Really interesting book, I loved the premise and the characters. My only quibble is that I guessed the twist but that could be a product of reading too many thrillers! Fascinating subject though and recommended

A beautifully written story about the death and works of an author. The story is over 2 time periods and comes together wonderfully. There is mystery and suspense which kept me reading and I thought the main plot idea was very good.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

This is one of those books that is about the love of books. The fragments of the title are scorched pages from the lost novel of a genius novelist who died in a fire in the 1930's, and we follow Caddie as she tries to uncover the story of the mysterious author.
The book is told alternating between 1980's Brisbane and 1930's New York City and the contrast between the two is very interesting. As we read on, we see the stories collide. I guessed the reveal about halfway through but I still enjoyed this book. I like that we never get a good look at either of Inga's books and it's left to each individual reader to imagine what this amazing novel would be about.
The Fragments also gives us a look into the harsh world of academia and research.
I was torn between three and four stars for this one but I think it's worth a 3...I enjoyed the story and how it's a love-letter to reading, but there were a few things I wasn't keen on...for example the love story that is sort of abandoned halfway through. Overall though, a decent book with a good story of discovery.

The Fragments is a historical mystery novel set in two separate timelines. Timeline one is set in 1986 Australia, and it follows Caddie. A 28 year old bookseller with an aficionado for the works of the great novelist Inga Karlson. Inga was a much beloved artist from the 1930’s whose only published work was a worldwide sensation. Her second novel was destroyed in a warehouse fire where Inga and her publisher were also killed. All that remains is a key straps of torn and burned pages known as the fragments. The fragments make expeditions all over the world as the legend of Inga Karlson goes on. Caddie is a big fan, and has studied the first novel and the fragments extensively.

On her first trip to see the fragments, Caddie meets an old woman named Rachel,just outside the venue. They get to talking, and the old woman, who appears to be an Inga fan also, quotes her a line from the fragments. Caddie doesn’t think about it much initially until she realizes that the fragments did not contain the finished line. Completely consumed by this mystery, Caddie vows to find this mysterious Rachel.

The second storyline follows Rachel, as a young woman in New York City. A young woman who develops a completely unique relationship with the legendary Inga Karlson.

Novels that are set from two different perspectives are always fun to read and interesting since they provide a complete picture of the story. This story is written in a very poetic style. Like any good mystery, this story ends on a twist that I did not see coming. A fun weekend read.

First, thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read an e-galley of this book.

Inga Karlson's second novel was all but lost in a fire. Caddie is a Brisbane bookseller who's standing in line to see some of Karlson's work. She's standing with a lady who seems to know lines from Karlson's work that has been lost. Who is this person?

Based around the lives of reclusive authors. I enjoyed this book.
#NetGalley #TheFragments

Secrets and mysteries and murder and books and literature - fragments of all of my favourite things make up The Fragments and I (mostly) enjoyed it from start to finish.

Told over two different timelines that ultimately weave into one, we have a famous author who tragically perishes in a fire, leaving behind only pieces of her follow up book, and then the hungry academic who, while visiting an exhibit of the remains of said book, runs into a woman who seems to know more to this story than anyone else. It's a treasure hunt for information about the past, the gaps being filled in with a glimpse into that time. A mixture I often lose myself in.

The love of books and literature is strong with this, which is always a warm and comforting read. I enjoyed the characters a lot, for the most part. Inga and Rachel were vibrant and their timeline was a joy to relive. It played out much like I expected, though. The twist wasn’t exactly a shocker. But I enjoyed their friendship and their story a lot, this was by far the most enriching part of the book and I kind of wish there was more of this for me to wrap myself in.

I had very mixed feelings about Caddie. I generally liked her, but she made some decisions that I could only shake my head at and it sort of ruined certain parts of the book for me. She redeemed herself mostly, but I felt like her story arc got a little confused with some outside influences that weren’t really necessary and they seemed to contradict the character of a woman who would risk her career to find out the truth about these fragments. She just seemed a little muddled to me during certain parts of the book, which was a shame.

This moved very quickly, you were thrust into the mystery of things right from the beginning and that intrigue and interest held strong until the very end. There seemed to be a few thinly veiled holes, but nothing that was too gaping that it derailed the book entirely. It was a warm and moving read, if you don’t get too caught up on everything in between.

It's 1986 and Caddie Walker goes to an exhibition in her home town of Brisbane - an exhibition dedicated to the 1930s European-American writer Inga Karlson. The star exhibits are The Fragments, the few remaining pages of Inga Karlson's lost second novel. All the copies were destroyed by a fire in the publisher's warehouse; and reputedly the only two people to have read the novel, Inga and her publisher, died in the fire.

Caddie, named after the protagonist in Karlson's first novel, is surprised when she quotes a line from one of the fragments that a fellow visitor completes the line. Especially because the completion is not one of the fragments...

