The Patchwork Girls by Elaine Everest is a moving story about the ties of friends and family, set during the turbulence of the Second World War.
1939. After the sudden and tragic loss of her husband, Helen is returning home to her mother’s house in Biggin Hill, Kent – the one place she vowed she’d never go back to again.
Alone and not knowing where to turn, Helen finds herself joining the local women’s sewing circle despite being hopeless with a needle and thread. These resourceful women can not only make do and mend clothes, quilts and woolly hats, but their friendship mends something deeper in Helen too. Lizzie is a natural leader, always ready to lend a helping hand or a listening ear. Effie has uprooted her life from London to keep her two little girls away from the bombing raids, and the sewing circle is a welcome distraction from worries about how to keep a roof over their heads and about her husband too, now serving in active duty overseas.
When the reason for Helen’s husband’s death comes to light, her world is turned upside down yet again. The investigating officer on the case, Richard, will leave no stone unturned, but it’s not long before his interest in Helen goes beyond the professional.
As she pieces together old fabrics into a beautiful quilt, will Helen patch up the rifts in her own life?
A Beautifully Spun Tale!
Another fabulous tale of domestic life in Britain during the second world war!
With the tragic loss of her husband and her home off limits, Helen returns home to her mother’s house in Biggin Hill where she befriends Effie, the housekeeper, who left London to keep her young daughters safe when her husband went off to fight for his country. Lizzie is an expert craftswoman who meets Helen when she shows her quilts to the local sewing circle which Helen – much to her own amazement – joins. With an investigation ongoing into her husband’s death by Richard, an RAF Police Officer, she needs something to distract her. Can creating her own patchwork quilt help Helen smooth out her life?
As always, Elaine Everest has created a lively and interesting read, introducing a subject I knew little about which added that little bit extra to this story. With a wonderfully crafted story and creatively drawn characters, this is an absolutely terrific story! It’s a fine change to read about life outwith the British cities during this time and I was fascinated by all the little details to which this author always gives her attention. There is such a lot going on and this is, as always, a beautifully spun tale which I wallowed in from beginning to end. There is no doubt in my mind that this is a five star read and deserves my recommendation.
My thanks to EDPR for forwarding my copy of this novel, and also for my spot on this tour; this is – as always – my honest, original and unbiased review.
Tags: historical women’s saga
- Format: ebook, paperback, hardcover, audiobook
- Size: 331 pages
- Publisher: Pan
- Publication Date: 14 October 2021
- Book Links:
- https://www.goodreads.com
- https://play.google.com
- https://www.barnesandnoble.com
- https://uk.bookshop.org
- https://www.foyles.co.uk
- https://www.kobo.com
- https://www.whsmith.co.uk
- https://www.waterstones.com
- https://wordery.com
- https://www.amazon.co.uk
Author Details
Elaine Everest is the author of bestselling novels The Woolworths Girls, The Butlins Girls, Christmas at Woolworths and The Teashop Girls. She was born and raised in North-West Kent, where many of her bestselling historical sagas are set. She grew up listening to tales of the war years in her hometown of Erith, which has inspired her own stories.
Elaine has been a freelance writer for 25 years and has written over 100 short stories and serials for the women’s magazine market. She is also the author of a number of popular non-fiction books for dog owners.
When she isn’t writing, Elaine runs The Write Place creative writing school in Hextable, Kent. She now lives in Swanley with her husband, Michael and their Polish Lowland Sheepdog, Henry.
- Twitter: @ElaineEverest
- Facebook: @Elaine.Everest
Grace J Reviewerlady 