If you’re looking for a book to truly escape into, The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry is a perfect choice. Inspired by a true literary mystery, this novel transports readers across decades and continents, weaving a tale of family, love, and the enduring power of storytelling.

The novel unfolds in two timelines: In 1927, eight-year-old Clara Harrington’s world is filled with wonder, nurtured by her mother, Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham—a renowned author who created a novel in a secret language that captivated the world. But when Bronwyn vanishes without a trace, Clara is left with more than just unanswered questions—she is left searching for the mother she lost. Fast-forward to 1952, and Clara, now an award-winning children’s book illustrator, is stunned when a stranger in London, Charlie Jameson, contacts her with a discovery: a handwritten dictionary of her mother’s lost language. Determined to reclaim this missing piece of her past, Clara sets sail for England with her own eight-year-old daughter, Wynnie. What follows is an adventure filled with peril, as Clara and Wynnie arrive during London’s deadly Great Smog and must escape to the Lake District, where Clara unearths far more about her mother—and herself—than she ever expected.

Henry’s writing is as enchanting as ever, bringing each setting to life with rich, immersive detail. The novel beautifully explores how stories, both real and imagined, bind generations together. I was captivated by the way Henry treated this literary mystery with the reverence it deserved, crafting a tale that feels almost magical in its execution. The dual timelines are seamlessly woven, keeping the reader engaged while deepening the emotional impact of Clara’s journey.

Final Thoughts:

This book will stay with me for years to come. The Story She Left Behind is, without a doubt, my favourite Callahan Henry novel to date, and I can’t wait to see what she writes next. If you love historical fiction filled with heart, adventure, and a touch of literary magic, don’t miss this one.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher but the thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

When Charlie contacts Clara out of the blue with information about her long lost mom she is in disbelief. Should she open an old wound? How has her mother’s writing ended up in Charlie’s dad’s study? What really happened to her mom, the child prodigy author? This is a story of twists and turns. Once again Patti Callahan Henry draws us into a world of mystery. This is one of her best books yet! A must read!

This was just ok... not my fave. I struggled to connect with the character, however, I did find the plot to be intriguing. It was a little slow at times and somewhat predictable.

A perfectly lovely story about children who can fantasize and dream, about the adults they become, and how difficult the rest of the world can be. Characters are so perfect that I loved all of them and the setting, OMG, that we could all live in such gorgeous surroundings! This is a low stress, feel good novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC to read and review.

This story started a little slow for me and it was hard to read about a mother leaving her family behind. But as the story progressed and Clara and her daughter went to England to retrieve the envelope left by her mother, I was hooked and wanted to know what happened. Clara, Wynnie and Charlie go on quite the adventure to escape the Great Smog for his parents house in the country. I love learning how the 2 families were connected and the clues that seemed to be everywhere. What a scavenger hunt to find out what happened to Bronwyn and glad Clara’s questions were finally answered.

Thank you so much to Atria Books for the ARC!

Title: The Story She Left Behind
Author: Patti Callahan Henry
Pub Date: March 18, 2025

This book surprised me in the best way! I knew that Patti Callahan Henry was an author beloved by many and remember hearing people sing her praises after her previous release, The Secret Book of Flora Lea! So when I saw she had a new release, I couldn't wait to read it! And with a cover like this, how could I resist?

I quickly fell in love with these characters. Clara is raising her young daughter, Wynnie, alone in 1952 and while her and her daughter have a wonderful bond with each other, Clara has never gotten over her own mother leaving her mysteriously when she was only 8 years old in 1927. Clara has no idea if her mother is dead or alive or why she left in the first place.

This book is part mystery, part romance, part adventure, and part family drama! It truly combined all of those parts to form a full and beautiful story of family, love, and hope! My heart raced during the tense travel scenes, my heart swooned during the romance scenes (truly sweet & adorable), and the mystery kept me invested the whole time. The pacing was just right in my opinion as well!

I can't think of one thing I would change in this book! If you're a Kristin Hannah fan, this is definitely for you! Patti's storytelling felt similar to Kristin's in the best way!

Make sure to add The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry to your TBR today!

