🥰 An audiobook review

The Little Shop of Found Things

5 + ( I give + to the books I will rerad each year in a season because they revert me to a state of mind or joy that helps with my mental health. )

First: confession, I grabbed a copy of this one because of the blue cover but I stayed for Xanthe and Alice's plight.

What a beautiful historical fiction (mystery) it has an Outlander-kind of portal adventure. A ghost in the character's modern time forces her to go back and save her daughter. It's a life-or-death situation both for Alice in the past and for Xanthe for the ghost is so exasperated she will threaten the Xanthe's mom.

Forced to go back to the 1600s she will join a house as a maid and minstrel trying to clear Alice's name. Alice is determined to accept her fate and be condemned and killed for stealing when her crime is a secret much different one she prefers to die for. I love the main character and how she relates to the others, kinda made me rematch La Cocinera de Castamar, although this one is not a portal story.

We can see many historical references to that time period, how terrible the society and laws were to women, and how some are still very in vogue and common practices. The romance on the side is sweet and helps to rebuild hope and trust lost in men.

The book and audio are fairly middle pace making it a satisfying immerse journey. I will revert to this series whenever I need a cozy journey.

The others I've posted aboit before here are some highlights:

#thiskingdomwillnotkillme A reader wakes up inside her favorite book series. Her power? She knows the plot by heart and will use it to her advantage. This may be the first time I loved a Portal Fantasy from page 1 to the last.

#theroadisalsoawall What if scholars discovered alien life and studied their way of living but these scholars are aliens and who they discover is humankind? Very niche read, a level up from anthropomorphic critters as characters. These tentacled scholars will try to understand humanity on many levels while dealing with their own relationships. No humor, more of an introspection on gender, value, and existence.