What a fantastic story which brought the present to the past in a skilfully woven series of interconnected threads that took me all round the houses and back again until they all finally came together. Elodie is the spark that sets it all off when she discovers a box in an old archive belonging to James Stratton. In it, she discovers a sketchpad and a leather satchel containing an old photo. On further investigation, the sketchpad contains drawings of a place that she remembers her deceased mother telling her about in her bed-time stories. Intrigued by this connection and wanting to know more, she starts to delve further into the archives, calling upon people to help her in her quest. But as she starts to peel back the layers of mystery that surround the events of the past she is shocked and surprised at what she finds.
A bit of a tip for you first. This book is long, there is a lot going on and there are a lot of major characters whose voices need to be heard and we flit between quite a few time periods. With this in mind, I would really recommend that you pencil in a bunch of time to really allow yourself to fully immerse yourself in the cleverly crafted world and story woven around it. I made the mistake of reading it in fits and starts initially but realised that method wasn't working for me so I paused my reading and restarted the book on a weekend when I had a lot more time to devote to it. Once I did this, I found it much easier to follow and managed to engage better with what I was reading.
That said, even doing this, the book was overly busy and, at times, I felt it was trying to be too clever and, in doing so, lost some of its appeal. They say that sometimes too much IS too much and this is a bit of an example where less could have been more. I say this as I fear that it may lose readers along the way but what I'm also trying to get across is that if you do get through it, if you do manage to stay with the plot and keep the massive cast in order, and keep your wits about you, you will be rewarded at the end.
Being honest again, once I did eventually finish the book, I did feel like I had run a marathon. I was a bit exhausted which did nibble into my satisfaction at the book's conclusion. I'm not the biggest fan of books that make me work hard and this one definitely put me through my paces. It's my first book by this author and my main conclusion after reading it is that maybe we are not well suited. Even though at the end of the day it was a good story, well worthy of the four stars I have given it, the effort I had to make to get through just wasn't as pleasant an experience as I would have preferred. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I found this book really hard to get into, definitely not my favourite book of Kate Morton’s.

The book tells the story of Lilly Milington a ghost living in Birchwood Manor, and Elodie, a young woman who’s mother told her favourite girlhood tale about the house

Spanning 3 time periods and multiple characters I found it quite hard to keep track, although the writing is beautiful the story was hard to follow.

For all the potential merits of this author, this is one of those books where you end up reviewing the editor – and not only when you get proofs where one character dies off the coast of Portugal, only for it to then happen in Italy further down the very same page. No, these pages – all 600 of them – give us far too much, and yet hide things. Such as… what company even is this where our heroine can be in the archive department, one with its own in-house magazine for her to write for? How, if she has such a male harridan of an author, can she have such miraculously flexible work-hour arrangements? And who on earth passed a lead character with such a clunky name?

Yes, Elodie (purely and simply Melody without the M for mother, as her world-famous cellist mater died when she was young) finds something at work that she shouldn't – or perhaps very much should. This something leads her and us back to a Victorian-era love triangle at a country house Elodie has bizarre levels of memory and knowledge of, and she's not alone in her family with that skill. Meanwhile the book soon gives us the fact that alternating chapters are written by the house ghost – all the while it plods on and on pretending it's not a basic love triangle, even when we all know it is.

Alright, it's more than that – but it is a seriously over-egged pudding. There is enough here for a welter of books, and I partly admire that and partly hate that it was all crammed between two (far-too distant) covers. The length and breadth and depth of it all end up with me leaning towards the impression that this is a pastiche – of a certain type of late gothic ghost house story. The fact that it boils down to a semi-Turn of the Screw, mixed with more than a bit of Atonement, doesn't help there. But however intriguing the premise, the fact remains that to combine both volumes into one does not demand you write something longer than both put together. This was enjoyable on some level – it did survive the skim-reading and skipping I would have assumed likely – but boy it was frustratingly over-long.

So looked forward to reading this latest book from Kate.

I found it a slow burner. Interesting enough to keep me reading and wanting to find out more.

Not my favourite book from this author but would 'recommend to her avid fans

What a plot! Unfortunately I read this book in short blocks and kept forgetting the characters. It needs to be read in larger chunks! However, I did enjoy all the twists and turns and will read it again.

Having read quite a few Kate Morton novels I knew what to expect sheer indulgence.
This new book is quite complex in the respect all is not what it might seem,
A heart racing storyof lost love, lots of twists along the way.
Once again Kate Morton has worked her magic.
Delighted to get an early copy from net galley in exchange for a honest review I would highly recommend this book it deserves more than 5*+.

