Danielle Steel

Growing up desolate under the eye of a resentful great aunt on an Iowa farm, Marie-Ange Hawkins dreams of returning to the French chateau where she lived before she was orphaned, but when she finally does so, she learns a devastating truth. 900,000 first printing.

The Gift is a novel by author Danielle Steel. It is the story of a family in the 1950s coming to terms with the death of a child, that leaves them distorted and broken. It is Steel's 33rd best-seller that is characterized by simplicity and power.