Very much enjoyed this story. Yes, it is historical fiction, but the time really takes a backseat, a small enough role that for most of the story I forgot that it was happening in the past. Living in Charleston, it is always fun to read a story where South Carolina lowcountry plays a role and the descriptions of Bluffton, the marsh, oyster beds, etc was magical. When the story shifts to England, I was immersed in the descriptions of the Lake District, and the cameos of famous residents was delightful. I will say, I was pretty well clued in to the reveal of the mystery of Clara's missing mother, but I still enjoyed the way she wrapped up the story. Very descriptive language to illustrate physical place, I found that I did begin to gloss over some of the description towards the end in favor of moving the plot along, it didnt resonate as much and felt a bit redundant. She does illuminate some deep realities of the constraints placed on women/mothers, and certainly being a woman in the post-war era, the roles allowed, the behaviors expected and if one strayed from them the judgement/labels. I am always hoping for redemption in the end of these stories, and I feel like each character in this story walked through the process of loss and redemption. So, well done.

SYNOPSIS
- In the 1920s, a famous author disappears, leaving behind her young daughter and a mysterious book written in a made-up language.
- Flash forward to the 1950s. Her daughter Clara is now a single mom when she gets a random call from Charlie, a guy in London who says he found a dictionary of that lost language.
- Clara and her daughter hop on a boat to England to check it out and end up stuck in the middle of the Great Smog.
- Cue the digging into old family secrets and trying to figure out what really happened to her mom.
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MY THOUGHTS
- The idea behind this was super cool, especially since it was inspired by a real author who went missing.
- Patti Callahan Henry’s writing is gorgeous. Her descriptions of South Carolina, London, and the Lake District were so vivid, I could picture everything.
- The cover? So pretty. Definitely the kind of book you’d want on your shelf.
- There’s a little bit of magical realism, but it’s barely there. Like… a whisper of it.
- Most of the story is in the present (1950s), with a few flashbacks. It’s told from Clara’s & Charlie’s POV.
- Learning about the Great Smog of 1952 was fascinating. I’d never heard of it before, and it made for a really eerie setting.
- But honestly? This book dragged. The second half felt especially slow.
- The ending didn’t land for me at all. After all that buildup, it kind of fizzled out.
- The romance? Total insta-love. It felt super forced and unnecessary.
- I wanted to feel something while reading, but I never truly connected with the characters. I felt more like a bystander.
- This didn’t really feel historical outside of the smog and transportation stuff—it could’ve easily been a modern story.
- There were a lot of heavy themes like abandonment, grief, and divorce, but most of them were just skimmed over. Nothing really got explored in depth. That said, I loved the mother-daughter dynamics and the idea of how family secrets echo through generations. That part stuck with me.
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TL;DR:⭐️⭐️⭐️A beautifully written book with a really cool premise, but the pacing dragged, the ending fell flat, and I couldn’t connect with the characters. I wanted to love it, but it just didn’t hit.
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THANKS: Thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. This book is out now.

Patti Callahan Henry has become a go-to for me when it comes to beautifully written books, especially the way she seamlessly weaves the setting into the story, which leaves you feeling you are there. Clara has spent her life trying to understand why her mother left her. When she unexpectedly receives a call from Charlie, who found her mother’s dictionary of made-up words thought lost, and a letter addressed to Clara, she packs up her young daughter and heads for London. Sadly, their arrival in London coincides with the Great Fog, which is horrible for anyone to be out in, much less her asthmatic child. Feeling responsible for the two, Charlie offers to get them out of town, and they head to the family home in the Lake District, both hoping to unravel how and why Charlie’s father had Clara’s mother’s papers.
I enjoyed this novel immensely. I hated to walk away at any point, always disappointed when real life intruded. The writing, the characters, the search for answers were, for me, woven together beautifully. I enjoyed the historical aspects touched by a bit of magic and the ending was a happy surprise.
Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of the novel. All opinions are my own and freely given.

In The Story She Left Behind, we find Clara, an illustrator who has recently been named a Caldecott recipient, but is still troubled by her mother's absence and mysterious disappearance years ago. Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham was a child prodigy who penned her first book at an early age, but was never able to repeat that early success in her later work. After a tragic fire happened at her home, she left her young daughter Clara behind and took the dictionary of her own created language with her, never to be seen or heard from again. Until Clara receives a phone call that her mother's satchel and dictionary have been found in England with a note for Clara. Is Clara's mother still alive? How did that the dictionary and satchel find their way into someone's safe in England? Clara embarks on a journey that will change her life in unimaginable ways.

I honestly couldn't ask for more from this book. I loved the way I felt like I was experiencing the coastal South Carolina area, then I was transported to London and almost could taste the smog myself, and then fell in love with the English countryside. The multi-layered story was so spellbinding and then knowing that it was partially based on a true story made it all the more interesting. I love how Patti Callahan Henry finds these little treasures of stories and then weaves an amazing novel around them.

