BLOG TOUR: A Secret in the Family - Nancy Revell

1945, Sunderland. Ida Boulter makes the heart-wrenching decision to leave her five children behind as she escapes her husband and moves to London to start afresh with the love of her life.

1953, County Durham. Ida’s children have since built a new life in the beautiful home of Cuthford Manor – looked after by their eldest sibling Angie and her husband.

But their world is about to be rocked once again when their mother turns up out of the blue for the first time in eight years.

She has come back bearing a secret she can no longer keep from her family.

Will telling the truth cause more harm than good?

Only their love for one another will carry them through the turbulent times ahead.

 

What did I think?

It took me far too long to discover the books of local author Nancy Revell, but better late than never, and I have recently completed my Shipyard Girls collection after absolutely loving The Widow's Choice.  A Secret in the Family is the sequel to The Widow's Choice but it can definitely be read as a standalone, so don't be afraid to jump into the series if you're just discovering it now.

Young Ida dreams of a life on the stage but, like most working class women in Sunderland, she finds herself looking after a brood of children whilst her husband Fred spends his hard-earned wages from the pit down the pub.  It's no wonder that Ida's head is turned by Carl but when their affair is discovered she has a difficult choice to make: leave her children and start a new life or take the inevitable beating from Fred.  

Having read The Widow's Choice, I saw Ida in a bad light as I couldn't understand how she could leave her children but there are always two sides to every story and this is Ida's.  How my heart went out to her both in the past and the present and I was so pleased that she found happiness with Carl.

I really enjoyed catching up with Angie and her siblings again.  Angie has suffered her own heartbreak in the past but she has been given a second chance at love with Stanislaw, however, she is still not allowing herself to be truly happy.  When Ida returns, it's quite a shock for the siblings and some forgive her quicker than others.  There is so much emotion in this book that I couldn't hold back my tears at the end, so I would advise have a tissue handy when you're reading it.

Emotional, heartwarming and captivating, Nancy Revell brings the past to life in her wonderful new book, A Secret in the Family.  From County Durham to London, I felt like I was walking in the characters' shoes and experienced not just the sights and sounds but their emotions too.  I wouldn't hesitate to recommend A Secret in the Family and I adored every single beautifully written word.  An easy five stars!

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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About the author:

Nancy Revell is the author of 12 titles in the bestselling Shipyard Girls series, which tells the story of a group of women who work in a Sunderland shipyard during WWII. Her books have sold more than half a million copies, across all editions, with the last book in the Shipyard Girl series a No.2 Sunday Times Bestseller. 

Before that, she was a journalist who worked for all the national newspapers, providing them with hard- hitting news stories and in-depth features. She also wrote inspirational true-life stories for just about every woman’s magazine in the country. 

Nancy was born and brought up in the North East of England and now lives in Oxfordshire with her husband, Paul.

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The Toffee Factory Girls - Glenda Young

Discover the engaging new trilogy from the author of THE SIXPENNY ORPHAN, about three women working in a WWI toffee factory in the North-East!

In 1915 three women start work at a toffee factory in the market town of Chester-le-Street, Durham.

Anne works for the enigmatic owner Mr Jack. She is highly efficient and whips Mr Jack's disorganised office - and Mr Jack himself - into shape. However, behind her business-like façade, Anne hides a heart-breaking secret.

Elsie is feisty, fun and enjoys a good time. However, her gadabout ways get her into trouble when she falls for the wrong man in the sugar-boiling room.

And there's dependable Hetty, who's set to marry her boyfriend when he returns from the war. But when Hetty is sent on an errand by the toffee factory boss, her life changes in ways she could never imagine and a whole new world opens up.

The toffee factory girls begin as strangers before forging a close bond of friendship and trust. And, as the war rages on, they help each other cope through the difficult times ahead.

The Toffee Factory Girls is a heart-warming novel about love, friendship, secrets, war . . . and toffee! It is the first in a trilogy from hugely popular author Glenda Young.

