Beautifully told, The Matchmaker’s Gift, by Lynda Cohen Loigman, uses dual but overlapping timelines to tell the tale of an immigrant grandmother and her very modern granddaughter who share a talent for matchmaking. The story occasionally meandered into fantasy and magic which was a stark contrast with other elements of the novel. Despite having enjoyed the quick read, I doubt that this will be a book that “stays” with me. Nonetheless, I recommend it as diverting and well written. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read a digital ARC. It was a pleasure.

Amazing!!!! .

Sara is a divorce attorney in NY. Her grandmother, Sara, who was a matchmaker, recently passed. She left Abby a message; could Abby be the next matchmaker?

This story!!! Such a delight!
Dual timeline, grandmother and granddaughter, both strong female characters, matchmaking, beautiful themes. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

After reading The Wartime Sisters by Lynda Cohen Liogman a couple of years ago and thoroughly enjoying it, I knew I had to read The Matchmaker's Gift. Plus Hello Dolly with Barbra Streisand as a Jewish matchmaker in New York City is one of my all-time favorites, so I thought I'd love reading about two Jewish women, a grandmother and granddaughter, both gifted with the ability to matchmake. I was right!! Of course maybe I shouldn't compare this book to Hello Dolly since the only similarities are that they're about female matchmakers and both are absolutely delightful. But I digress...

Sara is new to America in 1910 when she discovers she has the gift of matchmaking. Not just matching people for money like the Jewish men in her community did, but a true talent that allowed her to see who belonged together--a love match. Yet, she was forced to hide her ability and secretly make matches because as a young, unmarried female she wasn't allowed to practice her gift in the open since the male matchmakers were angered by her "encroachment" into their world and afraid of her taking their jobs and income.

Abby is Sara's granddaughter and a divorce attorney. Her grandmother has just passed away, and she's grieving the loss as they were extremely close. Sara always told her stories of the matches she'd made over the years and that she'd inherited her gift, but she's unsure if she even believes in matchmaking. Then Abby starts reading the journals her grandmother left her of all the matches she'd made throughout the years with newspaper clippings of wedding announcements and Abby really begins to understand her grandmother's story.

The story is told in alternating POVs from Sara starting in 1910 and from Abby, starting in 1994. I loved both storylines and women equally, which doesn't happen often. Their relationship reminded me of how much I loved and missed my own grandmother, and I think that really made parts of the novel special.

Liogman gives a lot of insight into Jewish culture and the customs of matchmaking with her newest novel. I love the strong female characters she wrote and how they fought to do what was right for themselves, their family, and the people around them even when being forced a different direction. A truly charming, delightful novel that I highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Posted to Goodreads, Twitter and Amazon on 9/29/22

THE MATCHMAKER'S GIFT by Lynda Cohen Loigman is a surprisingly delightful historical fiction novel. With positive reviews from writers like Kate Quinn, Marie Benedict, and Fiona Davis, readers are sure to enjoy the story of Sara, a Jewish immigrant in the early 20th century and her granddaughter, Abby, a young lawyer in New York in the 1990s. The story, which moves between the two time periods, shows that Sara is a gifted matchmaker, able to discern when two people truly care for each other. She facilitates matches in secret for many years due to opposition from the traditional, male Jewish matchmakers, known as shadchanim. Finally, desperate to support her family, she struggles for the right to more openly utilize her abilities and charge for her services. Abby, on the other hand, is a successful divorce attorney, but generally unhappy with her boss and the rather unfeeling advice they often offer clients. When Sara dies, Abby is forced to reflect on both their lives and ultimately chooses to fight FOR something, as her grandmother would have so wisely advocated. The author's note about her many sources and copious research (including numerous New York Times articles) is quite interesting as are the insights woven throughout the story about Jewish culture, immigrant life, and pressures faced by modern day professionals. Publishers Weekly says, "Readers are in for a treat." I wholeheartedly concur.

