Book review: Alexandra Barber’s The Sanctuary Keepers. Thank you to Storm Publishing and the author for the gifted copy.

This story completely swept me away. From the moment Carrie Adams arrived at the Isle of Wight, I felt the hush she craved and the ache of everything she left behind. Alexandra Barber’s prose is tender but unflinching, and The Sanctuary Keepers doesn’t shy away from grief, loneliness, or the slow, uneven road to healing. Hideaway House felt like a character in itself, breathing with its own memories, waiting for someone like Carrie to listen. Barber doesn’t force the magic—she lets it unfold in quiet moments: the brush of wind through a doorway, a discovered object, the gentle rhythm of trust returning.

The supporting cast is perfectly drawn. Rita, warm and intuitive, is the kind of woman you wish existed in your own life. The Major’s sorrow is steeped in silence, but he offers unexpected kindness when it counts. And then there’s Guy—so understated, so steady—that I found myself rooting for him without realizing it. Their connection doesn’t spark with fireworks; it grows like ivy—slow, winding, and impossible to ignore.

The real emotional punch comes from the house’s secrets. Barber balances two timelines without ever losing focus, weaving the past into the present in a way that never feels forced. I was just as invested in the family that once lived there as I was in Carrie’s own journey. There’s something quietly devastating about a promise left hanging for decades, and the payoff, when it comes, is worth every aching step.

This book is for anyone who’s ever needed to start over, who knows the weight of sorrow but still hopes for something better. It reminded me that peace doesn’t always arrive with a crash—it sometimes seeps in through the cracks when you’re finally still enough to feel it.