The Last Bookshop in London: A Novel of World War II

A woman takes a job at an off-the-beaten-path bookshop to help get a recommendation for the department store job she really wants. Initially, the owner is reluctant to have her. However, the grow together and the shop begins to succeed. She also becomes enamored with a patron who helps her to gain a love for books. Alas, World War II has broken out and he goes off to war.

There are struggles as she competes with other book shops in the "trendy" part of town as well as the various challenges of war. She helps to endear herself to the community by recommending books to pass the time during the blitz as well as performing public readings. She inherits the shop when the owner died. When the other shops are bombed, she helps them out by selling their books. When her shop is bombed, the community helps her. In spite of the war, the book ends on a happy note. It all makes for a quick, entertaining read.