Fast-paced debut about a library of magical books and the people who want to possess them. Cassie Andrews works in a bookshop in New York City. When one of her regular customers passes away in the bookshop, he leaves her a book called the Book of Doors, inscribed with the words "Any door is every door." This starts Cassie on a journey unlike any she could have imagined. I liked the time-travel aspect of this book (the past is fixed), and I stayed up way too late turning the pages to see what would happen.

The Book of Doors has been compared to The Night Circus and The Invisible Life of Addie Larue. I would agree with the comparison to a certain extent. However, I felt that The Night Circus and The Invisible Life of Addie Larue were flawless. While I would definitely recommend The Book of Doors, there were some plot challenges that had me screaming. For instance, some major plot points could have been solved much easier than it is in the book. But, then we wouldn’t have some of the major story lines.

Regardless, I did really enjoy The Book of Doors and, at times, I had a hard time putting it down. I was rooted for the protagonists and I thought the story was clever. One thing to note . . . this book is dark. Very dark. So, if that isn’t your jam, The Book of Doors may not be for you.

In his debut novel “The Book of Doors,” Gareth Brown shows readers how magical books can be. Cassie Andrews was working at a bookshop until one day, her favorite customer died. He leaves her a book that leads her on a magical journey through time and space, the titular Book of Doors. In the process, she finds that this book is valuable and some are willing to do anything to obtain the Book of Doors.

I thought the characters were well-developed, especially Cassie and Izzy. I felt bad when dark things happened in the book. It was pretty fast-paced, so there was no drag in the story. The characters are always moving and the situations can be tense.

What was interesting about “The Book of Doors” was how Gareth tackled time travel. There are so many theories on what would happen if someone traveled to another time. What happens when a person has two selves in one time? Can a person change history? These questions and more are answered uniquely in this book.

This is a great debut novel and I would recommend it for people who are dipping their toes into fantasy. It feels like the real world with a fantastical element most people would not know about.

I so want to find The Book of Doors. For you see, the book allows you to open a door and travel anywhere you can imagine. No more crowded coach airplane seats for me!

When Cassie is given the book posthumously by a customer in the bookshop where she works, she has fun traveling with her friend Izzy around their hometown of New York City. But, as always, when there is something great, the evil rich want to grab it for themselves. It turns out the world is full of books with magical powers. The good librarians are trying to keep them from the evil rich. To do that they sometimes use time travel. But mostly they just use their wits.

The Book of Doors combines the wonder of Alice in Wonderland and the modern idea of time travel with a classic good versus evil plot line. It is magical realism with a fantasy/sci-fi setting. It is also a bit convoluted and increasingly unbelievable toward the end. Still, I enjoyed it so 4 stars!

Thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for a digital review copy of the book.

What an adventure! Magical books that could be used for good or evil and the best of them, honestly is the Book of Doors that can lead you anywhere and anytime. Imagine the possibilities and Cassie and her friends sure did make use of it. The main antagonist was a pure evil character, only known as The Woman, needless to say all the magical books in her possession were used for evil purposes. Cassie and her friends have to band together in order to stop The Woman from collecting all the books and leaving the world as we know it in despair. This was a thoroughly enjoyable read.

Thanks William Morrow via NetGalley for this ARC.

"The Book of Doors" is a competently written debut novel that tells a complex and engaging urban fantasy tale with well thought out time travel sequences. Unfortunately this novel barely misses its shot at greatness and most fans are likely to find it wanting in some key areas.

In its favor this novel features a strong and relatable female protagonist. Cassie is smart, bookish, a little bit insecure and a little bit damaged as the book opens. Throughout the book, she makes tough decisions, shows unwavering loyalty to her friends and allies and demonstrates remarkable tenacity and drive while resolving some of her deeper grief driven personal insecurities. Cassie also stands out as a consummate bookworm who does not shrink from the outside world as much as she uses her love for literature as a means to experience it.

In addition to Cassie as lead protagonist there are a number of compelling supporting characters. However, the development of these characters is spotty and only two of them really stand out as believable multi-dimensional figures within the greater adventure. The adventure itself is well plotted, intricately described and full of all the turns and twists that a good time travel story should have. However, the ongoing interactions of many of the characters within the structure of the adventure begin to bog down the story and it fails to move at comfortable pace and becomes downright clunky in places.

