All our Hidden Gifts is about the mysterious disappearance of Maeve’s former best friend Lily and centres on Maeve’s new friendships with Lily’s brother Rory, or Roe as he likes to be called, and Fiona a cool drama loving student not normally associated as Maeve’s type.

Maeve finds a pack of tarot cards at their fee-paying all girls’ school and sets about learning how to read them, becoming quite a celebrity around the school in the process as she practices on pupils at lunch and break times. After a disastrous reading for her former friend Lily, she makes a comment about wishing for her to disappear – and she does.

With great remorse, Maeve realises she may have had a hand in her disappearance and sets out to try to find what happened and to work out how to bring her back. On the way, she becomes first friends and then girlfriend to Roe, though she is holding back a secret from him that she is sure won’t allow this to last. He is also grappling with the fact that he is bi and struggling how to deal with family and classmate reactions. Fiona is from a large family of Philippine immigrants who have had experience with tarot cards before and she helps Maeve to make sense of her new-found talents as a reader and becomes a real friend to her.

There are other plot lines too – the Housekeeper card keeps appearing throughout as a sinister link to all the events and their continual brushes with Aaron, a slick American who is head of Children of Brigid, a supposed peaceable charitable organisation which seems more like a cult give another angle. I wasn't convinced about how Maeve 'came back' and found this part of the plot a tad confusing.

I enjoyed the character constructions and how they interacted but found the section where Aaron was introduced didn’t work for me and I was left unsure how he fitted in until much later in the book. I can imagine if you are a reader who has qualms about tarot cards and their links to occult events then this is not the book for you. I was ambivalent about this so enjoyed it for what it was but the fairly detailed sounding descriptions about how they work might deter some readers – or encourage them to explore further I guess.

It covered a lot of themes relevant to young adults today and I can imagine anyone experiencing teen angst about their place in the world and how they fit in will identify with parts of each character and will gain some comfort in the thought that it’s a tricky time for everyone!

With thanks to Net Galley for a digital early release in exchange for an honest review.

It’s times like these I wish Goodreads allowed half stars! All Our Hidden gifts wasn’t quite a four star read but three stars feels a bit stingy.
Plus points - creepy ghost lady (the housekeeper), some good LGBTQIA+ representation that felt natural and not just shoehorned in, a creepy old school complete with strange old nun, teens finding their hidden powers.
Minus points - god the main character was a drag. She was so selfish and self-centred and even at the end of the book when she should have had some character development she still needed to be reminded that not everything is about her. Roe and Fiona, her friends, were much more well-rounded characters and I think the book from their perspective might have turned the story from good to great. (If I’m honest - I finished this book three hours ago and I’ve forgotten the main girls’ name, but remember all the others, which I think speaks volumes!)

I did enjoy the spooky ‘housekeeper’ and pictured her like a j-horror ghost with long,dark, wet hair obscuring her face. I also like the mix of Irish folklore with the tales from Manila that Fiona’s Aunt and Mum remember and the Wiccan beliefs,

I’d recommend to teen readers but as an adult reading YA it was missing that something that helps it relate to older readers too - again, I think a lot to do with how bratty the main character comes across. I found it difficult to relate to her or root for her when she was essentially a victim of herself!


I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley in return for a fair review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's an excellent YA and had me interested throughout.
The character of Maeve is so well written. She's a young girl in Ireland, who feels definitely less than her brothers and sisters and whose ex best friend disappears and Maeve believes it could be linked to some Tarot cards she found in her hand in a weird experience at school.

It's a well told tale with thrills, relationships and mystery and with some thought provoking elements.

Such a great read. Loved it.


Thanks so much to NetGalley and Walker books for the opportunity to preview my eARC.

All Our Hidden Gifts follows Maeve who discovers a pack of tarot cards one day, after a failed reading and an argument with her ex-best friend, Maeve wishes for her to disappear and Lily ends up disappearing.