What did I think?

Just when you think you've read your favourite Glenda Young book, she goes and writes another absolute belter.  The Toffee Factory Girls is the first book in an exciting new saga series and it's completely unmissable.

Glenda Young is such a fantastic storyteller that any book she writes draws you in from the very first page.  Once I picked up The Toffee Factory Girls I couldn't put it down; it was liked I'd stepped into the book and through time and found myself in Chester-le-Street in 1915.

Glenda's research is meticulous and I could almost smell the toffee in Mr Jack's factory, that was inspired by Chester-le-Street's once-famous Horner's Dainty Dinah toffee factory.  The setting is delectable but it's the wonderful characters that provide the entertainment that keeps the pages turning as fast as your eyes can read the perfectly written words.

I learnt something new when I was reading The Toffee Factory Girls as I didn't know about the Birtley Belgians and I found it fascinating that they had their own village called Elisabethville.  I can just imagine the suspicion about these foreigners and mothers warning their daughters to not fraternise with the Belgians.  I'm sure the girls listened to their mams!

Entertaining, heartwarming and as moreish as the toffee that features in it, I'm so glad that The Toffee Factory Girls is part of a trilogy as I didn't want it to end and could have continued reading about these fabulous characters long after I turned the final page.  I can't wait for more and I very highly recommend this unforgettable and unmissable book.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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The Sixpenny Orphan - Glenda Young

'Please, sir, take us both. We only have each other. We don't know how to live apart.'

After the death of their parents, sisters Poppy and Rose are taken in by widow Nellie Harper. But whilst they have a roof over their heads, the young orphans are unloved, unwanted, and always hungry, with only one pair of boots between them. Keen to make money, Nellie hatches a plan to sell the girls to the mysterious Mr Scurrfield. But when the day comes for them to leave, Scurrfield reveals he will take only one of the sisters - and he will decide which it will be on the turn of a sixpence.

Ten years later, Poppy is married with three children. Not a day goes by when she doesn't think about Rose, but after many years of searching, Poppy has accepted that her sister is lost to her. That is until a letter suddenly arrives, revealing Rose's fate and breaking Poppy's heart. Determined to be reunited with her beloved sister, Poppy sets out to bring Rose home.

 

What did I think?

It is always a pleasure to read a Glenda Young novel and The Sixpenny Orphan is no exception.  I absolutely love these sagas set just after World War I in the coal mining village of Ryhope in Sunderland.  The past is brought vividly to life through the warm and evocative writing of natural storyteller, Glenda Young.

This book starts in 1909 when orphans Poppy and Rose are children living in the farming community of Ryhope with Nellie the knocker upper.  I didn't even know such a role existed but in the days before alarm clocks, the coalminers needed somebody to wake them up before their shift at the pit.  Nellie has plans to turn the girls from a burden into a commodity but when a man from Sunderland turns up to buy them, he will only take Rose.

Oh my heart broke for these two girls.  They have had so much heartache in their short life since the death of their parents and then living in such awful conditions with a woman who doesn't care about them.  Splitting them up is devastating for both Poppy and Rose but we really see what Poppy is made of when she hatches a plan to bring Rose home as the book jumps forward ten years to 1919.

This is a novel that entertains from start to finish.  The characters are so realistic and the scenery so vivid that I could picture it clearly in my mind.  Of course it helps a little that I know Ryhope well but I can't walk through the village now without replaying scenes in my head from Glenda's fantastic novels.

There is so much to love about this book: the wonderful characters and the challenges they face, the entertaining and compelling storyline and the jam tarts that I could almost taste.  Even the dedication page gave me a lump in my throat!  The dirty and cramped living conditions in a coalmining village must have been awful, but the resilience and fierce determination of Glenda's female characters completely warms your heart.

