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A review by theespressoedition
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
5.0
Those of you who are more than casually familiar with books -- those of you who spend your free afternoons in fusty bookshops, who offer furtive, kindly strokes along the spines of familiar titles -- understand that page riffling is an essential element in the process of introducing oneself to a new book. It isn't about reading the words; it's about reading the smell, which wafts from the pages in a cloud of dust and wood pulp. It might smell expensive and well bound, or it might smell of tissue-thin paper and blurred two-colour prints, or of fifty years unread in the home of a tobacco-smoking old man. Books can smell of cheap thrills or painstaking scholarship, or literary weight or unsolved mysteries.
This story was the ultimate escape read. It was filled with whimsy, fantasy, and magic. Once I began reading, I never wanted to stop. If you enjoy books like The Starless Sea or Strange the Dreamer, you'll love The Ten Thousand Doors of January. One of the ways I describe books like this is "a bedtime story for adults." There's not necessarily a dire need to understand every little piece of what's happening. You can truly just sit back and enjoy the story being woven around you.
Not only was January a thoroughly likable and fascinating character, but the secondary characters were equally interesting to read about (though not all quite as likable). Rather than adhering to an arc only for the protagonist (January), I was pleased to find that the progression was there for several of my other favorites. It made me appreciate the story even more.
If you're looking for a romance, this isn't it, but it is a love story. It's beautifully written and incredibly quotable. I found myself writing down so many phrases as I listened to the audiobook (which is wonderfully narrated, by the way). There was power in the story and I know I'll be coming back to it time and again.
[CW: murder, death, insane asylum, ableism, physical abuse, self-harm, racism, classism]
This story was the ultimate escape read. It was filled with whimsy, fantasy, and magic. Once I began reading, I never wanted to stop. If you enjoy books like The Starless Sea or Strange the Dreamer, you'll love The Ten Thousand Doors of January. One of the ways I describe books like this is "a bedtime story for adults." There's not necessarily a dire need to understand every little piece of what's happening. You can truly just sit back and enjoy the story being woven around you.
Not only was January a thoroughly likable and fascinating character, but the secondary characters were equally interesting to read about (though not all quite as likable). Rather than adhering to an arc only for the protagonist (January), I was pleased to find that the progression was there for several of my other favorites. It made me appreciate the story even more.
If you're looking for a romance, this isn't it, but it is a love story. It's beautifully written and incredibly quotable. I found myself writing down so many phrases as I listened to the audiobook (which is wonderfully narrated, by the way). There was power in the story and I know I'll be coming back to it time and again.
[CW: murder, death, insane asylum, ableism, physical abuse, self-harm, racism, classism]