Review: The Vanishing Bookstore

Title: The Vanishing Bookstore
Series: Stand Alone
Author: Helen Phifer
Illustrator: N/A
Publish Date: January 7, 2025
Publisher: Bookouture
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery
Age: 16 +
Started Reading: January 2, 2025
Finished Reading: January 18, 2025
NetGalley?: Yes 

Book Summary from Goodreads:

‘Every story needs a happy ending. And you can’t have yours until you find the bookstore.’

1692. On the outskirts of Salem, a bookstore stands covered in overgrown vines. Inside, a young woman hides a linen-wrapped journal under a loose floorboard and runs away, panicked by the sound of hounds barking in the distance. The bookstore vanishes into thin air…

Present day. Stepping inside a pale-pink house on one of the oldest streets in Salem, Dora can’t believe she’s about to finally meet the mother she thought died tragically when she was just a child. But the excitement is short-lived. Dora’s mother has fear in her eyes, and with a trembling voice she ‘my life is in danger, and now so is yours…’

Desperate not to lose her mother all over again, Dora digs into her family’s mysterious past, and stumbles upon a seemingly impossible secret: the key to their survival is hidden in a bookstore that no one has seen for generations.

Losing herself amongst thorny brackens and twisted ferns, Dora eventually finds the path that leads to the bookstore. But someone is watching her. They’ve been waiting for her.

As she pushes open the beautiful blue door hidden amongst the sharp brambles, and stands in front of rows of crumbling leatherbound books with faded pages, she has no idea of the secrets she is about to uncover. Or that her life is in more danger than ever before…

My Two Cents:

Goodreads Rating: 4 Stars

This was a really interesting book for someone who went through a Salem Witch Trials phase as a teenager. Taking very real facts, and in some cases people, and working fiction around it is a fine line to follow without falling over. I think this book did a good job of it! The story was fun without being too over the top, it didn't push the facts too much, even with multiple lives and an immortal witch hunter. The hopping back and forth through the timelines was handled well, telling the story without being too confusing, leaving just enough questions needing answered to keep you going. I did find myself somewhat wanting with the explanation of the curse that was the thing that started the whole plot. In fact, I felt that the 'curse' that as referenced many times in the story was kind of forgotten and a completely different explanation was given for what was happening.

I listened to the audiobook of this, and for the most part it was fantastic. The variety of voices was well done, and the narration was clear and even soothing. My main issue is likely a director decision, but it's a big issue that kept bugging me. In this 'lifetime' the FL grew up in London, England from the time she was a few weeks old. A number of times characters remark that she's British, clearly reflecting a British accent, however, and possibly so that the accent didn't change between lifetimes, the character is read with an American accent. It's not a deal breaker, but it was something I found a bit jarring with the text.

All told, I really enjoyed this book, much more than I initially thought I would. I think if I were to pick it up to read again, I'd get the text format to avoid the dissonance of the accent. I listened to this audiobook through NetGalley.

To Sum Up: A interesting, suspenseful, and fun story, but possibly better read than listened due to an accent issue.