There are also a number of story threads that never lead anywhere. Thus Cassie seems to be on the verge of experiencing body dysmorphia at the beginning of the book when she castigates herself for her appearance. The reader would not be amiss is assuming this scene would lead to Cassie eventually confronting her self image issues and changing them, but it is never developed. Similarly another character's comment about her eating are never followed up which makes the scene seem like a pro-Anorexia PSA. Likewise, Cassie's romantic inclinations towards another character are never followed up. In some cases this lack of follow through on character development that permeates the book could be seen as an awkward attempt to lay the foundations for another book., but for the most part it just feels like a bunch of rookie mistakes that should have been caught by an editor.

However, the ultimate weakness of this book and the main limiting factor for its success is its set of villains. Neither villain is well developed and their motivations generally remain a mystery. The brash violence exhibited by both is jarring and the addition of gross body horror seems misplaced. To be fair there are a few cool gimmicks, including one brilliant wardrobe choice, but they are just not enough to make up for the general lackluster design and development of these characters.

Finally, placing all the above negative observations aside, this is actually a fairly good book with a compelling protagonist and a well constructed plot. Urban fantasy buffs who can deal with some rough edges and general clunkiness, could do far worse than to pick this one up. Additionally, Gareth Brown shows real promise and it will be interesting to see what he does next.


Four stars, just barely.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, William Morrow, for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Book of Doors is an intriguing read. While some may say books are already powerful and magical, this book takes that idea to a new level. Books really are magical. For example, the title book in question - the Book of Doors - turns any door into a way to travel. Think of where you want to go, grab the handle, open the door, and there you are! In the world with these magical books, the Book of Doors is not the only one out there. Some people want to protect them, some want to collect them, and some will kill for them.

This book was very fun for me. It felt realistic and grounded, but still magical enough to suspend reality to get lost in the book. The author could continue this path, either in a prequel or a sequel to understand some of the side characters. However, this book did wrap up fairly well, so I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything - there's just more that could be looked at, such as a book collector or two.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC!

I didn’t love this book nor did I completely hate it. The concept of this book is super interesting and I think it could have had a lot of potential but it has so much extra fluff and it drags on SO much that it’s just becomes boring. There are a lot of characters introduced in the beginning within a short period of time that it just becomes super confusing about who is who. I forced myself through this book hoping that the ending wouldn’t be awful and it was a decent ending. It’s not a horrible book but not one of my favs

My dyslexia said, please try the audiobook. DFN at 56%

I was provided an ARC by the publisher; all thoughts are my own. I have purchased the audiobook and will update after i finish listening.

This debut fantasy novel was a surprise, and not what I was expecting, in a good way! I enjoyed the multi-POV and how all of our questions as readers got answered, the secret libraries, and magical books! This was a fun, clever story about time travel and good versus evil. However some of the negative opinions I have about this book stem from one of the villains being unnecessarily racist (calling a character a “black bitch” and another a “jap”) and a few lines that were the epitome of “women written by men.” Other than that, I greatly enjoyed this book!

I loved this book’s concept—a magical book that turns any door to every door + time travel? Sign me up! I had such high expectations, but found this to be just an okay read.

I was so ready to get lost in this world of magical books and doors, but found a lot of the dialogue off/awkward, which I felt prevented me from being able to do that.

While I thought Cassie’s relationship with Drummond felt forced, I absolutely loved her friendship with Mr. Webber and how it played out over time.

Thank you to Netgalley and William Morrow for this ARC!

📱 “The Book of Doors” by Gareth Brown
Published February 13, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Thank you @netgalley for this digital ARC

A slow start fantasy novel mixing magic, time travel, adventure and mysterious magical books. Cassie enjoys working in an ordinary NYC bookshop until a favorite customer passes away right in the store at closing time. The last book he was reading has a note for her- “any door is every door.” This book is magic and can transport Cassie through any door of her choosing if she just thinks about it. The problem is the book and the others like it are coveted and there are those willing to kill to obtain the books and the powers they give. I loved the idea of such magical books.

Review copy on NetGalley from the publisher William Morrow

The Book of Doors was a fun read but one that never quite moved into the wow level, which I was expecting and hoping for. I love a book that has a little magical mystery, even fantasy, within a world of books and worlds of books, and this has that in spades and some interesting background looming characters, but perhaps this was just a little too fantastic, a bit YA feeling at times in tone/writing style, and the book didn't become a big win for me. It's a good story, a set of books with magical powers and people seeking them for nefarious reasons, a young woman protagonist who stumbles into one of the books and it's power to take her through doors to other parts of the world, a sense of enduring mystery and long standing fights and searches for all the books with these kinds of powers, a looming sense of possible doom, villains and good vs evil It's all here but it never fully comes together in a fully compelling, can't put down/must read way (for me, hey I hope and know others will love it, my two cents as someone a little less than enthused about how the book read).