If you are looking for a richly descriptive novel with a mystery at its core, The Story She Left Behind is exactly that book.

I received this book courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A deep sweeping literary mystery and personal journey all wrapped into one. It was a beautiful story of daughters, mothers, art and family.

This book takes us from the south of the United States to the quaint country of England. It was a portrait of love for family, community, books and the moments that change us.

It wasn’t a perfect book, I found it to be a bit long winded. I had a difficult time giving it my whole attention. Some of the major plot points were built up so much, their resolutions felt anticlimactic.

But the setting was so stunning. Having visited Hill Top Farm, I could imagine it all so vividly. I enjoyed the full cast of characters and the importance each had to the story. It was a lovely journey

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.

Personally, I greatly struggled through this book. I felt the story dragged, I had very different opinions and views from the characters, and just wasn't pulled in and kept in. *NOTE* my opinions will most assuredly differ for many, so if you disagree that is ok, but please no rude comments, just keep scrolling, Thanks* I will say I gave it two stars since I was able to finish the book. It is very hard to write this review without giving any spoilers as there is a mystery aspect to it, and I don't want to give away any steps that solved this mystery. If you are a person who is emotionally driven, and allow your feelings and emotions to choose your fate, and paths in life, then I suspect you would enjoy this novel. I personally believe things DO happen for a reason (as God has ordained), and don't rely on my feelings, emotions, or gut to determine my outcomes in life. I think this story does give a good representation of what happens when you do allow those feelings and emotions to guide you through life in that you will find a lot of self-meaning, self-centered mindsets, self-victories, and life becomes mostly about you and the world you create and build with these emotions and feelings. I personally believe that my main purpose in life is to glorify God and enjoy him forever, that takes all self out, and finds meaning and reason through Christ and His purposes. I unfortunately had a hard time getting through this book additionally due to some language (*God-taken in vain). All that to say, this author has put out some great novels in the past, so I still hold hope that some of her novels I may enjoy. Thank you to NetGalley for the e-copy in exchange for my honest review and opinions.

If you are a lover of words and language, this book is for you. I also liked the author's book about Flora Lea. The descriptive writing of the Lake District and South Carolina was wonderfully done. I was surprised that is was based on a true story which is very interesting. Overall, it's a inspiring mysterious tale about a "lost" mother and daughter.

An exquisite, captivating amalgamation of time, place, and story. Again, Patti's words dance on the page and effortlessly draw us into a beautiful story. I cannot get over Patti's extreme talent to blend History with her imagination into a story that becomes part of you / you become part of the story while reading it. The characters were fascinating and I felt for them - honestly wished they could hear my cheers or receive my comfort - as they faced triumph and challenges.

THANK YOU, to Netgalley, Patti, and Atria for the opportunity to read and review this captivating work!

This book was wonderful! The descriptions of England were just beautiful and I was kept guessing until the very end! I really did not know how things would turn! Loved it so much!

This was such a beautifully written, atmospheric read. Patti Callahan Henry weaves together past and present in a way that feels both emotional and immersive. I loved the Southern setting, the layers of family secrets, and the slow unraveling of the truth. While it started a bit slow for me, once the story found its rhythm, I was fully hooked. The characters felt real and flawed, and I appreciated how grief, love, and legacy were explored throughout. A heartfelt story that sticks with you after the final page.

Definitely recommend if you enjoy dual timelines, family drama, and a touch of mystery woven into women’s fiction.

This story is about Clara Harrington and her mother, Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham- who was a renowned child prodigy that wrote a book about a secret language. She and her mom are very close and one day her mom just disappears into the night with her satchel containing the sequel to her book and is presumed dead. After 25 years, she receives a call from Charlie Jameson, a man living in London, who tells her that he has her mother's satchel and inside are the lost pages to her mother's book that he found in his father's library. Along with the lost pages, there is a note in her satchel with Clara's name on it. He tells her that his father's dying wish was for her to come to London to retrieve the lost pages in person; he can not send them to her. Having not lost hope to solve the mystery of her mother's disappearance, she and her daughter Wynnie- named for her mother, make the long journey to London.

In 1952, London suffered the Great Smog and the journey proves difficult for young Wynnie, who suffers from severe asthma. With the lost pages in hand and the letter that was in fact from Clara's mother, they all escape the peril in London and head to Charlie's country house to find clean air and ultimately unearth his family's secrets. Throughout their time together, they piece together the puzzle of how they are coincidentally connected to one another in ways that didn't seem possible. Charlie's family's estate feels new, yet familiar to both Clara and Wynnie and they need to figure out why.

This was a beautiful story about loss and the journey to find all the facets of love that exist, told in Patti Callahan's lyrical prose.

