Katja Labonté's Reviews > The Elusive Truth of Lily Temple

5+ stars (6/10 hearts). This is my first time trying Joanna Davidson Politano, but I’ve been wanting to read her books for quite a while because they sounded right up my alley; and this book, anyhow, didn’t disappoint.

First off, I love the 1903 setting, especially with the filmmaking! I learned so much about the early movies. I loved the garden and all its cool parts, and the beautiful beach… and the writing style complemented everything so so well. It was so unobtrusive and so beautiful! I don’t usually enjoy modern books’ style quite this much.

I also loved the characters! Peter was such an adorable hero. He reminded me of Peter from Kellyn Roth’s Chronicles of Alice & Ivy SO much. He was just so sweet and upright and clever, and yet not flawless, because what he started out half despising he learned to appreciate by the end. He was just amazing with Lily and he loved people SO much. As for Lily—wow, she was amazing. She was so deep and layered! I hugely enjoyed slowly seeing her peel things back and admit and explain, and she kept me guessing while simultaneously letting me like her more and more. They were a wonderful couple, and their romance was so sweet and simple. Roddy was a great sidekick, despite his dislike of Lily, and I love the gardener, and the villain was SO unexpected… and I haven’t time to get into the other characters but they just FIT IN so well. <3

The plot was delightful! It was mysterious, even suspenseful, but not scary or creepy, just fascinating. It was quite twisty and so, so interwoven. I just couldn’t put the book down. And oh my STARS, I adored how much storytelling was slipped into the story. The whole constant theme of fairytales, and how it related to Lily and her past, and the allegory about God the Father, was gorgeous. I did feel like the spiritual aspect was missing a little—it was so very subtle it wasn’t quite defined, and I wasn’t satisfied—but it was certainly lovely… lovely enough to have me say this! I loved the humour, and the ending was THE BOMB.

Yes, I loved this book. <3 And I can’t wait to read more by this author!

A Favourite Quote: “Why must adults trivialize fiction so?”
“Because it’s a story.”
“Children instinctively know its worth, but then they grow up and view stories as a mere indulgence, relegated to those elusive ‘spare moments’ that rarely come, and it’s a shame. A shame! The value of stories cannot be measured.”
A Favourite Beautiful Quote: That tender face, the heartbreak streaked across every feature. The affection as he touched the looking glass that held the fairy he’d so lovingly nurtured into being. His head tipped to one side while she, played by me, danced and talked and laughed in the other world. Forgetting the gardens, forgetting him. He was important to her, but only a piece of her world. A small fragment. Yet his attention never strayed from her. How he watched her with such longing. Such affection. Then he scattered even more brightly colored petals in the bleak world, a reminder to the fairy of the world she’d forgotten about. An invitation to return. Little breadcrumbs back to where she belonged. Breadcrumbs. Small remembrances. Little nudges and coincidences.

A Favourite Humorous Quote: “Peter. What are you doing here?”
“At my own estate?” He grinned.
“Oh.” I grimaced and stretched. “Right.”
“I’m tempted to ask the same question, but I’m rather afraid of the answer.”

*I received a complimentary copy of this book for promotional purposes. I was not required to write a positive review. These are my honest thoughts and opinions.*