The 24 Hour Cafe by Libby Page
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Published: 23rd January 2020 | Orion
Swathi’s Rating: 4/5
About the Book:
Day and night Stella’s Café opens its doors for the lonely and the lost, the morning people and the night owls. It is many things to many people but most of all it is a place where life can wait at the door. A place of small kindnesses. A place where anyone can be whoever they want, where everyone is always welcome.
Meet Hannah and Mona: best friends, waitresses, dreamers. They work at Stella’s but they dream of more, of leaving the café behind and making their own way in life.
Come inside and spend twenty-four hours at Stella’s Café; a day when Hannah and Mona’s friendship will be tested, when the community will come together and when lives will be changed . . .
Swathi’s Thoughts:
The story revolves Stella’s Cafe which is open 24 hours to its customers with waiters and chefs working round the clock to serve everyone at any part of the day. Situated in the busy street of London, the ambiance of the Cafe is dreamy with yummy food on the menu and comfortable furnitures to feel like home away from home!
Hannah and Mona are the two waitresses who work on shifts and also best friends and roomies. Both of them are artistic and have different dreams to achieve in their lives and their job as waitresses is just temporary. As the story progresses, we get to befriend several other customers who visit the Cafe, their lives and culture. My favorite character was Dan, a uni student who is currently homeless after crashing at his friend’s place for so long. At the Cafe, he meets an older friend who loves doing crossword puzzles and quickly a bond forms between them.
I loved Libby Page’s description about Stella’s Cafe giving us detour of the tiniest details on the walls, tables, chairs, kitchen and even the aprons of the staff who works there. So much life and passion in the words of the author that feels so good to read. Also, there’s something SO raw and real about the friendships and relationships portrayed in this novel and its very heartfelt that you’d actually feel for the characters. The ups and downs that occur even in the most honest of friendships! Both of them are artistic and their dreams of becoming better in their field and the struggle to achieve makes our heart ache for them.
The 24 Hour Cafe is a slow catch, not a pacy one. You’ll have to get to know each characters to enjoy the book. Although, if you’re someone like me who enjoys more conversations than narration then this novel might not be for you. I took my time with the book, snuggled up with it and easily became my bedside favorite. Many thanks to Compulsive Readers for having me on the #BlogTour and the publisher for my digital copy. All opinions are solely mine and no way biased.
Meet the Author:
LIBBY PAGE is the author of the SUNDAY TIMES bestseller and runaway success of 2018, THE LIDO. THE LIDO has sold in over twenty territories around the world and film rights have been sold to Catalyst Global Media.
After writing, Libby’s second passion is outdoor swimming. Libby lives in London where she enjoys finding new swimming spots and pockets of community within the city. She and her sister run a blog and Instagram account @theswimmingsisters, documenting their swims and the benefits of outdoor exercise for mental health.