This is a mystery novel told in two timelines, Caddie's own hunt for the mystery woman from the exhibition and the story of Rachel Lehrer, a young woman who ran away from her grim family farm in America's midwest and into the arms of Inga Karlson.

The twin narratives makes the novel a bit slow to take off but when it does, it is really well done. There are parallels between the two story lines: in each, the leading lady is caught between two competing suitors, there are power imbalances brought about by wealth and status. There are stories 0f mundane work (bookselling, typesetting, waitressing) set against the prestige of academia and publishing. And both story lines have a secret at their heart.

The ending - which I did not see coming - was one to set my hairs on end. Truly, it was very moving.

I have read Toni Jordan's work before and she is a really great storyteller. Easy to read, but complex in the range of ideas that bubble up to - pr just under - the surface. I see that her work is positioned as women's fiction, but it is so much more than that. I would encourage anyone - male or female - to read The Fragments and read more of Toni Jordan's back catalogue.

Pub date September 10, 2019

Who knew there was such a genre as literary mystery?! I really enjoyed this story - set in both 1938 and 1986 and told from the perspective of 2 women - tied together by their love of the late author, Inga Carlson. The search for the truth about what happened to Inga's long lost manuscript for her 2nd book spans decades and miles. Toni Jordan weaves it all together beautifully. I found the middle part of it to be somewhat slow, and I ended up skimming much of the book that dealt with Caddie's relationship with 2 different men and her home life. The ending was satisfying and I'll be reading more of Toni Jordan's books.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of this novel was so intriguing to me! The story was well written and developed, and I truly felt like the author captures the emotions as if it were a real story. I loved this book and would recommend to a friend!

The Fragments has an interesting story to tell with likeable characters in a lovely bookish setting (authors, book sellers, researchers, antique book dealers and publishers). So what's not to like!

There are lots of subtle contrasts to enjoy between the characters, the locations and the time.

The story starts out with an enigmatic author who makes a friend and reveals more about herself. These two friends play out their story in old New York , However, the main character is a contemporary Aussie, who is finding her way in the Brisbane book business, after dropping out of university. A chance encounter leads our hero deep into the research world she had left behind to find out what really happened to a manuscript which had been destroyed in a fire and the lives of the two friends. It is a tale of love and loss and new beginnings.

The two tales are interwoven with a twist in the end. It was an enjoyable read,

This has to be one of the most beautifully written books I have ever read, principally Rachel's chapters where I actually got scared of what was going to happen next from the first time I met her.
The entire book feels effortless, you never get tired of reading it, you only want to watch the mystery unravel and even when you are reading scenes that are not necessary for the plot like when Caddie is introducing us her housemates, it feels like a necessary pause where we can learn more about the characters surroundings instead of filler chapters and when the action finally happens, you sweat through every page, feeling your heartbeat alongside the character's.
Thank you to NetGalley and Text Publishing for this ARC.

What a wondeful, original tale this was. I loved the idea that fragments of a novel could hold such delight and passion in people. The novel opens with Caddie excited about visiting the exhibition because she adores the first novel of Inga Karlsson and wants a glimpse at her second. her father named her after the herione of the first and she grew up in its shadow.. after the exhibition she meets a woman that will change her world and bring her out of the stagnant life she leads.

I like the dual story and time, Caddie on her own would be a poor main character. Her choices and dependence on fatherly figures is the only part of the book that irritated me (yet I understood the need for it within the story arc). Rachel is the herione from the past, her grit and determination drive her to New York where a chance encounter with a fragile beauty turns her live around.

As Caddie follows the clues to learn about the mystery woman and the night of Inga Karlsson's death, we are led down an evitable path.

Thanks Netgalley for sending me an ARC, this is my honest review.

The Fragments is a literary mystery that I enjoyed mostly. The fist 2/3rds of the book was really good, well set up, super intriguing. I wish the finish would be a bit better. But, I still enjoyed my time mostly.

It's set in dual timelines and places, Brisbane 1986 and New York 1939. I love dual timeline books with different locations. It makes the experience very rich. I liked the writing a lot. so I'd definitely read from this author again. The only problem was the wrap up of the story.

Thanks a lot to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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I wasn’t keen on the prose style of this novel. It kept throwing me out of the story as it was too spare and lightly written.

Description
Inga Karlson died in a fire in New York in the 1930s, leaving behind three things: a phenomenally successful first novel, the scorched fragments of a second book—and a literary mystery that has captivated generations of readers.

Nearly fifty years later, Brisbane bookseller Caddie Walker is waiting in line to see a Karlson exhibition, featuring the famous fragments. A charismatic older woman quotes a phrase from the Karlson fragments that Caddie knows does not exist. Caddie is jolted from her sleepy life in 1980s Brisbane, and driven to uncover the truth about this fascinating literary mystery.

