A high 4 stars for The Book of Doors and thanks to Netgalley and Gareth Brown for the advance copy.

I loved the premise of this book and imagining all of the magical books, especially the book of doors. Books about book lovers and how special books are always rank high for me and in this case, definitely outweighed my distate for time travel in books.

Three stars for creativity and a new idea.

I loved the idea of this novel so much but the pace of the book was very slow. It was way too wordy for me. This was a DNF for me.

I wish him the best luck with the novel. I’m sure someone out there will love it.

There is this (relatively) new literary idea--urban fantasy. Sure, it could have a more mundane name like modern fantasy. But at least at the beginning of this book, the cities involved add greatly to the character of the story. The characters in the story are also very much of our citified times. People you might meet on any urban street corner, cafe, coffee shop or bookstore. But how do you make magic work in our modern world? We don't see it evrywhere, everyday. So is this just an alternate universe story where magic is real? Maybe. but not many people know about the magic of the special books. Perhaps these talismans of great power but extreme rarity simply slide past most lives. To a few, though, finding, tracking and using such as the Book of Joy, the Book of Illusion, the Book of Memory, the Book of Pain, the Book of Despair and all the others are central to theit lives. What sort of people would be drawn to the quest for what ought not to exist, ah but the glory if it does. Into this world, drop Cassie and Izzy. two perhaps upwardly mobile young women in New York City. And to Cassie, gift the Book of Doors. The book's title page says, any door is every door. How does that work? Is it an entryway to adventure or into terror? So many questions... can they all be answered in a single book. in a time when neverending series seem to be the goal of so many writers? Just possibly so.

Thank you NetGalley, Harper Collins Publishers and Garett Brown for the e- ARC.
Release date - 2/13/24

While working in a bookstore in NY, Cassie’s favorite customer passes away leaving behind The Book of Doors. Cassie and her roommate soon discover the magical nature of the book and find they can travel to any door in the world, present or past. With elements of time travel and adventure this was a good book with a bit of a dark undertone with book hunters chasing all the magic books and in particular the book of doors.

This book was amazing. I was a little nervous at first because there were so many characters being introduced and I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to keep up. Thankfully that was not the case. Just when I thought that I knew what was happening or predicting what would happen next, bam. There was a curveball. It kept me invested during the whole story and I truly loved it.

I also loved how the author portrayed the characters feelings. I really resonated with that and could go through those emotions with the character as she was experiencing them.

I was not anticipating so much gore, so heads up for that. It did not take away from the story at all for me, though.

Thank you NetGalley, William Morrow, Custom House and Gareth Brown for allowing me to read this arc for an honest review.

🚪 BOOK / REVIEW 🚪

Well, #thebookofdoors by #garethbrown was an ABSOLUTE delight to read from start to finish! I had no idea what to expect going into this, and it likely wouldn't have hit my radar unless I got a finished copy from @williammorrowbooks and @harpercollins. This book publishes on February 13th, and if you love #mystery, #fantasy, and #romance wrapped into 1 plot, I think you'll adore this.

Without spoiling the very fun and unique plot, I truly wish that a book of doors actually existed. I would love to time travel - both past and present - to revisit my very favorite memories and people if I could. That being said, if the book (or other books in this forbidden and dangerous library collection) were to drop in the wrong hands, serious consequences arise, which is where the thriller aspect comes into play. The reader goes on a non-stop rollercoaster ride throughout its entirety. The friendship between Cassie and Izzy is also a fabulous addition to the plot, as well as the uncanny cast of characters along the way. While romance is touched upon lightly in the book, I think I may have enjoyed this more had it been more prominent.

This is definitely not a book you want to miss. Even if you dont love the fantasy genre, it's still a really fun read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Loved this one! I thought the story was well crafted with great characters, the multiple POV's (even from the villain's) were awesome. The author gives us just enough backstory that you know the characters well and not so much that it bogs down the story. The time travel is done perfectly, which isn't such an easy thing to accomplish (I've been plenty confused with other time travel novels). This would be perfect for people who enjoy magic, fantasy, some loveable & some very unlovable characters, and books! I think as readers we all think that books are magic, if that's the case, prepare to be enchanted. I'll look forward to adding a physical copy of this one to my bookshelf in February.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this book.

I couldn’t really vibe with the characters and the pacing was a little all over the place. I really liked the first 10% of the book but then the whole middle dragged on for me. I wasn’t all that satisfied with the ending either.

The Book of Doors is an at times a magical whimsical story and at other times desperate and full of violent darkness. I have to admit I did not expect the dark side of the story to be as dark or violent as it was. However, it worked for me. I know it will not for everyone.

