Tag: Historical Fiction

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Fiction Historical Fiction

Christmas with the Surplus Girls, Polly Heron

It’s 1922 and Nancy Pike is rather settled at her job in the pie shop. However, her father encourages her to better herself and enrols her as a new pupil at the Hesketh’s school for ‘surplus girls’.

At first, Nancy struggles to find her feet the world of admin but lands two placements. One at St Anthony’s orphanage and another working for Mr Zachary Milner, who has a new start up business selling fire extinguishers. When Nancy makes a huge mistake, which comes at a huge financial cost to Mr Milner he has no choice but to let her go.

Nancy is determined to make things up to Mr. Milner but is also determined that the orphans have the best Christmas they have ever known! Will she succeed in spreading festive cheer?

Having thoroughly enjoyed The Surplus Girls by Polly Heron I was delighted to receive an ARC of Christmas with the Surplus Girls, which is book no.3 in the series. (Admittedly I haven’t read book no.2 but didn’t find this hindered me). It was lovely to see the return of some of the characters in the previous book and to delve deeper into their lives and what happened to them after the prequel.

Like the rest of the books in the series, Christmas with the Surplus Girls is very much themed on the life of women in the 1920s and the difficulties and prejudices they faced. This book had a particular focus on the stigma of pregnancy outside of marriage.

Overall, 5 stars. Polly Heron writes in a way which really takes you back to the era. Perfect for any historical fiction fans.

Christmas with the Surplus Girls will be published on the 1st January 2022. Thank you to Netgalley and Atlantic Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Categories
Fiction Historical Fiction

A Ration Book Daughter, Jean Fullerton

A Ration Book Daughter is the fifth book in The Ration Book series and is focused around Cathy Brogan and her son Peter. If you have read the previous books, then you will know Cathy is stuck in an unhappy marriage and is living with her horrible mother-in-law, who treats her terribly.

When Cathy’s husband Stanley is declared missing in action, it comes as no surprise that Cathy begins counting down the days until she can be declared a widow and be free of her violent husband. Cathy dreams of a big family, like the one she herself grew up in, and has given up on this dream, but then she meets Sergeant McIntosh and finds herself falling for him. Can she find the love she deserves? Certainly not if her mother-in-law has anything to do with it!

Having previously read A Ration Book Wedding I was very excited to read A Ration Book Daughter and was certainly not disappointed. I was already invested in the characters, and was excited to continue my journey with them. I love Jean Fullerton’s style, her writing really allows you to immerse yourself in the story, and she has really made me grow on historical fiction as a genre.

The themes in the book really made me think about how society has changed (and perhaps not changed enough) since WWII. For example the position of women in society. Today if a woman was stuck in Cathy’s situation you would hope she could up and leave. However, for Cathy and other women at that time, they relied on their husbands wages to live on, and there was more stigma attached to a woman who left an unhappy marriage than there was to a man who treated them so horrifically. Other themes touched on in the book include war, racism, abuse, relationships and love.

Overall, whilst The Ration Book series doesn’t hide us from the brutalities of the war, and is great to learn more about family life during WWII in a fictitious way, this was a very cosy and heartwarming read. If you haven’t read all the previous books then this isn’t necessarily an issue, although I am keen to go back and read the ones I have previously missed.

Thank you to Readers First, who gave me a copy of this book pre publication in exchange for an honest review.

Categories
Fiction Historical Fiction Romance

A Ration Book Wedding, Jean Fullerton

Until I read ‘The Surplus Girls’ a few months ago, this had never been my usual genre of book to read. However, I seem to have grown a new love for historical fiction which was why I was keen to read ‘A Ration Book Wedding’.

Set in 1942, during The Blitz, Francesca Fabrino’s mind is occupied by Charlie Brogan, her best friend’s brother, who she has been in love with forever. Charlie, who is currently serving in North Africa, is already married to Stella, who has a questionable reputation.  

When Francesca begins a job as a translator for the BBC Overseas department, she meets Count Leonardo D’Angelo, who quickly falls for her but where does this leave Francesca’s feelings for Charlie?

‘A Ration Book Wedding’ was beautifully written. I felt like I got to know each and every character and was able to see the world through their eyes and feel the emotions they felt, and the descriptions of the era were depicted very well. With being new to this genre, I have not read the other books in The Ration Book series however this did not seem to be a problem and the book read fine as a stand alone. However, I am keen to read the rest of the series by Jean Fullerton.

Categories
Fiction Historical Fiction Romance

The Surplus Girls, Polly Heron

Belinda Layton is a 20 year old girl who lost her fiancé during WWI.
At the start of the book we see Belinda working in a mill where she dodges the amorous advances of creepy Mr Butterfield. At home, Belinda is residing with her late fiancé’s family, who expect her to continue living in a period of mourning, whilst her feckless family expect her to pass all her hard earned wages on to them.

As Belinda is faced with having to fend for herself and realising she is a ‘surplus girl’ she tries to better herself through attending night business school. This leads to her landing a placement in a bookshop, escaping work at the mill and the potential of finding a new romance.

This book isn’t the normal genre I go for but I really enjoyed it. The story touched upon so many societal issues such as class differences and the expectations and place of women in society in the 1920’s. A warming tale which offers hope after what had been a difficult time.