A sweeping atmospheric and intriguing tale spiced with dark secrets, forbidden passion and divided loyalties, Kathleen McGurl’s The Forgotten Gift is another superb page-turner by this talented storyteller.

In 1865, George’s encounter with the beautiful Lucy changed his world forever. George had been enchanted by Lucy from the very first moment he clapped eyes on her. The second son of a wealthy family had long thought that this kind of happiness would be denied to him, but with Lucy he sees all the possibilities that had been previously unthinkable now becoming a reality. However, George’s happiness is snatched away when he is spurned by the woman he loves. But worse is to come for him when Lucy’s body is found. Somebody had murdered her and the finger of suspicion is aimed squarely at George. But George loved her and would never have harmed a single hair on her head. So who would want to kill Lucy? Can George discover who the murderer is before he ends up hanging for a crime he didn’t commit?

In the present day, Cassie leads a life which, while unexciting. leaves her feeling reasonably fulfilled. She has a good job, a great circle of friends and a loving and supportive family and it would be churlish to ask for more when she has far more than most people would even dream of. When she receives a gift from a long-forgotten will, Cassie is intrigued – especially as this unexpected legacy leads her to a dark secret about her family’s past she is absolutely desperate to learn more about. As Cassie begins to dig deep into a part of her family’s history that was unknown to her, she finds herself uncovering a secret from her ancestors that could have serious repercussions on present and future generations…

As the past and present collide, will Cassie be able to lay old ghosts to rest? Or will she end up paying the ultimate price when she discovers the shocking truth about her family?

Kathleen McGurl is a storyteller of substance who creates captivating tales that never fail to leave her readers transfixed and intrigued from beginning to end. In The Forgotten Gift, she once again seamlessly balances the past and present and has penned a mesmerizing, suspenseful, heart-warming and compelling tale of family secrets, illicit desire and devastating truths that is an absolute struggle to put down.

An insightful, absorbing and riveting novel that will break readers’ hearts and give them a couple of sleepless nights as they won’t be able to stop reading this gripping tale, The Forgotten Gift is another sure-fire hit from Kathleen McGurl’s very gifted pen.

What a lovely way to spend an afternoon! Whenever I read one of the author’s books, it reminds me just how much I always enjoy a well told dual-time story – and she does it so very well. In the 1860s we meet George, a second son who’s shown very little interest or affection by his cold and remote parents, capturing his life in his journal – and then developing a passion for scheming housemaid Lucy with devastating consequences. And in the present day, we meet Cassie – such a likeable and sympathetic character – rather going through the motions, content spending her days working at the local leisure centre, calling in at the pub with her workmates on the way home, where she’s developed an interest in genealogy and is researching her father’s family tree.

On the surface, it’s that research that ties the stories together – George is one of those ancestors, and the census results throw up all sorts of questions about his chequered history and some of the mysterious bequests in the will she then uncovers. But the stories are linked by a lot more than that – Cassie has a few surprises on the way, and the threads mirror each other so cleverly with questions about parenthood and family (especially fathers), love and loyalty, that I thoroughly enjoyed. There’s even some nice echoing of the themes of friendship and support too – Andy, the leisure centre manager, comes through for Cassie (with a little nicely developed attraction in the mix), and George finally finds a support network that rather saves him too.

The 1860s story is really excellent – the period detail and the manners and morals of the time really well represented. While the parents are pretty horrendous characters, and you really feel for George as he tells his story through the pages of his journal in a clear and consistent voice. His only real sin is his naivety and need for approval (love might just be too much to ask for…) – but there are the good characters too, not just ciphers but really well drawn, and I was entirely gripped by the story that unfolded.

But I really enjoyed all the twists and turns of Cassie’s story too – and the mark of a writer who writes this story so very well is that no one thread predominates or is more enjoyable than the other, both stories are equally emotionally engaging, and there’s absolutely none of that wrenching you can sometimes feel when the narrative moves from one story to the other.

