The Ten Thousand Doors of January

It's no secret that I love historical fiction with a side of magic. Yes! Lately, I can't get enough portal fiction so throw that in for good measure. I believe I found this while putting together a list of Starless Sea read-alikes, and I'm going to agree that it's definitely a cousin from the same family tree.
I loved January. She was snarky, had spunk, and determination. Everyone else has a back story but is not really developed, but that's okay. It's January's story. The big bad here is an interesting concept. I loved the worlds behind the doors we got to peek into and Bad is my new favorite fictional dog.
I can't wait to read more by Harrow.

“Books are Doors and I wanted out.”As I write this I've been pretty much trapped indoors for a seeming eternity while trying not to worry too much about an unfolding global disaster. This was exactly the book I needed.This is Ms Harrow's debut novel and I'm almost speechless. The quality of writing is excellent, beautiful in places, at times warm and funny and utterly chilling in others. I just really enjoyed it and I can't wait for Ms Harrow's next book.This is a great adventure centred on the exploits a girl named January, a young ward of a wealthy American in the early years of the 20th Century as she slowly discovers more about her mysterious parents, her Guardian's Society and the “Ten Thousand Doors” of the title. Suffice to say that the world holds many secrets.In recent years two of my favorite series have been The Athena Club and The Wayward Children. While Ms Harrow definitely has her own style (which I really enjoyed) this book felt like a near perfect bridge between the two, both thematically and chronologically. To anyone who enjoyed those books I heartily recommend this book. To anyone who enjoyed 10,000 Doors (and to be frank, I fail to see why you wouldn't) I suggest you immediately track down a copy of [b:The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter 34728925 The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter (The Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club, #1) Theodora Goss https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1490794116l/34728925.SY75.jpg 45924715] or [b:Every Heart a Doorway 25526296 Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children, #1) Seanan McGuire https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1431438555l/25526296.SX50.jpg 45313140].

“I hope you will find the cracks in the world and wedge then wider, so the light of the other suns shines through; I hope you will keep the world unruly, messy, full of strange magics; I hope you will run through every open Door and tell stories when you return.”

5 stars for such a beautiful and heart-aching story about family and love. This book made me smile and cry simultaneously at various points in the story. I loved it so much

3.5 stars, I think. The second half I loved a lot, the first half was a bit too slow for my taste (I love action). The book took me almost two months to read, but a lot of the reason for that is that this was my lunch-break-at-work-read and I don't work more than two days a week at the moment.

Best book of 2019.

“I felt like an explorer at the precipice of some new, wild world, armed only with ink and hope.”

As a child I was always looking for doors. Doors in closets, doors in forests, magic doors that would take me to Narnia, to Wonderland, to Hogwarts... This book is for all those wanderers and searchers like me. This is the story of a girl named January. A girl who doesn't fit in to her starched-white New England world, who is also always looking for the magic she's told again and again is not real, or at least not for her. It's also the tragic story of her father and her mother. Of the family she makes, the boy she loves, her best-friend dog, and the journey she goes on. To say more would be to spoil it utterly.

Reading this book was like sitting in front of a warm fire. I cried, I laughed, and I cried again. This is probably one of, if not the, best books I have read all year. Do yourself a favor and open it for yourself.

Loved this.

I know there are mixed reviews of this one but I loved it. I thoroughly enjoyed her writing style, the book within a book journey, and the idea that Doors are everywhere just waiting to be discovered. There were a couple of parts that seemed a little slow, but they were easy to get through. For a debut it's a great start!

I was surprised by how much I loved this one!

January Scaller is the ward of Mr Locke. She lives with him while her father travels around the world searching for unique treasures for Mr. Locke's collection.

Sometimes, Mr Locke leaves gifts for January inside one of these treasures. This time it is a book. A book about Doors to impossible worlds.

This is such a wonderful story. It sucked me in right from the start. I also love this cover. It is stunning!

I received a copy from Net Galley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5 out of 5 stars

The hype surrounding this book has been building for several months now – I was lucky enough to land an ARC and do believe the buzz is warranted. The writing is beautiful and lush. The story is sad and sweet in equal measure. The world is captivating and I truly felt transported back in time. January is a well-drawn character, full of life and verve and nuance. She was a wonderful window into this fantastical world. 

The way the first half of the novel is structured kept me from getting into the flow of the story until the second half, but the payoff of that structure is worthwhile. This, coupled with some uneven pacing and a few unearned twists, kept me from going above 4 stars. Nevertheless, if you enjoy Seanan McGuire's ongoing Wayward Children series (with the whimsy turned down a bit) or other portal fantasy stories then you'll have a marvelous time with January and her Ten Thousand Doors.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf.

 

The Ten Thousand Doors of January is a treasure???an enchanting, wondrous, magical, exquisitely written standalone portal/historical fantasy set during the early 1900s. It's an ode to words and stories, imagination, dreamers and outsiders, and being who you are when society does its best to shape you into someone you're not. It's an ode to the power of story???how it can take up residence in one's soul, showing them something true and meaningful. And it is itself that type of story.

In short: I loved The Ten Thousand Doors of January.

Full Review on My Website