Wednesday 11 January 2017

The Gift by Louise Jensen





Out Now

Published by: Bookouture

Purchase from Amazon here


What’s it all about?

The perfect daughter. The perfect girlfriend. The perfect murder?

Jenna is given another shot at life when she receives a donor heart from a girl called Callie. Eternally grateful to Callie and her family, Jenna gets closer to them, but she soon discovers that Callie’s perfect family is hiding some very dark secrets …

Callie’s parents are grieving, yet Jenna knows they’re only telling her half the story. Where is Callie’s sister Sophie? She’s been ‘abroad’ since her sister’s death but something about her absence doesn’t add up. And when Jenna meets Callie’s boyfriend Nathan, she makes a shocking discovery.

Jenna knows that Callie didn’t die in an accident. But how did she die? Jenna is determined to discover the truth but it could cost her everything; her loved ones, her sanity, even her life.

A compelling, gripping psychological thriller with a killer twist from the author of the Number One bestseller The Sister.


What I thought:

I loved The Sister and so was really looking forward to reading Louise Jensen’s next book, but slightly worried it wouldn’t live up to her first. I was wrong – The Gift was – a gift!! A gift that I couldn’t put down, and didn’t want to finish!

Captivating, tense, and full of secrets and intrigue, this book was packed with it all. The main character, Jenna, has received a donor heart and is on the road to recovery thanks to Callie and her parents’ generosity. But Jenna is curious to know more about the original owner of the heart now beating inside her, and so tracks down and makes contact with Callie’s family.

That is the start of a baffling plot that made me wonder who and what to believe. I became an amateur detective trying to work out if Jenna’s discoveries were real, hallucinations, and what the hell to believe! The author has crafted this book so well through characters that jumped off the page for me. I loved the suspense of knowing what is real and what isn’t. The author has used great descriptions to help readers picture the surroundings, and has developed characters that could be either good / bad / or even imaginary.

I also liked that the storyline was unique. I haven’t read any books where the main character has been the recipient of an organ, and it got me thinking. What must it be like to have a living part that belonged to someone else inside of you, and the fact that someone else’s death is the reason you are alive. All quite deep and thought provoking, and the book did leave with those thoughts to mull over. The story also made me think about how it must be to lose a daughter in the prime of their life, and just how unimaginable that grief must be. I thought this was handled very well by the author, and again left me mulling it over even after the last page had ended.

Early on I found myself stuck in the ‘just one more chapter’ loop of promising myself that I would put the book down and get on with stuff…. but just one more chapter first. Before I knew it lunch time had become later afternoon and the sun was setting. Just as well it was the new year period or I would have a very unhappy boss!!

If you are looking for an edge of your seat thriller that will have you wondering what is real and what is make believe this could be the one for you. I loved it and can’t wait to see what Louise Jensen has in store for readers next.


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