A gorgeous tale of love and grief
The characters came alive and you could feel their emotions
I loved it !

Oh how I loved this book. Beautifully written with some lyrical prose. The choices we make, the things done to be accepted, to maintain ‘the norm’ or at least to not be any more isolated. The secrets and lies. That thin, fragile thread that joins two souls, that thread that’s stretched to breaking point, snagged on rough ground but refuses to be broken. Regret and self-reproach, heartache and despair, there’s not one character who hasn’t been struck by one of life’s cruel blows. But, with age, with time comes reflection and forgiveness, of self and others, and ultimately hope.

This was a very striking book, full of loss and hope and people struggling with having to settle for their realities while wanting something different. I absolutely loved reading it and found everything about it - the characters, the setting, the atmosphere - completely compelling.

The main characters, Dorothy and Joseph, live in a small Scottish village and are tied together by a tragedy - the disappearance, presumed drowning, of Dorothy's son some years previously. The book begins with Joseph discovering a boy who has been washed up on the beach, sparking traumatic memories for Dorothy. The author then takes us into their history.

Dorothy has suffered a neglectful childhood possibly bordering on abusive, with a mother who was constantly criticising and judging her. She has carried this into adulthood, and now is unsure of herself and anxious in social situations, worrying how she is seen by others. This anxiety has meant she had trouble being herself with people and is instead reserved and comes across as 'cold' to others. But underneath, she isn't like this, and the descriptions of how she ends up behaving in ways that she really doesn't want to are very well done.

On arriving in the village some years previously she struck up a friendship with Joseph, that looked like it could develop into something more. Joseph clearly likes her. But Dorothy's fears pushed him away and she married another man.

The book is heartbreaking in its description of how both their lives have been stymied and limited by fear of going after what they really want. I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but I found all of the descriptions of the relationships between the characters very true to life and relatable. We can see parts of ourselves and of people we know in these characters.

Again, without wanting to give too much away, the ending is hopeful, which I was glad about. This is a book to savour, and I'm thankful to Netgalley for giving me an advance read. I'd definitely read more by Julia Kelly.

A gently paced story, outlining a tragedy which you learn of pretty much early on. The main story revolves around Dorothy the school mistress, she is new to Skerry and is trying to find her place in the little community. The story jumps backwards and forwards from the past to the present, giving context and more depth to each character. Joseph is The Fisherman who finds the little boy. There is a lot of mystery over the identity of this boy and the concept of child loss was well developed.

I really enjoyed this book however I felt that the ending was rushed.
Thank you to netgalley for this ARC.

I loved this book so much! The writing is utterly beautiful. I was transported to Skerry and captivated by the story of schoolteacher Dorothy and fisherman Joseph. It is an emotional, atmospheric read and I felt so invested in the characters and their future. There are multiple misunderstandings, twists and turns, all well paced with heart stopping moments. The novel is beautifully crafted and I enjoyed every page. I would love to read more by Julia Kelly. One of my top books of the year!

So beautifully written, I was mesmerised from start to finish. I fell in love with little village of Skelly in Scotland, where the story is set and all the quirky characters. I felt like I really knew them.


Dorothy arrives in the early 1900s in the small fishing town, as she has been appointment as the new school mistress. However, the locals are not very welcoming of her, apart from one fisherman, who she briefly falls in love with.

The tale starts many years in the future, when a young child is washed up during a storm. The child resembles the one Dorothy lost to the sea many years before.

This is a story of grief, love, pain and mystery.
It should be on everyone's most read for 2025.

Dorothy loses a child and finds another one.
I liked the back and forth narrative and the revelation of the secrets.

I do not wish to impact anyone’s enjoyment of this book - it has immense potential and can see why many would love it.

For me, perhaps because t I had read 2-3 books set in a town (often a coastal , rural, Scottish, Irish or English village) and the adoption of a child in the last years, I expected more out of the plot and the writing style. Both were a solid 3 stars for me.

The discovery of a small boy washed up on the shores of a remote Scottish fishing village triggers memories for Dorothy, a schoolteacher who is tasked with looking after him until his parents can be found. Years ago, she lost her own boy to the sea - could this be the same child come back?
This is a slow-paced novel, set in the early 1900s, but beautifully written and very atmospheric. As we progress through the story of misunderstandings and missed opportunities, we learn more about Dorothy, the gossiping villagers and what makes them all tick.
It was sad, haunting read, although not without hope. It took a long time to unfurl but I was invested in the characters and wanted to find out what happened to them. It would make a good television serial or film.
Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for an advance review copy of this novel.

Moving, and very sad about a mother and loss of a child
What a woman will do to rescue another and feel loved
A small community lost to gossip and rumour
Slow paced but what an impactful read!

