This book was just what I never knew I wanted. Books about books are always up my alley and this one takes place in a library as well. Bonus! The use of the library and references to historical literature were a huge plus.

Davis's writing is lovely. It felt natural, yet highly imbued with detail and historical content. The dual timeline was fun and well-woven. It kept things interesting. There were slight moments when I did get my timelines and characters confused, but things generally straightened out fairly quickly due to Davis's knack for including context detail that immediately clued me in to the time period.

The characters were fun and I particularly enjoyed seeing Laura's character development throughout the narrative arc. I love reading books with strong female characters and both Laura and Sadie felt like they traveled the path to being stronger from start to end. It was a good progression that felt natural and rewarding.

I LOVED the setting and the time periods used. I have a fascination with the early 20th century and this narrative brought in so much of the historical content, especially focusing on the budding feminist movement of the area.

The tension throughout the plot was fairly well handled. It didn't feel over-the-top, but there was clear pressure on the characters that came through the narrative. The big mysteries of the plot were well-hidden with decently intriguing reveals. There were pieces that were predictable, but not in an overly irritating way.

The romantic elements in both timelines were somewhat awkward, with Laura's feeling a bit too obvious and Sadie's feeling somewhat forced. I didn't seriously mind either, but I do think the story could have been perfectly fine had they not been parts of the plot. For me they just detracted from the story and the intrigue.

Ah, the ending. It was very well handled. I admittedly left the story wanting more, but mostly in a good way. This is typically a sign for me that the author has done the perfect job wrapping things up while letting the reader envision beyond the ending. The big questions were answered and there really weren't any loose ends. I just liked the characters and particularly enjoyed the setting...I wanted to move right in to this book.