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Book Summary and Reviews of The Girl on the Cliff by Lucinda Riley

The Girl on the Cliff by Lucinda Riley

The Girl on the Cliff

by Lucinda Riley

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  • Oct 2012, 416 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

From the author of the #1 international bestseller The Orchid House, the mesmerizing story of two Irish families entangled by a tragic past that seems destined to repeat itself.

To escape a recent heartbreak in New York, Grania Ryan returns to her family home on the rugged, wind-swept coast of Ireland. Here, on the cliff edge in the middle of a storm, she meets a young girl, Aurora Lisle, who will profoundly change her life.

Despite the warnings Grania receives from her mother to be wary of the Lisle family, Aurora and Grania forge a close friendship. Through a trove of old family letters dating from 1914, Grania begins to learn just how deeply their families' histories are entwined. The horrors of World War I, the fate of a beautiful foundling child, and the irresistible lure of the ballet give rise to a legacy of heartache that leaves its imprint on each new generation. Ultimately, it will be Aurora whose intuition and spirit may be able to unlock the chains of the past.

Sweeping from Edwardian England to present-day New York, from the majestic Irish coast to the crumbling splendor of a legendary London town house, The Girl on the Cliff introduces two remarkable women whose quest to understand their past sends them toward a future where love can triumph over loss.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Starred Review. Tautly paced yet picturesque, The Girl on the Cliff is a compelling and romantic novel of recovery, redemption, new opportunities, and lost love." - Booklist

"The weave of historical romance and mystery may be occasionally threadbare, but the overall thrust and likable characters should keep willing readers in their seats." - Kirkus

"[T]he reader's engagement with the story is frustrated by an infuriatingly didactic commentary, in which the narrator dispenses hackneyed life lessons." - The Independent (UK)

This information about The Girl on the Cliff was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Elizabeth @Silver's Reviews

A favorite - Elizabeth @Silver's Reviews
Dunworley Bay, West Cork, Ireland, London, parlor maids, orphans, a character with a sixth sense, castles, crashing waves, a family legacy, letters, and secrets....what else could you ask for?

All this and more is wrapped up in THE GIRL ON THE CLIFF. This book takes you away to the magic of life in 1914 in castles, normal households, and into the life of a family that leaves a legacy and many secrets for current-day folks to discover and secrets that reveal the family's history and who Anna really was.

The book begins with and continues at the beginning of different sections with thoughts and comments directed to "Dear Reader" from Aurora, the youngest member of the family, giving reflective insights into what will be coming up and her opinions on situations....very nice touch. You will find yourself in New York, Ireland, and London reliving the life of Aurora and Grania who are the basis of the current-day story and the story that is made up of their ancestry of Mary who was a parlor maid and Anna an orphan in a house where Mary is the only mother she really knew because her mother gave her away. As the book and secrets unfold you are taken back and forth learning the life of the characters in London, 1914, and beyond.

The characters are very well developed, and you will put yourself into their lives and into each emotion they are experiencing as each character makes decisions or manipulates someone. You will feel their passion and relate to each character as the author describes in detail their connection to each other and their part in the family heritage.

You will fall in love with Mary and Anna as they tell their story and feel the pain of Kathleen who doesn't want her daughter Grania to know the family's history but must tell her. You will enjoy the descriptions of the everyday life in Ireland, the landscapes, the views, and the houses.

You will want to know what secret the family has that has affected all its descendants. Will the suitcase owned by Anna's mother tell all? Who will find it? Does anyone remember it is in the attic of Mary and Anna's home where Mary was a parlor maid? Or will Kathleen, Grania's mother and descendant of the Ryan family, know enough for everyone? Aurora is the tie to it all and the final key to the family's secrets.

The theme of the book is my favorite and was difficult to put down. 5/5

This book was given to me free of charge by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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More Information

More than 30 million copies of Lucinda Riley's books have been sold, proving particularly popular in the Netherlands, South Africa, New Zealand, Sweden, Norway and Germany. Born in Ireland, she lived in rural England until her death in June 2021, aged 56.

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