I really wanted to love this book, and there were moments I thought I was getting more into it, however I just don't think this is my kind of book unfortunately.

I felt that the whole story was very slow paced, but detailed and well written. I did warm up to the characters a lot more by the end of the book, and I like that there was a lot of closure for each character and the troubles they had been navigating throughout. The romance in this was very different to what I am used to, however it was much more emotional and felt more realistic. I'm sad I couldn't get into this as much as others!

Thank you NetGalley for letting me review this this beautiful book. If you have issues in your life the reader may find this a difficult read. This is a heart felt story of a mothers grief and guilt.

Beautiful story about the journey of a mother’s grief and guilt. Set at the turn of the last centuary

Dorothy is the new school mistress in a little fishing town Skelly in Scotland As with many small villages there is a lot of talk and newcommers are seen with doubt.. Dorothy meets Joseph a fisherman and have a brief love affair. Circumstances pulls them apart.

Dorothy had lost a son, but something happens and a young boy is found in the sea. Being a small place Dorothy is asked to look after him, as the parents are sought. This brings to the surface pain, guilt but in this painful journey find healing and closure.

Beautifully written and a recommended resd.

Dorothy gets off to a poor start with the villagers in the fishing community she has joined as the new school mistress. She has moved from
Edinburgh and in the aftermath of her mother’s death, she is still trying to shake off her mother’s poor opinion of her. With a cold and loveless childhood behind her she finds it difficult to fit in. She is drawn to a kind and marriageable fisherman, but the town’s gossiping gets in the way.
The story begins with a rescued child, which draws parallels with another child who was lost to a storm, and it inevitably pulls the narrative back and forth. This is very skilfully told, holding the reader’s attention as the jeopardy builds.
I really loved it, and despite it seeming to be always winter, the mood and picture of the simple and difficult life of a fishing community of yesteryear is beautifully drawn.

A really atmospheric, almost claustrophobic tale of life in a small community where tongues wag and secrets stay hidden. Dorothy is an outsider, a young teacher escaping from home, with all her life before her, but there is resentment of her reserved manner and jealousy of her attractiveness. It's a tale with some mystical elements, a real sense of the sea and a fishing community, well drawn relatable characters and real sadness along with hope. I really enjoyed it.

A captivating setting, atmospheric and heart wrenching. A duel time line between the past and the present brings this brilliant story together personally. A tale of grief and love.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC

A rather sad tale of unrequited love suppressed feelings and misunderstanding. This is a well written story with each character well rounded with good and bad. I would very much have liked a bit more detail at the end but overall a gentle easy read.

The Fisherman’s Gift is a nice book, nice story but just too much romance for me. I would like it to be more about the boy and less about the bored housewives tittle tattling in the shop. I really couldn’t take to Dorothy either.
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This is a poignant beautifully written book. All the characters have their own private struggles and the book shows how you can't know what someone else is experiencing. The book looks at the grief of a mother who lost her son then 15 years later looks after another boy and how that impacts on the grief she still feels. The story of Dorothy and Joseph winds through the book. I was just a bit disappointed in the end after all the difficulties the ending was left hanging, I just wanted a much clearer way towards a happy ever after.

First book I have read by this author and although very different from-my typical choice of genre found storyline, characters and place settings to be hugely captivating in a whimsical entertaining fashion. The two main protagonists brought up in repressive homes have, as adults, struggled with the social interaction that more traditional families take for granted. A small community with the inherent stereotypes of gossips, inherent customs and practices and mistrust of newcomers leaves the new school teacher lonely and isolated.. A situation unfolds when unable to articulate or express her emotions or sense of segregation from the rest of the small community a dramatic series of events occurs in two time lines involving a lost child and several years later a found child with innuendo and aspersions of a child back from the dead. This explainable situation gets submerged under folklore and old wives tales towards a catalyst that has the ability to cause serious complications and fatalities for this interbred community dependent on the superstitions and myths of the past. Descriptions of the barren landscape , extreme weather and wild coastline add greatly to the atmospheric sense of isolation and danger for and from this innocent and naive community who act on impulse and emotions rather than logic with dramatic implications and consequences. Many thanks to author publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

A beautifully written story, I really enjoyed this book. It was almost like a fairy tale and so easy to read. Just beautiful.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for my honest and unbiased opinion.

This reads like a fairy tale for adults. Set in a tiny coastal village somewhere is Scotland, the story jumps back and forward between ‘Then’ and ‘Now’. Dorothy is caught between her puritan upbringing and shyness and the gossip and envy of the village women. The story unfolds slowly and there are a few ‘would that really happen?’ moments, but on the whole this is a well-written novel with a dreamy, otherworld quality.