The Bookshop Of Yesterdays

By Amy Meyerson

Discover the secrets hidden in the shelves of a charming independent bookshop in this compelling and heartwarming family mystery

Pick a book, any book… ?

These are the magic words that Miranda’s uncle told her whenever she visited his bookshop, Prospero Books. Growing up amongst the shelves laden with classics old and new, Miranda was entertained by Uncle Billy’s endless array of literary treasure hunts.

But one day, Billy goes missing. And years later, now an adult, Miranda receives unexpected news: Billy has died and left her his beloved bookshop in his will.

But there’s one final mystery that Billy wanted her to solve, and he’s left her clues in the books on the shelves, in the drawers of his apartment, and even in the bookshop’s name. Miranda is determined to solve his last scavenger hunt. But will she be prepared for what she uncovers?

This gorgeous, emotional, and uplifting literary mystery is perfect for anyone who loves books about books.

Readers LOVE The Bookshop of Yesterdays…

‘I love to read and this book surrounded me with books and other people who read for the pleasure of it’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘The characters are so vividly written I feel as if I know them all, and it has left me with a warm glow of life faced and lived. I am an instant fan!’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I didn’t want to stop reading this book. It had me hooked. There is a great balance of intrigue and emotions. Very well written’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I loved this book!… A beautiful story and so glad I read it’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Chock full of master authors and titles to steer anyone on to brilliant reading. The storyline and characters are exceptional, the mystery is believable and the timing impeccable.’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Elegant language, a deep knowledge and appreciation for literature, and a sure hand fleshing out so many characters makes for a compelling read.’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘This book is part mystery, part romance, part adventure and part literary history – a great combination!… I thoroughly enjoyed the quest!’ Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘What a wonderful story… an amazing cast of characters all of whom you learn to love in their own way.’ Reader review⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins UK
• Release date: Jun 12, 2018
• ISBN: 9781474077194

Amy Meyerson

Amy Meyerson teaches in the writing department at the University of Southern California, where she completed her graduate work in creative writing. She has been published in numerous literary magazines and currently lives in Los Angeles.

Reviews for The Bookshop Of Yesterdays

[cecilturtle · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novel had all the right ingredients: skeletons in the family closet, a scavenger hunt with clues based on the great classics, a neighbourhood bookstore and its handsome manager. For the most part, it works well. I did have a hard time with the petulant, at times downright annoying, narrator: sometimes I had a hard time remembering she was almost thirty and not a moody teenager. The story might have worked better in the third person, or maybe Miranda could have been a bit more mature.Despite this, the book was fun to read, clues dropping along the way, events slowly morphing into a complete mosaic of the past. And of course, all the literary references that any book lover will enjoy.

[castlelass · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Miranda Brooks inherits a bookshop from her uncle. She travels across country for his funeral from her home in Philadelphia to Los Angeles. It is supposed to be a short trip, but her uncle has left her a trail of clues that leads her to discover the root of a family mystery and the secret of her uncle’s estrangement from her family.

I have mixed thoughts on this one. I generally enjoy books about books. The bookshop is almost like a separate character. I liked the literary references that held the clues. However, some are so obvious it seems odd that a book lover would not solve them immediately and others are so far-fetched it is amazing anyone could figure them out. The author engages in long expository passages. The subplot between Miranda and her boyfriend, who lives in Philadelphia, is immature. I did not get a sense of chemistry between any of the participants in the love triangle. Miranda is the narrator for most of the book, but at several points the narrative switches perspectives without warning, which detracts from the flow.

I think regular readers of contemporary fiction will enjoy this book more than I did. I can say I liked it, but it also had some drawbacks. I am going with three stars.

[waldhaus1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It seems for some reason I have been binging on books about bookstores. I found the recommendation for this one in a wonderful La Jollla bookstore - Waterstons. The bookstore of yesterdays is nothing like Waterstons. It references Shakespeare’s The Tempest. That play is also about forgiveness. It is said that there are only really a few plots - perhaps this illustrates that. The story is also about relationships - relationships that break and relationships that develop. It is about the protagonists journey to discover where she fits into her family. The uncle she seems to loose and then rediscovers after his death. He sends her on quests - in the end the quest is to find herself and her place in the world.

