The Dress Shop on King Street
by Ashley Clark

Stirring, moving, and heartfelt, The Dress Shop on King Street was so much more layered than I had anticipated it would be, and I mean that in the best way possible. There were so many twists and turns throughout the book that I totally did not expect, and it resulted in a truly memorable reading experience.

I loved Millie. She was so strong and so endearing. My heart truly went out to her as I read of her trials. Life threw so much at her, but she always held her own and stood strong despite this. She’s definitely the type of character I would want to get to know in real life. I also liked our contemporary heroine, Harper. She was sweet with a good dose of tenacity and I appreciate that she didn’t give up on her dreams, even when things weren’t easy and she felt like throwing in the towel.

Clark’s writing style was completely endearing. Her words come alive and wrap themselves around your heart. I absolutely adored her style; it’s sentimental with a southern flair, but it’s also snappy and keeps you turning pages. It is definitely something readers will want to experience for themselves. All the little touches she incorporates in her story just bring the book to life; the descriptions of Charleston, the details of the dress shop and the pieces Harper and Millie reworked, it all added to the reading experience.

The Dress Shop on King Street was a refreshing novel by an author I will be following for years to come. An original in the CBA market, this is a novel that I would recommend to anyone, and it is a book that we all need right now.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Bethany House through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is an amazing story that switches between present and past but comes full circle in the end. I found it to be beautifully written with wonderful characters. I loved this book. Most definitely it’s a keeper.

A passion for fashion over generations and racial adversity all wrapped into a lovely read! The Dress Shop on King Street was a beautiful tale of a multi-racial woman, struggling with her identity in an intolerant society. Wonderful characters in this novel filled with love, history, bravery and secrets. Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for the e-reader for review. All opinions are my own.

This is a well-written dual timeline story. Both parts are interesting. The past shows you Millie's beginnings while the present shows where she is today until the two merge at the end. It's fascinating and heartbreaking. Millie is a bi-racial woman who had to leave behind part of her heritage to stay safe and to keep her family safe. She and her husband had to make gut-wrenching decisions. It's helpful learning more about what life was like in these situations.

I LOVED Franklin. His and Millie's relationship was beautiful. He is the best of men. Harper and Peter in the present are interesting too. They are drawn to restoring what is old and falling apart so that its story shines again in beauty.

I enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it. I'll definitely be keeping a look out for the next book in the Heirloom Secrets series.
Thank you to Bethany House for providing me with a free e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

The Dress Shop on King Street is a beautiful masterpiece based on history, mystery and the puzzle of life. I couldn’t put it down! Ashley Clark did a wonderful job weaving lives together through various events. I would highly recommend this book!

"How could a heritage half-denied bring a life fully lived?"

The Dress Shop on King Street is a fascinating story about two women whose lives are intertwined in ways they never imagined. It's hard to believe this skillfully crafted time-slip novel is Ashley Clark's debut!

Although they share a love of dressmaking, Millie and Harper are different in many ways. Living in the South in the 1940s, Millie was able to pass as white but struggled with feeling like she was abandoning her heritage. In the present day, Harper is facing rejection of a different kind - in her education and career. When she and Millie decide to open a dress shop together, pursuing their shared dream brings them both healing and new relationships they didn't expect. Peter was a kind, endearing hero to both Millie and Harper. I really enjoyed seeing how all the threads of the different timelines and characters came together in the end!

One of the hallmarks of a great novel is relatable characters, even when their experiences are so different from your own. Those kinds of stories remind us of the humanity we share, and that was definitely the case in this book! This story of second chances, forgotten dreams, and sacrificial love will stick with you long after the last page. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series in May 2021!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Ashley Clark’s debut full length novel does not disappoint! I was drawn to the era Clark chose to write in as well as the geographical area. We once lived in the same county as Fairhope.
I adore split time fiction, and Clark fuses the timelines together seamlessly. Character development is great as well as the pace of the plot.

I’m greatly anticipating her next novel which looks just as lovely as the first!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to give a positive review, and all opinions are my own.

A Story To Be Savored
This is a generational story to be savored. The author truly captures the different eras; the fears, ambition, desperation. Mostly, the helping hands that brought up one generation after another, each doing a bit better than the last. Striving to achieve our dreams, passing dreams on, helping others achieve their dreams are all part of who we are. This is an American story lived by all heritages, colors, and faiths. I love this story. It is so in tune with the stories I was told by my parents and grandparents. Our times may be different, but our emotions are the same. I received this ARC book for free from Net Galley and this is my honest review.

