The Switch
By: Beth O’Leary
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Pages: 330
Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Eileen, newly single and about to turn eighty, would like a second chance at love, but her tiny Yorkshire village doesn't offer many eligible gentlemen. Then in bustling London, Eileen's twentysomething, overachieving granddaughter Leena is ordered to take a two-month sabbatical after blowing a big presentation at work.
Once Leena learns of Eileen's romantic predicament, she proposes a solution: a two-month swap. Eileen will live in London and look for love. Meanwhile Leena will rest and take care of things in rural Yorkshire.
But trading places isn't as easy as either of them expected. Will swapping lives help Eileen and Leena find themselves…and maybe even find love?
First Impressions
O’Leary’s debut novel The Flatshare was easily one of my favorite books of 2019. I was excited to see that she came out with another book so quickly. I adore the style of the covers, though I much prefer the British version to the US cover. Even if I hadn’t read O’Leary’s previous book, the concept would have immediately sucked me in.
What I thought
I knew that this book was going to have a lot to live up to after The Flatshare, so I tried to keep y expectations low. While I may not have loved it as much as Flatshare (which would be hard to beat), this book did not disappoint.
Leena is, or more like isn’t, dealing with the death of her sister a year ago. Eileen, Leena’s Grandmother is in a rut after her husband leaves her for the ballroom dance instructor. After Leena’s work forces her to take a two month paid leave, she comes up with the idea to switch places with her Grandma for two months. Eileen is looking for love and her options in the countryside are much smaller than they would be in London so she readily agrees. She also hopes that by switching with Leena, it will force Leena to reconnect with her mother.
This book was pretty much everything that I expected it to be and it was a delight. I very easily could’ve predicted the entire story from the beginning, but the writing and the characters were wonderful. I think what made the Flathshare so wonderful was that it wasn’t what I completely expected, which is why that one definitely had more of a wow factor for me, but that doesn’t mean I liked this book any less.
Leena’s struggle with grief was handled very well. There were a lot of lines in the story that I related to and it felt very real to me. I also liked her character growth while living in the country. It wasn’t over night and wasn’t drastic which I enjoyed. It did, however, seem to follow the Hallmark trope of her wearing her hair tightly pulled back to show how uptight she is and then slowly wearing it looser and more natural over time to show that she is more relaxed and happy in her life.
Between the two stories, I maybe ever so slightly preferred Eileen’s, if only because I haven’t read many stories like hers. I loved her adventure into London as a 79 year old. She wasn’t old and cranky like a lot of stories that center around older women are. She was ready to take on life and I loved how she just pushed her way into everybody else’s lives and meddle to make them better.
If you’re in the mood for a feel good story, I would definitely recommend picking this one up. While it’s not quite as stand-out as The Flatshare, it is wonderfully written story and I enjoyed very minute of reading it.