Historical fiction tends to be my comfort read, and I dove headfirst into this one. Howes tells the story of the two daughters of English portrait painter, Thomas Gainsborough. From a young age, Peggy watches over her older sister, Molly, who suffers from mental illness and has spells where she isn’t herself. But nothing can be kept secret for that long as more people are invited into their inner circle, and the small world Peggy grew up in steadily expands.

With colorful, observant writing, Howes explores the forbidden, and all that’s hidden underneath a pretty surface. I especially enjoyed her writing about the act of painting, and the small details that might escape other peoples’ notice. In a novel where not much happens, Howes makes the story feel unrelenting as we wait for the pin to drop. The crescendo is dramatic and scintillating, exploring what one might do to protect someone they love.

A stunning debut, and I look forward to more from Howes!

Based upon the real-life daughters of Thomas Gainsborough, a famous painter from the 1700s - Molly and Peggy are as close as sisters as they are friends. The older sister, Molly, begins to show signs of madness, younger sister, Peggy, swears to keeping Molly's secret, even from her parents. As they enter society, the secret becomes harder to keep.

This historical fiction is gripping and fascinating. Highly recommend!

I love this interesting and beautifully written story of the daughters of Thomas Gainsborough, portrait painter in England in the 1700's. Peg is the younger daughter and she is intelligent and logical as she works to protect her fragile older sister, Molly, who suffers from an undetermined mental health issue where she has stretches of time that she has no memory of and behaves out of character. Of course mental health was not something that was respected and well cared for in the 1700's, so Peg devotes herself to caring and protecting Molly as they grow up.

Such an interesting story and so beautifully written. I loved the author's word choice and beautiful turns of phrase.

Thank you for my copy!

A very well done historical fiction of the lovely daughters in Gainsborough's paintings. Do a quick review of family history first to better understand Meg and the royalty surrounding the family because that part is not explained well.

The story about the daughters was great (their relationship, falling in love with an older musician, Peg taking care of Molly.) The surrounding story could have been better explained.

Overall, enjoyable.

The Painters Daughters by Emily Howes tells the story of Molly and Peggy the daughters of Thomas Gainsborough. Peggy takes care of her older sister Molly who has a mental illness. A interesting and well researched story. Thank you to NetGallery and Simon and Schuster for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a spectacular and staggering story about the famous artist Thomas Gainsborough and his family. It’s a tale of love, sacrifice, illness, betrayal, and a caring family. All families have secrets; the Gainsborough family has more secrets than most.

Thomas and his wife Margaret are loving and concerned parents. They have two daughters, Molly and Peggy. There sometimes seems to be something off with Molly, and Peggy, still quite young, takes on the responsibility for protecting her older sister from whatever it is.

The book also follows Meg, the daughter of an abusive inn keeper. When a German contingent arrives at the inn, Meg finds herself drawn to one of them. This connection is doomed from the start, but the repercussions will go well beyond the lives of either.

The Painter’s Daughters follows three generations of women. None of them has an overly easy life, but they all pursue the best lives they can have. They must face instances of mental/physical illness, bulimia, isolation.

Read this book! It’s beautiful and heartbreaking, a painting of sisterly love, concern, care, and friendship.

I received an advanced reader copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. I thank all involved for their generosity, but it had no effect on this review. All opinions in this review reflect my true and honest reactions to reading this book.

I found this historical novel to be really interesting as the only thing I knew about Thomas Gainsborough was that he was a famous artist. This is an inside look at the entire family from the eyes of his two daughters. It was not a fast read but one that kept me involved for the most part. I would recommend this one to readers interested in the artist, and the time period. I found it sad that his daughters had so much drama in their life but interesting in the choices they made. Much of the book centers on the sisterly devotion and the struggles they endured while being the daughters of such a well known person. I felt like I had stepped back into the 1700s and was actually living it with the characters. That is the mark of a great author.

I wish to thank NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Publishers for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

While we often hear about famous artists and see their works displayed in museums, what do we know about their backgrounds? The Painter's Daughters takes us into the private lives of Thomas Gainsborough and his family. Gainsborough's two daughters are best friends and are always together. But, there is more to the story than that. Peggy, the younger sister, knew that she had to protect Molly to keep her from being sent to Bedlam, the insane asylum. Molly is subject to fits of sleepwalking, forgetfulness, inability to speak, etc.

Hiding Molly's condition becomes much more difficult when the family moves from a small town to Bath, a major resort in 1700s England. We see how Gainsborough dotes on his daughters but also ignores them for long periods of time while he works.

It is also interesting to see how the times affected Gainsborough's artwork and the business of being an artist.

So absorbing. What a great read!!! Alot if detail which makes a reader feel like they are really there in the story.
Family drama with a beautiful background will keep you waiting for the resulting outcome. At times I got mad at some of the characters but that's what makes a good book!!

