Name: Heather Harrington's review of The Last Heir to Blackwood Library by Hester Fox
Item: The Last Heir to Blackwood Library
Rating: 3.5
Author: Heather Harrington

Hester Fox

Weaves a spell of darkness that’s mysterious and magical, and binds it with a knot of deathless love. —New York Times bestselling author Susanna Kearsley An atmospheric and heartbreaking tale of loss, dark magic and the power of love, this brilliant book will stay with you long after the last page. —Constance Sayers, author of The Ladies of the Secret Circus In post–World War I England, a young woman inherits a mysterious library and must untangle its powerful secrets… With the stroke of a pen, twenty-three-year-old Ivy Radcliffe becomes Lady Hayworth, owner of a sprawling estate on the Yorkshire moors. Ivy has never heard of Blackwood Abbey, or of the ancient bloodline from which she’s descended. With nothing to keep her in London since losing her brother in the Great War, she warily makes her way to her new home. The abbey is foreboding, the servants reserved and suspicious. But there is a treasure waiting behind locked doors—a magnificent library. Despite cryptic warnings from the staff, Ivy feels irresistibly drawn to its dusty shelves, where familiar works mingle with strange, esoteric texts. And she senses something else in the library too, a presence that seems to have a will of its own. Rumors swirl in the village about the abbey’s previous owners, about ghosts and curses, and an enigmatic manuscript at the center of it all. And as events grow more sinister, it will be up to Ivy to uncover the library’s mysteries in order to reclaim her own story—before it vanishes forever. Lush, atmospheric and transporting, The Last Heir to Blackwood Library is a skillful reflection on memory and female agency, and a love letter to books from a writer at the height of her power.

The Last Heir to Blackwood Library

Heather Harrington

My favorite thing about any of Fox's books is the atmosphere. She has this way of transporting you to whatever time and place she's describing. Everything plays out like a movie in your head, and it's so compelling. I felt like I was in this big, sprawling abbey with Ivy searching for ghosts. I love books about books or libraries and loved how Fox made this one feel so sinister. You could feel the tension in the air every time Ivy walked into the room, and it made you want to keep reading to find out why. At times I felt I was missing chunks of the story, but that could've been deliberate, given what Ivy was going through and the effects the library had on her. Other than that, I thought this was a solid and enjoyable read, and I'd recommend it if you like Gothic-inspired, spooky reads.

Heather Harrington &
The Last Heir to Blackwood Library by Hester Fox

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Heather Harrington &The Last Heir to Blackwood Library by Hester Fox

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Heather Harrington &
The Last Heir to Blackwood Library by Hester Fox