I really enjoyed the start of the book, right away I knew I would like Maeve and her personality is very strong – she is a flawed but likable main character. I liked how the book set up the tarot card plot; with Maeve discovering her gift for readings, the setting being an old school and the history between Maeve and Lily leading up to their argument, in general the start of the book was my favourite part. However, the plot of the book is really weird, I did not like the different subplots in the book and personally they did not flow really well – it felt like I was reading a different book in comparison to the start of the book. I still read on because the book is really easy to read, I enjoyed the writing style a lot and I did like the side characters - the friendships/family aspect in the book, the setting and the parts involving magic.

There is a lot that happens with the plot, the subplots are interesting but feel underdeveloped and out of place in a book that I thought was just about magic. The majority of the book was focused on the subplots and so the actual plot develops really slowly and although the stories do connect in a way, I felt like the ending was rushed and so they do not wrap up well especially the subplot – I did not get the point of building up the villain and those he surrounds himself with only for the book to switch back to the main plotline like it was nothing. Personally, I just thought that the book was a weird mix of things that did not go well together.

I did like the side characters, but I would have liked to know more about Lily because we barely know anything about her before she disappears, so it made it hard for me to connect to her and care that she was missing. The romance was awkward, it felt really one-sided and it was on and off a lot, then towards the end things were happening really quickly – it just develops weirdly. The ending of the book itself and the way the book wraps up the story was anti-climatic and kind of disappointing.

2/5

Caroline O'Donoghue is no stranger to writing however this is her first time creating a YA novel.

What I can say is, those who love this genre will definitely find this book a great read.

I was immediately drawn in by the front cover, feeling an instant need to read it and after hearing Caroline talk about it during a live zoom event from Walker books, I was beyond excited when I was gifted an ARC via Netgalley.

With a mix of love, drama and even a touch of what I'd describe as paranormal, over all it as an entertaining read that will appeal to many.

The story itself is set in Ireland, our (not so loveable) protagonist is sixteen-year old Maeve Chambers. She is the youngest member of a rather large family. Being the youngest and a teenager she is at a point in her life where she is struggling. Not quite as talented as her siblings, she sees herself as the thick one and in her own journey to find herself she ends up losing so much more.

Maeve currently attends an all-girls Catholic school and in and attempt to try and impress her peers she gets herself into a spot of bother, resulting in a sort of in school suspension. Her punishment involves cleaning out a cupboard know as the 'Chokey' where she finds a set of tarot cards...and it turns out that she has a skill when it comes to reading the cards.

She starts practicing her skills on her school friends but after a dramatic reading with her ex best friend, poor Maeve believes that a mysterious card from her deck - The Housekeeper - may have stolen Lily away so she decides to dig deeper into the magic behind it all.

After this what transpires is scary, worrying and well to most, unbelievable.

There were a few things that didn't feel completely necessary or perhaps needing more detail to them to make them really fit within the story. One of those being Maeve and Roe's relationship. I felt that they'd be better suited as friends than moving to boyfriend and girlfriend but like I say that could be more down to character development.

On the whole this story is wonderfully unique.

I loved the use of wicca type magic and LGBTQ themes that were used throughout. It felt like those subjects were fairly well researched, not just thrown in for the sake of it.

A stand alone? that could easily become a series.

All Our Hidden Gifts is going to be a great addition to the YA adult genre and I'm looking forward to seeing what Caroline comes up with next.

I loved this book. Work and *gestures around* everything had really impacted on my ability to read of late, but this book caught me from the opening pages and kept me entranced. I loved Maeve and Fiona, I wanted to know what had happened to Lily, and I was so delighted by the resolution and how O'Donoghue handled the ambiguity and intensity of teen friendship and love. A great book, I can't wait to read the next one!

First things first - I totally judged this book by it's cover. It is GORGEOUS. I can only imagine it will look even better when it's a physical book.

While I did enjoy All Our Hidden Gifts, it was a little confusing in parts. Some of the content felt very YA, but the characters felt much younger than they actually were. I had to remind myself a couple of times that they were 16ish and not 12. I also felt like the subplot with the Children of Brigid was really underdeveloped. It could have been really interesting to see how that played out, but it just sort of fizzled out. Overall, it was a pretty good read, and I would definitely read something else by the author.