•"She seems to be everywhere and nowhere all at once. She is absence, she is presence, and she is mystery." • This book takes you on quite the journey. It was a really slow start for me but once it picked up I definitely got more invested and intrigued with where Patti Callahan Henry was taking us. I think the beginning dragged on too long though, I think people might give up and DNF the book which will be a shame because the ending was really beautiful.

"Maybe in the same way I believe in the tales that sustain us and brought my family to the right moment and place. Stories are made of unseen things, of imagination, of old tales and edges of lakes."

I loved this story!!

Another stellar book by Patti Callahan Henry! I love how she weaves narratives of personal growth and self-discovery into historical events, with just a sprinkle of magical imagination. Clara is a compelling character, seeking to pave a future for her and her daughter while dealing with relationship challenges, past trauma, and her daughter’s health. Her emotional journey drew me in.

There’s an element of mystery: what happened to Bronwyn? And how did her writing survive and end up in England?the journey to finds these answers is surprising and filled with remarkable intersections.

And of course there is romance - from the dashed hopes of a failed first marriage to being open to new possibilities. I most appreciated the sincerity of this new romance - not driven by lust but by sincere care and connection.

A resounding 5 🌟

The year is 1927, Clara Harrington is eight years old. Her parents and her live off the coast of South Carolina. Her mother is a young author. By the age of five she had invented her own language. She is also a child prodigy and by twelve years old has had her book published, in her invented language. What a loving mother and wife she is. Then there is the disappearance of her mother. Clara and her father are so heart broken and no one has found her mother, Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham.

The years go by, now Clara is raising her daughter, Wynnie who is very bright 8 year old, much like her grandmother. A Grandmother she will never know. Clara is contacted by a stranger in London, who states he has discovered a hand written book by her mother. She is unsure of this information. But decides to take the trip over the Atlantic Ocean by ship, with her daughter. Discovering it is not a good time to be in London when she arrives. They need to leave the city due to Wynnie's asthma condition. With the help of Charlie Jameson, they escape to the country to his mother's home.

Not knowing of what they will encounter, there is a mystery to all of this. The reason I wanted to read this book is, because of love Patti Callahan Henry's writings. She did an amazing job with this book. It was so amazing each night and morning, my reading times, I had a very difficult time putting down the book. I just wanted to keep discovering more and more in the book. Thank you to Simon and Schuster and to Net Galley for allowing my this wonderful read prior to its publishing. I know you all will really enjoy it.

Patti Callahan Henry has truly become one of my favorite authors & an auto-buy for me. Her writing is beautifully executed and always well-researched. I love when I can read a work of fiction and actually learn something from it. This story is based on the real-life literary mystery of Barbara Newhall Follet, who was a child-prodigy author who created her own language called Farksoola. After a family disagreement, she left and vanished and was never heard from again.

This story follows a daughter’s search for answers for why her mother left her when she was only 8 years old. It starts in South Carolina and brings her to London 25 years later when her mother’s dictionary of made up words is found with a letter for her eyes only. It is a story about love, forgiveness and the power of words that are made up for things that you just can’t describe. It is believing in the make-believe.

Thank you to NetGalley & Atria Books for the opportunity to read an early eARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

Patti Callahan Henry delivers yet another captivating novel with The Story She Left Behind, a mesmerizing blend of mystery, family secrets, and the power of storytelling.

Years ago, a young literary prodigy wrote a bestselling novel in a language only she understood—then vanished without a trace. Decades later, her daughter receives an unexpected call: a key to that lost language has been found. Determined to uncover the truth, she embarks on a journey that takes her deep into the past, through the thick fog of post-war England and into the heart of a mystery that was never meant to be solved.

Richly atmospheric and beautifully written, this novel is a love letter to the stories we inherit and the ones we leave behind. Perfect for fans of historical fiction laced with intrigue, The Story She Left Behind is a must-read. Look for it in mid-March 2025—you won’t want to miss this one.

