Author: Amanda James
The Secret Library by Amanda James, the author of The Garden of Memories, which I absolutely loved, is one of those books that immediately caught my attention because of its premise: a house in Cornwall, an inherited library, family secrets, unfinished stories, and a little bit of magic all sounded like such a lovely combination, and definitely like the kind of book I would usually love.
The story follows Lucy Thomas, a book editor who inherits her grandmother’s home after her death. Along with the house comes an extraordinary library and a box filled with unfinished stories. Lucy soon discovers that her grandmother has left her one final task: to finish what was left incomplete. As she begins to explore the stories and the secrets surrounding them, she also starts learning more about her grandmother, her family, and the past, and she meets some historical and mysterious characters. Who, as a reader, did not wish, at least once, that characters from the book became real? I sure did (and not just once).
There is a gentle magical element running through the book, particularly in the way the unfinished stories connect with people and their lives, and I liked the overall idea behind this. I also enjoyed the emphasis on books, storytelling, memory, and the way stories can connect different generations. That said, this one did not quite work for me in the way I had hoped it would. I think I went into it expecting the family history, the mystery surrounding Lucy’s grandmother, and the library itself to be explored in much greater depth. Those were the parts I found most interesting, and I kept wanting the story to spend more time with them. However, the book felt much lighter than I expected, and the romantic side of the story became more prominent than I personally would have liked. Romance is not my genre, and I found myself much more interested in the family secrets, the unfinished stories, and the history behind the library than in the romantic storyline, which disrupted the story for me. However, readers who enjoy warm, gentle fiction with romance, family secrets, and a touch of magic may well enjoy it much more than I did.
For me, The Secret Library was an easy and pleasant read with a lovely premise, but I finished it wishing there had been a little more depth, complexity, and time spent on the elements that had originally drawn me to the book.
Thank you for reading!