The Forger's Daughter takes the reader from the countryside in Kenmare to a country house in New York''s Hudson Valley with a couple of stops in New York City, weaving a thrilling tale of intrigue. Secrets get discovered and relationships strengthen and fray in this fast moving, suspenseful story of crime, blackmail, forgery and family. The well-written story moves quickly  It will especially appeal to bibliophiles and book collectors interested in the world of printing, publishing and rare books. At the end, things weren't tied up neatly. I guess I should read the prequel.

I received a complimentary copy of The Forger's Daughter from NetGalley.  Opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

I learned a lot from this novel--which I love!  Priceless antique books that are hard to come by are highly sought after for forgery.  This illegal career envelops a whole family, affecting the members in several ways, culminating into a blackmail ploy.  Many twists kept me guessing.  Good read.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

An excellent guide on how to create a forgery.  The only problem is there was more “how to” then plot.  But. I enjoyed reading the book for the author had me rethinking the rightness or wrongness of creating a forgery.  Why someone would pay millions for an artifact does it really matter if it’s real.  I enjoyed the book but was left with a few unanswered questions.  I didn’t read the first book and may find the answers there.  The only little annoyance was that the book was written with 2 narrators and it took a minute or to figure out who was speaking.

THE FORGER'S DAUGHTER is a sequel to THE FORGERS and takes place some twenty years later. I believe that not reading THE FORGERS first would be to do a disservice to oneself. Although THE FORGER'S DAUGHTER has the legs to stand alone, having the background from the first book makes this one all the more meaningful.

There are any number of books that are about somebody's daughter (or wife, or sister) which I tend to view as somewhat demeaning to the daughter/wife/sister (or any other possessed female character). For example, THE HANGMAN'S DAUGHTER is more about the hangman than the daughter. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Morrow has created a daughter that can truly be seen as a strong character quite vital to the plot.

Although the murder mystery is explained in the first book, the consequences of that murder linger in the mind of a deranged bookman. The result is an ingenious forgery plan that adds to our knowledge of the underbelly of the rare book market.

As was THE FORGERS, THE FORGER'S DAUGHTER is a book to savor for its rich prose and fine storytelling.

Couldn't get past the third page.
I never do this, but have abandoned book.
Hated the writing style, wasn't engaging.
Sorry, not for me. :-(

❝𝗠𝗬 𝗦𝗜𝗫 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪❞
The Forger’s Daughter by Bradford Morrow

𝕋𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕖 𝕋𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝕀 𝕃𝕚𝕜𝕖𝕕
❶ This was so different from books that I’ve read recently. I almost gave her a five star on Goodreads just for that fact but couldn’t bring myself to do it. The plot in general was really intriguing and the secrets the characters kept were so muddy. It almost felt like this wouldn’t happen in real life but it could definitely happen in real life.
➋ I felt like there were a few things unanswered but it was the right amount. It left me wondering how the afterstory would play out after I was done with the book. I liked that.
➌ Even though this is a sequel to The Forgers, I didn’t read that book before this one and it was fine, characters and backstories are reintroduced.

𝕋𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕖 𝕋𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕤 𝕋𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝔹𝕦𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕕 𝕄𝕖 𝕆𝕦𝕥
❶ So, I didn’t realize this was a sequel when I requested it from NetGalley. And I actually didn’t realize it until I went to rate the book on Goodreads. Just something I wish I would have known before.
➋ A little too much detail about printing... I get the book is about that. I mean the title even has something to do with that but there were a few sentences skipped because I didn’t need to know the different kinds of paper that can be used for printing.
➌ Two chapters into the book I still didn’t know what time period it was taking place in 🤣 lemme help you out if you read it... it’s now, it’s taking place in current day haha The cover 100% threw me off.

I received this from Netgalley.com.

"After twenty years of living life on the straight and narrow, Will finds himself drawn back to forgery, ensnared in a plot to counterfeit the rarest book in American literature: Edgar Allan Poe’s first,Tamerlane."

A rather slow and agonizing read. I never connected with the plot or the characters.

