Behind Love's Wall by Carrie Fancett Pagels Review

 Happy Friday Friends :)

I pray today finds you well, and that you're all looking forward to the weekend.

I feel like this is another week where there have been so many tragedies affecting so many different families, regions, and cultures, and my thoughts and prayers are with each and every one. 

I want to thank you all for joining me today for another book review here on The Preppy Book Princess, and I'm excited to share another review with you all of an upcoming Christian fiction release.

With the scary times we are living in, I think it's more important than ever to read books that focus on faith and Christ, and I'm excited to share with you all the newest title of one of my favorite series from this year.

I fell head over heels for the Doors to the Past series from the moment I read the first (to me) title, and I've loved every installment ever since.

If you'd like to check out my reviews of some of the previous titles in the series, use the links below:

Bridge of Gold by Kimberley Woodhouse

Undercurrent of Secrets by Rachel Scott McDaniel

Behind Love's Wall by Carrie Fancett Pagels:

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

Publisher: Barbour

Publication Date: November 1st, 2021

Genre: Christian Fiction/Historical Fiction/Contemporary/Dual Timeline

Series: Doors to the Past

Synopsis:

The Grand Hotel Slowly Reveals Her Secrets

Visit historic American landmarks through the Doors to the Past series. History and today collide in stories full of mystery, intrigue, faith, and romance.

Two successful women, a hundred-and-twenty-years apart, build walls to protect their hearts. Modern-day Willa, a successful interior decorator, is chosen to consult for the Grand Hotel’s possible redesign. She discovers a journal detailing the struggles of a young woman, Lily—which reveals dark secrets. The renowned singer wasn’t who she pretended to be. As Willa reaches out to Lily’s descendant, a charismatic and prominent landscape artist, she lets down her guard. Should she share the journal with him, or once again erect a wall as she struggles to redesign both the Grand and her life? 

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

As someone who has been a huge fan of the Doors to the Past series, and as someone who has recently become quite fascinated with Mackinac Island, it's no secret that I couldn't wait to dive into this one. The synopsis had me intrigued, and I love dual timeline novels, so I had a feeling I was really going to end up enjoying this one.

I want to start off by saying I personally loved the fact that the author chose to set this book around the COVID 19 pandemic. It was kind of refreshing to read a story about the characters encountering everything that we're currently going through in the real world, and it definitely made me appreciate the story that much more.

I also really enjoyed the way that the dual time is set up, and I ended up really liking both Willa and Lily as characters. Lily has landed a job at the famous Grand Hotel in 1895 as an evening singer, and struggles with trying to keep the horrid secrets from her past from everything happening in the present, especially her budding relationship with the hotel's psychiatrist. In the present day, famous designer Willa is traveling to the Grand Hotel on a much needed assignment to help them redesign a long since neglected room. In the midst of the pandemic, and amongst the many secrets from her childhood that have kept her away from her home community, Willa seems to keep receiving more questions than answers as she tries to navigate everything, including a promising budding romance with a local landscaper.

I always appreciate an author that can make two completely different timelines equally interesting to the reader, and I was pretty impressed with my first experience with one of Carrie Fancett Pagels' novels. I loved the included history about the Grand Hotel and Mackinac Island itself, and I loved how both romances are slow burn, and the many faith elements sprinkled throughout.

Honestly, the only thing that kept this one from being a five star read for me was the fact that I found the resolution to the multiple mysteries was extremely convoluted and hard to muddle through. So many characters are involved throughout the course of the story, and I had to read the last few chapters multiple times to try and figure out what was actually going on.  

Other than that, I really enjoyed this one, and think it's a great addition to the Doors to the Past series, although it's definitely not my favorite from the series.

Final Rating: 4/5.

Thanks so much to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to advance read and review this.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Barbour) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks so much for reading guys! I hope you all have a great weekend :)