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The Sea House
The Sea House: A Novel | Elisabeth Gifford
13 posts | 8 read | 23 to read
In 1860, Alexander Ferguson, a newly ordained vicar and amateur evolutionary scientist, takes up his new parish, a poor, isolated patch on the remote Scottish island of Harris. He hopes to uncover the truth behind the legend of the selkiesmermaids or seal people who have been sighted off the north of Scotland for centuries. He has a more personal motive, too; family legend states that Alexander is descended from seal men. As he struggles to be the good pastor he was called to be, his maid Moira faces the terrible eviction of her family by Lord Marstone, whose family owns the island. Their time on the island will irrevocably change the course of both their lives, but the white house on the edge of the dunes keeps its silence long after they are gone. It will be more than a century before the Sea House reluctantly gives up its secrets. Ruth and Michael buy the grand but dilapidated building and begin to turn it into a home for the family they hope to have. Their dreams are marred by a shocking discovery. The tiny bones of a baby are buried beneath the house; the child's fragile legs are fused togethera mermaid child. Who buried the bones? And why? To heal her own demons, Ruth feels she must discover the secrets of her new homebut the answers to her questions may lie in her own traumatic past. The Sea House by Elisabeth Gifford is a sweeping tale of hope and redemption and a study of how we heal ourselves by discovering our histories.
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Ms.Story
Secrets of the Sea House | Elisabeth Gifford
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Mehso-so

I gravitated towards this book bc I love stories about old homes & digging up the past. This book definitely had that and possibly too much more. I enjoyed the last 30% of the book but almost bailed a couple times before I got to that point. They are so many things happening with these characters that it took away from the storyline that drew me to the book in the first place.

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Blackink_WhitePaper
Secrets of the Sea House | Elisabeth Gifford
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I won‘t disclose my #buzzword because it‘s SECRET !😃🤭🤫

I#buzzwordbookathon

BookishMe Hehehe... 👍🏽😅👍🏽 4y
Clwojick 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻 4y
hes7 Nice choice! I enjoyed The Secret Adversary and The Secret Garden. 4y
22 likes3 comments
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MittenGirlPeach
The Sea House: A Novel | Elisabeth Gifford
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Pickpick

I finished this one late last night. A parallel time mystery, with the historical part set during the clearances in the Hebrides. I loved that part of the story, especially the way it ended. The modern story was good as well, though bittersweet. I became more engrossed in both tales as the book progressed. Thumbs up! #24B4Monday

I love this challenge! @Andrew65

Andrew65 Well done on your time. 👏👏👏🙌🥳🍾🥂 Thanks for playing along 😊 I love these style of books. Have stacked it. 4y
7 likes1 stack add1 comment
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MittenGirlPeach
The Sea House: A Novel | Elisabeth Gifford
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Just started this one; I‘m dipping into books today to see which one sticks. And I found blooms in my garden. Finally!

Nute Very pretty! 4y
9 likes1 comment
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readingjedi
Secrets of the Sea House | Elisabeth Gifford
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Pickpick

This is Harris, Outer Hebrides, where this book is set - who knew it looked like the Caribbean? (Not my image.) It's a really well written & solidly entertaining read with interlinking stories that are both equally engaging. I include the above photo as the location is so vividly rendered by author that I was obliged to research it. The use of the myths of mermaids & selkies is nicely done and adds to the authentic feel of the story.

Lucy_Anywhere Having lived in Northeast Scotland, I can tell you that the beaches are that gorgeous... but the water is freezing! 5y
86 likes1 stack add1 comment
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readingjedi
Secrets of the Sea House | Elisabeth Gifford
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Started this one this morning & looking forward to getting properly stuck into it this evening. Ghosts, mermaids, selkies ... so far, so promising!

tealatte What ereader is that? I miss buttons; mine is touch interface only. 5y
readingjedi @tealatte It's the kindle oasis. It's my favourite of all the kindles I've had. 5y
74 likes7 stack adds3 comments
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thereadingowlvina
The Sea House: A Novel | Elisabeth Gifford
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🌍 The Sea House - The atmospheric writing made me want to go to Hebrides Islands of Scotland 🏞

🌍 Angkor Wat, Cambodia - The architecture & decoration were outstanding; and the view was breathtaking. I watched sunrise there! 🌄

🌍 Scotland, Japan, Cambodia (again) & New Zealand 🗻⛰🏞

🌍 Both and trains too 🚂🚄🚗🛫🚘

🌍 Ice cream - Vanilla & pistachio 🍧

🌟Shoutout to @JoScho for this! Argh, now I think I need a vacation! 🌟

#vacation

JoScho Lol me too!! 6y
StillLookingForCarmenSanDiego Angkor Wat, good choice 👌 6y
6 likes2 comments
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BucklingBookshelves
The Sea House: A Novel | Elisabeth Gifford
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Can‘t think of a nicer #place than that to read a good book! #30daysofreadathon

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hes7
The Sea House: A Novel | Elisabeth Gifford
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Situated along the coast of a Hebridean island, this book has a sweepingly magnificent setting, which easily sets up the story to be quite beautiful. #RockinMay #HomeByTheSea

Melissa_J Ha! I was totally planning on using that book for my post, too. Mine has a different cover 😊 7y
EllieDottie This is the perfect title! 7y
Cinfhen Gorgeous cover and the blurb mentions mermaids....I'm in ! Stacked 🦄a unicorn because we need a mermaid emoji 7y
85 likes7 stack adds3 comments
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LitDrivenGirl
Secrets of the Sea House | Elisabeth Gifford
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Maybe you already know this or I'm about to divulge a BIG secret (which part of me says, in a voice worthy of Gollum, my precious do not tell them!), but I love finding books at Dollar Tree. I kid you not Freddy and I run to the book section and, on hands and knees, sort through them like children at a toy store. Sometimes I want to arrange them even 😂. These are my finds for today! The left is about SELKIES 😍. #bookhaul #bargains #secrets

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thereadingowlvina
Secrets of the Sea House | Elisabeth Gifford
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Mehso-so

Well written atmospheric novel in the setting of Hebrides Islands, Scotland, and it's a dual timeline story narrating between 1860s and 1992. Main plot is about how Ruth and Michael purchased a sea house and they discovered a baby coffin with fused legs underneath the floorboards. It's an ok read for me because the story was slow and dull at times, and the connection between the two timeline was lacking.
#putdownablebook #atmospheric #scotland

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Lizpixie
Secrets of the Sea House | Elisabeth Gifford
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#somethingforsept #septemberphotochallenge #day20 #bookssetbythesea These are the books that come to mind when I think sea. Maybe it's because my idea of the sea is stormy waves crashing against cliffs and rain thunder & lightning over a grey beach instead of blue skies sand & surfers. I'm not much of a summer person, I definitely live in the wrong country! Even the one set in Australia is on a Tasmanian island, just as stormy as the U.K.

LeeRHarry @Lizpixie have you read Wildlight? I have it in my TBR pile. I too prefer stormy seas 😊 8y
Lizpixie @LeeRHarry I have, it was beautifully written, very descriptive. Made me want to go live in a lighthouse on an island off Tasmania too, but Tasmania has always been my favourite place in Australia. 8y
Lizpixie @LeeRHarry I would have put Favel Parretts, Past The Shallows here as well but I couldn't find it. 8y
43 likes3 comments