A Mother's Struggle by Kitty Neale

A Mother's Struggle by Kitty Neale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - < 1 day

Pages - 378

Publisher - Avon books

Source - RAK/fairy

Blurb from Goodreads

When Pearl's ex-husband Kevin was sent to prison she left her old life in Battersea behind, determined to protect her son from the truth about his father. But when her dear friend Bessie dies, she is forced to return to the one place she'd rather forget.

While Pearl makes plans to take over Bessie's shop, Kevin is released from jail and begins to swindle his parents for money. Once he gets what he wants, he'll soon be after his child.

Pearl will do whatever it takes to keep her boy out of his father's reach - but will it be enough?



My Review

We have read a fair few of Neale's books so I could have sworn I recognised the characters and maybe they do pop up in the other books as passing characters. I checked and according to Fantasticfiction it is a standalone and previously published under another name. Anyways, Pearl left Battersea after things had gone wrong for her and it is a small town and scandal tends to follow you forever, noone forgets. When circumstances mean Pearl, her husband and kid have to go back she knows she can't keep the past from her child, much as she wants to protect him. Especially when his biological father, Kevin, a wrong yin, is getting out of jail and towns folk gossip. Kevin protrays himself as a man of God now, changed and willing to mend his ways but not only has Kevin not changed but he has plans that will forever change all of their lives.

Ooooh guys, the things with these books are we get characters who, love or hate them, you can't stop reading. Kevin's mum has issues with her mental health and she is also quite a devious woman whose no.1 priority is her angel of a son. The things that she will say and do is nothing short of wicked and she isn't the only one who is shady. We also meet some violent men who have money, muscle, weapons and will do what they need to to protect what they feel is theirs.

Violence, death, threats, secrets, lies, poisoned tongued people ooft it is a mixed bag or questionable morals, aggression and choices that affect not just the people making them. We also see the good side of people and I think that is why it is so easy to loose yourself in this type of book. You have the mundane every day issues/things/small town setting/gossip but then the darker side, manipulation, threats, aggression, violence etc. We have read a few of Neale's and have some more on our TBRM and will eventually get the whole back catalogue, 4/5 for us this time.

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A Wife's Courage by Kitty Neale

A Wife's Courage by Kitty Neale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 404

Publisher - Orion books

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

Can she choose between her husband and her family? London, 1944. With bombs raining over London, keeping the Battersea Tavern open is no easy feat for owner Winnie Berry - but the community need the warmth and familiarity of the pub more than ever. After marriage, Maureen Fanning had moved out to Wandsworth with her bad-tempered husband Brancher. But when he loses both his job and their lodgings, the only people who will take them in are her kindly grandparents, Len and Renee. Getting a cleaning job at the Battersea Tavern is the least she can do to pay them back. It would all be fine... if it weren't for Brancher. Winnie is determined to take timid Maureen under her wing. But when tragedy strikes, it will be up to Maureen to find the strength she didn't know she possessed...Praise for A WIFE'S COURAGE'A fantastic emotional book to the end' 'What a lovely read once again from Kitty Neale.'


My Review

This is listed on FantasticFiction as a standalone however there are characters in this from previous books so I think I will need to go back and buy the others. To be fair I do have a few of hers on my tbrm and read a few anyway. Set in 1940s, world war two is under way and bombs are dropping quite often without warning. Winnie and her pub are still there, offering support where needed within their small community. Maureen I don't remember from the books I have read but she is married to Brancher, ugh he is an utter scumbag. We know early on he is a bully to Maureen, eroding her self confidence and even sense of self but you have no idea just how bad he is.

In this one we see some familiar faces, some new ones and how the community is coping with their own issues/families/dramas and the ever present threat of death from the bombs. It has been a while since I sank a book in a day and Neale takes you to a place where you can just log out of reality and lose yourself in the community that is Battersea.

The book has friendship, love, loss, abuse (emotional/violent/threats of violence), death, racism, attitudes and values of the times. Maureen's character really got under my skin, I think when you have lived with or loved someone who has been in a coercive relationship and seen just how badly they can be made to be and worthless to feel, it is enraging.

