In a Nutshell: A novel with an emotional story and an even more poignant backstory. I wish it had worked better for me, but the writing was too meandering, and the plot not exactly as promised.

Story Synopsis:
2016. Rose, an oncologist, is planning to go for IVF. During the initial testing, she discovers that she is a carrier of a mutated BrCa1 gene, which makes her highly susceptible to certain types of cancer. While she deals with the shock of this news, she learns about her grandmother Nellie, whose early death from stomach cancer was traumatic to the family. Rose also has to deal with her aged father’s health situation, which adds to her mental load.
The story comes to us in the alternating perspectives of Rose – written in the third person present tense, and Nellie – written in first person past tense.

First the backstory of the novel:
Author Kath O'Connor was a writer and General Practitioner in Australia. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2015 and wrote this novel while living with cancer, through many treatments and their side effects. After Kath's diagnosis, she discovered that she shared a BrCa1 gene mutation with her grandmother, who died from the same disease in 1950.
In 2019, Kath died from ovarian cancer while working on the final draft of Inheritance. She was just 45. Her partner and family, with Kath's writing mentor, Inga Simpson, completed the manuscript so that Kath's dream of publication could be realised. Royalties from the sale of the book will be donated to WomenCan: Funding Gynaecological Cancer Research.

I opted for this novel after reading the above note in the blurb. I thought this novel would be a poignant read about two women battling cancer. While this was partly valid, the end result was quite mixed for me.

Bookish Yays:
✔ The author’s experience as a medical practitioner is visible in all scenes related to medicine or health. Medical details are woven into the writing almost casually and without feeling exaggerated or complicated for us lay readers.
✔ Nellie’s historical timeline covers the medical aspects even more brilliantly, as her battle with stomach cancer comes across as emotional and genuine, especially because of being written in first person. Moreover, the cancer treatment of those days is also written accurately, presenting a sharp contrast between then and now.
✔ Rose’s timeline involves her relationship with her partner Salima, and her own father Ernie. The former offers a realistic look at a mature lesbian relationship, while the latter shows the difficulty of dealing with aged parents who can be quite adamant.
✔ I loved the cover, which so beautifully depicts the intertwined nature of Nellie and Rose through their shared genetic tragedy.

Bookish Nays:
❌ Salima’s background (Pakistani from Lahore) somehow doesn’t feel authentic. While I liked the representation, some parts of the portrayal just didn’t ring true to my South-Asian eyes.
❌ Each timeline wove in multiple elements in addition to the cancer-related theme. Rose’s track had her dad’s drunkenness and resultant health issues, and also references to the refugee crisis, courtesy his earlier work as an immigration lawyer. Nellie’s timeline, in addition to covering her cancer, also includes her friendship with rebellious Ruth, and their involvement with the communist and feminist movements. The disparate topics left me feeling annoyed because I was keen on knowing mainly about Nellie’s cancer and Rose’s genetic mutation and its effects. The rest felt like distractions.

All in all, the core arc of Nellie’s cancer is well-written and gut-punching. But the rest of the tracks diluted the overall impact of the book for me. Maybe if you go in better prepared to read a story with various hard-hitting issues instead of expecting a cancer-dominated plot, you will relish this poignant read better.

3 stars.

My thanks to Affirm Press and NetGalley for the DRC of “Inheritance”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

I'm glad this book didn't alienate 'laypeople' readers, the medical explanations were simple yet thorough and it gave some really interesting insight into cancer and treatment, and it was both informative and interesting.
A couple of things I made note of throughout the story were left a little unresolved, but it didn't tarnish my enjoyment of the read.

Astounding to find out out that the author sadly passed away while writing this real life-inspired book, and that it was finished off by those close to her and her writing mentor. I'm glad this book was able to be finished and live on, a token of Kath's hard work and the mark that she left.

This book took me by surprise – while I was reading it, I thought this is a good book & I enjoyed it but I’ve been surprised how much I have thought about it after finishing!

Inheritance by Kath O'Connor is a thought provoking and emotional read about a woman, Rose, who finds out she has a mutation of the BrCa1 gene which greatly increases her risks of both breast and ovarian cancer. As an oncologist, she is used to seeing her patients battle cancer and the impact this has on their lives so has many mixed feelings when she discovers her own situation. To make things even more complicated, she is having to return to care for her cantankerous father in the rural town where he lives after he suffers the repercussions of years of being an alcoholic. While there, she discovers through old papers that her paternal grandmother, Nellie, passed away from ovarian cancer in the 1940’s and therefore, discovers where she has inherited the hereditary faulty gene from. Rose becomes fascinated discovering more about Nellie’s story that her father has never shared with her. Told from the perspectives of Rose and Nellie over 2 timelines, 2016 and 1940’s, we uncover more of each of their lives and both the differences and similarities of facing cancer in very different times in history.

I found the storyline interesting and, how the treatment for cancer, both societally and medically, has changed over time. The medical content is very detailed, and I felt as a reader it gave me a good understanding of what both women were going through. There were some characters which I wish were developed further so I could understand them a little better and there was one plot line which left me with a few more questions than answers.
After finishing, I discovered the author, a doctor herself, passed away in 2019 at only 45 years old from ovarian cancer while finishing the final draft of this book. Her family and writing mentor finished the book so her dream of publishing could be realized. After she received her diagnosis in 2015, she discovered she shared the BrCa1 gene mutation with her grandmother who died of the disease in 1950. It broke my heart to read this story was inspired by such tragic reality.

But it warms my heart to hear royalties from the sale of the book will be donated to WomenCan: Funding Gynaecological Cancer Research and for that reason alone, I really hope this becomes a best seller and many women in particular can read this moving story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Affirm Press for sending this book for honest review. All opinions are my own.