I was asked to review this book by NetGalley

This book is the first in this author's trilogy and this makes me want to read book 2.

This is multi generational story from New York, Scotland to London. The Sevensisters house holds secrets of the family of Alice and Tom.

There is the intertwining of love, loss and sacrifice. Set mainly in the 50s and 60s with some wartime story thrown in to the mix as two stories come together.

A really compelling - I am now seeking out this author. Due for publication 12th June 2025.

A beautiful novel, spanning generations, and intertwining stories of love, loss and sacrifice. It took me a little bit to get engaged with this novel, there is a lot to take in, and a lot of characters to get to know, but it was absolutely worth the effort. The writing is beautiful and heartfelt, the characters are wonderfully crafted and the story unfolds in a dreamlike and magical manner. I'm delighted that this is only the first in the trilogy as I very much look forward to spending more time with these people, in this landscape. A writer at the peak of her craft!

‘The Treasures’ opens with a prologue set in 2024 where we are informed that a Wiltshire family home, Sevenstones, is on the market for the first time in decades. Emma Raven has been clearing out the house and is just about to leave when she finds a curious collection of little oddments – china, metal and quartz animals such as might be part of a child’s possessions. These are the treasures we meet again back in 1965 in Chapter 1: a collection owned by Alice Jansen and added to by her father, Bob, on her birthday every year. The author, Harriet Evans, has immediately drawn the reader in to this family saga by setting up a puzzle: how do the treasures travel all that distance and why have they been hidden away?

Over the course of the novel, the reader becomes invested in Alice’s story and, on the other side of the Atlantic, that of Tom Raven, a boy of similar age whose father has strong links with Sevenstones. Eventually they are brought together and quickly form a strong bond as they navigate free love and new age 1960s New York.

Many readers will adore this story. It is a character driven family saga which touches on a diverse range of topics from the psychological effects of war to parent-child relationships alongside the progression of feminism, amongst other political movements. However, towards the end of the novel, the depiction of a pot and LSD fuelled existence in New York, alongside the inevitable ‘free love’, becomes a little repetitive and some of the sex scenes are pretty toe curling! It’s likely that, having invested in the first part of this trilogy, readers will be keen to see what happens next to Alice and Tom, alongside their friends and relations. Hopefully, Evans will develop key social and political events as part of the narrative in the sequel to ‘The Treasures’.

My thanks to NetGalley and Viking for a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.

I've never been happier than to read that this is the first part of a trilogy. The Treasures is a wonderful exploration of hidden connections and actions through the generations. Alice Jansen and Tom Raven are destined to meet, and the circumstances around their connections are explored fully through the story of this novel, with plenty twists and turns and lots of colour about their families along the way.

Loved the whole book, hope we don't have to wait too long for parts two and three.

Two separate sad stories come together.
Alice in eastern America, coping with the loss of her beloved father, and the aftermath of his death. Tom in a remote Scottish village brought up by his widowed father, but with a family mystery. Their stories seem totally separate, but become entwined by the third pivotal character in the book. A house called Sevenstones, a haven for those lost souls needing solace and comfort. A mystical place surrounded by a stone circle.
Mainly set in the 1950s and 1960s in New York and London, with Teddy boys, Windrush, hippies, and the Vietnam war as background, and referring back to the 1940s and wartime the story unfolds over several timelines, with a lot of hints of surprises and mysteries to come.
Enthralling.

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin for the opportunity to read this book.

My absolute favourite type of book: a coming of age tale which you feel in your stomach (vom), your heart (aahhh) & in your eyes as they get a bit teary at points. Loved it 🍎🍏 AND totally forgot, until writing this review, that this is the first in a trilogy!!!!!!! HECK YES

This took me a very long time to get into and a few times I nearly gave up. I found it quite disjointed and strange. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

This book is somehow both too long and not long enough! I did struggle a little bit with how much time we spent with Alice and Tom as children, but the whole thing comes together beautifully so I can't hold that against it! But then that epilogue - I was not prepared for that. I thought I wanted a second Dora book from Harriet but after reading this, NO, I need the sequel to this injected directly into my veins ASAP! This book has everything - sorrow, joy, grief, parental love and parental failure, love and loss, and a Teddy shaped genuine tragedy. This is a book to get lost in over the summer solstice, but I hope the publicity doesn't push the romance aspect because it's romantic but it's not a Romance and I wouldn't want unrealistic expectations to be disappointed.

Absolutely outstanding! Loved it, start to finish. So pleased to hear that this is just the start of a series - having totally invested in the wonderful characters and the multiple settings I now can't wait for the next installment!

I chanced upon one of Harriet Evans' books for the first time only a year or so ago and since then, I've been gradually working my way through her back catalogue. I was so excited to hear that she was due to publish a trilogy - a chance to spend a little longer in the incredibly layered and nuanced worlds that she creates. I loved this first part, discovering Alice and Tom's worlds and the various experiences that lead them to meet for the first time. I'm looking forward to reading how the story progresses and how this fit into the snippet of the present day we see in the prologue. Also the ending, oh the ending - I can't wait to read what happens next and to spend more time at Sevenstones.

Beautifully plotted and researched, these characters will stay with you long after you close the book on the final page. A must-read for anyone who enjoys complex family tales that span the generations.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for providing an advanced copy of this book, which I voluntarily read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this lovely book.

The Treasures is a complicated story about love, family and friendship. It explores the idea of what love really means in a range of well described and sympathetic relationships between parents and children, partners and friends. It show how the things we do because of love prove to shape the ways in which we live our lives.

A gentle, subtle piece of writing that leads you along and leaves you to draw your own conclusions.

Thank you so much. This title is recommended.

