The Mirror was one of the books I was most looking forward to this year as the follow-up to The Inheritance, which was one of my top books of the previous year. Unfortunately it didn’t live up to my expectations, and fell a little flat for me. With how well The Inheritance set up the backstory and setting, I felt like The Mirror would pick up just as the cliffhanger left off and seamlessly continue the story. Instead this felt like more of a placeholder book, just holding the story over for the resolution in the third book. While there was more detail added to the stories of the seven brides and further reinforcement of Sonya’s place in The Lost Bride Manor and Poole’s Bay, it felt more like we were just having her day-to-day life narrated. Yes, there were “episodes” but after a while, it just felt repetitive. Here’s hoping the next one returns to the level of the first, because I’ve very much looking forward to the resolution of the story!

Look, I will start off by saying I should not have read this book. I requested to read the ARC based solely on the beautiful cover... and when I realized it was the second in a trilogy, meaning I'd want to read the first, Inheritance before starting this one, that didn't seem like it would be a problem. It had great reviews and the premise seemed entertaining. Then I read it and I really, really didn't enjoy it. But I was fully committed to reading this second in the trilogy, so here we are. And woof. I'm sorry to be brutally honest, but the writing was mediocre and I found it to be pretty boring. It is over 400 pages long and the plot has not thickened. If you read the first one and liked it, you will probably enjoy this one, but if you were feeling like the first wasn't quite what you'd hoped and you were hoping to get more from number two, I'm afraid to say I don't think you will. It is getting great reviews, so I am in the majority, but I really have to assume it's from loyal Nora Roberts fans. This and Inheritance are my only experiences with her books, so I maybe don't know what I'm talking about? I finished it, so there is that, but I won't be reading number three.

I've never picked up a Nora Roberts book I didn't like, until now. I couldn't get into this one and quit half way though. It was just page after page of these people cooking meals together and letting their pets outside to go to the bathroom. I just couldn't bring myself to continue. I'm still a Nora Roberts fan, and will continue to recommend her books, just not this one.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This series is quickly becoming a favorite of mine. I think the story is well done and the character development is fantastic.

The Mirror by Nora Roberts (Lost Brides Trilogy book 2)
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Sonya inherited a house in book one with a unique history: several young brides connected to the house died. Sonya moves in to learn more about her fathers family that he never knew he had. She brings her (amazing) friend (seriously, I adore her), and quickly makes friends in this new town. Together they work to solve the mysteries that surround the house.
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What I liked:
-Book one did me dirty with that cliffhanger ending so I’m glad that book two picked up LITERALLY where it left off.
-I loved the continuation of the found family trope.
-Sonya gets one up on her skeezy ex-fiance. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
-I loved learning mpre about the brides and their hopes and dreams.
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I am looking forward to how this story finishes and can’t wait for book three.

I typically like nora Robert’s books but to be honest this one wasn’t my favorite from her. To me in the beginning it felt really slow to start but once it did I enjoyed it more. The house that Sonya has moved into is haunted by ghosts and one is not wanting them in the house.
3.5 stars

I had really high expectations for The Mirror, and while I did enjoy the book and the "additional characters" within, and still feel like it might have gone on longer than needed. There is a lot of connections noted and revealing themselves but I felt somewhat unsatisfied at the end. Hoping that book 3 will wrap it all together like a beautiful gift with a big red bow.

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc in return for my honest opinion.

Pub date: 19 November 2024

The Mirror is the second book in Nora Robert's Lost Bride Trilogy and it's a fabulous follow up to Inheritance. The Mirror really sets up the story going forward, and we meet many of the lost brides of the manor. As always, this book is filled with beautiful descriptions, romance and wonderful characters. The Mirror ends with a wild cliffhanger and I can't wait for the third one!

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was hooked in the first book and she didn't disappoint in the second. Sonya continues to learn the stories of the previous manor wives. The details of the party and the experiences really make you feel that you are there. It is easy to visualize the party and that she is not fearful of Hester. Hester tries everything to terrify Sonya and I love her strong personality. I love that she tells her that this is her house and that she is not leaving. I can't wait for the final book and to see how it ends.

The Mirror is a great addition to this series. It continued the haunting feeling from the first book in the series. I love that I can count on Nora Roberts to develop wonderful characters with a fascinating storyline to sweep me up in the story and out of everyday life.

I really enjoyed this second installment of the Lost Brides trilogy. I love the relationships—romances as well as family, both blood and chosen and some of them with ghosts. I'm very much looking forward to the third book.

