Newest Women's Fiction Reviews
Can Anybody Help Me? by Sinead Crowley
Yvonne and Gerry are proud new parents. However, as they've only recently moved to Gerry's native Dublin, Yvonne mourns the lack of a support network. This all changes when she turns to Mammynet, a web-based online forum and chat room for new and soon-to-be mums. It works too - Yvonne quickly makes a local online friend but then the friend disappears without warning. Meanwhile Garda Sergeant Claire Boyle is investigating the murder of a young woman. There may be a connection but will Claire discover it before the killer strikes again? Full review...
The Wives of Los Alamos by TaraShea Nesbit
1943: In the US a group of men, women and children are uprooted from their homes with hardly any notice and after being sworn to total secrecy. Their destination is a hastily knocked up, unfinished small town in the New Mexico desert; a place where muddy water drips from the taps and their lives are turned upside down for nearly 3 years. This isn't mass abduction by a malevolent power but the US government's plan to end WWII. The men (and some of the women) are scientists, the place is Los Alamos, the site of the project that will result in Robert Oppenheimer stating Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds." His story has been well documented in the past; now the voices belong to the Los Alamos Wives. Full review...
The Legacy of Elizabeth Pringle by Kirsty Wark
Elizabeth Pringle bequeathed her house on Arran to Anna Morrison even though she didn't actually know her. Anna just happened to walk past and ask to buy the house decades earlier. Elizabeth hadn't said yes but always remembered the young lady, walking past with the baby in the pram. The baby, Martha, is now an adult visiting Elizabeth's house – Anna's house – after Elizabeth's death. Through the belongings that Elizabeth left with it, Martha sees glimpses of a past life while hoping that that this refuge will now become a haven for her mother before it's too late and while she still has a mind to take her back to the good times. Full review...
Midnight in St Petersburg by Vanora Bennett
Inna Feldman is in the Kiev theatre the night that Prime Minister Stolypin is assassinated in front of the Tsar. Fearing the retribution against the Jews in general and being picked out as a suspect in particular, Inna flees to St Petersburg and her landlord's cousin Yasha. Her arrival causes complications. Not only is she unexpected but Yasha is a revolutionary, a dangerous occupation in Russia during 1911. The family that Yasha is living with takes her in anyway, unaware that darker times are ahead for all of them. Full review...
The Illusionists by Rosie Thomas
Devil Wix is a great Victorian illusionist. Admittedly Lady Luck hasn’t been too good to him lately and he may look a little ragged but he's talented and repeatedly tells himself so. One particular night as he's reassuring himself over a drink or three, he runs into Carlo Boldoni. (Or rather Carlo runs into him as he's picking Devil's pocket at the time.) Formerly Charlie Morris and a dwarf to the Victorians/person of restricted growth to us, Carlo was part of a performing troupe but now finds himself alone due to tragic circumstances. They join forces but little do they know the future nor the part that a certain young lady will play in it. Full review...
A Single Breath by Lucy Clarke
Eva is blissfully content with life. She has a fulfilling career in her job as a midwife and a happy marriage to the man of her dreams who clearly adores her. Her contented existence is thrown into complete turmoil when, early one morning, her beloved husband Jackson is swept out to sea whilst fishing on the Dorset coast. It seems that in one fell swoop, all of her hopes and dreams have been washed away into the cold, white water. Full review...
Loxley by Sally Wragg
Harry, the eleventh Duke of Loxley, fell in love with Bronwyn and they married. It wasn't the match that his mother would have chosen - Bronwyn was, after all, nothing more than the daughter of the local doctor and even Harry and Bronwyn wondered whether or not they'd done the right thing as they struggled to come to terms with married life. Katherine, the dowager Duchess, didn't make Bronwyn's life any easier - I mean, the girl wasn't above starting to clear the breakfast dishes when there were servants to do that sort of thing. And - to cap it all - she still wasn't pregnant and an heir for Loxley was of paramount importance. Full review...
Skeletons by Jane Fallon
Jen doesn’t have the happiest of families, so she’s immediately drawn to her husband Jason’s. Luckily they welcome her with open arms and she’s soon like a fourth child to Charles and Amelia. So when she discovers a secret that could tear lives apart, it’s as devastating to her as if it were her own parents. She has a choice to make: share the burden and ruin relationships in the process, or keep it to herself and shoulder it all alone. Full review...
