What an epic book! It was so refreshing to read a historical fiction book with a new take - what is was like to be a woman in revolutionary Ireland. I really loved the historical storyline. I didn't click with the modern day characters as much but I appreciate the dual timeline was pivotal to the story.

I enjoyed this historical fiction book about a point in history of which I am embarrassingly ignorant. There are two timelines-1916 and 1998. In the past timeline, the book tells Grainne's story as she becomes involved in the rebellion for Ireland's independence. She takes on everything from cooking to printing fliers to traveling between command posts delivering messages once the fighting begins. She also cleverly uses a bedspread to create a large flag for the independence movement-hence the title. The main components of the past timeline are true. In the 1998 timeline, the book follows Nicky, who is Grainne's great-granddaughter. She is working on a history project in university and travels to see Grainne several times to listen to her stories of sacrifice and peril during that time. I was very interested in Nicky's reactions as she learned more and more about the heroic efforts of her great-grandmother and her friends. There was one aspect of the modern timeline when Nicky was in a relationship with a major jerk of a guy that did not move the storyline along and did not need to be included, in my opinion. Otherwise, it was an interesting dual timeline story. Thanks to NetGalley and HQ Publishing for an advanced digital copy of this book.

When Nicky is given a project to complete we are taken back in time to learn of the Easter uprising.
As ever in Kathleen McGurls books there is lots of information and you can tell she has done her research. I really liked learning about something I knew nothing of before.
I will admit this isn’t my favourite of McGurl’s books but still enjoyed it. I think I found the present story a little difficult as the characters weren’t necessarily that easy to like!
I love the dual timeline stories, I discovered these types of book because of McGurl and will continue to read any more she brings out, she just has a way of writing what feels like two stories and slotting them together perfectly.

Thoroughly enjoyable read! Interesting historical background interspersed with a modern coming of age story. The look into Irish history from a women’s point of view was fascinating. Easy to follow between the two points of view. Initially I did struggle with the first few chapters due to the main character being quite stroppy however this is integral to the story. Good read.

Thank you Netgalley

This is a dual time line book. The book is based on true events in Ireland but the main characters are not real.

Nicky is at University and is needs to do research on an essay for her course. This is where she decides to do the Easter uprising in Ireland. I enjoyed the fact we have the facts from what happened and it was researched very well.

The characters fitted well together and was very interesting to read about the history of the uprising.

Well written book.

Kathleen McGurl’s The Girl with the Emerald Flag is a sweeping, engrossing and emotional tale from a writer who consistently delivers beautifully written page-turners that never fail to hold readers spellbound.

In 1916, Europe is in the grip of war and as the conflict intensifies and rages on, Gráinne decides to make a bid for freedom and independence by leaving her job at a department store and joining the revolutionary efforts of Countess Markiewicz. With a rebellion brewing in Dublin and the streets teeming with anger, despair and hope, Gráinne’s life is forever changed as she discovers that fighting for what’s right could compel her to pay the highest – and harshest – price of all.

Decades later, a heart-broken student called Nicky goes to Ireland to work on a research project about her great-grandmother’s experiences in revolutionary Ireland. While looking through her great-grandmother’s possessions, Nicky finds a handkerchief that further ignites her curiosity and leads her to uncovering a heart-breaking yet hopeful tale of triumphing over adversity, courage and bravery and the sacrifices made by those who gave their all for a country’s freedom and independence.

Kathleen McGurl writes so well that whenever I pick up one of her books, I always find myself unable – and unwilling – to tear myself away from them. The Girl with the Emerald Flag is yet another excellent example of her storytelling prowess as it teems with strong female characters, exquisite period detail, nail-biting emotional drama, heart-wrenching pathos and twists and turns that keep readers engrossed from beginning to end.

The Girl with the Emerald Flag is a superb dual timeline novel from Kathleen McGurl’s immensely talented pen.

I did not think this was as good as some of her other novels.
The strongest aspect of the book was the historical story of what happened in 1916. I did not find the modern-day characters, particularly the rebellious daughter Nicky and her various relationships, as convincing.
An easy read and a good way to learn about a period of history I did not know much about.

I found The Girl with the Emerald Flag by Kathleen McGurl slow to start, and the characters took me some time to warm to. But once it picked up speed, I enjoyed it.

This book was sent to me electronically by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher for the copy. What a gorgeous book! The author has a great gift for characterisation - nuanced, interesting, believable people but created with a charming lightness of touch. Thanks to a great author we have warmth, wisdom and emotional intelligence, this book was a huge pleasure to read!

Many thanx to NetGalley, the author and the publishers for allowing me to read and review this book.

Looked forward to reading this book but found it pretty hard going and not too believable at times. The characters were very annoying and just couldn't bring myself to like the 2 younger ones!

