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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
Heartbreaking. Loved how different parts of the mystery were revealed over multiple generations and characters. As always, Kate Morton threw in a couple of twists I was not expecting. I love that she keeps me guessing!
This is my first Kate Morton book and I loved it. It had all the elements of a book I would love, art, history, music, architecture... I love the way it spans centuries but is tied together. And of course romance and a ghost or two? Perfect.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved the story in the beginning, but at times it got a little bit confusing because of the different lives lived at the house. The book read EXTREMELY slow, which I didn't mind but it took me a very long time to finish and get to the tragic ending.
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting
There are books that are page-turners, that leave you gasping for air, that keep you up until 3 am because you just have to know what happens next. Then there are leisurely books like The Clockmaker's Daughter that are best taken in small but regular doses and comfortably ruminated upon at your leisure, and well after you finish. This is a book that sticks.
At the center of the novel is a twin-gabled, eight-chimney house in the Berkshire countryside. Morton takes us back and forth through time as different people interact with the house, and its longest resident, the clockmaker's daughter. In its ruminations on loss and guilt, I found myself drawing comparisons to Atonement, except no one here runs from their responsibility, instead people are drawn together across generations by their shared feelings.
After WWI, a returning soldier stays at the home and considers the death of his brother, along with the thousands of others lost in the war: "He had never stood at the end of his own brother's grave. He hadn't seen the point; he knew Tom wasn't there. Where was he? Leonard wondered. Where had they all gone? It seemed impossible that it could all just end like that. Impossible that so many young men's hopes and dreams and bodies could be buried in the earth and the earth remain unchanged. Such an almighty transfer of energy and matter must surely have affected the world's balance at an essential - an elemental - level: all of those people who had once been, suddenly gone."
Morton explores loss on large and small scale, and its ability to tie people together, but there is so much more to it than that. She also does an excellent job of slowly revealing the mystery of our primary narrator, and creating mini-mysteries along the way. Enchanting, and thought-provoking, The Clockmaker's Daughter feels like a new classic.
At the center of the novel is a twin-gabled, eight-chimney house in the Berkshire countryside. Morton takes us back and forth through time as different people interact with the house, and its longest resident, the clockmaker's daughter. In its ruminations on loss and guilt, I found myself drawing comparisons to Atonement, except no one here runs from their responsibility, instead people are drawn together across generations by their shared feelings.
After WWI, a returning soldier stays at the home and considers the death of his brother, along with the thousands of others lost in the war: "He had never stood at the end of his own brother's grave. He hadn't seen the point; he knew Tom wasn't there. Where was he? Leonard wondered. Where had they all gone? It seemed impossible that it could all just end like that. Impossible that so many young men's hopes and dreams and bodies could be buried in the earth and the earth remain unchanged. Such an almighty transfer of energy and matter must surely have affected the world's balance at an essential - an elemental - level: all of those people who had once been, suddenly gone."
Morton explores loss on large and small scale, and its ability to tie people together, but there is so much more to it than that. She also does an excellent job of slowly revealing the mystery of our primary narrator, and creating mini-mysteries along the way. Enchanting, and thought-provoking, The Clockmaker's Daughter feels like a new classic.
My first Kate Morton read did not disappoint! Would have been 5 stars if the ending didn’t feel rushed. Loved how all the characters stories connected. Continued to think about this book well after I finished.
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Kate Morton does it again. If you've liked any of her previous books, this one fits right in. Her story is always a mix of mystery, history, and some stories that you love. In this book, she takes elements from Oliver Twist, the Secret Garden, A Little Princess, and an old-fashioned haunting. I love how she takes on familiar themes/situations but yet turns them into something different. There are a lot of viewpoints and timelines with this one. It almost makes you want to read it again so you can catch all the connections. The ending seems too quick. I really need to know how Elodie processes all the information she gets or know if she ever finds out. I felt that they built up her story in the beginning only to not see how it is resolved.
I really like the author Kate Morton’s writing style. As with all good mysteries, there were so many characters, and it was hard to keep up. But that’s what I loved about it. I liked how time and the characters wove around each other. I highly recommend for readers who don’t like an easy read.