The Sixpenny Orphan is such a heartwarming, heartbreaking and entertaining read that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend.  I used to say I wasn't a saga reader but then I discovered Glenda Young's novels: this is not just a saga, this is a Glenda Young saga and it's simply wonderful.

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

About the author:

Glenda Young credits her local library in the village of Ryhope, where she grew up, for giving her a love of books. She still lives close by in Sunderland and often gets her ideas for her stories on long bike rides along the coast. The novels are inspired by Glenda’s love of soap opera, and are dramatic with lots of action and wonderful female characters. There’s a lot of warmth and humour too. 

A life-long fan of Coronation Street, Glenda runs two hugely popular fan websites including the Coronation Street Blog since 2007 and the original fan website www.corrie.net, online since 1995. Glenda is also the creator of the first ever weekly soap opera, ‘Riverside’ which appears in The People’s Friend, the longest running women’s magazine in the world. 

As well as her gritty sagas, Glenda writes a fun, cosy crime series set in a Scarborough B&B. Glenda has had short fiction published in Take a Break, My Weekly, The People’s Friend and Best and in 2019 was a finalist in the Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais Comedy Award.

For updates on what Glenda is working on, visit her website glendayoungbooks.com and to find out more find her on Facebook @GlendaYoungAuthor Twitter @flaming_nora and Tiktok @glenda_young_author

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The Tuppenny Child - Glenda Young

'She's not worth more than tuppence, that child!'

Those are the words that haunt Sadie Linthorpe. She is the talk of Ryhope when she arrives there, aged seventeen, alone, seeking work and a home in the pit village. But Sadie is keeping a secret - she is searching for her baby girl who was taken from her at birth a year ago and cruelly sold by the child's grandmother.

All that Sadie knows about the family who took her daughter is that they live in Ryhope. And the only thing she knows about her daughter is that when the baby was born, she had a birthmark on one shoulder that resembled a tiny ladybird. But as Sadie's quest begins, a visitor from her past appears - one who could jeopardise the life she's beginning to build and ruin her chances of finding her beloved child for ever...

 

What did I think?

I've made no secret of the fact that I absolutely love Glenda Young's sagas and I first discovered them at book three, Pearl of Pit Lane, so I made sure to add the first two books to my collection.  The beauty of Glenda Young's books is that they're not a series and you can read them in any order, although you do often get cameo appearances by characters from previous books and it's like waving to old friends when they get mentioned.

The Tuppenny Child is set in Ryhope, a small mining village in Sunderland, but it's further down the coast in Hartlepool where we meet our heroine, Sadie.  Sadie is a hard worker and all her earnings are handed over to her landlady for her bed and board and my heart went out to her at being stuck in such a vicious circle.  When Sadie finds herself pregnant by the landlady's son, her landlady sees her chance for a few extra pennies and sells the baby behind Sadie's back.  This is when we see the true strength of Sadie as she vows to get her daughter back and follows her to Ryhope.  

I know Ryhope well but even if I didn't, Glenda Young's wonderfully descriptive writing creates all the sights and sounds of the bustling pit village.  The characters are larger than life and I loved the pub landladies who each run one of the many pubs in the village.  The strength of women, despite their many challenges, is shown beautifully and there is a keen sense of community that warms the heart.

Heartwarming doesn't even come close to describing The Tuppenny Child as it's also heartbreaking yet completely uplifting and incredibly entertaining.  It's a book I will definitely read again and I absolutely loved it.  Very highly recommended.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

BLOG TOUR: A Mother's Christmas Wish - Glenda Young

'I hope this Christmas is better than last year's.'

Following a scandalous affair, wayward Emma Devaney is sent in disgrace from her home in Ireland to Ryhope, where she will live with her widowed aunt, Bessie Brogan, and help run her pub. Bessie is kind but firm, and at first Emma rebels against her lack of freedom. Struggling to fit in, she turns to the wrong person for comfort, and becomes pregnant.

