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FALL CHALLENGE 2025 > Group Reads Discussion Post: The Lost Bookshop

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message 1: by SRC Moderator, Moderator (new)

SRC Moderator | 7065 comments Mod
This is the discussion thread for the Fall 2025 Group Read, The Lost Bookshop in the category Fiction: Cozy Fantasy. Please post your comments here. This thread is not restricted to those choosing this book for task 20.10, feel free to join in the discussion. Warning- spoilers ahead!

The requirement for task 20.10: You must participate in the book's discussion thread below with at least one post about the contents of the book or your reaction to the book after you have read the book.


message 2: by Kelly (new)

Kelly L (kelly29) | 298 comments The Lost Bookshop checks quite a few boxes for me: British setting (and audiobook narrator), multiple historic timelines, strong female characters, and a bit of magic. I flew through it in less than 2 days!
(view spoiler)
This reminded me of The Cottingley Secret, which I read for the Summer Challenge. If you enjoyed The Lost Bookshop, give it a go!


message 3: by Fly (new)

Fly (fly-me-to-the-moo) | 915 comments I enjoyed the book overall, but there were a few points that really bugged me. (view spoiler)
Anyway, enjoyed it while I was reading it but after it was over all I had left were questions.


message 4: by Alex (last edited Sep 15, 2025 04:18PM) (new)

Alex | 515 comments Rockynook

Overall - I think I expected to like this book more than I did.
(view spoiler)

It took me longer to get through than usual - and it was a good read, I just think I was expecting more from it!


message 5: by Julia (new)

Julia (julia103) | 2746 comments This felt more like historical fiction (the Opaline sections) and romance (Henry and Martha) than fantasy. I did like Opaline's story, but I might have enjoyed the book more if I hadn't kept wondering how it fit "cozy fantasy".

It left me with questions - some have already been mentioned. Additional questions: (view spoiler).

I agree with the prior comments that Martha's sections didn't seem like current-day.


message 6: by Jasmiina (new)

Jasmiina F (slipperbunny) | 534 comments I find it really frustrating when a story’s conflicts arise mainly from poor communication and misunderstandings, which is exactly what happens in this book. While the story had its own charm and a magical atmosphere, too many things in the plot were left unresolved for my taste. I do enjoy a touch of magic, but here it felt overused and not very well explained. The book had promise, but in the end, I felt it wasn’t written in the best possible way.


message 7: by Cindie (new)

Cindie | 1842 comments I agree with Fly and all the others who complained that the magical realism for a certain character had a lot of inconsistencies with no real resolution. I could see the big reveal a mile away -- as could everyone else I am sure -- but I did enjoy the ride.


message 8: by Kristina (last edited Oct 11, 2025 06:30PM) (new)

Kristina | 309 comments Kristina Marie

The book is okay. Not really cozy and a bit all over the place. Like Kelly, I also could have done without Henry’s point of view. There was way more sadness that I expected overall, and I struggled with the chapters at the mental institution. I did enjoy Martha’s life in Dublin and would recommend this book to others who enjoy magical realism more than I do.


message 9: by Amy (new)

Amy Bracco | 859 comments Amy B

While reading this, I wasn't sure whether I liked it or not. The Martha/Henry thing showed some promise and then kind of fell apart. It had the kinds of misunderstandings that were so basic that they seemed willful, which was tiresome after awhile. The Opaline storyline was more interesting and depressing in that it was a thing that families would often "park" a troublesome or inconvenient female relative in an asylum.
I ended up the book disliking Henry, baffled by Martha and admiring Opaline, but it didn't pull the book together enough for me to like it.


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