The Fisherman's Gift

(Hardback)

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The entrancing and heart-breaking story of a lost boy, a tragic love affair and a seafaring community's buried secrets finally coming to light. The sea stole him from her. Could it bring him back Winter, 1900. A little boy washes up on the beach of a small fishing village in Scotland, barely alive. He bears an uncanny resemblance to teacher Dorothy's son, lost to the sea many years before. When the village is snowed in, Dorothy agrees to look after the child until he can be returned home. But, as the past rises to meet the present, long-buried secrets in this tight-knit community start to come to light. And Dorothy finds herself thrown together again with the reclusive fisherman Joseph, after years of keeping their distance. Bursting with tension and tenderness, this is an exquisite love story that delves into the griefs and hopes that can lie behind village gossip. 'A beautiful story of grief, hope and love; of dark snowy nights, the mysteries of the sea and, above all, redemption' Lucy Diamond, Sunday Times bestselling author of Something to Tell You 'Spectacular... a gift to readers everywhere...a treasure' Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Left Undone

Reviews

A beautiful story of grief, hope and love; of dark snowy nights, the mysteries of the sea and, above all, redemption -- Lucy Diamond, Sunday Times bestselling author of SOMETHING TO TELL YOU
Hauntingly beautiful and completely absorbing, this tragic tale of grief, love and longing kept me reading well into the night. A stunning debut that will stay with me for a long time to come. -- Rosie Walsh, bestselling author of THE MAN WHO DIDN'T CALL
Spectacular... a gift to readers everywhere...a treasure... I imagine that this novel will be shared and read in the years to come by readers who long for a great story well told. I didn't want it to end. -- Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of THE GOOD LEFT UNDONE
A breathtaking, an exquisitely written, pitch-perfect look at love and shame, what is lost and what is found. Like the sea she describes with haunting eloquence, Julia Kellys story surges then ebbs, sweeping the reader along with its powerful currents -- Jeanette Walls, New York Times Bestselling author of THE CASTLE
As searing as a winter wind. With perfect pacing and vivid prose, Kelly shows us not just what was but what could have been, and therein lies this books real gift. -- Rachel Beanland, author of FLORENCE ADLER SWIMS FOREVER and THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE
A hauntingly beautiful piece of storytelling, exceptionally written... It speaks of motherhood, loss, longing, love, with characters so authentic they live and breathe well beyond the page. Julia Kelly is a writer of extraordinary talent and I adored this book. -- Fona Scarlett author of BOYS DON'T CRY

Author Bio

Julia is a mother, writer and teacher. She has been longlisted for The Mslexia Novel Prize, The Exeter Novel Prize, Penguin WriteNow and the Bath Novel Award. In 2021 she won the Blue Pencil First Novel Award. Having grown up in a house without television, Julia read anything she could lay her hands on from an early age and as an English teacher, has tried to pass on her love of stories to the next generation of readers and writers. Since becoming a wheelchair user, Julia appreciates even more the journeys the written word can take us on. She lives in Herefordshire with her partner and dog and between them, they have raised five wonderful children. THE FISHERMAN'S GIFT is her debut novel.