.st0{fill:#FFFFFF;}

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow 

By  BookishBearx

In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place.

Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January is a young adult, historical fiction novel that has fantasy themes throughout. Covering topics of relationships, social status, race, gender and also different worlds and times. It was published back in 2019 by Redhook and it was recommended to me by a friend and colleague after I read The Once and Future Witches also by the same author.

As I read this book, I found myself wanting to love it in the same way as I loved The Once and Future Witches. But I didn’t, because it is just a completely different book. But, that was on me. Once I grasped that these books were very different I soon fell in love with the characters that The Ten Thousand Doors of January has to offer. I specifically loved January herself. I loved that she stayed strong throughout her whole life, despite many troubles and losses that had befallen her. I loved that she never lost her spirit, even when she was told she should because she was a woman, and more so because she was white and orphaned. She didn’t listen. She didn’t change who she was, instead she rose up and chased her dream and set out to find her true place and family once again.

This book truly magical. It is uplifting and heart warming. It makes you remember how truly special stories are and the love of true friends and family. I also loved how Alix created another handful of strong, independent female characters. They all differed so much to the other book I read by her but they are all strong and inspiring. I love that and I love the strong sense of feminism and celebration of strong women that she has in her stories.

I found myself so drawn into the story and I got a little lost in it. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next. I definitely would recommend this book. I am so thankful that my friend introduced it to me, and I am so happy I gave it ago. I think people who liked books like The Starless Sea may get on with this book well, as it is similar in the sense that there are these magical worlds that we get to learn about. Also if you just want some kick ass strong female characters you’ll love this one too!

Overall, I loved the book. I would 100% recommend reading it. I might now be an Alix E Harrow fan girl, but who cares? Not me, that’s for sure. Amazing writer, amazing book.

Subscribe to our newsletter now!