A wonderful book and look forward to the next book in the series.

Mary Jane is a fighter and a strong willed woman who wants to improve her life. Through circumstances she ends up in Liverpool in Beamer Street. She makes friends with Molly and her daughter Daisy who is neighbours. She starts a business and Cal who lives on the street helps her.

I really enjoyed the characters and could not put the book down. It is well written.

Would recommend this book.

Sheila Riley’s Finding Friends on Beamer Street is a gritty, gripping and addictive saga readers will find hard to put down.

When pregnant Mary Jane’s secret wedding to Paddy Redfern ends in her soon-to-be husband’s murder, she finds herself with no other choice but to go along with Paddy’s twin Red’s plan to flee Ireland for good and settle in Liverpool. Young, naive and trapped, Mary Jane does not think to question Red’s motives and she soon discovers that far from helping her in her hour of need, he has abandoned her in another country where she is homeless, friendless and penniless. What’s Mary Jane going to do now?

Mary Jane has nobody she can turn to, but Lady Luck seems to be smiling down on her when she catches the eye of mysterious Cal Everdine and is befriended by Molly Hayward and her kind-hearted family. However, Mary Jane is still haunted by secrets from her past that are preventing her from following her dreams and forging forward into the future. Can she ever vanquish old ghosts and grasp this chance at a fresh start? Dare she dare hope of a new beginning for herself in Liverpool? Or will she find herself trapped by old sins and past regrets?

With Finding Friends on Beamer Street, Sheila Riley has penned an enjoyable and emotional saga that will keep readers spellbound. Heart-wrenching, dramatic and engrossing, Finding Friends on Beamer Street is a tale about courage, hope, despair and love with plenty of laughter and tears guaranteed to keep readers entertained from beginning to end.

Perfect for saga readers, Finding Friends on Beamer Street is the fabulous first installment of a terrific new series by Sheila Riley.

Ensure that you have a steaming cup of cocoa, perhaps some complementary mint ice-cream and a box of tissues at hand before you dive into this gorgeous book!

Many thanx to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

From page 1 this book held my interest and did so up to the final page! The story was a reminder of how resilient females in that era were!! Also showed how some males treated their women folk! Mary Jane was such a strong willed young lady and hope that the author will make this into a series! I loved the book, a very good story line well written with many colourful characters.

What a wonderful start to a new series and book. I couldn't devour enough of it, Page after page of the struggle and strength of the main character Mary Jane Starling.
Set in Liverpool in the 1920s. Such great characters with a lot of warmth and love and the right amount of betrayal and guilt. This story will carry you along with its determination and emotion.

I can wait for the next installment.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this lovely saga. xx

I don't know about finding friends but I found a new series that I am going to love. This book is about Mary Jane. She found herself in a terrible predicament. But she was a fighter. She had plans.

I couldn't put the book down. It had so many wonderful characters. Her new neighbor, Molly, befriended Mary Jane in her time of need. She became so much more than a friend. Cal, who lived across the street, took a shining to her and helped when he could.

Mary Jane's brother-in-law, Red, was everything you would want to stay away from. I didn't like him at all. He was a leech.

I loved Mary Jane. She was determined to better her life. She thought that to be successful she had to depend only on herself. But she learned that she found wonderful friends on Beamer Street who were there for her.



I received this ebook from #BoldwookBooks to review. How lucky I was to be able to read it!

Finding Friends on Beamer Street is a detailed medium paced story that draws the reader in from the start.

Riley has created an interesting plot by using vivid imagery and research into the 1920s and how the great war affected jobs and lives in the dockside city of Liverpool. The writing style is easy to follow, with a good mixture of description and dialogue. I did find some parts a little repetitive, but it didn’t take away from the overall story.

The character development of Finding Friends on Beamer Street has a good amount of background and flashbacks to keep the reader’s interest. The characters are relatable and realistic, with their own personalities….although, I did find Red’s point of view to unimportant, given the fact that it was only brief and didn’t really have any effect on the story, as it was mainly about Mary Jane and Cal.

Mary Jane is an independent person, with a trusting nature. Her hopes of owning a bakery and tea shop are put on hold when her dreams come crashing down around her. When devious Red announces that Paddy is dead, and her brothers are responsible, Mary Jane is left with no other choice than to flee. Terrified and pregnant, she tries to make a fresh start to protect her unborn child….

Cal is a polite and friendly person. He is his own boss and leads a very private life. Cal first meets Mary Jane when he nearly collides into her, he feels an attraction to her but doesn’t pursue her as he is facing his own personal demons, and feels unworthy of her. Cal tries to help Mary Jane in any way he can….

I would suggest reading Finding Friends on Beamer Street to people who enjoy historical fiction, women's fiction and sagas, as it is an emotive character driven story about friendship, loss and love, as the community supports each other through hardships….

I absolutely adored this book, I always enjoy one about communities and this made me want me to live at Beamer Street ❤️

Most of the characters were endearing (Red 🙄), Mary-Jane is so inspiring, her strength and determination won me over.

