If you were to ask me what my husband's retirement dream would be, it would be to buy a boat and sail around Australia for as long as it takes. I am not sure how long I would last on such a trip, but if you could combine it with doing something with books, I could make the distance.
I said yes to this simply based on the fact that I have really enjoyed the book I have previously read from her, and that will also be my practice going forward. This is the first time I have read one of her books set wholly in Croatia but I do have The Dubrovnik Book Club on my Kindle to read at some point.
When Ana Meštrović recieves an inheritance from her grandfather, she uses it to buy a catamaran which she has been using to run a charter business. She needs to diversify if she is going to keep her business running successfully enough to not need to take her boat and return to be part of the family business. She loves the sea and her independence.
When an opportunity comes up to run a pilot for a library project, Ana is determined to make it work. The idea is that she will sail through the Croatian islands. At each stop, there will be a library set up where hopefully the local population will come and borrow all the books and then return them the following week. If this pilot program is a success then Ana might be able to secure the contract, and her livelihood and independence, for the next few years.
In order to run the operation effectively, Ana employs a young woman named Natali as a general deckhand/boat mechanic/Girl Friday and former teacher Lloyd as the librarian. Also along for the ride is Natali's dog Obi. Ana isn't sure that she is equipped to be the leader of these people, and it can get complicated when you not only work with these people but you also share a very confined living space.
Natali is pretty quiet, only talking to her dog most of the time. She loves working on boats but she is self taught with no qualifications and limited schooling. She works low pay jobs to make ends meet and usually it is hard to get a job on a boat because of Obi. She is therefore super keen to please, going above and beyond. However, she does find it difficult to engage with her co-workers, always believing that she isn't as clever as them, a message that has been reinforced over and over again over the years by her mother.
Lloyd is a widower who is trying to get on with life following the death of his wife. He has been encouraged by his daughter to make a new start and go on and adventure. He has had to leave his job as a teacher but he is loving feeling useful again.
Things start off slowly, but they are slowly beginning to build when one of the crew's past catches up with him. Lloyd hadn't told Ana that he had even been to the country before. When he was a young man he had worked for a time on an island where he had met and fallen madly in love with a young woman. But it was 1991, and the Croatian war was on the verge of beginning and so Lloyd had to leave in a hurry, leaving behind his love.
I said yes to this simply based on the fact that I really enjoyed the book I have previously read from her, and that will also be my practice going forward, which was The Santorini Writing Retreat (my review). This is the first time I have read one of her books set wholly in Croatia but I do have The Dubrovnik Book Club on my Kindle to read at some point.
I really enjoyed this book. I loved the way that the three crew members gradually opened up to each other, becoming almost like family. I really enjoyed how each of them were able to take control of their own lives, making decisions about what their future would look like, regardless of what people around them might think. And I loved seeing Natali fall in love with books and also realise that she could do more with her life and have more security if she was happy to take some chances.
I haven't even mentioned the islands yet. I read this book in the plane on the way to Perth over the weekend and I was transported from inside a very crowded plane to the waters of the islands in Croatia with their history, culture, food, and yes, with the added bonus of books! There were some interesting characters who impacted our main characters in sometimes very touching ways.
If you are looking for a bookish books that takes you to new parts of the world through the pages, then consider reading this one!
About the book
Purchase - https://mybook.to/CroatianIslandLibrary
If you are looking for a bookish books that takes you to new parts of the world through the pages, then consider reading this one!
I am sharing this review with the New Release Challenge hosted at The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews and with the Bookish Books Challenge hosted at Bloggin' Bout Books. Thanks to the publisher, Rachel's Random Resources and Netgalley for the review copy. Check out the other stops on the blog tour as well!
Rating 4/5
About the book
The Croatian Island Library
Where books are borrowed, and friendships are forged…
When her beloved grandfather dies, Ana Meštrović buys a catamaran in his memory, which she names Dida Krila – Grandad’s Wings.
For the summer months, it will be transformed into a travelling library, delivering books to children living across the Croatian islands.
Joined by crew members Natali, a young mechanic afraid of her own shadow, and Lloyd, an older widower who needs a fresh start, the newly-formed trio all have their own reasons for needing the floating library to be a success.
Embarking on an adventure that will change them for good, they each discover that a new chapter is only a boat ride away…
Purchase - https://mybook.to/CroatianIslandLibrary
About the Author
Eva Glyn writes escapist relationship-driven fiction with a kernel of truth at its heart. She loves to travel and finds inspiration in beautiful places and the stories they hide.
Set mainly in Croatia, her contemporary stories are more about friendship than romance, the coming together of people through shared interests, and the opportunity to make fresh starts in their lives. A love of books is a common theme too, so her publisher, One More Chapter, has christened them the Bookish Escapes collection which currently includes The Dubrovnik Book Club, and The Santorini Writing Retreat, with The Croatian Island Library to be published in January 2026.
In addition Eva has written two Second World War dual timeline romances, An Island of Secrets and The Collaborator’s Daughter, and a new beginnings novel entitled The Olive Grove. All are set in Croatian, a country she loves.
Although she considers herself Welsh, Eva lives in Cornwall with the man she met and fell in love with more than thirty years ago. She also writes as Jane Cable.
Social Media Links –
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EvaGlynAuthor
Twitter: @JaneCable
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/evaglynauthor/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/eva-glyn
Giveaway To Win a paperback copy of The Croatian Island Library (Open to UK & Ireland Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK & Ireland entries welcome. Please enter using the Gleam box below. The winner will be selected at random via Gleam from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
Eva Glyn writes escapist relationship-driven fiction with a kernel of truth at its heart. She loves to travel and finds inspiration in beautiful places and the stories they hide.
Set mainly in Croatia, her contemporary stories are more about friendship than romance, the coming together of people through shared interests, and the opportunity to make fresh starts in their lives. A love of books is a common theme too, so her publisher, One More Chapter, has christened them the Bookish Escapes collection which currently includes The Dubrovnik Book Club, and The Santorini Writing Retreat, with The Croatian Island Library to be published in January 2026.
In addition Eva has written two Second World War dual timeline romances, An Island of Secrets and The Collaborator’s Daughter, and a new beginnings novel entitled The Olive Grove. All are set in Croatian, a country she loves.
Although she considers herself Welsh, Eva lives in Cornwall with the man she met and fell in love with more than thirty years ago. She also writes as Jane Cable.
Social Media Links –
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EvaGlynAuthor
Twitter: @JaneCable
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/evaglynauthor/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/eva-glyn
Giveaway To Win a paperback copy of The Croatian Island Library (Open to UK & Ireland Only)
*Terms and Conditions –UK & Ireland entries welcome. Please enter using the Gleam box below. The winner will be selected at random via Gleam from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
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