Superb storytelling, excellent characters, two threads beautifully entwined – and a conclusion that really was everything I wanted it to be. Recommended to anyone who might enjoy the same books that I do – I thoroughly enjoyed it.

(Review copied to Amazon UK, but link not yet available)

Rating 4.5/5*

I’m convinced that Kathleen McGurl is the Queen of dual timeline family dramas – and reading this fantastic book only reinforced that. Cassie is researching into her family history and has found some mysterious aspects that she’d never expected. However, as she finds out more about the past she’s also having to face revelations about her own family, some of which could have life changing consequences on their relationships . . . .

This story is told from the contemporary point of view of Cassie and the historical journal of George. They both have discoveries to make, surprises to uncover, relationships that change and decisions to make. The two threads from the different timelines are cleverly linked and woven together into an enthralling read that kept me turning the pages to discover what happened next. I found it an intriguing and fascinating read and have no hesitation in highly recommending it to anyone who enjoys historical mysteries, family dramas, romances or any combination of these genres!

Thank you for my copy of this book which I have voluntarily read and honestly reviewed.

This was a captivating read once I got into it. I enjoy dual timelines and this story involves Cassie in the present day and George in the mid to late 1800s. Both of stories that are similar in some ways as regards to family relationships. Although, in other ways very dissimilar! It’s difficult to say too much without giving away the storyline but I can say it became a real page turner. It does have a happy ending. I will look for more of this author’s books. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Unfortunately this book wasn't for me and I was unable to finish reading it. This is one of the first adult historical fiction novels I've read and I was intruiged in the first few chapters, but found that the the historical timeline was much less interesting than the current one. While there was nothing badly done about the plotting, it didn't fully command my attention. There were some interesting plot and character moments in the current timeline, but they still didn't have the pow that would've really pulled me in. I'm very sad that I didn't love this, but it just wasn't for me.

1861: George's life changes forever the day he meets Lucy. She's beautiful and charming, and he see a future with her. But when Lucy dies in a suspected poisoning the day after she rejected George, he finds himself caught up in a murder investigation. But George .over Lucy; he would never have harmed her. So who did?

Now: Cassie is happy with her life. She has a secure job, good friends and a loving family. When a mysterious gift in a .long forgotten will leads her to a dark secret in her family history, she's desperate to find out more. But the secrets are not all buried in the past and her research will soon lead her to a revelation much closer to home. 

What a  beautifully written story this is. The plotline is intriguing with a fast pace. Secrets are revealed and there's a few surprises along the way. We get two stories and two points of view that are seamlessly woven together. The characters are well rounded and believable. 

I would like to thank #NetGalley, #HQ and the author #KathleenMcGurl for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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

This author’s books never fail to be enjoyable. Her characters are always compelling to read about and the stories full of depth and interesting.  In this book we follow Cassie in the present who is about to come face to face with the child she gave up for adoption as a baby; at the same time we are following George, an ancestor of Cassie’s, as we learn his story, one that Cassie has been trying to uncover as she traces her family’s genealogy. I really enjoyed the twists and turns in this book and both stories were equally interesting. All in all another great book by this author.

Kathleen McGurl is one of the premier Queen’s of the dual time-line novel genre. This is not the 1st book of hers that I have read and it will not be the last. I am always excited for a new book from her.

The book is told through  two different time periods. 1860’s Victorian England and the present. The story starts with the last will and testament of George Britten. The will has a mystery of it’s own. Why would George a middle class Victorian gentleman know, let alone leave a 1oo pounds and a valuable mirror to a prison chaplain and his wife? Enter the modern day protagonist and George’s descendent Cassie. Cassie has a happy mundane life. Her hobby of Genealogy research makes her curious about George and his bequests. Thus begins a story of family secrets and the ties that bind. 

The reason that I keep reading Kathleen McGurl’s books is  for the mystery, the time periods and the family dynamics that she likes to write about. If you are a fan of dual time books and have never read Kathleen McGurl, giver her books a try. I guarantee you will not be disappointed. 

