Thank you to Laurie at Simon and Schuster for my invitation to the tour and copy of the book, in return for a fair and honest review.

Toby is a journalist who has come to Newton Dunbar to write his memoir. A small knit community in a remote inland village which at its heart has a bookshop. Not any old bookshop though, a lighthouse with a history. Rachel works at the shop and is employed by Cullen who owns the lighthouse. There are some real characters in the small village and some of them have a past that they don’t want to be discovered.

This is a really lovely story, set in a small village there is a real sense of community. Everyone knowing everyone’s business plus some busybodies. Gilly arrives and some of the community are suspicious of her and she of them. What is her story ?

This is a perfect escapist read I was transported to this little village and I felt like a real part of the story.

Fantastic read !

I absolutely loved this book. Most lighthouses are of course by the sea, but as you'll now have read in the blurb, this is a most unusual lighthouse. It was built in the early 19th century, miles away from the coast in the small village of Newton Dunbar and never intended to be a lighthouse. Instead it's a bookshop and I do love the idea of a bookshop in a lighthouse.

The characters in the book, with one exception, are just wonderful. That's not to say the author has written badly about one of the characters but that this particular character is truly awful! Sharon Gosling has written her characters so well that you can't help but take them to heart, from grumpy artist Edie, to young Gilly, from Rachel who found a home in this community to Cullen the elderly owner of the lighthouse who took her in, from Toby the journalist with his own demons to face to Sylvie his ex-wife. Every single character found a place in my heart - well, apart from one. Even the goat provided some smiles though not always for Edie!

The various different love stories in the book were a joy to read about. There's a slowly developing romance, hints at a missed opportunity and regrets and a love match that needed a large shove in the right direction! I loved the Much Ado About Nothing thread that ran through the book - one of my favourite Shakespeare plays. There's a historical element to the story too as Rachel tries to uncover more about the lighthouse. Some big issues are dealt with very sensitively in the book and the community at the heart of the book are by and large welcoming, caring and supportive.

I loved this book from the first page to the last. It's a beautiful story of secrets, community, friendship and love. The setting of Newton Dunbar and the lighthouse is wonderful. Sharon Gosling has written such a beautiful and memorable story. The Lighthouse Bookshop is a heart-warming and uplifting book and is one of my favourite reads this year.

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