This was a highly detailed and well written story, however, it was very slowly paced and at times confusing with the overlapping of timelines.

Set against the backdrop of a remote fishing village off the coast of Scotland, I expected a close knit community but what I found was the other end of the scale. The characters were hard one ach other and this in turn made it difficult to warm them, and created a sense of mistrust.

I found the second half of the book to be much more enjoyable, but this is a tale of loss in every sense of the word.

I read a lot of books, so it’s rare that I come across a book that feels genuinely fresh and original in subject and tone of voice and that I can wholeheartedly recommend, but this debut novel is one of them.

When describing the plot, it sounds slight. An historical fiction set in 1900 in a Scottish fishing village. The community is small and insular and outsiders can find it hard to be accepted, as Dorothy, a young schoolteacher finds when she moves there. When a young boy is found washed up on the shore, old wounds are reopened as well as opportunities for healing.

There is something about the use of misunderstanding that reminds me of Hardy and the author has the same power to break your heart by showing you the quiet interior life of ordinary people. The tone has much more of the fairytale about it, however, lyrical in a good way, without pretensions. If I were to sum it up in a few words it would be E M Forster’s “only connect.”

I read the last few chapters in a coffee shop and cried my eyes out in public.

Go and buy a copy for everyone you know.

With thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, Random House UK, Vintage and Julia Kelly for an arc of this novel.

This has all the Ts. It is tender, touching, tragic. I found it very easy to read and was thoroughly captivated by it. A wonderful debut I think.

3.5 ⭐️ I actually liked this much more than I thought I would. I picked it up because I saw it was a romance, but I realised too late that it was a historical fiction too which is not my cup of tea.
More than these things though, this is a character driven exploration of womanhood in a small seaside town, and it’s thoughtful, engaging and intelligent.
I will say the lack of communication and misunderstandings (trademarks of the romance genre) are intensely frustrating, and it does feel like the characters repeatedly make their own lives more difficult which does get a little dull.
But on the whole, a really gorgeously written story which tugs at the heartstrings - nothing wrong with that.

This is just exquisite storytelling and character creation.

It flits between "then" and "now", which can be a difficult thing to do, to ensure it is still smooth to read but gives us the information we need, but Julia has managed it perfectly. At first there's more "now" but it soon becomes more "then", and I felt both parts were fascinating.

I was fully enraptured by everything about it. It's hard to believe it's a debut novel because it's so accomplished. It is sad without feeling morose, hopeful without feeling too sickly sweet.

This had such short chapters which I appreciated. It really helps move the story along, and adds to the somewhat frantic nature of the story. And on a personal note, I cannot stand overly long chapters. I like quick ones that I can say "I'll just read a couple more chapters", instead of flicking through trying to find how much is left.

Dorothy is our leading lady and she's fabulous. She keeps herself to herself, a bit of a closed book but I really felt for her instantly. She's had a very hard time where women would be expected to be at home with a husband and a family. My heart was instantly hers. And then our two male characters are Joseph and William who we get to know more during the "then" segments. They've both clearly got their secrets but I found them both equally as charming and caring.

And then there's a plethora of background characters, some in one section or the other, and some straddling both. Some are what you'd call goodies and others baddies, but mostly they're a bit of both. They all have their own place in the story, as well as their own part of play in Dorothy's story.

It is an historical novel, but there's also romance and mystery; there's a bit of adventure, mostly narrative, good character exploration, and about family and community dynamics, but it's balanced perfectly. It's about grief, love, loss, family, friendship, your position in a community, parenthood, old and new love, lost love - it's everything and it's all done so well.

There's a lot I like about it - the plot, the characters, everything really. But at its heart, it's just a really beautiful piece of writing to read. It's so poetic but not distractingly so. Julia has touched on the topics of grief and child loss to sensitively and lovingly that it's hard to imagine someone could write such a thing without experience, and so my heart goes out to her if that's the case and to all others in that situation; but even if not, she's just got this raw talent to explore complex emotions without making a spectacle about them and I found myself in tears at several points.