The Book of Doors is set in our world, but with magical books. It is a story of time travel, good versus evil, friendship, and so much more. One thing that stood out to me is that this is a book about reading and the escape to other worlds that reading can offer. The Book of Doors, any door is every door, is a doorway to other places and times, just like the stories in books are a doorway. Our characters Cassie, Izzy, Lund, and Drummond were all engaging to read from their perspective. Most of the book is from Cassie's perspective but we do get the story for other characters as well.

This was not a fast read for me but one that I took slowly and enjoyed a little at a time. I highly recommend it and am looking forward to sharing it with friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an advanced copy in return for my honest opinion.

I really tried to like this because I've seen such good reviews but I couldn't get through it. I think any comparison to Ten Thousand Doors of January threw me off. Ten Thousand Doors had so much joy and discovery, this was more dread and fea r for me. I hope everyone else enjoys it though!

I was able to read an advance ebook of The Book of Doors through Netgalley. Thanks to the publisher and author for making that possible. Unfortunately, I was not a fan of this book. There are a number of reasons why I didn't like it, and I'll try to expound a few of them.

1). The best description I can give to the writing is "clumsy." There are times that it is stilted, and other times where the author tries to use elevated phrases that don't quite mix. There are times when adult characters have dialogue that reads like they're 8 years old. For example, the main characters, who are in their twenties, are violently attacked by one of the villains. The dialogue afterwards just doesn't work for me. One of them responds, “It was so violent,” she said. '“Why does he have to be like that?”' That's you're response to this? Why is the bad guy bad?

Another example of the clumsy writing was a cringe inducing paragraph describing another of the villains. The author writes,

The woman stripped out of the clothes she had worn on the flight. She enjoyed clothes and how they looked on her body. She enjoyed dressing herself and trying on different outfits, almost as if her body were a toy to play with, as if it wasn’t her own. In some ways, she knew, this was the truth. The body belonged to Rachel Belrose, and the woman wasn’t her anymore, not really.

Maybe it's just me, but it read like one of the examples from this Reddit group: https://www.reddit.com/r/menwritingwomen/. It's not quite "She breasted boobily down the stairs," but it's not too far off.

2). The violence. I do not dislike violent books. I read plenty of horror and thrillers with gruesome violence in it and don't normally mind. In this book, I had a problem with it. It just doesn't fit with the rest of the book. It's out of the blue, and extremely violent. I get that the author was trying to show how evil the villain is and how strong the magic is, but it pulled me right out of the story. At one point, I literally said out loud "well, that was unnecessary."

3). The books that are a main plot device of the story. I'll spoilerize the text for this part to ruin anything for anyone not dissuaded by this review. There are multiple books, not only the titular Book of Doors, all of them magic. At any point in the book, multiple characters are carrying around not 1, but 2 or 3 of these books. And they fit in the pockets of the clothes the characters are wearing. Not one in each pocket. Nope. 2 to 3 books in 1 pocket. A pocket big enough that characters can reach inside, open one of the books, flip through the pages without anyone noticing, and tear off a piece. I know they are magic books, but the physics of this make no sense to me. Are the books really tiny? Are they more brochures than they are books? Or does every character wear cargo pants? I have no problem suspending disbelief. I enjoy magic, time travel, special powers, and all sorts of Sci-Fi/Fantasy maguffins. But this didn't work for me. It didn't work for me and it happens so frequently in the book that I found myself questioning so much more of the action as a result. Maybe it's not a big deal to others, but it was to me.

It wasn't all bad. Here's something I actually liked. Again, spoiler tags I actually enjoyed the treatment of time travel in the book. Time travel is one of my big hang-ups in Sci-Fi/Fantasy stories. If treated incorrectly, it just kills a story for me. I have been known to lie awake at night thinking about the space-time continuum and how it works in a story. The author actually utilized it in a way that makes sense. I won't go into great detail, but it worked, and I appreciated it.

Books are subjective things. Some of you reading this review and this book may absolutely love it. I hope you do. But I said I'd give an honest review, and this is how I felt. Thank you again for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

The Book of Doors got off to a very promising start, but quickly lost that intrigue for me. As soon as the story starting moving, I felt like the same thing kept happening over and over—she uses the book to go to a city, there’s a generic montage of things she did, her friend tells her it’s dangerous. I was hoping for more, but felt quite bored of the story quickly.

This was such an exquisite mix of adventure, friendship, mystery, and time travel. I generally love magical realism, so the concept was right up my alley, but I really appreciated the theory of time travel the author used - it is so different from other theories I've encountered and added a lot of complexity despite, at its core, being relatively straightforward. This book kind of reminded me of The Midnight Library and had vibes that reminded me of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches (despite having no witches). I loved it.