The Dress Shop on King Street
by Ashley Clark
Back of the Book: “Harper Dupree has pinned all her hopes on a future in fashion design. But when it comes crashing down around her, she returns home to Fairhope, Alabama, and to Millie, the woman who first taught her how to sew. As Harper rethinks her own future, long-hidden secrets about Millie's past are brought to light.
In 1946, Millie Middleton--the daughter of an Italian man and a Black woman--boarded a train and left Charleston to keep half of her heritage hidden. She carried with her two heirloom buttons and the dream of owning a dress store. She never expected to meet a charming train jumper who changed her life forever . . . and led her yet again to a heartbreaking choice about which heritage would define her future.
Now, together, Harper and Millie return to Charleston to find the man who may hold the answers they seek . . . and a chance at the dress shop they've both dreamed of. But it's not until all appears lost that they see the unexpected ways to mend what frayed between the seams.”
Impressions: I read through 11% of this book and decided the back and forth of characters was too much. I fully planned to move on to the next book but the next day I convinced myself to give this book another chance and I am glad I did. This was a wonderful story full of emotion.
Rating: Slavery: selling a child, segregation, hate crimes: murder, labor and delivery, train hopping
Liked: I loved Millie’s journey. I have no experience to any of the history that Millie and her family faced which made this book special as it opened my heart and mind to history.
Disliked: The beginning was a bit all over the place and the ending was too perfectly pulled together. Sometimes too much detail is boring and leaves too little to the imagination.
Quotes: “If God thought her life worth living without her daughter, who was she to question His timing?”
“No matter how long it takes, Harper Rae, when your Jubilee tide comes in, make sure your nets are good and ready.”
“God’s timing don’t always match ours, and that’s okay.’ She slowly blew out a deep breath. ‘Sometimes we believe a lie about ourselves is the truth because we’ve got its identity wrong. We trust it and give it far more than its fair share of our energy.”
“But if God gave you a dream you’d better listen. You just remember that God knows the how and the why though the when may be frustrating.”
“But you also can’t ignore the thing that keeps your soul alive, because I believe God puts that sort of stuff in us for a reason. That He speaks to us through it. God is faithful, and when He calls you to something, He will also give you the means, even if it doesn’t look as expected.”
“And love was not a yardstick to which she ought to be comparing. Loss was loss, and grief was grief.”
“Stop looking at all that’s going wrong and consider all that’s going right.”
“… a bloodline was like a river- changing, branching, ever flowing- until grace upon grace sweeps across history and the past begins to pull with the tide of the now.”
I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review shared here.

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing me with a digital ARC of this title via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I loved the cover, loved the title, and was totally drawn in after reading the summary. This is my kind of book and I was excited to get my hands on an advanced copy. I was not disappointed. I was quickly drawn into the characters and their stories. I wanted them to succeed, wanted to find out their ending. I loved the interlacing storylines and how they all came together. This was a thoroughly enjoyable and thoughtful read. Definitely a title I would recommend to friends.

The Dress shop on King Street is Millie's journey back to those early days when life seemed to be full of dreams of owning her own dress shop. An excellent seamstress, she longed to create beautiful fashions in her own shop. Fate and circumstances changed her life forever when she left Charleston for Fairhope Alabama. Along the way, she met her wonderful husband and began a life that may have seemed temporary at first, just until she was able to open that dress shop. Then, after the birth of her daughters, she begins to straddle two worlds. As the story unfolds, so to does a mystery of Millie's true identity and links to a past that she was finally ready to rediscover.

Millie is a wonderful character and this reader wanted to learn more about her. Ashley Clark has captured the spirit of a woman who led a very private life because of the circumstances of her birth. Mysterious and beautiful, accomplished and shy. She held secrets in her heart, yet her husband loved her for who she truly was. Her signature red hat was her trademark companion over decades that brought love, pain and changes in a world that was very different than that day in 1946 when she was looking into that dress shop on King street. I enjoyed reading this book and thank #BethanyHouse and #netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

"We will live fragile lives, my dear Harper, if we avoid that which is delicate for fear it might break at the seams."

Harper Albright has dreamed of working in fashion design since childhood. She has had her hopes dashed and returns home to Fairhope, Alabama to lick her wounds. At her father's suggestion, she visits Millie Middleton, the woman who taught her to sew. There as she contemplates her future, we are given glimpses into Millie's past.

"Because I am proud of my heritage, no matter what the law and society think. I am proud of my mother and my mother's mother and all the rest who came before me. Without them, I wouldn't carry these dreams."

Millie Middleton left Charleston in 1946 to keep half of her heritage hidden. She brought with her dreams of owning a dress shop and two signature buttons. Along the way she meets a charming train jumper, and her life and dreams are changed forever.


Harper and Millie have both dreamed of owning dress shop and decide to go to Charleston to open a dress shop of their own. Along the way secrets from Millie's past will be revealed. As we learn about the past, we are also given a glimpse into what the future might hold.

“...she caught her heart before it grew wings and floated away like a butterfly."


The Dress Shop on King street is a beautiful book about two women and their dreams. It deals with various themes such as identity, race, racism, hope, dreams, love, friendship, skill, secrets, acceptance and family. Some characters are left to deal with hard choices and the consequences of making those choices. We will watch them dream, hope, experience doubt, have their dreams altered and see them struggle, overcome, love, and keep moving forward. I also really enjoyed their friendship and exchanges with each other.

This book is both heartbreaking and heartwarming. It is also filled with hope and love. This book was a pleasure to read. I enjoyed both characters but had a soft spot for Millie. Both timelines were interesting abut again, Millie's back story was the one that really moved me. I look forward to more books in the series and learning more about the characters and their lives.