[jphamilton-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was reading for hours into the dark of the night, until I finished The Bookshop of Yesterdays. As a former bookstore owner and bookseller of many decades, this book was extremely satisfying whenever the bookstore remained the central character in the story. Unfortunately, it got a little clunkier the further it got away from the bookstore and became about the character’s love lives. The story centers on Miranda, who was living with her boyfriend, Jay, a fellow middle school history teacher in Philadelphia, when she learns that her beloved Uncle Billy has died in Los Angeles. She returns to LA, her parents, the funeral, and Billy’s small independent bookstore, Prospero’s Books. And then, through Billy’s will, she learns that she has inherited the struggling store.She hasn’t seen Billy for sixteen years, because of some mysterious argument between her mother and her uncle Billy around her twelfth birthday. Miranda, her mom, and Billy were once all very close. Billy would let Miranda have the pick of the store’s books, created scavenger hunts just for her, and they simply loved each other’s company. She returns to the bookstore to find that it’s struggling financially (true of most independents) and it has a seemingly dysfunctional staff, also true of many independents. She finds that there’s one last scavenger hunt left by Billy for her to solve, and the answers illuminate her past, and change her present and future. The scavenger hunt uses mostly clues from books on the store’s shelves or some left with friends. [Okay now, a hunt that depended on clues in the books on the shelves of a bookstore—left sixteen years ago—seems a weak point in the plot. Even in a slow-moving bookstore, things change enough in SIXTEEN years to derail any step-by-step, book-by-book linkage.]Eventually the clues lead her to discovering that the store was originally owned by Billy’s little known and then pregnant wife, Evelyn. Miranda also learns that Evelyn died in the couple’s rustic cabin from carbon monoxide poisoning during a blizzard. Billy and the unborn baby survived by luck and a caesarian. Billy always felt responsible for his wife’s death, as he had put off some important repairs. In the end, he left the baby with his sister and brother-in-law to raise.Miranda kept putting off her return to Philadelphia and Jay, as the store demanded her attention. As she solved more of the scavenger hunt’s clues, she learned why her mom and Billy had a huge blow up and why Billy never contacted any of them again. The mechanics of running a small, struggling, independent bookstore is well represented in this story. The store’s small eccentric staff are enduring, curious, and dysfunctional, as they tend to be. People work in small bookstores for many wonderful reasons, but rarely any that are financial. The constant struggle to keep the store going was very familiar, including all the appeals to the customer base, the general public, and all the brainstorming sessions with anyone who will meet. In those times, you listen to everything, and try most anything. I admit to being prejudiced when I noticed on the copyright page that the book’s publisher was a division of Harlequin. Though I found the characters interesting to a point, the relationships never felt like they were between actual people. The staff, the customers, and some of the writers were interesting, but it all seemed a little too-cute-by-half. The major “secret” of the book is so obvious that I found myself wondering just how damaged or intelligent Miranda’s character was supposed to be.That said, much of the book caused me to be very emotional, but that had much more to do with my life and not the writing. I almost said heavy-handed writing, but I so enjoy most any story with a bookstore connection that I repeatedly gave the plot some slack, even though it’s so manipulative. Poor Jay, her “boyfriend” from Philadelphia, was a creep, making their relationship one of the worst parts of the story, but at heart, Miranda was a weak character as well. The love stories of all the characters were the problem, but I was always in it for the bookstore. I couldn’t buy many of the relationships in this book, but a bookstore is always an interesting character.

