This story was nicely written and historical mystery. The storyline seemed to drag a bit in the beginnig and I’m glad I stuck around. If you enjoy historical fiction with a bump of romance, I’d recommend this one!

Thank you NetGalley and Iona Grey for a copy of this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Pub Date | 08/13/24

This was so good. I cant believe I forgot to write the review. Highly recommend. Lots of twists and turns and plenty of intrigue.

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

This was my first experience reading something by this author. She does a nice job of weaving romance, mystery, and history while creating a captivating tale of love, sacrifice, and resilience. The setting of the remote English moors, provides a haunting backdrop which gives way to secrets, heartbreak, and hope.

Kate is a woman living a life of deception. To all thar see her, she is the head housekeeper at Coldwell Hall, but she keeps many secrets close to her guarded heart. But when the new footmen Jem arrives, also with a mysterious past, she slowly begins to open her heart and let her guard down.

The author has done a beautiful job of creating complex characters with layers that are slowly peeled away as the story progresses. The chemistry between them is strong, yet forbidden, which makes their love story all the more enthralling. I enjoyed the story and look forward to reading more by this author.

I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

Excellent! A Downton Abbey era mystery that perfectly encapsulates the upstairs/downstairs relationships. The author uses such beautiful imagery that you can really see and hear the story play out.

A little historical fiction romance with a bit of mystery. Sign me up please. Three of my favorite genres!! I really enjoyed this story and the characters.

It did take me a bit to get into this one but overall I did enjoy it. I think I would have loved this more on audio!

3.5⭐️ This book grew on me. The first part of the book felt long and lost me a few times - whether it was heavy details or overly descriptive, I'm not entirely sure, but I had to put this one down for a little bit and come back to it. The second two thirds of the book was much quicker paced and definitely sucked me into the story between the housekeeper and the footman. There was even more of a mystery element than I was initially expecting and I thought that added an element of intrigue and suspense to the story overall.

This one felt long - I do think there were parts of the plot that could have been streamlined. The two MCs were interesting in their own right - with fairly well fleshed out backstories and motivations for their actions throughout the course of the story. The romance element was almost secondary to the mystery that the footman was there to solve - but it was satisfying to watch the romance develop. Definitely a bit of a slow burn with the forbidden romance element very strong in the storyline.

Thank you to Macmillan and Netgalley for the eARC.

This book was a bit anti-climatic but overall good. A different kind of story about some unique individuals. A WWI story with very little war.

I enjoyed the story mostly but some of the analogies and descriptions were a bit over the top and excessive. There moments it felt like someone was trying to hit a word count on an essay. I had to DNF it at 57%.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

This Christian Historical Fiction Romance had a Downton Abbey vibe. At times it was hard to keep track of the characters because there were so many of them between the Estate staff and visitors staff. My least favorite character was Mr. Henderson. He was so manipulative, controlling, predatory, and conniving. There were so many elements going on in this story that it seemed to go on forever. It was full of scandals, murder, betrayal, forbidden love, exchanges of identity, and random letters written by an anonymous soldier that never seemed to connect to the story until the very end. The ending was the best part of the book because it was full of excitement and intrigue.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I’ve loved past books by Iona Grey but unfortunately this wasn’t my favorite. The setting was amazing but I had a hard time with the third-person omniscient narration.

Grey is a lovely writer, but this isn’t going to be for you if you’re not into romance.

I was hoping the book would feel more like the historical fiction label it’s been tagged with, but it’s more of a historical romance, which didn’t work for me.

I liked the writing and the sense of place is very well-rendered, but the history (and really, any broader plot) takes a backseat to a fairly overwrought love story, which failed to hold my attention well and veers too frequently into manufactured angst and heartache for my taste.

If you enjoy romance, this one is at least well written, relatively accurate historically speaking, and not of the open door persuasion. But if you’re looking for true historical fiction, look elsewhere.

I think The Housekeeper's Secret is a thoughtfully written book and I also think that Iona Grey is a talented writer. That said, I found the pace of this book to be brutally slow, particularly at the beginning. It's hard to pinpoint what exactly didn't entirely work for me--the pieces are all there (mystery, romance, atmosphere). Part of the issue, for me, was that I was never entirely sure what this book was trying to be. Still, it's a good read and I believe many will enjoy it.

What a lovely and touching book. I did not expect to like it so much. Something about the author's writing made this book super engaging and enjoyable. It just made me happy to read it. It is a slow-burn romance but it has so much feeling and the romance is not over-the-top - it is secondary to the character-driven storyline. Highly recommended!!!! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC #sponsored

"The Housekeeper's Secret" is the story of Kate Furniss, a young woman who has risen to the rank of housekeeper at an early age. Of course, it helps that she herself was raised in privilege. It was only after an unfortunate marriage that she found herself in need of employment. So she signed on to the household at Coldwell Hall. The housekeeper at the time came to rely on Kate for many things, so it was natural for her to step into the role when the older woman vacated it.

Thus far, she's created a pleasant household for everyone, both above and below stairs. But when a new footman is hired, Gem Arden proves to be a bit more than Mrs. Furniss bargained for. The problem is, Gem has secrets of his own he's hiding.

As the two try to navigate an illicit love affair, they each risk more than just their positions. She risks her safety, and he risks unlocking the secret to his past.

While the story was well-written and the characters were believable, I have to admit, so much of the story was fraught with danger and the potential to be ill-used that I found myself not wanting to continue to read the story. Perhaps it was just bad timing, but it made it hard to enjoy the story as much as I had hoped to.

Thank you to Iona Grey, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for an advance review copy.

Dual time line historical fiction. Kate has retreated to a place no one would look for her and has assumed a role that is vastly different from her prior life. She has closed herself off until a man begins working at the estate and she opens herself up to the possibility that she may be able to have the life she always dreamed of.

I won’t lie, I wanted to give up on this book after the first few chapters. Honestly it wasn’t the book but more so my frame of mind. Lately I’ve read a lot of fantasy books and it took me a bit to get back into the historical perspective. This book was a bit confusing to follow too but I persevered. If maybe the war part of the story came first it may had been easier to follow. If you enjoy historical books give it a go.

My book picker has been a bit off this Fall, as several of my NetGalley picks have not been in my area of interest. This should remind me not to judge a book by it's cover.. With the cover featuring a woman's back walking up stately stairs and the description of the book indicating the setting of Northern England, I was primed to enjoy this tale. However, there was so much time describing the setting that I soon found myself ready to just be done with it. I appreciate Iona Grey's writing and the character development, but this book was so dark and felt desolate. It probably didn't help that I read this during the US election season where I was fleeing darkness and craving a light story. Not for me, but a well written book.

I love historical romance and expect them to be a little slower paced as were the times. This book has some negative reviews based on that alone. I enjoyed it, and I always love a mystery sprinkled in! Very good IMO.

Told in multiple points of view set between their current day, a future time, and letters of another perspective throughout, the main part of the cast are the servants and staff of a northern English manor that is frequently empty of its master, seeking a mistress, and looming beneath the pall of a mystery that predates most of the staff. That said, the house isn't the only being shrouded in mystery and secrets. Through the unraveling of the secrets, the past becomes clear, but so do their futures.

#thehousekeeperssecret
#arc
#netgalley