A study of dark and light and the delicate balance in the world. Behind a story of witchcraft, tarot and the mysterious disappearance of a friend is an examination of Ireland’s political change. Touching on divorce, equal marriage and gender, this is a powerful story of finding your people, and coming together to stand up to injustice. Engaging and intelligent, with lots of threads to follow and twists in the tale, this is a gripping story of friendship, first love and finding yourself. We loved it.

Caroline O'Donoghue's foray into YA will definitely appeal to fans of the genre. Although I do have a few criticisms I can safely say that I found All Our Hidden Gifts to be an entertaining read.
Set in Ireland, our narrator and protagonist is sixteen-year old Maeve Chambers, the youngest in a big family. She has quite a chip on her shoulder when it comes to her 'brilliant' sisters and brothers. Unlike them she isn't academically gifted and for a period of time she was put in a slow-learning class. Maeve now attends an all-girls Catholic school and in trying to impress her peers lands herself in trouble. It just so happens that her detention includes cleaning out a cupboard know as the 'Chokey' where she finds a set of tarot cards...and it turns out that she has a skill when it comes to reading the cards.
The story takes a Labyrinth turn when Maeve's new talent results in the disappearance of her former best friend, Lily, who she'd ditched in order to climb the social ladder. Was I expected the Goblin King to be responsible for Lily's disappearance? Maybe...
Anyhow, when the police gets involved and things get serious Maeve's life becomes quite messy. Maeve believes that a mysterious card from her deck may have stolen Lily away so she decides to deepen her knowledge of magic. Along the way she becomes close with another girl from her school and with Lily's older brother, Roe.
As the kids investigate Lily's disappearance they become increasingly suspicious of a cult-like Christian group that is very vocal in opposing LGBTQ+ rights.
I appreciated the issues O'Donoghue incorporates throughout her narrative. We have characters who are discriminated against for not being white or for not conforming to one gender. Lily wears a hearing aid, which is probably another reason why her classmates bully or exclude her, Maeve's sister is gay, Roe is exploring his gender identity. As inclusivity goes, this novel is beautifully inclusive. Maeve, who is white, cis, straight, and from a possibly middle-class family, is called out for being insensitive or naive when it comes to discrimination. She's also somewhat self-centred, in an angsty sort of way, and this too is pointed out by other characters. Fiona also makes a point of reminding Maeve not to make other people's oppression all about herself.

While I appreciated her growth, I still struggled to sympathise or like her. I found Roe and Fiona to be much more likeable and interesting characters. Maeve was the classic 'I'm not beautiful like x or intelligent like y' self-pitying kind of gall. She was boring and sounded much younger than her allegedly sixteen years of life. Which brings to my next 'criticism': there is a discrepancy between the tone and content of this novel. The tone, which is mainly created by Maeve's direct narration, would have been more suited to a middle-grade book while her narrative's content—the issues and discussions that came up in the story—are more tailored towards a YA audience. Both Maeve and the other sixteen-year olds sounded like they were twelve a lot of the time. Which made it weird when things like sex came up.
The bad American dude was somewhat cartoonish, and that whole side-plot felt rather undeveloped.
Lily was a promising character who might have been more fleshed out with some more flashbacks. And, to be honest, I would preferred this to be a friendship-focused kind of story. The romance between Maeve and Roe did not convince me, at all. She crushes on him from the get-go of the novel, but I could not for the life of me understand or see why he reciprocated her feelings. She says some pretty shitty things now and again to him and acts in a possessive way which irked me. I get she's insecure but still....she knows she may have been responsible for his sister's disappearance...and all she can think about are his lips?

Nevertheless, this was far from a bad or mediocre book. I like the way O'Donoghue writes and I appreciate her story's themes and imagery so I would probably still recommend this. I, however, might stick to her adult fiction from now on.