[liscarey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Miranda Brooks spent her childhood in frequent visits to her Uncle Billy's bookshop, Prospero Books, learning a love of reading and literature, and solving the scavenger hunts he set for her. She also spent time wondering if he would show up for expected visits, or be suddenly called away by his real job, as a seismologist responding to major earthquakes all over the world.Then, when she was twelve, her mother and Billy had a major falling-out, and Billy disappeared from her life. Miranda didn't hear from him again for sixteen years. She was by then living on the east coast, in Philadelphia, teaching eighth grade history, and living with her boyfriend, Jay.Billy has died, and had arranged for a book to be mailed to her. It contains the first clue in the last scavenger hunt he set up for her.He has also left his bookstore, Prospero's Books, to her. Unfortunately, it's in serious danger of bankruptcy.Soon Miranda is back in Los Angeles, attending Billy's funeral, and following his clues, as each clue leads her to a person who has both information about Billy, and another clue.She's also staying with her parents, at least initially. This gets tense, because her mother--who has never been willing to say what she and Billy argued about--is determined to "protect" Miranda from whatever she might learn by looking into Billy's past. Miranda, naturally, doesn't at all like the idea of being "protected" by being kept ignorant.While this is going on, she's also getting to know the bookstore again, and its current staff, and finding, perhaps, a new "found family."I was really drawn into the story. Miranda, the staff at Prospero Books, and what she gradually learns about her family's past are absorbing.Recommended.I bought this audiobook.

[livelylady · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

An estranged uncle's death, leads Miranda to a scavenger hunt. In this she finds literary clues which tell her more about her uncle and about herself, leading her to a new beginning. Seemed a little burdensome in the scavenger hunt, but a good story line.

[ldvoorberg · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I liked the concept of the scavenger hunt, but these clues were crazy obtuse, for the most part. Great if you know and like the classics, but if you do, you probably will be like me and role your eyes at some of the infantile drama: the way Miranda interacts with Jay, for example. Obvious outcome there from the moment the relationship is introduced. And with her mom, and her mom with her: their present day fight is no different than the one when Miranda turns twelve, except that now Miranda is an adult. It felt like the drama was created to build tension, but it seemed a cop-out from better writing to me. Still, the whole Uncle Billy mystery is interesting and what reader doesn't like to cheer for a genuine bookstore? Read it on the beach.

[carriewuj · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Meh. I had high hopes for this - a book about a book store - and part of it was enchanting - the scavenger hunt through bookish clues, but the other part was a little too pat and hard to believe. Miranda Brooks is a junior-high history teacher in Philadelphia who just started summer break with her boyfriend Jay. They have plans to relax, enjoy their city and friends, catch up on time together, etc. but Miranda gets a copy of The Tempest in the mail, along with word that her now-estranged, once-beloved Uncle Billy is dead. She flies back to her parents and her past in LA to attend his funeral and is shocked to learn he has left her his business: Prospero Books. She is now on a mission to learn all she can about Billy and why her Mom cut him off when Miranda was 12. Billy has left some clues as only he could - in books and on a hunt from one person/event/story to the next. From this Miranda pieces together a past she never knew. Meanwhile, Prospero Books is failing, so she is determined to make it solvent or at least find a worthy buyer. Defying her in this path is Malcolm, the handsome young store manager. Between the quest, the bookstore and the romantic tension with Malcolm, Philadelphia (and Jay) is soon forgotten and the summer flies by. Miranda is left with some big decisions, and a big discovery that changes everything. I found her to be petulant and a bit whiny - yes - she is facing some major life stuff, but she seems to have unfair expectations of many of her loved ones. Billy was also a seismologist - he probably could have predicted this earthquake - and when she was young and he was still in the family's good graces, he taught her: "understanding prepares us for the future." wise words for someone whose foundation will be rocked by forces beyond her control.

[foreigncircus · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I love books about books or bookstores or book lovers, but even that was not enough to carry this novel. The central “mystery” that Miranda spends her time unravelling was clear to me as a reader just a few pages in, so it was hard for me to imagine an intelligent character couldn’t have seen the big reveal coming long before she did. I thought Miranda was surprisingly shallow; she casually dropped both her live-in boyfriend and her job in Philly without offering anyone a true explanation of why; I admit Jay seemed like a drip, but Miranda honestly never gave him a chance to really understand what was happening in LA. The literary references were the best parts of the book- those and Sheila who came across as the only fully realized character. A sadly disappointing read.