Thanks to Netgalley, Kathleen McGurl and the publisher for a chance to review this book.

I read this book as part of the blog tour hosted by Rachel's Random Resources. Thanks to NetGalley and HQ Digital for the copy in exchange for an honest review. 3 stars

The first thing that caught my eye with The Forgotten Gift was the beautiful cover followed by the fact that it's a historical fiction that involved a family mystery! I liked the way that McGurl presented the story through two perspectives, timelines and writing styles, and I found it worked well in giving the story distinct character voices. I am a fan of the epistolary format, so I liked that half to the story was told through journal entries, plus the alternating dynamics made it a pretty fast read!

We're first introduced to Cassie as she discovers some interesting information about a (very) distant relative, George Britten, when she dives deep into her passion for genealogy. I liked Cassie a lot at the beginning as she seems to have a good solid head on her shoulders. However, there's some information about her that is revealed at one point, and the way she reacted surprisingly frustrated me. Is it so easy to forget a lifetime of unfailing support and love so easily? While I can't say that I've been in that situation but I found the way she reacted quite hurtful and irrational. On the other hand, I started off not being too keen on George. There was this naivete to his character that made me think he was much younger than his 18/19 years, but my heart went out to him and his sad upbringing with truly the worst parents. While I found his actions frustrating at the start, I could still understand why he reacted the way he did. He was so desperate for love and acceptance that he was willing to see it at even the slightest hint of. I eventually started really warming up to his character, and by the end I was really rooting for his happiness.

Without going into too many details that could lead to spoilers, I will say that I enjoyed the exploration of what it means to be family in this story. Through the dual timelines, we follow Cassie and George as they deal with many surprising family revelations, and we see them simultaneously unravel as well as try to put themselves back together while figuring out what really makes a family. It isn't just your birth or adoptive parents, but it also extends to friends and other important people who've come through your life that have played a key role in your growth.

TL;DR: This was an interesting combination of historical and contemporary fiction that explores important themes surrounding family. Both main characters had distinct character voices, and the alternating formats made it for a quick and engaging read. Although the journey to get there was a little bit frustrating and irrational at times, I found the end to this story heartwarming and very positive!

LOVELY STORY ABOUT THE MEANING OF FAMILY

This is my first McGurl novel, and I am so happy I picked it up. Apparently, McGurl is known as the queen of parallel timelines (personally, I think Gill Paul deserves a mention here as well) and this novel really showed that to the fullest. Family is the most important theme of this book and it's one I really approve of.

👍 What I Liked 👍

Dual timelines: Dual timelines (or parallel timelines) can go either way in my experience. For some stories it enhances the reading experience. For others it diminishes it. This is an example of the former. Both stories were really strong and had a clear connection to one another. It basically felt like reading two great books at once.

Cassie's story: While both stories, both Cassie and George's stories, were really strong, I want to highlight Cassie's story. Because at first I wasn't really that into it. I didn't really feel it. But the fact that it picked up and became just as engaging and moving as George's story was a real plus for me.

Theme: To me, family is the most important thing. And I adore books that explore the concept of family - the family we're born into and the family we make for ourselves. Several times the concept of nature versus nurture was brought up and examined, which was a really good point and which fitted in so nicely with the story.

👎 What I Disliked 👎

Similarities: While the dual stories were both really strong, I did find it a bit unrealistic that the two stories were so similar. George and Cassie share a lot of the same experiences, and while one would have been fine and plausible, the number of similarities here were too many in my opinion.

I read this on advice of a friend, it didn’t disappoint.  It is in two time zones with different characters. Usually I would be more interested in one than the other but not in this case.   Both were exciting. I found it easy to read.  I would definitely recommend this and will read some more of  Kathleen’s books.

1861
When George first sets eyes on Lucy, one of his household's servants, he is smitten and is soon making plans for his future. After being rejected, however, his hopes are further thwarted when Lucy dies, seemingly the victim of a poisoning. Distraught, George knows that someone at home must have killed her, but who?