So, I struggled with this one. I really wanted to love it...it's written in beautiful prose and the plot has a lot to be excited about. There are places in the narrative where I was on pins and needles waiting to see what happened next. Ultimately, though, I felt that Henry was too attached to her beautiful prose and spent too much time in the minds of the characters and not enough time telling us what happened. The book languished in places and I had to push myself to keep going with it. I also struggled with parts of the story that were just a little too pat...too many coincidences, and although I realize this is sort of a ''magical realism'' wannabe, I just couldn't buy in to all that supposedly happened. I also struggled to remember that this book was set in the mid-1900s. There was a lot of air travel and phone calling, etc. that made things seem a little too convenient for that period of time. I did love learning about Beatrix Potter and the Great Smog of London in 1952. It's a good book...just not the great one I wanted it to be. 2.75 stars.

Patti Callahan Henry is a master storyteller, and her latest is an ethereal blend of mystery, romance and historical fiction. It follows Clara‘s journey to unravel the mysterious disappearance of her mother in the wake of a deadly fire.

Clara, Charlie, and Wynnie enchanted me from the beginning. As a word nerd, I loved all the bits about language, especially creating language for our own lived experiences.

There’s a LOT to unpack after reading this book, so it would make an excellent book club pick! I genuinely loved it and am still sitting with the longings and feelings it sparked in me.

A lovely story I couldn’t put down. I love Charlie for Clara & Wynnie, but Clara’s dad takes the cake for my favorite character! A sweet story that captures the deep heart-hurt that a parent can do to a child when they walk away from them. But more importantly, such a beautiful story of forgiveness that I literally felt my own heart shift along with the characters.
I loved the fantastical elements and way everyone’s stories were so intertwined, leaving readers with plenty of surprises along the way.

The Story She Left Behind
4.5 ⭐️

I loved this story so much - beautiful, compelling, and moving all at once. I don’t pick up historical fiction books as often anymore, but Patti Callahan Henry is one I trust to do such a good job with whatever time period she pulls us into.

Clara has always felt a hole in her life from when her mother left their family when she was 8. After years of assuming her dead, she gets a call from a man in London saying he has some of her mother’s papers. She and her daughter Wynnie travel across the Atlantic by steamer to find out what really happened 25 years ago.

This was a beautiful story with so much emotion put into these characters. I loved the many things they felt throughout the mystery. Glad I snagged a copy of this on @netgalley!

I am a fan of this author, and this book was gorgeously written. I just wasn't pulled into the story, and found it a bit slow. I struggled to connect with the characters, and the mystery unfolded too slowly for me.

I adored The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry, so The Story She Left Behind was one of my most anticipated 2025 releases.

Unfortunately, I did not find The Story She Left Behind as captivating as the author's previous work.

The story moved at an agonizingly slow pace, and the plot developments that did occur felt much too convenient and coincidental to be realistic.

I am still looking forward to the author's future works!

This book was so beautifully written. I was hoping for a happy ending but I was doubting it would be throughout most of the book, I was very pleasantly surprised! I was so intrigued by the unsolved mystery of the manuscript and the adventure of the grieving daughter. This book captured my heart, it’s full of hope, forgiveness, new relationships, and found family, it’s emotional and delightful. A must read if you enjoy a historical mystery that is both real and imaginative. A unique story.

4.25 🌟

How ironic that Patti wrote a book about someone who is magical with words when she, herself is so magical with words.

I found myself fully emersed in this story, wanting to find out what happened to Browyn's missing dictionary, needed to translate her words. The setting for this book was perfection and I found myself longing for the countryside. If you are a fan of Patti's other books, you will love this one.

Thanks, Netgalley for the ARC of this book!

Stunning, beautiful, poetic, tragic, poignant, emotional! Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for providing the E-ARC of this beautiful story in exchange for my honest review!

A decades-long mystery and family secrets take Clara Harrington and her daughter Wynnie from South Carolina to the English countryside. What happened to Clara's mother, a famous author, who disappeared 25 years ago? In the search for truth, Clara must find the courage to uncover what happened all these years ago to her mother and the story she left behind.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for providing the E-ARC of this beautiful story in exchange for my honest review!

"In my beginning is my end. In my end is my beginning."

"Fate and destiny, they are ours to make. We choose from many fates."

"Dreams are so much more than that. They are visions of the future, they are whispers of our desires, they are hope. We cannot and we must not live without dreams."

"When the sky breaks open; a transformation that changes you into who you are meant to be; into your very essence."

"You're the place that I stand when my feet are sore."