Series: Standalone

Genre: LGBT (f/f), Fantasy, Romance

Rating: 3/5 stars

Cover: I really like it.

Buy: Ylva, Amazon

Trigger warnings: depression, suicide attempt

Description: At the back of her grandmother’s closet lies a mystery.

After her grandmother’s death, Eva finds a series of diaries detailing the life of a girl caught up in the magic of the Roaring Twenties. She cannot reconcile the young woman in these diaries with the miserable old woman she loved so fiercely. What happened to change her grandmother so drastically? Eva is desperate to know more about this period in her grandmother’s life. What is the light of the world, and who is the mysterious girl that her grandmother fell in love with?

Eva starts to investigate the puzzle her grandmother left behind. With the help of a local historian and his enigmatic assistant Olivia, they find a forgotten labyrinth under the city streets. But they are not the only ones down there. Someone else is searching for the light of the world.

Review: I really liked the atmosphere of this book. Scary at first and then just charming, really. Especially when the reader gets to read Eva’s grandmother’s diary.

The characters weren’t as captivating as the atmosphere, sadly, although I liked grandmother Mary. There are some serious parallels between Eva’s story and her grandmother’s, which felt a little bit forced. But maybe that is because I didn’t get Eva. The way her depression was shown/dealt with felt too nonchalantly in my eyes.

This is a fascinating story in theory. But sadly there were absolutely no surprises for me, so I was a little bit bored. It still makes a nice afternoon read. Don’t expect any great insights and you’ll be fine.

Disclaimer:  I was provided by Ylva-Verlag with a free copy in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.