readingwithkt's reviews
611 reviews

Was really excited by the first two chapters of this book but then set it down and picked it back up a week or so later when I had finished the other kindle book I was reading, and I found the next few chapters to just be very uncomfortable reading. 

I firstly realised that the authors were setting us up for an infidelity novel which on premise alone I wasn’t excited about, plus I found the relationship between our main character and her husband, Chris, just honestly horrific. I know it’s meant to be written that way and we’re supposed to feel that way because then we feel less bad about the fact that she cheats on him later in the novel, but I was just acutely aware that I was reading fiction and it all felt a bit false and forced to me. 

Moving on to something else now. 

This would be a great pick for fans of the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series - a light read with several stories that follow the same format (the patron comes into the restaurant looking for a specific dish connected to a memory or time in their lives, the chef finds all the details of the dish and recreates it for the guest two weeks later and then they enjoy the dish immensely and get flooded with memories). 

The formulaic aspect of it wouldn’t typically be my cup of tea but I read it every night before going to sleep and the predictability of it meant that I wasn’t staying awake just to find out what happened next (something that’s happened to me a couple of times recently). Having struggled with sleep issues of late, I’m grateful that the book didn’t exacerbate them. 


The Kamogawa Food Detectives was a really rather wholesome read overall and several of the stories were quite touching. My only real gripe was that they saved an unlikeable character for the last story. I would have rather finished on a wholly wholesome one but maybe that’s just me. 

I would probably continue with the series if my thought was to continue reading it before sleep. I’m not sure I would have stuck with this book if I’d read it during the day though, to be honest 🤭

Started listening to this on my walk last night and just couldn’t get into it. I felt that the relationship with the boyfriend was a bit confusing and the relationship with the side interest (clearly soon to be romantic interest) was kind of setting our MC up for some kind of infidelity situation - perhaps even already teasing with some emotional infidelity. Idk, just wasn’t one I was keen to continue listening to. 

Thank you to the publishers for the review copy via LIBRO.FM. 

Mike Gayle strikes again! I really enjoyed this heartfelt story, filled with Gayle's characteristic warmth and emotional intrigue. 

In All the Lonely People we follow Hubert Bird as he comes to terms with the fact that he is lonely and works to form a support for other lonely people in his local community. It all starts with a visit from his new next door neighbour and her young daughter. The two push themselves into Hubert's world, and slowly into his heart too. Meanwhile his quiet existence is upended as he starts to engage with his neighbours, his community, and ultimately the truth of his own story.

I really loved Hubert, his neighbors, and the story that came to pass between them. I listened to the bulk of his story on audiobook but switched to digital for the final 20 or so %. The audiobook really brought the story to life and I enjoyed that reading experience very much. Would recommend!