The Midwife's Secret: A gripping, heartbreaking story about a missing girl and a family secret for lovers of historical fiction

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Fast forward thirty years and I have discovered it is slightly more difficult than she made it look. But still, I got there eventually, because it is in my blood, and also, because I have always existed, slightly, in a world of my own, and reading and writing books allows me to make a living from that. I still remember my eleven-year-old self, a little at odds with the world, sitting on the cold parquet floor of St Lawrence Junior School utterly gripped as Mr Thomas read us all Boy by Roald Dahl. Charlie felt more like a prop than Willow’s boyfriend. He goes in and out of the story, and I feel bad for him. This novel will tug at your heart. A gripping, heart-wrenching story of love, loyalty and family secrets. Reminded me of Kate Morton and Eve Chase *****' Fictionophile blog

The story was stunning and heartbreaking. I went to bed at 2am! Can't wait for the next book *****' Mai tarziu ne plasam in anul 1969 cand in ajunul Anului Nou, fetita familiei Hilton (da aceeasi familie, insa alti urmasi), Alice dispare. A hugely addictive story...full of twists, turns, class divides, betrayal and deceit ****' Heat magazine La trama tiene a su favor que es entretenida. Una novela, que alterna en tres planos temporales, capítulos titulados con el nombre de diversos personajes. Son capítulos cortos y el ritmo es ágil. Genera curiosidad por saber qué le ocurrió a Alice y por ir desgranando los hilos del pasado. En su contra que se vuelve predecible, no en todo, pero casi. After graduating in Journalism in 1997 I began writing scripts and had two episodes of BBC Doctors commissioned, but I wasn’t keen on all the endless drafts and input from Script Editors and Producers. So, while I worked as a PA at the BBC and the Daily Mirror newspaper I learned as much as I could about storytelling until it all became fodder for my debut novel, The Girl in the Letter.

The Midwife's Secret is an unputdownable book that grips you from the beginning. Be prepared for plenty of tears throughout, right to the end' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Real reader review

I can highly recommend this beautiful tale which is heartbreaking, emotional, gripping, suspenseful and will keep you on the edge of your seat' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ Real reader review Let me start by saying that I am extremely grateful for the family tree map at the beginning of the book. The beginning throws many characters at you from different time periods and it does take some time to work out how they are all related. But, once everything falls into place it becomes a beautifully tragic family history.

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When six-year-old Alice Hilton goes missing in the snow on New Year’s Eve 1969 from Yew Tree Manor, suspicion immediately falls on local man Alf Simms. Simms had a grievance against Alice’s father, wealthy Richard Hilton, and he is arrested, tried and found guilty for Alice’s death. Tragically the child is never found. When six-year-old Alice Hilton goes missing in the snow on New Year's Eve 1969 from Yew Tree Manor, suspicion immediately falls on local man Bobby James. James had a grievance against Alice's father, wealthy Richard Hilton, and he is arrested, tried and found guilty for Alice's death. Tragically the child is never found. En un principio pensé que esos errores podrían deberse a una mala traducción. Tras leer algunas reseñas de lectores de lengua inglesa me di cuenta de que, lo que algunos de ellos le reprochaban a la versión original (mal escrito, nombres que cambiaban, etc), eran las mismas cosas, que había notado yo en la versión en castellano. In 1946, midwife Tessa James is blamed for the death of the wife and baby daughter of her landlord Wilfred Hilton & has no way of defending herself against the “esteemed” doctor who was actually to blame. Wilfred’s granddaughter Alice goes missing one winter’s night in 1969 and Tessa’s great grandson Bobby is suspected. And, in 2017 history seems to be repeating itself, when another young girl Sienna goes missing. Does local boy/man Bobby James have something to do with one or both of these disappearances? He has no way to defend himself against the rich, powerful Hilton family.

Overall, The Midwife’s Secret is a heart-tugging, clever, haunting tale by Gunnis that reminds us that the choices we make often have far-reaching consequences, and skeletons often find their way to the surface no matter how well they’re buried. A multi-generational, fast-paced tale of two families terrible secret, ideal for fans of Adele Parks and Lesley Pearse' Candis magazine It is the story of two families: the 'haves', the Hiltons, and the 'have-nots', the James. The families live on adjoining properties and the James's have suffered at the hands of the powerful Hilton family for decades. Social inequality is the overriding theme in my opinion. It shows how the rich and powerful can manipulate those with less - to their detriment.

The prose is eloquent and expressive. The characters are vulnerable, conflicted, and hardworking. And the plot is an enthralling, emotional saga filled with life, loss, familial drama, survival, betrayal, corruption, social injustice, tragedy, inequality, manipulation, and heartbreak.