Special thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book and to Atria Books for allowing me the opportunity to review it.

Patti always finds unique stories to write! I love her writing style and how everything has such a subtle magical quality to it. This one started slow and I hope people don’t give up on it too quickly. I also wasn’t a fan of Wynnie (😬). But the love story woven in 😍🥰… a sweet read.

Enjoyed this very much and would love to visit England’s Lake District. The author’s last book was also quite good.

This was a wonderful story and one that I didn't want to end. Beautifully written with wonderful descriptions of the places where it takes place, South Carolina, London and the Lake district in England.
It has a bit of a romance, a mystery, a bit of magic Realism, a longing to find what one lost and new beginnings.
The story starts in1927, when eight-year-old Clara Harrington’s mother, author, Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham, disappears off the coast of South Carolina. Clara's Mother had written a book, at the age of 12, which had become very Popular. The sequel had been written in the mothers secret language , and the mother had a dictionary of her words, which disappeared with her. She had left Clara, and her husband, and was assumed dead.
Now in1952, Clara is a grown woman and an illustrator of children books, with a child of her own, Wynnie. When out of the blue,Charlie Jameson calls her from London claiming to have discovered a handwritten dictionary of her mother’s lost language, with a letter for her inside the satchel. Even though she doesn't know what to think, yet knowing if there is a chance of finding out what happened to her mother, she takes her daughter and leaves for London.
A lot will happen after this but is is worth the read to follow the journey yourself.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for a copy of this book.

An atmospheric story inspired by a real literary mystery, Clara goes in search of her mother, Bronwyn, a child prodigy who wrote a famous novel at the age of 12. As a young mother living in South Carolina, Bronwyn disappears in the middle of the night, abandoning her own 8 year old daughter, along with the novel's sequel, and a dictionary which would unlock the sequel's secret language known only to Bronwyn herself.

Twenty five years after her mother's disappearance, Clara, who has returned post-divorce to live in her childhood South Carolina home, receives a call that the dictionary has been found in a personal library in London. She bravely packs up her 8 year old daughter to find the truth about what happened to her mother, and to hopefully translate the sequel her mother finished before she deserted Clara and her father. What she uncovers will be unlike anything she anticipated. This is a story of mothers and daughters, family and loyalty, mental health and healing, and love and forgiveness. Written in Patti Callahan Henry's beautiful and magical prose, it is impossible not to be swept away by the story and the world of magical realism that she creates in the English countryside. The novel has a fairy tale like quality to it but a very satisfying adult ending. Thank you to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. Highly recommend!

Another great book by Patti Ccallahan Henry. I've read several by her, and one thing I always appreciate with every one of her stories and how she writes.

Inspired by true events, this is the story of Clara Harrington whose mother, a child prodigy and author, left without a trace when Clara was 8 years old. Now, years later and with her own daughter, she is trying to fill the whole that was left when her mother disappeared.

Patti weaves a story, where the setting is just as much a part of the story as the characters themselves. Whether in South Carolina along the bay or in the Lake District of England, you can feel the setting as you read, and the setting alows the characters to grow.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley and so glad I read this book.

Patti Callahan Henry is an author I enjoy, but this was just OK for me The central mystery element of the book was good but the pacing felt a bit slow. I'll keep reading her books but this was just not my favorite.
Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for my advanced review copy of this book.

THE STORY SHE LEFT BEHIND by Patti Callahan Henry

A story for all lexiphiles, logophiles and word lovers! Finding a word to describe a feeling, a mood or a situation is not always easy. What if there was a secret language to describe everything?

I was fully invested in Clara Harrington’s journey to solve the mystery of her mother’s disappearance. Clara and her daughter Wynnie’s relationship was so sweet and touching. I loved how Clara was so accepting of Wynnie’s unique personality and outlook on the world.

While I did feel there were more than a few unrealistic and/or convenient coincidences used to further the plot, the story itself was done well. The prose is beautifully descriptive, lyrical and evocative. And I now have new words to add to my personal collection of favorites; adorium, miraculum, enchantia!

Overall, a magical and heartwarming story about family, mother-daughter relationships, grief, loss, forgiveness, and the love of language and writing. Recommend for my fellow readers and writers!


Rating: 4/5 ⭐️

Pub Date: 03.18.25

**ARC courtesy of Netgalley & AtriaBooks

I loved this book! Patti has such an immersive writing style that makes you feel like you are there. I loved the mystery aspect and the beautiful setting. I felt like there was some disconnect in the dialogue but overall I loved it.

The Story she Left Behind a wonderful historical fiction/mystery. Such a well written book. Clara and Wynnie were great lovable characters I thoroughly enjoyed their journey. This book includes love, loss, forgiveness and so many secrets. Such a delight to read. Patti Callahan Henry writes some of the most beautiful books.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria for providing me with the arc in exchange for my honest review.