I didn’t find this book an easy one to read, it dragged for me and I got halfway and didn’t finish it. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

October 1840: In a Victorian landscape where men hold sway in private and professional circles alike, the ruthless ambition of one London surgeon, Dr Edward Meake, is about to have great significance on the lives of four talented women - his artist wife Annie, botanist Etta, storyteller Natalya, and writer Mary.

Each of these women suffers their own secret sorrows and has been brought low by the folly of the men in their lives, and even though Edward should be primarily concerned with the maters of his own household and Annie's longing for a child, his desire for recognition and renown consumes him.

The city is rife with the talk of 'fallen angels' fuelled by the body of a woman with 'wings' that has been pulled from the Thames. Edward has secretly acquired this body for dissection, and he is desperate to make his name tracking down the other 'angels' he has heard whispers of, by whatever means necessary - whether they wish to be bought and sold or not.

Mary is also intrigued by the rumours and employs her journalistic talents to follow the clues to the truth behind the 'angels' rumours. What she discovers appals her. Can she save these 'angels' from their desperate fate at the hands of the unscrupulous Dr Meake?

The Gifts is one of those stories that pulls you in and holds you vice-like from the first page to the last.

The novel is told in five narratives, from Edward, Annie, Etta, Natalya and Mary, and the threads of their tales weave in and out beautifully as we are immersed in the details of their frustrations and sorrows. The ambitious Edward sits at the centre of the story, spinning his menacing web of intrigue and lies - he already holds the beautiful Annie captive, dismissing her talents as an artist and blaming her for her inability to produce the heir he feels a man of his position deserves; and it's not long before our downcast 'angels' Natalya and Etta come within range of his underground laboratory too. Who can save them? Well the heroic Mary is on the case, and your hopes are pinned on her quest to thwart Edward in his devious plans...

There is a lot of the Gothic fairy tale about this story. I love how Liz Hyder entwines a thread of magical realism laden with metaphor by using angels as the theme for her feminist firebrand novel - especially the way she uses the motif of feathers so deliciously throughout, and how she ties the notion of freedom to the wings that our women mysteriously sprout in their times of despair.

But there is also so much fabulous social history incorporated in this story, as she touches on the lives of both rich and poor - delving into issues of sex, class, race, religion, the world of journalism, the medical profession, and even transportation. It's all so fascinating.

Of course, at it's heart, this is a story about the freedom of women, how their intellectual efforts are trivialised, and how their wishes are trampled upon in the shadow of male ambition. I seethed with rage for almost the entire book, but all the anger was worth it for the cracking climax that Hyder contrives at the end - one which brought more than a tear or two to my eyes as I revelled in the way these women finally discover who they are, and what they are capable of when they join together. This is an impressive debut adult novel that will really appeal to lovers of Stacey Halls, and I look forward to seeing what comes next from Liz Hyder!

Unfortunately, I didn’t get on with this book. I was often confused by the changes in point of view and I didn’t get on with the style. It’s a shame because I was looking forward to this one, however, I do think it was my preference as I think others will enjoy this one. It just wasn’t my cup of tea!
Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for a chance to read and review this book.

What a fierce and strange compelling read, this is really a book of wonders.

Young women sprout wings and show their differences, making them easy targets in Victorian Britain, the talk of the town and something much more sinister for one surgeon.

Lovely spirited Mary finds and follows a trail that discovers a horrible and wonderful mystery.

This is a rich and evocative story that touches on so many issues for women in Victorian times, and the way women found to subvert the norm and live lives to their own tunes. It reminded me of the tone and atmosphere of Francis Hardinge’s The Lie Tree in the depth of its realisation of a male-dominated society.

It’s a wild read, and has much to say that provokes thoughts about the modern world and how we would receive news of such wonders now.

Haunting and thrilling I enjoyed reading this book. Set in 1840, the story follows 4 women, each on their individual journey, each with a strength of character that carries them through. A must read for 2022!

I received a gifted copy of ‘The Gifts’ by Liz Hyder in return for my honest review. I don’t read a lot of historical fiction, but there are a few that stand out to me, and this was one of them. I am so glad I read as it is breath-taking.

This book is set in 1840; a young woman is taking a walk and suddenly she is brought to her knees and awakens to discover she has wings.

Meanwhile in London there is a rumour about a fallen angel, and many including a surgeon and a lady called Mary take an interest in the story.

What follows is a chilling and dark story as the surgeon becomes obsessed with his new discovery and Mary investigates with the help of an old friend.

