This book has left me utterly speechless. I was taken by complete surprise, and I loved every second of it. From the first page I was captivated and enraptured by Elisabeth Hobbes lyrical writing. I could not put the book down and when I was forced to, I could not wait to get back to it. It is powerful, raw, and it took my breath away. You will be yelling at the characters passionately, knowing they are going to make the wrong choice. A choice that will affect all their lives. The deeply layered, rich characters will draw you into their enchanted world, as you are swept back in time to a town shaped by the sea.

In one night, Effie loses her husband to the sea and the sea delivers her a daughter. She is distraught over the loss of her husband. She must stay strong for her son Jack, and the new baby she found floating in a basket. Months go by and no one comes looking for the child. Effie raises the child as her own flesh and blood. Loving both her and Jack with the same fierceness. Effie's life is turned upside down when a handsome man shows up on her doorstep claiming to be the Morna's father. Who is this mysterious man that Effie is immediately drawn to? Is he who he says he is or is there something more to his story?

This is a book steeped in folklore, mystery, and romance that will make you dream again. Hobbes' writing style is pure magic. Stories within stories, the love of a parent to their child, the love of a man to a woman. The gentle ebb and flow of the sea will put you in a trance, as the astounding descriptions will have you smelling the tang of the salt air. I am giving this book all the stars in the sky. Thank you to Elisabeth Hobbes, HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter, and NetGalley for this awe inspiring read.

The sea has just claimed Effie’s husband and the village, she has lived in for almost a decade, still views her as an outsider. And on the day, she loses her husband, she finds a baby-girl wrapped in a sealskin and floating in a basket at the British shore. She embraces the child and gives love to both her baby-son and the foster-daughter. At Midsummer, a man appears at her door with a sealskin draped across his shoulder and claiming to be the father of the daughter Effie fosters. At the end, he leaves the child with Effie, so she can continue nurturing the bond she already has established with the child.

The father named Lachlan comes back every six months on summer and winter solstices. He is full of mysteries, which Effie wishes to unravel. At her prodding, he reveals what sounds as pure fantasy. She feels offended at first; he must think her feebleminded to tell her such a thing.

Effie becomes friends with vicar’s daughter who starts a school for girls in the village. Effie gets involved with planning a syllabus for the children. I wished that the story involved more interaction of Effie with different people from the village, to get a sense of the atmosphere of the village and that’s what I was looking forward to in this story.

The story involves the mythology of selkies, which was interesting to get to know. For most of the part, this is a romance story. What grasped me in this story were the interesting characters of Effie and Lachlan, and the crisp prose, carrying the story smoothly at good pace.

Set in the late 19th century, this deliciously fey story caught my imagination immediately, with young widow Effie's discovery of a baby in a Moses basket washed up on the shore near Whitby. Effie adopts the baby girl and brings her up with her own son. But what is the significance of the sealskin the baby is wrapped in? And who is mysterious Lachlan, who turns up in the village some time later? As he becomes more and more a part of Effie and her family's life, will she let her future be decided by her heart or head?
There's a suggestion right from the beginning here of folklore and fairytales woven into the pragmatic story of one young woman's struggle to survive tragedy and heartache and forge a life for herself and her small family without interference from well-meaning men like rich Walter Danby, who'd like to make Effie his own.
But Effie's independent spirit makes her a woman before her time, and she's a fierce, feisty passionate heroine to whom the reader immediately warms. Her children, so very different, are immediately adorable, and her grandmother, a healer, brings her own sense of mystery to the unfolding drama as Effie's life becomes as turbulent as the sea that threw her foster daughter on to shore in the first place.

Amazing I Loved the Yorkshire coast setting and the story had me totally hooked. Everything about this book was captivating
I couldn't put this book down
Loved it.
Thank you netgalley

This book captivated me from cover to cover! I’ve never read anything quite like it before.

Author Elisabeth Hobbes describes it as a “folk tale inspired romance set in Victorian Yorkshire.” She masterfully combines supernatural and mythical elements with romance and historical detail to write a spellbinding book about selkies, legend and the power of the sea.

