When we first meet January Scaller in the summer of 1901, she is just 7 years old. Her father works as a field agent for the wealthy Mr Locke, scouring the world for treasures. Mr Locke is January's ward, caring for her in her fathers absence as her mother is dead. He treats her well, offering her the luxuries her father could not afford. Mr Locke belongs to the New England Archaeological Society and his house is full of the treasures January's father and the other field agents bring back.
On a business trip to Kentucky with Mr Locke, January comes across a Door, standing alone in a field and when she steps through it, she finds herself in a different world. Mr Locke discovers her there and gets cross. When she goes back the next day to walk through it again and explore further, it is gone and a pile of ash is left in it's place. Over the coming years, January becomes less unruly, keen to please Mr Locke and be a good girl and she almost forgets about her experience with the Door.
When January is 17 when she find a tatty book in Mr Locke's Pharaoh Room called The Ten Thousand Doors, a book that describes other worlds, secret doors, love and adventure. It is from this that January learns about the Doors, about a woman called Adelaide and her search for love through the Doors and her explorations to different worlds.
I have to admit, although I found the writing beautiful, it was a little bit of a slow burner for me. The first third of the book is about setting up the world in which the story is based. I was eager for some action and adventure and soon I found I couldn't put it down! The attention to detail was wonderful: I was completely engrossed in January's world. The book is January's story but we also get to read the text of The Ten Thousand Doors and I really liked that we were learning about the magic behind them at the same time as January.
January is a likeable heroine - exotic and unusual looking, she is not sure where she fits in the upmarket society in which she lives and often feels lonely and isolated. But as the story progresses, she finds people who care for her and would do anything for her and I loved these friendships. There is Samuel, the grocer's son with whom she shares a love of books, her companion Jane who was sent to her by January's father and her loyal dog, Bad (short for Sinbad). I really liked that it was set in the early 1900s - it really added to the atmosphere of the book.
Full of adventures and excitement, this felt truly original, full of mythical creatures and magic, with one of the strongest heroines I have come across in a while! I really enjoyed this and Harrow has left it open for a possible sequel which I would be keen to read.

What a thrilling adventure this book has been. It’s a debut full length novel for the author and a truly magical fantasy, engagingly written and it had a huge impact on me.

It's a portal fantasy about exploring other worlds and finding your place in them. There is a moving side love story which I absolutely enjoyed, there are even two of them if you ask me.

I don't want to go into details of the plot, so I will focus more on what I loved and how this book made me feel.

January is such a great character, I loved seeing her grow and change and become her own person. There are lots of adventures, some dark undertones but no true horror elements.

At the heart of it for me this is a powerful story about love and wandering and storytelling. I feel I like I have highlighted most of the book, so many passages spoke to my heart - about the power of the words, the importance of change, the sense of (not)-belonging, love - between partners, in the family, among friends.

The first half was somewhat slow-paced, more about setting the stage and the second half was full of adventure and action. There were lots of twists and turns to plot and found myself unable to put the book down.

The writing is exquisite, it made me cry and broke my heart but also made me happy and hopeful. And that epilogue, it’s a thing of beauty.

CW (as per the author and my own interpretation of the text): Abuse - physical and psychological; manipulation; violence against animals; forced hospitalization in mental hospital; mind control; racism; sexism; self-harm imagery (without intent to self-harm); violence; colonialism.

From the blurb, this book sounds like it will be a little like The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, or The Magician’s Nephew, a story about curious children and magical doors, taking them from their stuffy house into different worlds where they find new and strange adventures. It sounds like the work of C.S. Lewis, or even something from Edith Nesbit’s Five Children and It series. Old fashioned and charming, magical and adventurous, reminding me of autumn evenings with a roast dinner and the Sunday evening family literary adaptation that the BBC used to do.

This book is so much more than that. There are recurring themes of ownership, of colonialism, freedom, and race amongst other things. Rather than being a flight of fancy to different worlds but returning home in time for supper, this book is grounded very much in this world, and the adventure is about escaping from the shackles imposed upon an individual by society. It’s a romance, of sorts, but not for the titular January.