Publishing soon! February 12, 2024.

Thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for the ARC.

A compelling, fun fantasy that will make any book lover fee cozy but also keep turning pages as fast as you can.

Is it too early to call this my favorite book of the year? I loved every minute of this read! The story was so unique and the characters were well developed and I genuinely cared about them!

Cassie is working at a bookshop in NYC when a regular patron of hers, a kind but quiet older gentleman dies suddenly on her shift. He leaves behind his worn but loved copy of The Count of Monte Cristo and a curious small leather book he inscribed directly to her. She takes it home only to discover it holds an inexplicable magical ability to turn a door into any door, be it across the world or into the past. Turns out there are some extremely dangerous people looking to get their hands on The Book of Doors...and will stop at nothing until they do.

Well woah! Magical Realism/Fantasy is NOT my typical genre but the beautiful cover drew me in and encouraged me to step out of my comfort zone and WOW I'm glad I did. This wasn't so incredibly far fetched that the unbelievability of the plot made it unlikeable. Quite the opposite! This had a very "Memento" feel to it (a fantastic move, by the way) in so much as that it seemed crazy but it fit together so well that not only did it work but it made the reader not even second guess it. I was captivated and fell in love with all the (good guy) characters. I cried when she visited her past and got to see her loved ones. It was so beautiful and moving. I truly loved this. I will say there are some extremely graphic violence bits spread about but they too were well done and frankly necessary to underscore the ferocious nature of the villain. What a story! I just finished it and already miss the characters!

For the record I'd love to connect with the author because I have QUESTIONS! Mr. Brown, we need to talk about Rachel! I think I understand that part but only you can confirm!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher. This is a fab story that readers of all kinds will love and enjoy!

DNF at 50% because life is too short for this. I was really excited to read this book- the premise sounded right up my alley. And I tried, and tried, but I couldn’t handle any more of the bad, clunky writing, the flat/ stereotypical characters, or the cartoonishness of the plot. Apart from the Book of Doors, the other special books seem to be nothing more than convenient plot devices to move things forward. What’s the easiest way to get from where I’ve written them to where I want them? Oh, I’ll give them a Book of <insert blank>.

And I’m seeing from others that there are unnecessary and unaddressed racial slurs yet to come, so, yikes. Some nice ideas here but the execution is lacking. Seriously disappointing.

Thank you Gareth Brown, William Morrow, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

I really enjoyed this book. I haven't read a lot of fantasy books and this one was very accessible to those who are newer to the genre. It has a lot of heart and some heartbreak too. This book had me feeling all the emotions and it was thrilling. At it's core it is about people and what they are capable of. It was wonderfully written and very immersive. It makes you question what people's motives are and if you really know the origin of their choices. It is set up well for a sequel, which I hope happens. This was a fantastic fast paced read that has a little bit of everything for everyone.

I was REALLY enjoying The Book of Doors. I thought it was going to be about Cassie using the book to travel wherever she wanted. While that is true when Cassie first discovered what the book could do, it ended up being a coveted book a lot of book collectors were after.

There are three points in The Book of Doors that hurt my rating. The first is how the books were created(because the book of doors is just one of many magical books). It is explained but that part just didn’t make sense to me. I know how it was explained but the explanation doesn’t work for me. The second issue was “the woman”. She was creepy enough but her whole story line also didn’t make a lot of sense to me. The third is Izzy and the book of illusions. I like what it set in motion but not how it worked with her, that felt like it was forced to make the next part work. The first two issues left me with more questions than answers and I wish a little more effort went into those areas.

One other complaint is with the characters. The reader is definitely on the outside looking in so there’s a lot of telling and not much showing. These characters are working with magical books that can do unimaginable things! Knowing they have emotions about this would’ve brought this to a deeper level.

I still enjoyed The Book of Doors, I really enjoyed it up to Cassie going to “nowhere”. After that things deteriorated a little. The ending is happy/sad and besides my three plot issues everything else works really well and it’s clear the author thought out all the time travel. I think I would still recommend The Book of Doors but only if it’s someone who is willing to overlook a few details.

I received The Book of Doors via NetGalley to read and review.

This book ended up being a lot of fun.

I’m always a little hesitant diving into different fantasy genres. It’s not my normal thing anymore. So I kind of drag my feet on it. But I liked that this had a real world setting, it makes it a little easier to get into for me.

I liked the characters and their relationship early on. So even though it was hard to see where the story would go, I felt like I would enjoy it.

It picks up toward the middle a lot and becomes a lot more complex and suspenseful. I enjoyed how everything played out.

I don’t want to give too much away but the sort of circular storytelling always breaks my brain a little bit but this was done in a clever way where the pieces fit well.