Maeve is, at times, a frustrating character to read. This is partly because she’s a bratty 16-year-old not quite aware of her own privilege and somewhat because she gets a “chosen one” trope while being that character. She speaks too quickly without thinking and hurts the people around her. While she tries to be sensitive to other issues, she still misses the mark on some things. There were moments inside Maeve’s thoughts that made me cringe, but that had more to do with Maeve and less to do with the romance. While I loved the relationships in this book, I felt a little confused by the timeline and the speed at which these characters grew close. It felt like instalove and instafriendship, and while difficult times can definitely lead to these sorts of things, it isn’t always an excellent time for them to happen.
The book interestingly addresses homophobia. The subplot of the Children of Brigid cult was the most exciting part of the story, and I would have liked more about that. The book was enjoyable, but it’s pacing was strange, and the lack of questions answered was a little frustrating to me.

Exciting, engaging, and full of surprises, this book really does have it all!

All Our Hidden Gifts is a Young Adult paranormal fantasy novel, focusing on fledgling witch Maeve. Drawn to an old pack of tarot cards and finding herself suddenly immersed in all things occult, Maeve soon finds out that she's bitten off more than she bargained for when her ex-best friend Lily goes missing after a disastrous tarot reading. Feeling responsible for Lily's disappearance and desperate to find the answers, Maeve embarks on a dangerously thrilling journey to bring Lily safely home.

Maeve is a flawed heroine, yet one who is still inherently likeable and relatable. She's not perfect, but then, who is? With Fiona, her new best friend, and Roe, Lily's older sibling, the trio begin to step further and further into the unknown. With mysterious events happening around town and a rise in homophobic and intolerant behaviour, the world they thought they knew quickly comes crashing down around them.

As well as paranormal fantasy, this book also features love, friendship, mystery, and LGBTQ+. It's current and relevant, yet with added mysticism and the occult. It's extremely well-written and highly readable - gripping and thought-provoking throughout.

All Our Hidden Gifts is a complete dream of a novel and I am keeping my fingers firmly crossed for a sequel!

Generally not a fan of witchcraft, especially in YA, but this book hit all the right notes. The main character, plagued by a pack of old Tarot cards (and not understanding why they send her senses spiraling) is interesting and real. Her friends (the new and the old) are believable, especially Roe/Rory, who is thinking ... maybe ... he's non-binary but is definitely interested in a relationship with Maeve. The Irish setting and characters were an added bonus, and the resolution felt authentic (as much as a seance and spell-weaving can, anyway!) Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance ecopy.

Quick disclaimer: I know the author IRL. These are my genuine thoughts, but I think it's only fair to let you know.

I reckon a lot of people reading Caroline's first YA are going to pick over the details of having one main character who is non-binary, and another who is mixed race. That's understandable: we're not at the stage of representation where having these things feels part of the norm yet. All I'm saying is: don't be so distracted by unpicking who these people are, that you miss what they're there to do.

This is really a book about forgiveness. What can you say or do to a friend that can or can't be forgiven? Does anyone owe you their forgiveness? Does intent matter? It doesn't claim to answer them all, but it does examine the whole messy business, and I find that endlessly interesting. We've all done things we regret. We've all been hurt. Our teenage lives are some of the most emotionally intense we'll ever have, and I can tell you that at 40 you still haven't forgotten how it feels. And that's what I took from All Our Hidden Gifts the most: that no matter what the complex structures of our ever-changing identities, we all need to negotiate boundaries - our own, and other people's. Plus there's some really awesome and genuinely creepy magic.

I can't wait for book 2!

I enjoyed this debut YA novel from Caroline O'Donoghue. A spooky magic school without the baggage of Rowling's real life views, this felt lovely because everyone has a place.

The dialogue was funny and quick, I loved the plot of using tarot cards. Will definintely keep an eye out for more in this series (if there are any more!)

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I read a sampler of the first few chapters of All Our Hidden Gifts a few months ago and was immediately hooked and immediately needed to know more about Maeve, an Irish teenager who seems pretty ordinary, until she finds a deck of tarot cards in her school and finds it spookily easy to read them, right away. She decides to read cards for her classmates, enjoying the glamour and the noteriety, until she's forced to read them for her ex best friend Lily, who mysteriously vanishes shortly afterwards. The cards aren't quite what they seem, and something strange is going on in the town, so Maeve enlists some new friends to figure out what is going on and how they can get Lily back.