I know I keep repeating myself but it's simply an incredibly moving, beautiful story with first-rate characters. I was bereft when I finished it, knowing I no longer had it on my shelf to read. I rarely reread books - as I just have too many new ones to read - but I think this may be an exception. I think I'll get more out of it, subtle nuances that may have been missed the first time. And I will look forward to rereading it as much as I enjoyed reading it the first time, perhaps even more.

📖 BOOK REVIEW 📖

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#TheFishermansGift by @jrkelly2 @penguinrandomhouse @harvillsecker

➡️synopsis

This was one of those rare gems of a book…

A story of love, loss, grief, hope, and overall the power in forgiveness and redemption; Dorothy’s is a plight that certainly cuts deep. I couldn’t help falling in love with the story and all its characters. It’s beautifully written, character driven, with perfect settings and a little magic entwined, this is a journey you don’t want to miss. Another amazing debut!

With thanks to author #jrkelly #harvillsecker #randomhousepublishing and @netgalley for allowing us to read this one early!

Publishing: March 6th

-EMILY

@the_book_girls_1

#the_book_girls_1 #historialfiction #newbookalert #fivestarbookreview #bookgem #booksaremagic

A historical fiction novel set in a Scottish village. A young boy has washed up on the shore, and while we follow his story we also uncover the backstory to some of the characters in the village, particularly Dorothy the school teacher, who has suffered the loss of a child to the sea years before.

Historical fiction has never appealed to me, but for some reason when I saw this one I just had to give it a try. This book is beautifully written, very character driven, and extremely hard to put down. Parts of the story are very sad, and it is definitely a book that stays with you after reading it. The fact that this is a debut novel is amazing. Julia Kelly is definitely an author to keep a look out for in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for providing me with an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

A love story- yes but also a story full of twists and turns and the intricacies of island life in the Western Isles. I was really taken in by the author with the scene setting of what it was like to be an "imported" teacher and then to be seen as not one of the community. Coupled with this was the distress of losing a child. A definite read but don't expect romance and an easy life

A beautifully written, character driven story, set in coastal Scotland in the winter of 1900.

When a local fisherman, Joseph, carries a wet, freezing and nearly drowned boy from the beach, school teacher, Dorothy’s mind is thrown back in time to the disappearance of her own son of the same age, who was presumed drowned several years before.

The arrival of the young boy, who refuses to speak, brings buried emotions to the surface and through flashbacks, we learn about Dorothy’s life from her arrival to the small village some years before, having escaped her controlling mother, to the woman she is in the present day, somewhat disliked by the other women in the village due to her cold demeanour and the way in which she acts towards them.

As people put aside their personal feelings for the sake of the unidentified child in Dorothy’s care, they all discover more about themselves, their own and each other’s vulnerabilities and begin to take accountability for their actions, past and present.

The many flawed but wonderful characters are incredibly well written, I found myself drawn to them all and loved their stories.

5 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Julia Kelly and Random House Vintage for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Enjoyed this book. Yes, there are a lot of characters and yes, it jumps around between ‘then’ and ‘now’ but providing you keep with it, it is a good story. I could so easily picture the seaside village, where everyone wants to know everything about everyone else’s business but it really highlights how times have changed. Dorothy (and others) make so many decisions (usually the wrong ones) based on what people will think of her, how she will be ashamed if she takes a certain course of action or admits something. She could have had such a different (and probably better) life if she had allowed herself to do want she actually wanted.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review, which is what I have given.

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. The very slow pace of the narrative was very irritating at times. The relationships between the characters repeated excessively. Yet the ending was beautiful. I think I might need to read it again to be sure of my feelings however at the moment I can only give it 3*
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

Such a beautifully written story that leads you through many emotions in what is a tale of tragedy and loss, but also eventually a glimmer of hope. Dorothy is a school teacher in a small Scottish fishing village that she has moved to and is seen very much as an outsider in this close knit community where gossip is the norm and friendship hard to come by. The story fluctuates between then, with Dorothy marrying and having a son, to now, when a young boy is washed up on the shore. Sad but wonderful story

What an incredible book. It’s hard to believe this is a debut novel – the writing is so confident and beautiful, full of atmosphere and emotion.

