Another five star book from Helen Simonson. She has once again crafted an engaging story of English life in the early 20th Century. This time, it’s right after WWI and women have once again been relegated to the sidelines and deprived of the jobs they held during the war.
The story is told from three perspectives, each showing how different groups have been impacted by the return of peace. The first PoV is Constance Haverhill, a woman without prospects. She managed a farm during the war but was released as soon as peace was declared. She’s on a few week visit to the seaside resort of Hazelbourne with Mrs. Fog before she will need to start the search for a job. There, she meets Poppy, a free spirited woman of means who runs a motorcycle club for women. The second POV is that of Harris, Poppy’s brother. A pilot during the war, he lost his leg. Now, England wants to move on and no one wants the reminder of the damage the war wrought. The third POV is that of Klaus, a German born, naturalized English citizen. He was interned on the Isle of Man during the war and has now managed to get a job as a waiter. But his accent means he has to keep a low profile.
Simonson has done a great job of capturing the strict social mores that are just beginning to be loosened as the country enters the 1920s. Quite a few young women are fighting being forced back into the restraints placed on them before the war. She also weaves in enough facts to give a real sense of time and place. For example, the War Practices Act mandated which professions had to be allocated to only men.
I loved that while everyone is glad the war is over, some miss the excitement. Simonson finds the perfect balance between the dark and the light - the depression and worries against the joy of the ride and the friendships. “Constance was moved to see the pain, joy and anguish chase each other across his eyes.” All the characters are fully fleshed out and I came to care for all of the main characters. On the other hand, she has crafted some perfectly wretched villains.
My thanks to Netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book.best-of-2024 netgalley134 s26 comments Karen1,989 511

Having loved “Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand” I was up for this one, knowing that this author has a way of creating characters you want to meet. And, I was not disappointed.

World War I has ended. What happens when women have been in charge while the men have been off to war and then they return and everything changes? What then?

Well, something new comes along for our main protagonist, Constance that opens doors to new beginnings.

It didn’t take me long to feel I had known these many characters as if they had been my own personal friends. The author has a way of making a reader feel invested with what is happening in the story. And even if our main protagonist Constance, may doubt her confidence, readers never do.

This story is a delightful read. Readers will feel they are in the middle of their love stories while developing lifelong friendships.

Yes, the war may have ended, but everything about what happened will feel very close to the characters, and readers will feel the trauma and drama of their experiences.

And, as I said, the characters and the setting will draw readers in from the beginning to the end. It is as colorful and memorable as the book cover.captivating compelling easy-to-read ...more52 s21 comments Sally HananAuthor 8 books149

This is such a beautiful book, filled with the kind of writing that makes you want to highlight every delicious sentence so you can lick the collection of words every now and then a favorite ice cream.
It's not just the words that are lovely, though, it's also the story and the subplots set in a time when women were treated as objects that have their place on a dusty shelf rather than unique individuals with a wealth of personality and much to contribute to society. Simonsen has a lot of fun mocking the social order of post-war life, and her main character has the best lines, a 1940s Persuasion.
The historical research was very well done, with lots of information that was never info-dumped on the reader but parsed superbly throughout the pages.
I hope PBS picks up the book and turns it into a show. A huge well done to the author - a wonderful read.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Random House | The Dial Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.historical-fiction literary netgalley ...more32 s4 comments Lorna827 628

The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club is the latest book by Helen Simonson, an author with a gift of creating all of the pathos and drama of the English countryside after World War I. And in this book taking place in 1919, one is swept up into the social whirl of Hazelbourne-on-Sea as we see a lot of the after effects of the First World War as society is on the brink of social and economic change. Constance Haverhill has been capably keeping the books for an estate but she is about to lose her position and her cottage to make way for the returning soldiers from the front. However, Ms. Haverhill is sent to the seaside hotel as a companion to an old family friend convalescing at the seaside hotel. But the excitement begins as she meets the local baronet’s daughter, Poppy Wirral. Poppy wears trousers and operates a taxi and delivery service employing the local women. Poppy also runs a ladies’ motorcycle club and plans to add flying lessons. And we meet her brother, Harris, a former fighter pilot still reeling with coming to terms with his war injury but warms in the company of Constance. As the country is preparing to celebrate National Peace Day, the women of the ladies’ club are forced to confront the fact that they are about to lose all of the freedoms they had gained during the war.

