I love anything by Tracy Chevalier! The story kept me interested from page 1.. I loved the characters and the setting of the story.

Sorry I could not finish this book in time. I will get a copy and try to read. Thank you for the opportunity.

While this was an enjoyable read overall I was left with a sense of why any of it mattered. Yes, there was Violet at the center of it all trying to figure out out to make it in the world as a single woman. One could potentially argue that the book focused on a woman's struggle of making friends and fitting into a pre-determined society. For me however there was a lack of character development that made me feel connected enough to care about what happened.

A Single Thread by Tracy Chevalier is the story of a woman staking a claim to her independence. I love the premise. I enjoy the picture of the time and place – Winchester, England in between the two world wars. I appreciate the ending, giving voice to the power of sisterhood. That being said, ultimately, I find myself not the reader for this book for its pace, a seemingly unneeded story line, and a greater focus on bell ringing and embroidery than the story.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2020/01/a-single-thread.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

Violet, on an errand for her employer, decides she has a few minutes to stop at the Winchester Cathedral. There is a special service for the dedication of the "embroidered" cushions and kneelers. Now we know the embroideries as needle point. Violet is intrigued by the designs on these pieces and determines to learn how to do them. She joins a small group of broderers.
Violet is one of the "surplus women," that group of women who have become spinsters or widows, following World War I, at the death of the men in their lives. Violet's mother is a whiny, complaining woman and Violet decides to move away to a nearby town, to make a life of her own. She barely has enough money to get by, but she is content with her life, and gradually makes friends. She becomes intrigued by the bells of Winchester, and the bell ringers. Chevalier spends a lot of time describing the art and skill required to be a bell ringer.
Violet meets Arthur, a bell ringer, and they are taken with each other. Arthur has a wife that he knows he will never leave.
An interesting read. There is a lot of history and sense of place in this book. Louisa Pesel, one of the broderers, was a real person who headed up the group of women and created many of the designs; the cushions and kneelers are still in use at Winchester Cathedral, having been restored several times.

Chevalier (Girl with the Pearl Earring) delves into the lives of one small community in England as its residents recover from the losses of World War I and struggle to go on with their lives. In the years following World War I and the deaths of her fiancé and brother, Violet Speedwell lives in Winchester, England, where she works as a typist at an insurance company. Though Violet is pleased that she no longer resides with her mother who lives 12 miles away, the lack of purpose in her life leaves her seeking out a meeting of the broderers. These women are responsible for intricately embroidering the cushions at the local cathedral, and Violet enjoys the moments she spends in their company and the embroidery skills she learns.

Violet is thrilled that her embroidery work will have a lasting legacy, as the tapestry of the cushions will likely grace Winchester Cathedral long after Violet’s tenure in Winchester. As Violet hones her embroidery skills, she gains confidence and is drawn to Arthur, an older married man who is a bell ringer at the cathedral. Violet and Arthur try to keep their relationship platonic as she learns secrets about her fellow broderers and must decide whether to be a true friend or fall prey to village gossip.

Chevalier details the difficulty of embroidery and cleverly intertwines it with the well-plotted storyline. She perfectly captures Violet’s transformation as she gains confidence in all aspects of her life with the praise she earns for her embroidery skills. Though World War II fiction is more well-represented than World War I fiction, Chevalier’s latest provides an introspective look at the time between the two wars, She details how those impacted by World War I are barely able to cope with the loss of the first war while noting Hitler’s desire for world dominance and the looming possibility of another war.

When you pick up a Tracy Chevalier, you know that you will pick up a fascinating book that will show you a side of a historical period you were unfamiliar with. This book is set in the period between the World Wars and it features strong women who are not afraid to take their destiny into their own hands.