Present
Cassie is quite content with her life: a job she loves, friends she can rely on and doting parents who would do anything for her. All this is turned upside down, however, as research into her family history makes her question everything she thought she knew about her life.

 I am a huge fan of Kathleen McGurl's dual timeline novels, my favourite being The Daughters of Red Hill Hall. I was thrilled, therefore to see that the author has revisited my favourite era of historical fiction, the Victorian period, in her latest book, The Forgotten Gift.

As with her other books, we have two different plots set in two different time frames with a common theme running through them. The issue of family secrets is very much at the forefront here and the lengths some people will go to in order to stop these secrets from being revealed. I had great sympathy for George, who came across as a lovely young man, shunned by his family through no fault of his own. By starting the book with George's will, I immediately became invested in his story, and was desperate to know what had happened in his life. This also provided a good link between the two time frames as Cassie tried to discover the same things.
As a fellow genealogist, I could relate a lot to the character of Cassie and loved how an enjoyable evening for her was one sat reading old documents, trying to make sense of the past. The discovery of scandal is an occupational hazard for a family historian, but Cassie manages to open up several cans of worms that have a profound effect on her life. I won't give any spoilers, but I felt that this was sensitively handled, showing very real reactions from all involved parties.

I have, recently, been struggling to read books at my usual pace and I knew that a Kathleen McGurl book would help me out of my slump. I was so right as I raced through The Forgotten Gift, desperate to know what had happened in George's life and how had overcome his problems. (Although I loved Cassie's story, it was George who tugged at the heart strings for me!) 

This is a wonderful read which, although fiction, gives a real insight into aspects of Victorian life. I have sung the praises of this author many times and I will continue to do so. If you haven't read any of her work before, then please do - you won't be disappointed!

A book written with such compassion.
Written over two timelines it deals with the subject of adoption and illegitimate children and how they search for their birth parents and try to find their way in the world so that they can feel fulfilled and cherished 
Absolutely brilliant

No two families are the same! Families are all shapes & sizes & this book tells the story of the 1800's & of today.  Nothing is as it seems.  Interesting book, so many twists & turns make this a great page turner. Recommended read.

Cassie is fascinated with TV programmes about people researching their family history, and enjoys researching her own in her spare time from working at a leisure centre. However, when she starts on her fathers side of the family she unravels a fascinating story from the mid nineteenth century, at the same time as parts of her own life story are revealed. The central theme of this very readable novel seems to be the many and various forms that can exist of what we choose to call our family.

At first, I thought this book was going to be a romance novel that I might not like. What I got instead was a sweet tale with a duel timeline.  
In the past, George Britten has a lot of issues with love, family, and falsehoods.  George has to learn to grow up quickly at 19 and begin pretty much on his own.  His story is interesting because of the hows and whys he has to do things on his own.  
In the future, we find a descendant of George's, Cassie has discovered George and starts to research his life.  In the process, she discovers secrets about her past will have to be dealt with in the present.  
In both timelines we see our main characters struggle with how to cope with things they cannot change, and watch them discover how they can overcome these obstacles.  
What is The Forgotten Gift?  I felt in reading this that it was a few things.  There was one item that was a physical object, but I felt there were also matters of the heart that were forgotten and ended up being a gift. I thought the author was very creative in title choice.  

I ended up giving this book 4 stars because I really enjoyed the storylines.

I loved the book the duel time lines just fall into place the story work so well together  I enjoy how the past fell into the now story your love the characters  pass and present  cassie a strong character i did like how  she pulls the plot together it hooked me I read in a day  I enjoy Kathleen's  writting style it so easy to read I recommend  to you all

Thank you to Kathleen McGurl, HQ and Net Galley for the ARC of THE FORGOTTEN GIFT.
I love novels that switch timelines, and The Forgotten Gift does it extremely well. In 1861 George, the second son of a comfortably off family falls in love with a maid his mother has hired, Lucy whom he discovers is having sex with his father. He is devastated because only that afternoon he had bought her a beautiful mirror studded with jewels as proof of his love. 

