There weren't many surprises in this book, I got exactly what I was expecting. And I'm not complaining.
A pleasant story about big city girl in a small village.
Had hoped the fairy storyline would be a bit darker, but that's just me.
Nicely written.

This book came along at just the right time for me, in the middle of a divorce, I found this book about lost love and second chances comforting and reassuring

I decided to give this one a go based solely on the fact that the author's other book The Lost Bookshop has rave reviews (it's still on my TBR).

If you ever believed in or enjoy fairy's this book is for you. It's a trip into a magical and mystical world. This isn't my usual genre, but I really enjoyed this one. The story alternates between the past (with a diary) and the present. The dual storylines kept the story interesting. This is one enjoyable read!

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter | One More Chapter for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

An absolutely beautiful book. Weaving Irish folklore with 2 different stories it really brought the spirit of Ireland through the pages. Highly recommended.

Such a beautiful story and the ride that this book took me on is one that I would like to share with everyone. The characters and what they do l just feel like if I say anything I will spoil something but just please if you enjoy a good tale, look at this one.

Following the unexpected journey of Sarah to Ireland, we follow her story and that of Anna, who's diary she finds. Set many years apart, the diary gives a beautiful story of Irish folklore and fairies, and it unexpectedly helps Sarah with her own life. It is beautifully written and with some romance, I think the story is more about the lives of two young women and their journey. I highly recommend reading.

The Story Collector by Evie Woods is a charming, evocative story full of secrets and mystery. It spans two centuries and tells the stories of two women and the men they fell in love with.
1910, Anna a young naive farm girl meets Harold Griffin-Kraus and helps him to to interpretation the local people’s fairy stories and folk lore.
Harper is the second woman in the story and she goes on a plane to Ireland in the New Year of 2011 and meets another lost soul. Harper finds Anna’s diary and reads her story and sees how it resonates with her own.
A story full of folk lore and fairies, love, laughter, sadness and renewal.
Highly recommended

This is the second book by Evie Woods that I have read and I was looking forward to it having enjoyed the previous book. However, it wasn't as good for me as The Lost Book Shop. The plot line was too obvious and felt cliched, the ending was predictable and this took away the mystery that the story needed.
I struggled to relate to the characters and found the main character, Sarah's excessive drinking unnecessary for the plot.
This book didn't deliver the impact it should have, which is a shame as it could have been a good story.

This is the first book by Evie Woods that I have read. I read a preview for The Lost Bookshop at the end of The Story Collector so I will be keeping my eyes out for that now!

I loved reading about Harold and Anna from 100 years ago, and their search for stories about The Good People.

Then we have Sarah, who seemingly on a whim ends up in Ireland, following in Harold and Anna's footsteps 100 years later.

A delightful tale of love and loss and magical stories.

Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter for the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

I couldn't wait to dive into another Evie Woods adventure after devouring "The Lost Bookshop"! 📚✨ The blend of magical realism and fairy folklore had me hooked from the start, especially since I've experienced the enchantment of Ireland firsthand. 🇮🇪 This story simply begged to be told!

The characters are so vividly drawn, and the language is like poetry! 🌟 I found myself pausing frequently just to savor the beautiful phrases. "His face was well used like an old leather shoe that had seen many roads" — isn't that just perfect for describing someone wise and weathered by life?

The dual timeline format, with Sarah seeking solace in Ireland's embrace and Anna unraveling mysteries in the past, adds an extra layer of intrigue. 🕰️🔍 It's like they're connected by an invisible thread, drawing you deeper into their worlds. And talk about a page-turner! This story zips along, blending romance, mysticism, and themes of redemption and renewal. 💫💖

The setting is absolutely magical, with Thornwood House and Anna's cozy cottage stealing the show. 🌳🏠 Evoking the mystical aura of Celtic places adds such richness to the tale. And the integration of folklore? Genius! It's like the very land breathes with ancient stories.

The way the two timelines intertwine is masterful. In 1910, you're on the edge of your seat with Anna and Harold, while in 2010/11, Sarah finds her way back to life with the help of both the past and the people she meets in County Clare. 🌿👭

From start to finish, this novel was an absolute delight! 🎉 It's the kind of story that leaves you with a warm, fuzzy feeling, and the ending is just the cherry on top of this enchanting read. 🍒📖

The Story Collector by Evie Woods

A dual timeline novel set one hundred years apart. We have Anna a young farm girl in 1910 and then fast forward to 2010 and Sarah who starts off in New York but heads off to where Anna was in West Coast of Ireland.
I liked the way the author brought the two together and found the plot captivating.
First time read for this author.

I was attracted to the premise of this book, as I enjoy historical novels, and sometimes dual timelines, if they are done well. Somehow this novel didn’t hit the spot for me, There was so much focus on grief, at times it was hard to read. Similarly, the horrors of war, the brutality and deprivations suffered, were difficult to read about. I skimmed over some of that. The inclusion of the tarot cards and spirit world put me off, maybe it was included in an effort to make the story creepy?
Whatever it was, I began to lose interest further into the story. Too many coincidences to be plausible, I felt. I skim read to the end.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book.

