I hadn’t enjoyed a book in a really long time before I came across The Flat Share. For a mixture of reasons, I just couldn’t find the time to put into reading, but then a friend’s recommendation really got me interested. I know they say ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’ but, at least in this case, it really helped and it sold me on it. “Tiffy & Leon share a bed. Tiffy & Leon have never met” – there are so many questions that arise from this quick snapshot of the storyline that I just couldn’t not find out the answers. It immediately made me think: how could this possibly work? Who are Tiffy and Leon? I want to know more!
On the whole, the basis of the story is something we’re all very familiar with, a girl-meets-boy situation after a bad break-up, but there are so many layers to this foundation, so many themes which O’Leary explores such as identity, mental health, abuse, love and friendship – there’s bound to be something for everyone to connect with.
One of the first striking features of the book for me was the vast difference in the writing style of Tiffy’s chapters and that of Leon’s; it really helped with understanding just how opposite these characters are, which is exactly what made it so much more intriguing to find out how their lives are in such close proximities, and yet they don’t physically meet for such a long time. Tiffy is somewhat of a stereotypical millennial working in a big publishing company trying to work her way up to the top. Tiffy has time to go out with her friends for drinks and go on dates, whereas Leon leads such a busy lifestyle that he loses track of his own time and can’t afford to waste any of it by writing his notes to Tiffy in full sentences. However, we quickly learn that we don’t need that to know him and be fond of him. Leon works nights as a nurse in a hospice, his life is very full on – as is Tiffy’s – but in such different ways, and the more we learn about them, the more we can’t wait for them to meet, for their worlds to collide and create harmony.
I really enjoyed the moments of comedy which O’Leary occasionally injects into her narrative, such as Tiffy and Leon’s very first meeting. There’s so much anticipation and build-up to their first encounter that the way they end up meeting is completely unexpected. On a hungover morning, Tiffy’s late for work, and this means that Leon’s home too after his night shift, but neither of them know that the other is in the flat. They end up bumping into each other in the bathroom, both in vulnerable positions as they’re half naked – far from perfect!
Another theme explored in the book which really resonated with me kindness. Despite Leon’s incredibly busy lifestyle, he somehow finds the time to find one of his patient’s long lost love’s from WWII. He travels the country trying to find the right person and, eventually, he does, and the fact that they get to meet just before the patient passes away, is sad yet heart-warming, and really opens our eyes to a side of Leon which we thought we may never see. It’s also great to see that O’Leary uses this positive theme to strengthen the bond between Tiffy and Leon, the very opposite to what Tiffy had with her ex. Without realising, the two of them end up going on a mini-break together, where we further see how pure and harmless Leon is, and full of only good intentions, which is exactly what Tiffy needs and deserves. O’Leary continues to use positive themes to bring the two protagonists closer together, such as the fight for justice with Leon’s brother’s court case. Tiffy gets to know Leon’s brother before meeting Leon in person. This is quite intimate and the seriousness around her building a relationship with his brother so early on hints to us that Tiffy and Leon will end up together.
There honestly isn’t anything that I didn’t enjoy about this book. It was a light and enjoyable yet deep read and I couldn’t wait to pick it up every evening. The concept of two strangers sharing a flat and not meeting for months is unique, and O’Learly cleverly builds on that with a mixture of traditional yet completely unpredictable events.
collarsandstripes 