Mr Chen's Emporium by Deborah O'Brien - Review

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 Mr Chen's Emporium is an enchanting tale of forbidden love and following one's heart...

In 1872, seventeen-year-old Amy Duncan arrives in the Gold Rush town of Millbrooke, having spent the coach journey daydreaming about glittering pavilions and gilded steeples. What she finds is a dusty main street lined with ramshackle buildings.

That is until she walks through the doors of Mr Chen's Emporium, a veritable Aladdin's cave, and her life changes forever. Though banned from the store by her dour clergyman father, Amy is entranced by its handsome owner, Charles Chen...

In present-day Millbrooke, recently widowed artist Angie Wallace has rented the Old Manse where Amy once lived. When her landlord produces an antique trunk containing Amy's intriguingly diverse keepsakes - both Oriental and European - Angie resolves to learn more about this mysterious girl from the past.

And it's not long before the lives of two very different women, born a century apart, become connected in the most poignant and timeless ways. (From Goodreads)  I'll be honest with you here. Eventhough I live in Australia (and love it here!) I am not usually one toindulge in historical fiction set in my homeland. Something about the wholeconvict-filled, uncivilized bushland that was Australia pre-20th century (in my mind anyway) justdoesn't do it for me. I prefer my hist-fic Regency or earlier, thank you verymuch! So when I heard about Mr Chen's Emporium by Deborah O'Brien, Iwas initially hesitant to read it. But I was intrigued by the idea of anOriental oasis hidden away in an outback gold rush town, and I do love a goodtime slip novel, so I decided to read and review it. And I am so glad that Idid!
 Set in Millbrooke, a hidden countrygem of a town, Mr Chen's Emporium explores the loves and losses of twoheroines, 19th century Amy Duncan and modern day artist Angie Wallace. Bothcharacters were extremely likable and very well rounded, and I was absorbed inboth of their storylines, which is quite unusual for me with a time slip novel,as I usually find myself preferring one plotline over the other. That wasn'tthe case here. I loved that both women were strong, independent andself-assured, though I did find that I related better to Amy, but that'sprobably because she was young and just starting out in life like I am myself.
 The slow unravelling of Amy's lifewas a highlight of the book for me, and I often found myself racing through thepages to see what would become of her. She was such a vibrant character and Icould really feel her emotional struggle against her strict father and, withoutwanting to give too much away, I was so excited when she began to rebel! I alsoreally enjoyed seeing Angie begin to embrace life again and overcome the greatloss she suffered at the beginning of the novel; Millbrooke, in its own way,healed both ladies.
 Mr Chen's Emporium is anemotional and empowering novel, buoyed by its two fantastic female leads, andMillbrooke, which was almost a character itself. I was very nearly in tears bythe end of the book, and I found myself wishing that I lived in a town asinteresting and secret-filled as Millbrooke! The interconnecting stories andsubtle plot twists made for an absorbing, yet still comfortable, read, and I amdefinitely interested in finding out if the author has any other books out. Sothank you, Ms O'Brien, for inspiring a new found love of Australian historicalfiction within me! Gorgeous story. 4 Roses!

Thank you to Random House for sending me a copy.