There are two intertwining stories – that of January, and that of Yule Ian and Adelaide. January is trapped in the dubious care of Mr Locke while her father travels the world, left only with her own imagination and, eventually, a temperamental dog for company. Adelaide is a young girl from the rural southern states of America, who dreams of freedom and travel, and one day meets a strange black boy in her field, who appears to have come through a mysterious door. Yule Ian and Adelaide become besotted with each other on that one day, but then are parted and have to find their way back together. January reads their story when she finds the book The Ten Thousand Doors, and realises it has parallels with her own.

Set in the early 1900s in America, January describes herself as an “in-between” person. She’s black, but she’s also not because Mr Locke lends her credibility and a social “whiteness”. But she’s also not as dark as her father, she’s mixed race, and has been raised “white”, so when she’s around other black people she still feels like an outsider. The nature of the book means there’s a lot of talk of duality, of thresholds, and of two different worlds. These are dealt with both metaphorically and literally, and the fact that January’s struggle between what Mr Locke wants her to be and what she wants to be; what society sees her as and what she is; and her parents from two radically different worlds (particularly in the time and location) is played out alongside the driving plot really provides a wonderful thematic mirror.

I found the opening a little difficult to track, because it jumped between different ages of January for a bit, and I got a little muddled, but once January hit 17 and discovered the book things settled down and I was able to follow things because they generally tumbled chronologically together. I also found Yule Ian and Adelaide’s story easier to follow once it dropped the pretence of being an academic study and instead became a biography. Reading on a kindle isn’t the greatest for books which have footnotes, so it felt a little staccato until I passed that section.

One thing I found interesting was that, although we are given the impression that there are countless doors (ten thousand, in the book, being given as a number so big it is uncountable, and thus meaning infinite), Harrow doesn’t get distracted by describing all of them. January herself only actually goes through two in the narrative, although another character describes one in detail, and we hear snippets about others. The concept is easily one which could make a narrative more winding and unwieldy, so Harrow’s decision to keep the plot tight and focused really helps the book flow and not get bogged down in continually re-establishing the location. It also leaves things open for further exploration in a possible sequel.

While the book resolves itself and answers most of the questions pertaining to January, Adelaide, and Yule Ian, it leaves plenty of answers open for further investigation. What happens to Jane and Samuel? What about the rest of the Archaeological Society? Is January ever really free and safe? But despite leaving some threads slightly loose for picking up in the future, the book still resolves itself well and doesn’t feel open-ended. It feels poetic more than anything, with the light touch it’s given, and also thematic – the whole point of the book is that doors should be left open for future travels, so giving the plot a more definite ending would be counter to the message of the whole story.

I’ll admit at times I found January a little frustrating, as she seems committed to denying things which seemed obvious to me as a reader. It made sense for her character, and is narratively sensible, but at times it was maddening because it kept dragging her back into danger. This was a definite case of narrative irony making things a little agonising for the reader, but at the same time her hope and belief did make me wish that she was right, and that I had misunderstood what was happening. She was so earnest it made me want her to be right.

It’s really quite a lovely book, and everything is placed so delicately that it feels very gentle in its delivery. Harrow has a beautiful style which means that nothing seems overly described or laboured, she has faith in the ability of her reader to piece things together, and she doesn’t make a show out of big reveals. This means the narrative flows smoothly and is quite a pleasure to read.

Briefly:

- A book that is all at once expansive and personal, it has a sweeping love story that is handled with beautiful delicacy, and a tale of finding yourself and your personal freedom.
- While race is clearly not ignored in the book, it is also not the focal point. Harrow doesn’t pretend racism doesn’t exist in historical USA, but she doesn’t let that define or distract from her character’s story.
- This is a period book but it almost feels timeless, strangely distinct from worldly concerns and instead looking both more internally than daily life, and far further afield than simply planet Earth. It’s a strange balancing act, but it’s done very, very well.

Rating: 5/5 – I wouldn’t be sorry to spend more time with this book, but at the same time I also think the open ending works beautifully if no more books are forthcoming.

