Great thriller, couldn't put this book done and felt my heart pounding along with Jenna. The insane story of Callie and how Jenna is connected, will keep any reader connected.

I think the first chapter of The Gift should come with a bit of a warning, because it certainly serves to unnerve the reader from the start. I honestly was a little out of breath by the time I'd read it; there was no easing me in gently that's for sure!

I found the whole premise of cellular memory a really interesting idea to underpin the story. Whether Jenna's new transplanted heart could in some way hold the memories of the donor Callie. In fact this sense of uncertainty pervaded most of the book; was Jenna responsible for all the mistakes, or were events just down to her own imagination? Personally I don't think cellular memory is such an out-of-field idea as to be impossible, though I'm not entirely sure whether I'm totally convinced. I do accept that we don't know or understand everything of which we are capable, so I am more than happy to accept it as a possibility, and thus I was intrigued by what was happening to Jenna.

The italicised flashbacks only served to further unnerve me. I was left wondering what had happened to cause Callie's death and I understood completely why Jenna had to find some answers. The book was well-crafted enough to engage me, and the writing evoked tension and questions which kept me engrossed until the end.

Being completely honest, I found Callie's ending just a little bit twee, but not enough to disappoint me in any way (and in fairness I don't know any other way in which Louise Jensen could have resolved Callie's story, so perhaps it isn't fair to mention it!). I would recommend not reading it piecemeal like I did because it did make me a little confused by the end action-scene. It was totally my fault though because for some bizarre reason I thought starting it before Christmas was a good idea. It wasn't. Give this the luxury of time and attention.

I did like Jenna as a main character though, she was feisty yet flawed enough to be interesting and engaging. And I did care enough about her to be worried what her own ending was going to be. And I guess the same could be said about Callie, as the two of them are so intrinsically linked.

I really enjoyed this second novel from Louise Jensen, and I have to say I'm already looking forward to the third! They are definitely proving themselves to be great reads.

Underwhelming compared to The Sister

Jenna received a heart transplant from Callie. Callie's death has allowed Jenna to live. After the transplant, Jenna is having weird dreams about memories that she believes is from Callie. She then becomes obsessed with finding out what happened to Callie.

I know nothing about Cellular Memory (personality changes that some people experience after a transplant), but to me I didn't find it believable that you can obtain someone's thoughts and memories once you receive their heart.

I didn't like Jenna and how she turned into a totally different person after her transplant. She wanted to distance herself from her family and friends, but then would call them as soon as she needed something, as long as they didn't judge her.

The whole novel was very unbelievable and it just didn't grab me like it did the other reviewers. I still would highly recommend the author's debut novel, The Sister

This is the first book I've read by Louise Jensen. Her first book, The Sister, hit number one in the charts and was all over my Twitter feed. At the time of release of The Sister I was really busy with writing a dissertation and planning my wedding so I still haven't gotten around to reading it yet but I will definitely be changing that soon after being introduced to this amazing author!

The story is written in first person of Jenna and after she has a heart transplant she begins to have dream sequences that are not her own memories but of her donors. The book focuses on the mystery surrounding cellular memory. Now cellular memory hasn't actually been proven yet but it is a fascinating topic that Louise has used for her psychological thriller and it is a unique one!

I've never really heard of cellular memory before but putting aside what I think about it, Louise manages to convince you it is definitely a real and scary thought.

The fact that Jenna was such an unreliable narrator made me not trust anyone and I love this trope in psychological thrillers. I love not trusting anyone and being pulled from pillar to post with all the twists and Louise didn't disappoint in this sense!

Most thrillers I have read tend to have a few twists and then a massive one at the end and I'm usually wondering (if I'm on my kindle) how I don't already know the ending by 92% and wonder how they can wrap it up so quickly. However, Jensen has jam packed this novel with twists and cliffhangers galore so I was gripped to the story throughout the entire book right until the last 20% when she plays out her final dramatic scene. I was reading this part on a plane and I hate flying but instead of being scared of the turbulence I found myself so immersed into the plot that I didn't realise my surroundings. For that last 20% or so I was Jenna and I was just as scared as she was. My husband tried to speak to me and I told him to shush because I couldn't stop reading.

I also love how Louise Jensen adds a little extra touch to help you imagine the scenes she lays out with her music. I had Hold Back The River in my head for days after reading that a character was listening to it.

All in all this is a fantastic thriller and I was gripped from beginning to end. I highly recommend this book and I'm kicking myself that I haven't read The Sister yet.

Fabulous can't put down book. Just couldn't work out what was going on. Excellent

The premise of this book is pretty far-fetched but as soon as my 'willing suspension of disbelief' kicked in, I enjoyed the book a lot. Lots of suspense that kept me turning the pages. The bad grammar of the characters was irritating and distracting (I cringed every time I saw "me and her" or "her and me" etc.) but I tried to just ignore it.