How far will the surgeon take his obsession? Will Mary manage to find the truth behind the fallen angel rumours?

This book is beautifully and brilliantly written, I loved it all the way through. As I said before I don’t read a lot of historical fiction, but this storyline and how the book was laid out kept be enthralled throughout.

The chapters are not too long and move back and forth through the various groups of characters. I loved this as it felt you got little snippets of everyone, and it all made the story develop very smoothly.

I have a few favourite characters, but my main one must be Mary. Her bold and determined attitude is amazing and stands out as different for a female character for this time.

Parts of the storyline did leave me with a chill, as the surgeons obsession becomes deeper and deeper, it is shocking and scary how far he is willing to go to get power and recognition from his peers.

I could talk about this book all day, but I don’t want to give anymore away. I will definitely be looking for more from this author in the future.

Overall, an amazing, chilling and dark debut which shows just how a shocking discovery can change so many lives.

Sadly I was unable to finish this book. The harrowing and graphic torture and killing of the dog by the surgeon about 10% of the way into the book was way too much for me. It turned my stomach and made me very upset. I don't know what else is in the book but that requires a Content Warning. It is a thing I can't stand and something I avoid in books and movies. It makes me hugely distressed. I can't imagine what that level of distressing detail could possibly add to the story. You could easily show he was an evil man without the detail.

I was already struggling with the writing and the fact that we often switch viewpoint or who is being written about in the midst of a paragraph. So you start the paragraph with Annie and then suddenly you are reading about Etta and you are like, wait, who the hell is Etta and how did she suddenly appear? This happens a LOT and I found it really irritating.

I see that some people love this book but it is not for me and I think the synopsis needs rewriting to make it more accurate and it definitely needs Content Warnings.

I know some publishers/authors don't like them but when you don't use them then you risk people not trusting you. I could certainly never read anything else by this author as a result of this reading experience because I found it so intensely distressing,

Sadly I must report that my response to this first debut into adult fiction by Liz Hyder has been very very different to that of the majority of readers. I found the book pretentious, irksome and deeply depressing. I actually had to stop reading for a time just to give myself a break from the relentless misery of it all and when I resumed reading my mood did not improve. This may just have the wrong book for me at the wrong time and clearly many others have loved it. So I would urge readers to try it for yourselves- you might love it.

I enjoyed this dark, magical realism book about angels being discovered in England in the 1840s.
It's quite a fast paced novel with the storyline moving quickly between characters' point of views. At first this narrative structure felt disjointed but I think it did add to the sense of tension and action. I thought it was quite an original story with themes of class, feminism and the 'power' of religion. The setting of Victorian London also felt like its own character at times and was vividly descripted. I would definitely recommend for historical fiction or magical realism fans.

I am in two minds about how to review The Gifts by Liz Hyder, there were many things I liked about the book, but I really really struggled with the narrative style to the point that it became frustrating and made me reluctant to finish the book, though I did.
I liked the authors prose and thought her characters were interesting and largely sympathetic and I appreciated how the social issues of the time were woven into the story she was telling. The setting of Victorian London was vividly brought to life on the page, in all its grimy, smelly glory, and the feeling of an era of burgeoning scientific discovery was definitely to the forefront. The women at the heart of the story were compelling, and I loved seeing their relationships to one another develop as the story progressed.
The downfall for me was the bizarre way the narrative shifted from one character to another literally in the middle of a paragraph, It made the book feel disjointed and confusing and left me constantly checking which character we were focussing on now.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the Publisher, all opinions are my own.

This is a story of fallen Angeles, ego centric men who think they are God or not that far off from God and quest of women to become visible in a society.
What can I say - amazing - very sobering tale of magical world in 1840 and human struggle.

It has taken me some time to get into this book as we are introduced to many characters at once with very few things connecting them. Once it all clicked into place I could not get enough.

I would like to talk about three topics form this book
✅ Edward - where do I start ? With his huge ego that he imagines that the fallen angels has been sent to him by God to make his life *better* and further his career ? Or by criminal who thinks he can capture women for his own gain , not mentioning the awful husband whose pride does not allow him to help his wife when she can’t get pregnant? As you can imagine I did not like this character but felt it was very well written and developed
✅*fallen angels * these women who became angles with beautiful and so desirable wings only became ones because of huge pain in their lives. I felt every of theirs story very deeply - again amazing character development.
✅ situation of women in general - it’s not a shocked that women were treated like sub human and I loved Liz Hyder approach to fight and how it was explained in the book.
I hope you will like it as much as I have

This is such a good story! If you like historical gothic fiction I can't imagine you being disappointed with Liz Hyder's The Gifts. Right from the first page it had me gripped and I continued to blast through it wanting to turn every page right through to the thrilling conclusion.