[smik_3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Not crime fiction but plenty of mystery in this novel when Miranda Brooks finds out her estranged uncle has died and has left her his book shop. As he did when she was younger, Billy has left her a scavenger hunt to solve. Miranda could have just walked away, but Billy has really thrown down the gauntlet, appealing to Miranda's love of solving a puzzle. And the more she finds out, the deeper the puzzle becomes.And there is more - stories about the effects of cataclysmic events on family, on events that shape our lives. A very enjoyable read.

[murderbydeath · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I didn't much like this book, although the story itself isn't bad.  I'm assuming the author was going for a massive plot reveal, built up from the scavenger hunt the main character is sent on after the death of her uncle.  But that plot twist was obvious to me from the very first part of the book, which made the rest rather anti-climatic, although I still enjoyed the scavenger hunt aspect.The characters themselves didn't much work for me either; Meyerson's attempt to build complicated, layered characters just resulted in an attitude of indifference; the main character's waffling over the confrontation with her mother; her mother's complete indifference to her daughter's obvious distress; the father's complete check-out of the whole thing; the romantic interest ... totally uninterested in romance.It just didn't work for me.

[shazjhb · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Nice read. Bit predictable but enjoyable.

[auntie0nanuuq · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Very interesting premise: After Uncle Billy & her mother have a huge fight on the night of Miranda's 12th birthday, Uncle Billy disappears from her life and she never hears from him again....Sixteen years later, Miranda is living in Philadelphia and embarked on a successful teaching career. Miranda receives a letter informing her that Uncle Billy has died, along comes a package w/ a book and a clue... leading Miranda to Billy's Bookstore (which she is now the owner of) and on a treasure hunt that leads her & the truth of her life.An interesting book and story, but I really didn't like the characters as they were so wrapped up in themselves that you really didn't get to know them.What Pissed me off: Although the author teaches writing at USC, she doesn't know how to properly spell the name of our most famous cemeteries; FOREST (not Forrest as in Gump) Lawn.... Such a glaring & sloppy error.

[sandyamcpherson · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This novel is one of those that gets a tear-away bestseller billing, except it isn't worth (dare I say), the paper it was written on. Is this a picture of the angst of the author's childhood overlaid with some wishful thinking? Was Amy Meyerson writing memoir fiction? My thoughts intruded quite frequently into her narrative. There was never a sense of reality, of chief-character personification, that didn't feel like Amy was actually talking about unresolved issues with her Mother. No, I don't know why the story felt that way; certainly not an echo of my happy relationship with my mother.Miranda, was so poorly-characterised (having an inability to therapeutically manage her relationships) that I don't believe many readers are going to enjoy reading about her antics. Her connection to people was constantly flawed with an attitude I would attribute to a young teenager, not a woman in her late twenties-early thirties. Not that her parents managed much better.I did like the premise of the book, but the plot progressed so glacially, that I had to concentrate on staying connected. While a quest theme was apparent, I'd say it got lost in the telling. And the clues were so esoteric that I'm not sure how many readers could (or would) enjoy unravelling the hints. Of course there were twists and big reveals (not exactly stellar), but they had no emotional impact. I was disappointed how the story turned out, especially with the implausible events, such as a person with no business experience taking over the debt-ridden bookstore (unresolved throughout the whole story), changing its name and having an affair with the unseemly Malcolm, a dysfunctional manager if ever there was. I think Meyerson set up a "Bookshop" mystery but then didn't use the plot device at all well.

