First published by St. Martin’s Press in 2018 and by Macmillan Audio, this book is ideal for fans of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series. Brackston blends magic, romance, and a seventeenth-century mystery with her twenty-first-century everyday life. Her book is available on Amazon in hardcover, paperback, Kindle, and audiobook formats as well as at your local library and on the Libby App. The audiobook, read by Marisa Calin, is brilliant, as she effortlessly brings the protagonist’s emotions to the surface.

Xanthe and her mother, Flora, are looking for a fresh start. Leaving London behind and taking over an antique shop in the historic town of Malborough seems precisely what they need, since Xanthe has an affinity for some of the antiques she finds; they ‘sing’ to her, creating an intense connection to the past they come from and the stories they hold. When Xanthe and her mother are at an antique sale to stock the shop, she has a powerful connection to a beautiful silver chatelaine and needs to know more. Still, she never dreamed that examining the piece would transport her back in time or that a ghost would confront her and give her an ultimatum: save her daughter, Alice, from the noose in 1605, or her mother will suffer the consequences now.

Brackston’s storytelling is compelling. Her research, rich in historical detail, explores strong mother-daughter relationships, and her picturesque descriptions of English villages and architecture are vivid, making it easy to draw her audience into the story. Xanthe must face the perils of the seventeenth century, hoping not to be discovered as an imposter while trying to prove Alice’s innocence and keep her mother safe in the twenty-first century. With the help of friends she meets and must learn to trust and rely on, Xanthe goes to great lengths to free Alice from jail. With the task accomplished, she knows she must return home for good. She regrets having to say to Samuel Appleby, the young architect who’s been instrumental in Alice’s release, and the man who won her heart. An impossible love, and she can never tell him who she really is or where she comes from.

Returning home in time for the antique shop’s grand opening leaves Xanthe heavy-hearted. The chatelaine remains silent, and she has no way of knowing if she’ll ever be able to return to 1605 and Samuel. Her only solace is no longer sensing the presence of the ghost who’d taken her mother’s life hostage. Saving Alice gave her peace and helped her move on. Her mother is safe, and they can both start fresh like they wanted. Brackston’s The Little Shop of Found Things is an excellent start to her series, and is an overall 3-star read or listen.