The Forever Gift by Brooke Harris @bookouture @Janelle_Brooke

Book Description:

I remember you learning to ride a bike, the first time you shot a goal with a basketball… and the first time I realised something was wrong. I look at you, my daughter, my beautiful sparky daughter. I would do anything to keep you safe.

Heather’s beloved daughter, Kayla, is her world. She is fifteen, a brilliant basketball player and a fierce friend.

Heather and Kayla have always had a special relationship. For so many years it was just the two of them, watching Friends, baking cupcakes and laughing together. But now Kayla knows her time is short, and she wants to give something back to the mother she loves more than anyone else in the world. A gift that will change Heather’s life.

With just a handful of days left, Kayla will need help from everyone around her to make this last surprise happen. Along the way, the people whose lives have been touched by Kayla’s light will be changed by her loss, and by her plan for Heather. And as Heather’s whole world threatens to fall apart, could Kayla’s forever gift be the key to piecing her life back together?

An absolutely unputdownable, heartbreaking and ultimately uplifting novel about motherhood, family and how far we go to protect those we love. Perfect for fans of Diane Chamberlain, Jill Childs, and Kerry Fisher.

My Thoughts:

I won’t lie, this is not going to be an easy book to read. Due to the nature of the story line, I knew it was going to be an emotional read and boy was it that alright. Don’t get me wrong, whilst I did get a bit teary at times at certain points, the majority of the story I thought I held it together really well. When those tears came though, I couldn’t stop them.

The story alternates in chapters between mainly Heather, Kayla’s mum and Charlotte, her dad’s partner and then fewer chapters from Kayla’s point of view. It was really good to see what was going on inside these three females head. As a mother, how do you cope with knowing your daughter is going to die? From Charlotte’s point of view, she is very much stuck in the middle with wanting to be supportive to her husband but struggling with his attention being on Heather and his daughter. Kayla, wow, what a girl! Even now the day after I finished the book, thinking of this truly inspirational young adult sets me off into tears.

This is so much more than just a story about a loved one dying. The friendship between Kayla and her best friend Aiden was just so beautifully done. It also gives you food for thought. It offers hope and more than anything it gives you comfort.

The Forever Gift is a breath taking and heart wrenching read and so beautifully written. I read it in one day as I was so compelled by the characters in the novel. By the end of the story I am not going to lie, I felt like my heart had been ripped into tiny shreds. I went through a full box of tissues as I sobbed my heart out. One of the most emotional, uplifting and inspiring reads I’ve read this year.

My thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for an advanced readers copy of this book. All opinions are my oen and not biased in anyway.

The Forever Gift is available to purchase from Amazon. (Please note that link used is an affiliate link).

About the author
USA Today bestselling author Brooke Harris is undoubtedly a bibliophile. She is proud to be someone who opens the middle pages of a book and inhales deeply. 
Brooke loves all forms of art; painting, playing piano, crafting, but, her greatest love is stories. Brooke writes heart-breaking and emotionally led fiction but always with undertones of hope and positivity because Brooke firmly believes that darkness only lasts so long before light follows.

Brooke lives in county Kildare, Ireland with her husband and five young children. She is a keen supporter of mental health charities and creating a greater understanding of mental illness.

Brooke writes women’s fiction for Bookouture. She also writes psychological suspense for Lake Union as Janelle Harris.
https://twitter.com/Janelle_Brookehttps://www.facebook.com/janellebrookewrites/