The Echo of Old Books: A Novel

Product Information

The present-day story takes place in New Hampshire and Massachusetts in 1984 where the mysterious books are found by Ashlyn. If so, be sure and check out my Aboutpage so you can learn a little more about me and my Looks Like Books mission. This is my first taste of Barbara Davis's writing, and I'm here to tell you- I am SOLD on her talent!

HNS Awards have helped discover and launch the author careers of Michel Faber, Ruth Downie, Hilary Green, Martin Sutton, Kelleigh Greenberg-Jephcott, Nikki Marmery, Margaret Skea, Warwick Cairns, Katherine Mezzacappa and Elizabeth Macneal. Along the way, they learn more than either of them wanted to know about a past that STILL isn’t quite dead. Davis has made sure to give her readers a ‘twofer’ - two love stories within one book - each a compelling romance on its own.She knows, with her gift of psychometry, that the emotions held within the pages are real – but can’t be certain whether the story told within is the true story of the seemingly star-crossed lovers or merely a fiction intended to conceal a deeper emotional truth.

Belle (for belle of the ball) and Hemi (for Hemingway) And it seemed like a decades old mystery, with two lovers who were betrayed. Long and drawn out, it was like reading another book within this book and unfortunately I couldn't get a feel for the characters. One was entitled “Regretting Belle” written by Hemi and the other was entitled “Forever and Other Lies, written by Belle. And as always, you’ll get my three Rs of book reviews – should you read, reread, or reconsider this book. The other readers are the contemporary characters in the book, Ashlyn and Ethan, who are reading the books in the story.So overall, I thought this was fine but fairly mediocre, and it annoyed me because I think it had the potential to be so much more. With a background in the travel industry spanning four decades, Mary has cultivated a diverse range of experiences that have shaped her unique perspective on life and storytelling.

The Echo of Old Books was absolutely the right book at the right time for this reader, with its combination of historical mystery, tragic romance and historical ambiance both in Belle and Hemi’s 1941 and Ashlyn and Ethan’s “present day” of 1984. We send our husbands and brothers and sweethearts to do the dying, hold the pieces together while they’re gone, then pick up what’s left when they come home—if they come home—but we’re seldom asked what we think. The book begins with a bit of mystery regarding exactly what the books are and where they came from. Each story is intricate in detail and emotions, and they are woven together seamlessly and artfully.

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