A rich, heartwarming and charming debut novel that reminds us that sometimes you find love in the most unexpected places.Dan Hollis lives a happy, solitary life carving exquisite Celtic harps in his barn in the countryside of the English moors. Here he can be himself, away from social situations that he doesn’t always get right or completely understand.On the anniversary of her beloved father’s … of her beloved father’s death, Ellie Jacobs takes a walk in the woods and comes across Dan’s barn. She is enchanted by his collection. Dan gives her a harp made of cherrywood to match her cherry socks. He stores it for her, ready for whenever she’d like to take lessons.
Ellie begins visiting Dan almost daily and quickly learns that he isn’t like other people. He makes her sandwiches precisely cut into triangles and repeatedly counts the (seventeen) steps of the wooden staircase to the upstairs practice room. Ellie soon realizes Dan isn’t just different; in many ways, his world is better, and he gives her a fresh perspective on her own life.
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This book was a gentle, beautiful story filled with yearning, loneliness and self discovery. I ached for Ellie, so alone in her marriage, wanting to be seen and valued yet not really knowing her own worth. Seeing her journey, her small defiances and her slow realization that she deserved better was incredibly satisfying. Gorgeous writing.
What a surprising and endearing delight this was. If you’re a fan of out-of-the-box characters, musical instruments, and an under-the-radar type of romance, I highly recommend picking this up. It’s not without its sharp edges, but Hazel Prior has a way of taking the edges and wrapping them up like a gift. You can’t help but smile as you read the chapters from Dan’s point of view and see the world through his eyes. I recommend this one all the time. For fans of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and Dear Emmie Blue.
After reading the heartwarming and charming book “How the Penguins Saved Veronica”, I was hooked on this author! “Ellie and the Harp Maker” is her debut novel, but just as well written as her second.
Told in alternating points of view between the two main characters, this story is engaging from the very first page. An act of kindness sets two strangers on a path neither could have imagined. The plot starts out very easy going, then all at once an avalanche of events happen and I could not read fast enough! The twists and suspense just came out of nowhere!
The well fleshed-out characters, exceptional dialogue and introspection make this book a wonderful read. I am looking forward to seeing what this author has up her sleeve for her next book!
4.5 Stars
This book was a 4-star read, interspersed with 5-star moments. The characters were wonderful with an array of personalities that worked to create a beautiful and subtle love story. There were also a few suspenseful moments that kind of surprised me. I loved Dan’s simple, yet beautiful life which is directly reflective of his pragmatic and honest view of himself and the world. Ellie is almost the opposite while feeling lost or stuck in her housewife role. Her story is the angst and chaos to Dan’s less structured and simple. I really enjoyed the writing style and how the author clearly defined the character of Dan without assigning a label. Instead, showing the reader through action, habits, and diction. Ellie and the Harpmaker was a gentle flowing story that kept me immersed with a wonderful cast, compelling storyline, and a fantastic audio production.
I really enjoyed the book. It was a little slow-starting, but then I couldn’t put it down.
I absolutely loved this book. Hope the author will write some more.
On one of many lonely days in her life, Elle stumbles upon the harp maker’s barn and Dan, the harp maker. Dan sees the world in his own special way, and when he meets Elle, he gives her one of his hand-made harps. Elle is fascinated with it, but her husband isn’t so happy about it. She ends up keeping Dan’s gift at the barn, where she gets to play the harp, see Dan daily and basically get involved in his life. Spending time with Dan changes how Elle looks at life, too.
I really loved the voices in this book, so perfectly tuned for Dan and Elle which really makes this book special. While I’m rating this 5 stars because I enjoyed the whole experience so very much because both the characters and story hit all the right notes for me, I did have some issue with things plodding around a bit, but the ending made up for all of that, at least for me.
I loved this sweet romance between two very unique characters. I’d call it more of a love story than a romance, and Dan and Elle’s story left me feeling good about love.
Let me start by saying I lead a very busy life and generally read only at night before bed. If you’ll notice, I finished this one in just under 24 hours. Day reading is rare, but here we are.
I truly enjoyed reading Ms. Prior’s lyrical prose and the huge role music plays in this book makes my heart happy. Exquisite descriptions but not overly flowery, solid character development, and a very readable plot. I want to live in the Harp Barn. Ellie is a nitwit, but redeemed herself. Dan is positively lovable. Not only were the main characters well thought-out, but the side characters were so full of life and personality.
I won this ARC from Read It Forward and I’m so very glad I did. Go ahead and preorder this one.
This book was a pleasant surprise for me. Starting out, it was rather slow and although I could see the beauty in Hazel Prior’s writing, I wondered if this was for me. But, I could see the beauty in her wonderful character development and marveled at the connection between Dan’s oddities and how he seemed to provide the calmness that Ellie sought, when she found the Harp Barn.
The magic of his harp creations, his connection with nature and his sensitivity, all brought a semblances of peace in Ellie’s life. Her ability to see the substance in Dan, made her blindness to Clive’s dangerous personality, puzzling to me.
This was such a well written, beautiful story of the mystery of relationships and how different people connect, and how the simplest of lives can provide the most satisfaction. I just loved it.
I thank Berkeley Publishing and Penguin Random house for the ARC and the privilege of reviewing this special novel.
#HazelPrior #BerkleyPublishers #PenquinRandomHouse