The Morning Gift

The Morning Gift By: Eva Ibbotson

Ruth Berger does not know what to do.   She has been left by her family on accident as they fled Vienna to escape the Nazi party. She was supposed to be grated exit on a student visa but something went wrong.  She is found by Quin Sommerville hiding in her family's apartment and he decides to try to help her escape. The only solution that they can find is to marry so that she becomes a British Citizen, promising to annul the marriage as soon as possible so that she can marry the man she loves, Heini.  But getting an annulment proves harder than they thought and trying to keep their marriage a secret does also.  As she enrolls in school and is placed in his class they cannot help but be attracted to each other.  Quin is also being pursued by another very powerful girl who is making things difficult.  But Ruth is tryig to stay faithful to her long time love Heini, but does she really love him?  Will Ruth and Quin's secret get out? Can they decide to be together or will they go their separate ways?

I liked this book for the good feelings it gave. You can tell from the beginning that the two main characters are meant for each other and you just have to wait for them to realize it. I thought that the storyline was a great one to read. They both denied for almost the entire book that they begin to care for one another.  I think that it also has a hint of the historical aspect, as the characters are plagued by what is happening to the Jewish people, and the feelings of those in Brittan about those who continue to immigrate to get away from the torture.  This is labeled a teen novel and I think it would be a great high school read.

I borrowed this form the public library.
ISBN: 978-0-14-240911-4