#BlogTour Wartime Blues for the Harper Girls by Rosie Clarke

 It's a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour Wartime Blues for the Harper Girls.

About the Author

Rosie Clarke is a #1 bestselling saga writer whose most recent books include The Mulberry Lane series. She has written over 100 novels under different pseudonyms and is a RNA Award winner. She lives in Cambridgeshire. Rosie’s brand new saga series, Welcome to Harpers Emporium began in December 2019. Click here to sign up to Rosie Clarke's newsletter

Follow @AnneHerries on Twitter, on Bookbub, on Amazon, on Goodreads, Visit rosieclarke.co.uk,

About the book

London 1917 - As the Americans enter the War, there is renewed energy in the war effort. With husbands and sons fighting for freedom, the women of Harpers are left to tackle the day-to-day affairs at home and work. With Ben Harper away, Sally fears she is being followed by a mysterious woman. Who is she and what does she want?

Maggie Gibbs collapses seriously ill in the frontline hospitals and is brought back to England close to death. Can she be saved and what does the future hold for her and her broken heart? Marion Jackson’s father is on the run from the Police already wanted for murder. She fears he will return to threaten his family once more.

And Beth Burrows is pregnant with her second child, worried and anxious for her husband Jack, who has been many months at sea. As Christmas 1917 approaches what will the future hold for Harpers, its girls and their men at War?

Review

Although this can be read as a standalone novel, I would definitely recommend reading the others in the series, You can follow the entire lives of the characters that way.

All the women find their lives changed drastically by wartime. Relationships are strained by worry, a sense of duty and the need to adapt to the situations arising due to the war. Sally's worries for Ben are replaced by something akin to fear when she realises she is being followed by a  strange woman.

Maggie, who has proven to be fearless, a role model and she has discovered a real talent for caring for others. Her life is changed abruptly, so it's a question of finding something just as fulfilling to do when she returns home.

It's an escapism read, a saga built around female characters who have to persevere through the quickly evolving changes of the 20th century, and in this book they learn to navigate the difficulties of wartime. It's a book that tackles some difficult topics, but the escapism element means they are touched on and they don't go into much depth. 

The Harper Girls are worth a follow - strong women facing what seem like insurmountable obstacles, pain and difficult situations - it's a read that has something for everyone.

Buy Wartime Blues for the Harper Girls at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Boldwood Books 6 July 2021. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour Nellie's Heartbreak by Rosie Clarke

It's my turn on the BlogTour Nellie's Heartbreak by Rosie Clarke.

 About the Author

Rosie Clarke is a #1 bestselling saga writer whose most recent books include The Mulberry Lane series. She has written over 100 novels under different pseudonyms and is a RNA Award winner. She lives in Cambridgeshire. Rosie’s brand new saga series, Welcome to Harpers Emporium began in December 2019. Click here to sign up to Rosie Clarke's newsletter

Follow @AnneHerries on Twitter, on Bookbub, on Amazon, on Goodreads, Visit rosieclarke.co.uk, 

About the book

A new stand-alone saga set in Yorkshire around out the outbreak of the second world war and the unlikely relationship between a master and servant.

As a small child, Nellie Peace was always dreaming but sensed her mother’s rejection. Abandoned and sent into service at Beaumont House at an early age, Nellie is lost and alone until she meets the unpredictable and reclusive artist, Lucas Harrington and falls in love with him.

This unlikely association between master and servant is encouraged by Lucas’s gentle natured Aunt Alice as Lucas sees something unusual in Nellie and is compelled to paint her. 

Broken promises lead to inevitable heartbreak and Nellie flees Beaumont House in disgrace for London. Alone again, Nellie must learn to live and fend for herself and her new-born child. Can Nellie win a second chance of happiness and can she solve the mystery of her mother's tortured past?

Review

At first glance Nellie doesn't have the most difficult of lives. Her family isn't the poorest or the richest, they are somewhere in between, but also aware that they will always be in the working class rank of society.

When Nellie is given into service, which isn't unusual even in the slowly declining upstairs downstairs era, she is unprepared and disappointed in the way it was done. There was no preparation or discussion, just Nellie being confronted with her new employers. The dislike her mother clearly has for her, well she isn't trying to hide it anymore. In fact her mother eventually confronts her with the kind of truth you can't take back.

Clarke clearly has a knack for the romance and historical fiction genre and this is no exception. Her characters evoke empathy in readers, which keeps them invested in the story. I enjoyed the way she wrote Nellie, who is a young girl willing to embrace the world around her, despite the many obstacles she encounters. It's the way she takes each problem and just carries on with her life, regardless of what happens.

It's historical fiction that veers into women's fiction, and I absolutely can see this author going into a genre that demands more depth and world-building. Either way you always get a great escapist read.

Buy Nellie's Heartbreak at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher : Boldwood Books; pub date 5 May 2021. Buy at Amazon com.

#BlogTour Stormy Days on Mulberry Lane by Rosie Clarke

Today it's my turn on the BlogTour Stormy Days on Mulberry Lane by Rosie Clarke.

