Gareth Brown is a Scottish author and Book of Doors is his first published novel.
The Book of Doors is about Cassie Andrews who comes into possession of a magical book, an unusual and mysterious book that opens up Cassie’s life to adventure and danger. But the Book of Doors isn’t the only special book in the world and the collectors of these other books covet the Book of Doors. Cassie and her friend Lizzie are thrown into a world of violence and danger. Drummon Fox a collector of such books is the man to save them, but he has his own agenda, an evil out to get them all.
I have said to my bookish friends that at the moment there seems to be a surge of books based around libraries, magical books, and combinations of both. Book of Doors does not disappoint. Fresh from reading The Invisible Library. I was first introduced to this as a pamphlet I got at Fantasycon 2023 and from then I wanted to read the book.
I picked this one up as soon as I could, to continue getting my fix of magical books and libraries and I loved it. The novel was gripping and Gareth does a fantastic job of giving us an enthralling story from beginning to end, the pacing was great and kept me engaged all the way through. This Fantasy story has a bit of everything inside, action, tension, fantastical and amazing books, and captivating characters. The world-building was amazing and it gave me vibes from “The Lost Room” a 3 part sci-fi TV series that could have spawned a lot more. The progression of Cassie from the beginning of the story to the end was great and I really felt like she had changed for the better. The back section of the book did pick up the pace a bit but that comes with it building to the climax. I am hoping for more in this universe and would buy something else by Gareth without question. Book of Doors will suit all types of readers.
Given this is a debut novel, I am looking forward to reading more from Gareth.
I am grateful to Netgalley and Random House for sending me an eArc of this book so I could leave an honest review. It was so good I made sure I pre-ordered a signed copy to add to my library, which arrived today.
You can purchase Book of Doors from your local Bookshop supporting indie bookshops is important and something I am very in favor of. You can also shop at your local Waterstones. I like nothing more than to browse physical bookstores, there’s nothing like it. If you do want to shop online at Amazon here is the link.
