The Girl in the Letter

by Emily Gunnis

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203	11	134,063	(3.43)	2
Read her letter. Remember her story...Gripping. Mesmerising. Haunting. Heart-breaking. Once you've heard her story, you will never forget The Girl in the Letter.Perfect for fans of Kate Morton, Rachel Hore and Kathryn Hughes, this page-turning, moving novel of separation and long-buried secrets will stay with you for ever.In the winter of 1956 pregnant young Ivy is sent in disgrace to St Margaret's, a home for unmarried mothers in the south of England, run by nuns, to have her child. Her baby daughter is adopted. Ivy will never leave. Sixty years later, journalist Samantha stumbles upon a series of letters from Ivy to her lover, pleading with him to rescue her from St Margaret's before it is too late. As Sam pieces together Ivy's tragic story, terrible secrets about St Margaret's dark past begin to emerge. What happened to Ivy, to her baby, and to the hundreds of children born in the home? What links a number of mysterious, sudden deaths in the area? And why are those who once worked at St Margaret's so keen that the truth should never be told? As Sam unpicks the sinister web of lies surrounding St Margaret's, she also looks deep within - to confront some unwelcome truths of her own...… (more)

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Wonderful story about a reporter trying to unearth stories from the past. She is handed letters from her Grandmother and becomes intrigued with the "girl in the letter." As she digs, she finds much more than she had originally thought, and her grandmother might be keeping secrets from the past as well. (

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mcorbink | Sep 30, 2022 |

Das Buch war schwer zu bewerten. Die zwei Sterne sind das Ergebnis des Gefühls, dass das Buch nach dem für mich nicht sehr glaubwürdigen letzten Drittel hinterlässt. Die ersten zwei Drittel des Buches fand ich wirklich interessant, wichtig und sehr berührend, da hätte ich problemlos drei bis vier Sterne vergeben. (

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Ellemir | May 25, 2022 |

A fictionalized account that finds its inspiration in a serious and horrifying topic: the abuse unwed mothers and their babies suffered in many of the convent run mother and baby homes in Britain--seems there were 172 in 1968--and their destructive after-effects in the lives of the women and children who were unfortunate enough to have lived there. A book with a fast-paced and compelling plot, yet I was disappointed in it overall. I found it over grizzly in its detailed descriptions of murder, violence and cruelty. and using flashback paragraphs to sensationally develop the deaths of some of the main characters just plain clumsy and unskillful. (

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amaraki | Mar 12, 2021 |

I'm admitting my shallowness here, but I chose to read this book due to my love for the author's mother's books over the last few decades. I was saddened to read of Penny Vincenzi's passing and the knowledge that she'd passed on her writing talents was pleasing.

This was a riveting read. There were fairly complicated story lines about inter-connected family members and it was necessary to focus on each page lest I lost the thread a few pages later. The subject matter is depressing but the author dealt with the sad reality of forced adoptions with consideration and obviously a great deal of research.

Some of the timelines and blood lines were a little confusing, but then I did read it over a period of a week so that's understandable. More frequent references to the relevance of less frequent characters would have been helpul. Those reading in one setting (if only I could have) would of course have full recollection of each character.

I'm looking forward to Emily Gunnis' next book.

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joweirqt | Jan 15, 2021 |

Interesting story from a historical viewpoint about how unwed mothers were treated, but story is confusing and hard to follow. (

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readyreader | Oct 25, 2020 |

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Read her letter. Remember her story...Gripping. Mesmerising. Haunting. Heart-breaking. Once you've heard her story, you will never forget The Girl in the Letter.Perfect for fans of Kate Morton, Rachel Hore and Kathryn Hughes, this page-turning, moving novel of separation and long-buried secrets will stay with you for ever.In the winter of 1956 pregnant young Ivy is sent in disgrace to St Margaret's, a home for unmarried mothers in the south of England, run by nuns, to have her child. Her baby daughter is adopted. Ivy will never leave. Sixty years later, journalist Samantha stumbles upon a series of letters from Ivy to her lover, pleading with him to rescue her from St Margaret's before it is too late. As Sam pieces together Ivy's tragic story, terrible secrets about St Margaret's dark past begin to emerge. What happened to Ivy, to her baby, and to the hundreds of children born in the home? What links a number of mysterious, sudden deaths in the area? And why are those who once worked at St Margaret's so keen that the truth should never be told? As Sam unpicks the sinister web of lies surrounding St Margaret's, she also looks deep within - to confront some unwelcome truths of her own...

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