I don't read a lot of historical fiction but every now and then I like to pick up one and get immersed in it, and I found this one quite enjoyable. I think Annabelle Marx created a lovely story here, with two timelines - in one, set in 2003, Greer, a housekeeper of a fancy mansion, is getting ready as the mansion is finally attracting a buyer, Caitlin Black, wealthy and mysterious, who wants to turn the place into a retreat of some sort; and in the other, starting in 1896, we follow newly married Kitty as she settles in the mansion with her husband, and starts sorting out her kitchen garden. At times it was hard to see the connection between the two timelines, although it becomes clearer throughout the book - I still think the author missed a trick and one character, who isn't connected to the 1896 timeline, could have been - and I am not convinced by the ghost subplot, but I liked the atmosphere that Marx created there and the warmth and cosiness of it, which is what I had been looking for.

The herbalist's Secret is lovely little historical tale of a haunted house in the Highlands of Scotland. The narrative is told by Greer, who is the current caretaker of the property with her husband, Colin. They tend to the house and the garden's until Cailtin Black comes to possibly buy the property. As Caitlin discovers more about the original builders and owners of the place, Caitlin discovers why Greer is so attached to the property and the secrets it keeps.

The story is told from 2 different time lines, present day and 1889 where we are first introduced to Kitty Gray. A well educated women who is governed by her overpowering mother to find a suitor to marry. Both time lines are very distinguishable and I love that Annabelle have made the personalities of Caitlin and Kitty very distinguishable. I also love that there is Scottish dialect written in ( it's one of my favourite accents! ) and I found it very easy to hear the Scottish voices of the characters in this book.

I feel that living in the present years, even though current society has different stresses, they are largely similar. Women are still fighting for better working environments, Not to be discriminated against, to be seen, heard and respected and I really felt that within the narrative of Kitty and how hard she fought through her life and to take refuse in nature and her garden. I love the similarities, between not only Caitlin and Kitty but the secrets they all had to keep. I bonded with all the character's. and Annabelle did such a wonderful job giving such individual voices to them all.

My favourite quote was near the end of the book is ;

‘Look at yourself,’ I say in a more measured tone. ‘You didn’t run a multinational company or become a wealthy investment banker. But you ran a successful café. You fed people, made them happy. You made something of yourself in a way that satisfied you. You might not have brokered world peace or discovered a life-changing medicine, but you made people’s lives just that little bit better every day.’

Thank you Netgalley and Annabelle Marx for letting me read this lovely book.



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This book was a very cozy and endearing story with dual timeline and interesting main characters. The house Ardbray is the connecting factor between the late 1800s telling Kitty's story and the year 2003 when Caitlin is in the process of buying the house. I loved that the plot kept me guessing on the secret and while it revealed one piece of the puzzle after the next, kept the main point of it until the end of the book. It is multi-layered and intriguing and I enjoyed reading it.

The characters were Kitty, who for her time is a quite independent and modern thinking woman with a deep interest in medicine and herbs. Her mother is not on board with those interests and marries her off to Charles, a disinterested and difficult husband who owned Ardbray. She makes her life in the Highlands of Scotland and the one or the other secret is coming with that. She is a very interesting character and probably the most crafted of the FMCs. Caitlin and Greer are in the present time and both have secrets of their own. Especially Greer is rather held back and mistrusting toward Caitlin and that makes their relationship and interaction very interesting.

All in all I think this book is very good and I will recommend it to my audience.
(A review will also be posted on pub day on Goodreads and my instagram @anns.book.chronicles)

In Scotland in 1889, Kitty Gray has given up her dreams of becoming a doctor to settle down in her marriage to the rich and gregarious Charles Maclean. While Charles expects a demure, socialite bride, Kitty is more interested in volunteering at one of Glasgow’s medical clinics. Considering her an embarrassment to his very successful company, Charles exiles Kitty to their isolated country estate.

But what Charles sees as a punishment is a salvation for Kitty and her two children. She finds independence, purpose, and friendship. She also creates a peaceful and productive spot for herself in the form of an elaborate herb garden. But when tragedy strikes, Kitty’s world is shattered.

Fast forward to 2023 – Kitty’s former Ardbray House is up for sale, and Caitlin Black thinks she is the person to restore the property to its former glory. But housekeeper Greer Mackenzie has her reservations – the house has secrets that she’s not sure are ready to be revealed. Both women will have to confront their pasts to move forward and realize their true potential.

