Cover Image: Behind Love's Wall

Behind Love's Wall

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Member Reviews

The best thing about Behind Love's Wall is its original storyline. Carrie Fancett Pagels has crafted a dual timeline story with many twists, turns, and surprises. Set in and around Mackinac Island in 1895 and 2020, the story showcases the island's beauty and its premier hotel, the Grand. While the book includes characters from Pagels' previous book, My Heart Belongs on Mackinac Island: Maude's Mooring, readers who have not read the previous book will understand and enjoy this one equally as well as those who have; although they likely will enjoy it enough to want to read Maude's Mooring to learn the back story of Lily's family. The story's theme of mental health in both timelines shows the positive changes in society's views on the topic.

I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy from Barbour Publishing via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.

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This was an interesting book with characters that at first were strangers; as the story continued, they became friends. I liked the description of the island and details about island life. The story was a good story, but I was confused at times about who Lily was related to and the descendents into modern day. The story was full of names and relatives and each time the author added more from either time period, I groaned inwardly. Usually I want to see how these characters fit into the story, but this time I didn't even try to keep track.

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Classic Carrie Fancett Pagels. Beautifully written. Engaging characters. Dual time line theme. Savor this novel. You will not be disappointed. Five stars.

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Behind Love’s Wall is a very well written inspirational romance. This book’s dual timeline plot is fantastic. The author weaves the two time together seamlessly. I recommend this book. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and Netgalley. This is my unbiased review.

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Behind Love’s Wall, book 7 in the Doors to the Past series can be read as a stand alone. In this dual timeline story, we follow Lily in 1895, a resort singer who, along with her cousin and pianist, travels from place to place as jobs arise. In the 2020 timeline, we follow Willa, an HGTV renovation star. Both timelines land us on Mackinac Island, attempting to hide some secrets while revealing others.

The main plot in each timeline sounded interesting, and at times they were. However, there were so many subplots in each timeline, and so many characters, it became very hard to follow. Most of the characters are connected in some way to one another, including across timelines, so keeping track of it all became almost impossible.

Thanks go to NetGalley and Barbour Publishing for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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"Behind Love's Wall" is a romance set in both 1895 and 2021. The author tried to pack too much in, though. In the past, we have Lily's story, but also the story of her hotel maid and the continuation of Maude's family's story from "Maude’s Mooring." In the present day, we have Willa's story but also flashbacks and a mystery from Willa's mother's past. Both Willa and Lily didn't know who their father was and uncovered that information while on Mackinac Island. But it got downright confusing when a lot of people in the area had the same last name and some modern people had the same names as the people in the past. Just too many people and too many stories to keep track of easily.

I enjoyed Lily's story. She feared that she was going to become mentally ill like her mother and was attracted to a kind man who lost his father in a fire started by her mother. Her singing act was also under threat of being broken up. In modern day (with COVID restrictions causing difficulties), Willa fell for a super-handsome but cranky landscaper. I'm not sure why she's attracted to him beyond his looks. He's dealing with his own worries about a possible mental illness and kept flip-flopping between asking to see the journal and questioning why Willa was asking him about the journal and his ancestors (mentioned therein) right now. Especially since she should be trying to come up with a redesign that will win a contract with the Grand Hotel. The "redesign" was mostly there just so they could find the journal. There were no sex scenes or bad language.

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This is a well written book that will keep you turning the pages to see what happens next. I loved the setting and how the duel timelines flowed together, but it was confusing at times with so many characters to keep track of. All in all it was a really good read and if you are a fan of historical fiction I think you will enjoy this book.
I received a complimentary copy from Barbour Publishing and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Behind Love's wall was a magnificent story with mystery in two different generations. It takes you to The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. A woman in the present looking for the truth about her Father, a woman in the past seeking to hide her mother's shame, these heroines were doing all they could. The heroes in both timelines are the kind that you want to take home. Romance intertwines the mysteries and the truth is sought. I loved every word that drew me into the page.

I have loved these Doors To the Past books and the faith intermixed into the mysteries. These have become an autobuy for me and an auto request on NetGalley.

The stories are compelling and well written. The faith element comes naturally and isn't forced. The characters experience growth and the mystery unfolds at a perfect pace. I could not recommend these more.