My thanks to Pan Macmillan for this ARC via NetGalley. I loved this novel and was sad to reach the final page and say goodbye to characters that I had come to care for as well as Birchwood Manor that had felt so vibrant and real.

I do not want to say much about the plot as I feel it’s the kind of tale best allowed to unfold at its own pace for the individual reader without too much foreknowledge. I felt the writing was lyrical and evocative.

As a student of art history I was very taken with the story and felt Kate Morton had captured the mid-nineteenth century art world well. Having fallen in love with Kelmscott Manor, with its associations with William and Jane Morris and the Pre-Raphaelites, I had wondered if it had served as an inspiration for Birchwood Manor.

A beautiful novel that moves seamlessly through time as various voices interweave to provide insights into its themes of art, landscape, time and naturally love.

I was very struck by this passage in the novel: “The land does not forget. Place is a doorway through which one steps across time.”

There were touches of folklore, mythology and spirituality throughout the novel though they were subtle and did not overwhelm. Likewise the various mysteries were well integrated.

Certainly a novel that I plan on recommending widely. Also, I want to read more of Kate Morton’s earlier novels as I was impressed by her style and the themes explored.

Kate Morton is one of my favourite writers and I enjoy the genre she writes in (and some would say has made her own) - sweeping historical sagas with mystery and intrigue at their heart, with a few different timelines at play and a shocking twist at the end. All the other books of hers I've read I have struggled to put down, such is her skill and talent as a storyteller. When I see her name on the front cover of a book, I have come to expect that I will be drawn into a world I won't want to leave and, if I'm reading it on the train, will either gasp aloud at some point or miss my stop because I will be that absorbed.

So it is with a heavy heart that I give this feedback - The Clockmaker's Daughter, her latest novel, did not capture my imagination in the same manner that all her others have. In fact, it was a bit of a struggle to get through it, which was disappointing (and unexpected).

It is hard to say why because on the surface it has all the same ingredients of a great Kate Morton story. I think the reason this one didn't do it for me is because the narrative structure was far more complicated this time around. Rather than two or at the most three storylines, taking place in different decades or centuries, with the links between them all very clear, The Clockmaker's Daughter has so many narrative threads and so many characters to keep track of that I just ended up really confused and couldn't remember who was who! And if you're confused, you're not going to suspend your disbelief and get lost in the story.

The only timeline I was able to follow with any modicum of clarity was the present day storyline with Elodie, which had moments of intrigue, but when it switched to another timeline and another character, I wasn't able to pick up the thread very easily and whatever interest had piqued in the Elodie storyline faded quite quickly. I stuck it out but ultimately didn't feel I'd really got the point, or the most interesting parts, of the story. And I certainly wasn't able to escape into it, the way I have with her other stories.

While I would highly recommend Kate Morton as a writer, I couldn't in all honesty say The Clockmaker's Daughter is one of her best. Lots of people have loved it though, so perhaps I am missing something. I can see she was probably trying to break the mould from what she'd done before and try a few different things - which is of course understandable, with book number 6 - but in doing so I think this story just didn't have the charm and page-turner factor of some of her others. However, I will certainly look forward to what she does next.

If you're new to Kate Morton and her work, I'd advise starting with The House At Riverton, The Lake House or The Secret Keeper (probably my absolute favourite, and her most masterful in my opinion) rather than this one. I would like to thank NetGalley and Pan McMillan/Mantle Books for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was super excited to get my hands on an arc.
<i> "(...) 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"</i> I was hooked from the very premise and I'm quite happy to let you know that the Clockmaker's Daughter didn't disappoint. Yes, I had a couple or more issue with it but I did enjoy it, more than that... I still fell in love with it.

My main issue with the book was Eloise and her-er-dull romance with Alistair. (though, dull is still an understatement). She and the romance (if you can call the thigh they share "romance") were a real bother to read. I wanted to slap her out of it most of the time from page one it was painflully clear that she didn't love him, too bad she needs 3/4 of the book to understand it. I really couldn't stand her attitude (what woman in her right mind lets her future mother-in-law organize her wedding from start to finish without basically getting a word it. WTF?!).
Another main issue was the time lines, at times it was really confusing (and I'm used to Doctor Who and jumping timelines after all—just sayin’).
Anyway, to me real treat were the parts dedicated to Lily, Edward and their past. More than that I loved every bit of it . I really can't explain but at the end I felt like crying (and I rarely do). I felt sad on their behalf not that I was expecting an happy ending but still... The end tore my heart apart and left me with a bitter aftertaste, so much I did care.

