I loved the story line. The connection to secrets hidden in dollhouses, the history and research put into the story, the time and patience that goes into building. I truly thought it was incredibly well done. It switched between different POV and timelines, yet I was never confused and I found that the book moved seamlessly and perfectly. It was easy to differentiate the characters and timelines. It was a quick read - I switched between audio and ebook and both were enjoyable. My only complaint is that the story was so focused on the dollhouses, both past and present, that I felt like I did not get enough from the characters' stories. It felt very flat and surface level... and I wish there was a better balance of the two. Overall, a quick and enjoyable read! 
Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copy.

Cora Hart was an artist who found her specialty building intricate dollhouses that often held secrets about their owners. Nearly 100 years later, Tildy who works at a library in San Francisco finds a secret room with two dollhouses inside. As she investigates and tries to learn about these dollhouses and their creators and owners, many fascinating secrets are revealed. Great story and so unique,

I listened to the audio version and read the book. Absolutely loved it. I loved the history and the vivid descriptions of the beautiful dollhouses. The description of them allows you to envision them in your head. I liked the characters and the setting of the old library building. Just so much history in here and beautiful descriptions.
I recommend both the audiobook version and the written one. Amazing book and a super creative idea from the author.

I didn't even know that I would find miniatures and dollhouses to be an interesting topic for a book, but somehow the stories of what Cora crafted into her dollhouses, and the life she lived before, during, and after these years, was fascinating. The connections to the present, and Tildy's search for the dollhouses' history and their maker's story (and its connections to her enigmatic late mother's history) was a good complement.

I wasn't certain what I expected when I picked up The Library of Lost dollhouses, however the story was so much more emotional and information than anticipated and I loved it. You won't get any supernatural or magical realism, but you will get a bit of a love story woven into a narrative about fierce, intelligent women in history who made their own contributions to the arts.

We meet Tildy who is the head curator of a small library in San Francisco, however the library has fallen out of the public's interest and is struggling financially. Yet one day, Tildy is n a storage room and discovers a hidden space with two intricate and exquisite dollhouses which has been hidden away for most of their existence. She starts to wander down the rabbit hole of the creator, Cora Hart, and who she was as an artist as well as how she ties into the life of Belva LeFarge, the heiress who established the library with the dollhouses.

the story is wonderfully woven and I loved the idea these women existed in history in some way. The author's afterword helps the reader understand that though the story is ultimately fiction, many of the characters references within are based loosely on true women in history. Once I finished the story, I wanted to know more about the real women who inspired this story. This historical fiction hit me in all the right places to make me feel connected to the story and people. I was fully invested in their story though the end.

Tildy Barrows, Head Curator of a beautiful archival library in San Francisco. She accidentally comes across a hidden door and discovers two never before seen dollhouses. This send Tildy on a hunt to discover their history and possibly save her library.

Tildy is a bit of a mouse at first. But let me tell you, before this story is over, she roars. She is determined to find out about the history surrounding these doll houses and how her own mother’s picture is in one.

Y’all know I love a book with secrets and this novel is full of them. Not only that…she has STRONG women characters that you will want to know more about. This story had me researching because not only does it have great women it is full of history!

I have read one other book by this author, Fast Girls. I highly recommend that one as well!

Need a novel full of secrets and great female characters…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

5 Stars!

Thank you to William Morrow for the ARC of this book on NetGalley! All opinions in this review are my own.

Tildy works as the Head Curator at a library in the Beaux Art building, and her life takes an expected turn when she discovers some never-before-seen dollhouses, and learns the library is on the brink of bankruptcy. Upon discovering the dollhouses, Tildy and the library reach out to the public for more information, and Tildy starts to learn her family history is connected to the Beaux Art building in ways she never anticipated. This story is told from two different time periods, with Tildy in present day, and Cora, our other narrator and creator of the houses, from pre-WWI to the 1970s.

What drew me into this book and made me request the ARC was that I grew up with a beloved dollhouse my grandpa built for me. Since then, I’ve had a love of miniatures and historic dollhouses, so I felt I could relate to Tildy’s passion for learning more about the houses in this book. This book was so much more than I thought it would be, and I absolutely loved it! I loved learning the history of dollhouses woven through the story, from trying to bring joy to a town, and telling one's personal history through the houses.

What I loved most about this book was that it was a story of uncovering a woman’s talent who had been forgotten to history, while also revisiting history that might be difficult to share and setting the record straight. History, especially family history, can be messy and complicated, but Tildy faces these issues head on and works to correct the story to remember talented women like Cora.

The Library of Lost Dollhouses: A Novel by Elise Hooper, is a Women’s Historical Fiction Novel. Covering the span of a century, it depicts how these commissioned doll houses contain the hidden stories of the women depicted in the book.