I received an early copy through the publisher on NetGalley and this is my honest review.

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This is the second book I've read from the Doors to the Past series.. Each story is a stand alone and written by a different author much like the Daughters of the Mayflower series. This was a new to me author, and the plot sounded interesting so I decided to give it a shot. The stories in this series wrecwrittrnnin a split time format, which is a popular trend in fiction at the moment. A tricky format, that unless written extremely well has me favoring one time period over the other. In this case, I preferred the story from the past over the one from the present. I found the references to Covid and face masks annoying. One of the most enjoyable parts of reading is escaping reality. I didn't enjoy being reminded of it and felt it added nothing to the story itself. The story would have worked just as well prepandemic. I felt the ending in both time periods was rushed. For me the last few chapters were went it was getting most interesting and then boom we skip ahead and everything was wrapped up in a neat little bow.
Overall the stories were OK. I enjoyed them solely on a basis of my love of reading, but this story is probably not one that I will read again.

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This dual timeline story centers around a modern day celebrity designer who finds an old journal belonging to a singer from 1895 at The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. The journal ties the two main characters together nicely with a dose of mystery thrown in for good measure.
I liked both main female characters, but I found that Lily tugged at my heartstrings the most. She had lost her mother and was set adrift to care for her own self at a very young age. Willa was just a bit too pretentious for my taste, and I just didn't see her style fitting in with the famous island resort.
It was easy to follow the dual timeline as the author made each chapter quite clear as to which era she was writing about. I did have my doubts about psychiatry being a branch of medicine back in the late 1800's, but in looking that up discovered that Sigmund Freud and Josef Breuer were popular during that era. The author has a good backlist and she has written other novels with some of the same characters. My favorite novel of hers, though, is a contemporary, Butterfly Cottage.
I received a copy of this book from the author and I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

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This next installment of Barbour’s Doors to the Past series was set on Mackinac Island, and it is obvious the author’s ability to bring the setting to life. The descriptions of the Island and the Grand Hotel were enough to make me add it to my bucket list of places to visit!

This is a dual time story set approximately 125 years apart. The historical story had much more depth, and I found myself preferring that storyline to the contemporary one. Both stories were well written, and the narrative flowed quite nicely.

The contemporary story takes place in 2020, mentioning COVID and mask wearing. This didn’t bother me one bit, as it added a realistic component to the present. It was easy to identify with the modern characters as they were living through the same pandemic that is ongoing.

However, there were too many characters to keep track of that I kept stopping to think about connections – in both storylines. All of the characters mentioned played a significant role in what was going on, so it was necessary to include each one in the separate storylines. But then it gets complicated when it comes to family history in the present - there are significantly different connections in the contemporary story involving characters with similar last names from the historical storyline. After a while I gave up trying to keep track of who was who and their respective roles in each storyline.

It’s a well written story, with an interesting historical component and a solid contemporary story. I suggest if you’re going to read this one, to have your preferred notetaking equipment with you so you can easily track the characters.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Another addition to the Doors to the Past series. Loved the setting of the story as the author did a great job with making readers picture the island and Grand Hotel. So many characters made the dual storylines hard to follow at times. I enjoyed the historical era more than the present time.

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This book takes us back and forth between two generations of women in a 125 year timespan.

This seems to be a new method of writing of going back and forth between timespans, which makes it very hard to follow. I finally gave up reading this and trying to follow the characters. My apologies to the author, but this book just was not for me.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Barbour Publishing. The opinions expressed are my own.

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Behind Loves Wall by Carrie FanCett Pagels takes place on Mackinac Island. The author weaves back and forth 120 years from 2020 to 1895. Willa is a successful interior decorator who is on TV and Lily is a well-known singer in 1895. Willa has been hired to consult regarding a remodel at the Grand Hotel on the Island. Lily, hiding family secrets, sang at the same hotel.

I was a bit confused at times as many characters had similar names, so I had to refer back and see if I was in 2020 or 1895, but I still enjoyed the book. I have visited Mackinac Island, so I could visually see some of the places that were familiar.

As in many historical novels, many aspects of the book are taken from things that actually happened at this amazing hotel. There is both romance and adventure here. I received a complimentary copy from Barbour Publishing and Net Galley and was under no obligation to post a review.