This is the latest release from Neale and I look forward to her next, I have many from her back catalogue I haven't read so will be getting them. This was a bargain buy and I got another copy for the BDWB's for my workies as I knew it would be a good one, 4.5/5 for me.

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A Daughter's Disgrace by Kitty Neale

A Daughter’s Disgrace by Kitty Neale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 3 days

Pages - 418

Publisher - Avon books

Source - Gift

Blurb from Amazon

Fractured
Alison is the ugly duckling of her family and has always been treated with disdain by her mother. After years of being bullied, she is drawn to the one man who shows her affection. But when he brutally rapes her, leaving her pregnant, she is cast out.

Forgotten
Shunned by her family, Alison must start to make her own way and plan a life for herself and her unborn child – and for the first time she is master of her own destiny.

Forgiven?
But when the baby arrives, Alison feels no love for her new son. Terrified that history will repeat itself, can she find a way to love her child? And will she ever find the forgiveness she craves from her family?


My Review

Oooft guys this book is *jaw drops* - talk about some shady horrible characters! Alison is the "baby" of the family, the youngest of three daughters and treated abysmally by almost everyone. She is mocked for her looks by family and locals, she is painfully shy as a result. She is such a good egg and just gives and gives whilst her mother and sister Hazel mock, put her down and take more and more. Linda is the eldest and has a soft spot for Alison but she lives away and has her own family. When Alison gets a job in a butchers things start to look up a bit until she is attacked and her whole world is turned upside down.

Now obviously it tells you in the blurb and there is the title too that there is an SA resulting in a pregnancy. I have to just say see if something doesn't happen in the first quarter I don't think it should be mentioned in the blurb as it is a spoiler. If I remember it is almost half way through so just a wee person gripe I have.

Alison's mum and sister Hazel (the middle child and absolutely spoiled) are really repugnant characters. I wanted to hug Alison because regardless of what she does, or how much she gives they never have a kind word for her. Contrasting that, her boss in the butchers is such a nice kind soul and I think against Cora (her mother) and Hazel it really shows the opposites and how bad/good they are.

The book is set in the 50s and Neale captures the authenticity of the time well, I thought. The whole keeping a front on because of the neighbours and judgement(s), saving for what little you had. The judgements - ie wearing lipstick and daring to date/work and the way people looked down on others.

I find these books you can sink into and just block out your own reality, if for just a little while, I have read Neale before and will read again, 4/5 for me this time.

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A Broken Family by Kitty Neale

A Broken Family: An emotional, gripping saga from the Sunday Times bestseller by Kitty Neale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 8 hours (one sitting)

Pages - 401

Publisher - Avon books

Source - Bought

Blurb from Goodreads

A gritty tale of family and a love that holds no bounds, from the best-selling author of Nobody’s Girl and A Father’s Revenge

Celia Frost has always thought herself a cut above the other residents of Lark Rise in Battersea. When her beloved son, Thomas, starts seeing Amy Miller, a girl from the bottom of the Rise, Celia disapproves, thinking her common.

When Celia's husband leaves her and Thomas announces he is to marry Amy, she is more determined than ever to split them up.Celia needs an ally, so she writes to her elder son, Jeremy, asking him to come home.

Jeremy’s arrival unleashes a tide of jealously and hate. He wants everything that belongs to Thomas – especially Amy. As Jeremy’s dangerous obsession for his brother’s wife grows, Amy must fight for her marriage, and her baby.

The heartbreaking new novel from the bestselling author of A Father’s Revenge and Nobody’s Girl.



My Review

I have only read one Kitty Neale book before this one and I want to say it was a blog tour that brought her to my attention, I forgot how much I enjoyed it and will be adding more of hers to my wishlist. Set in Battersea, South London, 1956 we head to a small community with different social standings. For example Amy Millar comes from a working class family, scrimping by, her dad in a low paid job with his post war injury, her mum working double jobs but they are loved and happy. Amy's boyfriend Thomas Frost comes from a different type of family, his dad owns his own business, his mother Celia is a keeping up with the Joneses and feels Amy is far too common for her precious son, her marriage is not an overly happy one. We have wee characters in between, old Winnie next door, Amy's mum looks out for, even missing out on stuff to ensure Winnie does not. Mabel, Amy's mums friend and town busybody who reveals in dramas and gets herself in hot water sometimes. It is quite the small community but the dramas are huge and a plenty.