This is the author's third novel and I have read all her work. I have to say that I enjoy her writing enough that if I see her name on the cover, I will get a copy.

This book was a charming, dual timeline foray into the lives of two Jewish American women, both of whom I admired and would like to know in real life. Set in New York City, the novel explored the Jewish immigrant experience in the 1920s and 1930s as well as a more modern look at Jewish life in the 1990s. In the book, the reader is privy to many Jewish customs and practices, which the Russian Jews brought over to their community in the Lower East Side of New York. A community rich in history and Jewish culture to this day.

Today we think of 'matchmaking' as a somewhat antiquated practice with no real value, however the Jewish faith once held the practice as a very important and solemn one. Dowries were common, and the hiring of a matchmaker (shadchanim) expected.

The modern day story was easy for the author, as in 1994 she too was a young lawyer working in New York City. This lent the work authenticity.

I relish historical fiction that is well researched and this author devotes much time in laying the groundwork for her novels. Additionally, she creates characters who are realistic and likeable. This time out the story was a touch fanciful, but that didn't deter my enjoyment of it in any way. It was the story of a grandmother and a granddaughter united via their inherent gift for matchmaking. They were shadchanteh, the Yiddish word for a female matchmaker.

Highly recommended to those readers who appreciate entertaining historical fiction that holds just a touch of magic...

I just adored this book! A dual timeline where I am equally invested in both stories is rare. Overall I felt very happy while reading this book. I think the highest praise I can give is that as soon as I finished reading this I purchased another book by this author.

I always like to sit with a book for a few days after I've read it. Really let it sink in. Sometimes, a 4 star becomes a 5 or vice versa. Such was the case here. What I was convinced was a solid 4 star, turned into a 5 after a few days had passed because I couldn't stop thinking about it. This is a beautiful story with lots of love, a sprinkle of magic and two unforgettable narrators. I loved the setting and time periods the tale was told in. Love is love is a very prominent theme throughout this book and I think we all need a little of that now and again.

Synopsis:

In the earlier part of the 1900s, Sara Gilkman knows she has a special gift. She is a matchmaker and seeks out soulmates for each other. Set in New York's Lower East side, this matchermaker business amongst the Jewish community is dominated by men. They see Sara as a threat to their business and a break in traditon. Sara has to fight for her place in this male-heavy occupation and break through the molds that were set out for her community. Her gift is too true and magical to ignore.

Two generations later, Sara's granddaughter Abby is a divorce attorney and has just lost her grandmother. Sara has left Abby all of her matchmaking journals and Abby wonders why. With a promise her grandmother made a stranger and this gift evidently being left to Abby, she struggles with the magic of it and her career which, instead of bringing people together, encourages then apart. Will Abby embrace this gift, get behind true love and continue on her grandmother's path?

Thank you @netgalley and @StMartinsPress for the advanced eARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

Every so often a novel comes along that touches your soul - moves you to tears, laughter, smiles and leaves you never wanting the story to end. Friends - The Matchmaker’s Gift by Lynda Cohen Loigman is just that story. Lynda’s use of Yiddish, thrown in throughout the book, took me back to my grandmother’s table and brought back beautiful memories.

This book is so much more than a 5 star read and will undoubtedly be in my top 5 of 2023.

The dual timeline story of Sara and her granddaughter Abby is written so seamlessly and flows between Sara’s arrival in the United States in the early 1900’s and Abby’s present day (1994). I don’t want to give any of the story away - so I’ll tell you just to go, run, drive, shop online, do whatever you need to in order to get this book in your hands.

This book is a true treasure. I’m so glad I saved it to read over the Jewish New Year. It was just what I needed.

Thank you to NetGalley, Lynda Cohen Loigman, and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to have had the chance to review this for you - I’ve gone and purchased a hard copy so I can add to my library.

The cover drew me in but I really loved this book and couldn’t put it down. Definitely recommend! Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy!