Accepting she must embrace her new life for the sake of her baby, Emma pours her energy into making the pub thrive and helping heal the fractured relationship between Bessie and her daughters. She catches the attention of Robert, a gruff but sincere farmer, who means to win her heart.

As December approaches, thankful for the home and acceptance she's found, Emma is determined to bring not just her family, but the whole Ryhope community, together to celebrate - and to make one very special mother's Christmas dreams come true.

 

What did I think?

With her fabulous cosy crimes, entertaining weekly soap and heartwarming Ryhope sagas, Glenda Young has fast become one of my favourite authors.  There aren't many authors whose books I read without reading the synopsis but Glenda is one of them.  It's not only that the books are guaranteed to be good, it's also that I don't want to spoil a single surprise of the fantastic storyline.

It's December 1923 and 17 year old Emma is leaving her home in a small Irish village and setting off on a long journey to North East England.  Emma is leaving under a cloud and I love the wonderfully imaginative scandal that Glenda Young has come up with for Emma.  Emma makes quite a first impression when she reaches her Aunt Bessie's pub at the end of her journey: the small coal mining village of Ryhope.

I absolutely adored this book; I laughed, I cried (TWICE!!) and I was entertained from start to finish.  I really don't think any review I write could do it justice, you just really need to read it for yourself.  It's festive in the loveliest way with family and community spirit at its heart and I loved seeing the main characters from all of the previous Ryhope sagas making cameo appearances.  I also loved reading about the Irish tradition of Nollaig na mBan (the Women's Little Christmas) and it's so beautifully incorporated into the storyline.

You can save some pounds on your heating bill by reading A Mother's Christmas Wish; it didn't just warm my heart, it warmed me from head to toe.  Glenda Young breaks saga stereotypes with her hugely entertaining and incredibly inventive storylines and A Mother's Christmas Wish is not to be missed.

Very highly recommended - I wanted to read it again the moment I turned the final (soggy, tear-stained) page.  It's absolutely beautiful, unforgettable and unmissable.

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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About the author:

Glenda Young credits her local library in the village of Ryhope, where she grew up, for giving her a love of books. She still lives close by in Sunderland and often gets her ideas for her stories on long bike rides along the coast. A life-long fan of Coronation Street, she runs two hugely popular fan websites.

Social Media Links – 

For updates on what Glenda is working on, visit her website glendayoungbooks.com and to find out more find her on Facebook/GlendaYoungAuthor and Twitter @flaming_nora.

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BLOG TOUR: The Miner's Lass - Glenda Young

'You're a Dinsdale lass, Ruby. Nothing and no one keeps us lot down.'

A life of poverty in a cramped pit cottage is all that seventeen-year-old Ruby Dinsdale has known. Even with her father and younger brother working at the coal mine, money is tight. Her mother Mary is skilled at stretching what little they have, but the small contribution Ruby makes from her job at the local pub makes all the difference. So when Ruby is sacked, and Mary becomes pregnant again, the family's challenges are greater than ever.

When charming miner Gordon begins to court Ruby it seems as though happiness is on the horizon, until she uncovers a deeper betrayal than she could ever have imagined.

But although the Dinsdales are materially poor, they are rich in love, friendship and determination - all qualities that they will draw on to get them through whatever lies ahead.

What did I think?

If you’re thinking you don’t read sagas, then think again; you’ve not read Glenda Young’s sagas!  The Miner's Lass is Glenda's sixth saga and it is absolutely brilliant.  As soon as I opened the book I was transported to Ryhope in 1919 and I simply couldn't put it down.

The Dinsdale family rely on every penny that comes into their small cottage so when Ruby finds herself out of work she needs to find a new job fast.  Ruby's brother Michael will be old enough to go down the mine with his dad when he turns 14 and oh how my heart broke for him; it's almost unimaginable today to think of children working underground in such awful and dangerous conditions.  The whole community revolved around the pit and this was portrayed beautifully in The Miner's Lass.