3.5 stars

This book was amazing. If you're looking for a space/time travel book, you should pick this one up!

The book of doors follows Cassie, a girl working at a library who loves to read and perhaps even hide inside books to shield herself from reality and the problems that comes with it (relatable? Yeah...). One day, she is given the book of doors by Mr Webber (an old man who comes often to the library and who we get attached to super quickly, I might add) but at first Cassie doesn't realize its powers and potential. However, once she does, she will quickly find out that power means danger and that a lot of very dangerous people are going to come looking for this book.

I don't want to say too much because I don't want to spoil anything. I read this book without knowing much and honestly, it was perfect to be surprised at every twist and turn. I'm even thinking of buying myself a physical copy, that's how much I loved this book (and especially the second half, the planning and the way the story wrapped up with two special characters <3)

**Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for letting me read and review an ARC of this book**

Cassie Andrew’s was gifted a very Special Book, the Book of Doors, instructing her that “any door is every door.” And so begins a thrilling adventure as she is thrust into a new reality in which other Special Books exist and are hunted down by an evil woman who is willing to kill anyone who stands in her way of obtaining this most powerful one of all.

I was so enthralled by the storytelling in this debut novel by Gareth Brown. It’s magical realism at its finest, and Brown adeptly balances multiple storylines and various POV’s, without losing the momentum of each chapter, successfully ramping up the pace and intensity until we reach the crescendo - I could not wait to turn the pages and discover what happens next (as well as the how and why and when of it all!) While our friends are taking major risks and figuring out how to protect everyone and the books, there were a few well-chosen quiet moments that will pinch your heart and make you want to get ahold of your loved ones and give them a big, strong hug. Maybe you’ll even shed a tear or two.

In the book description it does mention if you’re a fan of The Midnight LIbrary and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, then this book is for you, and I quite agree. It’s an incredible read, from beginning to end, and I cannot wait for all of you to pick up a copy so you can discover the magic yourself! Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for this providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown was an amazing read especially for book lovers. This was an excellent and entertaining fantasy novel. I enjoyed all the characters but especially Cassie. Cassie was an engaging female protagonist. Cassie has been living in hardship since the death of her grandfather. Until, an unexpected book was given to her that has the magical power to be transported anywhere in the world. With a magical book in her hands comes a trail of danger. I loved the magic system of this world and the writing was amazing. Thank you NetGalley for giving me this opportunity.

Thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for the arc!

If there’s one genre I’ll always love, it’s magical realism. This book was so fun - a magic book that opens doors and the price it costs to keep it. Lots of twists and turns but ultimately a satisfying end. A book for book lovers everywhere who understand the magic of reading.

As someone who is not a fantasy fan, I went into this one a bit wary. But I loved it so much! It was more magical realism than anything in my opinion, and I got lost in the story.

⭐️rating: 4/5

I really enjoyed the magical realism of The Book of Doors. It was very enjoyable to read and there were so many fun and interesting magic books! And while it was mostly from the FMC POV, it was fun to occasionally read from another’s perspective.

The story was interesting and the plot took a turn I hadn’t expected, but it opened so many doors (pun intended🚪) for what they could do! It was also more emotional than I expected, touching a lot on grief, but I liked what that brought to the characters and the story, so I think it worked well.

It came full circle in the end in a satisfying way. I just wish we had gotten a liiiiiiiiittle bit more at the end, like a view a little bit in the future showing what the group is doing, or even where a certain someone uses a certain book - that would have been really fun. I also don’t know if I missed something while reading the end, but I wish we knew a little more about what Dr. Barnaby does next.

Overall, I liked the story and enjoyed reading about the magic books and all the crazy things going on, wondering what would happen. I’d definitely recommend. And now I’m craving croissants🥐

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the advanced copy of this book! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Cassie receives a magical book that allows her to basically teleport to anywhere in the world through any door. Others are desperate to get their hands on the book, putting Cassie and her friend, Izzy, in danger. Despite being marketed as fantasy, this book felt more like magical realism for me. It was fun and creative, and the main characters were likeable. The pacing did seem a bit off at times, but I would definitely pick up the author's next book. Thanks to William Morrow and Netgalley for the ARC.