I really enjoyed this author's previous book so I was excited to read this and was not disappointed. The two time lines were well balanced and both periods were believable. I loved the folklore and magic elements of the story and whilst I don't want to give spoilers, the end was refreshing.

This book is a 3.5 out of 5 for me, I really enjoyed the lost bookshop and this is similar as it’s two peoples stories being told years apart but I got a bit bored with this one unfortunately. It is a nice book but I thought it could have been better.

Thanks to NetGalley and one more chapter for my advanced reading copy.

I wasn't one for Irish folklore, so this book was completely new to me and it uncovered some things I'm really interested in reading!

I enjoyed the story and think if you enjoyed Evie's last book this one is up your alley as well!

Get ready to bend time as we unravel the mystery of Anna, a young Irish farm girl who helps American Harold Griffin-Krauss translate Irish folk tales and legends into English. Things aren't all as they seem and misfortune follows. Fast forward to 2010, and Sara Hopper is walking down the same path as Anna when she starts unravelling the mysteries of the past. Will Sarah be able to solve the mystery, or will she become another victim?

Sarah, leaves her husband of three years, decides to fly to Boston to spend Christmas with her sister, but somehow bizarrely ends up in Ireland instead. There, she stumbles upon the diary of Anna, a girl who lived 100 years ago. The diary logs Anna's adventures with Harold, an anthropologist, as they interview people regarding their beliefs in fairy faith for his thesis.

I picked up this book as I enjoyed the author's previous book, The Lost Bookshop, however this didn't satisfy as much. The fairies theme didn't feel magical and whimsical enough and the dealing with loss theme wasn't explored deeply. I found the storylines quite bland and overall didn't deliver the impact which would have made this a great read for me.

Do you believe in fairies? This wonderful book tells the story of two women decades apart who tell an engaging story of their lives, with Ireland’s folklore as the background.
Sarah from New York, present time, is recovering from the ‘big bad thing’ and a divorce so she runs away to Ireland. She finds a diary written by Anna in the mid 1900s and loses herself in the story. Anna is assisting an American, Harold Griffin-Kraus, who is recording stories/tales from the locals of Thornwood Village about their experience with the ‘other world’ for a research project.
A lovely tale that will keep you enthralled to the end.

Sarah Harper was on her way to Boston to spend Christmas with her sister after her divorce from Jack when she found that she had taken the plane to Shannon Ireland instead. In Ireland she found a cottage to live in for a couple weeks. While there and getting her head together after her divorce and while grieving for her stillborn daughter, she found a diary hidden in a tree. The diary told the story of a young girl who had lived in the cottage with her family a hundred years earlier. The book alternates between 2011 and 1911 - the stories of Sarah and her recovery from grief and loss, and the story of Anna and her loss of innocence and the man she came to love and lost.
I'm not a fan of split time lines and again I found the story disruptive as it jumped from one century to the other. there has to be a better way to tell the story of two women in different times who both suffered loss but came out of it somewhat whole. The story of Anna seems to be cut short with an unsatifactory ending and the story of Sarah is too predictable. I found Anna's story had more to it than Sarah's did but there was no ending other than she went to Dublin and married there. The plot line for the story is good but the way it is told doesn't satisfy me. I liked the underlying magical/fairy element of old Ireland though. Bringing it into the 21st century didn't really work in this book.
Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this book; the opinions are all mine.

4-5 stars
Christmas Day 2010, New York City.
Sarah Harper’s marriage breaks down and instead of heading home to her family in Boston, she impulsively books a flight to Shannon in the Irish Republic. A midlife crisis? Maybe, but with no room booked she ends up in the pretty village of Thornwood, Co Clare staying in a picture postcard cottage which puts joy in her heart. A chance discovery plunges her into a mystery from the past.

1910 - Anna Butler, the daughter of a farmer, offers her help to American Harold Griffin-Krauss, who is researching folklore for his Oxford university thesis. They are drawn into the orbit of the Hawley family, Anglo Irish landowners, who live in the imposing Thornwood House. Two timelines, two interconnecting stories are woven together into a captivating tale.

Yet again, Evie Woods enchants with her imaginative and engaging storytelling which is sprinkled with fairy dust! The story is wonderful, it’s vivid with well defined characters who are easily visualised via some aptly chosen phrases.

The setting is fantastic, there are some lovely descriptions which adds its own unique atmosphere with Anna’s cottage and Thornwood House at its epicentre. Celtic places are special, the landscapes have an aura and they often feel mystical so it’s easy to see how ancient folklore arises and I love how it’s integrated into this story. The superstitions of places (here Cnoc na Sí, the hill of the fairies) of natural objects, of the ‘Good People’, makes the novel feel magical.

The two timelines flow and fuse well together. In 1910, you follow the story of Anna and Harold at times with bated breath as it takes a dark turn. In 2010/11 a bruised and damaged Sarah comes back to life and begins to accept the things that have been weighing her down. Much of this is with the aid of the 1910/11 story and by the characters she meets in County Clare.

Overall, I enjoy this novel from start to finish which has a lovely end to a lovely read.

PS the character of Harold is inspired by a real life character, which I like very much.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to HarperCollins, One More Chapter for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.