The French Promise by Fiona McIntosh
A few years on from The Lavender Keeper Luc the former resistance fighter and Lisette the former British spy have survived the ravages of war and start a new life together in England with their little boy Harry. However Luc can't settle, missing the lavender farming that's in his blood. This is remedied when the freshly transplanted family move again, this time to Tasmania. Nonetheless they still have a lot to learn; the biggest lessons being that no one can outrun the past and that fate isn't always kind. Full review...
Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan
Polly is disconsolate. She thought she had it all, the perfect yuppie lifestyle in Plymouth. She is 32 and has worked tirelessly marketing and managing her artist boyfriend’s graphic design consultancy. Now, with the sudden economic downturn and the competitive nature of new technologies, the bank has foreclosed. Chris just wants to shut out the world and slink back to his mother's, leaving Polly bereft, homeless and confused as she struggles to start over again away from the rat race. Faced with the prospect of grungy student flat shares, she looks further afield for new affordable accommodation and finds a neglected tidal island in Cornwall connected by a causeway to the mainland. In the harbour, there is a dirty, derelict building for rent. The upstairs loft is over a disused bakery. Full review...
Mrs Sinclair's Suitcase by Louise Walters
Every family has its stories, the anecdotes passed down the generations that help to explain who we think we are. Roberta is sure that she knows all there is to know about her family until she comes across a letter written to her grandmother in 1941. The contents cast doubt on all her assumptions about the past. Full review...
The Dead Wife's Handbook by Hannah Beckerman
Rachel wasn't ready to drop dead at thirty-five. It's been a year since - a year she's spent trapped in some sort of netherworld that allows her brief, tantalising glimpses of the lives of those she's left behind. There's no apparent rhyme or reason to the glimpses, and Rachel wishes they were more often and lasted longer. Full review...
Bring Me Home by Alan Titchmarsh
When we first meet Charlie Stuart he's half wishing that the guests at his annual summer party at his Scottish castle would hurry up and leave - and half hoping that he could delay what he knows will have to be done once everyone has gone. He knows that life will never again be the same, but to understand why we have to go back from June 2000 to 1960 when Charlie was just a young boy being shown the ways of the loch and the surrounding land by the ghillie, who, oddly enough, was also his uncle. Full review...
Mother of the Year by Karen Ross
The one person who could best judge a 'Mother of the Year' competition would surely be a nominee’s daughter, right? And yet where three-time winner Beth Jackson is concerned, her daughter JJ is the one person who remains unconvinced the accolade is warranted. Full review...
We That Are Left by Juliet Greenwood
Hugo and Elin are settling down to life at home in Hiram Hall now Hugo is back from the Boer War. He refuses to speak about his experiences in Africa but carries the psychological effects. However, appearances count for a lot so they both continue to run the house, gardens and staff while Elin tries to ignore the deficiencies in their marriage. She succeeds as well but then two things change her outlook: the arrival of daring adventurer Lady Margaret ('Mouse' to her friends) and the less welcome outbreak of World War I. Both will leave their indelible mark so that, for Hugo, Elin and many others around that time, there'll be no going back. Full review...
The One Plus One by Jojo Moyes
Jess is a single mum of a rather smart little girl. She’s also single step mum, if there’s such a thing, to a rather troubled teenage boy. This is the story of this unusual but endearing family of three, and a road trip to the other end of the country, showing that even with few resources, mums will go to the ends of the earth for their children. It’s also the story of Ed, a wealthy businessman whose life interacts with theirs in an unconventional way. A single mum meets a single man, but in an unpredictable way. Full review...
The Memory Book by Rowan Coleman
When Claire Ryan first hears the devastating news that she has Early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, her first instinct is to run away. However, she does not get far before she realises that she is already forgetting where she lives and the names of simple everyday objects that she has always taken for granted. The worst implication of the news though is that soon she will no longer remember the special events in her life such as giving birth to her daughters nor will she recognise their faces or remember how much she loves the man that is her husband. Not only is this traumatic for her, the effect on her family is unbearable. This is a modern day tragedy with seemingly, no happy ending. Full review...
