The Gifts That Bind Us

1


I suppose I ll always remember this as the summer that Roe learned to drive and that I learned to read minds.
   He got his license in June, was promptly insured on his mum s car, and since then, the car has been a part of him. A part of us. They re always interviewing TV actors who say things like Really, New York City was the fifth character on the show, and I suppose you could apply the same logic to Mrs. O Callaghan s Nissan Micra. Roe calls her Linda. My mum calls it the galloping maggot.
    Maeve, she calls up the stairs. The galloping maggot is outside.
   I bounce down into the hallway heavily, not having quite broken in my Doc Martens, the new leather rubbing away at the skin. Mum is giving the dog his eye drops, trying to hold his head steady, her fingers prying open an eyelid. I take my little drawstring handbag from the coatrack in the hall.
  Take your coat.
    I don t need it, I reply. It s balmy.
    Hmm?
   I realize then that my mother didn t say that out loud, and that I am responding to a coat request that was only thought, never uttered. She looks at me oddly.
 
   Roe may have taken to driving quickly, but telepathy is a gift that comes slowly, strangely, and, ideally, with a lot of eye contact. You should really know when someone s mouth is moving. I double back. Wary, tense.
    I thought I heard you say . . .
   Tutu wrestles his head free and tries to wander off. Mum snatches him back.
    It s not that warm.
    It s August!
    It s Ireland.
   I shrug and head for the door. Her voice again.
    Do you need . . . money?
   I stall. No, Nuala paid me yesterday. I m grand.
   I ve been doing shifts at Divination, the occult shop in town, since school finished. Nuala can t afford to pay me much, but

Caroline O Donoghue is the author of All Our Hidden Gifts as well as fiction for adults. An Irish author, journalist, and host of the acclaimed podcast Sentimental Garbage, she has contributed to Grazia, the Irish Times, the Irish Examiner, BuzzFeed, Vice, and the Times (London). Caroline O Donoghue lives in London.

This smart, poignant drama is spot-on in its portrayal of a realistically pivotal time in these deeply likable characters lives as it winds its way slowly into the mystery around what supernatural forces are at play below the surface. . . . Another gripping, magic-filled installment in this rich contemporary fantasy.
Kirkus Reviews

With the same deft narrative style that made the previous book shine, O Donoghue now offers an introspective take on what privileges and responsibilities come with magic, and a more nuanced exploration of the ways in which the characters are bound, involuntarily and by choice, to one another. . . . Fans of paranormal reads will be on the edge of their seats.
School Library Journal

Maeve and her now-magical friends are back in this sequel to All Our Hidden Gifts (2021). And they are definitely gifted: Maeve has gained telepathy; her significant other, Roe, is telekinetic; her ex-friend Lily has wild electrical powers; and Fiona has healing powers. . . As in the first series installment, each chapter is accompanied by an image of a tarot card that hints at the characters and situations within.
Booklist

This spellbinding sequel to All Our Hidden Gifts is a riveting return to the lives of Maeve, Roe, Fiona, and Lily as they navigate their relationships as well as their newfound powers.
Barnes & Noble Reads Blog