I wanted to love this book. I read The Girl in The Red Coat and loved that and this sounded like it was going to be just as good. But sadly it's just not as good.
The idea is great. A girl who sees lost souls, who in many ways is a lost soul herself having been adopted by a couple who are mourning their own lost child. But it just doesn't grab you and moves at such an incredibly slow pace I sometimes felt myself tossing my kindle aside in frustration. You see there is a good story here but it's dragged out so thin it's practically gossamer. It felt incredibly long and yet it's only

This book is told over two timelines, one by Ruby in 1983 and one by Anna, Ruby's mother, in 1970. Ruby discovers on her 13th birthday that Mick and Barbara aren't her real mum and dad and that she was actually adopted when she was 4 months old, she is pleased about this as she doesn't really feel she belongs and so sets out to find her real parents.

The journey that follows is deep, dark and at times rather confusing but at the same time compelling.

Thank you to Faber & Faber for the approval, I will post my review on Goodreads and Amazon UK & US.

Well, this was a strange one, the storyline was great until all of the weird supernatural stuff which really put me off and I personally didn't think it was required.

Wow I loved loved loved loved this book!
Her first book girl was amazing and so I had high hopes and I wasn't disappointed!!

What a beautiful book, written so well and crafted to a T.....loved little Ruby and was really rooting for her all the way through the book, what an amazingly strange but gorgeous little character she was. A charm.

The books storyline was unlike one I've read before and the fact Ruby was "different" made it even better (can't say too much!).

All I will say is that if you want a book that has that "just one more chapter" feel to it then this is one for you. I couldn't wait to find out how she got along on her travels and if she did actually get to eventually meet her "real" parents. I personally wanted to take little Ruby home and wrap her in cotton wool and just love and care for her. Such a strong but small girl who overcomes great things.

I thought the pace of the book was kinda slow and some may struggle with that (I like fast paced books but was fine ambling along). Shadow fascinated me as did the rest of the characters Ruby met along the way.

Absolute gem of a book a must read!!

I am very sorry but this book didn't live up to its description. I struggled to finish it and only did so out of a moral obligation that I had been given the opportunity to read it in return for an honest review. I will however not be posting a public review. The story was poorly executed and although I appreciate that one has to stretch the imagination for stories including spirits from the other side, I felt that part of the book was written more for the YA audience. The characters of Mick and Barbara weren't consistent. If a girl had been abused and beaten for 13 years her abuser would have had more residual terror for her even after she stood up to him. Mick went too quickly from a menacing character to a love struck pushover. Barbara's transformation on the other hand was even less credible. Thank you for the opportunity to read this book

As a fan of The Girl in the Red Coat, I have been eagerly awaiting this next release from Kate Hamer and I've just had a wonderful but dark journey whilst reading the story of Ruby.

WE meet Ruby in 1983 when she is living with Barbara and Mick (boo hiss!) but she isn't a happy young girl after suffering at the hands of the ghastly Mick and is determined to find out who her real parents are and find out the truth to her past. Barbara is completely under the control of Mick so there is no real help for the abuse that Ruby has to endure and you can't help but feel so much sympathy for the young misfit.

WE also follow the storyline from 1970 and the story of Anna which puts the current situation into context and we are able to see Rubys' past before she existed.

Ruby has always been drawn to the forest and also has the ability to see 'shadow' people and this is another fascinating and dark twist to the plotline. She is also drawn to another wandering soul, Tom, and gets close to him and his family as they all try and search for answers to their past and find some meaning to their existences. The 'Shadow' also has a voice in this story and that is extremely dark and unnerving to read at times.

This is a slow burner of a book with lots that make you think and for me it was often quite an unsettling read as you never knew for sure what was round the corner. You also felt the torment that both Ruby and Anna go through as young girls which is often quite distressing and harrowing as they encounter many trying times and many of which make no sense.

I loved the dark and other worldly elements to this story and had to stay up late to finish reading it as the characters had me under their spell and I couldn't settle until I'd read to the end! If you like your stories a little different to the norm then I highly recommend this one!