2☆

What a great story - it has twists, turns, history, literature, and forgery!  While the story centers around a piece written by Edgar Allen Poe, the writing and story itself might have been something Poe himself would have enjoyed.  I really enjoyed this book...I couldn't put it down.  I liked how the chapters altered between Will and Meghan's points of view.  The language was delightful and I even found myself rereading certain turns of phrase.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this novel. I found the history of forgery interesting, and especially the connection to Edgar Allen Poe.  Will and Meghan are book lovers, and many years ago Will was caught as a forger, and an old nemesis attacked him, brutally injuring his hand. Will has since moved to America, and his enemy has returned, telling Will he must reproduce a previously unseen poem by Edgar Allen Poe, which will be worth millions on the market. If Will doesn't do as asked, his past crime will be revealed and he will go to prison. Will does agree, and brings daughter Nicole into the process, as she is a well accomplished printer. I did not know this was a sequel, so many times I didn't understand what the back story was, but I enjoyed the mystery and all the information on printing was fascinating.

A reformed forger is like a retired race horse who hears the starting gun from a nearby race track and can't help longing for that old excitement. That's what happens to Will, who's made a comfortable life as an artisinal, printer, manuscript authenticator and dealer.  Drawn into a scheme to copy a rare manuscript by Edgar Allen Poe by a man he once counted among his closest colleagues before he betrayed him,  in partnership with a distinguished man who mentored them both, he's unable to resist. Not only that - almost without thinking, he draws his own daughter Nicole, herself a talented printer and copyist, into the plot. It's a deftly told tale, with sympathetic protagonists he reader hopes will get away with their well-executed plan.

First, let me say that this was written by an excellent, educated author.  I was so impressed with Bradford Morrow and his command of vocabulary. That, alone, was enough to keep me reading when the book got a little slow..  Will was a former illegal forger of important documents, antique books, etc. He has been on the straight and narrow for many years and plans to stay that way. He has a wife and two daughters to care for and protect.

However, a man from his past appears and threatens him with evidence which could get him in a great deal of trouble. He has to do some more illegal forging, this concerning Edgar Allen Poe. I was a fan of Poe for many years, having won a national EAP writing contest.  So this was another reason the book appealed to me.  The author was very informed as to the literary world.

Former forger, Will, finds himself lured (forced) back into the game when a former colleague gets out of jail and brings him a very rare copy of Tamerlane by Edgar Allen Poe to "copy". With the help of his talented daughter, Will does as asked, but things don't go quite as easily as he expected.

I have not read "The Forger", so that may have tempered my take on this novel. I found it difficult to follow at times since the first person narrative shifts voices from Will to his wife, Meg, and back again frequently and without the usual label or font change to clarify that the narration has changed. This took me out of the story for at least a few sentences each time as I figured out who was speaking. In addition, the use of unusual or rarely used words on nearly every page brings to mind that the author kept an SAT prep book or a thesaurus at hand (example -- hermetic, leitmotif). The verbiage does elicit a certain (almost) Gothic atmosphere to the story, so it is understandable but it is sometimes distracting. I am fairly well-read and educated, but even I had to use the Kindle provided dictionary on a few words. 

All in all, though this is a fairly intriguing mystery with twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. Predictable in places, but surprising in others. I suspect it will be a treat for the fans of the first book. If you are a bibliophile or fascinated by early publishing techniques or simply interested in old/rare books or ephemera, this is a book for you. I admit I'm interested in reading The Forger now to answer some of the questions that occurred to me in this one.

"The Forger's Daughter" was an enjoyable book.  As a bibliophile, a story about rare books is appealing.  One of the main characters, Will, is a reformed forger, who has turned to creating custom work on an old-fashioned letter press.  His wife, Megan, owns an independent book store which sells antique and rare books, along with more modern offerings.  Their daughter, Nicole, is a gifted artist, especially with calligraphy, a skilled learned from her father. She has also learned about printmaking at the hands of her father and they work together to produce their custom works.  Rounding out the family is their adopted daughter, Maisie, whose mother was Megan's best friend. Their plans for an idyllic end of summer at their country home before returning to New York for work and school are interrupted by a ghost from Will and Megan's past, Henry Slader, a fellow forger who had assaulted Will twenty years ago, costing him several fingers.  Slader knows a potentially life-altering secret about Will and leverages that knowledge to "persuade" Will into creating a forged copy of a rare early work of Edgar Allen Poe.  

The author does a good job of portraying the moral dilemma facing Will, as he feels he has no choice but to create the forgery, and there is a certain allure to attempting to create a perfect forgery, but he has avoided creating forged works for twenty years and he does not want to get Nicole involved in the illegal activity, but he knows he will require her assistance.  There is a good dynamic between father and daughter, especially as they progress with the process of creating the forgery and as Nicole gains a better understanding of what her father has done in the past and what needs to be done now.

