Title: The Shelf
Author: Helly Acton
Pages: 416
Publisher: Zaffre
Release Date: 18th June 2020
Blurb from Goodreads:
A funny, feminist and all-too-relatable novel about our obsession
with coupling up, settling down and the battle we all have with
accepting ourselves, The Shelf introduces the
freshest new voice in women's fiction.
Ever feel like
you're losing a race you never signed up for?
Everyone in
Amy's life seems to be getting married, having children and settling
down (or so Instagram tells her), and she feels like she's falling
behind.
So, when her long-term boyfriend surprises her
with a dream holiday, she thinks he's going to finally pop the
Big Question. But the dream turns into a nightmare when, instead, she
finds herself on the set of a Big Brother-style reality
television show, The Shelf.
Along with five other
women, Amy is brutally dumped live on TV and must compete in a series
of humiliating and o tasks in the hope of being crowned 'The
Keeper'.
While inside the house, will Amy learn that
there are worse things than being 'left on the shelf'?
Goodreads | Amazon UK | Amazon US | Bookshop
My Review:
*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Bonnier Books UK and NetGalley*
Thirty-two-year-old Amy is feeling the pressure to get married and have children.
She has been in a relationship with her boyfriend, Jamie, for two years. When Jamie springs a surprise holiday on Amy, she thinks that he is finally about to propose.
However, instead of finding herself on a beach, Amy is suddenly on the set of a new reality show called The Shelf where Amy and several other women are dumped live on TV. Amy must compete with her new housemates to reach the final and be named The Keeper by taking part in degrading tasks.
Can Amy learn to love herself again?
Who will be crowned The Keeper?
Contemporary books can be hit or miss for me, but I ended up enjoying The Shelf.
I am glad that The Shelf is not an actual show, because the basis of it was so sexist and demeaning that it infuriated me.
The contestants on the show had different personalities and views, so it was interesting to see how they interacted.
Amy was a likeable and relatable protagonist. I enjoyed reading her journey.
The writing style was easy to follow and I found that I read the book fairly quickly.
While I wasn't blown away by this book, I did enjoy it and it made me think about the pressure we can sometimes put on ourselves to reach certain milestones such as marriage and having children.
Overall, this was an enjoyable read.
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