So guys these types of books often carry some trauma and sexual assault is featured, not in graphic detail but it is mentioned and more than once so heads up. Classism, relationships, friendships, alcohol abuse, poverty and manipulation so there is never really a dull moment.

Amy's family are lovely, despite not having a lot to go around they care for their wee neighbour and absolutely neighbourly whereas Celia Frost has plenty and is just a horrible individual. Overbearing mother, can't let go of the apron strings and I had a hard time feeling any kind of sympathy for her at all she is just a horror. I sank it in one sitting and whilst this was only my second book by this author it will not be my last 4/5 for me this time.

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A Mother's Secret by Kitty Neale Blog tour

Today is my stop on the blog tour for A Mother's Secret by Kitty Neale. Please check out the other stops on the blog tour as we offer different content.

For my stop I have my review, enjoy. The book is available to buy NOW on AMAZON UK.

A Mother's Secret: The Battersea Tavern Series (Book 1) by Kitty Neale
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over 3 days

Pages - 305

Publisher - Orion

Source - Review copy

Blurb from Amazon

Can she put right the secrets of the past?

London, 1939. Winnie Berry has been the landlady of the Battersea Tavern for nearly twenty-five years, and the pub is like home to her - a place of tears and laughter, full of customers that feel like family. A place where she's learned to avoid the quick fists of her husband, and where she's raised her beloved son, David.

He's inherited his father's lazy streak and can't seem to hold down a job, but when war is declared Winnie is determined to keep her son safe. She's still haunted by the choice she made years ago as a desperate young woman, and she won't make the same mistake of letting her family be taken from her...

But when a young woman crosses her path, the secrets of Winnie's past threaten to turn her world upside down. There's nothing stronger than a mother's love - but can it ever have a second chance?

The first book in The Battersea Tavern series



My Review

This is my first ever Kitty Neale book, set just before world war two we meet Winnie, she runs the Battersea Tavern. Her aggressive and known to be violent husband stays behind the scenes letting Winnie do all the hard graft. She dotes on her only son, David, an attractive (and he knows it) spoilt man child who thinks nothing of using his looks and mothers good nature to skate by in life. Rachel is her dab hand barmaid who works hard, is respectable and has her own family nightmare, her sister Hilda, sober she is the sweetest and kindest, drunk she opens her mouth and embarrasses and hurts poor Rachel with her bile. We also meet sweet Jan as she starts up an innocent relationship with one of the regulars in the Tavern. As the story develops we get to meet the characters and more of their lives, belt up and prefer for an emotive ride.

Aw you guys, Winnie is a wee soul, wholesome, she has such a kind heart and always wants to do for others, her goodness is emphasized by the shady characters around her. We see the community in the build up to the war, the disbelief it will come to be and how it affects those in and around Winnie's life. A chance encounter sees Winnie have to face the past and the ripples it creates in her present day life, secrets have a habit of always coming out and it isn't just Winnie who has secrets!

This book pulls you in the pretty much the beginning! There are so many themes touched upon and Neale captures that time period and gives it an authentic voice/feel. I wanted to reach in and slap a few of the characters, honestly the best and worst sides of humanity. An emotive ride for sure, I think depending on your background and life experiences you will find some of the storylines resonate more than others yet all you can either relate to or absorb.

I am finding reading quite hard just now, reading is my go time when times are tough and yet just now my concentration is out the window. I think had this been normal times for me I would have gotten through this in one sitting. Neale creates a world of characters that lets you step outside of your own and enter theirs. Horrific sides of humanity and some of the best, a great blend for an absorbing read, 4.5/5 for me this time. As I said this is my first time reading this author, book two in this series is not out nor a date given, I will be very much watching for it. I will absolutely be checking out her other books!

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