While I would not want to unwittingly purchase a forged copy of a book, the art and science behind creating a convincing forgery is fascinating. The author does a great job of portraying what is involved in making a facsimile or forgery of an older work, as well as how easy it is to cross the line between making a facsimile that will be acknowledged as such and making a forged copy for the purpose of deceiving others.

I would definitely recommend this book.

I received a copy of the e-book via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Very interesting and exciting book!! I loved the way it was written and the characters really jumped out at you! A must read, great storyline.

I think this is the first time in 60 years of reading that I have finished a book and wondered if I had completely missed the point. The premise is fascinating, and, to the very end, I kept thinking some great surprise would jump out giving me that much treasured insight or "aha" moment. But, while the journey was generally interesting and the interaction between characters somewhat engaging, in the end, nothing ever really happened. It just sat there, annoyingly jumping first person around without warning or clue and churning out the story in news-article-like fashion. I could not count the number of times I had to stop and ask myself which character was speaking in the first person this time. This story has a great promise that, unfortunately, never fully develops. Or, could it be I just completely missed it? I fought over the rating and gave it three stars rather than the two I leaned toward because I did enjoy everything but the disappointing non-ending. Where was the editor on this one?

I liked the topic of this book and the plot line. However, even though I read the description, I did not realize this book was  a sequel and so it was hard to follow. I think I woukd have enjoyed it more if I'd read the first book, well, first. That aside at times it was a bit slow, but overall I enjoyed reading about the art world and it's darker side. 

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it

I'm a big fan of counterfeit mysteries. Art, money, artifacts--whatever the heist, doesn't matter, because it will inevitably hold my attention. So after reading the blurb, I couldn't wait to dive into this one.

Will, an ex-literary forger spending the summer in his farm house in the Hudson Valley, finds his routine in upheaval when an old acquaintance accosts his daughter with a parcel and a mission: recreate a copy of a rare Edgar Allan Poe book, Tamarlane, or risk having a secret revealed. He'll need his daughter's help to complete the task, though, and he has to decide if involving her is worth the danger. 

For me, this book started off on a strong note. I loved the incident with the daughter on the road; it set up the potential creep factor perfectly, and I was invested in the mystery man. Will's character has so many traits that should work in his favor: smart, rebellious, plagued by his past yet determined to give his daughters a normal life without the con artist ramifications. I love Poe, so Tamarlane and the history of his writing was also fascinating. 

What fell short of my expectations, however, was twofold. One, the characters felt a bit muddled. They all share similar diction and delivery styles, somewhere on the border of academic and sarcastic. Two, this read more like a dramatic piece than a novel. For all the suspenseful elements, most of the action happens off-camera. Dead bodies, intrigue, past violence--none of it happens in real time while we're reading, rather we're told about it by characters who then analyze the events leading up to and the fallout of whichever action has just occurred. Because of this, the narrative is pretty much divided half and half between deep introspection and elevated dialogue. So while there are several interesting things occurring outside the immediate mystery, we don't see any of it in media res. 

I will say that Bradford's writing reminded me of reading a Poe story. The narrator's had the distinct voice of both being aware they're telling a story but not aware they have an audience. I also appreciated the insight into literary forging. Learning about the stylistic writing differences, ink hues, letters, and other markers authenticators look for was such a cool part of this story. As an upstate New Yorker, I have close ties to the Saratoga region where Poe allegedly edited The Raven, and it's always fun seeing the hometown references. I just wanted more in terms of the mystery.

Overall, The Forger's Daughter is a quiet, reflective mystery focused on transitions and life choices. I'd recommend to fans of Poe or anyone interested in literary forging. 

Big thanks to Mysterious Press and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for honest review consideration.

A fast-paced and satisfying follow up to Morrow's earlier book, The Forgers. If you have an interest in old books, letterpress printing, and/or forgery, few novelists are more adept than Morrow at describing this small, sometimes insular, world.

Whoops! No clue that this was a sequel. After reading a bunch of shaky summaries of the first book I dove cautiously into this and ended up enjoying it! I love these kinds of stories.

The forger and his family are the focus of this novel, which dives deeply into the world of literary fakes, particularly an early work of Edgar Allen Poe. It is evocatively written, almost to a fault with flowery descriptions, but is still a good read about the family's antics, their attempts to create this "found" masterwork, and the various family dynamics. The plot is pretty predictable but enjoyable nonetheless, and you if you have a fondness for Poe's stories or the mid-Hudson locale where part of the story takes place, all the better to appreciate the context.