I loved Maeve and her friends, Fiona and Roe, and how open and supportive they are of each other. Maeve quickly realises despite her own insecurities about her academic intelligence, her life so far has been a lot easier than theirs, one being discriminated against for being Fillipina and the other for their sexuality and gender expression. She is therefore especially disturbed by the increasing popularity of a seemingly religious, right wing youth group in their town, and their charismatic but unsettling leader. Maeve gets a lot wrong (notably her treatment of Lily and how she sometimes speaks before she thinks) but her heart is in the right place and the injustice she feels on behalf of the people the "Children of Bridget" is genuine and motivated by kindness and empathy. This mix of the real world tension between apparent social progress and worryingly young right wing movements allows O'Donoghues magical world to take root and grow into something unique and exciting.

Thankfully, there are rumours of more books in this series, because I am desperate to read more about Maeve. This would be ideal for readers of Sarah Maria Griffin, Deirdre Sullivan, and Moira Fowley Doyle, and really interestingly touches on themes O'Donoghue explored in her recent excellent novel, Scenes of a Graphic Nature, which is for older readers

I found this it be really easy to read. There were times when I found three of our main teens more grown up than their years. Having said that, the author's shown a lot of growth for the main character - Maeve - who starts of being largely ruled by her emotions and desire to fit in with the so called popular girls of St Bernadette's Catholic school

The book effortlessly blends different themes, it's a spooky/ urban-fantasy/ coming of age story about the importance of acceptance - of self and others. Set in Ireland it also gives as a sense of place, with the old Ireland and new Ireland bumping up against each other. I think readers who find the description appealing are likely to find something that will resonate for them. A key theme for me when reading this was around acceptance- of self, of others and and of change. The themes are current, and the pace jogs along nicely providing a bit of everything.

This spellbinding YA debut from Caroline O’Donoghue is sparkling, current, exciting and just dark enough to keep you totally engrossed.

When Maeve discovers a set of tarot cards in a school basement, little does she know that her uncanny skill at readings will end up with her ex-best friend disappearing.

What follows next is a journey through magic, mysticism and ultimately sacrifice with loads of tarot to boot..

While this feels like a classic teen magic adventure, more importantly it is a story about tolerance, acceptance, learning to belong, learning to be different and most of all - growing as a person.

In the wake of everything that has happened with JK Rowling, it’s really refreshing and heartwarming to read a book that is so clearly designed to make sure that everyone feels safe and can find a role model or reflection of themselves.

The world Caroline draws embraces the differences between us whether through gender, queerness, colour or class, but what’s more it delights in them. Stunning.

I liked this book! The writing was great, the characters felt very real, the dialogue made me laugh aloud a good few times. I also got VERY creeped out by The Card I Shall Not Name when it started appearing. I think the magic/fantasy of it all confused me—I finished it not entirely sure what the magic system was, which was a shame because I love new magic systems, but I wonder if that's because it's the first in a series.

I really enjoyed this book and read it over a day. The concept was interesting and I really liked Maeve as a character - she's flawed but that's what makes her interesting.
I struggled with Promising Young Women and didn't enjoy it, so am very pleased to have enjoyed the author's latest offering.

Also, the cover is gorgeous!

Maeve Chambers is struggling in school and fell out with her best friend, Lily, a year ago. But when cleaning out a storage cupboard, she finds a pack of tarot cards and starts giving people tarot readings. Lily is the only one not to get a reading, but one Friday, she does, and her and Maeve fall out even more. When she does not come into school and the police get involved, everyone is blaming Maeve...

From the very beginning, I loved how Maeve’s character was built: a struggling student who finally finds something she’s good at. The mysterious additions of the protest group helped add lots of suspense and anger as well, and I was always reading on intently, trying to find out what happens. The friendships she builds with Roe and Fiona are very strong, and there to stay for a long time. I really enjoyed this book, and definitely recommend it.