The Flat Share : Book Review

The Flat Share Book Review

Rating: 3.5/5
Genre: Chicklit
Pages: 380

 How does it feel to be in “love” with a person who ignores your existence? You know the feeling when you want to talk to them and hear from them, but silence is all they give you. And what’s the best way to deal with unrequited love? Become an alcoholic? Take to drugs? Rebound relationship? Cry your heart out for the rest of your life? I was not sure how to deal with my broken heart this time around. Fortunately, my brain suggested reading chick-lit. I was dismissive about the idea right when it popped, but the brain kept up with the nagging till I finally bought this book. 

The Flat Share: Book Synopsis 

Here’s a quick look at the plot. Tiffy is in dire need to find a new accommodation while Leon could do with some extra cash.  They enter an atypical agreement to share not just a flat but also bed. Both of their work timings fit well so as not to bump into each other until they do…

The Flat Share: Book Review

If I have to describe the book in one word, I’d say that it’s heartwarming. The Flat Share is different in the way the characters and sentiments have been dealt with. Most romcoms focus on meet-cutes and stories, one incident after another. Even though this one has all these elements, it is more so centered around the characters and their feelings and dilemmas. Not in an intense way, but in a very moving and likable manner. It felt like I could see through them and as if the characters were open books. Their intentions and relationship with people around them were bare open in front of me. And all this in a very cute and adorable kind of way.

The story is formulaic.  An innocent protagonist wading her way through life who doesn’t have it all together. A most unlikely encounter that eventually turns into a love situation.  Minor setbacks now and then. A rewarding climax where heroin gets the hero and vice versa. Tiffy and Leon both have an understandable and believable character arc. The way each of them grows on you is just so touching.  Their interactions with each other are cute. The way their lives intertwines, gently and steadfastly at the same time, made me want to believe in the universe and its timings.

The book could have been shorter. The story started on a great note. I saw a lot of potential at the beginning in terms of inventiveness but it gradually lost steam. It became somewhat slow and boring as the story progressed, and I felt certain plot elements were unnecessary.  Even the interactions between the protagonists lost intensity, at certain places esp. in the second half. The subplots in the book, one about Tiffy’s ex and the other about Richie could have been written better. I felt the author tried hard to induce the reader’s emotions esp. in the subplot about Richie, but failed to make me feel even a bit sympathetic. I just never came to care about that part. Even the part about Tiffy’s ex was somewhat muddled up.

The writing style was okay. I liked the general sense of humor in the book and the way Tiffy’s character has been written. Leon’s POV at the beginning was not easy to read but then you eventually get accustomed to it as you get to know him. The book lacked consistency in terms of the quality of dialogues, monologues, plotline, and emotions induced. Some parts are engaging while others are drawn out and weak.

To summarise, I liked the experience of reading The Flat Share. Something about the characters and the way their “love story” progresses and the way they come close to each other feels real and relatable. Tiffy and Leon getting to know each other organically, and falling in love gradually and then all at once was indeed the best and only good part of the book. The rest of the subplots weren’t engaging at all. The Flat Share could have been so much better if the author had worked on some of these issues, but in it’s current state I can give a single read recommendation to only chicklit fanatics but not everyone.

P.S. My heart is still obsessing over that guy it thinks it is in “love” with. This book has undoubtedly given me a temporary relief. My mind has come up with a new buzzword to control the anxieties of my heart. “Surrender”

Happy Reading. Chao!

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