Highly recommend this read. It will keep you wanting more

4.5 stars
HIGHLY recommend

I received a complimentary Kindle e-book in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. Thank you to Emily Howes, Simon & Schuster, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This was a very dense, heavy, and hard-to-read book. I knew little about Thomas Gainsborough other than the "Blue Boy" painting that resides nearby in San Marino at the Huntington Library. I have admired it and visited it many times, but never thought about the back story.

The novel is really about love at the core of it all. The story centers around Gainsborough's two daughters, Molly and Peg, and their devotion to each other. It is sad, heavy, and very hard to read.

This was a slow, difficult read because of the subject matter and the time period. But it was totally worth the read! If you like historical fiction, this is a great book for YOU!!

The Painter's Daughters by Emily Howes was a fantastic historical fiction story.
This book was paced really well, and the story was just so rich with history.
With its evocative setting, well-drawn characters, and compelling narrative, this novel is sure to resonate with fans of historical fiction and women's fiction.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read this ahead of its publication date in return for my honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Painter’s Daughters is the perfect balance of history and fiction, taking us back in time to the 18th century and it’s art and music scene. We are introduced to the renowned (real life) painter, Thomas Gainsborough, and his family. His daughters Molly and Peggy, are bound to each other by their deep love, protection and sense of loyalty to one another. As the girls get older and family secrets begin to surface (some
factual, some created by the author) the promise of their futures in high society will be tested.

This story was a slow starter for me but once the pace picked up and the plot twists began brewing, I was glued. Emily Howes does a wonderful job at atmospheric writing, and provided a look at life back then so vivid that I could’ve lived it. If you have no prior knowledge of this era prepare yourself for the google deep dive it will take you down!

Fanstastic writing. A journey back to history in 1700's with two prettt girls from young, grown up. Love and madness combined together. Mystic and romantic, that is the impression of this book

The artist Gainsborough’s two daughters live under the shadow of a disease inherited from their maternal side. Mollie, the elder daughter, has inherited this disease, experiencing episodes of abandoning reality and acting out. Her family denies her problem and ignores her behavior. Younger sister Peggy makes it a full-time occupation watching, preventing and covering up her random acts where she yells demands, claiming to be of royal blood. Like the pentimento in a painting that reveals previous work, despite the family’s refusal to pay credence to the idea of “madness” offered by outsiders, they see for themselves the shadow of ancestry working its way through. Peggy, the caregiver, has no freedom, spending little time alone until she meets a musician who paints a new life for her. Emily Howes’ novel uses a subplot, the story of Meg who charms the Prince of Wales when he seeks shelter at her father’s inn, and finds herself pregnant. Running away to London, she faces hardship while trying to find her Prince. In the hands of this good writer, the reader learns her identity and the connection between Meg and the family of the famous Gainsborough. A revelatory experience.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this e-ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

I would recommend this book to fans of historical fiction and regency England readers!

This was an amazingly written historical piece of fiction. The settings and the daughters were so well written and crafted. The writing was evocative and made the reader fall into the story easily. It reminded me of a Jane Austen novel. Really good book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of The Painter’s Daughters in exchange for an honest review. I appreciated the setting and time period and I thought that the author did a nice job of immersing the reader. The plot lines didn’t really capture me and I didn’t love this one as much as I hoped. I’d recommend giving it a read and seeing what you think!

Historical Fiction is at its best when it compels the reader to do further research or end up down a rabbit hole to find out the rest of the story. The Painter's Daughters by Emily Howes is a fine example of exactly that type of book. Beautifully written, had it not been about the daughters of a famous painter, the story of the complicated relationship between two sisters could have easily stood alone. Factor in their famous father, Thomas Gainsborough, and it is a tale that fascinates on many levels. This will widely appeal to anyone who loves historical fiction or character-driven plots in general.

Peggy and Molly Gainsborough are the daughters of the famous English painter, Thomas Gainsborough. Emily Howes writes her debut novel about the lives of these girls and the struggles that they try and overcome. Their mother seems to have a mental disorder as does Molly, and Peggy makes a brave attempt to hide Molly's condition from the world and especially from their mother, who is intolerant of the girls for the most part. I was interested in reading and learning more about this family, as I am familiar with The Blue Boy painting, and really had no other knowledge of this painter. I thought that the book was well written, but was a bit confused about the sub story about the bar maid. Initially, I thought that Meg was Peggy, and then realized she was a whole new character. This story made the book feel very disjointed, and I think it might have been better left out. I would like to thank Netgalley and Simon and Schuster publishers for the opportunity to preview this book in exchange for an honest review.

This historical fiction piece about the artist Gainsborough‘s daughters drew me in from the beginning. Dealing with mental illness is never easy, but even more difficult in the 1700s when you are a child trying to protect your older sister. This book will grab hold of you and keep you involved as this entire family, in their very different ways, tries to deal with a child/adult who at times has no grip on reality. It’ll make you thankful for how far we have come in dealing with mental illness and erasing some of the stigma of it. Thank you to NetGalley for the advance read copy of this book, which I am glad to have read.