The Matchmaker’s Gift by Lynda Cohen Loigman is my first book by this author. The Matchmaker’s Gift is definitely a feel good story. It is a generational story of a Grandmother and Granddaughter. It is also a dual timeline story that takes place during the beginning of the 20th century and switches to 1994. The story moves seamlessly between these two time periods. Ms. Loigmani’s has an incredible talent to transport the reader between these two different time periods. There isn’t even a hiccup.

Ms. Loigman’s characters are strong, captivating, talented, loving, joyful and heartwarming. The Grandmother Sara Glikman is a Jewish Matchmaker. When Sara starts her matchmaking journey it begins when she is 10 years old when she finds her sister a husband. Some of the story incorporates the stories of some of Sara’s ‘matches’.

The other wonderful character is Sara’s granddaughter, Abby. She is a divorce attorney at a large New York firm. She is lonely, grieving and is suddenly questioning her life’s path. She is not big on believing in marriage, as she witnessed her parents awful divorce. Grandma Sarah has kept journals from her very first match. By the time Sara reaches her 90’s those volumes are many. Abby now has the opportunity to read them. What if her Grandma’s talent was real? What if everyone has a soul mate? As Grandma Sara said “there is a lid for every pot”. What if she has that gift too?

The journey of these two females is empowering, brave, and magical. It is also a story about Jewish tradition and love.

A delightful and enjoyable read. I will be looking for Ms. Loigman’s next book.
I would like to thank Ms. Loigman, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sara's innate ability to "see" love matches between strangers is met with derision from the men in her Jewish community. Is she strong enough to defy them in order to follow her true calling? And, later, could her granddaughter, Abby, also have a touch of her magical ability?

"The light you saw between your sister and her husband was not a trick of the sun. You have been blessed with eyes that can see the light of soulmates reaching for each other."

The very first chapter captured my heart, and it didn't let go. I absolutely loved this story about matchmakers (or shadchans) which was mostly based on fact but also included a touch of magical realism. Alternating between Sara in 1910 and her granddaughter, Abby, in 1994, I loved both timelines as both women learned to follow their hearts and find happiness.

"I see what I see, and I know what I know."

"When you weep, the one you are meant for tastes the salt of your tears."

Location: NYC

I received an advance copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Loved this book! A touching story about family connections, traditions and love. I never wanted it to end!!

"I see what I see. I know what I know."
I read this book every chance I got in the last day and a half. It is very interesting and has a magnetic flow to it. Dual timelines are not my favorite but here is an author that has held my attention with both characters and their stories. Sara is wonderful right from the start. Her gift makes sense and as a reader I was immediately drawn to her and the challenges she had right from the start. Women have had to work harder and smarter and her unique journey proves that. I love the sayings she develops over the years as her character matures from the ten-year-old to her twenties and on into her nineties. She becomes a wise woman who tries to leave a legacy of a different sort to her granddaughter, Abby.
Life isn't easy and Abby learns this at a young age. Watching her parents builds determination in her mind to help others as she will become a lawyer. Her grandmother's passing begins to open her eyes to others and to memories that she needs to reevaluate.
I learned about the traditional Jewish matchmaker and the challenges if a female tried to make her way as one in the early 1900's. It's all kind of fascinating. The touch upon matchmaking in the late 1940's nearly brought me to tears at the thought of how important it was to find survivors to meet and move forward with life. The author researched some very interesting sources to create a fictional read that has a true feel to it.
I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for my advanced reader's copy of the book. I recommend it to those who enjoy historical fiction and stories with a feel of family and tradition. This is my own unsolicited opinion.

