Description

Book Synopsis
From the beloved New York Times bestselling author of the Practical Magic series comes an enchanting novel about love, heartbreak, self-discovery and the enduring magic of books.

Sixteen-year-old Ivy is pregnant and alone. Cast out by her family, she runs away and finds safety in the arms of Joel Davis. He offers a simpler life than the one she had in Boston, a quiet, rural life of rules, peace and community. Little does she realise, Joel is the charismatic leader of a cult known as the Community, and all is not quite as it seems.
 
Daughter Mia has only known the claustrophobic life of the Community. While out serving the Community one weekend, she secretly commits a transgression – reading. Discovering a world beyond the edges of the Community’s property is intoxicating. But breaking rules carries serious consequences, and sends Mia on a path she could never have imagined.
 
With two fiercely wonde

Trade Review
‘I was immediately immersed in The Invisible Hour. It’s a wonderful story of love and growth, but it’s also a narrative engine of great power. Alice Hoffman is wonderful on stories and writing.’
Stephen King, New York Times bestselling author of FAIRYTALE

‘What a thrill to discover Nathaniel Hawthorne in the pages of Alice Hoffman’s exquisite new novel The Invisible Hour! And what delight to experience the melding, across the centuries, of two prodigious American literary imaginations—Hoffman’s and Hawthorne’s—in this redemptive tale of daughters and mothers and one true love for a man and his book.’
Megan Marshall, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Peabody Sisters

‘Alice Hoffman's The Invisible Hour is a rich, immersive, magical reading experience. This beautiful novel is about the stories women tell each other and the ones that save us, about the price and peril of motherhood, and the difficulties women have faced throughout history in controlling their own fates. Alice Hoffman, the reigning queen of magical realism, takes her readers on a fantastic, mystical journey that celebrates the joy and power of reading and dares to believe in the impossible.’
Kristin Hannah, New York Times bestselling author of The Four Winds

‘The incomparable Alice Hoffman has written a transcendent novel that will stay with you all of your reading life. Ivy Jacob is broken beyond repair when she enters a community without books. Soon, her daughter Mia is born into the same world, her fate is also sealed, until the girl steals away and finds respite in a forbidden library. As Mia reads, she disappears into the story as readers do and finds herself there, in a place and time that will unlock her destiny. Mortal Love is an inventive yet practical fairytale where the prince is Nathaniel Hawthorne, freedom is love andbooks are our salvation. And frankly, when that book is written by Alice Hoffman, we be truly redeemed.’
Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Left Undone

The Invisible Hour

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    Order before 4pm tomorrow for delivery by Wed 8 Jul 2026.

    A Hardback by Alice Hoffman

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      Trusted by thousands of customers. See 2,385+ Customer Reviews

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      Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd
      Publication Date: 17/08/2023
      ISBN13: 9781398526181, 978-1398526181
      ISBN10: 1398526185

      Description

      Book Synopsis
      From the beloved New York Times bestselling author of the Practical Magic series comes an enchanting novel about love, heartbreak, self-discovery and the enduring magic of books.

      Sixteen-year-old Ivy is pregnant and alone. Cast out by her family, she runs away and finds safety in the arms of Joel Davis. He offers a simpler life than the one she had in Boston, a quiet, rural life of rules, peace and community. Little does she realise, Joel is the charismatic leader of a cult known as the Community, and all is not quite as it seems.
       
      Daughter Mia has only known the claustrophobic life of the Community. While out serving the Community one weekend, she secretly commits a transgression – reading. Discovering a world beyond the edges of the Community’s property is intoxicating. But breaking rules carries serious consequences, and sends Mia on a path she could never have imagined.
       
      With two fiercely wonde

      Trade Review
      ‘I was immediately immersed in The Invisible Hour. It’s a wonderful story of love and growth, but it’s also a narrative engine of great power. Alice Hoffman is wonderful on stories and writing.’
      Stephen King, New York Times bestselling author of FAIRYTALE

      ‘What a thrill to discover Nathaniel Hawthorne in the pages of Alice Hoffman’s exquisite new novel The Invisible Hour! And what delight to experience the melding, across the centuries, of two prodigious American literary imaginations—Hoffman’s and Hawthorne’s—in this redemptive tale of daughters and mothers and one true love for a man and his book.’
      Megan Marshall, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Peabody Sisters

      ‘Alice Hoffman's The Invisible Hour is a rich, immersive, magical reading experience. This beautiful novel is about the stories women tell each other and the ones that save us, about the price and peril of motherhood, and the difficulties women have faced throughout history in controlling their own fates. Alice Hoffman, the reigning queen of magical realism, takes her readers on a fantastic, mystical journey that celebrates the joy and power of reading and dares to believe in the impossible.’
      Kristin Hannah, New York Times bestselling author of The Four Winds

      ‘The incomparable Alice Hoffman has written a transcendent novel that will stay with you all of your reading life. Ivy Jacob is broken beyond repair when she enters a community without books. Soon, her daughter Mia is born into the same world, her fate is also sealed, until the girl steals away and finds respite in a forbidden library. As Mia reads, she disappears into the story as readers do and finds herself there, in a place and time that will unlock her destiny. Mortal Love is an inventive yet practical fairytale where the prince is Nathaniel Hawthorne, freedom is love andbooks are our salvation. And frankly, when that book is written by Alice Hoffman, we be truly redeemed.’
      Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Left Undone

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