The Darling Girls by Emma Burstall
Leo Bruck, a world famous conductor, died suddenly of a heart attack. Amongst many mourners at his funeral are three women for whom Leo was much more than an acquaintance. Victoria was his long term partner and mother of his two children, Ralph and Salome. However, Maddy has also shared much of her life with Leo and he is father to her daughter Pheobe. Then there is Cat, who met Leo about eighteen months ago and they also formed a relationship. All three were aware of the others and, for whatever reasons, had tolerated the parallel lives that Leo was leading. However, they had never met before the funeral and there is instant dislike particularly between Victoria and Maddy. Full review...
Left and Leaving by Jo Verity
Set in modern day London, this novel explores the lives of two central characters who, on the surface, could not be any different. However, after a catastrophic incident in the city, Gil and Vivian are thrown together through the rather annoying, interfering character of Irene. Spending time with each other in the run up to Christmas, both Gil and Vivian find themselves having to face up to various family issues and responsibilities that, before, they were able to ignore. Full review...
Come to Me Quietly by A L Jackson
Aleena hasn't seen Jared for six years. Not since he hit the very bottom of his downward spiral and ended up in prison. She's trying to move on, let go of the boy she secretly loved all her life. Just as she's starting to make progress, Jared reappears. Full review...
It Felt Like A Kiss by Sarra Manning
Ellie Cohen lives with two of her best friends, works in an exclusive gallery, and sees her loving Jewish grandparents every first Friday of the month. Her single mother, Ari, has always been the epitome of cool and is Ellie’s best friend and confidante. The only thing they don’t talk about is Billy Kay, Ellie’s biological father. That doesn’t stop him being one of the nation’s favourites, recently knighted, and talked about by pretty much everyone else. But Billy is a non-issue for Ellie. She doesn’t need him, she has Chester, her mum’s best friend, who has always been enough of a dad if she needed. Her only real trouble is her penchant for lame ducks, or fixer-uppers. Full review...
Sheila Levine Is Dead and Living in New York by Gail Parent
Oy vey! Sheila Levine is down on her luck. Try as she might to meet a nice, Jewish boy to marry, she just keeps ending up with schmucks. The wrong side of 30, single and living in Manhattan, well if only she’d taken her mother’s advice at the time. Now it’s too late. There is no hope. The only thing Sheila can do is respectfully take her own life (having made all the arrangements and tied up the loose ends beforehand, of course. Nice girls always clean up after themselves). Full review...
Take Me Home by Daniela Sacerdoti
Inary Monteith is confused. She's just spent the night with her close friend, Alex and it seems that it means more to him that she will allow it to mean to her. After her fiance ditched her not that long before the wedding she decided that she would never allow herself to be hurt like that again. Then the problem seems to be solved for her as she has to leave London and return to Glen Avich in the Scottish Highlands. Her sister, Emily, has been waiting for a heart transplant but it now looks very unlikely that she will make it through to an operation. Full review...
Emma by Linda Mitchelmore
Emma Le Goff was determined that she and her childhood sweetheart, Seth Jago, would get married but the vicar seemed strangely reluctant to oblige. Their pasts were against them. Seth’s brother had been hung and his father and brother were in prison. No one could - or would - quite believe that Seth had kept himself above the criminality. Then there were the deaths of Emma’s mother and brother, which might not have been an accident. To top it all Emma had lived with Matthew Caunter - the vicar wasn’t prepared to accept that she was simply his housekeeper. No - there was no question of his marrying them, but Emma came up with a novel solution to the problem. Full review...
Wish Upon a Star by Trisha Ashley
Cally is a single mother. The novel begins with the birth of her daughter Stella, and the discovery that her baby has a serious heart condition. Stella’s first few years are taken up with hospitals and medical procedures but eventually the NHS can provide nothing further. Then Cally learns that a doctor in Boston is able to do a new kind of operation, one that could potentially give Stella a totally normal life. The only problem is the enormous cost of surgery in the US, not to mention the need for flights and accommodation. Full review...