In addition to the book, I had the good fortune to be able to listen to the book simultaneously as well. Narrated by Emily Rankin and Caroline Hewitt, both voices clearly identified the POVs in the book and allowed the listener to be able to easily identify which timeline they were in.

Thank you to William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks and HarperAudio Adult | HarperAudio for the opportunity to read the eARC and listen to the ALC. All opinions are my own.


Print book Rating: 4 Stars
Audible book Rating: 5 stars
Pub Date: May 20 2025

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#WilliamMorrow
#HarperAudio
#TheLibraryofLostDollhouses
#Elsie Hooper
#EmilyRankin
#CarolineHewit
#YarisBookNook
#netgalley

The Library of Lost Dollhouses by Elise Hopper is a captivating blend of mystery, nostalgia, and emotional depth. The story revolves around dollhouses that hold secrets of the past, with each one acting as a key to unraveling family mysteries. Hopper’s evocative writing brings the world and characters to life, creating a perfect balance between tension and heartfelt moments.

The pacing is just right, with unexpected twists that kept me hooked, and the themes of memory, loss, and healing are explored beautifully. A big thank you to Harper Collins and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC and audiobook, which added an extra layer to the experience.

If you enjoy family sagas with a touch of the supernatural, this book is definitely worth reading.

My favorite kind of historical fiction is the kind where you learn something new about untold or under appreciated stories. There are many of these in the market, but The Library of Lost Dollhouses is a cut above most of them. It grabbed me right by the imagination. This book brought some of my main passions together: libraries, strong women, art and intrigue.

We first meet Tildy, a curator in a library of art and books based loosely on the Isabelle Stewart Gardner Museum, which, like the Belva Curtis LaFarge Library (“The Bel”), in this book, was founded by and nurtured over many years by an extraordinary woman. One day, Tildy discovers a secret compartment in the building, which houses a pair of beautiful art dollhouses full of miniatures. She is shocked to discover that each of these works also has a secret code of sorts built into the construction (painted into the wallpaper, for example). Of course Tildy needs to track down the history of these works.

In alternate chapters, we follow the story of Cora Hart, the creator of the dollhouses, and learn her story in the form of a diary written for her daughter before her death. The mysteries surrounding the dollhouses is revealed in Cora's first person as Tildy uncovers more and more information about the dollhouses and, coincidentally, her own family.

I loved the characters in this story, but the main attraction for me was the description of the art of dollhouse making and Cora's process. These dollhouses are not like Barbie's Dream House, they are constructed to tell a story, not for play. As a miniaturist, Cora needs to tell her story in extremely small spaces: a portrait the size of a thumbnail, a scarf less than an inch long. Often, she was hiding secrets that the commissioners wanted to memorialize but keep hidden from someone. The art and the stories were absolutely fascinating. Hooper writes with a sure hand about artistic process, which is very hard for a non-artist to get right (I wasn't surprised to find in the author's notes that Hooper has some personal experience with miniatures).

I'm looking forward to recommending this book to all of my bookish and artistic friends. Many thanks to William Morrow and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to William Morrow/Harper Collins and NetGalley for an advance readers copy.

This gentle and ingenious mystery is about identities, secrets, lies, and relationships between exceptional women in the early 20th century. An alternating, current timeline focuses on discovering these secrets and deciding what to do with them.

In 2024, Tildy Barrows, 34 and single, is the devoted Head Curator of the Belva Curtis LaFarge Library (“The Bel”), in San Francisco, a repository of art and books that also serves as a community center for learning and bringing people together. One day Tildy finds a secret room in the founder’s former living quarters, and within it, two exceptional miniature houses from the early 20th century.

Nothing is known about these small masterpieces, and with the Bel in serious financial straits, Tildy sets out to see if the houses and their histories can provide the basis for an important and unusual exhibition.

Early in the book we also are introduced to Cora Hale, a 17-year-old arriving in Paris, France, in 1910. While Tildy’s chapters are in the third person, Cora’s are in the first, so she is speaking directly to us. Unfortunately, her early chapters seem rather melodramatic, with Cora repeatedly referring to some terrible indiscretion that has exiled her from her native New York, but never explaining it. She seems rather world-weary and even jaded for a 17-year-old, who also is supposed to be a talented portraitist, with no art to show.

The book is delightful in its depictions of the miniatures Cora starts to create, and their development into ways to record secrets of the women for whom they are made. Cora presents the dollhouses as a different kind of portrait, more multidimensional. There are several love stories between women, the hidden life of a Black woman cryptologist during WWII whose codes are turned into the pattern of tiny wallpaper, and more. Women’s strength, agency, and control are major themes. There also are ethical issues about the consequences of revealing truths that were concealed to protect people.