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The dual-time in the story created a very interesting insight into the past. I loved seeing the story evolve through two time periods and how everything was woven together with plenty of secrets.

The Grand Hotel was a wonderful backdrop for the story. The characters from both time periods are well-developed and all brought their own personalities and expertise to the story. The mystery and suspense of the story had me engaged from the beginning.

Behind Love's Wall is a page-turner and I couldn't put it down. The Christian aspects added to the story well. Highly recommended.

I was provided with a complimentary copy and willingly choose to review it.

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2.5 stars

I have enjoyed other stories in this series so I was thrilled to read this book by a new to me author. Although the storyline and characters didn’t capture my interest as much as other books in this series, readers of time slip novels may enjoy this book as I’m probably in the minority. I also didn’t like the mentions of Covid in the storyline.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

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This was a hard one to get into and there were so many characters from each timeline that I had a difficult time keeping up with “who was who.” I felt the 1895 story was more interesting than the current story. I also got tired of the 2020 Covid references—they just seemed overdone. Overall, I had trouble caring too much about any of the characters. Just 2/5 stars.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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As someone who has been a huge fan of the Doors to the Past series, and as someone who has recently become quite fascinated with Mackinac Island, it's no secret that I couldn't wait to dive into this one. The synopsis had me intrigued, and I love dual timeline novels, so I had a feeling I was really going to end up enjoying this one.

I want to start off by saying I personally loved the fact that the author chose to set this book around the COVID 19 pandemic. It was kind of refreshing to read a story about the characters encountering everything that we're currently going through in the real world, and it definitely made me appreciate the story that much more.

I also really enjoyed the way that the dual time is set up, and I ended up really liking both Willa and Lily as characters. Lily has landed a job at the famous Grand Hotel in 1895 as an evening singer, and struggles with trying to keep the horrid secrets from her past from everything happening in the present, especially her budding relationship with the hotel's psychiatrist. In the present day, famous designer Willa is traveling to the Grand Hotel on a much needed assignment to help them redesign a long since neglected room. In the midst of the pandemic, and amongst the many secrets from her childhood that have kept her away from her home community, Willa seems to keep receiving more questions than answers as she tries to navigate everything, including a promising budding romance with a local landscaper.

I always appreciate an author that can make two completely different timelines equally interesting to the reader, and I was pretty impressed with my first experience with one of Carrie Fancett Pagels' novels. I loved the included history about the Grand Hotel and Mackinac Island itself, and I loved how both romances are slow burn, and the many faith elements sprinkled throughout.

Honestly, the only thing that kept this one from being a five star read for me was the fact that I found the resolution to the multiple mysteries was extremely convoluted and hard to muddle through. So many characters are involved throughout the course of the story, and I had to read the last few chapters multiple times to try and figure out what was actually going on.

Other than that, I really enjoyed this one, and think it's a great addition to the Doors to the Past series, although it's definitely not my favorite from the series.

Final Rating: 4/5.

Thanks so much to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to advance read and review this.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Barbour) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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This was a good addition to this series. It’s told in dual timelines and I thought the story set in the past was much more interesting. I did think both stories dragged a bit. I think the covid comments could have been left out of the book. It didn’t add anything to the story. For the most part I enjoyed the story.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy

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Behind Love's Wall is the perfect example of Carrie Pagels' unique writing style and complex story lines. I love how she brought back several characters from My Heart Belongs on Mackinac Island: Maude's Mooring and Butterfly Cottage. Seeing their names (Maude, Ben, Sadie, Jack, and Jaycie, to name a few) felt like meeting up with old friends. There were also appearances of characters from the Christy Lumber Camp series, which now I have to read! And of course I enjoyed meeting new characters Lily and Willa, whose stories were separated by 125 years but converged with the discovery of a journal in Mackinac Island's Grand Hotel. I was almost expecting the two to use the journal as a means to communicate through time, but there is another mystery in the journal that keeps this book in the dual timeline category rather than time-slip or time travel (all of which I love!). But what I love most about Behind Love's Wall (other than pointing readers to Christ) is the use of my name and my husband's as minor characters (my husband's Lasley name is historically appropriate for Mackinac Island). To have her ask to use my name was such an honor! What a fun way to engage her readers! I started out as merely a fan of Carrie's, but I feel that she has become a dear friend.

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