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The Gifts: The captivating historical fiction novel - for fans of THE BINDING

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The story is narrated in short vignettes, alternating between the voices of the two women with wings, a feisty would-be female journalist, and the wife of the surgeon who sees an opportunity to achieve fame and fortune by exploiting the winged women, the ‘gifts’ of the title, sent to him by God. Brimming with historical detail and beautifully written, the soulful prose soars. It's an insightful mysterious read celebrating female friendship and solidarity." — Daily Express (UK)

I one hundred per cent ‘got’ the story that Liz set out to tell. It’s historical fiction, yes, with magical elements, but it’s also SO MUCH MORE. Alice: Edward’s wife and hobby painter, Alice knows Edward is up to something, but can’t get him to reveal more. Etta: A young woman of mixed parentage, Etta is dealing with the grief of her pet dog’s passing when two huge wings suddenly rip themselves from her shoulders. I enjoyed how well the author incorporated magical realism with historical fiction. I wanted a little more explanation relating to the magical aspects of the read, but the author did offer enough explanation to keep me from being dissatisfied. The author also did a good job at emphasizing how intertwined science and religion was in England during this time, which was a driving force behind the antagonist of this read.I enjoyed seeing the scenes from five different points of view, four of which were women. The third person narration ensures that the proceeding is somewhat easy. However, five perspectives automatically means plenty of characters and, as the story progresses, plenty of interconnections as well. It takes some time to remember who is who. Moreover, the switch in character perspectives sometimes happens too often. Though this isn’t too confusing because of the third person, it takes some time to get attuned to. The challenge- the biggest one for me is the animal abuse. It was in the vein of scientific research and had only short descriptions but they were abhorrent to me and I’m very sensitive to this content. It did fit in with the storyline somewhat but was very unexpected by me. Hyder, who also works as a PR consultant, says: “It’s the seventh book I’ve written, and the first to get published. I don’t feel any of the books before it are worth revisiting – the gap between the one before and Bearmouth is massive. I just thought, you know what? I’m never going to get published, so I’m just going to write absolutely what I want to write. I wrote it completely from the heart. I cried quite a lot when I wrote it. It was very intense.”

The Gifts is a fabulous book. It would indeed make the perfect gift for any lover of literary fiction who enjoys vivid settings, strong women, perfect plotting and a touch of magical realism Will these women be able to stand up to such scrutiny from both the outside world and this man who cannot help but be drawn to such heavenly beings? I must add that this is a novel to be read, not heard. With a mix of long and short chapters, multiple characters, and interlinked arcs, this won't be a comfortable audiobook even if you are an attuned listener.

It’s a book to take your time over and to savour.

I hope it encourages other people to take more risks in terms of what they write and also what is published, because it is an unusual book,” says Hyder. It’s impossible not to be affected and deeply moved by reading about Annie, Etta, Natalya and Mary. This is especially so when they are surviving in a world dominated by men. Natalya: Cast out from her community, Natalya is making her way to her cousin in London, unaware of what lies in store for her. October 1840. A young woman staggers alone and frightened, running for her life through a forest in Shropshire as something impossible begins to happen: a huge pair of wings that should only belong to those above us rip from her shoulders creating something that surely cannot be real amongst mere mortals. My thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the DRC of “The Gifts”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

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