[froxgirl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Here's a pleasant summer read, with little suspense and much predictability. Miranda Brooks grew up in LA as an only child, basking in the esteem of her uncle Billy, owner of Prospero Books. When a nasty fight between her mother Susan and Billy escalates into decades of estrangement, Miranda loses track of Billy until his death, when she finds herself as Billy's heir and the owner of his bookstore. Billy is fond of scavenger hunts and riddles (I'm not), and Miranda gives up her life as a history teacher in New York for a summer of finding out why her family has been sundered. The answer involves the mysterious and glamorous Evelyn, Billy's wife and Susan's best friend. It's all a bit ho hum.

[bgknighton · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Miranda has to solve the mystery of what tore her family apart.

[paul9the9well9read · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The Bookshop of Yesterdays is an engaging novel in which the protagonist, Miranda, attempts to unravel a family mystery/secret. Miranda's uncle had been very close to her until one evening when he and Miranda's mother engage in a life-altering fight that forever ends Miranda's relationship with her uncle.
Years later, Miranda has traveled east, finished college and gotten into a serious but somewhat contentious relationship with a man and has moved in with him. When she receives information that the formerly favorite uncle whom she has seen or heard from for years, she travels to his funeral and begins to track down the mysteries of her past and those of her mother and her estranged, now deceased, brother.
Uncle Billy bequeathed Miranda his bookstore and has left for her a series of clues that will engage her enough to keep her from returning to her old life as she searches for the key to her own past.
What is enjoyable about this novel is its use of literary references and quotations to provide the clues Miranda uses to discover her family's darkest secret.
I was engaged by the plot, interested in the characters and found enough substance to keep me reading. I did find the last section of the book rather overdrawn with too many details that were rather supplemental to the main story. Once the central mystery had been solved, many things did need to be "tied up" and completed, but, in the absence of the literary tension provided by the book's main storyline, these details held less interest and became tedious to work through.
I would probably read another book by the same author since overall I did enjoy this one and admired her tight, detailed, plausible and engaging plot.

[bonnielymer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Although the outcome was somewhat predictable (I figured out the "mystery" within the first few chapters), I still enjoyed this book. The journey of arriving at the inevitable outcome kept me reading.

[sheila1957 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Miranda inherits her late uncle's bookshop in Los Angeles. He leaves her a final scavenger hunt where she needs to find books and people. She goes on the hunt and it is not what she expected. Her life changes in many ways.This was not what I expected but it was excellent. I could not have followed the clues but she finds people that knew her uncle and slowly she puts his and her stories together. Her parents are not forthcoming until she solves the hunt. I liked Miranda but she was wishy-washy at times and allowed things to happen to her. Once she discovered her backbone and the truth I liked her a lot better. When she started making choices instead going with the flow she became a much better character. I also liked Lee whom she had to find. He was the most honest of all. I will read more of this author.

[ffortsa · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I had some hope for this book, based on comments here and there, and so was disappointed when it didn't charm me. At the heart of the story is Miranda, who comes home to California for the funeral of her uncle Billy, and discovers she is inheriting his woefully indebted bookstore. Billy was fond of arranging 'scavenger hunts' for her entertainment, mainly related to books, and it seems he has done it again, to reveal to her a family secret. Miranda's mother refuses to discuss her late estranged brother, and so do most other people, so she dutifully follows the trail of breadcrumbs and puzzles he leaves her to get some answers (she hopes).I could see the answers almost immediately, and the characters who 'knew' what she was meant to find out irritated the heck out of me. There was no reason for her not to know the secret, except that the other people involved were so guilt-ridden and unimaginative they couldn't avoid their own lies. I can't really recommend this one.

[smits_52 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"Miranda Brooks grew up in the stacks of her eccentric uncle Billy's bookstore, solving the inventive scavenger hunts he created just for her. But on Miranda's twelfth birthday, Billy has a mysterious falling-out with her mother and suddenly disappears from Miranda's life. She doesn't hear about him again until sixteen years later when she receives unexpected news: Billy has died and left her Prospero Books, which is teetering on bankruptcy, and one final scavenger hunt"--Provided by publisher.