Life is rarely considered easy but it was definitely a much harder life 100 years ago.  Families didn't have much money to live on but everyone helped each other out and they found joy in the little things.  Mental health is so important these days so it was interesting to read about the local asylum and how men used to drop off their troublesome women at the door.  It's shocking when you think about it as many people should have never been sent there.

So, whilst The Miner's Lass is a wonderful story of family, friendship and community there's so much more to experience in this outstanding novel.  It's packed full of drama and challenges for the characters and it gives us a glimpse of what life was like in an early 20th century coal mining community.  The characters are portrayed so vividly that they virtually leap out from the page as we experience every trial and tribulation with them.

Written with warmth, drama and a bit of humour, The Miner's Lass is hugely entertaining from start to finish.  Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down and I read it in one sitting.  I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it and it's an easy 5 stars.

I received an ARC from the publisher to read and review for the blog tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

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Amazon

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BLOG TOUR: The Paper Mill Girl - Glenda Young

 

'She's just a paper mill girl.'

Seventeen-year-old Ruth Hardy works long hours at Grange Paper Works, with her younger sister Bea, and spends her free time caring for their ailing parents. Their meagre income barely covers their needs, so when Bea reveals that she is pregnant out of wedlock, Ruth knows even tougher times are ahead.

Ruth's hard work at the mill does not go unnoticed and it looks as though her luck might turn when she's promoted. But when the arrival of Bea's baby girl ends in tragedy, Ruth is left with no choice but to bring up her niece herself. However, news of Ruth's plan brings a threatening menace close.

Although Ruth's friendship with the girls at the mill, and the company of charming railway man, Mick Carson, sustain her, ultimately Ruth bears the responsibility for keeping her family safe. Will she ever find happiness of her own?

What did I think?

Glenda Young is definitely an author not to be missed when it comes to family sagas and I have been a fan of hers since I read Pearl of Pit Lane almost a year ago.  Although tinged with sadness, The Paper Mill Girl is a wonderfully heart-warming novel filled with strong, colourful characters that I took to my heart.

I loved the main character of Ruth Hardy; dedicated to looking after her unexpectedly expanding family, Ruth is also the best friend a girl could have.  Friendship plays a huge part in the book as the rag room girls work, laugh and love together.  In a time where every penny counts, they are always willing to share what they have and look after each other and their lunchtime outings never failed to put a smile on my face.

Set in 1919, it's a stark reminder that it's very much a man's world and Ruth is in the unenviable position of being the sole breadwinner as the Hardy family struggles to keep a roof over their heads in the back room of the Guide Post Inn.  It's shockingly amusing that men always find money for beer whilst their wives could be at home boiling the bones of a chicken to feed their family.  I'd take beer over chicken any day though!

I'm not ashamed to say that I shed a tear or two while I was reading The Paper Mill Girl.  Glenda Young's beautifully warm writing really brings the characters to life and I experienced their emotions alongside them.  I was positively beaming towards the end of the book and tears of happiness brimmed in my eyes but I quickly blinked them away so I could keep reading as I didn't want to miss a single word.

I always look forward to reading the author's note in Glenda Young's books as her research is outstanding and adds authenticity to the story.  I actually didn't realise that Sunderland had a paper mill and even though I've had a book in my hand for most of my life, I had never considered the composition of paper.  It was really interesting to get a glimpse inside a working mill in 1919 through Glenda's fantastic storytelling.

The Paper Mill Girl is heart-warming, emotional and simply wonderful.  It's perfect escapism and I really can't recommend it highly enough as I absolutely loved it.  If you think family sagas aren't for you, you've never read Glenda Young's books - pick one up today and you'll be converted.

Many thanks to Headline for sending me an ARC to read and review for the blog tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: The Girl with the Scarlet Ribbon - Glenda Young

'You deserve more than this, Jess... You deserve to know the truth about the McNallys.'

