thumbnail_The Forgotten Secret

Synopsis

The Forgotten Secret

A country at war

It’s the summer of 1919 and Ellen O’Brien has her whole life ahead of her. Young, in love and leaving home for her first job, the future seems full of shining possibility. But war is thumbnail_cover from fb brewing and before long Ellen and everyone around her are swept up by it. As Ireland is torn apart by the turmoil, Ellen finds herself facing the ultimate test of love and loyalty.

And a long-buried secret

A hundred years later and Clare Farrell has inherited a dilapidated old farmhouse in County Meath. Seizing the chance to escape her unhappy marriage she strikes out on her own for the first time, hoping the old building might also provide clues to her family’s shadowy history. As she sets out to put the place – and herself – back to rights, she stumbles across a long-forgotten hiding place, with a clue to a secret that has lain buried for decades.

For fans of Kate Morton and Gill Paul comes an unforgettable novel about two women fighting for independence.

Purchase Links

UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Forgotten-Secret-heartbreaking-gripping-historical-ebook/dp/B07H2PMPR3

US – https://www.amazon.com/Forgotten-Secret-heartbreaking-gripping-historical-ebook/dp/B07H2PMPR3

Review

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Thank you to the author and Rachel’s Random Resources for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I want to start off by saying I really love the cover for this book, I’m not sure what it is about it but I’m definitely a fan! Now what really got me excited about this book was the fact it was told in dual timelines, I was a bit apprehensive that I wouldn’t be able to follow, or would get far too involved in one-time timeline and not want to go back to the other but that really wasn’t the case in this book. I really wanted to know what was going on in both timelines so switching between the two seemed like a fair compromise!

Another great part of the book for me was seeing both Clare’s and Ellen’s confidence grow throughout their stories, there is no doubt about it that they are both facing very different situations but their personal growth and development shine through. I also liked how it all wrapped up, it a great sense of closure which I was concerned about. The only sort of downside to the book itself was that it was a bit short for my liking, I wanted more! Oh well guess it’s not the worst problem to have, I will just have to go find another book from this author!

Rating: 4/5

Would I read again: Yes

Would I Recommend: Yes

Would I read another book from this author: Yes

About the Author

KATHLEEN MCGURL lives near the sea in Bournemouth, UK, with her husband and elderly tabby cat. She has two sons who are now grown-up and have left home. She thumbnail_Kathleen McGurl author photo began her writing career creating short stories, and sold dozens to women’s magazines in the UK and Australia. Then she got side-tracked onto family history research – which led eventually to writing novels with genealogy themes. She has always been fascinated by the past, and the ways in which the past can influence the present, and enjoys exploring these links in her novels.