Olivia Kavanaugh is at a turning point in her life. Her
grandfather has died, leaving her his bookstore,
Something Old, along with an old memoir. The memoir dates
back to 1917 and tells the story of two young girls,
Frances Griffiths and Elsie Wright, who allegedly
photographed fairies in their garden at Number 31, Main
Street in Cottingley. Olivia is spellbound by their tale,
and digs into the memoir as she is drawn into a story
that entranced an entire nation. Can Olivia's interest in
the Cottingley fairies help her rediscover herself?
THE COTTINGLEY SECRET seamlessly weaves back and forth
between past and present, as we see Olivia's own story
unfolding even as she is reading the memoir about Frances
and Elsie. THE COTTINGLEY SECRET is one of those rare
books where both storylines are equally fascinating.
Hazel Gaynor does a beautiful job with both the story
transitions and the pacing as there were none of those
frustrating moments where I wanted to skip ahead.
Instead, I settled in and relished the journey.
And oh, the characters in THE COTTINGLEY SECRET are
absolutely delightful! I love watching Olivia's personal
growth as she learns to stand on her own two feet rather
than relying solely on what others expect her to be. I'm
a bit partial to Frances, however, as it was the tie in
to fairies and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that hooked me on
the blurb for THE COTTINGLEY SECRET. Frances is
imaginative, inquisitive, and a pure joy to read about as
she copes with the war filling the news and keeping her
daddy away from home. I couldn't help but love Frances as
her hope and joy at the sight of fairies permeates the
pages.
Hazel Gaynor juxtaposes an adult's self-realization
journey with an imaginative and bright young girl's tale
of fairies, creating a magical tale that is practically
impossible to put down. Hazel Gaynor is quickly becoming
an author I must read as she has a gift at bringing tiny
pieces of the past to vivid life. THE COTTINGLEY SECRET
is a beautiful, enchanting story of hope, love, and
fairies that is easily one of the best books I've read
yet this year.
The New York Times bestselling author of The
Girl Who Came Home turns the clock back one hundred
years to a time when two young girls from Cottingley,
Yorkshire, convinced the world that they had done the
impossible and photographed fairies in their garden. Now, in
her newest novel, international bestseller Hazel Gaynor
reimagines their story.
1917… It was inexplicable, impossible, but it had
to be true—didn’t it? When two young cousins, Frances
Griffiths and Elsie Wright from Cottingley, England, claim
to have photographed fairies at the bottom of the garden,
their parents are astonished. But when one of the great
novelists of the time, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, becomes
convinced of the photographs’ authenticity, the girls become
a national sensation, their discovery offering hope to those
longing for something to believe in amid a world ravaged by
war. Frances and Elsie will hide their secret for many
decades. But Frances longs for the truth to be told.
One hundred years later… When Olivia Kavanagh finds
an old manuscript in her late grandfather’s bookshop she
becomes fascinated by the story it tells of two young girls
who mystified the world. But it is the discovery of an old
photograph that leads her to realize how the fairy girls’
lives intertwine with hers, connecting past to present, and
blurring her understanding of what is real and what is
imagined. As she begins to understand why a nation once
believed in fairies, can Olivia find a way to believe in
herself?
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