Rating: 
Summary: great start
Review: I loved the beginning of this book, the first hundred pages or so, but it lost some of its edge once the romance really got going. The ex-monk's letters back to the monestary are fantastic. The characters and dialog are also good, but the plot starts to feel very formulaic after a while. But those first few chapters, wow!
Rating: 
Summary: Bought copies for my friends
Review: I loved this book, and immediately bought 4 copies for my four closest friends, plus ordered the author's other books. I highly recommend this book!
Rating:
Summary: Definately a moving novel
Review: I loved this book...I read the blurb in the bookshop and thought it would be a nice sort of romance. It turned out to be much more than that...I recommend this novel to anyone!
Rating:
Summary: Life and love
Review: I picked this book up at a very low point in my life. As an almost 30 single woman whose never been married, I felt very much like Rebecca in that I've become very synical about love. Her relationship with Mike taught me that it doesn't have to be all 'bells and whistles' and that sometimes you just have to keep taking those steps forward to get to where you need to go. I truly found this to be a rewarding novel.
Rating:
Summary: A tender story about taking risks
Review: I think this shall be one of my all time favorite books. It speaks to the risk of love versus the acceptance of a safe, yet solitary existence. It speaks to the risk of one exploring and accepting another versus that of one gliding from one superficial entanglement to another, precluding real intimacy. One wants the happy ending... but is it worth all the pain that accompanies the risks?This is a story that grips you immediately. The story is about a single mom who fixes up the in-law apartment of her house so as to increase her income. Funny thing, the person who shows up has no money and no furniture. He is a monk who has recently left the monastery. However unsure, once she sees the interaction between the monk and her six year old daughter, Mary Martha, her decision is affirmed. As the friendship develops, Rebecca waits for the proverbial shoe to drop. She has conceded that she is to remain alone for the rest of her days, but Mike, the monk, captures her imagination providing her a healthy dose of giddiness followed by a pervasive topping of fear of what may be too good to be true. This story captures the emotional risks we all take when we open to love again. It is that fear that rests in the gut. This is also a story that invites the reader to explore his/her own relationship with a "God" whose message isn't always crystal clear. Again, it is about acceptance and risk. Rebecca and Mike are surrounded by a group of wonderful people. These people are not too neurotic, not too "over the top". Their assortment of idiosyncracies are reminders of the real people who surround us: wishing for our happiness, fearing for our hurts. Perhaps my only disappointment is the fact it is cigarettes that provide the initial sensory connection for Rebecca and Mike. So it is not a perfect world after all.
Rating:
Summary: Exquisite, rare, special novel
Review: I was beguiled. I was charmed. Within the first chapter, I was so intrigued by the characters that I didn't put the book down until I finished it - about 6 AM the following morning! Tim Farrington is simply the most amazing writer I've come across in a very long time. His style is simple, yet elegant. He uses words as if they were jewels, sprinkling them just right across the pages to make the story sparkle and glow. Please don't mistake this book for a romance novel. It is a story of love, but has none of the trademark purple prose of romance novels. The protagonists are finely-drawn, three-dimensional people. Rebecca, the single mother, is Everywoman - we are her and she could be us. Mike, however, is unique as a character; how many times have you come across an ex-monk? It's the humanity that shines through every page. This is life with a capital L, and you feel so lucky to be an observer into these people and their hopes and problems. I can't say enough good things about The Monk Downstairs. Reading this book has convinced me to buy all of Farrington's works.
Rating:
Summary: Spiritual allegory/sweet romance
Review: I was fully expecting this book to be a cute little romance and was delightfully surprised soon after beginning it that there are many layers to this novel. Farrington deftly weaves the story of spiritual journey into a simple, yet lovely romance so well that one disinterested in spiritual things would enjoy the tale for its love story, while someone who wants to seek a deeper meaning can find a lot to think about. The beauty of this book is that there is not a lot of the usual relational missteps thrown in simply to complicate the plot. But there is just enough legitimate angst to make it feel real.
Although unabashed in his symbolism, particularly in the naming of the characters, Farrington does a great job of posing spiritual questions in an unobtrusive way. I felt as though I could sit and peel away layer after layer and still come up with something new to consider, which makes this a wonderful book for a discussion group.
Rating: 
Summary: Ordinary
Review: I was surprised to see such high ratings for this book. i personally found it to be nothing too out of the ordinary. The book was not very insightful and the few shimerring pieces of writing seemed to peek from the letters that the monk wrote back ot the monastery. The biggest let down was that the 'monk' did not really have anything to add to the storyline. Had it been an average Joe living downstaairs, the story would have still remained the same. The story was not about a relationship with a monk but with a man who happened to be a monk. 2 similar but very distint lines of thought.
Rating:
Summary: Exquisite Spiritual Love Story
Review: Once I started this book, I was hooked. Tim Farrington has a way of bringing his characters to life with a few well-chosen words. Rebecca, the disillusioned divorced mom trying to raise her six-year old daughter; Michael Christopher, the disillusioned monk who has failed at monastic life and is now cooking burgers at Mcdonald's; Phoebe, Rebecca's witty and oh-so-California mother; Rory, her immature, surfer-dude ex-husband, Bob Schofield, the over-eager suitor who just won't give up his hopeless pursuit. Somehow they all become real in this beautiful, sensitive romance. Will they ever work things out? What will it cost them? For beneath the surface of this love story the author is asking a deeper question. What is the meaning of love itself? The love of God or the love of men and women. What is it really? What is its cost? The novel is never preachy, but a deep religious consciousness lies just below the surface. Real love is more than ecstatic emotion, it says; it is faithfulness, constancy, washing dishes, picking up the child from daycare, sitting quietly with the one you love without saying a word, no matter how much it may hurt. You will laugh, you will cry, you will blow your nose a few times. And you will want to read it again. This is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. I wish I could give it more than five stars!
Rating: 
Summary: A bit slow
Review: One good thing to say about this book is that if it were any longer, it would be a real snooze. The length sustains the plotline ably, but I was distracted by what I thought was plot and dialogue that was littered with distracting cliche. The character of the monk (Mike) is rich, but Rebecca tends to be little more than the stereotypical single mom. It was strange to juxtapose the much more complex character of Mike with Rebecca, and that's where the story lost me.
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