Not a very good read, characters spoiled and demanding, found the book hard to finish but struggled to the end.....eventually!

A duel time line book set in 1916 in the run up to the Easter Rising and 1998 leading up to the Good Friday agreement this book tells the stories of Grainne and her great granddaughter Nicky.
Nicky considers herself a rebellious teenager, someone who doesn’t conform to what is expected of her, someone determined to do things her own way. Now that she is away from her mother’s beady eye she is determined to have a good time at university where she is studying modern history. The trouble is that her studies have been slipping and she really needs to do well with her next project. Rebellions is the subject so you’d think it would be right up her street. When her mother comes up with a good idea, Nicky is initially reluctant to allow her mother to score a point over her but agrees to at least think about it.
Nicky’s great grandmother Grainne, now 100 years old, took part in the Easter Rising and following a trip to Dublin to visit her, Nicky knows that she has found the perfect subject for her project.
The research on the Rising is impeccable and the author makes us feel like we are there. She puts us with Grainne as she prepares food for the rebel leaders, as she prints off flyers, as she is part of the preparations and eventually, as she braves the streets to pass messages between the rebel leaders once the Rising actually starts.
Back in Brighton, Nicky has a rebellion of her own to contend with. It’s not on the scale if what Grainne went through but it will be life changing for her just the same.
I loved this book from beginning to end.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for and honest review.

I really enjoyed this book, Irish History has always been a love of mine, but I still learned so much from this and there was alot I didn't know. The story has a dual timeline focusing on two woman, Nicky in 1998 and her great grandmother Grainne in 1916, I loved the dual timeline. The two woman are very very different, Nicky is a spoiled brat allowed to do want she wants and cares very little about her family or anyone else while Grainne is a caring wonderful character with an amazing history.
We see Nicky begin a journey of self discovery while learning all about what an amazing brave woman her great grandmother is.
A great read is you're a lover of historical fiction.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This was a lovely historical fiction book, with vibrant charcters and a great storyline. This was about a time in Ireland's history that I know little about and I enjoyed learning more about it. My only issue was that at the beginning of the book, I found Nicky to be so spoiled and irritating, but I thoroughtly enjoyed Grainne's flashback story.

This is an author who has progressively made their way onto my MUST READ list. Thus far, I've tried three of her works, including this one, and I have yet to be disappointed. What I have been is TRANSPORTED, TRANSFORMED, and utterly BLOWN AWAY by the story, characters, history, and emotive power within each book. Her writing sets the scene with you in it. You ARE the lead character, whether that be Grainne back in 1916, or Nicky in 1998. You experience the heartache, hardships, and sacrifices made in the name of the cause. You see the connections made, friendships broken, and hearts stitched together by shared experiences and events they won't soon forget. You get the chance to go behind the headlines to the heart of the event, and, just as Nicky is discovering her roots, and how her heart beats as true as any in her family line, you get a glimpse of what life would have been like under the gun, on the wire, with every moment counting just as much as a day, and just how much life can change on a dime.

It was wonderful getting to know Nicky, and though I questioned her choices some times, it's just her youth showing, and everyone deserves to make their own memories, for better or worse. It was inspiring to step behind the eyes of Graiine as both a young woman fighting the good fight, and as a great grandmother sharing her life and times with those she holds dear...especially when at some points in her life, she never knew if tomorrow would come. It's a time period I've read about before, but never from these shores, this perspective, this culture, and it was as enjoyable as it was enlightening. If you're a Historical Fiction fan that loves a good story filled with heart, this is definitely a book, nay an author, I'd recommend.

Nicky is searching for her identity and is very much in the process of discovering herself. It's probably a little bit of a standard rebellion the way she talks about and feels about her mother. She feels judged, and under constant supervision and criticism. The two of them clash a lot. In the midst of this coming-of-age and acknowledgement of self, Nicky goes on a journey.

The kind of journey that changes your views of the world, the past and even your own loved ones. Nicky uses her grandmother as a font of knowledge to research a rebellion that unbeknownst to her has impacted the life of her grandmother, and also the history of her family.

Gráinne, a young woman also on the cusp of discovering what she wants in life and who she is, is living in the midst of World War I, and is also heavily involved in the plans to change the political status quo in Ireland. A part of the historical path that to this day still shapes the fragility of a relationship built on a history of death and oppression.

I really enjoy watching an author grow, both in skills and in exploration of genre. Although this is still trademark past and present connects, this story shows the growth as it tackles an enormous historical event in Irish history. It was told without the shadow of the usual political perspective or the fury on both sides, instead the author takes it down to the level of people and their personal experience and perspective.

I think, if this is any indication, that the author will take it up a notch, and I am looking forward to it.

I've always been interested in Irish history, but my knowledge of 20th century history is scant. Even in fictional format, this novel has changed that.

