Our Ethel
by Phil Batman
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Pub Date Jun 28 2023 | Archive Date Jul 12 2023
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Description
‘I can never make any sense of what happened to you, Ethel. There were people had it in for you and I don’t know why. I think you were a soft target for cruel men.’
Timid Ethel Slater grows up in a squalid terraced house in a railway community in 1950s York. Perpetually at the mercy of the men she encounters, she falls pregnant out of wedlock, retreats into obscurity and gives birth alone at home. When her newborn is found dead in her bedroom a few days later and fatal head injuries are discovered at the post-mortem, Ethel breaks and confesses to the killing.
On trial for murder, Ethel is plunged into a legal world she does not understand. The voices of well-meaning neighbours who give evidence are twisted and distorted by their own secrets and fears. Ethel faces the death sentence for a brutal crime she may not have committed. The right questions are asked, but in this secretive and insular community, nobody can ever be sure of the right answers.
A Note From the Publisher
Marketing Plan
- Set in 1950s York, this novel follows a young woman who is accused of the murder of her newborn baby, following his birth out of wedlock.
- Part social realism, part courtroom drama, this heart-wrenching tale will keep you reading to its exhilarating climax.
- Inspired by the author's own upbringing in York, as well as his career as a forensic pathologist.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Ebook |
| ISBN | 9781915853998 |
| PRICE | £4.99 (GBP) |
| PAGES | 336 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
louisa t, Reviewer
3.5 stars
What a bleak life Ethel lives.
Abusive father, crippled mother, on the poverty line and then pregnant out of wedlock.
You can't help but feel for her.
Some absolute horror of characters in here, the male ones, that summed up the backwards thinking of the times perfectly.
Interesting to see the science being used at the times.
Can't say it was an enjoyable read, but I like a bit of the depressing and downtrodden.
Karly O, Reviewer
This book sounded so up my alley it wasn’t funny… so I immediately requested and was delighted when I was given a free ARC. Thank you to the publisher, author and NetGalley for that.
Unfortunately, it is unable to keep my interest. I really love the actual writing and the way the Yorke slang and accent is very prominent in here… it like reading a conversation with my aunt and grandmother. But… I just don’t think I will go back to it…. The storyline is not engaging enough for me.
So instead of reading to the end and having a bad experience I am going to give 4 stars in good faith and leave it at that. My review will not be posted anywhere else other than NetGalley.
Reviewer 905524
I very much enjoyed this book, Fair warning, it is depressing subject matter but it does shine a light on injustices i'm sure have happened numerous times to many " Ethels" out in the world. Beautifully written. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
Gill K, Reviewer
Great book and throughly enjoyed.
Our Ethel was a simple soul that people overlooked or took advantage of and the writer has written this with great insight to her world.
She has been taken advantage of from she was born and has now been left with a murder charge hanging over her.
Great book well written and throughly enjoyed.
Emma N, Educator
Our Ethel is set in York, in the 1950's Ethel lives with her downtrodden, ill mum - who mostly lives in her bed in the front room. Dad is a womaniser, drinker and is often violent to Ethel's mum.
Ethel falls pregnant by her childhood friend - the boy next door and the book opens with Ethel finding her newborn dead in her bed.
The story is gritty, raw, and very thought-provoking, Ethel is a gullible but loveable character who has been used and manipulated by the men in her life and as Ethel navigates the accusations, police, the courts, it's clear to the reader just how much Ethel doesn't understand of her new world.
The book should come with a trigger warning as the chapters covering the baby's demise and subsequent scenes in the pathologist are really hard to read.
Janine C, Reviewer
Fascinating and grim police procedural. The author did a great job with all the courtroom scenes. Difficult to get through but extremely important and well written tale of a dead baby and his vulnerable mother living on the fringe of society. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E ARC of this
Gisele W, Reviewer
On first glance this is the story of Ethel, who’s pregnant by her next-door-neighbour and all her hopes and dreams of marrying him have fallen apart. What could be a miserable, downtrodden tale of poverty, domestic abuse, illness and playing away, is ultimately a warm tale with glimmers of hope - strong characters like Auntie Annie, Olive, and the barrister Joyce and even Mrs Sath… ultimately I found that even in the pits of despair around the loss of William, there was a hopeful message. Additionally I really enjoyed the whodunnit aspect and had my own theories - all of which were totally unfounded. All in all, I would highly recommend this book.
Robin P, Reviewer
A gripping and gritty novel set in York and Rochdale in the 1940s and 1950s. This is a profoundly moving story, full of extraordinary, eccentric characters and evocative scenes of poverty and hardship.
I don't think I have ever had so much empathy for a character before. Ethel Slater, looking after an invalid mother, living in fear of a violent father, and accused of murdering her four day old son, William, has drawn short straws all her life.
The courtroom drama as Ethel faces life or death is as vivid, realistic and tense as Witness For The Prosecution and To Kill A Mockingbird.
The author has beautifully captured life and death in a Yorkshire terraced street in WW2 and the years of austerity following the war.
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