I will be buying a paperback copy of the Clockmaker's dautgher so I can enjoy this wonderful and tear-stained read time and time again.

This is a very difficult book for me to review. There are so many characters in so many different time frames and I really don't want to give any spoilers.

In present day there is Elodie, an Archivist, who finds a drawing in an old sketchbook that reminds her of a bedtime story told to her as a child by her late mother. The drawing is not just a little similar to the mysterious house from Elodie's much loved story, it is exactly the same. Elodie always thought the story to be a fairy tale but now she begins to wonder if maybe it is actually real.

The modern day part of the story is a fairly small part of this book. Most of the story revolves around a girl/young woman who is born in 1844 (her mother the daughter of a Lord, her father a Clockmaker) and then events that occur in 1862 when a group of artists spend the summer at Birchwood Manor.

This is a wonderful, intricate historical mystery story but it does get a little tangled up with all the jumping backwards and forwards between timelines across the 150 years it covers and umpteen characters. Beautifully written but perhaps overlong, with an ending that seemed a little rushed despite all the earlier detail.

This could have been an excellent book. The plot idea was very good, but it became so involved, with so many characters that I was constantly having to search the book as I couldn't remember who they were. It was also rather wordy and too long was spent talking about each character and portraying their life. The book kept jumping from character to character, but there were very long gaps before we met each one again adding to the lack of cohesion. I loved the setting and Kate Moreton's writing is very good, it was mainly the involved plot that spoilt it. The conclusion, I felt, was also rather abrupt and I would have liked to have spent more time with the main characters at the end to share their emotions at what had happened.

I am a bit of a fan of Kate Morton; I have read all of her novels to date and enjoyed them all thoroughly. The Clockmaker's Daughter is no different.

A strong sense of 'place' permeates the novel. Elodie, the modern protagonist feels a shock of recognition when she comes across a sketch of a house in an old satchel from the archives she is cataloging and is determined to find out more. Edward Radcliffe, the 19th century artist who created the sketch, is drawn to a house in the country. He 'feels' he belongs there. And Birdie? She visits the house but never leaves...

A word of warning - for those of you who have read any of Morton's novels before, the split past/present narrative, the plot'twists' and character types will all seem familiar. But this recognisable format didn't detract from my enjoyment. The plot zips along and, bar a couple of eye-raising coincidences, holds together nicely.

This was the first Kate Morton book I have read but thought I would try it as have several friends who like her books.
Unfortunately I could not get on with her style of writing and even after persevering with the book I gave up and didn't finish it.
Sorry but wasn't for me.

I mostly enjoyed reading this book although it took me quite a long time, not only because of its length but due to the number of characters and timelines that were interwoven in the narrative. The central characters of the novel however are not the people but the Radcliffe Blue (a precious diamond) and Birchwood Manor ( a house on the Thames). Both of these feature in the lives, loves and losses of the human characters over the years and the central story is based around whatever really happened to the Radcliffe Blue? Many of the human characters are very sympathetically written and as a reader I could empathise particularly with Ada, Lucy and Tip. However some of the events and coincidences seemed a little over constructed. There are interesting themes of girls' education and art history which also permeate the text and kept my interest. I am not sure why the novel is entitled The Clockmaker's Daughter as this seems to be a very minor facet of the character of Birdy to whom this title refers.
I received a complimentary ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

To put it very succinctly: I loved this book.
As a long-time follower of Kate Morton I was delighted to receive an advance copy of The Clockmaker's Daughter. Initially I thought she had introduced too many characters, that they would never melt together to create the classic Kate Morton experience of historical drama, original plot and intriguing characters I find myself rooting for and wishing I knew in real life. I really should have known better! All the strands of the story came together beautifully, with not a single loose end that I could fret over.
Kate Morton has truly surpassed herself with the Clockmaker's Daughter. Thank you Kate for this beautiful story, which has stayed with me weeks after finishing it. (Apologies to the patrons of the cafe where I wept openly and made a holy show of myself..)

This book follows Elodie and her quest to find how she is linked to an old house. The book goes back in time and there's lots of intrigue and interesting characters. The settings are evocative. A book to really engross yourself in and enjoy all the threads of story until they reach a satisfying end. A touch of history, mystery, romance and intrigue. This book really does have everything.

Kate Morton is one of my favourite authors and The Forgotten Garden is one of my all-time favourite books, so I was thrilled to get my hands on an early copy of The Clockmaker's Daughter. I really enjoyed the story but wavered between giving it four stars or five stars. However, it was the ending that made me finally settle on four. It's hard to explain, without giving away spoilers, but I was hoping for a kind of Spielberg/Disney fantasy ending (with all the characters' talk of time and space). But as this is a historical and NOT a fantasy, I obviously didn't get one!

