US pub date: 2/13/24
Genre: contemporary fantasy/magical realism
Quick summary: Cassie lives a quiet life as a bookstore employee in NYC - until a regular dies and leaves her the magical Book of Doors, a powerful book that will make her the target of many dangerous people.

I started reading this book in the airport, and it had me hooked through my flight. If you're a book or travel lover, I bet you'll feel the same magic I did. I loved getting to know Cassie and seeing her pure joy at discovering the potential of the Book of Doors. The other books were just as compelling, and I was on the edge of my seat seeing all the villains come out of the woodwork. I think if this book had been 50-75 pages shorter it might have been a 5 star for me - unfortunately, it started to get a bit repetitive at the end. But I still recommend it to fans of magical realism - it's a lighter fantasy with broad appeal.

Cassie works in the classic sort of bookstore in New York City that I think all book lovers hope to find. The customers there truly love books and are encouraged to settle in with a cup of coffee and read. On a cold wintery night Cassie is preparing to close when she discovers one of her favorite customers has died at his table leaving only his copy of "The Count of Monte Crisco" and a small very weathered book that Cassie has never seen before. As she gathers his things she realizes, he has left an inscription in the front of the small book- leaving it to her. He has written a rather cryptic message about how "every door is any door" and she soon realizes that the book has the power to do just that. Somehow, she is now able to travel to anyplace . Unfortunately, the gift comes with the curse of evil people that want this "magic" for themselves.
I usually do not list fantasy as a genre that I like, but I may need to rethink that! I tore through the pages of this story pretty quickly - staying up way too late reading.

Thanks to the author William Morrow, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review. I look forward to more from this author.

While fantasy isn't my usual genre, I was so taken with the cover and the premise of this book. There was just something that felt nostalgic about it. It reminded me of daydreams from when I was younger, books about time travel, and magic.

But beyond the story of a magic book, there is also the story of wanting and desire for things. The age old questions: if you could travel back in time, would you want to? If you traveled back in time, would it change the outcome? And if you saw yourself when you traveled, what would happen? I feel like the author took a very clever approach to answering these questions.

The is also the fight between good and evil - the keeper of the books, Cassie and how she will fight to protect her book and her friend, and the people who will do anything to get the books.

This was a great way for me to dip my foot in the water of fantasy and I enjoyed every step!

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow Books for an advance readers copy.

4.5⭐️

Man what a book. It is full of life and love and characters with personality and depth and it’s also full of wonder. It breathes new life into the power of books, the magic we all feel when we find a captivating story. It is a masterclass of writing, storytelling, and connection. The intricacies are just superb. The last 30% had me on the edge of my seat, just an overflow of action, pain, love, and wonder. If you love books and the power we give them and enjoy when time travel is done well then this one’s for you.



((My one and only complaint is the phrase “many years ago” appears way too often in the first half of the book and using actual numbers would’ve been less annoying. But that’s just a personal preference))

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of The Book of Doors, my first read by Gareth Brown, and I adored it. It was such a creative tale, which really spoke to me about the human soul, the power of love in all its forms, the hunt for something more, and how power can both harm and heal. This was such a lovely, albeit gruesome at times, tale and it was so magically plotted to keep you guessing while being blown away as each little revelation was shown. The cast of characters are relatable, well for the most part, and you can’t help but be sucked right into this world right along side Cassie and Izzy. A captivating tale and one I think I will revisit over and over.

The premise of this book was what caught my attention. A magical book that allows you to access different places and even times. I wanted to love this book but I had to DNF it. The writing just wasn’t for me. I hate to be mean but it reads like mediocre fanfiction. The conversations between characters sound very awkward. I got to about 47% of the way in before I had to put it down and even before then I found myself skimming through the book to get through it faster. This book might pull you in but unfortunately it wasn’t for me.

The Book of Doors
By Gareth Brown

I was disappointed with this one. The concept was so interesting but it just lacked some things for me.

First, the characters. I didn’t feel invested in any of them really. They weren’t consistent, weren’t fleshed out, and relied mostly on telling and not showing. No matter how many times you say one character is loud and bubbly and gregarious, I’m not going to believe you when you never show me that side of her. The main bad characters are very much caricatures. There’s an attempt at explaining them a bit, but it’s really not nuanced.