[bookworm12_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Miranda returns to her home when her estranged uncle dies and leaves her a bookstore. Threads of Shakespeare’s Tempest are worked through the entire book, which I enjoyed. I felt like the big twist at the end was a bit too predictable and it took a long time to get to it. The scavenger hunt was fun, but I didn’t feel invested in some of the characters relationships. A good read if your expectations aren’t too high.

[circlestonesbooks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

“Understanding prepares us for the future.” (Quotation pos. 433)

Content:
When she was a child, Miranda Brooks loved it, when her Uncle Billy took her to his bookshop “Prospero Books”. The last time she saw him was on her twelfth birthday. After a serious argument with her mother, his sister, he just disappeared. After sixteen years, she gets a package with the book “The Tempest” inside. The same evening her mother tells her that Uncle Billy had died. He has left his bookshop to Miranda. She returns to Prospero Books, also to find out what had happened twelve years ago that had made Billy leave …

Theme and genre:
It is not only a story about reading, books (especially Shakespeare “The Tempest”) and the problems of independent bookstores, but about family and hidden secrets, lies and the importance to talk to one another.

Characters:
Miranda is a history teacher when she inherits Prospero Books and hopes to save it and not to have to close it down. She is a quite pleasant main character, but during the story going on, she got just too stubborn about the family secrets. Especially her conduct towards her mother was just too much drama for me and not understandable for a grown-up person. While Malcolm, the manager of the bookstore and the regular visitors of the store and included café are interesting and likeable.

Plot and writing:
The story is written in the first person, told by Miranda. There are some flashbacks included directly into to story, where necessary for better understanding. The family secret is slowly revealed during the plot and that makes the story interesting and gripping, even if the reader at a certain point might guess the truth. I definitely have enjoyed the parts about literature and books.

Conclusion:
A fine-spun plot and gripping story about literature and family secrets buried in the past. Although not always happy with the main character, I really did enjoy the story that gives the reader some pleasant, entertaining reading hours.

[chrirob · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Life is finally settling into a comfortable, adult routine for Miranda. She is teaching her passion for history to middle school students and has entered into her first long-term, live-in adult relationship. Then she receives news that her uncle has died in California. Miranda has not thought of Uncle Billy in years. She used to be very close to her world-traveling seismologist uncle, even if she did not see him often. Then one night, on her 12th birthday, Uncle Billy and her mother had a terrible fight...and Uncle Billy was never seen nor heard from again. What happened to Uncle Billy, what did they fight about that resulted in his disappearance from their lives forever? Miranda decides to return to California for his funeral and finds that her uncle has left her his bookshop, Prospero Books. But, along with the bookshop, Uncle Billy has left Miranda one last treasure hunt to solve...just like they did when she was young. Will the hunt finally reveal why he disappeared all those years ago and why he left his shop to his "favorite niece"?This was a really great book that I could not put down! I highly recommend it!

[carlathelibrarian · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Bookshops of Yesterdays was an enjoyable book. I listened to the audio version of this one, and although the narrator did not change her voice for different characters, it was well narrated and I found I enjoyed hearing all the literary clues and information, more than I probably would have if reading this one. It was both fun and poignant, full of family drama, heartbreak, and love. Some of the things I loved were that it takes place in a bookstore, there is a good mystery to figure out with a scavenger hunt of clues, and the of course the fact that those clues were all literary. As Miranda unravels the clues left in the books of literature, she finds out her life is not what she thought - there were secrets kept.