I saw a couple of rave reviews for this book and was able to get hold of it before it was archived on NetGalley. I was lucky to get access to the ARC but the review is completely based on my own reading experience.

Where should I begin? I could start with the fact that like a few others of its ilk, its a fantasy/sci-fi story wrapped within the cloak of historical fiction to add to the ambience. It is wordy in the way that the story draws strength from those descriptions (you have to have a personal taste for it though), despite that fact it is an easy read and I flew through most of it. I could even mention that while it is not one tale, it is not ten thousand either like the title might have you think. It is two stories in one, one of the past and one which we currently follow. January Scaller is almost a pampered pet of a rich white man. She is his ward technically but in every way she is subject to his rules. She is trained from a young age to brush aside anything that doesn't directly concern her well being. As she grows older, she chaffs at the secrecy. One day she gets her hands on a book, which hints at Doors, with a big D for more emphasis. It suddenly picks up speed after that and I think January would explain it better than I could. There is a callous presentation of how little the men in power thought of their actions in the 'weaker' parts of the world which they plundered and exploited, it is beyond January's capability to understand the situation since she has travelled only in the company of her guardian. 

There are two love stories in this, one more believable than the other. The older one did not impress its craze on me and I couldn't fathom the efforts that that story required for it to reach its goal. The second is slowly built on information and daily routine, making it more acceptable. It is the kind of book that you get swept away with (no pun intended) but when you reflect- as I had to before setting this review down, some things do not add up. It is a great book and as no website allows me to give a 4.5, I have to give it 4 stars out of 5.

I really look forward to what this author would write next!

The Ten Thousand Doors is a book made for people that love books about traveling to other worlds, parallel worlds through magical doors. I grew up reading the books of Narnia so this book, about a girl that discovers a book that tells her a tale about different worlds, about love, and the more she read the more will she will learn about herself.

This is a book that will make you wish you can find a door to step through and discover a new world. I quite enjoyed reading about January and her life as a ward to Mr. Locke and her yearning for her father who is out in the world gathering treasures for Mr. Locke. And, I definitely liked the chapters that dealt with The Ten Thousand Doors, the book that January found. Through the book did both January and I as a reader discover more about the doors and also about the truth of what is going on in the world. Because there is a danger, something is luring. Someone out there doesn't like the doors...

The Ten Thousand Doors is a book for those that love to read about magic, about love and adventure. For those that are looking for a good time. I enjoyed reading this book and I can't wait to read more books by Alix E. Harrow.

January Scaller is an oddity. A ward of the rich and powerful Mr Cornelius Locke, her father's employer, with skin the colour of cinnamon, she spends her childhood trying to be a good girl and conforming to the society of 19th century America. Until, aged 7, she finds a Door that opens onto a world smelling of sea brine and possibilities and is changed forever. Scattered among her world are Doors, all leading to different worlds and offering different adventures. But January soon finds herself locked in a world filled with unkindness and enemies that will do anything to destroy the Doors, with only a mysterious book to guide her.

I loved this. There's something so distinctly nostalgic about the magic, with it's mixture of portals and adventure that just calls to me. It's told over two separate perspectives, as January recounts her past, as well as by an unknown narrator of 'The Ten Thousand Doors', the book which January finds in a box within Mr Locke's collection. The way the two stories begin to intertwine is extremely well done, and neither story took anything away from the other, or slowed the pace. Instead, they serve to enhance each other - almost like two worlds colliding, or sitting beside each other - much like the Doors themselves, they bolster the magical feeling and give emotional depth to the stories. It's almost Ouroboros in nature too, and beautifully written with it, and makes me want to reread this all over again with my new perspective.

