I loved this one filled with excellent historical detail but did feel it could have done with some editing and less plot jumping around but overall was. Good book

I enjoyed the book but I believe it could do with a little more editing. Perhaps adding a prologue for clarity. The beginning is hard to follow.

Overall I enjoyed the storyline and the plot. However, the jumping around for the point of views made the story difficult to fully understand. I had to constantly reread in order to figure out who's point of view it was. The timeline was also thrown around, so in combination of the two it was executed poorly.

A decent read but not one I would find myself recommending.

The end of the system of service, great country houses and “below stairs” intrigue which was significantly changed in Britain by WWI. In this well written and captivating story, the housekeeper isn’t the only character with secrets. Kate has escaped her brutally violent husband and gained shelter and some small feeling of peace as a housekeeper in a slightly run down and remote country house. Jem, a handsome and enigmatic young man arrives just as the house need more footman and he’s immediately hired. Jem has an alterior motive for wanting to gain access to this specific house but doesn’t divulge his secrets to anyone. Once the old Baron dies and his ne’erdowell son assumes the role (he has plenty of unsavory secrets as well) many changes happen. Including the increasingly undeniable pull between Kate and Jem which would be a relationship that, if discovered, would mean dismissal for both of them. Maids, valets, chauffers and village residents also have secrets and lots of mysteries and what happened in the past add to the story. Can Jem and Kate overcome all, including separation by WW!, to love together??
The only issue that I have with the book is the abrupt collapsing of 2 years’ events in the epilogue. It felt that the author wanted to end the book at the last chapter and her editor required as much tying up of loose end in a few words a possible. The pace felt completely different than the rest of the book.

Thanks to Net Galley for an ARC. My opinions are my own.

I quite liked this book. Told in a dual timeline, as well as interspersed with passages of a letter written to the housekeeper makes the story a bit hard to follow sometimes.

The characters are vividly described and developed with great care. Kate Furniss, the housekeeper has a secret that is alluded to throughout the book. She's not who she pretends to be. Jem Arden, a substitute footman has a secret. He's on a mission to discover what became of his brother who disappeared years before. When Jem and Kate's worlds collide, it sets off a chain reaction that frees them both. A mystery as well as a love story, The Housekeepers Secret is a worthy read.

If you’re a fan of Downtown Abbey, you’ll like this book. It reminds me of being down in the kitchen with all of the maids, cooks, and housekeepers sharing the stories, news, and gossip. The beginning is a little bit of a struggle to get through with the amount of characters introduced, and it can be a bit confusing keeping track of who everyone is, but it builds through switching perspectives.

Things I liked:
- Dual timelines
- Mystery and love mixed
- The writing

For transparency, I did receive this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately I could not finish The Housekeeper's Secret. I tried multiple times to continue farther in. This started out and stayed really slow. There was so much detail written in each and every scene that it just became too much. Beginning this book there were so many introductions to so many characters that you just couldn't keep up. The story seemed to bounce around a lot and seemed like it never got anywhere. When writing in this genre I understand wanting it to be ominous but, the suspicions in this title so early on led me to believe there were missing great details.

The Housekeeper’s Secret by Iona Grey is a historical romance set just before and during WW1. The characters and the writing were well done, I felt like the story ended a little quickly, but I was satisfied to see the resolution of most characters side plots. Coldwell manor the main setting of the story gave me a neglected Downton Abbey vibe, it was so poignantly written I could almost imagine I was seeing it. The love story of Kate and Jem had me rooting for them from the start, despite the back and forth of perspectives and moving through time, I enjoyed the book. Romance, mystery and suspense will have you wanting to see how the story ends.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the Arc, all opinions are my own.

"The Housekeeper's Secret" is not a book that grabs you or immediately presents characters you connect with. It's one with slow development, but the pieces eventually connect. Those who love a meandering, atmospheric story that bounces timelines and characters who end with a happily-ever-after will really enjoy the journey.
**Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.**

Historical fiction lovers will devour this one! At Coldwell Hall, a remote estate in England, Kate Furniss is a respectable housekeeper. No one knows that’s not who she is. When handsome Jen Arden shows up for work as a footman, but in secret searching for his lost brother, secrets are threatened. Not only Kate’s, but those of the estate itself. Love, danger, intrigue. This story has it all.