I’m on a streak of reading books set in Scotland, and the rural scenery described in this story has me pining for more. The idyllic setting is a beautiful backdrop for a compelling narrative about how fulfilling life can be when you embrace your passions. While the grief and loneliness experienced by the characters is heartbreaking, their triumph over adversity is inspiring. I really enjoyed the author’s appeal to all the senses to captivate the reader – the sights and sounds of the countryside, the smells and tastes of the house’s kitchen, and the descriptions of the feeling of the earth beneath Kitty’s hands as she tended her garden. This was a lovely, captivating tale of finding your purpose and overcoming hardships.

What an immersive debut novel! I enjoyed switching between present day with Greer and the late 1800s life of Kitty Gray. This book was enchanting and made me want to transport myself into the herbarium at Arbray.

Ardbray house is a brooding house with many dark secrets. But it is the story of the women, their lives and the plants grown alongside the house that create the main draw of this book. Crossing the centuries, it's a haunting tale that will keep you engrossed, and leave you with a shiver down your spine.

"The Herbalist's Secret" is a beautifully haunting tale set in Glasgow and the Scottish Highlands, with dual perspectives spanning two centuries. Kitty McLean, a woman ahead of her time, pursues a forbidden path in herbalism after being wed to a wealthy man. Greer MacKenzie, the housekeeper, carries a legacy of care for Ardbray House. As Caitlin Black enters the picture, each character's journey to self-discovery unfolds with a backdrop of mystery and tragedy.

This narrative weaves redemption, loss, and fortitude, portraying the relentless love for the grand home of Ardbray. The ghostly presence of children adds an eerie touch. "The Herbalist's Secret" is a powerful story of finding peace amidst adversity, and Kitty McLean's character leaves a lasting impression.

This was an atmospheric and evocative book. The beautiful writing made it easy to immerse myself in the world of Ardbray House, its gorgeous highland setting, and of course its herb garden. The author conjured it so well, I could almost smell the ginger cake and taste the lemon scones.
I particularly enjoyed the early parts of the book, and looked forward to seeing how the author would bring the threads together. It was easy to feel for Kitty Grey, pushed into marriage to a man she hardly knew instead of being able to pursue her own dreams. Her story was satisfying in that she created her legacy through her herbalism, although there was a lot of heartbreak along the way.
I found Greer less easy to engage with, but was pleased to see her reach her own happy ending.
Thank you to the author, Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC which I received in exchange for an honest review.

A fascinating and strong historical fiction: a dual timeline featuring two strong and clever woman, drama, grief, and the echoes of the past.
I loved the descriptions of the garden and loved the story
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this eCopy to review

I loved The Herbalist I was completely swept away by Kitty’s and Greer’s stories

Kitty’s story takes place in 1889 where she dreams of studying medicine to become a doctor. Instead she marries a cotton mill owner but their relationship is not a happy one. After her son is diagnosed with epilepsy she is permanently banished to their remote house in the highlands. She throws herself into growing and studying different herbs and their remedies

In the present day Caitlin arrives will she be the one able able to buy the house and free Greer from looking after the ghosts?

Who are they? What happened for a little girl and boy to die?

I loved the plot lines, the dual timelines, the characters and settings. It was an engrossing read

A gripping tale of two eras, one of Kitty, who once married off to Charles finds herself living in the isolated Ardbray House and the present day where Caitlin buys the same home to restore and with the help of Greer the housekeeper, learns the history of the Macleans family.
The Herbalist’s Secret illustrates the strength of the human spirit in the face of adversity, and the power of resilience and determination.
A great debut!

What a wonderful debut! This is one of those books that you won’t want to put down. Throughout the first half of the novel, details are drip fed so tantalisingly that you are absolutely compelled to read on. I was gripped from the very first page. Set across two time periods, the story unfolds at just the right pace to keep you wanting more, never revealing too much, too soon.
I adored the character of Kitty Maclean, experiencing her develop from an intelligent, ambitious young woman, thwarted by the expectations of C19th society, to seeing her manage the intricacies of a difficult marriage, and, finally, becoming the eccentric old woman, a herb expert and almost folkloric in the local area.
The history of the cotton industry, with its exploitation of workers, the dangerous conditions, and its link to slavery are all cleverly woven into the story. It plays a huge and important part of the novel, but is presented as a natural part of the story’s unfolding; it never feels as if the reader is being lectured. However, there was enough to pique my interest and make me want to find out more. I always think this is the sign of a good historical novel.
With superb writing, interesting and complex characters, and enough intrigue to keep you wanting more, this is a novel not to be missed.