January is a wonderful heroine, with plenty of passion and exuberance to carry the story all by herself. She's willful, likeable, yet woefully repressed and lonely due to Mr Locke and the social constructs of being an 'odd' colour in a world that hates anyone who isn't white, privileged and powerful. To see her emerge as a strong woman, and grow into herself by her own means was wonderful to see. Her relationships with dog Bad, Italian grocery boy Samuel and 'maid' Jane are also well written and beyond the one dimensional. None of these characters are perfect, or morally all 'good', but each has a love for January that transcends worlds and allows her to carry on when she's at her lowest. Some of the injustices she faces during her story made me so angry, and I really cared about what happened to her. The romance elements to this are also minimal, touching yet sweet, and only further enhance January as a character. Love is used as a tool to being a better person, one who understands their own abilities and strength. I loved that.

January's relationship with Mr Locke is also complex and difficult to define. She's woefully naive as to his nature, constantly hoping to see the good in him, believing that he loves her as a daughter. From the outside looking in, the reader could come to a different conclusion, but January's feelings for him are understandable - if a little wrong and ultimately frustrating (in a good way) in my opinion. Also, the name. Mr Locke. Honestly, there's so many subtle nuances to this story it's unreal.

This wasn't perfect by any means. I wanted more time spent within the many, many different worlds and the various adventures that could have occurred here. It missed a few golden opportunities with regards to Jane and the cat-women in this respect. Also, some parts of the story are a little rushed and could have been slowed down to accommodate a break in the relentless pace during the second half of the book. In particular, within Arcadia. This was a place I wanted to explore more, and be expanded on, as well as have more details about Molly and her motley crew of forgotten/lost people. She seemed an absolute dynamite character. I also would have liked more time exploring the mysterious secret society and it's members. The ones we do see are incredibly unique and interesting, and I think this was a bit of a missed opportunity. However, the depth and warmth of the main characters and the magical portals just shines through. I admit, I cried several times because I loved these people so much, and on finishing I sat for a good ten minutes with a smile on my face. It was that special.

I would love the author to continue telling January's story, but this does sit perfectly as a stand alone. Magical. Adventurous. Beautiful. Do judge this book by it's cover.

I received this book from the publisher via Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I just loved this book! It’s a little slow at the start, but for me it was the good sort of cosy slow that means you feel wrapped up in the magic of the story.

You start getting to know January and her situation and that does take a little while to warm up. But once she’s grown and you start learning about her and get to the book in the book, it really starts to weave together so well. And when the action started I felt so connected to January and her story. I was cheering her on every step. Plus I wanted to hug her so much!

I found that there’s not really any twists in the sense of it’s laid out so you sort of see them coming, but that adds to the feel of it. The atmosphere is so strong in this book!

A strong 4.5 stars, I really recommend it!

The Ten Thousand Doors of January is a beautifully written book, the prose is wonderful, the writing a thing to sink into and let it wrap you up in the magical story it weaves.

Certain parts of the novel really stuck in my mind, our first encounter with a Door in the middle of a field was one of them. As the reader you really felt the mystery and anticipation of that moment and were just waiting for it to happen again.

The characterisations in this novel were wonderful as well, no one felt flat or two dimensional, they were all well fleshed out people with their own motivations and desires. I loved Bad as well (always a sucker for animals)

Enter into January Scallar’s magical world! One that will wrap itself around you and envelope you in its heady fantasies. And admit it … once you see this cover, it just beckons to be opened!

January grows up in the care of the eccentric and arrogant Mr Locke at the beginning of the 19th century. He calls himself her ‘adoptive father’ while her real father, more often not, is off travelling to foreign shores to forage for exotic treasures that can then be shown off, auctioned off or disposed of in whichever way Locke and his cronies of the Archeological Society see fit. In other words, January’s father is actually a mere employee doing his boss’s dirty work, something that she comes to realise as she grows older and which impacts on her formative years as she comes to understand the values, attitudes and opinions of class and society.

Accompanied by her loyal dog, Bad and her ccompanion Jane, sent by her father to be herfriend and protector when he surely realised the hardships she would endure as she grew older, January embarks on a courageous journey to ‘elsewhere’ – a place she has yearned to venture to. It is an adventure fraught with danger and pitfalls but she’s determined to open that first door aand step through it, no matter what.

Harrow has attacked this ambitious project and triumphed! This multi-layered story is richly crafted with the artistic brush of one who knows exactly how to create something eenchanting. There’s adventure, love, betrayal, sweeping history and heaby doses of marvelous, magnetic magic!