The story begins with a storm in a small fishing village in the North of Scotland in 1900, leaving a small boy washed up the shore. The boy is the same age as the child of Dorothy, the local teacher, lost years ago in a similar storm. The book then switches between what happens when the new child is discovered, and a retelling of life in the village leading up to this point.

Near the end, Dorothy asks “Why is it that we only ever remember the things we did wrong?” and that sums up a lot of the story. Relationships, misunderstandings, resentments and long buried secrets are revealed, all in a very claustrophobic setting. We meet Dorothy as she arrives in the village, an outsider from Edinburgh with all sorts of insecurities learned from her mother’s behaviour towards her, and we follow her struggles to feel accepted. Much of the story takes place in a harsh winter which has left the village cut off from the outside world, and that’s very much the feeling from the people within too – everywhere else feels unimportant, and the close knit community is insular and full of its own secrets.

All of the characters are beautifully written. Their behaviour is often frustrating but makes complete sense when we understand their backgrounds and worries, as well as the time and place, and I found the whole thing utterly absorbing. The emotion of the situation is so sensitively handled, leaving me sobbing by the end but ultimately very happy with the resolution. I would say this is one of my favourite books of the year so far but since it’s only February, I’ll include last year in that too! Absolutely wonderful and I can’t wait to see what the author writes next.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

Julia Kelly’s debut novel The Fisherman’s Gift is a poignant tale of love, grief and hope. The central characters Dorothy, the school mistress and Joseph, the fisherman, are finely drawn and I really ached for them. The writing style is poetic and evocative and conjures up the small Scottish fishing village with consummate ease. The judgemental attitudes of the villagers, the women in particular, play a pivotal role in this overwhelmingly sad tale. Yet there is a hint of hope in the open ending. This was an absorbing read. Thanks to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

A haunting and evocative read. I’ve found that the characters, especially Dorothy have stayed with me well beyond the pages.

A rather fey book. The story went from a feeling of reality to a fable of the sea.. a great read and a story of heartbreak in many different ways. A love story which was thwarted by people and events. Dorothy and Joseph were frustrating in both being unable to say what was on their minds, much of which came about through guilt, particularly with Dorothy. So much time lost.

The end was a disappointment and hanging in the air as if the writer had left it unfinished.

A completely immersive, first class story. Brilliantly observed, atmospheric and haunting all in one novel! I thoroughly enjoyed the plot and really felt for Dorothy and all the characters in a remote setting.

An absolute treasure of a book. I loved it from start to finish. Well written story that pulls on the heartstrings and wonderfully descriptive of the landscape. I stayed hooked right to the end. Solid 5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader copy.

I love these historical stories of small communities, and how you have to poke beneath the surface to winkle out all the secrets. This was a fascinating look at maternal love, forbidden love and gossipy women. I really enjoyed it. A boy washes up in a small town, and is cared for by the sad schoolmistress whose husband has left her. An outsider, we just know there’s more to her background and circumstances and so while we find out more about the boy, we find more of her too.

This is a beautiful but at times heartbreaking story that touches on loss & and grief, and it had me feeling all the emotions while reading this.

Set in the 1900s in a small scottish coastal town. A young boy is found washed up on the shore alive. The village is cut off from the rest of the town due to a bad snow storm, so the boy is placed with a woman called Dorothy. She agrees to care for him until the roads are clear, and they can get in touch with authorities to hopefully find out where this child has come from. Dorothy has her own past traumas that she's never really come to terms with or addressed, and having the boy could help her overcome those past traumas or push her further into grief. What follows is a beautiful but heartbreaking look at what the loss of a child can do and how grief can take over.

There are multiple povs, which I really enjoyed as it is a very character driven story. We got to know a lot of the characters in the town on a more personal level. There were times I was beyond frustrated with all the miscommunications and times I wanted to cry and scream at the tragedy of it all but ultimately it was a beautiful story full of hope that will stay with me for a while.