About the Author

Rosie Clarke is a #1 bestselling saga writer whose most recent books include The Mulberry Lane series.  She has written over 100 novels under different pseudonyms and is a RNA Award winner.  She lives in Cambridgeshire. Click here to sign up to Rosie Clarke's newsletter

Follow @AnneHerries on Twitter, on Bookbub, on Amazon, on Goodreads,Visit rosieclarke.co.uk, Buy Stormy Days Over Mulberry Lane

About the book

Peggy Ronoscki is happily settling into life running her guesthouse on Mulberry Lane, surrounded by close friends and family. Life just seems too good…But then disaster strikes.

Pip, her beloved son is left in a coma following a devastating car crash and a young girl collapses in the market leaving Peggy no option but to nurse her back to health. As things begin to go awry, Peggy worries she has brought trouble to her doorstep? Can her life ever return to normal? Or has Peggy’s good nature led her astray?

Review

Peggy's life seems to give her a certain level of safety, which is no small feat after the destruction and uncertainty of the war. Surrounded by friends and family she is determined to keep her guesthouse thriving, and give her family a home and security.

I think Peggy is an excellent example of good faith and the consequences of believing in the good in people all of the time. Sometimes it might be misplaced trust and to be fair Peggy is quite emotionally vulnerable at the time, due to her personal circumstances.

Set in post-war Britain this seventh part in the Mulberry Lane series delivers what readers like most about it, which is the sense of cooperation and sisterhood. The knowledge that there will be someone there to support you no matter what you go through, but perhaps especially because the whole nation is still traumatised after the events of another devastating world war.

It's a little busy at the beginning and lacks the usual emotional pull this author tends to throw out from the very first pages, however I suggest sticking with it for a passionate historical read.

It's the visceral connection from page to reader that endears those reading to the characters within. Storylines with relatable scenarios, heartbreak, anger and despair. The power of a generation of women bound by tragedy and forced out of the roles they are traditionally pushed towards and into leadership and forging the way forward in times of need instead, only to be relegated to secondary roles once more when the men returned. Those women and girls are the undeniable cement of that era. No wonder this is such a popular series.

Buy Stormy Days on Mulberry Lane at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Boldwood Books pub date 2 Feb. 2021. Buy at Amazon com. Hive. Waterstones.

#BlogTour Rainy Days for the Harpers Girls by Rosie Clarke

Today it's Publication Day for Rainy Days for the Harpers Girls by Rosie Clarke and also my turn on the BlogTour.

About the Author
Rosie Clarke is a #1 bestselling saga writer whose most recent books include The Mulberry Lane series.  She has written over 100 novels under different pseudonyms ( Linda Sole also writes as Cathy Sharp, Anne Herries and Rosie Clarke) and is a RNA Award winner.  She lives in Cambridgeshire. Click here to sign up to Rosie Clarke's newsletter

Follow @AnneHerries on Twitter, on Bookbub, on Amazon, on Goodreads,Visit rosieclarke.co.uk, Buy Rainy Days for the Harpers Girls

About the book
Hard times ahead for the Harpers girls...
It is two years since Harpers opened in Oxford Street and Ben is planning to expand the premises.

Life is good for Sally and Ben as they look forward to their first child and hope for a prosperous future. Beth is settling into married life with Jack, gradually recovering from her aunt’s tragic death, though still unable to conceive a child.

New girls have joined Harpers and Marion, Janice and Becky all become a part of the daily life at the busy store. Rachel is undecided whether to marry a man she isn’t sure she can trust, while Minnie meets an old love.

The sun is shining in English streets but on the horizon dark clouds gather over Europe and war looms threatening to bring rainy days for the Harpers girls…

Review

This is the third book in the Welcome to Harpers Emporium series. All of these can be read as standalone books, although I would suggest reading the others so you can get to know the characters and their stories.

Sally and Ben are looking forward to the next step in their lives - welcoming their first child. Sally struggles with her body restricting the way she goes about her usual duties. Not being in charge all the time and hands-on is something she finds hard to come to terms with, perhaps also with the fact she is unable to keep up with the trouble others may be having.

Both the new women and the characters already known to us will soon be facing incredible changes as certain events have repercussions that will inevitably change life for everyone. Women will step into roles hitherto forbidden to them as families and couples are ripped apart in the name of honour and country.

It's historical fiction - a saga of courageous women trying to overcome their own challenges - sometimes alone, but more often with the help of their friends.

There are plenty of characters, perhaps too many with their own storylines, because it sometimes felt a little disjointed. The main characters are swallowed up a little by all the directions the reader is pulled in.

Aside from that it is a read that combines realism with escapism and relatable characters. It is also very much a story of sisterhood and women supporting each other, which is always a great message - in fiction and real life.

Buy Rainy Days for the Harpers Girls at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Boldwood Books; pub date 2 Jun. 2020. Buy at Amazon com. Buy at Boldwood Books.