This is a 5-star read to lose yourself in!

A Story of Magic, Other Worlds, Doors and Adventure

The Ten Thousand Doors of January is quite simply a gorgeous, imaginative and creative book that I absolutely loved. At its heart, it pays homage to the magical power of words to transport us to other places, not only as we would expect for ourselves as readers but also for the characters themselves.

Words are power in The Ten Thousand Doors of January, but this beautiful book is also a story of magic, other worlds and above all doors and adventure.

The story begins with the childhood of the main character, January Scaller, at the beginning of the 20th century. She is an almost orphan who has been more or less adopted by a wealthy collector of antiques and artefacts from around the world.

The household she lives in is similar to the house in Noel Streafeild's 'Ballet Shoes' but with much more mystery and much more money. Her father is alive but is a remote presence in her lonely life, being employed by her guardian to travel the world and discover rare treasures.

January doesn't fit in, but as she grows up she is drilled into propriety by her guardian, Mr Locke. He can't quite stifle her unique connection with words though, nor does he know about the book she finds called The Ten Thousand Doors. It tells the story of Adelaide Larson and her discovery of doors that are pathways to other worlds.

The knowledge she acquires from this book encourages her to seek out the truth for herself but the truth is dangerous and there are many others who are always one step ahead.

Some of my favourite parts of the book were the excerpts from The Ten Thousand Doors. It was magical and exciting and made me as well as January believe that doors do exist; that it is possible to travel from your own reality into another.

Doors are fascinating tools in literature. They can be symbols of change and new beginnings, but are also used as portals that lead elsewhere. Alix E Harrow has used them to create worlds that I highly recommend you step in to.

Many thanks to Tracy Fenton at Compulsive Readers and Orbit Books for inviting us on this Blog Tour. T

This is a beautifully constructed and written story about the creation of storytelling and its world. It's about travel through portals and fantasy spaces; it really draws you into the magical worlds of literary imaginations. It's about doorways, books, emotions, dangers, patriarchy, racism, love and character stereotypes - don't expect action and pace, this book explores and meanders along, but in a beautiful way and it's such a homage to books and readers. Don't let the slow start put you off, keep going as it becomes worth it. A great batch of characters, in particular: January, Samuel and of course Bad! This is certainly a beautiful book for us bibliophiles - happy to recommend.

This was a beautiful, compelling and highly original story that I absolutely adored. I loved books about traveling to different worlds when I was a kid so this book really appealed to me from the start. It’s a book that might be hard to review as I want to do the book justice but, at the same time, not give away any spoilers.

January was a fantastic main character who I warmed to instantly and I enjoyed following her throughout the book. She goes through a huge journey which was very interesting to follow her on. She starts off as quite a meek, sheltered little girl, but a few hard knocks and meetings with some mean characters soon rubs the naivety off her turning her into a confident women who’s able to stand up for herself. I actually felt very sad when I finished the book and had to leave her behind.

This book was beautifully written and so well constructed that it seemed like it could actually have happened. The author has an amazing imagination and it was wonderful to see the world she had created. She manages to build an intriguing new world whilst also including some great historical detail which makes the story seem real as the world seems familiar. It’s a lot of different genres mixed together which works incredibly well and results in one of the best books I’ve ever read!

Huge thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Orbit for my copy of this book via Netgalley.

January Scaller lives in Vermont with her ward, Mr Locke, a wealthy collector who finances her father’s travels to distant parts of the world in exchange for the strange and rare artefacts he finds and sends back. But while he is perpetually searching for the next addition to his employer’s collection, January is searching for something of her own. The books she consumes, the adventures and magic of other worlds, any worlds so long as they aren’t her own, provide much needed escape. She is surrounded by things her father finds and scavenges, rare curiosities in every room, strange and mystifying, everywhere her eyes land, evidence of his life without her. When he visits, their time is brief, and soon he departs, intent on the next thing and January is once more condemned to silence and loneliness.