Miranda Brooks adored her Uncle Billy. They spent a lot of time together, always having fun, especially in his bookstore, Prospero Books. The name coming from Midsummer Night's Dream as well as her name. She also had a wonderful relationship with her parents. Suddenly, on her 12th birthday, her mother and Uncle Billy had a huge fight and Miranda never saw him again. Years later, when this story takes place, Uncle Billy has died and Miranda finds out that he has left Prospero Books to her along with a letter and clues to follow. There were many interesting characters who Miranda met working in the bookstore as well as when she followed the clues. As Miranda tries to figure out what she wants to do with the rest of her life, she uncovers secrets kept by Billy and her parents that will change many things. She began to evaluate her own life choices and found them wanting. As she uncovers more secrets about Billy's life, she discovers that her life is inexplicably tied to his and that her parents had secrets of their own. This was a great story about family dynamics, sorrow, forgiveness, going for your dreams and above all love. Using books and a bookstore to share that message is icing on the cake.

[gypsysmom_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm pretty sure I heard about this book through the Bookreporter website and I knew I had to read it. This was what sold me " It’s a love letter to reading and bookstores, and a testament to how our histories shape who we become." How could I resist? Plus that cover just begs a reader to open the book.Miranda Brooks was named after Prospero's daughter in Shakespeare's play The Tempest. Up until she was twelve years old she spent time with her Uncle Billy in his bookshop Prospero's Books in the heart of Los Angeles. So you know The Tempest is going to be central to this book. (As an aside there seems to be a whole sub-genre of books that use The Tempest as a plot element. I'm not sure if any other Shakespearian play has spawned so many knock-offs.) Uncle Billy would use use books as clues in scavenger hunts around the bookstore and Miranda loved this special relationship. Then when she turned twelve her uncle and her mother had a huge fight and Miranda never saw Uncle Billy again. Sixteen years later she is a history teacher in Philadelphia just starting her summer break and planning a summer of fun with her live-in boyfriend. Then her mother calls to tell her Uncle Billy is dead. Miranda goes home to LA for the funeral and discovers Uncle Billy has left her the bookshop. He has also left one final scavenger hunt that may explain why he and her mother argued so many years ago and caused the rift in the family. Along the way Miranda will discover things about her family and Uncle Billy that will change the way she thinks of herself. Plus somehow she has to make Prospero Books a financial success. The two quests will consume her summer.This is a first novel and has some of the usual first novel failings but I was totally drawn in by all the literary references and the central mystery of what caused the fight. I did figure out part of it quite early on but that just made me more eager to learn all.

[allenkl · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well done! Keep writing

[skraft001 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very real book. Life isn't always easy -- there are struggles and you have to live with your past. Make the best of your situation and follow your heart for the path you "need" life to take; knowing that there likely will be pain and hurt feelings from those that desire the status quo. A very fluid read that had you wanting to not put it down.

[romonko · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book about the fictional Prospero bookstore in Los Angeles. There are tons of very pertinent literary references, and it is a book that is a bibliophile's dream. I love bookstores, and in the book, the bookstore was almost another character. If I have any complaint it is that I really didn't care for Miranda much. It was hard to like her while reading because she kept losing it with people when they didn;t answer her questions and she didn't seem to care who she hurt. If I had liked Miranda more, I would have probably given this book 5 stars because I loved all the rest. I liked all the other characters, and I thought they were well-drawn. The premise behind the book was the secrets that families keep, and the harm that keeping secrets causes when they are inevitably revealed. Miranda is left her uncle's bookstore when he passes away, and when she comes back home to L.A. she discovers that her uncle has given her a puzzle to solve. All of his clues trace back to works of literature, from Alice in Wonderland to Jane Eyre to Fear of Flying and many others. As she follows the clues, Miranda discovers things about her uncle, her family and about herself that rock her world and change the course of her life. This is a book about family, love, community, and personal growth, all wound around some beautiful examples of classical literature. I enjoyed the story, and I enjoyed all the books and bookstore references sprinkled throughout.

[dianekeenoy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's hard to go wrong with a book about a bookshop and books, especially in the summer! Miranda hasn't seen her Uncle Billy in years after he and her mother (his sister) had a falling out. When he dies and leaves her Prospero, the bookstore she spent so many happy hours in as a child, she goes home to sort it all out. Her uncle has left her the first clue in scavenger hunt for the truth of what happened all those years ago. Enjoyable summer read.