Ever since *Girl with a Pearl Earring,* I have dipped in and out of Tracy Chevalier's books. Each novel that she writes takes up a completely different period or background, but they frequently deal with young women trying to find a place for themselves in a world where they are seen primarily as fulfilling domestic roles and as objects of male desire. In *A Single Thread,* as in many of Chevalier's novels, there's a mixture of beautiful backgrounds (in this case, the work of broderer's creating works of art to bring color to a Cathedral) and sordid conditions. Here Violet is living an austere life, barely supporting herself as a typist, grateful for the freedom from her mother's home, even if it means that she has barely enough money to live. She's grieving over the deaths of the men who gave comfort and meaning to her life - her father, fiance, and brother. Violet moves to Winchester to find a new life for herself, and she does in a job, embroidery, and an emotional affair with an older, married man. No character in a Chevalier novel isn't compromised and sullied in some way, and Violet is no exception.

Throughout Violet's quest to find herself, she is trailed by a sinister figure who seems uncannily able to find her whenever she is walking alone somewhere remote. This character, Jack Wells, is less of a believable character than a metaphor for the danger that she feels being on her own and trying to make her own life.

Chevalier's writing, as always, makes this an absorbing read, although the meticulous research into embroidery and bell ringing made for long explanatory sections that felt superfluous. By the time the novel concludes, however, all of the pieces fall into place.

I really enjoyed this. It gave me lots to think about. I feel so blessed to live when I do. Full characters interesting situations. Well researched. Very good story.

This book set during the era of Hitler address issues that we still struggle with in modern times. Passion for forbidden love is the theme of this story and passions that people can have outside of love.

3.5 stars

I enjoyed this novel a lot, and would probably have given it four stars but for the fact that I found the ending just a little pat and disappointing. The plot is not especially exciting or dramatic, but the characters are sympathetic and well-developed, and the situations and problems they face are realistically drawn. I found the pacing a good fit for the story, but it would probably not please those who love a "page-turner." The story takes place between the world wars, but it is not about the wars. This was a plus for me because I feel we've been inundated with war-time novels over the past several years. I would recommend to readers who enjoy literary historical fiction.

Tracy Chevalier is known for her insightful and sensitive portrayals of strong women, and she carries that through in A Single Thread. Violet Speedwell wears her “surplus” designation like a scarlet letter turned into a fashionable brooch. She misses sex with her fiancé who died in the war, so she takes herself off to hotel bars to pick up “sherry men.” She’s sick of her bitchy mother, so she takes a job in another town and changes her whole life. All this during a time when women were either married, about to be married, looking to get married, or were spinsters. Violet refuses to accept that her life is any less important than the married women around her as we watch her live her life on her own terms and help others to do the same.

Chevalier is excellent at relationships, and she creates a fascinating web of those here, with Violet at the center. “Women’s work” often involves needlework, and Chevalier opens up a fascinating piece of history revolving around the broderers - women who embroidered the cushions for cathedrals and churches. Chevalier drops Veronica smack in the middle of a group of women who have all experienced loss and disappointment, but have learned to hide it very well. Violet changes that and draws the women out, while at the same time finding a new path for herself.

This will be popular with book clubs, and I predict a few embroidery groups to form around it as well. Recommended.

I was getting a little worn out with historical fiction and WWII in general, as there seem to be endless options, however, A Single Thread definitely stands out as something not to skip! Women everywhere are going to find something in this book to connect to!

Much like The Lady and the Unicorn, the first and one of the few books I've read by Chevalier, this is a quiet story about a woman and art. However, both the woman and the art are fairly unique. Violet is a "surplus woman" living a spinster's life between the wars after her fiance and countless other men her age were killed in the Great War. In trying to forge a life for herself, she stumbles upon the broderers of Winchester Cathedral. Embroidering cushions gives her a way to make her mark, find her feet, and begin to establish her own identity. Chevalier clearly did her research about embroidery, bell ringing, and early 20th century history in general. This is not the kind of book that blows you away, but it is the kind of cozy book you can read wrapped in a blanket with a mug of tea while enjoying the quiet satisfaction of observing a woman realizing that she is not surplus, she is her own self.

This was my first book by Tracy Chevalier and I was excited to read it. However I wasn't drawn in the way I expected to be. I found the story moved slowly and I didn't find myself losing myself in the story. Sorry to say.