Mr Locke is kind to her, fair, he lets her accompany him on business and social trips. She has seen something of the world, or a small part of it at least. But these glimpses, although exciting at first, confirm that niggle of worry, confirm that she is different from other people. Outside her small circle, people stare, snigger, treat her as if she is nothing because she is mixed-race, because she is different from them. But when January stumbles across a strange book, the story inside will open up the world – many worlds – all for her. She will finally shrug off the loneliness that has cloaked her for so many years and find the answers, the freedom, the sense of belonging she seeks.

This book highlights the intrinsic thirst for stories we all possess, in some shape or form. It’s also an ode to the power of words, a letter of love and appreciation to stories and all the discovery, mystery, magic and capacity to inspire that they encompass. The Ten Thousand Doors of January is a captivating and nuanced tale with vivid, tantalising imagery and such beautiful, poetic prose. It’s about stories, magic, possibility, freedom, sacrifice and love. January Scaller is brave and courageous. She’s fierce and loyal and one of the most wonderful characters I ever met. I loved following her journey. This book was a real dream from start to finish.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January had me looking at doors out and about and wishing, for a moment, that they did actually lead to other worlds. I’m an adventurer at heart and I’d happily step through. Having said that, this book, the way it snatched me up, felt as if it was a door of its own, an exquisite story, a fascinating world and this was one door, one world, I never would have left. A stunning book. Please read it!

“If one follows the stories, one will nearly always find a doorway buried at their roots.”

My thanks to Little Brown Book Group U.K./Orbit for an eARC via NetGalley of Alix E. Harrow’s historical fantasy, ‘The Ten Thousand Doors of January’, in exchange for an honest review.

This was a wonderful, deeply magical tale. I loved it so much and subsequently purchased both its hardback and audiobook editions. Its cover art is exquisite and provides a taste of what is to come when you open its pages.

It begins in 1901 and its narrator, seven-year old January Scaller, has grown up in Mr. Locke’s sprawling Kentucky mansion, which is filled with strange artefacts and treasures. January’s father, Julian, is travelling the world on behalf of Mr. Locke acquiring new treasures. When January turns seventeen she discovers a battered leather bound book inside a blue Egyptian chest located in Mr. Locke’s Pharaoh Room. Its cover is stamped in gold letters: ‘The Ten Thousand Doors’.

She describes its distinctive smell: “This one smelled unlike any book I’d ever held. Cinnamon and coal smoke, catacombs and loam. ..... It smelled like adventure itself had been harvested in the wild, distilled to a fine wine, and splashed across each page.”

This inspires January’s imagination and a number of times she references ‘Alice in Wonderland’ though reflects “People never got to stay in their Wonderlands, did they? Alice and Dorothy and the Darlings, all dragged back to the mundane world and tucked into bed by their handlers.” This certainly resonated with my own childhood feelings when enraptured by such stories.

Interspersed with January’s account are extracts from the book that tells tales of secret doors that link worlds and those gifted individuals who are able to open them becoming walkers between the worlds.

This is just a slight taste of the wonders within this superb coming of age story. It is an enchanting tale of folklore, magic, adventures, love, and myriad worlds. A literary fantasy that I fell completely in love with. Harrow writes beautifully and brings her characters and settings vividly to life.

I rather envy new readers who will have the adventure of discovering ‘The Ten Thousand Doors of January’ for the first time.

Very highly recommended.

This book was everything I hoped it would be, and more! It was sweet, it was heartbreaking and heart-mending at the same time. Rarely has a book exceeded my expectations, stimulated my imagination and filled me with wonder the way The Ten Thousand Doors of January has. Rarely has a book rekindled my love for reading, my hunger for a good story and beautiful words as this book has.

