Happy Publication Day to the stunning, highly coveted book, The Clockmaker’s Daughter, by Kate Morton!
My Thoughts:
Told in dual storylines, the first is set in 1862. Edward Radcliffe, an esteemed artist, organizes a group of other young artists to holiday at Birchwood Manor on the Thames. Their objective is to laze away the summer among inspiration and exercising their creativity. What happens instead is a murder, a disappearance, and a missing heirloom.
In the present, Elodie Winslow is an archivist living in London. She runs across two items that she cannot shake, a photograph of an alluring woman and a drawing of a house on a river. Somehow Elodie feels connected to these objects. But how?
I’m a fan of Kate Morton. It started with The Forgotten Garden and never ended. Her books are long, they are in rich in details, and it takes some time to wade through; but the experience is like wading through the most pristine, sheer tropical blue waters, enveloped in glorious details that enrich the story and do not detract or weigh down (or push back) the delight.
It especially takes some time for the pieces of The Clockmaker’s Daughter to take shape and fall in line. But when they do, the pace quickens, and the story is as engaging as one would hope. It’s a murder mystery with wholesome and resonant themes of love and loss. Someone special, alluded to in the synopsis, witnessed all that has happened at Birchwood Manor over the years. She knows its harbored secrets and its most seductive love. The writing is insightful and unforgettable (many passages to highlight!). Will Birchwood Manor ever shed its shroud of secrets?
Thank you to Atria Books for the physical copy. I was absolutely elated to receive a copy in the mail! All opinions are my own.
I read this sublime book with five book friends: Melisa, Holly, Berit, Mackenzie, and Kendall. What an experience it was!
Synopsis:
A rich, spellbinding new novel from the author of The Lake House—the story of a love affair and a mysterious murder that cast their shadow across generations, set in England from the 1860’s until the present day.
My real name, no one remembers.
The truth about that summer, no one else knows.In the summer of 1862, a group of young artists led by the passionate and talented Edward Radcliffe descends upon Birchwood Manor on the banks of the Upper Thames. Their plan: to spend a secluded summer month in a haze of inspiration and creativity. But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe’s life is in ruins.
Over one hundred and fifty years later, Elodie Winslow, a young archivist in London, uncovers a leather satchel containing two seemingly unrelated items: a sepia photograph of an arresting-looking woman in Victorian clothing, and an artist’s sketchbook containing the drawing of a twin-gabled house on the bend of a river.
Why does Birchwood Manor feel so familiar to Elodie? And who is the beautiful woman in the photograph? Will she ever give up her secrets?
Told by multiple voices across time, The Clockmaker’s Daughteris a story of murder, mystery, and thievery, of art, love and loss. And flowing through its pages like a river, is the voice of a woman who stands outside time, whose name has been forgotten by history, but who has watched it all unfold: Birdie Bell, the clockmaker’s daughter.
Check out these reviews by the other Book Besties:
Berit at Audio Killed the Bookmark
Holly at Dressed to Read
Mackenzie at PhDiva
Melisa at The Book Collective
Looking forward to reading this!
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I hope it’s a winner for you, too, Carol! Enjoy!
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THE BOOK LOOKS INTERESTING AND HAS A FANTASTIC COVER, CHINA
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Such a pretty cover, China! ♥️
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JENNIFER I KNOW YOU LIKE INTERESTING BLOGS, WHY NOT TRY china.alexandria@livingthedreamdotblog
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Hey China, I followed you back when you followed me, but I don’t see any posts on your blog? Just the intro post? Please let me know if you have a direct link because I’d love to see more posts.
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A beautiful tale and loved sharing with you and our group!
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I loved reading this with you, too, Holls! So special!
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Once again…I have added this book to my reading list. YOU HAVE TO STOP THIS MADNESS! LOL
Great review, and as always, a wonderful book to read.
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Aw, thank you, Ink! I have to tell you- this one requires a bunch of patience. Be prepared to wonder what is going on for the first 30%! But when it comes together, it is something else! ♥️
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A beautiful story! So glad we were able to all read this together :).
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Me, too, Kendall! ♥️
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Lovely review and pictures. I want to read this one and the Lake House. Happy Tuesday. 📚🌺💗
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Thank you, Virginia! I still need to read The Lake House, too! I hope you’ve had a wonderful Tuesday! 💕 ♥️
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on my list that never ends. Glad you liked this one and all you ladies enjoyed it. Wonderful review!
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Thank you, Marialyce! I hope you enjoy it, too, once you make it to its spot on the list!
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Wonderful review, and I’ll never forget your excitement when you received the book in the mail. This really is a special author!
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Thanks, Melisa! Also, thanks for that memory1 I had almost forgotten my excitement over it. You were the first person I told! ♥️
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Beautiful review Jennifer! Enjoyed reading this with you as always!💕
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Thank you, Berit! I always love reading with you, too! ♥️
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These Bestie reads are going to be the death of my bookshelves!! I love historical mysteries and this sounds like a good one. Fabulous review, Jennifer.
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Thanks, Jonetta! This one requires an investment, but the pay-off is huge if you make it to the end! If you are thinking about the audio – just FYI- there are a ton of characters to keep straight. ♥️
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You sold me at “tropical blue waters”, Jennifer! This sounds absolutely atmospheric and delightful. And I love that stretchy bookmark (agate?) in the photo!
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It was such lush writing, Kathy! Rich! That bookmark is a slice of amethyst, but now I want to see if she has agate too!
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Is it from an etsy seller? Now I kind of want one for myself! 😀
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Yes! Here she is: https://www.etsy.com/shop/Bookartbookmarks?ref=condensed_trust_header_title_reviews
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I like the sound of this one Jennifer. Wonderful review.
