Storybook Ending

A Novel

By: Moira Macdonald

Narrated by: Kelli Tager

A charming story about friendship, community, and the magic that happens in bookstores—when an anonymous note left in a book finds the wrong recipient.

April, a smart and lonely tech worker, worries work from home has gotten out of hand: She’s left an anonymous note in a book for Westley, the clerk at her Seattle neighborhood bookstore who has a gentle smile and looks great in flannel. But thanks to fate, Laura—a busy single mom who had given up on love—buys the book, finds the note, and thinks Westley has left it for her. A handsome man who loves books seems like just the plot twist she has been looking for.

Meanwhile, Westley—not the most perceptive—is too distracted by the movie filming at the store and the ambition it’s unlocked in him to notice either of the two women. But as April and Laura’s anonymous correspondence continues back and forth, their mundane routines are challenged, sparking a glimmer of hope. Is a happy ending in the cards for them?

A heartwarming web of mistaken identities and serendipitous encounters, Storybook Ending is a playful tribute to friendship, love stories of all kinds, and to the objects—from a forgotten slip of paper to someone’s heart—left between the pages of books we loved.

Cute love story

cute story line and it very enjoyable. I love that the characters lives intertwine. I also like the pacing of the book; the days didn't stretch out so much

Great Seattle read

Loved the bookish Seattle theme, which seemed too light at first, but developed into great characters and a perfect not-rom-com ending.

Good story unbearable audio read

The “reader” was excruciatingly one note for all characters except a few stereotypes. Like enduring nails on a chalkboard and lost the story for me

Clever plot

Though it's my habit to bypass "rom-coms" in favor of grittier fare (i.e., Nordic noir), I've always admired Moira Macdonald's witty and spot-on book, movie, and "Dinner at a Movie" reviews in the Seattle Times. That admiration led me to this book, which has a very clever plot and laugh-out-loud awareness of the often quirky Seattle culture. It's a fun and sometimes touching read. The narration is less successful. I don't know if it's the audio production or the narrator herself, but the narrator's voice is so breathy in the early chapters that it detracts from the story.

The possibility of a good plot

It felt like a majority high school play about who likes who that rambled and eventually came to the point.