When a newborn baby girl is found abandoned with nothing but a scarlet ribbon tied to her basket, Ada Davidson, housekeeper of the wealthy McNally family's home, the Uplands, takes her into her care. Sworn to secrecy about the baby's true identity, Ada names her Jess and brings her up as her own, giving Jess no reason to question where she came from.

But when Ada passes away, grief-stricken Jess, now sixteen, is banished from the place she's always called home. With the scarlet ribbon the only connection to her past, will Jess ever find out where she really belongs? And will she uncover the truth about the ruthless McNallys?

What did I think?

I've only recently discovered local Sunderland author Glenda Young and what a fabulous discovery she is.  Living in the North East, it's almost obligatory to have family sagas in your library and I read a fair few in my youth.  I thought my saga reading days were over until Glenda Young hooked me with her proggy mat hook in Pearl of Pit Lane so I was very eager to read her new book, The Girl with the Scarlet Ribbon; so eager in fact that I read it in just two sittings over the course of 24 hours.

One of my favourite things to discover in a book is a map and I love the map of Ryhope, Sunderland from 1919 that Glenda Young has included in the front of the book.  They certainly had a lot of pubs in such a small area back then, but with Ryhope being a mining community the men working underground all day certainly deserved a pint or two after their shift.

The main character of Jess is such an outstanding character; I felt very protective of her possibly due to the reader being there at her birth in 1903.  Left on the steps of the McNally house in a basket with a scarlet ribbon attached to the handle, Jess is taken in by housekeeper, Ada.  Jess has such a happy life with Ada, despite James McNally's attempts to erase her existence, until Ada dies and Jess suddenly finds herself homeless and alone at 16 years old.  I really felt for Jess but she shows that she's made of stronger stuff and that horrible James McNally better watch out for the whiplash of karma.

Although very character driven, and what wonderful characters they are, the writing is so vivid that I felt as if I was walking through Ryhope village myself.  I certainly felt like I was on the beach in one particular scene with Glenda Young's evocative writing giving me goosebumps.  I love the little elements of Sunderland history that Glenda includes in her impeccably well researched novel, namely Sunderland's famous Vaux beer and the heartbreaking Victoria Hall disaster.

Glenda Young is an extraordinarily talented storyteller and The Girl with the Scarlet Ribbon is a wonderful story from beginning to end; it's more heartwarming than a roaring coal fire.  Superbly written, the storyline is compelling and surprising with characters that are so vivid they virtually leap out from the page.  I absolutely loved it and wholeheartedly recommend it.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

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BLOG TOUR: Pearl of Pit Lane - Glenda Young

When her mother dies in childbirth, Pearl Edwards is left in the care of her aunt, Annie Grafton. Annie loves Pearl like her own daughter but it isn't easy to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. Annie knows the best way to supplement their meagre income is to walk the pit lane at night, looking for men willing to pay for her company.

As Pearl grows older she is unable to remain ignorant of Annie's profession, despite her aunt's attempts to shield her. But when Pearl finds herself unexpectedly without work and their landlord raises the rent, it becomes clear they have few choices left and Annie is forced to ask Pearl the unthinkable.

Rather than submit to life on the pit lane, Pearl runs away. She has nothing and nowhere to go, but Pearl is determined to survive on her own terms...

What did I think?

I have to be honest and say that I was a bit nervous about reading Pearl of Pit Lane as I don't usually read sagas but I am so glad that I made an exception for Glenda Young.  I clapped my hands with glee when I opened the book and found a map of Ryhope in 1919 (the setting of the book); I do love maps in a book as they really help to bring the story to life.  I enjoyed Pearl of Pit Lane so much more than I expected and Pearl's story is so compelling that I found myself reading just one more chapter until I'd devoured every single page.

