The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow (2019)
A masterful journey
Book cover blurb
EVERY STORY OPENS A DOOR…
In a sprawling mansion filled with exotic treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artefacts that decorate the carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place.
But her quiet existence is shattered when she stumbles across a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page reveals more impossible truths about the world, and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.
My Review
Ok, full disclosure, I bought this book because I liked the look of the cover and was intrigued by the name. Hey, I do that a lot, what can I say, I'm into visuals.
I also don't often read book blurbs, mainly because they can be a little misleading. So I went into this book not knowing what I was in for. What I ended up with was a love-hate relationship.
For me, the story really didn't start until the second half of the book, that's when things began to gather some pace and things really started to happen.
I actually wanted to call it quits quite often early on because I was constantly thinking to myself that nothing was really happening, or I should say the story wasn't really moving forward, and it was based in a time period that doesn't really interest me in a fictional sense. But I simply couldn't stop, this thing just kept drawing me back to it, and that was solely down to Alix's writing style. It's actually quite hypnotic. It's relaxing, warming and comforting. And I'm really glad, in the end, that I continued to read because as I reached the last page I'd fully enjoyed the experience. And even though I'm a macho type, at least that's what I keep telling myself, the tears were free-flowing on two notable occasions. (If you've already read this book then you know exactly which occasions they were)
So, if you're thinking of reading this book, DO IT! And stick with it, the journey is well worth your time.
My copy of this novel
Orbit hardback edition.
Published in 2019
371 pages
ISBN 9780356512440