I cannot wait to be back with the characters of Beamer Street! This is perfect for historical Fiction fans

Pregnant Mary Jane's secret wedding to Paddy ends in disaster when her fiance is murdered on the way to the church. Paddy's wayward twin, 'Red', intercepts Mary Jane warning her they must flee Ireland never to return, for fear of reprisals from her family. Mary Jane is too young and terrified to question Red's motives and follows him. Mary Jane learns that Red's act, is in fact an act, when he abandons her taking all her money. However, strength, fortitude and good luck save her when she catches the eye of the reclusive Cal and is befriended by Molly and her family. But, Mary Jane still has to live with the overbearing guilt of the secrets she holds. Will she ever be able to follow her dreams and reconcile her past?
Red and Paddy are brothers who don't seem to have much love for each other and this quickly causes chaos. It turns out both brothers have feelings for Mary Jane. Once Paddy is murdered Mary Jane doesn't take the time to ask many questions, she just accepts what Red is telling her, although she knows him to be untrustworthy. She is swept off to Liverpool and quickly realizes that real life is a bit harder than she thought. I wasn't much of a fan of Mary Jane's character because she did a lot of complaining but could have easily solved her problems.
Mary Jane spent a lot of time thinking she was better than everyone around her and honestly everything was handed to her throughout the novel. I was disappointed in this story because many elements seemed thrown in only when it furthered the plot. Cal and Mary Jane don't have much interaction with one another but somehow he feels the need to help her out in insane ways. The book had no romance and honestly was mostly just Mary Jane hating Red but knowing that she needed him to be accepted into society. I'm sure this book is someone's cup of tea but for me it was a let down.

Mary Jane, leaves Ireland feeling this is the better thing to do, but when her situation leaves her homeless she must rely on her neighbour and strength to keep herself going.

This is an excellent start to a new series and I couldn’t get enough, the main character has so much strength that I couldn’t help but empathise with them throughout and admire their attitude to different situations.

This is a heartwarming novel with themes such as friendship, family and loss, and Riley ties these all together brilliantly. This is a great first novel and I look forward to the next.

A brilliant start to a new saga series! I love the strong, determined main character, Mary Jane. She moves to Liverpool after a tragic event in her life but faces leaving Ireland and being left destitute with courage and hope. A great cast of characters around her help to paint a picture of the era and the importance of friends and community then. I hope there will be more to come in the series soon!

This was the first novel I have read by @sheilarileyauthor (or so I thought) I picked up this book and before I knew it, I was nearly at the end, I couldn’t put it down. Mary Jane is such a lovely character and her friendship with Molly and her family is heart warming! I’m looking forward to more stories from Beamer Street as I love a saga novel and loved nearly every character in this novel (Red wasn’t a favourite!) while preparing my review I read that Sheila wrote under the pseudonym Annie Groves, which makes it no surprise I loved this saga novel as I also loved the District Nurse series! As they say you learn something new every day!

Finding Friends on Beamer Sheet is a the first book in a brand new series by Sheila Riley. Mary Jane is pregnant but had to fled Ireland to Liverpool when her fiancé, Paddy is murdered, supposedly by her brothers, with Paddy's twin brother, Red. Mary Jane is a great character - very strong-willed and knows what she wants. She befriends her neighbour Molly who takes her in when she most needs it. Cal had been attracted to Mary Jane since he first set eyes on her when she got off the ferry from Ireland. I can't wait for the next instalment.

My Review: I truly enjoyed Mary Jane’s journey as difficult and tormenting as it was at times, her strength and tenacity make her inspiring. Fleeing Ireland to live in Liverpool after her fiance is killed, she travels with is twin Red to Liverpool, ensuring she is far away from her brothers. Red is a bit of a character and not always the nicest most trustworthy either. Her friendships on Beamer Street also include Cal Everdine. A recommended read. Enjoy.

Mary Jane is pregnant to Paddy, when Paddy is murdered Paddy's twin brother Red tells Mary Jane that they must flee Ireland never to return or face the repercussions of her family. Red promises that they will start over but he soon abandons her. Will Mary Jane be able to make her dreams come true on her own?
I was really inspired by this story as the main character is a strong female that I adored. Mary Jane hasn't had it easy but despite that she is a kind but courageously strong willed character. No matter what life throws at her she seems to tackle it head on and she certainly isn't someone who would have the wool pulled over her eyes but at the same time she is a beautiful, kind and caring human and I loved seeing her friendship with Molly develop.
A captivating story of courage, love, loss and friendship that I relished.

The first in a new saga series and what a great start it is. Strong characters, well written, and a real great book to read. 4 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

Lovely story I really enjoyed this excellent read, if your a fam of Lizzie lane, pam hoses, then this is for you

I enjoyed this book about Mary Jane and her in life in Liverpool after her fiancé is murdered. The story portrays Mary Jane as a very strong character who deals with life’s ups and downs in a positive manner despite hardship and struggles. I look forward to the next instalment.

Even though this isn't my regular I loved this for so many reasons. The story line is full of love, loss, betrayal and a dash of romance. The main characters are well-written, with multi faceted personalities. The narrative is full of so much courage and determination, the story line feels human and relatable. I can not wait for the next installment I am totally hooked.

After enjoying Sheila’s Reckoners Row series I was looking forward to reading this new one. It has got some great characters. Some characters you love and some you love to hate. Mary Jane has a bad start when she’s meant to be starting a new life with her new husband in Liverpool. Mary Jane certainly doesn’t have an easy time of things when she moved to Beamer Street far from her village in Ireland. Not one to quit without a fight Mary Jane does her best despite some knock backs along the way. I look forward to catching up with the Beamer Street residents again hopefully soon