I'm from the North East so I was brought up reading Catherine Cookson books and it's inevitable that any sagas based in the North East will be compared to Dame Catherine's famous novels.  So it is praise indeed to say that Pearl of Pit Lane would definitely come top of my Catherine Cookson chart any day.  Through her vivacious and descriptive writing, Glenda Young has an amazing ability to bring her characters and scenery to life and breathes new life into the tired and dusty saga genre.

Pearl is such a brilliant character with an outstanding story; brought up by her Aunt Annie in the shadow of the local colliery and living in squalor, the pair don't have two pennies to rub together.  Annie's meagre income in the shop they live above doesn't even pay the rent so she is forced to sell herself on the street.  When Annie's debts mount up, she can only see one way out of the hole she finds herself in and that's for Pearl to walk the streets with her.  Pearl is such a strong, steely character that she runs away to the village in search of work rather than follow in her Aunt's footsteps and her story just gets better and better from there, although I'm not saying any more about the plot.

Surrounding Pearl are some tremendous characters; I've already mentioned her Aunt Annie but there's also her friend Joey, Reverend Daye the benevolent vicar, Jackson the local bad guy who keeps crossing paths with Pearl, Jim the grocer who takes a chance on Pearl despite the protestations of his wicked witch of the west wife Renee, and last but by no means least Boot the dog who stays by Pearl's side watching out for her.  Such a colourful cast of characters brought amazing depth to the story and brought the whole book to life.

Pearl of Pit Lane is an exceptional and impeccably well researched novel by Glenda Young; Glenda even joined a clippy mat workshop so she could write about Pearl's creations and I'm sure she visited a few of Ryhope's pubs, purely for research, of course!  I found Pearl of Pit Lane surprising enthralling; I'd given myself a couple of days to read it because I thought I would struggle to connect with a saga, however, I was riveted from start to finish and ended up reading it cover to cover within 24 hours.  I can't praise Pearl of Pit Lane highly enough and I would recommend it to all; it's nice to escape to the past sometimes and I loved seeing Ryhope (in Sunderland) through Glenda Young's eyes.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon




About the author:

Glenda Young is a short story award-winner, her fiction is regularly published in Take a Break and My Weekly.  Glenda also writes Riverside, the first weekly soap opera for The People's Friend.  She credits her local library in the village of Ryhope, where she grew up, for giving her a love of books.  She runs two hugely popular Coronation Street fan websites which both respectively have an impressing and international following, with 20k on Facebook, 32k on Twitter and a mailing list of 4.5k.

For updates on what Glenda is working on, visit her website: glendayoungbooks.com.  You can also find Glenda on Facebook: @GlendaYoungAuthor and Twitter: @flaming_nora.

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BLOG TOUR: War Orphans - Lizzie Lane

I simply could not resist the cute puppy on the front of Lizzie Lane's War Orphans, so I was delighted to be invited to host a stop on the blog tour.  You can read my review after Lizzie's guest post on her canine influences for War Orphans.

Canine Influences on War Orphans - Guest Post by Lizzie Lane

OK. I fully admit I’ve always been a sucker for big brown eyes, the kind begging you to say ‘yes’ when you’ve already said ‘no.’

Silky hair also helps and I am not prejudiced as to colour, breed or questionable pedigree.

Rusty was not top drawer but the first time I saw his big brown eyes looking up at me, I was smitten.

He was an Irish Red Setter and I bought him purely as a pet, though he went on to open other doors I never knew existed.

Thanks to Rusty I became more and more involved in all things canine. I entered dog shows, I acquired more dogs, I ran dog training classes, I even judged at dog shows.

I learned a log from my canine friends, number one being that they are totally loving, totally loyal and will be with you till the end no matter what daft things you do or what dangers you lead them into.

There was always a wet nose to nudge me out of my dark mood or away from my work. One look from those heavenly velvet eyes was enough to remind you that there was fresh air outside, a chance to stretch your legs and go chase rabbits. Rusty did the chasing though never caught any.