Having seen a few reviews before I read this, I thought it was going to be a love it or hate it experience but actually I'm somewhere in the middle. There were parts of it I loved and were really easy to read (Anna's story)and then there were parts that reminded me of being at school and needing to finish books that I wouldn't otherwise have done. I fully understand the need for the dual timelines but coupled with the spirits, at times it was just a bit too confusing. It is well written and I can imagine it may suit readers of YA or fantasy books. In short I think this is a very good, possibly a great book but just wasn't the right fit for me.

I've never read a book like this, it was compelling yet it wasn't an easy read by any means.
This is a huge step away from my other reads and possibly a step too far. I'm more your psychological thriller kind of reader but this looked interesting.
A 13 year old Ruby doesn't fit into her family, she can't understand why but she just doesn't quite belong. Her parents Mick and Barbara are so far apart from her, Mick is the glowering angry man and Barbara is simpering and weedy. Where does Ruby belong?
There's a point in the book where I almost put it down never to return, the otherworldly aspects joined in and I was beginning to lose interest, this is not my genre at all, Something g made me carry on reading and im glad I did, it's a good book, more fairy tale than good read to me but again that is my opinion.
If you're a fan of fantasy books this would be perfect, a good book but it didn't blow me away

I am sorry though well written this novel was not for me. It had the basis of a good story but just wasn't for me.

Maybe it's just because this wasn't the story I was expecting to read or maybe it just wasn't that good? I'm undecided. I found myself skim reading chunks as there were too many places where it went off on a tangent. The story just didn't grab me, I kept reading expecting something more to happen but it just failed miserably.

I requested this from the publisher as I loved Kate's debut, The Girl in the Red Coat and I loved this even more. The writing is fantastic, the prose beautiful and the heroine Ruby is one smart tough young girl, who you just want to love. Ruby finds out that she is adopted, which feels like a huge relief and an escape from the abusive parents she's with. She goes in search of her real mum with the help of 'Shadow'. She has a special gift, she is clayvoyant and can see dead people. This is not scary, this is like her guardian. The plot is compelling, however it is not one where you just rush through to get to the end to find the answer, it is full of relationship issues, good and bad, friendships and also compassion to those mothers who are forced to leave their babies. It is in 1983 current day and we get the back story of Ruby's real mother in 1970. Another beazutifully written character.
A must read. well deserving of my 5*.

Sorry not for me , found it confusing and didn't finish it .

I can't read this. I skimmed my way through it after 20% . The book description is right up my street however I personally can't hack the writing style. Everything is so poetic and descriptive , going round the houses to get to a point in a sentence really gets on my goat . The story itself really doesn't meet the expectations of the description of the book. Not for me I'm afraid!

I really struggled to get into this one and wasn't for me.

DNF @ 28%

I know it probably seems like I haven't given this book much of a chance, but I'm just not getting into it and I'm not interested enough to keep trying. This is clearly a heart felt novel that's supposed to make you feel something but I'm not in that kind of reading mood.

Hamer's writing it still just a beautiful. It creates gorgeous imagery but it's a little bit airy fairy in this one. I lost my way with some of the scenes because I couldn't get my head around what she was talking about. It also read a little clunky despite the poetic writing.

It's a damn shame, as I loved Hamer's first novel The Girl in the Red Coat, but that was a lot more mysterious, creepy and went at a much faster pace.

I read this fairly quickly as it is fast paced and makes you wonder what is going on a lot of the time. I just found this ok, the style of writing is really wonderful but the plot and story I really wasn't to sure of - I would recommend this if you like dark fiction and want something a little different and it will keep you guessing :)

This book was a very different read from anything I've read before. The way Kate Hamerton uses language to draw you into the story. She eloquently makes every charachter in the book, including the forest, come to life.
The story is one that builds slowly which compels you to keep on turning the pages (even when you should totally be cooking dinner 😯).
The main charachter Ruby is 13 when you start to read the book and there are a few time jumps back to the 70's but the flow between the time gaps is flawless.
Ruby is 13 when she finds out that she is adopted and is delighted-this means that she is not actually related to her "parents" - Mick who you immediately hate and Barbara who you know is trying to do the right thing if she would only stand up for herself and Ruby. What makes Ruby special as you follow her thorough her life as she searches for her real parents is that she can see "shadow people".....death.
This is an absolutely heartbreaking and compelling read. Loved it from the first page turn