I had high hopes for book two but unfortunately this one contained more rambling and unnecessary details than actual action and main storyline. I love the ghost aspect and the history but instead of focusing on that, we hear about every other detail of the main characters’ life. I will probably skip book 3 even though I do want to know how it ends

Five shining stars for the second installment of The Lost Bride Trilogy. I LOVE this series so far! We pick up where book 1 ends, with Sonja entering the magical mirror she’s found in her newly acquired mansion in Maine. We get a deeper insight into her unknown family secrets and the curse that seems to repeat itself for each generation of brides. The cast of characters is delightful, with Cleo being my personal favorite. Highly recommend this series to fans of the old show The Ghost Whisperer. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I immediately fell in love with this trilogy after reading the first book and I am still in love with it after reading the second book of the trilogy! The Mirror picks up at the cliffhanger The Inheritance left us with. As Sonya learns more about her family's history, she and her friends continue to piece together a way to help the ghosts of the lost brides find piece as well an idea of how to break Dobb's curse. With the release of The Mirror, The Lost Brides trilogy continues to be a perfect balance of the genes of suspense, romance, and the paranormal.

This is book 2 in the Lost Bride series. Sonya MacTavish inherits an old Victorian in Maine. What she didn't know is that it is haunted. She hears doors slamming, footsteps, and music. One night, she slips through the old mirror and sees a bride getting murdered. Once she realizes that it is part of a curse, she moves to try to break the curse. Can she break it and bring happiness to the brides?

That mirror. What's in the mirror? It's different every time and where and when it shows up is anyone's guess as well. It gives off a certain pull to Sonya for her to enter and learn more of Poole family history. She's shown the tragedy and horror of what the witch Dobbs does to every bride.
I like this series and I want to read the final book to see how it all wraps up but I was somewhat disappointed with this book. The action with the mirror happens only a small handful of times. Most of the action is the same thing every night at 3a.m. and random slamming of doors when Dobbs is angry. There were so many mundane scenes that did nothing to advance the story. I was waiting for them to possibly have a callback later on but that never happened. It's like they were there just as a filler. This made the book of 400+ pages feel like twice that and I feel like this book could've been written in about half of that. Some editing for excess content would be nice.
Overall it was a good book, we learned more about some of the seven lost brides and discovered new ways to take Dobbs down a few notches in her attempts to get Sonya to leave the manor. Sonya still has a lot of work to do to get back the rings and break the curse.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read Nora Roberts. The Inheritance was all over the place last year. The cover and synopsis really caught my attention. I’ve also had many bloggers recommend it. I enjoyed it and was excited to get my hands on The Mirror.

The Mirror picks up right where we left off in The Inheritance. I appreciate that because I know what to look forward to in the next book! The mystery and the ghosts are my favorite aspects of this book. She does a great job of keeping it from getting too scary, for chickens like me. Haha! I’m not sure how this curse will be broken, but I’m anxious to find out. I’m so used to Robert’s using each book on a different love story. This series has some additional love interests in this book, but it’s mostly just a continuation of the first book. I like how she’s just adding to it and expanding, like many other series. It feels a lot different than some of her past trilogies.

The characters are great and I love the friendships. I do think there are times that it can get a little cheesy, but I expect that with Roberts. I also think many things are predictable when it comes to the characters, but the overall story is not. I have no idea how they are going to overcome the curse. I like seeing the glimpses of the past in this book. They are truly heartbreaking, and I hope there’s a way to get rid of the evil in this house!

Overall, I have enjoyed this series. I can’t wait for the third book! No worries, if you don’t like creepy stories, this isn’t too bad. There are some spooky elements from the ghostly things going on, but it’s not scary. I think the mystery and the lineage curse that’s going on are interesting.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for an e-ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own!

Second in series.
A gothic mystery, haunted house magic mirror, romance.
with drama, suspense, twists ,romance.
Voluntarily reviewed.

I love anything written my Nora Roberts. The world building and the people and love stories are amazing. this is book two in a series about a women who inherited a house, and the house is a character in the story, from family she did not know she had. This a paranormal story that is also a love story. If you have read Nora Roberts before and have loved her other stories you will love this one as well.

The Mirror by Nora Roberts was a LONG read for me. She could have cut 100 pages by deleting the constant food prepping. It picks up where the Inheritance ends and could be read as a stand alone. The plot didn’t move along as well as I was wanting.
It blended suspense, mystery, and romance.
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC read in exchange for my review.