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bexwat's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
novellenovels's review
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
enticingtitles's review against another edition
3.0
When I requested this ARC, I was so excited to read about a lost treasure and how the storylines from WWII to present would be intertwined. It wasn't groundbreaking by any means, but it was a great mystery and a great little love story as well.
jjhende's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
beckiemills's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
rlshnhn's review
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
kwn's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow and Custom House for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Think "The Woman in Gold," but if a priceless item stolen by the Nazis was in a hoarder's house in the Cotswolds and not an Austrian museum. Harry, one of the main characters, is tasked with finding a Klinkosch box that his mother had hidden for decades in her overcrowded home. He reunites with his former girlfriend Tabitha, an art historian, to find the box before the house gets repossessed.
The story alternates between two timelines--Frances (Harry's mother) and how she fell in love and came into possession of the Klinkosch, and Harry and Tabitha as they race against time.
I found this story to be a nice, quick read that had a few twists and good chapter cliffhangers that kept me reading. The story at time felt a little formulaic and predictable, but I always appreciate a good little art history mystery. I enjoyed the relationships between all of the characters in their two timelines, especially once they came together in the present. That, I believe is the strength of this book--how to create and maintain relationships between friends and family, and how to love one another.
Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow and Custom House for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Think "The Woman in Gold," but if a priceless item stolen by the Nazis was in a hoarder's house in the Cotswolds and not an Austrian museum. Harry, one of the main characters, is tasked with finding a Klinkosch box that his mother had hidden for decades in her overcrowded home. He reunites with his former girlfriend Tabitha, an art historian, to find the box before the house gets repossessed.
The story alternates between two timelines--Frances (Harry's mother) and how she fell in love and came into possession of the Klinkosch, and Harry and Tabitha as they race against time.
I found this story to be a nice, quick read that had a few twists and good chapter cliffhangers that kept me reading. The story at time felt a little formulaic and predictable, but I always appreciate a good little art history mystery. I enjoyed the relationships between all of the characters in their two timelines, especially once they came together in the present. That, I believe is the strength of this book--how to create and maintain relationships between friends and family, and how to love one another.
heidirgorecki's review against another edition
2.0
I’m not quite sure what to say about this one, but I felt like it was an overall rather unlikeable book, and felt constantly frustrated with each of the characters. I almost gave up about 20% in but pushed thru to finish it, however I didn’t change my mind by the end even so.
This is a dual timeline between 1981 and 2022. It really had almost nothing to do with WW2 but a rather inconsequential detail about the box that was a central item in the book, so just a heads up to other readers like me who thought, based on the description, that WW2 was a far more central theme/setting.
The major issue for me was that for the whole book, practically every character was lying to or hiding things from each other, refused to risk vulnerability, and constantly abandoned each other. No one fought for each other or their circumstances - they just let life happen to them.
The abandonment/leaving was a consistent theme in the book, but it wasn’t even viewed as a negative half the time. Even in the ending the sentiment was, if you love something you’ll set if free - and while in theory that’s true, in this setting where people were constantly either leaving each other or not fighting in the least for each other, that no longer holds true. At that point it just becomes an excuse to be selfish and self-protecting, or just resigned and lazy.
In addition, there were a number of unrealistic factors. A 16 year old that’s orphaned, legally can’t be left as an adult - she’d be in foster care even if she is a mother so she would not have been alone or been able to make some of the decisions she did. And for a 30 year old man to not just find and renew relationship with his biological mother but to decide to live with her - in her hoarding environment that you have to tunnel to the kitchen or sleep in a chair because you can’t get to a bedroom?? And in the process completely ditch every relationship but your work? Not believable. There were many others as well. It made the story hard to swallow, in addition to the unlike-ability of the above.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a dual timeline between 1981 and 2022. It really had almost nothing to do with WW2 but a rather inconsequential detail about the box that was a central item in the book, so just a heads up to other readers like me who thought, based on the description, that WW2 was a far more central theme/setting.
The major issue for me was that for the whole book, practically every character was lying to or hiding things from each other, refused to risk vulnerability, and constantly abandoned each other. No one fought for each other or their circumstances - they just let life happen to them.
The abandonment/leaving was a consistent theme in the book, but it wasn’t even viewed as a negative half the time. Even in the ending the sentiment was, if you love something you’ll set if free - and while in theory that’s true, in this setting where people were constantly either leaving each other or not fighting in the least for each other, that no longer holds true. At that point it just becomes an excuse to be selfish and self-protecting, or just resigned and lazy.
In addition, there were a number of unrealistic factors. A 16 year old that’s orphaned, legally can’t be left as an adult - she’d be in foster care even if she is a mother so she would not have been alone or been able to make some of the decisions she did. And for a 30 year old man to not just find and renew relationship with his biological mother but to decide to live with her - in her hoarding environment that you have to tunnel to the kitchen or sleep in a chair because you can’t get to a bedroom?? And in the process completely ditch every relationship but your work? Not believable. There were many others as well. It made the story hard to swallow, in addition to the unlike-ability of the above.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
lwilcox's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
rochellehickey's review against another edition
4.0
What starts out as a treasure hunt slowly morphs into finding the treasures of life. Everything has a double meaning when you look deeper than the surface. It’s about finding what was thought lost and discovering you had it all along.
It has all the feels. Definitely worth the read.
Thank you to William Morrow: an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers for the advanced readers copy for my honest and unbiased opinion.
It has all the feels. Definitely worth the read.
Thank you to William Morrow: an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers for the advanced readers copy for my honest and unbiased opinion.