The story is in the main part is about a Victorian woman called Birdie, who overcomes her Oliver Twist style background (thieving and picking pockets) and falls in love with an upcoming artist named Edward Radcliffe, before tragedy strikes at a house party in 1862. A woman is murdered, Edward leaves England never to return, and the priceless Radcliffe diamond is lost forever. In the present day Elodie, who works in an archive, finds Edward's satchel and sketchbook, with drawings of a house she thought only existed in a children's fairy story, and is determined to solve the mystery.

I had thought The Clockmaker's Daughter would switch between Birdie and Elodie's viewpoints, like an Eve Chase or Lulu Taylor novel, but instead it told the story of everyone who had lived in Edward's Elizabethan manor house (Birchwood Manor) up until the present day. The only connection between each of these characters is the house and the fact that they have all lost someone - either through a tragic death or removal by distance. It reminded me of The Suffolk Trilogy by Norah Lofts. And this was another reason the rating dropped to a four: I'd rather have read about Birdie, who was a fabulous creation, and Elodie, who kind of disappeared beneath the weight of all these other characters - some of whom I didn't feel added anything to the story. Having said that, I did love how we discovered the ways all the characters were ultimately connected - Elodie's Great-Uncle Tip, for example.

I always love stories about old houses and I loved the mystery of what happened that night in 1862; to Edward and Birdie, the necklace and the painting. I loved the stories of Pale Joe and Ada - she was my favourite character! I think it could have done with being shorter (it's way over 700 pages) and have less characters. Having said that, I was completely gripped and read it very quickly! I really enjoyed the way the stories wrapped around each other and I'm happy to give it a solid four stars. If you're not hung up on ghosts deserving their happy ending along with everyone else, you might want to give it five!


The Clockmaker's Daughter is out in the UK on the 20th of September 2018.

Thank you to Kate Morton and Mantle (Pan Macmillan) for my copy of this book, which I requested from NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

The Clockmakers Daughter, like all Kate Morton’s books, is beautifully written and really captures a sense of the artists lifes and the different time periods. Even though I loved the history and art elements, this book was a bit of a struggle for me at the beginning as it jumped too much between characters and time. However, I persevered and really enjoyed it.

Brilliant. Such a cleverly written book. The story revolves around a manor house that the characters, though the years, have been drawn to.

Without giving too much away, all their lives become entwined together in such a clever way.

Spellbinding. Loved it.

I have thoroughly enjoyed previous books I've read by Kate Morton and was thrilled to see The Clockmaker's Daughter up for request on NetGalley. So I have to admit to initially feeling rather disappointed by the pace of this book. Don't get me wrong; I usually delight in languidly written historical fiction, full of descriptive writing. I was perturbed by why I couldn't get into the flow of the book seeing as it had all the elements I usually adore: rich writing, an intriguing plot, dual time lines (this particular book has several), interwoven and interesting characters, tragedy, mystery, and a bit of something magical. Around the half way point - I was determined not to give up - I changed my opinion and managed to get into it. So if you start reading this book and like me initially struggle, please try to continue reading on, as this book really is a delight.

So as not to give too much of the plot away - there are lots of surprises as you'll discover - it is the tale of a group of artists and a young woman called Birdie in the 1860's, who at a young age is left in the care of a family of thieves and con artists. When she becomes a young woman, she catches the eye of a young painter who decides that she must model for him. Never one to let an opportunity for social climbing or making money pass them by, her guardians agree to this; for the right price. During the summer of 1862, the young artists decide to settle at an alluring house called Birchwood Manor. However their stay doesn't go as planned, one young woman ends up dead, another missing along with an expensive family heirloom. In the present day Elodie Winslow works as an archivist in London and at work discovers a long forgotten satchel. Inside the satchel is an old photograph of a beautiful lady and a sketch book with a familiar looking drawing of a house by a river. Elodie becomes determined to find the link between the two items and discover who the captivating young woman in the sepia coloured photograph is.

I loved the way the book was narrated - although I've read many time slips/dual time lines before, this was slightly unusual. If you decide to give this book a go, you'll understand what I mean.
The Clockmaker's Daughter is just such an all round compelling read with interesting musings on time; it's atmospheric, relaxing, tense, with well written characters, all beautifully thrown together in a perfectly tidy mess. Such a captivating read once I got over my initial skepticism. Honestly an amazing book.
Another fantastic creation by Kate Morton.

With many thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan / Mantle for the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest and unbiased review.