This is a five-star story, but the four-star rating is because of the melodrama in Cora’s entries, and some confusion about when Tildy learns the secrets which she struggles to both hide and honor.

I absolutely loved this book! I was invested in the characters, in the mystery, in the doll houses - I loved it all. As with most mysteries, I will leave my review here as I don't want to rob readers of the delicious twists that make you unable to put this book down. I read in one sitting! Highly recommend!

5.0

As I neared the end of this book, I could not stop thinking about how I could write a review worthy of this mesmerizing novel.

The story incorporates several variations of two themes: To trust in and appreciate those we love while we have them and honoring the unrecognized and incalculable contributions made by women (but credited to men) throughout history.

This book is so creative and it was interesting to read the author’s note telling how she came up with the idea and how she fed her imagination until it was fully formed. There were numerous times while reading “The Library of Lost Dollhouses” when I could not help but feel the creative energy and the itch to investigate potential projects of my own. I am glad I knew nothing about the apparent influx of dollhouse postings on Instagram over the last few years. Though I have found the willpower to first write down my impressions of this book, it is a dead heat of inner turmoil as to whether I will dive into beaded Kumihimo (an expansion of one of my own pandemic pastimes) next or fall down a dollhouse-and-miniatures rabbit hole on Instagram.

I will admit that this book was relegated to the bottom of the reading proverbial pile in preference to familiar authors and continuing storylines. Perhaps that is a good thing because the high standard set by a collection of unbelievable dollhouses will cast a long shadow for many books to come.

Though I am typically not a fan of the dual timelines, this is one of several recently that has captured my esteem. I also realized that the typical unrealistic or overlooked details were not an irritation throughout this book. That novelty alone is worthy of high praise!

Thank you to Elise Hooper, NetGalley, and William Morrow for providing me with a free advanced copy of this ebook for my unbiased review.

#TheLibraryofLostDollhouses #NetGalley #dollhouse #miniature #amazingwomen #novel #book

I know when I pick up an Elise Hooper novel, I am going to get an engaging and fascinating historical fiction. This one is dual timelines, between past and present, and I was fully engaged in both Tildy and Cora's POV. I loved how this story story was structured around dollhouses and miniatures. These artistic endeavors took so much passion and finesse. It was so much fun to spend time in this world learning about something I knew not much about. Her characters had such great depth and tenacity, and I rooted for both of them. This would be a great novel for those that love historical fiction yet want a topic that there's not many fiction books about. I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Thank you to Harper Collins and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC. It’s been a while since I’ve read a historical fiction and I forgot how much I adored them. I felt like this was so unexpected for me and I loved reading about Cora and the women she designed dollhouses for. I also loved the cameos from real people to make it seem that much more realistic. I will say, I don’t know if loved jumping back and forth into Tildy’s life and her timeline. I think ultimately it made for a really fun story but I almost wish it was just the story of Cora. I enjoyed that the book stretched across so much time (WWI, WWII, current time), I’d highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a historical fiction that’s a bit different than your average historical fiction.

This book has quite literally everything: large scale miniatures, women with big secrets, Walt Disney, at least three love stories, the power of the library, and a look at the roles women took during the world wars!!

A story told in two timelines of a librarian uncovering the secrets of an artist/carpenter/designer with apparent ties to her late mother. While both stories were good, I was absolutely captivated with the the story of the artist, Cora, and her lifetime of making these incredible dollhouses. She was resilient, creative, gentle, and so very clever- with a huge heart for sharing love with those that need it most. The slow unraveling of her history overlaid with the wars was compelling, and I found myself wanting to just spend more time with her!!

Thanks so much to Elise Hooper, William Morrow, and NetGalley for a chance to read this in exchange for an honest review!

2024 San Francisco - Tildy is a libriarian who loves and knows every inch of "her" library until one day she finds a hidden room with an incredibly detailed dollhouse....and a bit of a personal mystery. This story line set-up had me ready for a great book. However, with the changing POV's from early 1900's to present day and quite a few characters, it felt like I never fully connected with any of the characters and it took away from the mystery. There is also a relationship in the book that felt disconnected with the story (reminded me of The Lions of Fifth Avenue). I did enjoy the history behind these dollhouses and the post-war era quite a bit.

My thanks to Net Galley, William Morrow and Harper Audio for advanced copies of this e-book and audiobook.