Tracy Chevalier's writing is so lyrical and relaxing. The embroidery theme and bell-ringing fascinated me and inspired me to look at the various stitches online. I spent a good hour watching change-ringing videos on YouTube! I wasn't enamored with the plot, however. There was a lot going on here. Family drama, attempted rape, a lesbian couple, an affair and baby out of wedlock, all wrapped up neatly at the end. Three stars for the plot, an additional star for the quality prose and thorough research.

I appreciate the ARC from Netgalley and the publisher for my honest review. Overall, this book was okay, but it was very slow going. Violet's character portrayed a woman's struggle to find her place and way to survive if not married post WWI, moving into WWII. I enjoyed learning about the broderers and the bell-ringers because they were an interesting part of history that I knew nothing of prior to this book. With all of that said, I felt the relationships and the characters themselves were flat. The story took a long time to develop, and the Jack Smith character was just so randomly thrown in. I truly enjoyed Girl With the Pearl Earring, but this was not the same level of book.

Not just any author could craft a compelling narrative from embroidery and bellringing, but Tracy Chevalier isn't just any author. The book follows Violet Speedwell, a "surplus woman" after so many men, including her fiancé, were killed in WWI. Violet's been living with her widowed mother, and has had just about enough of her constant complaints and criticisms, so she moves a scant 12 miles away to Winchester, home of the famous Winchester Cathedral (where Jane Austen and many others are buried). As happy as she is to be on her own, she struggles with the challenges of supporting herself (she does have a job, but it barely pays enough for food and a rented room) and finding some kind of social life, all in a world that still doesn't look very fondly on women on their own.

On a visit to Winchester Cathedral, Violet stumbles up a Blessing of the Embroidery service, and decides to join the cathedral broderers, who are engaged in a years-long project to embroider new kneelers and cushions for the cathedral. And thus begins Violet's journey of self-discovery. Most of Violet's journey involves learning how to be a friend (this is what leads her to meet the bellringers), how not to be guilted into moving back in to take care of her mother, and, generally speaking, how to be an independent person.

Like all of Chevalier's books, the reader is immersed in the world that she creates with her words. Even the details of embroidery stitches and the difference between ringing a set of 5 bells versus 9 bells is interesting as we learn alongside Violet and see the world opening up in front of her.

Violet is an interesting character making her way in the world after World War I as she is grieving the loss of her brother and trying to create an independent life for herself. Although not as engaging as Tracy Chevalier's other works of historical fiction, Violet's courage is inspirational.

This is a tough review to write because of my ambivalence about the story. What began as a total pleasure ended not with a bang, but a whimper. When we first meet 39-year old spinster Violet she is lurking outside a dedication service at historic Winchester Cathedral. Her interest in the church and her confrontation with an officious woman who refused her admittance to the service, brought to mind all the unique characters created by Barbara Pym. I practically hugged myself with anticipation. As the story continued, my original instincts proved to be right as Violet tried to declare her independence from the most delightfully horrible mother of recent literature. Her move to a boarding house in Winchester gave her a chance to meet new people and pursue new interests. Both her passions are centered at the cathedral. She joins a group of dedicated women embroidering kneelers and cushions for the church. She meets an older gentleman who introduces her to the art of bell ringing. The reader is given rather too-complete lessons and histories of both embroidery and bells.
Offsetting the rather tedious pages of information are some great insights into life in England between the Wars. Violet’s office mates, her landlady, the woman overseeing the embroidery project are rich interesting characters. I felt myself heading into Guernsey Potato Pie Society territory.
We soon learn that life is not always storybook charming. There is malicious gossip, homophobic viciousness and a threatening stranger lurking in the shadows. Violet must determine how to handle the threats and at the same time figure out what kind of a relationship she should pursue with her bell-ringing friend Arthur. We are eagerly awaiting the resolution of all there powerful storylines.
Unfortunately the end loses its power because much of it happens off-stage through explanation after the fact. Coupling that with the blandness of Arthur makes a very unsatisfactory ending. In the author’s defense, she adds a note to inform us the book is based on actual events. Sometimes an author has to declare her independence from the facts and choose to write a more satisfying story. This is one of those times.