It is a dual-timeline story with the focus on two women. Nicky (in 1998) and Gráinne (in 1916), her great-grandmother.

Nicky is a spoilt brat who dreams of being a rebel – in her mind, it means rebelling against anything her mother says. Though she happily lets her parents pay for everything she wants... A sofa rebel. She also finds her childhood sweetheart, Conor, too boring, so in a fit of ’rebellion’, she dumps him. Soon after she hooks up with rebel Seb. But her time with him makes her begin to question her ways.

And then there's Supergran – Gráinne. When Nicky has to write an essay about rebellion, her mother suggests she speak to Gráinne about her time during the 1916 rising, and the role women played. Reluctantly, Nicky agrees that it's a good topic and visits her great-grandmother, whose 100th birthday celebration she couldn't be bothered to attend earlier.

In Dublin in 1916, Gráinne feels strongly about a free Ireland, and she joins the Cumann mBan women's society that works towards that goal. When she meets famous Countess Markiewicz, she is offered a chance at playing a bigger role – but with it comes a risk to her life, and those of her friends and loved ones.

The Girl with the Emerald Flag is a poignant story, one about growing up and realising the important things in life. Is personal freedom more important than working towards the greater good?

I really didn't like Nicky – and I suppose we're not meant to. She is spoilt rotten, allowed to be nasty and ignore important family events because she can't be bothered. Her journey is one of self-discovery, but also of self-awareness, and it is well done. Though I must admit that I thought her change of heart seemed a bit too sudden, too easy, and she didn't (in my mind) deserve to be let off the hook so easily by her indulging family.

Gráinne, on the other hand, is a wonderful character, and for me, the focus on her lifts this novel up quite a notch. She is caring and daring, brave, yet scared. And she sees things she never expected to. Her empathy towards her friends, and even those in charge of the Rising, shines through all the time. I really felt for her as events unfolded in a way none of them had imagined. I would easily read a whole series of novels about her!

The Girl with the Emerald Flag is a gentle tale, but with a strong sense of realism. Events aren't glossed over, but we see them through the eyes of the protagonists.

A highly recommended read that makes you think!

I love a book that makes you look up names/facts for more information. I was fascinated by the Countess, she was one formidable lady.
The story is told in dual timeline, the early part focuses on Grainne who plays her part in the rebellion in Dublin, where she learns more about life and herself.
In the present it focuses on her great granddaughter Nicky who is at university and a bit of a rebel herself. Getting tied up with the social scene and letting work slip her mother suggests she write about the rebellion years , using her super gran (Grainne) as a source of information giving it an authenticity.
As each story unravels you can see parallels in each, only portrayed in a different way.
Loved it.

My partner is from Dublin so I do enjoy books set there and this one was fabulous. A dual timeline story, 1916 and 1998, told from the POVs of Nicky and her great grandmother Gráinne MacDowd. Two very different characters but who have a close relationship that builds as Gráinne tells her story. I knew some of the history here but I was fascinated by Countess Markievicz, what a remarkable women, it’s definitely worth a google if you like history.

Briefly, Nicky has left home and started university looking for a fun time and she hates that her mother is, in her eyes, being intrusive . After a break up with her boyfriend she decides to follow her mother’s suggestion (see not so intrusive now!) and visit Gráinne in Dublin to discover more about her part in the rebellion in Ireland during WWI. Gráinne was a member of Cumann na mBan, the Irish Woman’s Council, who fought for an independent Ireland, and this leads her to working for the Countess.

As Gráinne tells her story it is clear that not only is Nicky fascinated by her great grandmothers bravery but she begins to see clearly some mistakes she has made in her own life and the direction she should pursue in the future. Really well written and although the early years were fascinating it was Nicky’s story that really caught my interest. A well constructed and fabulously interesting and enjoyable read. I’ll definitely look out for this author again.

The Girl with the Emerald Flag is a detailed story that hooks the reader in from the start.

McGurl has created an interesting dual timeline plot by using vivid imagery and research into historic events like the easter rising, the great famine and the troubles to provide some authenticity to what takes place in the story. The reader is able to see the political views of some Irish Catholics who are seen as second-class citizens. I found some parts were very insightful, especially the parts about The Cumann na mBan, who were the women that played a part in the easter rising rebellion of 1916. The writing style was easy to follow with the different dates outlined in the chapter titles. There was a good mixture of description, dialogue and wit. I did find that some information was often repeated in regards to some passages in 1998.

The character development of The Girl with the Emerald Flag has been well thought out with a good amount of background and flashbacks. I personally disagreed with some characters' viewpoints, particularly in 1998, where they tend to display very extreme and over the top behaviour.