*I ended up reading the audio version of this novel and wrote this review:

The Library of Lost Dollhouses is a wonderful multi-timeline story that centers on a fictitious library/museum in San Francisco, housed in a Beaux Arts Building, the Belva Curtis Lefarge Library. Belva Lefarge founded the library and lived on the top floor after her home burned down. The nickname of the library is, "the Bel." A Prologue sets the stage for why the dollhouses are important as we find ourselves in the workshop of the artist, an unnamed woman, who designs and constructs them with minute attention to detail and a secret story or information that the owner wants known but not publicized. Each house we learn about in the story has exquisite miniatures and interior architectural features made exactly to scale.

Initially,, we meet Tildy Barrows in 2024. She is one of the two protagonists in the timelines. She's the curator at the "Bel," second in line to the Director. She knows they are in serious financial trouble due to the period the Bel was shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic and to an issue with an embezzler. The building has some very, very valuable things that might save it, including a masterpiece painting that Belva purchased from the Metropolitan Museum in New York many years ago. but an unexpected repair issue makes it doubtful it will yield enough to save the Bel.

While Tildy is working on the apartment floor with clothing that was in disarray from some impudent children, she discovers a door within the clothes/storage closet that leads to two large dollhouses, one the home Belva lived in while she was married and living in Paris in the early years of her marriage. This covers the period around 1910 when a young woman artist, Cora Hale, age 17, arrives in France, seeking a room at a women's residence, "Curtis House." The somewhat fractious manager explains that they are full up and that Cora should have had the room reserved before she arrived in Paris. That was not an option, as Cora considers herself a "ruined" woman in New York and she fled for Paris as an exile. Belva, a young married woman with a son is the founder of Curtis House and she is nearby when Cora is pleading her case. This leads to her reminding the manager/housemother of an upcoming vacancy and she offers Cora a room for the night. Over time, they get to know each other well and there is great mutual respect. It is one of a mentor/employer (Belva) who encourages Cora's work as an art instructor and also seeks to have Cora spend time on her own art creation. For some reason, she believes that painting is no longer an option for her, despite her training and talent.

At this point, everything else would involve spoilers, so I would say only that Cora discovers a new potential art form, creating dollhouses that are "portraits" of their owners, with significant choices about what is included and extra information hidden to tell the owners' stories. The novel takes us to other parts of Europe during WWI, with Tildy trying to learn the history of Belva's two dollhouses and Cora making her way through life on her eventual return to the United States. There is a fun part in England that involves a rehabilitation location for wounded servicemen and a Duchess who loves the dollhouse Cora made for Belva. Throughout, we wonder about and learn about the scandal that drove Cora from New York, about other clients/friends who commissioned their own unique dollhouses and their stories, about some mysteries in Tildy's life that help her understand her mother who had a very hard life and expressed some memorable things to Tildy about the Bel when she went there on a field trip at 10 and later when she was looking for work after earning her graduate degrees.

I read the novel on audio, narrated beautifully by Emily Rankin and Caroline Hewitt. I found the pace perfect and the stories all important to explain the lives and work of Tildy and Cora and the resolution of their initially unexplained sorrows. The stories in the dollhouses are either very, very personal information on the owner's intimate lives or would divulge very, very confidential information they have no right to publicize. I found them all interesting and the pace of the book just right. While the characters are all interesting, the plot and life stories are more up front than their inner voices. But they are definitely three-dimensional. I liked the writing very much. 4.5 rounded up.

THE LIBRARY OF LOST DOLLHOUSES by Elise Hooper shares the stories of Tildy, a young librarian living in present day San Francisco, and Cora, a talented artist who lived in the early twentieth century. Their connection is the Belva Curtis LeFarge Library where Tildy discovers two long hidden dollhouses. As the alternating stories enfold, readers learn about Cora's early life, travels in Europe, love affairs with both men and women, and her time during and after World War I when she began creating the miniatures. Although the story is sometimes a bit too slow-paced, Hooper certainly motivates her readers to reflect on the contributions of little recognized female artists (for a novel with a similar theme, see Clara and Mr. Tiffany by Vreeland). For me, the best part of Hooper's book was the description of the intricate, detailed work on the dollhouses and their contents. Both the Thorne Rooms (on display in Chicago) and Queen Mary’s Dolls' House (near London) are mentioned in the book and Hooper explains that "there's actually a psychological rationale to explain our affinity for small things: dollhouses offer us a sense of control and imagination. They can provide a feeling of agency. Miniatures allow us to create the world as we'd like to see it." THE LIBRARY OF LOST DOLLHOUSES is a bonus fiction pick for LibraryReads in April 2025. Booklist recommends it for fans of Kate Morton and Fiona Davis.

Links:
https://www.artic.edu/highlights/12/thorne-miniature-rooms
https://www.rct.uk/collection/stories/queen-marys-dolls-house

I thought this was a well written book. It’s told with dual timelines, each was really interesting. So many hidden stories inside each miniature. I was wishing I could see them all.