Small town Americana on the banks of the Hudson, a town of founding families, traditions, ice cream sundaes and beautiful orchards. A town on the brink of change as the sixties march onwards. And on the day Alice Jansen turns sixteen her life changes forever. Galloway in Scotland, a small boy lives hand to mouth with his clever eccentric father until an unknown aunt whisks him away to a London still recovering from bombings, a place of simmering racial violence and worlds colliding. Connecting the two is a small house in Wiltshire, Sevenstones, named for the standing stones which enclose it. A sanctuary, an escape and the holder of secrets.
The Treasures is the first in Harriet Evans new trilogy, which promises to take us through the second half of the twentieth century. Exhilarating, at times heart breaking, beautifully written, wonderfully human, I couldn't put it down. Bring on the next! Highly recommended.

A beautifully evocative and deeply moving multigenerational tale, The Treasures by Harriet Evans follows the intertwined lives of Alice and Tom as they navigate love, loss, and the significance of family heirlooms across three generations.

On the eve of her sixteenth birthday, Alice Jansen gathers her cherished treasures—keepsakes, figurines, and mementoes—that help her understand the fragility of her family. But when her world is shattered the very next day, and her final treasure—a gift from her father—is lost, Alice’s sense of security is torn apart.

Two years later, Alice receives a mysterious phone call from a stranger, prompting her to flee to New York in an attempt to leave behind the memories of her last golden summer at the orchard on the Hudson River. Meanwhile, Tom Raven is also wrestling with loss and confusion, unsure of what is missing from his life. After remembering a forgotten letter, he embarks on a journey to a strange city in search of answers, leaving Sevenstones, the one place that has ever truly felt like home, behind.

The Treasures is an unputdownable story that weaves together the past and present, with Alice and Tom’s lives intertwined in ways that become clearer as the narrative unfolds. Set against the backdrop of New York, Scotland, London, and Wiltshire, the book masterfully explores family secrets, the importance of home, and the treasures that shape our memories.

The setting of Sevenstones is wonderfully described—its significance to all the generations of this family is palpable, and the house itself almost becomes a character in its own right. The sanctuary it provides, with its history and beauty, is the perfect backdrop for the unfolding of family dramas and personal growth.

Alice and Tom’s journeys are poignant and relatable, each having endured traumatic childhoods, and the slow revelation of their deep connection is both surprising and heartwarming.

This is a book that beautifully captures the intricacies of family relationships, the weight of the past, and the enduring power of love and memory. The Treasures is a heartfelt and immersive read that will resonate with readers long after the final page.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

I’ve always loved Harriet’s books in the past, but have to admit that I really struggled initially with The treasures and it took me a while to really get invested in the book.
Set between New York, Scotland, London and Wiltshire, multigenerational and full of long held family secrets!
Alice and Tom are the main characters who we see grow up as the book progresses, both having experienced traumatic childhoods, but both linked in ways that are revealed as the book progresses.
The wonderful Sevenstones sounds like such a lovely sanctuary and a wonderful respite for those who need it and plays such an important role in all the generations, wonderfully described inside and out you could almost imagine it!
Would love to read a sequel/ part two to see how Tom and Alice progress or if they do!
Thank you NetGalley for this early read

Tom and Alices world collide in this rather unique and unusual read.

Set in the times of WW2 and the swinging sixties this is an emotional and brilaint family drama that i think everyone will love.

The first in a trilogy I hope they don;t keep us waiting too long for the next instalment as I am hooked.

New York, London, Wiltshire, Dumfries and Galloway are all portrayed in this unusual family saga. Romance, happiness and sadness from the era of the Second World War to the 1960’s are depicted and the emotions involved will leave readers inevitably wanting more. Gloriously inventive story telling.

The Treasures by Harriet Evans

The first in a trilogy and it's got all the hallmarks of becoming an epic read.
I love how the author is so great at drawing you into quite complex family tales.
We firstly meet Alice on the cusp of womanhood and lives near New York , and her connection to a house located in England.
We then skip to a remote part of Scotland and then just after ww2 he is taken to London to live with an aunt .
The title takes us to the 1960s and wear are in the era of change for young people with the swinging 60s and all that it entails.
Very entertaining book. 5 stars.

The Treasures is a multi-layered,multi-generational novel stretching from New York to Scotland to London, with the compellingly attractive house ‘Sevensisters’ holding the family secrets of Alice Janson and Tom Raven, whose fates are linked as their lives intertwine over the years. Although some of the dialogue didn’t ring true, for me, I was still engaged enough to read to the end. I may even look out for book two in the trilogy!

I absolutely adored this book and it is a very promising start to a new trilogy. To begin with, I did think it was a bit slow but I decided to savour the build up and the latter half of the book does ramp up the action and set up future plot threads.
I loved the characters of Alice and Tom, we get to know them separately and then together as their lives converge and a gripping will they/won't they plot starts. Not in a long time have I ever wished for two characters to get together so much, here's hoping!
Evans has created a spectacular plot that pulls the reader in and leaves you wanting more and more. I adored the plot, locations and characters and cannot wait for the next book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin General UK for an advance copy.

Harriet Evans is one of my ‘go to’ authors and I don’t think anyone is better at writing evocative stories of eccentric families and ancient, mysterious houses. She excels at world-building and drawing the reader into a compelling story. I particularly enjoyed the parts of this book that told the tale of Tom Raven and Sevenstones and could picture it all perfectly. The sections of the book set in Orchard and New York were equally well written but personally I found this section less interesting and the first third did drag a little. This is very much a personal opinion as the drug taking, free love / hippie era isn’t a period of history that engages me and so I found it hard to empathise with Alice. However, I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys engrossing, well-written stories and I’m looking forward to the next part of the trilogy.