In the present day, Cassie is researching her ancestry and becomes very interested in a story of her dad's ancestors and discovers George's will in which he left a bequest to a woman whose name is difficult to decipher and a bequest of a mirror to the wife of a chaplain whom he met in prison. She is intrigued by George Bitten's story, and what she discovers about her dad's great great great grandfather leads her into discoveries of secrets in her own family and is the premise of a novel which I found very difficult to put down. Really good!

I got The Forgotten Gift by Kathleen McGurl from Netgalley for a fair and honest review.

1861. George’s life changes forever the day he meets Lucy. She’s beautiful and charming, and he sees a future with her that his position as the second son in a wealthy family has never offered him. But when Lucy dies in a suspected poisoning days after rejecting George, he finds himself swept up into a murder investigation. George loved Lucy; he would never have harmed her. So who did?

Now. On the surface, Cassie is happy with her life: a secure job, good friends, and a loving family. When a mysterious gift in a long-forgotten will leads her to a dark secret in her family’s history she’s desperate to learn more. But the secrets in Cassie’s family aren’t all hidden in the past, and her research will soon lead her to a revelation much closer to home – and which will turn everything she knows on its head.

The Forgotten is a story based on two timelines, with the first set in the 21st century and the other set in the mid  19th century, and like most stories with two timelines, the latest one is looking for clues to what happened in the earlier one., then the earlier one says what actually happened/

In each time line there is told through the eyes of one person, the latest one is told through Cassiee, is a woman in her 30’s who is looking into her family genealogy as well as dealing with issues in the present.

The Older timeline is told through the eyes of George however this is told through his journal, which makes it very easy work out whose timeline you are in when reading the book.

For me the only weakness the story which is more of a personal  preference was that people were ever good or bad, there were very little shades of grey to me this would have taken the book to another level. 

Having said that, I loved the way that the story examined how there are many types of families out there and that they could have any number of secrets that people try to keep, however they have a habit of coming out.

Who should read The Forgotten Gift? The forgotten gift is a story about families and how they all have hidden secrets from other members of the family.  To this end if you love books that show how secrets are kept but they do have a habit  of coming out this book is for you. 

As well as being about family secrets it is also a story of hope and how if we keep going then there will always be a solution to the problem, if either these appeal to you then you should read Kathleen McGurl’s latest book The Forgotten Gift.

First and foremost thank you goes out to everyone who had a hand in gifting this gorgeous ARC in exchange for this honest review.
I was truly enamored by the intensity, the passion, the heated debates, the love, and the devotion of these characters that were remarkable in their ways for their historical significance.
It began with the last will and testament of George who bequeath lovely jewels and gems for the Chaplain of the Prison's wife but the question readers ponder is why and how does he know the chaplain of a prison.
More importantly how did he get locked up for the sudden death of the love of his life-Lucy- after her poisoning-when he was head over heels for her.
We then progress to meeting Cassie in the present day form and wonder about her overall significance to this powerful story.
She happens to be a happy genealogist who uncovered a treasure trove of information pertaining to her great-great- great-grandfathers will in England.
As if this wasn't enough to hook you in Kathleen McGurl ratchets up an intriguing dual timeline back to 1861 in which Lucy and George meeting at the Bitten Mansion.
However, they are not merely the lone party as there's so much to this story that's been hidden concerning several of those working at the mansion and surrounding consequences of some devious acts.
This feels like a two-fer in which you receive two powerful gems for the price of one with both glowing equally bright.
What will one do for the power of love? Or better yet, what will one do to hide the family's most valued secrets?
I loved everything about this including the wonderfully written and beautifully choreographed segments within this entire storyline.
Thank you to Kathleen McGurl, the pub, NetGalley, and Amazon Kindle for this ARC in exchange for this honest review.