I was mesmerized and hooked reading about a windswept British coastline where the tide bestows an unexpected gift and then I was gently reeled in with the descriptions of a mysterious basket seen floating out at sea, a widowed woman who decides to foster the sealskin wrapped baby it contains, and then my heart began to flutter when the enigmatic father arrived to claim the child as his own….

I was immediately enraptured with the author’s sense of place. Her vivid descriptions and awe-inspiring sense of atmosphere are the best I’ve ever read.

This five-star fairytale for grownups needs to be on your reading list this winter.

Publishes December 20, 2021.

I was gifted this advance copy by Elisabeth J. Hobbes, Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter, and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

This was a pleasant read, a mix of romance, fantasy, and women's fiction, in a way, Lots of lusty looks and longing with fade to black scenes, with the reader knowing quite early on how things will end. The setting was beautiful, and the characters easy to like as they developed through the story.

This is the first time in a long time I've read a book with a dab of fantasy in it, and it all blended nicely together. Most of the story was more like historical fiction, and the touch of selkie was woven well throughout. By the time I reached the last page, I didn't necessarily feel that satisfied feeling of having read a great book though, because the plot was light. Regardless, I'm glad I read it.

""I think I believe that giving people something to hold onto is where the magic lies. It makes the children happy to leave bread for the boggles, even if the gulls really eat it, and that's what counts"'

Daughter of the Sea was a remarkable and delightful surprise. At times heartbreaking and times life affirming, it tells the story of Effie, her little boy Jack and the little girl Morna she finds and raises as her own. When Morna's father shows up to the door of Effie's cottage, everything changes. This book was definitely a slow burn. Nevertheless, I found that, after a while, I was unable to put it down, and the characters had crawled their way into my heart. They are each so well-developed and unique, they give the story a fairytale like character.

I appreciated that this story brought something different. I have always been fascinated by folktales, lore and mythology, and the part of Scottish mythology that weaves through Daughter of the Sea like a red-thread, is one I was as of yet unfamiliar with. The author does a remarkable job of providing an education, neatly wrapped up in a lovely story of a woman (and a man) finding their place in the world.

Delightful is the first word that springs to mind. Only one annoyance the clothing material is crepe not crape. Everytime I read it it made my eyeballs twitch!

I had my first a ha moment quite early on but loved the reveal when it came. Basically this is a love story where the heroine finally makes the right decision.

A magical adult fairy tale which is a joy to read.
It is a story of love hope and human kindness which is rewarded by the love of a man who is not quite what he seems.
Beautifully written it grasps you from the very first page.

Daughter of the Sea is a beautiful story, beautifully told. I hadn't read a book about selkies before that was set anywhere other then Scotland so the Yorkshire setting was a great idea. The characters are great and the story just a delight to read. I savoured every word and it took me a bit longer to finish than I expected because of this. Highly recommended. With thanks to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for an e-ARC of this book

Effie is walking along the shore when she hears a lonely cry. Upon further examination, Effie finds a practically newborn baby afloat in a basket, wrapped in a seal skin fur.  There is not a soul in sight, so Effie does the only thing she can think of,  she takes the baby girl home with her.

Effie already has a suckling baby at home, so with no other options, she also suckles the founding baby girl. She shares her find with her good friend, Walter. Walter sets off to the town to find what can be done with the baby, but returns with tragic news. Effie's husband, and the entire crew of his ship are all thought to be dead after remains of their ship was found.

Effie is devastated, dons her mourning clothes and settles down to look after both babies in her care. Not long after, she meets a man, Lachlan, who claims to be the baby girl's father. He is set to  take the baby with him, when he discovers that Effie has fed the baby her breast milk, and says that Effie should continue to raise her. For this contract, as he terms it, he pays Effie with a pearl, and says he will return in 6 months time.

Time passes, and Effie is still to settle on a me for the baby girl, on one of his biannual visits, Lachlan declares that her name is Morna. Effie's I'm going concern is when Lachlan may wish to take his daughter back.

