THE LITTLE SHOP OF FOUND THINGS Review

New York Times bestselling author of The Witch's Daughter Paula Brackston returns to her trademark blend of magic and romance guaranteed to enchant in The Little Shop of Found Things, the first book in a new continuing series.

An antique shop haunted by a ghost.
A silver treasure with an injustice in its story.
An adventure to the past she’ll never forget.

Xanthe and her mother Flora leave London behind for a fresh start, taking over an antique shop in the historic town of Marlborough. Xanthe has always had an affinity with some of the antiques she finds. When she touches them, she can sense something of the past they come from and the stories they hold. When she has an intense connection to a beautiful silver chatelaine she has to know more.

It is while she’s examining the chatelaine that she’s transported back to the seventeenth century where it has its origins. She discovers there is an injustice in its history. The spirit that inhabits her new home confronts her and charges her with saving her daughter’s life, threatening to take Flora’s if she fails.

While Xanthe fights to save the girl amid the turbulent days of 1605, she meets architect Samuel Appleby. He may be the person who can help her succeed. He may also be the reason she can’t bring herself to leave. (Synopsis from Amazon)

The way the chatelaine speaks to Xanthe combined with the hateful ghost and the danger surrounding her and her mother, THE LITTLE SHOP OF FOUND THINGS reminded me a bit of an old TV show based on cursed objects in an antique shop.  If you ever watched the show and decided to read THE LITTLE SHOP OF FOUND THINGS, please let me know if it struck you the same.

My thoughts.....3.5 stars

Xanthe inadvertently becomes a time traveler after purchasing a chatelaine at an estate sale. Things speak to Xanthe and the chatelaine was practically screaming. Once she brings it home, an antique shop with flat above purchased with her mom, the chatelaine teams with a malevolent spirit and a seventeenth century jail in their back garden to compel Xanthe into the past. 

Her mission, if she wishes her mom to remain safe, is to save the life of a young housemaid in 1605.

THE LITTLE SHOP OF FOUND THINGS is about the love between a mother and daughter and the lengths they're willing to go to for each other. It's also a time travel tale, strong on history and adventure with a light smattering of romance. 

There was a period when it appeared that current social justice standards would be applied to the past and the housemaid's plight, fortunately that was short lived. 

Often in time travel there's the conundrum of change the past/change the future; unless it's based on changing/preventing a future event. Xanthe's circumstances don't allow for such niceties.

THE LITTLE SHOP OF FOUND THINGS centers on a loving relationship between a mother and daughter, the sacrifices we can be called upon to make, and features a resourceful, slightly prickly heroine. Xanthe can't accomplish her task alone, but any romance takes a backseat making the story stronger and more appealing. 

I can't help but wonder what Xanthe will get up to next and will she and Samuel ever meet again?