really worked for me:
- The writing! Jeanna’s prose is gorgeous. I became completely immersed in the dusty old bookshop.
- Mental health rep. This is the first book I’ve read with a schizophrenic main character. I can’t speak to the exact representation, but as someone who also struggles with mental illness, I felt very seen in Emmy’s character. I was worried about a character who experiences hallucinations who is also visited by a magical character who disappears. But it is handled so well and I think that this discomfort actually allows us to better understand what Emmy is going through.
- Emmy is tall (6’2!), fat (we love to see it!!), sarcastic, and a bit of a grump sometimes. Of course, our hero Jonathan is completely obsessed with her. <333

Thank you to the author and BookSprout for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Steam: 2/5
Pairing: M/F
Sub-genre: Contemporary Romance with a sprinkle of magical paranormal
Tropes & Tags: Only she can save him from the curse!, forced proximity, slow burn, fat rep, mental health rep, grief, historical flashbacks

[InD'tale Magazine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: 4.5/5.0

This cracker is perfect to read on a cold autumn night, wrapped in a fleece blanket with a cup of tea. An unputdownable delight!

Read full review in the 2022 November issue of InD'tale Magazine.

[Contina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This had some of my favorite things. I loved the plus sized representation who was dealing with a mental illness. I was a bit confused at the beginning which is probably my fault. Who doesn't enjoy a setting in a bookstore? Then add the paranormal accept to it and reading it during spooky season. It's a win all around!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Abi Mallett · Rating 5 out of 5]

'The trouble with coveting a thing you can never have, is that it only serves to highlight the distance between you and it. Sea and sky are destined to never meet.'

A fantasy romance that covers mental health, redemption, healing and the power of words with a plus sized heroine and a tudor hero.

I really enjoyed this on a number of levels.
Our heroine, Emmy, has high functioning Schizoaffective Disorder. It was refreshing to read a romance where the heroine suffers from a mental health disorder, rather than the stigmatised views of the past. She was extremely relatable and so much of her POV hit me hard.

Emmy inherits her old friend Maggie's bookshop where after reading from an old book, our hero Jonathan appears directly from the past. He was cursed by a witch to become trapped in the book and gets Emmy's help to try and free him. There onwards feelings and attraction grow.

There are a couple of twists near the end, one of which I guessed and one which I didn't. Love it when something takes me by surprise.

I adored all of the references to writing throughout the story and how they help us to express thoughts, emotions and ideas. Words have power so words are a form of magic. Beautiful.
Writing and words can help so many of us cope, as can reading.

'Most of her notes were incomplete, the scribbled meanderings of a creative mind attempting to make something beautiful out of a blank page.'

This felt like a homage by a romance writer for romance writers.

The romance was super sweet and steamy and I enjoyed the fish out of water aspect. I look forward to what ever this author creates next.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Upon reading the synopsis for this book I was totally enthralled: a plus-sized bookshop owning heroine who falls in love with a man who's been imprisoned within the pages of an old book. I loved the originality of the story, but wished it had been edited better. Parts of the story dragged on and on with nothing much happening to move the story along. The emotional journey of Jonathan and Emmeline is written more in their own heads than as chemistry between them. I wanted to see them talk to each other about their growing feelings and grow as a couple together.

The ending confused me SO MUCH. Who the villain is and why she's a villain? I didn't understand why she felt so strongly about hating Emmeline. Her familial relationship is so distant to Jonathan. And Jonathan didn't even know about the baby that connects them. It seemed like a really odd reason to be so vengeful. Especially when she was supposedly such good friends with Emmeline. If she had that much hatred and jealously over Maggie's love of Emmeline, why wait all those years to do something? Why continue to flourish your friendship?

[Elodie’s Reading Corner · Rating 5 out of 5]

📚 The Book Boyfriend 📚
✒️ Jeanna Louise Skinner
https://www.facebook.com/jeannalouise...
Release Date 10/27/2021
➪ https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09DGGDKCY/...

𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗯

"Let us find solace in the quiet..."
Emmeline always dreamed of being an author, finding comfort in words and between the pages of her beloved romance novels, but a mental health diagnosis leaves her blocked and unable to write. Then she inherits a crumbling, second-hand bookshop from a mysterious old friend and Emmy discovers that magic is real and maybe her fantasies about the heroes in her favourite historical romances aren't so far-fetched after all.
 A handsome stranger–wielding a sword as dangerous as his Tudor past–appears in Emmy's bookshop asking for help. Together they must race against time itself to lift the curse imprisoning him in an ancient book. But when growing threats to her safety are proved real and not another symptom of her illness, Emmy must learn to trust her own voice again. Can she find the words to save Jonathan and her shop before tragedy strikes on the fateful final page? 
Romance-addict Emmy may be, but this damsel is about to kick distress into the Ever After.

𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄

Will she let the voices in her head lead her away of what could be …

It is the blurb that decided me after the cover caught my eyes as I did not know the author, understandable as it is her debut novel. It takes a little sometime!

With the spooky season being around, what better than a cursed knight, a bookish girl and some haunting.
Emmy is not the average girl, in every meaning of the term. She is tall, no slim waisted girl, and has just been diagnosed schizophrenic.
So when she sees an armored man with an old age speech landing in her inherited bookshop, her only thought is she has a relapse.
But the man seems so real, what is she to do, spiraling down once again or push him away to keep her sanity intact.
Jonathan was not a good man, else he would not have been cursed. He made mistakes, bad judgement errors, he followed the wrong leader but it was how he had been breed and raised. It is only time and entrapment that made me realize how wrong he has been. So when he is summoned by a woman he sees as another witch, he is dubious about her, as he is entranced by her whole being. And with his different upbringing, he sees the woman she is, all different parts of her.

Sure this is not the usual cursed/haunted/time-traveling romance. It speaks about those who are lost, torn between fantasy and present, so wounded they renege parts of themselves by fear of suffering again.
And Emmy is all this, she has always been the bookish girl but her recent descent into hell taught her to be circumspect and by being so, she buried a part of herself.
This tale is one of healing, of trusting oneself and being stronger than one believes to be able.
A lovely proof that everyone deserves its HEA.

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 onscreen soft lovemaking scene.

I have been granted an advance copy by the author, here is my true and unbiased opinion.

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CVfBMQ_o...

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[Rachel Bowdler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. What a magical, atmospheric, romantic, wonderful story — and a gorgeous love letter to Romancelandia. I always knew I was going to love this book: mental illness rep, witchy and autumnal vibes, bookstore setting, a plus-size MC, and a fish-out-of-water theme in the form of a dishy Tudor who appears straight out of the pages of a book. Even so, reading it brought me more warmth than I could have ever expected. Jeanna’s prose is the sort I want to curl into and never emerge. It captures every bit of wonder and magic needed to tell such a unique story — and includes a chilling twist I SHOULD have seen coming towards the end, but didn’t. I truly enjoyed every minute. It felt like a big old hug in so many ways, from the intimacy of the timeless romance to the diverse representation to the cosy setting in general. Would highly recommend reading on an autumnal day, candle burning, tea in hand, with Hocus Pocus queued up for later.

[Emily Pennington · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Loved It !! . . .

I really enjoyed this story. Emmeline’s dream of writing books was dashed by a mental health diagnosis. But she inherits a bookshop and an amazing thing occurs! A man with a sword appears, a veritable knight asking for her to join him in finding a way to remove the curse that bound him within the pages of an ancient book!

When the threats against her become real and not part of her illness, she needs to use those skills she set aside and save Jonathan through the words she wields on the pages, the only way to save him before the final page wipes out his existence.

The beauty of this story is that the reader is not quite sure whether Jonathan is real or a by-product of her mental illness. When we find out, it is thrilling to feel the race against time and Emmeline’s efforts to save his life. This is a story that may induce chills running up and down your arms as you share the excitement and feel the urgency to break the curse before it is too late. Grab your copy and dare to look at the last page… did she make it in time?

[Dee Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful story. Sad, tragic, magical, uplifting, drowning, gorgeous - I’m running out of adjectives! Oh how I wish a book boyfriend could truly be made real. This story has depth and emotion and love that transcends reality. Emmaline is truly a strong heroine, even though she doesn’t believe in herself and Jonathan is a man renewed (where can I get me one of these?). A perfect debut novel. Read this.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Lauren | TransportedLFL · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Kate Rock Book Tours and the author for the ebook. These opinions are my own.

Look at this beautiful cover! The second I heard the book featured a bookstore owner and an actual Tudor knight come straight out of a book, I was completely sold. This is a neat cross between romantasy and magical realism.