I abandoned this book 25% in. While I thought the premise was interesting, it was very slow going and after 25% in, I had no interest to keep going, I didn't connect with January nor her story, so I'd rather not continue reading in these cases. I normally love having points of view set in different eras, which was the case here with the story of a woman who knew about the door years before, but I find it a bit dry in this situation and I didn't want to read about her. Alix E. Harrow's writing style was engaging for sure, but I don't think this book was for me. I saw that other reviewers didn't finish this book for the exact same reasons, though readers who pushed all the way through said it was worth it.

for me this was a 3 star book for me. this book for me is a little hard for me to review as for me I loved the start of the book so much, it was so fascinating and captivating, a story about a girl who finds magical doors dn get transported to different worlds sounded so fascinating to me and for the first half it was so good and really loved the main character who has so many flaws in herself but can be so relatable in many situations throughout this book. but sadly for me as the book was continuing on I felt like I was getting distracted every time I was reading and then I wouldn't understand some parts of the book, I know that is of course my own fault but sadly I couldn't connect to the story fully.
sadly for me this book was too slow-paced for me and it seemed like it took ages in the story to really learn about the doors. what I did love though was the writing of the story, this book was written so beautifully and the author has such magical/whimsical writing abilities which was one of my most favourite things about this book.

overall such a great story, beautiful writing and really enjoyed some of the characters in this story, and this will definitely be for so many people and I would recommend it to anyone as I know a lot of people will enjoy their story but sadly for me this wasn't the book for me, which is a shame but thats the way it goes sometimes.

thank you so much to Netgalley for sending E-arc my way.

The writing in this novel is absolutely beautiful and I adored it, however, the story is not what I expected from the blurb and early promotion, therefore, the lack of action made this book difficult to read; I had no interest. It took me over a month to get through.

I would consider returning to this book in a physical format at some point in the future with more accurate expectations because the writing is truly lovely. Knowing now what the book actually consists of I know exactly what customers to recommend it to. I know there is an audience who will love this book, it just wasn’t for me.

THE TEN THOUSAND DOORS OF JANUARY is such a magnificent read! There is a fantastic and likable heroine that I cheered on from the first to the last page. There is a captivating and magical plot that kept me glued to the page. And, lastly but not least, a beautiful writing style that made me say to myself “Just one more chapter” and suddenly I found myself at the end of the novel.

January Scaller is the protagonist of the novel. When we meet her she is seven years old. She is orphan of mother, her father travels a lot for work, and she is left in the care of Mr. Locke, her father’s employer. During a work trip with Mr. Locke, January finds her first door. But this is not a simple door and January finds herself in a different world. Years pass by, January forgets about the door and, to please Mr. Locke, she behaves like the good girl she is expected to be, but then she finds a book, a book that narrates of doors, new worlds, adventures, and a beautiful love story and her life changes forever.

January is a special character. Red-skinned and with no past, she is accepted by the outside world because of her relationship with Mr. Locke, a wealthy and important white man. January is also brave, smart, and resourceful, useful skills when she finds herself chased by the villains of the novel. Like every hero in the novels, January has her own helpers: Jane, a mysterious and courageous woman who appeared suddenly in January’s life; Samuel Zappia, January’s childhood friend, and, my absolute favourite, (Sin)Bad, her loyal dog.

The story is beautiful and enchanting. There is folklore, magic, friendship, and love that come to life thanks to the author unique prose. I loved the structure of the novel, especially the book within the book. Like January, I was fascinated and engrossed in the book and I couldn’t wait to read more.

The author masterfully mixes fantasy and literary fiction, so even if you don’t like fantasy novels, you are going to enjoy THE TEN THOUSAND DOORS OF JANUARY, an unforgettable and original story that will stay with me for a long time.

I just fell in love with the beautiful cover for The Ten Thousand Doors of January although, of course, you should never judge etc. etc. Happily though this magical book from Alix Harrow more than fulfilled my early infatuation. There are so many facets to this magical book like racism, bullying, family dynamics, destiny, portals but, above all, love. January Scaller is a feisty, stubborn, headstrong child, living with a guardian, Mr Locke, while her father travels worlds seeking out artefacts for Mr Locke and his cronies. Alix Harrow writes beautifully, her characterisation is superb, her descriptions mesmerising and her dialogue absorbing. It’s a book that takes a while to fully appreciate but once you’ve drawn in you’re well and truly sucked in. It demands a sequel. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.