My thoughts:
The Fragments hit all the points that draw me to a book...title, duel time lines, lost manuscripts and the mystery behind them. This was a captivating story with diverging viewpoints that kept me reading to it's, a bit surprising, end.

The Fragments has a fascinating plot, a literary mystery that starts with a chance meeting between young bookseller, Caddie, and an elderly, Rachel, at the exhibition of the fragments of a long-lost manuscript by the famous novelist, Inga Karlson.. Rachel seems to know more than anyone should know about the lost manuscript and when she disappears into a taxi leaving Caddie with a haunting clue, Caddie is determined to solve the mystery. And so begins the search for the mysterious Rachel and what she knows about the manuscript and who killed Inga .

The novel, set in two times and places, Brisbane 1986 and New York 1939, juxtaposing the stories of Caddie and Rachel works well up until the 70% mark when the story falls apart for me. Caddie behaves inexplicably in teaming up with her previous university tutor and lover - and known thief of other people’s research - to help her find Rachel; Fischer is under-developed as the suspected arsonist, and the switch at the end is awkward.

I was disappointed that with such a good start, the novel didn't t live up to its early promise.
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Suspenseful and intriguing story of The Fragments of a long lost book on display at the museum bring out the people who are interested in finding out what really happened to the author of original book.

Toni Jordan builds suspense as the reader works along with Caddie Walker to uncover the mystery surrounding the last book written by her favorite author, Inga Karlson. After seeing the exhibit of the remaining burnt fragments from Inga's last book, The Days, The Minutes, which burned with her in a warehouse fire, Caddie searches for an elderly woman she saw at the exhibit. Working in a book store, Caddie reconnects with people from her past who were also interested in the author and her story.

Following the trend of other books I have loved this year, this story is told in alternating chapters between Inga's story in 1930's New York City and Caddie's life in 1980's Brisbane, Australia.

The story is tied to together by Rachel. She was a young girl fresh from a farm life with a happy family to a change in the family's fortune, and an angry violent father. Escaping to the big city, Rachel is working as a waitress and trying to make a life for herself when she meets Inga. Inga is living a dazzling lifestyle of glamour and fame, after her first novel was extremely successful. She takes Rachel along for the ride. Rachel is enamoured of Inga and cannot believe that anyone would look at her this way, "New York is a town powered by fame: most of the shop girls and waitresses and cigarette girls and busboys and delivery boys have travelled to this heaving city to become the person they know they can be. The thin skin between the life you have and the life you desire - this a good part of New York's charm."

Caddie also a fan of Inga Karlson's first novel, All Has An End, and hungry to know what happened to the author and her second novel all those years ago, works to solve the mystery that was never solved because of the war that soon the nation's attention. Caddie throws herself into discovering the secret which gives her a chance to shrug off the burden of her past and start off down a new path.

This book is part historical fiction, with a bit romance thrown in. It is not a mystery but there is a sense of suspense as we uncover the secrets at the core of the novel. All is tied up at the end in a neat package, but getting there is particularly enjoyable.

The Fragments is a clever and fast-paced book that shows so many aspects of life and family relationships. The writing was sharp at times and tender at others and I found myself absorbed in the story and the character's lives. I'll be keeping an eye on this author for future reads!

I quite enjoyed this dual-timeline, literary mystery. It was, perhaps, a bit slow at the beginning, and I (of course) did figure out the plot twist about 2/3 of the way in, but I would still recommend it.

Rachel is a waitress in 1939 New York who is friends (and more) with Inga Karlson, acclaimed author who wrote a life-changing book with a character whom 1986 bookseller Caddie is named for. The chapters go back and forth between the two characters.

I struggled a bit with the characters themselves, as Rachel and Caddie both seem to content to let others live their lives for them, "floating" with the current as Rachel's father taught her to do, but I was more frustrated with and less forgiving on Caddie (the more contemporary character) than Rachel. However, Caddie's character, at least, is strengthened in the later parts of this book, which did help her redeem herself somewhat, although I still wasn't completely satisfied.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book. It has not influenced my review.

This book was a struggle for me, I had difficulty with the Australian lingo. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

There are 2 timelines 1935 and 1986 which moves back and forth. I found it difficult to move across the timelines and follow the story-its complicated. The main character Caddie Wilson follows the life and legacy of her favorite author, Inga Karlson. She as well as her publisher died and final book died in a fire. Fragments of the book were found and displayed at an art show in Brisbane 1986.

Then I was thoroughly confused, with the introduction of Rachel who was a waitress in NYC. I think the author should have focused on the main story line of the relationship between Caddie and Inga without bringing in Rachel and the Nazi drama. I thought it was unnecessary and confusing. I struggled to finish it.