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celticthistle's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
debtat2's review against another edition
4.0
Beautifully written, Atmospheric and a rollercoaster of emotions
1958 A perfect summer, a young woman in love and having the time of her life.
1999 A family come together on the 1st anniversary of their mother’s death.
This book is written in dual narrative, Addie who is the oldest out of her 2 other siblings, and then through diaries written by their mother Elizabeth Harrington in the 1950’s.
Present day the Harrington family, Graham, the father and his three grown up children, Adele (Addie) Venetia who is heavily pregnant and Jasper all come together on the anniversary of their mother’s death.
Addie’s dad has been struggling since his wife passed away and isn’t in the best of health at the moment so when a stranger arrives on the doorstep looking for Elizabeth Harrington/Holloway claiming that Elizabeth was her mother Addie makes sure none of that reaches her dads ears.
Phoebe claims that she was adopted as a baby and that she was born at exactly the same time and date as Addie which would mean if all of it was true the two ladies are twins!
Obviously Addie and Venetia don’t believe any of it, even with the few bits Phoebe has brought with her. But seeing the writing in the journal, her mum’s writing finally makes Addie want to know more, about how could her mum give up just one of the babies and why did her parents lie to her. As far as she knew her parents were married before she came along but after searching through her parents house with the aid of her best childhood friend Andrew they find her parents marriage certificate along with a birth certificate with only her mothers name on it, the date of birth and the box for father’s name left blank, the certificate didn’t even have a name for the baby so the child’s name was documented as “Baby”
Addie whole life has just been turned upside-down and the only person who could have told them everything has taken the secrets to the grave with her.
As the twins start digging into their mothers history trying to make all the puzzle parts fit they begin to form a bond, a bond that only twins understand.
1958 – Elizabeth Holloway’s own mum Constance is dying of cancer, the doctors have told them that nothing else can be done for her now except keep her comfortable.
Elizabeth had always been close to her mother and had taken up reading sat at her bedside, reading to her, listening to things her dad didn’t approve of and under her mum’s strict instructions try to attend to her mother’s garden, bringing in roses, bringing some of the outside inside so her mum could smell it and imagine she was out in the garden.
So it came as a massive shock when she was told she was going to be sent away for the summer to stay with friends of her mother.
Her mum told her of all the wonderful times she had from her visits there and made Elizabeth promise to have fun, enjoy the countryside and to not worry about her!
Elizabeth didn’t want to leave her mum, not when she was so gravely ill but her parents insisted so she had no choice but to go.
At first she couldn’t settle, couldn’t stop worrying about her mum and decided that it would be inappropriate to be having fun why her mum was almost on death’s door.
But gradually not being happy became impossible with the Shaw family and the other young people staying there.
She learns how to ride a horse, swim and there were no strict rules and regulations. If you were late for breakfast it didn’t matter, she was just served it up whenever she found her way to the dining room.
On her 17th birthday she didn’t think anyone knew and she certainly hadn’t told anyone but to her delight they had a beautiful birthday cake waiting for her, presents and they had arranged a birthday party just for her.
And it was this birthday she received her first kiss! She fell deeply in love but in the end it all came crashing down around her. She found herself single and pregnant which in those times was nothing short of a scandal!
Addie and Phoebe slowly uncover layers of the past it takes us on that rollercoaster of emotions with them.
This book is certainly very engaging and evocative with strong likeable characters, some not so much! With twists and turns, surprises and mysteries, some coming as a bit of a shock!
This is a story about families, family secrets, identities, betrayal and how the past impacts on the future.
I really enjoyed this book, i was a bit wary when advertised for fans of Kate Morton but i was pleasantly surprised by this book, the writing is just sublime and it is hard to believe this is Nikola Scott’s first novel.
Perfect rainy duvet day book 🙂
1958 A perfect summer, a young woman in love and having the time of her life.
1999 A family come together on the 1st anniversary of their mother’s death.
This book is written in dual narrative, Addie who is the oldest out of her 2 other siblings, and then through diaries written by their mother Elizabeth Harrington in the 1950’s.
Present day the Harrington family, Graham, the father and his three grown up children, Adele (Addie) Venetia who is heavily pregnant and Jasper all come together on the anniversary of their mother’s death.
Addie’s dad has been struggling since his wife passed away and isn’t in the best of health at the moment so when a stranger arrives on the doorstep looking for Elizabeth Harrington/Holloway claiming that Elizabeth was her mother Addie makes sure none of that reaches her dads ears.
Phoebe claims that she was adopted as a baby and that she was born at exactly the same time and date as Addie which would mean if all of it was true the two ladies are twins!
Obviously Addie and Venetia don’t believe any of it, even with the few bits Phoebe has brought with her. But seeing the writing in the journal, her mum’s writing finally makes Addie want to know more, about how could her mum give up just one of the babies and why did her parents lie to her. As far as she knew her parents were married before she came along but after searching through her parents house with the aid of her best childhood friend Andrew they find her parents marriage certificate along with a birth certificate with only her mothers name on it, the date of birth and the box for father’s name left blank, the certificate didn’t even have a name for the baby so the child’s name was documented as “Baby”
Addie whole life has just been turned upside-down and the only person who could have told them everything has taken the secrets to the grave with her.