Thank you to Bethany House Publishers and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

The character development in this novel is superb. Readers will find themselves being woven into the fabric of Harper and Millie’s stories. The theme of holding onto one’s hopes and dreams even through the most discouraging of times will encourage many a flagging spirit as Ashley Clark’s characters impart great wisdom and spiritual guidance. The theme of racial tension and violence will reach to the past and touch the present. This novel and the stories held within will touch your heart. It is one of those books you will not soon forget. I am grateful to have received a complimentary copy from Bethany House via NetGalley without obligation. All opinions expressed here are my own.

I'll start with a disclaimer, I don't like romance novels very much, so my lower than average rating reflects that bias. The story in this novel was interesting though and the author's blending of the past with modern day was done very well. I enjoyed Millie's and Franklin's chapters set in the past much more than I did the modern day romance between Harper and Peter, but that's probably just because I found their story much more interesting.

This is my first read by Ashley Clark and I am newer to historical fiction reads. Harper, at present time, hard at work in a school for fashion design, with a desire to open her own dress shop. Millie, 1964, story begins with a force to leave her mom for a chance at a future. Harper's dream comes to a screeching halt when the result of her last dress is titled undesirable by her instructor. Harper lost on her next move travels home in which she reconnects with her mentor. Millie and Harper find themselves traveling to Alabama to begin the endeavor of making their dreams come true. The storyline was great of the chance to go after what it is that you want. I liked the dynamic of secrets unfolding for both Harper and Millie. Little bit of a slow read for me.

This book seamlessly wove between two time periods, one where Millie is a young woman in 1946 and the other as a woman in her 90s that befriends a young woman that wants to open a dress shop like Millie had dreamed to do decades earlier. Millie left home in 1946 due to racial tensions and to hide that she is biracial. Her mother urged her to leave home and pursue her dream of owning her own shop. The writing of this book was so vivid that it was easy to imagine the location. I cannot wait to read more from this very talented author.

This was a beautifully-written book with lovable characters. Told in dual timelines, it follows the stories of Millie and Harper, two women from different time periods, with the same dream of opening a dress shop. The only problem I had was that I personally had a bit of a hard time following the connection between the two women, and a third character (Peter). I think the author could have made it a little more seamless, which is what kept me from giving five stars as opposed to four. .

But there were many positive aspects to this book. Millie is such a great character and we get to follow her from age 9 to 90. I loved her relationships with all of the other characters - Peter, Harper and her husband, Franklin. Also, I loved the setting of Charleston, which is one of my favorite cities. I enjoyed Clark's descriptions of the city both past and present, and the snippets of Charleston history.

The issue of racism is a major theme, without being overwhelming. Millie is the daughter of an Italian man and black woman who spends her life struggling with how to honor both sides of her heritage.. While this is a major part of the story it is handled very sensitively.

Finally, I loved the message of never giving up on your dreams! Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy of this book. I look forward to the next in the series.

This was not a really good one for me. Millie was ok and i really like the first few chapters...but then i kind of got bored? i didn`t feel like the character had chemestry :/

The Dress Shop on King Street, by Ashley Clark, is book one in the Heirloom Secret Series. This is a story that covers several generations and the keepsakes they treasure. When Harper’s dress is rejected she leaves school and goes to visit Millie, the lady who taught her to sew. Millie is a 90 year old lady that left her home at a young age to hide the fact she is part Black. One of her ancestors was sold at just 9 years old and carried with her a pouch that contained 2 buttons. This was passed down through the family and was found at a sale by Peter, Millie’s grandson.

This is a wonderful book to read that shows the readers how it was during different times in our history for the Black people. This is a hard book to read as it shows the decisions they had to make as well as how they were treated. This story shows how Millie left her home to have a chance at a normal life. And when her twin daughters were born, she had to make the decision to separate them to keep them safe. This resulted in Peter not knowing who she really was. I enjoyed reading this story, that is based on a true person, and how the author brings the two women together to fulfill a common dream. This story is well written and very descriptive. It was easy to imagine what the buttons, dresses and the surroundings looked like.

I received an ebook copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley, this is my honest review.

What was it like to be mixed race back in the war years? And what if possibly you could pass for white? What was the right thing to do?

Harper has long dreamed of having her own dress shop but when things don't work out like she'd hope she turns tale and takes herself home to the woman who encouraged her love of sewing.

Millie also once dreamed of having her own dress shop. A dress shop on King Street to be exact. And with that dream come memories. Lots of them that bring out who she was and who she is.

Can Harper help Millie achieve her dreams and also find her way? And then add in one handsome young man who is obsessed with his family history and things start getting better and better.

I loved the genealogy aspect of this novel and the look at history. History is definitely something that interests me. This book takes place in the deep south and so there is racism and segregation that need to be read about and dealt with by our characters.

And there is also a love story and a mystery that must be solved. I loved this book and really hope you give it a read as I think you will too.

I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received through Netgalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC regulations.