The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman

5*

Nina Hill, die-hard bookworm and trivia champ, lives a relatively solitary life in Los Angeles surrounded by books both at home and at work. Her favorite friend is her cat Phil with whom she has two-sided conversations, a consequence of her over-active imagination and loneliness. It’s not difficult to see that her need for structure and extreme social anxiety are the result of abandonment, first by the father she never knew and then by her successful, globe-trotting mother who left parenting to a nanny. Her “anxiety was like her anti-superpower, the one that came out unbidden in a crisis.” So what’s she to do when, on the cusp of her 30th birthday, she learns that her father has died and left her an inheritance and a motley group of relatives? Add to the mix a trivia adversary, who occupies too much of her thoughts and whose presence seems to cancel out her anxiety, and her carefully constructed life starts pulling apart at the seams. Is the possibility of belonging and loving worth the risk or will she push everyone away to keep safe in her cocoon?

Waxman uses a third-person narrator who invites readers into Nina’s quirky, humorous thoughts and life accompanied by a cornucopia of wacky friends, family and the unique character of the City of LA. It’s a thoroughly engaging story with many LOL moments and a sweet romance, too. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Berkley Publishing Group through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.