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Thanks, Chrissi! It was a delightful read! The pay-off was a good one!
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Ahhh, I still haven’t gotten to Kate Morton yet, though I have at last three of them on my shelves. Would you say this is her best yet, or would you recommend starting with something else? Whenever I’m reading a new author, I fear picking a less than stellar book of theirs and then having that influence my decision to read more of their work, so recommendations can be lifesavers. 🙂
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I totally understand, and I’m guilty of having a few of hers unread on my shelf, too. (I’m saving them for that apocalypse we talked about – for some reason, unread books are best for the end of times. 😂) My favorite thus far has been The Forgotten Garden. I think her style has evolved since then and become even richer/denser in details, which is not for everyone and takes some effort. That said, it seems like The Forgotten Garden may be a good place to start. 😊
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Thank you! I have it around here somewhere…for that day when I have all that free time. 😉
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It would be a good holiday or summer read because it is denser.
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I’ve been curious about this one. Thanks, Jennifer!
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You’re welcome, Jacquie! This is a reliable author if you are in for the investment!
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Beautiful pictures and awesome review Jen! I can’t wait to read this one!! Hope you are having a wonderful day my friend!!😊💕🎃🎃
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Thank you, Sus! I hope this is a great read for you, too! Where has today gone?! I hope your Tuesday was wonderful, too! ♥️ xoxo
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Lovely review, Jennifer!!! I’m so glad to have read this together. It is a murder mystery, but I agree. It is very much a story of loss and love!!! It’s given me a lot of reflection since finishing which I always think makes a book special 💕
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Yes, there is so much more to contemplate, Mack! So much more than I could ever define in a review! Thank you, and I always love reading with you and hearing your perspective. ♥️
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I agree, this is a tough one to put everything into the review 💕 Such a wonderful experience!
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This was my Book of the Month pick, and your review makes me even more excited to read it!
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I can’t wait to hear what you think, Kelsey! I bought it from BOTM, too, so I could have a finished copy for my shelf. That shows how much I thought of it!
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It doesn’t hurt that the cover is beautiful, too! 🙂
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Gorgeous review! I’m so glad you loved it! And I’m so glad that I dropped everything to immerse myself into the story….just so beautiful. I can’t wait to read another one. I hope your day has been lovely! xoxo
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Thanks, Steph! Yes, it was a good one just to invest in and let the other reads go – what I did over the weekend and got a little behind now, but worth it! I hope you love your next one just as much or more! It was a busy day- the week is flying by! Hope you had a good day too! ♥️ xoxo
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It definitely was! Oh, I’m going to be trying to read until I get these books I have releasing on the 16th read. I don’t think I get them all done by then, but I’ll try! Just so much going on and too many books! A few days late is better than nothing though. It’s been busy here too! We did a field trip to the Science Museum today, so that was busy and fun! I”m exhausted though, whew! It was a great day though. 🙂
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I received this from Netgalley cannot wait to read it. My TBR is overwhelming!
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I totally understand. October has been a particularly busy month for books! I hope you love it whenever you are able to fit it in!
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This was my first Kate Morton read and sadly it wasn’t a good fit for me. I thought Morton’s writing was beautiful but I struggled with keeping track of all of the different characters in each of the timelines and how they all fit together. I’m glad you loved it though. I definitely still want to give her books another try and may try The Lake House next.
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Thanks, Suzanne, and I can completely understand that. I had to clear my plate of other books and really focus to follow all of it, and even then it was dense and confusing at times. My favorite of hers is The Forgotten Garden, and I don’t remember it requiring this level of concentration (and it definitely didn’t have as many characters). I have not read my copy of The Lake House yet, but I hope it’s one you connect to better.
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I haven’t read a lot of her work, but book looks interesting though.
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Thanks, Siobhan! Once it came together, it definitely held my interest. 😊
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I actually thought of you this weekend because I saw some Kate Morton books in B&N’s Fall Reads section. ☺️ I will have to check out some of her books!
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Aw, I love it! LP, if you want to try her for the first time, I’d recommend one of her earlier books that aren’t as dense. My favorite is The Forgotten Garden. 😊
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I think the cover I saw was The Lake House! ☺️ My friend actually almost picked it up, but ended up editing down her stack before we left., but definitely thought it was cool to see one of the writers you’ve talked about in stores!
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I still need to read that one! It’s been sitting on my shelf. I have read great things, though.
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I keep hearing great things about this book but I’ve never read anything by Kate Morton. However, now that you mention that there are lots of unforgettable passages and great writing I will be sure to take a look! Really good review and beautiful photo as always!
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Thank you so much, Darina! Morton has her own distinctive style, and it requires some patience in the reading. Thanks for all your kind words! ♥️
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I’ve never read any Kate Morton, despite owning copies of some of her previous books (which I have sitting on my to-give-away pile right now). This one does sound good. If I had to pick one of her books to start with, which would you recommend the most?
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Lisa, I’d recommend The Forgotten Garden for a first try. It’s where I started with her, and I fell in love. It’s not quite as dense as some of her newer books, and it’s not too character-heavy either.
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Thanks for the recommendation! I think I still have a copy of that one. 🙂
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Lovely review Jenni, this one is definitely on my radar! Gorgeous photos as always 😍😘
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Thank you, Beth! I hope you get a chance to read this one, but save it for a time when you can really savor it, like a vacation. It requires a big commitment like one of your long Stephen King books! 😉 ♥️
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Wonderful review Jennifer! I couldn’t get into this one myself but I’m glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
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Thanks, Carrie! I can definitely understand that.
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You’re welcome!
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Great review Jennifer. I really want to read this one. You have all made it sound so wonderful.
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Thank you, Carla! If you have the time and patience for it, it’s a super rewarding read. I hope you have a lovely weekend!
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