It was Rusty that came to mind when I first read about the wholesale destruction of dogs at the outbreak of war. The rush to euthanize was so massive that dead animals were left in heaps outside vets, PDSA and RSPCA waiting rooms. Even the rendering companies who reduced the animals to glue were inundated.

Horrified and fascinated, I felt compelled to write a story against that appalling background. To do that I needed to channel my emotions and imagine how it felt to abandon a dearly loved pet, one who so dearly loved in return.

After all these years it was Rusty who came to mind. I lost him when he was nine years old. He left home, somehow got lost and I never saw him again.

I became Joanna, the little girl in War Orphans who finds the abandoned puppy. Her cat had already been destroyed. She is determined to protect the cocker spaniel puppy she names Harry.

For me Rusty lives on through Harry even if only in a book. Both endowed with big brown eyes and silky coats, gave unconditional love and helped people heal; a fitting memorial I think.

Thanks so much for your guest post, Lizzie!  What a fabulous testament to Rusty; I'm sure many readers will relate to their own beloved family pets when reading War Orphans.  To find out what I thought of War Orphans, read on for my review.

If at all possible, send or take your household animals into the country in advance of an emergency. If you cannot place them in the care of neighbours, it really is kindest to have them destroyed." 

Joanna Ryan’s father has gone off to war, leaving her in the care of her step-mother, a woman more concerned with having a good time than being any sort of parent to her. 

But then she finds a puppy, left for dead, and Joanna’s becomes determined to save him, sharing her meagre rations with him. But, in a time of war, pets are only seen as an unnecessary burden and she is forced to hide her new friend, Harry from her step-mother and the authorities. With bombs falling over Bristol and with the prospect of evacuation on the horizon can they keep stay together and keep each other safe?

What did I think?

I don't read as many wartime sagas as I used to but when I saw the puppy on the front of War Orphans I was powerless to resist. Although I don't have any pets of my own, I do consider myself an animal lover and dogs seem to recognise this in me, as I'm a bit of a dog magnet as well as a book magnet.  War Orphans is based around a true story, that of so many household pets who were put to sleep during World War II, many of them by less than humane methods.  We take the time to remember all of the fallen on Remembrance Day and we shouldn't forget the plight of so many innocent animals.  Through War Orphans, we will remember them.

Joanna's mum died when she was 6 so her father remarried, as men did in those days, to provide Joanna with a mother to care for her.  Only Elspeth, the woman her father chose, wasn't quite as maternal as he thought - a fact that she hides from her new husband. Elspeth is very selfish and only looks after herself, so when Joanna's dad goes off to war, Joanna doesn't look forward to returning home from school.  One day, when she is playing beside a stream after school, she sees what she thinks is a rat but on closer investigation turns out to be a puppy clinging onto life.  She rescues the puppy, names him Harry and hides him in an abandoned shed at the local allotments.  Joanna doesn't know this at the time, but the shed belongs to her teacher's dad, Seb Hadley.

Seb Hadley lives with his daughter, Sally, who is Joanna's teacher.  Seb is struggling after the loss of his wife and doesn't leave the house.  After some nagging from Sally to 'dig for victory' and grow their own vegetables, he visits his neglected allotment where he finds Harry living in his shed.  Seb can see that Harry is being fed and watered so he wonders who is looking after this lovely puppy.  He sees Joanna visiting Harry after school and it isn't long before the pair strike up an unlikely friendship.

War Orphans, although being based around such a disturbing storyline, is such a heart-warming read with characters we can liken to those in our favourite fairytales.  Elspeth is the traditional wicked stepmother to Joanna's Cinderella and Seb may very well be Joanna's Fairy Godfather.  Harry's part is the prince who steals all our hearts - he certainly stole mine!

I enjoyed War Orphans more than I expected so I gave it a well deserved 5 stars.  It is quite heart-breaking at times, with both human loss and the plight of the animals, but like all good fairytales it ends with a heart-warming happily ever after.

I received this book from the publisher, Ebury Press, in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

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