Where Ivy Dares to Grow

One of my most anticipated debut novels this year has been Where Ivy Dares to Grow by Marielle Thompson. With comparisons to Mexican Gothic and Outlander, it follows a woman struggling with her mental health and her cruel soon-to-be in-laws, the eerie presence she feels in their mansion, and an unexpected timeslip to the past. The novel isn’t quite what I expected, but it is impactful and memorable.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Summary

It’s 1994, and Saoirse is struggling with her mental health. She has depression and another unspecified condition, and her fiancé and his parents are of little help or comfort. If anything, their dismissiveness and cruelty only add to her feelings of isolation. While staying in his family’s centuries-old mansion, Saoirse perceives things that Jack Page and his parents don’t see. Of course, they don’t believe her, either. But then Saoirse finds a Regency era journal that slips her back in time to 1818. There she meets Theo, Jack’s kind ancestor, and feels better and lighter than she ever does in 1994. Where and when does she belong? How can she hold onto this piece of happiness despite all the obstacles?

Review

Where Ivy Dares to Grow is a thoughtful and unexpected book. While the comparisons to Mexican Gothic and Outlander captured my interest, I don’t think either is all that accurate. It has the timeslip plot device of Outlander, and the gothic vibe of Mexican Gothic, but the tone, characterization, and story progression are completely unique here.

Immediately, Where Ivy Dares to Grow is a very dreamy, lyrical novel. It’s told from Saoirse’s perspective, and her narrative feels almost like a stream of consciousness. It’s hazy and atmospheric, creating for a wholly immersive experience. We feel Saoirse’s anguish, her lowered self-esteem, her doubt in herself. She sees things no one else does, but is it the result of her mind or a tear in time?

The entire book has a haunting quality to it, from the dreary mansion to the somber and caustic mood of the 1994 Page family to the way Saoirse feels. Her inner turmoil is front and center and brought to life. Some of it is her mental state, but she’s also a victim of gaslighting, neglect, and even emotional abuse. It’s awful to see how Jack and his parents (especially his mom) treat her, and it’s painful to see how Saoirse doesn’t stick up for herself. She’s not in a position of strength or power when the book begins.

I love the way she falls back in time, seemingly at random. It’s connected to the journal she and Jack found, but beyond that, time and the timeslip work in mysterious ways. This novel isn’t exactly about the contrast of 1994 to 1818; Saoirse isn’t trying to fit in with the world of 1818 and doesn’t venture beyond the mansion. Rather, she makes an emotional connection with Theo Page, an ancestor of her fiancé’s family. Theo is so kind and understanding—such a stark contrast to his 1994 descendants! Saoirse and Theo hit it off immediately, and develop a passionate romance quickly. It’s morally gray; Saoirse is essentially cheating on Jack, though it’s obvious they shouldn’t be together at this point anyway.

Where Ivy Dares to Grow is predominantly character-driven, and while the plot is moving forward, most of our time is spent in Saoirse’s complicated thoughts. This often breaks up conversations a lot: Jack will say something, we’ll get two pages of Saoirse’s internal monologue about it, then she’ll finally respond out loud. It can be frustrating and slows things down a lot. The writing style is evocative and sensory, but it sometimes felt a bit too much for me.

My favorite thing about Where Ivy Dares to Grow is the reveal at the end. It’s not until the final chapter that we learn more about Saoirse’s full diagnosis, and it may change your perception on things! Discovering this (and also learning more about it in the author’s note) made me like the book quite a bit more. It made everything make more sense. Despite some of my minor qualms with the writing style, I wouldn’t change a thing. If anything, I’d like to read it again now that I understand more about Saoirse.

Final Thoughts

Where Ivy Dares to Grow is beautifully written and thoughtful, and it highlights mental health brilliantly. It makes me want to learn more. I also love that this shows someone as whole and multilayered, who learns to trust herself and find the strength to stand on her own. This is a wonderful debut and I look forward to reading more from Marielle Thompson.

Get the Book

You can buy Where Ivy Dares to Grow here – it’s available as a paperback and ebook.

Where Ivy Dares to Grow by Marielle Thompson
Audience	Adult
Genre	Historical Fiction; Fantasy; Gothic
Setting	England
Number of Pages	304
Format I Read	ebook (NetGalley)
Original Publication Date	June 27, 2023

Official Summary

Mexican Gothic meets Outlander in this spellbindingly atmospheric timeslip debut, as a woman struggling with her mental health spends the winter with her cruel in-laws in their eerie, haunting manor that sweeps her back through time and into the arms of her fiancé’s mysterious, alluring 19th century ancestor.

Traveling to be with her fiancé’s terminally ill mother in her last days, Saoirse Read expected her introduction to the family’s ancestral home would be bittersweet. But the stark thrust of Langdon Hall against the cliff and the hundred darkened windows in its battered walls are almost as forbidding as the woman who lies wasting inside. Her fiancé’s parents make no secret of their distaste for Saoirse, and their feelings have long since spread to their son. Or perhaps it is only the shadows of her mind suggesting she’s unwelcome, seizing on her fears while her beloved grieves?

As Saoirse takes to wandering the estate’s winding, dreamlike gardens, overgrown and half-wild with neglect, she slips back through time to 1818. There she meets Theo Page, a man like her fiancé but softer, with all the charms of that gentler age, and who clearly harbors a fervent interest in her. As it becomes clear that Theo is her fiancé’s ancestor, and the tenuous peace of Langdon Hall crumbles around her, Saoirse finds she’s no longer sure which dreams and doubts belong to the present—and which might not be dreams at all . . .