As the twins start digging into their mothers history trying to make all the puzzle parts fit they begin to form a bond, a bond that only twins understand.
1958 – Elizabeth Holloway’s own mum Constance is dying of cancer, the doctors have told them that nothing else can be done for her now except keep her comfortable.
Elizabeth had always been close to her mother and had taken up reading sat at her bedside, reading to her, listening to things her dad didn’t approve of and under her mum’s strict instructions try to attend to her mother’s garden, bringing in roses, bringing some of the outside inside so her mum could smell it and imagine she was out in the garden.
So it came as a massive shock when she was told she was going to be sent away for the summer to stay with friends of her mother.
Her mum told her of all the wonderful times she had from her visits there and made Elizabeth promise to have fun, enjoy the countryside and to not worry about her!
Elizabeth didn’t want to leave her mum, not when she was so gravely ill but her parents insisted so she had no choice but to go.
At first she couldn’t settle, couldn’t stop worrying about her mum and decided that it would be inappropriate to be having fun why her mum was almost on death’s door.
But gradually not being happy became impossible with the Shaw family and the other young people staying there.
She learns how to ride a horse, swim and there were no strict rules and regulations. If you were late for breakfast it didn’t matter, she was just served it up whenever she found her way to the dining room.
On her 17th birthday she didn’t think anyone knew and she certainly hadn’t told anyone but to her delight they had a beautiful birthday cake waiting for her, presents and they had arranged a birthday party just for her.
And it was this birthday she received her first kiss! She fell deeply in love but in the end it all came crashing down around her. She found herself single and pregnant which in those times was nothing short of a scandal!
Addie and Phoebe slowly uncover layers of the past it takes us on that rollercoaster of emotions with them.
This book is certainly very engaging and evocative with strong likeable characters, some not so much! With twists and turns, surprises and mysteries, some coming as a bit of a shock!
This is a story about families, family secrets, identities, betrayal and how the past impacts on the future.
I really enjoyed this book, i was a bit wary when advertised for fans of Kate Morton but i was pleasantly surprised by this book, the writing is just sublime and it is hard to believe this is Nikola Scott’s first novel.
Perfect rainy duvet day book 🙂
chatdunoirreadsalot123's review
5.0
A completely amazing book! No amount of words can describe how much I loved this story. Addie, Elizabeth and Phoebe will stay with me for a long, long time ❤️
mixingrealitywithfiction's review against another edition
5.0
Wow! Is this really Nikola’s debut novel?! It most certainly read like a 5th book of the authors.
My mother’s shadow is a gripping family story with a twist – one that I certainly didn’t see coming! I felt it also reflects on the love and loss between a family.
Nikola has a beautiful yet descriptive writing style. Whilst I was reading, I really felt like I was in the story.
My mother’s shadow is a powerful story that at times will frustrate you and at other times will move you – you may find you need the tissues handy! I know I did.
On the back of the book it says ‘perfect for readers of Kate Morton.’ I’ve not read a Kate Morton book as of yet but if you like Gill Paul, I strongly feel that My mother’s shadow is perfect for you.
My mother’s shadow is a gripping family story with a twist – one that I certainly didn’t see coming! I felt it also reflects on the love and loss between a family.
Nikola has a beautiful yet descriptive writing style. Whilst I was reading, I really felt like I was in the story.
My mother’s shadow is a powerful story that at times will frustrate you and at other times will move you – you may find you need the tissues handy! I know I did.
On the back of the book it says ‘perfect for readers of Kate Morton.’ I’ve not read a Kate Morton book as of yet but if you like Gill Paul, I strongly feel that My mother’s shadow is perfect for you.
jjoannacanread's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Underdeveloped characters
bookmadjo's review
5.0
In December I entered a competition on Nikola Scott's website to win a copy of one of her books. I had read and loved her second novel Summer of Secrets, so when she told me I had won, I was delighted to receive a signed copy of My Mother's Shadow, which was her debut novel.
I have always loved dual timeline stories, because of the way they combine historical with contemporary, and it just works for me. This book is set partly in 1958, and 42 years later. In 1958 we meet Elizabeth who at nearly 17 is sent to stay with family friends at an estate called Hartland for the summer, while her mother is dying. Some 42 years later, Elizabeth's husband and three adult children are gathering to mark the one year anniversary of Elizabeth's death, when her eldest daughter Addie answers the phone to find a man asking to speak to her mother, and almost immediately the doorbell rings and a young woman called Phoebe is there asking to see Elizabeth because she is her daughter, and not only that, she was born on exactly the same day as Addie.
The books takes us on a rollercoaster ride of emotions as we see Addie and Phoebe find common ground with one another as they try to find out more about their birth, their mother, and their separation, which saw Addie brought up by her mother and the man she believed was her father, while Phoebe was adopted by another couple. Interspersed with their story are diary entries from Elizabeth from her time at Hartland, her mother's death on Elizabeth's 17th birthday, and her subsequent pregnancy which culminated in the birth of Addie and Phoebe.
I found it interesting to see the way in which unmarried mothers were treated in the late fifties, and the emotions involved in people who find they have a sibling, and not only that but a twin, after 40 years of not having them. The character development was exceptional and I thoroughly enjoyed both timelines.
Thank you so much, Nikola, for the copy of the book. Like Summer of Secrets, I think this book will resonate with me for a long time to come.
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