The Herbalist's Secret is an enchanting tale interwoven between main characters: Kitty Gray and Greer Mackenzie. Marx's writing transports us back and forth from 1889 to 2003 and is set in both Glasgow and the wildly beautiful Scottish Highlands. We follow the lives of our characters, learn the history of Kitty's home Ardbray House, and uncover memories from the past. For those who enjoy plants and botany, the herbology quotes at the beginning of each chapter are a lovely bonus to the book.

The Herbalist's Secret is an enthralling and cozy read, best enjoyed with a cup of tea and perhaps a piece of ginger cake.

Kind thanks to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced reading copy of this enchanting novel.

Really enjoyed this book fascinating story of an old house and its secrets. Fantastic characters that I felt really drawn to. The story of Kitty and those who live in Ardbray after her, is fascinating, weaving characters from the past with the present. Everything from women's rights, the expectations of society and even a couple of ghosts!
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the preview copy. Definitely a book I'd recommend.

In 1889, Kitty's medical dreams are crushed when she's forced to marry wealthy Charles. Isolated in a remote Scottish mansion, she finds solace in her garden, blending herbalism and medicine…until tragedy strikes.

In 2003, Caitlin arrives at the decaying estate, aiming to restore the home and garden. With the help of Greer, the housekeeper, Caitlin uncovers a tragic history and the long-buried secret of the mansion's herbalist, which has haunted its halls for generations.

This is an intriguing and well-written story, but I'm not the target audience for it. The pace was too slow for me. I wanted to know more about Greer and struggled to stay interested in Kitty. I stopped reading at 35%, skipped ahead to around 67%, then read to the end. The last third of the book was more interesting than the first third.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

"The Herbalist's Secret" is a novel about an old house, ghosts, and a mysterious family in 1800s Scotland, with an eccentric women herbalist at its center, and although the setting is great, the book falls short on many aspects.

Honestly, this book falls somewhere in the 2.7-3 star range for me. Although the book's atmosphere, setting, cozy, gothic, mysterious yet light-hearted ambiance, and mouth-watering food descriptions were delightful to read due to the beautifully flowy writing style, I fear that the character construction, relationships, and structure of the book could have delivered more.

The book follows a cast of characters in the late 1800s and early 2000s as the reader is meant to piece together the puzzle of an old, mysterious, haunted 19th-century house in the past and the modern day. However, the aspects of mystery in the novel were severely underdeveloped due to the simple fact that the characters consistently answer their own questions and mysteries right after they are introduced, leaving no suspense or work for the reader and the fact that characters info-dump their whole backstories instead of letting us see their progression, evolution, and motivations for ourselves., as well as telling us how certain characters feel about each other without really developing why or how.

The book had a wonderful atmosphere perfect for fall. Still, it consistently left me frustrated by the random explanation of characters' actions which came out of left field, and the fact that no mystery in this novel was really a mystery. To be honest, I almost didn't know what I was reading for other than the amazing descriptions. Overall, interesting idea, and wonderful descriptions, but a bit of an underwhelming character, character relationships, and structure constructions.

A really good story told in two time frames: back when a wife is sent to live in a remote house with her children while her husband did business in town, and then present time when a woman purchases that remote house to renovate.

If you're looking for a ghost story, this is not it. If you're looking for a beautiful book about life, loss and growth, this is for you. I'm not to sure about the split narratives between times. I liked both the past and the present and I can see what Marx is going for, showing how the house endures and shows it's wants and needs. But I would have preferred just reading Kittys story I think. I wanted to give it four stars because I did cry several times, but the skipping between times and a sort of disjointed feeling throughout deducted a star. No doubt this is beautifully written, it just didn't know what it wanted to be.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm publishing for an eARC in exchange for an honest review

I was excited to receive a copy of “The Herbalist’s Secret.” Based on the title and the synopsis, I thought I would be hooked. Sadly, this was not the case. I found myself interested in Kitty and her 1900’s life in Glasgow, and the Scottish Highlands, but not at all interested in the contemporary characters. They seem extraneous and the back and forth between timelines did not increase their like ability. Even the mystery and ghosts did not intrigue me.
Just not my cup of tea. It all just fell flat.

Thank you to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

This dual timeline book set in the Scottish Highlands was a good read for Fall. I really enjoyed the 1800s portion of the story with historical references to the cotton industry and the changing roles of women in society. I felt that the modern parts of the story were largely superfluous, and I never could relate to the characters in that part of the book as well as I did the characters in the past with whom I would have liked to spend more time. The ending seemed rushed with so much of the action of the story happening in the last 10% or so of the book. Overall, a 3.5-star read, and I would definitely try other books by this author.