Gráinne MacDowd attends Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa’s funeral at the Glasnevin Cemetery, she listens to Patrick Pearse give what's to be one of the most know and stirring speeches for the Irish independence movement. At the cemetery she bumps into Emmett O’Sheridan, her brother Sean’s best friend and he’s off fighting the Germans on the Western Front.

Gráinne is a proud member of the Cumann na mBan or The Irishwomen’s Council and she’s honored when Countess Constance Markiewicz asks her to work for her. Gráinne does a bit of everything leading up to and during the Easter Rising and the British newspapers referred to it as a riot. For a week the streets of Dublin are a battle ground, people fighting for what they believe in and some make the ultimate sacrifice for Irish independence.

The Girl with the Emerald Flag has a dual timeline and it's set in 1916 and in 1998. Told from the points of view of the two main female characters, Gráinne and her great-granddaughter Nicola.

Nicky Waters is studying modern history at Sussex University, she’s the only child of Karen and David. Nicola needs a subject for her main research project, and she decides to interview her wise great-grandmother and she visits her in Ireland. Nicky’s still trying to work out her place in the world, hovering over her shoulder and always telling her what to do is her interfering mother.

Nicky’s trips to Ireland are a real revelation, her supergran tells her a remarkable story and she knew the major leaders of the Easter Rising. It’s a story about fighting for what you believe in, learning from the mistakes you make, being independent and taking risks, remaining close and appreciating the people you love. Nicky has a light bulb moment, she grows up and she sees things from a very different perspective.

I received a digital copy of The Girl with the Emerald Flag from NetGalley and HQ Digital in exchange for an honest review. Kathleen McGurl has written an inspiring coming of age story, combined with a fascinating Irish history lesson and five stars from me.

This book is dual timeline 1916 & 1998 It tells the story of The Easter Rising & Grainne who was 18 and a key part of the rising, we share Grainnes story both in the past and as she is telling it to her great granddaughter Nicky in 1998 who is studying modern history and has an assignment to complete, her great grandmother is the perfect key study.

I liked how clearly written this was and the character of Grainne was just so likeable, Nicky on the other hand is a typical ungrateful teenager & really not likeable however she does start to mature the more time she spends in Dublin and learning her great grandmothers story.

Sadly this book didn’t have me frantically turning the pages however it was lovely paced and written, a strong 3.5/5 for me.

Thank you to HQ & NetGalley for a digital ARC of this book by Kathleen McGurl in return for an honest review.

I received a free copy of, The Girl with the Emerald Flag, by Kathleen McGurt, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Young people do realize that their parents and grandparents did amazing things in their lives, each generation is so different. Nicky finds this out about her grandmother Grainne, while interviewing her for a school project. The early nineteen hundreds are so different from the 90's and now. This is a really good read about Ireland in 1916, and one woman's remembrance of it.

Socially thank you, Netgalley for this Arc

What a brilliant book based in Ireland and England and discusses Northern Ireland

Brilliant page turner can’t wait. Can’t wait to read more by this author

An absolute page turner, it had me gripped and in its spell, from first to last page.

1915 - 1916 and Gráinne is working in a department store, but all that is about to change. Rebellion is in the air.
Gráinne has beliefs and a strong cause, and needs to follow her heart.

Fast forward to the late 1990’s. Nicky (Nicola) is Gráinne’s great granddaughter.
Nicky has just started university and needs a project. Could hearing her great grandmother’s story about revolutionary Ireland be what she is looking for?

From the first page I was absolutely hooked on this book.
I don’t know much about Irish history, maybe I should. This book has helped me understand a small part of Irish history.
The story is told moving to and fro between chapters of late 1915 - 1916 and the late 1990’s. It is easy to follow, and understand the roles and characters too.
It has a good storyline, and I warmed to the main characters.
The novel is made more poignant knowing that it has a factual past, with the history of Ireland, but with a good story weaved through the telling of it.
Loyalty, love and hope. It’s what we all hope for in life really isn’t it.
I wanted to read this novel, as way back I have Irish ancestor’s, Who knows? some may have taken part in this.
It is the first book I have read by this author, and I will be looking at reading more of her books in the future.

Many thanks NetGalley and HQ for an advanced e-book copy. Opinions are my own.

My rating:

Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Writing: 5 out of 5 stars
Character development: 5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 5 out of 5 stars

Recommended for readers of:

Historical Fiction


Review:

This book tells the story about two women Grainne and Nicky whose lives have a lot of similarities both women rebel in their own way, and have to deal with the consequences of their choices. This story shows the way this affects their lives and that of the people around them. Written over a dual time line, Grainne’s story takes place in Ireland during the 1916 Rebellion and Nicky’s story takes place 1998 around the time of the Northern Ireland Peace agreement and is set in England and Ireland

Overall:

This book is well written. The story has a nice flow to it. It is full of intrigue together with a bit of suspense and mystery. This made it captivating and interesting till the end. The characters were nice people, their personalities were well explained. This made them realistic. From a historical perspective this is also an interesting book as it gave an insight into the events 1916 Rebellion in Dublin Ireland.

Review copy provided by Netgalley at no cost to me.