Set in two different timelines The Matchmaker's Gift is the story of Sara, a matchaker and Abby, her granddaughter who is a divorce lawyer. When Abby loses Sara, she starts unraveling her grandmother's life and in turn realizes her direction as well.
On the surface, The Matchmaker's Gift is a heartwarming story of a granddaughter and a grandmother. It's a very well written story with a good pace and delightful novel of matchmaking in the Jewish community. I was really fascinated to read on how the process worked. My marriage was a result of subtle or not so subtle matchmaking as well and I was really intrigued.
On the deeper level, this book looks at the centuries old traditions where men make rules and women are expected to follow. As a trauma coach, I can see the trauma that unmarried women were subjected to by declaring them ineligible. The trauma that Sara's family went through when they immigrated to a new country comes across very clear. Her guilt of studying while her family is making ends meet is hard to read. Abby's decision of becoming a divorce lawyer and the trauma that she suffered during childhood is very interconnected. It is satisfying to see her journey pan out at the end when with the help of her grandmother she starts healing.

A touch of magical realism sparkles in this lovely, heartfelt novel. At age 10, Sara made her first match finding a young man with a hankie on the boat to America and seeing a ray of light between him and her sister. While the match was a resounding success, her next one led to jealousy and harassment from the professional match makers who were all men and matching on the basis of money and status. As we learn her story, it is balanced with that of her granddaughter, Abby, a divorce attorney. Both Sara and Abby are fully realized characters that you will care about. I know this is one book I will remember.

This book will be sitting with me for quite some time. I really enjoyed the descriptive settings where I felt I was there in the past with Sara. I enjoyed the dual povs in different timelines between Sara & her granddaughter Abby.

Sara Glikman is traveling to America with her family. She notices a strange light connecting her sister with another passenger. They meet and fall in love. Sara realizes she has a gift. Her father asks that she not help anyone with her matchmaking gift. In the Jewish faith, only married men do matchmaking as a career known as a shadchanim. The shadchanim will be angry.

Abby, her granddaughter is a divorce attorney who just started working in a law firm. She's determined to be a partner. When her grandmother passes away and leaves a box of old journals for Abby. Abby starts to read the journals and learns more about her grandmother and in turn learns more about herself.

I loved Moishe Raskin he was the sweetest man and I really wanted to reach into the book and just hug him. Sara had a bunch of great men who protected her.

This book was fantastic and I learned more about the Jewish religion and the matchmaking services. I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for more of the authors' books. I'm a fan.

What would you do if you could learn or gain an understanding of yourr Grandparent after they were gone? For Abby that is exactly what happened. Her grandmother, Sara, died in her sleep one night. Suddenly Abby is left with her notebooks from her life as a matchmaker.

This book was so captivating. Both of the timelines, Sara’s and Abby’s, were so interesting that I needed to keep reading to figure out what happened.

The epilogue was the most beautiful ending that could have been given to this story without over sharing. I would highly recommend reading this book. It was too good to miss.

First of all, isn't this cover just amazing!? I absolutely love it!

I had not read any of Ms. Loigman's books before this one, although I do have one on by TBR shelf. This story has given me a taste of her beautiful and heartfelt writing so I'm excited to take that book off of the shelf and dive into it.

The Matchmaker's Gift is dramatic, while at the same time, magical and full of love. And I adored every second of it. The story takes place in two different time periods, covering the life of Sara who discovered her matchmaking abilities at a very young age and Abby, her granddaughter, who seems to have inherited the matchmaking gift but is struggling to understand it.

The two stories are intricately woven together as we learn how both women suffered and fought for the lives they wanted. Both were amazing women. I absolutely loved this story and will be recommending The Matchmaker's Gift to all.

I listened to this lovely story on Audible. Absolutely one of my favorite listens of 2022! This story is so authentic with the love between grandmother and granddaughter! I love how the old ways and gifts can be carried into the future. Lynda Cohen Loigman has a marvelous gift for writing historical fiction. Her books make great audio books and I have them all on audio.

This is such a charming, wonderful story.. I loved every minute of reading it. The characters are well developed and unique. The dual timeline was very interesting. The book was also very well researched and I enjoyed learning about NYC Jewish culture in the early 20th century. I also really appreciated the touch of magical realism. Do yourself a favor and read this charming feel-good book today.