The second was the pacing. I can’t quite put my finger on it, but something about the pacing and timelines felt off. I know it’s a fantasy book that plays with time travel, but something just didn’t feel realistic to me. I also wasn’t satisfied with some of the answers we eventually get about the special books.

So to wrap up, it wasn’t a bad book, I did enjoy parts of it. But the faults of the book outweighed the good in my opinion.

Thanks to @netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

5 stars
Imagine you find a book that allows you to travel anywhere in the world. You open the door and you are in an ally in Vince, or Paris, or China. You begin to use the book and discover a secret world of book collectors, book hunters, assassins, and others that want the book you have to add to the collection of other special book like yours.
This was such a fun journey that had me diving into the detailed vision of traveling all around the world. This book strummed my heart, had me on the edge of my seat, and had me turning the pages to find out what was going to happen next. I was sent an early copy thanks to netgallary and I really enjoyed this book.
If you like Sci-fi, fantasy, thriller, and more than read this book.

I am very picky about fantasy as it often does not work for me. The Book of Doors is fantasy for EVERY reader. I beg you not to turn away from this book due to its genre. This bookish book of what ifs made me feel a wide range of emotions and I could not put it down. This was surprising and horrific and beautiful all at once and I highly recommend!

I love magical realism and this book had it in spades and was so fun to read. I loved the concept, a magic book that opens doors and the price it costs to keep it. There were a number of twists and turns throughout but there was such a satisfying ending. A book for book lovers everywhere!

Thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for the advance copy.

Thank you to William Morrow and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a magical story! I went in unprepared for how much I would enjoy stepping through these doors. When you are first introduced to Cassie, she leads a pretty normal life. She has befriended a sweet old man who frequents the bookstore where she works. She loves books and he gifts her one that changes the course of her entire life. Cassie meets a unique group of characters as she travels this new path and works to save the books. This story has a great amount of adventure, mystery, magic and friendship. What would you do with a book that could open a door to anywhere??

I would absolutely recommend this book - it is a great escape!

Thanks Netgalley for access to this ARC. This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024, and it paid off! The premise is so interesting and something I honestly think about a lot. The story hits all the checkboxes for avid fantasy readers, especially those of us who like to read about readers/books.

It started out very intresting. The first part of the book made me curious to know more, the plot seemed quite promisjng, but the writing seemed to not flow well, sentences seem choppy, I started loosing intrest after about 40 pages in, The rest of the book had spots where it read ok but mostly this book was a big struggle. I feel book could be improved with further editing and polishing. I hate that I didn't like it more.

Thank you to the author and publisher for a copy of this ARC. The opinions expressed are my own.

Solid 2 stars. It wasn't the best and I didn't enjoy reading some of the dialogue and words used in this book. The idea of the book was interesting enough but the execution just wasn't satisfying for me.

I’m hovering back and forth between 4 and 5 star read but I thoroughly enjoyed it! A great debut novel. It’s a fantasy/sci-fi book that focuses more on magic than world-building and crazy schemes, so I can see this as a cozy re-read in the future. It has multiple POVs. Multiple timelines. Good working to triumph over evil. And a love of books! It’s an interesting premise I’ve never come across, too. I loved the pacing but I did struggle with what felt like an unfinished ending for two of the characters (spoilers at the bottom of this post). But all in all would recommend to friends!

Plot Summary: Cassie is a mid-20s woman working in a bookstore in NYC when a random turn of events presents her with a magical book capable of taking her around the world. But with great power comes greater enemies and a cohort of people who want it back.


Thank you NetGalley and publishers William Morrow for the ARC! The Book of Doors is out now!






*small spoiler* (are we supposed to understand the ending of Hugo Barbary? And isn’t it a bit unkind to end with the old man with shock and confusion after all he did?!)