But this novel also goes deeper than just an exciting Victorian thriller. It has depth to it exploring themes such as faith, humility, nature and man's impact on the world. Central also to this book are the female protagonists showing strength and determination in spite of their constraints and circumstances.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book as I'm sure fans of The Doll Factory by Elizabeth MacNeal will do too!

With thanks to NetGalley and Bonnier Books UK for this digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

"October 1840. A young woman staggers alone through a forest in Shropshire as a huge pair of impossible wings rip themselves from her shoulders.

Meanwhile, when rumours of a 'fallen angel' cause a frenzy across London, a surgeon desperate for fame and fortune finds himself in the grip of a dangerous obsession, one that will place the women he seeks in the most terrible danger . . ."
The first adult novel from Liz Hyder, this is an amazing piece of historical fiction which has bags of atmosphere, touches of Burke and Hare, Dr's Knox, Cooper and Hunter you will love this. A novel about the fallibility of men and the pursuit of knowledge in the name of science, juxtaposed with the strength and courage of women with little agency who dare to be different and find their own ways of living their lives. It's full of mysticism, nature, stories and the nature of stories. Set in Victorian England, with strong female lead characters; a captive woman with angel wings, a daring would be journalist, a storyteller and a surgeon's wife who is unhappy in her role. There's also a handsome, dangerously ambitious and obsessive villain, and plenty of other men (and women) out to prosper from the misfortune of others.
It’s such a wonderfully gothic but also hopefull read, and it kept me up at night wanting to finish it, whilst also not wanting it to end.
I t looks like the finished hard back edition is going to be stunning!

A very dark and atmospheric read. Set in Victorian Britain, with most of the action in London, it has a genuine feel of the era. I liked the premise of this book, but it took me a long time (42% of the book) to actually get interested in it. The narrative felt disjointed at times, and I found myself having to re-read some pages as they became a bit confusing. While all the threads did come together I did wonder at one point if they would. There were several really strong female roles in this, which i enjoyed but would have liked a bit more on some of the back stories. I couldn’t like Edward or Samuel, but they were typical of their time, masters of their own houses, women being inferior, and in many cases just chattel. Not quite what I hoped for, but worth reading to the end.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This was a gripping, thrilling and dark read that I found both chilling and exciting. It was well written with great characters and a really good and gothic feeling storyline. I really enjoyed it.

Totally captivating, this is a wonderful blend of gritty historical fiction and fantasy. The characters sing off the page and it is the females who are strong and compassionate. Victorian society was restrictive and bigoted but sometimes it could be soared above. A really special tale.

The Gifts is such a thoughtful little work on the restrictions placed on women in society, particularly those who already don't fit in. The magical element is used sparingly but effectively, with lots of clear symbolism packed into it. The use of very short chapters adds a lovely ephemeral feeling to it, although it does come with the downside of making it all seem a little brief. Although I think all five of the main perspectives are unique and full of potential, I can't help but feel diving further into one or two of them would have been even better (and personally, while there are some hints, I think a more overt queer female element would have really added to the idea of outsiders). But this all comes together into a poignant narrative that invites more thought and a reread or two.

The Gifts by :Liz Hyder is a stunning piece of historical fiction, set in 1840. A desperate young woman is fleeing unknown assailants through a forest in Shropshire, but she is no ordinary woman. From her back sprout huge angel wings.
In London, an ambitious surgeon is obsessed with possessing the other 'fallen angels' rumoured to exist, and he will stop at nothing to make his name in the world of science.
Told through the eyes of multiple characters, The Gifts is beautifully written, and explores themes of power and patriarchy, science and religion. I loved Liz Hyder's children's book Bearmouth, but this adult debut is utterly brilliant, and I can't wait to read more of her work

A feminist story based in magic with a historical fiction feel. To be honest I wasn't a fan of the way this book was written. This book tried too hard to be clever and just annoyed me and took from my enjoyment of the story. Perspectives from the different characters were introduced in the middle of paragraphs, so often lent itself to confusion, rereading of sentences and frustration - not for me. This will be one that readers either love or hate. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advance copy of this book.

The synopsis of this book is extremely interesting it’s a shame that the book itself isn’t (to me anyway) I was really hoping this would be an engaging book that swept me along, sadly it left me unmoved