This beautiful historical fiction novel is written smartly and utterly transporting, refreshing as a summer breeze. I love reading everything Helen Simonson writes as her stories are captivating, warm, and full of joy.

”Harris took a cautious flip around the field, just to test the engine, then steered away for the seafront. . . . In front of him, the girl, Constance, looked about her eagerly, Iris’s pink scarf close around her neck. There was no time now, he thought, to examine the feeling she created in him. He had often felt the fluttering of attraction in the presence of a pretty girl. Even in the depths of his melancholy, it had seemed an almost instinctive reaction. But Constance inspired something deeper. She had pierced his armour as much with her barbed wit as with her beauty, and in the slicing, she had let sunlight into the darkness.”

great-britain historical-fiction pandemic-plague ...more30 s12 comments Wanda Pedersen2,042 428

I shall have to thank my local book shop for recommending this title to me. I might not have picked it up without their nudge and that would have been my misfortune. Mind you, I should have known that the author of Major Pettigrew's Last Stand would produce another incisive commentary on unwarranted prejudices and the ridiculous rules of the class system, all wrapped up in a charming story of female friendship and unexpected romance.

The time frame of the novel was what cinched the deal for me, set in England in 1919 as the Great War has wound to a close. Back in February, I read a nonfiction book, Singled Out, about the societal changes brought about by this war. The loss of so many young men, resulting in “surplus women" who now must plan lives without marriage and with extremely reduced chances to make a living for themselves. Women who had worked steadily and well during wartime were abruptly sent back to the kitchen and the drawing room, pushed back into dependent positions. This novel illustrates the frustrations of these women to perfection.

Constance hopes to find some way to support herself, since her sister-in-law is hostile to her and her family farm is therefore no longer a welcoming haven. Her mother has recently died in the influenza epidemic and she has been left to the mercies of her mother's supposed friend, who considers Constance a burden and treats her as an unpaid servant. Despite the fact that she has nursed this woman's mother through the flu, she now finds herself persona non grata, and is sent on one last mission, accompanying the elder lady on a seaside vacation.

Some consolation comes from making friends with a group of young women who are trying to make a living using their motorcycles, running a taxi service. Constance develops a taste for ripping around the countryside wearing goggles and with her bonnet tied firmly to her head with a sturdy scarf. With her bookkeeping acumen and other practical skills, plus a substantial dose of courage, Constance becomes an asset to the seaside community.

There are many problems to be faced and overcome. I could sympathize and I found myself unwilling to set the book down until I knew the outcome. I would highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates the value of good friends and of knowing your own worth.2024-reading-list female-authors female-friendship ...more21 s Ellery AdamsAuthor 62 books4,597

I absolutely adore another book by this author (Major Pettigrew's Last Stand) and was eager to read her post-war novel featuring unflappable women. I really enjoyed how this book explores the frustrations experienced by women who were gainfully (and happily) employed during wartime, only to be told that their services are no longer needed and that they should return their focus to marriage and child-bearing. I haven't read many novels tackling this subject, and I adored the pluck of Poppy and the ladies of her motorcycle club. Our hero, Constance, is also likable, but her ability to be good at everything and solve all problems made her a little less endearing than her flawed fellow females.

I also admired how Ms. Simonson called out the post-war society for seeing its wounded veterans as whole people who were unfit for work. The idea that a veteran with an obvious injury should be hidden away was repellant but nothing new. Veterans often keep fighting wars long after the official war is over.

I knocked off a star because of Percival, the obtuse American. A bully and a racist, this character had no redeeming qualities and felt very two-dimensional in comparison to the rest of the ensemble. Even the spoiled mayor's son, who commits murder, is presented with shades of gray. I've read several books over the past two years from UK authors with these types of American caricatures, and to me, they're a distraction from an otherwise excellent read. 20 s2 comments Karen R860 520

Enjoyed this spirited and intelligent war story. Memorable characters, humor, and all around touching read. It was meeting up with an old friend.21 s Elizabeth1,196 105

I loved this! ?? It’s so satisfyingly long too. When I finished, I felt happy and also bereft. I wanted to keep reading. I’m already conspiring how to get my own copy. I love Constance! And Mrs Fog! And Poppy! And Harris! And the Maharajah! And Klaus! (Okay you probably get the picture
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