Perfect, perfect, perfect! I went into this one pretty much blind, not really knowing what to expect, and I was completely floored.
Multiple heroes, several villains, and a whole cast of well-developed characters with whom you'll fall in love. This story is worth the read in every possible way.
Drummond Fox was by far my favorite character and watching the relationship between Cassie and Fox mature and grow was a great side-bar in the story. The perfect mix of romance and story-telling without the romance and relationship becoming overbearing.
I love fantasy, and magic, but my preference is a good middle-of-the-line combo between the two and Brown captures that balance perfectly. The foundation and general concept behind this novel is brilliant and it is so well-developed throughout the story. Every time I had a question about how the power of the magic books would work or how they affected the space/time continuum, the writing explained in a way that made perfect logical sense.
I will say, this one could use a trigger warning for violence and some gore. If you're grossed out easily, or bothered by a lot of death, I might steer you away from this one. However, even though some of the violence was intense, it added to the story and definitely kept me reading. The book wouldn't be the same without it, but I could be upsetting to some readers.

This novel is going to be one of the best books I read this year, I can already guarantee that. I loved it so much, I'm ordering a physical copy after reading an e-ARC on my kindle just because I want to have this one on my shelves.

Thank you for letting me read,
Please note: this review is now posted on GoodReads as of 2./14/24

Cassie is given a book by her favorite customer right before he passes away but later she realizes the magic of the book. This book of doors literally lets you travel anywhere including time travel. It sets off an epic adventure for her with elements of chase as there are people now hunting for her to get access to this book that appeared after a long time. Now Cassie and her friends are on a mission to stop the villains from obtaining all these powerful magical books. It was a fast paced and an enjoyable read. It has a fantasy theme but was not full of high fantasy so it would work for those who prefer it this way.

THE BOOK OF DOORS by Gareth Brown is a fantastical journey of magic, friends, and naturally a love of books!

I fell in love with this story pretty quickly. As it continued to unravel the different layers, I couldn't believe how much I kept loving each new revelation! This story contained all the things I love when I read: an MC who grows, incredible friendship, magic, gorgeous books, mysteries, wonder, danger, an insanely evil villain, intergenerational connections, massive libraries with secret passages, time travel, and there was even the seeds of romance.

All I want to say about the plot is that a young woman named Cassie receives a book from a regular patron at the bookstore where she works. She receives it when she discovers that this quiet old man has passed away in the store. What she discovers through this book takes her on an epic journey that I didn't want to end!

I just about lost it with Cassie's grandfather and Mr. Webber, the man in the bookshop. That sentence is for the author. When you read it, you will understand. I loved all of the connections and how they changed and grew. The adventures and the way things made more sense as the pieces fell in made this such a satisfying and pleasurable experience!

If you like Dr. Who a tiny bit, this will be a fantastic book for you, I think. I loved it. All of it. I really hope it keeps going, but I could understand if this is it, and we are all left to our imaginations. I have grown quite fond of these characters. I am sad to be done with this lovely and adventurous story that had me glued to each page.

Did I mention I really loved this one?

Thank you so much @netgalley & @williammorrowbooks for sharing this book with me and letting me gush about it! This magical adventure publishes on February 13th and I am absolutely going to order this book to have as a hard copy in my library. This will rank as a favorite for sure!

This fast paced fantasy, time travel novel was quite interesting. The plot was original and the protagonist, a witty female lead was fun and likable. There was magic, adventure, good and evil and everything in between to make a fantasy novel great

"Any door is every door."

We're book nerds, so we already know books have magical abilities to whisk us away into fantastical worlds, amazing love stories, or scare our socks off. But what if books really could physically do things? In this story, Cassie works at a book store and, after a customer suddenly passes in her small book store, she's left with a mysterious leatherbound book. That night she takes it home and, after looking through the pages, she gets a funny feeling and opens a door to Venice.

This is just the beginning of Cassie's story. This is a fun story, I loved all the ideas of the books and - even though the "bad guy" was so over-the-top cackling bad, I loved learning about the good and the bad books.

The start is a bit slow and has quite a few characters but, soon, you get to know everyone and the story gets moving. It gets easier to keep track of them all. I actually really loved the supporting characters - I loved Izzy's sass and Drummond's knowledge and protection.

There were a few info dump points that bogged down the story for me, but the overall uniqueness of the plot and story made it easy to get through and keep flipping the pages. A fun, unique story that reminded me the magic of books and stories.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.