Life is not quite simple for Effie, she eventually finds out Lachlan's, and Morna's secret, although she doesn't quite believe it at first. She has an additional drama, she is on the receiving end of Walter's affection, although she doesn't return his feelings. At the same time, Effie finds herself more and more drawn to Lachlan.

Effie has some serious decisions to make, and despite leaving it until it is too late, she eventually makes the right choice for her happiness. I'm not ashamed to say that I had a tear in my eye and a lump in my throat towards the final pages.

This was such a well written book and I enjoyed the characters, at no point did any of the writing seem forced, the book flowed seamlessly. You need to read this book!

Magical and unexpected, sadness and romance, this story is based on Celtic folklore but with enough credence to make you believe.

In a small fishing village on the Yorkshire coast, Effie, a young wife and mother, finds a baby girl adrift in the sea wrapped in a seal skin and takes her in on the same day she becomes a widow as her fisherman husband’s ship goes down. Too much sadness has filled her life, orphaned at a young age and left in the care of her strange grandmother who is a healer. Besides that, she is ostracized by those in her village for her forward-thinking ways, uncommon in women in the late 19th Century. Effie decides to foster this girl, this daughter of the sea, along with her young son who is special. With the help of her friend Walter, who has loved her since childhood, she is able to earn money drawing herbs and plants to support herself. Walter would love to marry Effie and “help” her make decisions in her own best interests, which is not in Effie’s plans. As Effie grows to love this daughter as her own, Lachlan emerges as her long-lost father. Lachlan has a story of his own that makes him special as well as his daughter with their connection to the sea. He strikes a deal with Effie to raise Morna and returns to visit twice a year on the solstices, although he becomes much more to Effie than just Morna’s father. Effie knows that one day, she will have to give up this daughter of hers so that Morna can fulfil her destiny, and Effie must decide what her destiny will be as well.

Well written and mesmerizing, the story weaves the mythological tale of Selkies, seals who can take on human form when it sheds its sealskin, mixing into the human world. As the writing flows, you are drawn in as Effie struggles within herself between which world does she yearn for. It becomes very believable with all the details and well-developed characters. Be prepared to cozy up with this unexpected romance and let the story carry you away like the tide, ebbing and flowing.

Many thanks to #netgalley #daughterofthesea #elizabethhobbes for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Daughter of the sea by Elizabeth J Hobbes is beautifully written adult fairy tale of motherhood and love and the based on the history of the Selkies.
Widowed Effie lives in a small coastal town in Yorkshire. Whilst walking on the beach she hears a piercing cry of a baby. As she looks out to sea, she sees a basket floating in the water with a baby wrapped in a sealskin. She straights away jumps into the water risking her own life to rescue the baby. She decides to look after the baby instead of giving it up to the poor house. As she starts to grow Effie has to stop the little girl going into the water and drowning. Then a mysterious man turns up one day and claims to be the little girl’s father. He names her Morna. This starts a friendship that develops into more.
Thank you Harper Collins One more Chapter for a copy of Daughter by the sea. I wasn’t sure at first that that I was going to like this book. But I am so glad I read this. This is a beautiful tale of love, motherhood and finding your place in the world. This had also some witchcraft and Nordic folklore in the story too. I really enjoyed this. It was pure escapism. 5 stars from me.

There was a lot of potential here, but it ultimately ended up being not for me. There aren't nearly enough stories about selkies, so I thought a story about a woman who finds a baby wrapped in a sealskin floating in the sea on the same day as a mysterious shipwreck would be perfect for me.

But unfortunately, this just didn't work for me, and I think it was because of mismatched expectations on what I thought the book would be about. I thought I was getting a book about Morna's life on land and about Effie raising a selkie child. But this was really a romance. Effie's slow-burn relationship with Lachlan was interesting enough but it quickly devolved into a love triangle with a a guy so boring even Effie never has a nice thing to say about him.

