The Words Between Us by Erin Bartels ~ Book Review

Robin Windsor is the owner of a quaint little used bookstore in River City, Michigan.  She spends her days quietly working in her store with her one employee.  She bought the bookstore in an attempt to escape the noteriety of her parents.  Her dad, a former senator, was convicted of murder and treason and her mom was also sent to prison for her part in protecting him.  She has not seen them since they were convicted, some 18 years, and has no desire to.  Trying to start over hasn't been easy but she loves her little bookstore.  Books had always helped her to escape, but now she finds herself having to make the hard decision about whether to close the store due to lack of business.  When a friend concocts an insane idea to enter an art contest to win the prize money to save the store, Robin reluctantly goes along with it.  But at the same time the day of her father's execution is here and a reporter figures out who she really is and her quiet life is yet again turned upside.  In the midst of the chaos Robin starts to receives packages in the mail containing one book at a time from her past and she knows exactly who is sending them.  But why is her past coming back to haunt her now?  

This story is a duel timeline going back and forth between Robin's present day and her past when she was a young girl.  The author wove it really well giving just enough out of each era to move the story along and reveal how Robin got to the place she where she is experiencing her present day perfect storm .   The books being sent to her were a main part of both timelines and tied the two together.  Being a reader not drawn to classics or poetry I found I was starting to skim through those parts where the quotes were written.  It was a bit of a struggle back and forth on my part because it is such a part of the story that connects Robin to her love of books, her past, and her relationship with Peter who was important to her school years.  Because of that the story just didn't grab me as it would have otherwise.  Yet it is what made the story unique.  And there was one part of the story about her "speech" in her after high school years that I just could not buy into.    It was a book I liked it but wasn't swept away by it.

I rated it 7.5/10

Reading Goals Met:  A book purchased between 2020 - 2022, Read Your Shelf Challenge June Prompt (A book with a book on the cover)