Emmy has just taken over the bookshop where she worked as a teen. And her friend left behind a mysterious note about a special book and a good friend, Jonathan. It turns out Jonathan is a knight from the 1500's imprisoned in a book by a witch. And he tells Emmy that she is a word witch with the ability to free him.

This was quite the slow burn with so much pining and tension throughout. His past is shrouded in mysteries and secrets. And the story takes all kinds of fantastical twists and turns. It's told with lush prose filled with meaningful metaphors. I paused to admire the writing as much as the plot.

CW (condensed from beginning of book): suicide attempt, schizoaffective disorder, misogyny and gaslighting, body image issues

3.5 stars rounded up

[Chelsea Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Okay, I need to start by saying I’m in the biggest reading slump of my life. Nothing is holding my attention right now, so take this review with a pinch of salt!

I finished this today and honestly… I couldn’t tell you how it ended 🤣 That probably says it all! It was okay, a bit unbelievable at times, but fine for what it was. The characters were bearable, the twist was okay, and overall… it was just okay.

Not terrible, not amazing, just one of those middle of the road reads that didn’t quite stick with me.

[Jenny Paine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did this one in two sittings, which is what happens when I am truly gripped. Like Emmy I usually read the last page at some point before I finish, but the story made me resist the temptation. Congratulations Jeanna on a fascinating story with a number of important messages. This would make for an amazing miniseries on TV. Just fabulous xxx

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Romance Forever · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique and thoroughly enjoyable read!

I loved the hero and heroine of The Book Boyfriend. What a fabulous concept. There are so many delightful Easter eggs for romance enthusiasts to discover - it's a lovely ode to the genre in addition to being a fun, well-paced, emotionally engaging story. I was a little confused by one of the subplots, but overall, I loved this thoughtful, thoroughly romantic book.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Victoria Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always say that I don't read romance, but the fact that I sat and read this book in one sitting says that I probably do! A glass of red wine, a cosy armchair and this book is exactly what you need at this time of year! Beautifully written and wonderfully funny in all the right places; realistic but magical, sad but joyous. Wonderful!

[Reader03 · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read with a real life book boyfriend and a main female character who felt realistic with her mental illness. I received a copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Julie Sherman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice

This is a nice time book. Its different for me then most. Great characters, written well and love the story.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, especially the last half.

I wish I could give 4.5 stars. The reason for not giving it five was there was just some information that still wasn’t clear to me.

But I loved the romance, the suspense, the magic, and the mystery.

[Hijinx Abound]

This was an interesting concept. However, the big bad reveal was just weird.

[Linda Lambert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A magical slow-burn romance! The writing is flawless, the heroine is so real: struggling, searching, strong. I fell head over heels with Emmy. Our hero, Jonathan, on the other hand is out of this world witchcraft: this knight in shining armor literally pops out of a book. The author kept me guessing for a while whether he was real or not, suggesting the heroine might be imagining things. These ingredients make for an exciting and heartwarming read with a satisfying conclusion.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is really a lovely paranormal romance.. I absolutely loved it! I was utterly charmed and captivated with this story and its fascinating and totally addictive characters..

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well written story that I enjoyed reading. writer and book store owner Emmeline and Jonathan who steps out of a book's story. There is twists and turns, issues dealt with such as a mental health diagnosis, a curse, threats, and romance. I received a copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kat M · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book, it had great characters and a great plot. It was a interesting romance story and I enjoyed going through this series.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sandy Barker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book. I was captivated immediately. It is highly original with terrific plot twists and turns, a thoughtful theme of mental health and wellbeing – tackling the topic head on – and a magical thread that I loved. It also transcends several sub-genres of Romance, has a heroine you will fall in love with and want to champion and, yes, an utterly swoonworthy hero.

I completely fell in love with this book (and no doubt you will too). And this cover! Rawr!

[Amanda Longhurst · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good. Skinner has a lovely turn of phrase: “a pale, yellow sun was a Pearl caught in a net of clouds.”

A MC with schizophrenia, empathetically writer. Also, magick and cats what’s not to like?

[Andie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a treat! Authentic romance with a twist, one of the best I've read this year. Don't miss it! Cannot wait to read more from this author.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kendra Morris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t think this was a terrible book, I just think it didn’t fulfill what I was expecting or wanting. There was some good jaw droppers, laughing out loud moments, and cute and sexy times in the right spots but not too overbearing. Would still recommend to others!