I think I would have liked this more if there hadn't been a generic and frustrating love triangle and if there had been more focus on Effie's relationship with her children. For a book called Daughter of the Sea, the so-called daughter of the sea got little facetime. Jack and Morna never really seemed to get the character development they deserved. I did really like Lachlan's backstory and development, but the love triangle parts took away a lot of enjoyment.

What a beautiful story about love, need of acceptance, feeling outsider... I enjoyed this story a lot. Addition of creatures from seaside folklore only made this book nicer to read. Decisions we make can be though, but important is they are right for us and give as happy life.

This was a truly magical book! Effie finds a baby adrift in a basket off the coast. She cares for the child along side her son until one day a mysterious stranger knocks at her door. He claims the child is his. So begins their relationship which is heartbreaking and heart warming at the same time. This was just a lovely story full of romance.
I couldn’t put it down, I loved it! Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy

This is a beautiful tale of the love of a parent for their child. A well written tale including the mythical Selkie that is blended into the storyline so you don’t see it as fantasy but as real. I thought it might be a bit far fetched but the author has written such wonderful characters that you won’t once disbelieve what she has written. With a strong female lead and set in a rugged but beautiful coastal village you will quickly fall into the story.

The story flows quickly through each six month interval and I was sad to see it end. Romance and a mother’s love combine for a breathtaking ending and a wonderful book.

Thank you to One More Chapter, Harper Collins and NetGalley for inviting me to read this epic story.

Romance and fairy-tale for grown ups - an enjoyable read set in 19th century Whitby, Northern England. This is a tale of a young widow, Effie, who rescues a baby from the sea and brings her up alongside her own young son. The baby's father, Lachlan, appears on Midsummer day but asks Effie to continue looking after his daughter. He disappears promising to return on Midwinter day, which he does. In the meantime Effie and her grandmother continue their hard life - not especially religious they are on the fringe of their community, they use plants for medicines and, horror of horrors, Effie's baby was conceived out of wedlock and is simple minded. The local alum manufacturers son, Walter, wants to marry Effie although she's not of his class, she is not convinced. Naturally she is fascinated by Lachlan and so things progress. To choose the dull but steady local young man or the dark fascinating "odd chap" - he and his daughter are selkies. Evocative writing about Whitby and times with enough of the fairy tale selkies to entrance. Nice read. Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

When I read the summary of this book, while deciding whether it was a book I wanted to read, I saw the word “Selkies”, but did not know what it meant, and brushed past it. Little did I know what was in store for me within this book. I never read a book in this genre. I guess it is “Fantasy”? I have researched quite a bit while reading. “A Fantasy book genre is characterized by elements of magic or the supernatural and is often inspired by mythology or folklore.” So, that fits this book. If you like to read Fantasy, this book probably is a good choice for you.

While I enjoyed this book, I am sure I would not picked it up to read if I had fully understood what was involved in the plot. At first, it was difficult for me to let go of reality enough to believe what was happening and I actually stopped reading a few times and said to myself “What?”. This break in my reality was not something I jumped into without some effort. As the story progressed, I did have an easier time falling into the fantasy of the story, although it still took a bit of effort to let reality go. By half the book, I did achieve full immersion into this “new world”.

Even though I was reluctant to enter the fantasy, the plot was very interesting to me from the start. I wondered the entire time where was the plot going, and how was this situation going to end. Since I had never read this genre before, I had no past knowledge of what conclusion would be reached by the end of the book.

This was the first book I have read by this author, Elisabeth J. Hobbes. She is truly talented as an author to take me from my reality and make me believe the world she created does exist.
I want to thank HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and NetGalley for allowing me to read the advance reader copy, with no obligation to write a review. My review is written freely as a hobby, and is totally my own opinion, not influenced by receiving the ARC.

Oh my goodness, what an extraordinary story this was. It was well written, with excellent character development this story sailed along with no bumps. Each page was a pleasure to read and I absolutely loved it.

I strongly recommend this windswept adult fairy tale to anyone who likes a heaping of magic in their historical fiction.