Title: Bloomsbury Girls: A Novel
Author: Natalie Jenner
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: St Martin’s Press (May 17, 2022)
Length: (304) pages
Hardcover ISBN: 978-1250276698
Audiobook ISBN: 978-1250852311
eBook ASIN: B09CNDV5GJ
“One bookshop. Fifty-one rules. Three women who break them all.”
The Internationally Bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society returns with a compelling and heartwarming story of post-war London, a century-old bookstore, and three women determined to find their way in a fast-changing world.
Bloomsbury Books is an old-fashioned new and rare bookstore that has persisted and resisted change for a hundred years, run by men and guided by the general manager’s unbreakable fifty-one rules. But in 1950, the world is changing, especially the world of books and publishing, and at Bloomsbury Books, the girls in the shop have plans:
Vivien Lowry: Single since her aristocratic fiancé was killed in action during World War II, the brilliant and stylish Vivien has a long list of grievances – most of them well justified and the biggest of which is Alec McDonough, the Head of Fiction.
Grace Perkins: Married with two sons, she’s been working to support the family following her husband’s breakdown in the aftermath of the war. Torn between duty to her family and dreams of her own.
Evie Stone: In the first class of female students from Cambridge permitted to earn a degree, Evie was denied an academic position in favor of her less accomplished male rival. Now she’s working at Bloomsbury Books while she plans to remake her own future.
As they interact with various literary figures of the time – Daphne Du Maurier, Ellen Doubleday, Sonia Blair (widow of George Orwell), Samuel Beckett, Peggy Guggenheim, and others – these three women with their complex web of relationships, goals and dreams are all working to plot out a future that is richer and more rewarding than anything society will allow.
From the author: “I never intended for Evie Stone to be a major character in my debut novel, let alone inspire my second one, Bloomsbury Girls. But as time went on, I found I could not leave her behind in Chawton with the other society members. And then one day I rewatched a favourite movie, 84 Charing Cross Road, and I remember thinking, there’s a whole other story in here still to be told, of an upstairs-downstairs motley crew of booksellers, and right away the figures came to life.”
PURCHASE LINKS:
AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | INDIEBOUND | KOBO | GOOGLE PLAY | GOODREADS
BLOOMSBURY GIRLS PAGE AT ST MARTIN’S PRESS:
https://static.macmillan.com/static/smp/bloomsbury-girls/
About the author:
Natalie Jenner is the author of two books, the instant international bestseller THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY and BLOOMSBURY GIRLS. A Goodreads Choice Award finalist for best debut novel and historical fiction, THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY was a USA Today and #1 national bestseller and has been sold for translation in twenty countries. Born in England and raised in Canada, Natalie has been a corporate lawyer, a career coach and, most recently, an independent bookstore owner in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs.
Becky, thank you so much for participating in my cover reveal! I love that you call Evie whip-smart: she really does have the gift, and I can’t wait for you to see her put it to good (and entertaining!) use in my next book. Thanks so much for all your support & keep well!
I can’t wait to read this one! Thanks so much for stopping by 🙂
Thanks for the post, Becky. Evie Stone was one of my favorite characters in The Jane Austen Society so I am so thrilled that Natalie is continuing her story. Best, LA