Gráinne is a clever, proud Irish woman and member of the Cumann na mBan. She gives up her job at Clerys department store and accommodation in the staff dormitories to reside with the Countess Constance Markiewicz in her Surrey home. Gráinne campaigns for Irish freedom from British oppression alongside her fellow Republicans, being at the heart of the operation she interacts with the Fianna Éireann boys and attends secret meetings that puts her in a great deal of danger…

Nicky is a typical rebellious teen who wants nothing more than to be independent and live in the moment. She feels restricted and smothered by her mother, often coming across as ungrateful. Sharing accommodation with 9 other students, Nicky is in her first year studying a course on modern history at university. She is slipping behind and needs to work harder…Nicky’s mother visits every term and suggests that she spends some time with her Great-grandmother who happens to be Gráinne and learns about her role in the Easter rising. Begrudgingly she decides to follow her mothers suggestion and learns a valuable lesson along the way….


I would suggest reading The Girl with the Emerald Flag to people who enjoy Historical fiction and Women's fiction that have a dual timeline, as it is a emotive story about danger, rebellion, and friendships...

“Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it,” or so claimed both Winston Churchill and Nicky Waters, the late 20th century protagonist of this dual-timeline story about Ireland’s Easter Rising. But another quote about history, from another continent is equally apropos. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

The early 20th century heroine of this story, that girl with the emerald flag herself, Gráinne MacDowd, witnessed the bending of that arc from its beginning in the Eastern Rising to what seems like its right, proper and fitting ending in the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, bringing peace – more or less – between the Republic of Ireland and a Northern Ireland still controlled by Britain.

But it all begins, or at least this version of it, with a college student both being rebellious and studying rebellions, and her great-grandmother – who she calls Supergran (best name for a great-grandmother EVER) – who was in the rooms where a lot of a real and significant 20th century rebellion happened.

And has a story that she has been waiting nearly a century for someone to finally want to hear.

Escape Rating A-: Nicky Waters and Gráinne MacDowd are the same age at the opposite ends of their century. It’s only Gráinne’s long life and continued good health and mental acuity that allows this story to happen.

(It’s more plausible than one might think. A friend’s grandmother, not even his ‘Supergran’, crossed the US in a covered wagon with one of the last of the wagon trains and lived to see Neil Armstrong walk on the moon.)

I digress.

This story is told in two timelines. In 1998, the year that the Good Friday Agreement was, well, agreed to, Nicky Waters is a bit spoiled, a bit selfish, a lot self-indulgent, and trying to stretch her wings at uni. It’s her need for a project on historic rebellions that kicks things off – even though she resents her mother’s suggestion that Supergran’s experiences would make a fantastic springboard for her project.

But then, she resents her mother a lot at this point in her life. They love each other but don’t seem to be sympatico at all. Some mother-daughter relationships just go that way.

The heart of the book, both literally and figuratively, is Gráinne telling her story to Nicky. And telling it to the reader as she does.

Gráinne’s story takes place over an intense period of time from the fall of 1915 when she becomes the right-hand-woman of Countess Constance Markiewicz (see quote and picture above) through the Rising itself in its glory and its inevitable defeat. And its immediate aftermath, the nights when the survivors huddled together in Kilmainham Gaol and the mornings when they heard but could not see their leaders facing one firing squad after another.

Gráinne’s story brings Nicky up short, letting her see that rebellion without good purpose has no meaning. Nicky’s turnaround was a bit abrupt, but the harrowing events that her Supergran lived through make the story shine – even if sometimes with tears.

What makes this story so touching – although that’s nearly a big enough word – is the way that it allows the reader to experience this history making and in some ways history shattering event in a way that brings the Rising and the people who gave their lives for it to vivid life.

Gráinne and her beau Emmett are the only important characters in the story who are fictional. All of the leaders of the Rising are presented as they were, and this event is more than close enough in history that documentation exists for much of what Gráinne saw, heard and felt. Including the heartbreaking jailhouse wedding between Joseph Plunkett and Grace Gifford. (I honestly expected that to be a bit of literary license but it was NOT.)

Gráinne as a character reads as both plausible and aspirational. Women really did all the jobs she performed during the Rising, and she makes the reader hope that they would have done as well in the same cause. At the same time, her example leads her great-granddaughter to do and be better, by example and not by exhortation.

Any reader who loves historical fiction, or has any interest at all in Irish history and the Easter Rising will fall in love with The Girl with the Emerald Flag as much as I did. This story is terrific, and it’s told in way that both tugs at the heartstrings and practically compels the reader to look for more.

One final note. That arc of history is still bending. In the Good Friday Agreement, the politicians on both sides basically finessed some of long-standing issues through both countries’ membership in the European Union. Brexit brought many of those issues, particularly the economic ones – as well as questions about how to deal with the border – back to life. While this is not exactly part of this story, considering that it ends when it does as a way of attempting to close the circle, it’s difficult not to point out that the circle keeps on turning.