The Housekeeper's Secret is amazing. I loved every minute of this book. Iona Grey's writing transported me to early 20th century England to an estate where Kate Furniss is the housekeeper of an estate where she's been able to immerse herself in the day-to-day routine and leave her past behind. A new footman arrives, Jem Arden, who holds secret of his own. There's romance, mystery, historical fiction all rolled into one page-turner. I can't say enough good things about this book. Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Nicely written and suspenseful, took a bit to latch onto and I almost gave up on it but it gained momentum as the story continued and hit all the buttons for me.

Thank you to author Iona Grey and NetGalley for offering this on their site.

Thank you @netgalley for the ARC of The Housekeeper’s Secret by Iona Gray.


I really enjoyed this book. It was part historical fiction, party romance and a little mysterious. I enjoy books that cross genres. This also has dual timelines and alternates between post WW1 and the Edwardian age.

Kate is working as a housekeeper, but harbors secrets about her past. She is working under a false name. Jen comes to the mansion to apply as a footman and to get answers about his younger brother’s death. The two start falling for each other, but their secrets may get in the way.

Set in the remote English countryside at Coldwell Hall, a crumbling manor that has fallen into neglect and disrepair at the turn of the 20th century. The story centers primarily around the lives of the household staff, most notably Kate, the relatively young head housekeeper, and Jem, the mysterious and handsome footman who shows up seeking employment. Not since Downton Abbey ended have I been so deeply enthralled in the lives, desires, and secrets of a houshold staff.  There's a touch of forbidden romance, a decade-old mystery, and everyone has secrets they would rather stay hidden. The characters are well-developed with complex backstories and the vivid descriptions of the once grand manor will make you feel like you've been there in person. Fans of historical fiction, add this to your MUST READ list.

This was a very good book. Very well written.I enjoyed reading it I would recommend it to my friends and family. 8/10

This sweeping novel of historical fiction takes place before, during and immediately after the WWI in England. Kate Furniss is the young housekeeper to a sprawling country mansion, Coldwell Manor. Kate is good at her job, she has to be as she is hiding under a false name. She has been at Coldwell for over ten years existing under the radar of the aristocracy. Jem Arden arrives at Coldwell seeking a job as a footman. He is also not exactly who he says he is. He is searching for answers of what happened to his younger brother Jack who was in service to the family when he vanished years ago without a trace. There is an electric tension between Kate and Jem and they are very attracted to each other, but do they have a future with so many secrets and mysteries between them. This novel really has it all, several villains, a romance and many interesting supporting characters to flesh out the story. It also seems to be historically accurate and beautifully written. I loved the descriptions of the manor and the countryside it resides in. I highly recommend this novel for lovers of historical fiction, it's got what it takes to fulfill a reader. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to Net Galley and the publisher St. Martin's Press for an opportunity to read an ARC copy of this book.

This book was a bit awkward to read as a prepub because the narrator would change without giving fair warning and sometimes it took a while to tell if the point of view had changed. Maybe they will fix it for the final product. Mrs. Katie Furness is the housekeeper for an aged British member of the upper class. But she is not really Mrs Furness and when Jem, who is looking for his brother who was rumored to be working there, joins the staff as a footman, secrets begin to unfold. I received this as an arc from NetGalley and am not pressured for a positive review.

Loved watching Kate and Jen love story unfold. It was sad she had to run away from her husband to try and fine peace which didn’t work out once new owners took over.

I've been addicted to Iona Grey’s writing ever since I read "Letter to the Lost, then fell further in love when I read "The Glittering Hour". For fans of Kate Morton, this book is a masterpiece. Grey is a talented author and her writing is sublime, atmospheric and oozing with descriptions. The details of daily servant life in an English remote country house in 1911 is perfectly paced with mysterious secrets and an undercurrent of subtle evil. I loved the slow burn romance between Jem and Kate, as well as the letters that Jem is writing to her while serving in World War I. There are quite a few other characters but Joseph, Miss Dunn, Davy, Eliza and Frederick all add to the seamlessly woven story.

Some reviewers commented they couldn’t follow the different characters or the point of views. But reading this book is like taking a bite out of a sweet scone and a perfect sip of tea. I took my time and savored every morsel I read and let the story take me away to another time and place. It was easy to follow and the ending was utter perfection. I will be thinking of these characters for a long while.

Thanks so much to the publisher and netgalley for granting me an ARC for an honest review!

This was such a well written story. I started reading and could leave it - I had to know the ending. I enjoyed the story and the characters. I felt like I knew the characters by the end of the story. There was the right amount of suspense and build up. I enjoyed that there were a few stories that cross crossed.
I just reviewed The Housekeeper's Secret by Iona Grey. #NetGalley