The Story Collector portrays three women who demonstrate real strength of character - Katerina beginning in 1915; Miriam beginning in 1918 and Edie in the present day.

The author intricately brings together each of these women with their stories of love and life. The twists and turns in the plot and the way in which every chapter sheds a little more light on how these women are linked, kept me engaged until the very end.

I particularly enjoyed learning a little about the WW1 German Linguistics Project - this is not something I have come across previously in any historical fiction novel.

Thank you to the publisher, Penguin General UK, Viking, for a digital copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this so much. The multiple POVs of Miriam and Kitty during the war and present day Edie worked really well, and I found myself invested in each of the characters. It's such a poignant story but also a very heartwarming read. Huge thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for my eARC of this one - I'm definitely going to have to get my hands on a physical copy in February!

Thank you to Viking, Penguin General UK and NetGalley for my advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Historical fiction is a genre that I return to time and time again, and I really loved the sound of #TheStoryCollector when I spotted it on #NetGalley. The story revolves around three women – Edie, Kitty and Miriam – on their own timelines. Told between the cobbled streets of wartime London, a German WWI camp and the cliffs of Cornwall, England, this book beautifully weaves – and unravels – the stories of these three protagonists who are bound by a long-held secret as the First World War erupts.

For me, this novel felt a tiny bit up and down, here and there. The plot itself is certainly gripping, but there’s a lot going on, as you’d expect from a triple-narrative book. Edie is an artist who has recently moved to a little Cornish cottage that her family inherited. She discovers a tarot deck which, admittedly, is what initially kept me reading! Then, we have Kitty, a German baker and tarot-reader who is forced to conceal her name and identity, among other factors. Finally, there’s Miriam, a nurse in a Prisoner of War camp in Germany.

A strong point of ‘The Story Collector’ is that the characters are beautifully well-developed and you become really invested in their stories. It feels real, hauntingly so. The three strands are equally balanced, too, I thought. Often I’ll take to one part of a multi-narrative more easily than others, but I felt quite invested in each of them. However, I think there’s something funny going on with the pacing as the complexities of the intertwining backgrounds move forwards. The middle part felt gripping but slow at the same time.

Overall, ‘The Story Collector’ moves to a satisfying and compelling ending. It isn’t often that novels with three narratives achieve this, but Costello played it out wonderfully. I truly enjoyed this one!

Lots of characters and storylines interwoven together spanning from World War 1 to the present day. Really enjoyable mystery with twists and turns and very believable characters and situations. Definitely recommend. Thanks to author, publisher and NetGalley for the pre copy.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin for this eCopy to review

The Story Collector is an epic story following Kitty a German in London during WWI who has the second sight, Miriam a nurse in a German POW camp and Edie who has moved to Cornwall following the death of her husband in the present day. As Edie unravels the mystery of the strange box she found in her cottage she finds out how she is linked to Kitty and Miriam.

A remarkable story about overcoming grief and learning to live again. The 3 protagonists where well characterised and I was engrossed in each of their stories and the secrets of the past. A gripping read