This book was unlike any I have read. I learned a lot about the Tower of London and the people that live and work there. The best way to describe this fictional book is by calling it 'understated.' I loved it and will recommend it to my book club for this year's reading.

Most of the members of our group really liked this book. They enjoyed the characters and the sense of fun that exists. We also learned so much about the Tower.

I liked it, just not as much as I thought I would. So many reviews mention the book's humor, yet the underlying sadness seems equally as noteworthy to me. I wasn't expecting it - and it somewhat colored my initial reactions to the book. The two main characters mourn the death of their young son and find no refuge in their marriage. Many of the other characters are lonely and want more from their lives than they get. Also, on occasion the whimsy found in the plot and the quirkiness of characters seems forced. One thing I particularly enjoyed, though, was all the history of the Tower of London woven into the book. All that said, the author ties everything together nicely at the end and remedies much of the pervading sadness. Many topics for discussion - not least, the agony of unexpectedly losing a child and the way people cope with that loss.

.....but I expected more. the animal theme was ludicrous, the couple's life falling apart after their son's death was so subtle. it could have been so much more.

It was not whimsical, charming, or anything at all reminiscent of Chocolat or The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. While it had amusing moments and some quirky characters, it was just boring. A redeeming value is that it is informative, dropping bits of information about the Tower of London. I did not know that the Tower had been home to zoo animals over time. However, it is a bit farfetched to believe in this age that anyone, let alone the Queen, would order animals removed from the London Zoo to be placed on display at the Tower which was woefully unprepared and unsuited to house them and entrusting them to the care of an inexperienced Beefeater. A real disappointment.