There were some obvious red herrings thrown in to make guessing the outcome more difficult (and fun) all the way until the book reached its stunning conclusion. The epilogue was a nice addition.

Crikey. What a way to finish the old year and start the new year with this read. An utterly compelling novel.

Jenna is the recipient of a heart transplant, a transplant she urgently needed after becoming seriously ill very quickly and a transplant that has saved her life. While on her long road to recovery and heavily medicated Jenna begins to have dreams, very vivid dreams both when asleep and awake and is convinced she is experiencing past events from her donors life and sets out to try and find out who the donor was and, if this person has family to try and contact them to thank them, to find out how the donor died and to see if her dreams are real memories.
As the dreams increase in both vividness and regularity, Jenna becomes convinced that something terrible is happening and her donor is trying to warn her.

It's hard to go in to any more of the story without revealing spoilers. It turns into a sort of murder mystery/whodunit/psychological thriller, although the lines are always blurred as we are never sure what Jenna is experiencing is real or not.

I absolutely loved this book. A really interesting subject matter used as a vehicle to tell the story, the central character Jenna is a very well written character and you have total empathy with her throughout as she tries to make sense of what is real and isn't and piece together they mystery as she tries to hold on to her own sanity.

There's a full cast of characters in the book of course and all serve a purpose to the story. None feel thrown in as a plot device or anything like that. They are all an integral part of the story. Loads of really vivid and memorable characters that will long stay with me.

I loved the writing style, very descriptive without meandering. A lot of the novel is told from Jenna's perspective although we do have flashback sequences throughout. Of course we are kept in the dark throughout with little pieces being revealed as we proceed until it climaxes in a very exciting and thoroughly satisfying final act.

I honestly can't think of one thing to criticise this book about. It was a pure pleasure to read. I'd have no hesitation in recommending it and it fully deserves the five stars I've given it. I feel compelled now to seek out the authors previous novel The Sister such was my enjoyment of The Gift.

I'd like to thank NetGalley Bookouture and Louise Jenson for an ARC in exchange for and honest and unbiased review.

After Jenna's heart transplant, she begins to experience dreams that seem so real they are like memories but they aren't her memories. I loved this book, there were lots of twists and turns and you never knew where things were heading until you got there. A definite read!!

Wow! I thought I'd enjoyed The Sister but The Gift is even better, and I didn't think that would even be possible! Louise Jensen has exceeded all of my expectations after The Sister and has written a cracker of a book, one that stays with you long after you have turned the last page.

Jenna is grateful to receive a heart transplant and wants to thank the family of the donor in person. This isn't recommended by the hospital, but Jenna feels so strongly about it that she hires a private investigator to find Callie's family. Callie's family aren't exactly what she imagined them to be but Jenna feels like she knows them, although she can't explain the depth of her feelings. When Jenna finds out that Callie had a sister, Sophie, she is determined to find her. Jenna follows her instinct and takes her lead from strange flashbacks that seem to show Callie's life. What is Callie trying to tell her? All Jenna knows is that she must find Sophie. As she gets closer to the truth, she puts herself in more danger and she ends up in a race against time as it feels like her body is starting to reject Callie's heart.

I'm not sure if Jenna's heart was beating as wildly as mine was throughout this book; I could barely keep hold of my kindle as my palms started to sweat near the end. I loved the exploration of cellular memory and it's something that I do believe in, especially with a heart transplant. Is the heart just an organ that keeps us alive or is it so much more than that? I'd love to think that the heart is more than a vessel, that it contains all our feelings, hopes and fears. It's so comforting to think that an organ transplanted in another person means that the donor hasn't completely died. It's quite magical to think that a little piece of the donor lives on and the recipient absorbs a little of their very essence.

The Gift is so much more than a psychological thriller, although it is certainly a fantastic one, but for me it's a thought provoking look at the magic of the human body. It is also a stark reminder of how fragile we are and how by simply registering on the organ donor register we can save so many lives in the event of our death.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest an unbiased opinion.

Having read the author's previous book, I knew that I wanted to read this one, she had a lot to live up too but boy did she do it! This is a gripping psychological thriller which covers a tough subject. The Gift explores the touch subject of organ donation and the impact of this upon the recipient. The book covers the concept of Cellular Muscle Memory (whereby human cells retain their memories after transplantation, in this case, a heart) and whilst I have read a little bit about this in the past, the book really did made me wonder how much would the person receiving the organ know and could this change the past for the donor. The main character did slightly irritate me at times but not enough to be put off, I desperately wanted to know how the book was going to end, and I was really pleased with the ending. Plenty of twists and turns, I guessed some of them but still plenty of surprises for me. Looking forward to more of the same please Louise!