I want to first start off by saying that this cover is absolutely gorgeous. But not only the cover is gorgeous, the writing is as well. The whole time I was reading this, I found myself writing down quotes and just amazed at the brilliant mind of the author. I think that this story is truly unique and unlike anything I have read so far this year, or even before this year. This quote in specific stood out to me because it truly felt like it was along the lines of something that I would say to my friends about reading, "And they see me quietly reading', she said, 'but they don't know that in my head I'm dancing with satyrs or following Achilles on the battlefield as he cuts men left and right in violent rage for Patroclus, or that I'm the sphinx in Thebes demanding Oedipus to answer my riddles" I just loved that part. But in general, I loved the symbolisms sprinkled throughout, I thought that the writing was melodic, haunting and beautiful, and I will not shut up about this book. I need to get myself my own physical copy because this will be a book I read again (which is rare for me)

The Ophelia Girls narrates the love stories of a teenage girl (Maeve) and that of her mother (Ruth) as a teenager, more than twenty years before. Both stories have a lot in common, being one of the most important, a man: Stuart. The chapters alternate between narrators. Ruth's story is told in the first person, and narrates two time lines: her adolescence and the present day, mother of Maeve (who was a sick child but is currently recovered) and the twins. Maeve's story is in the third person. Both voices and time lines are perfectly intertwined and their stories run parallel throwout the book. Both of them have an obsession with Ophelia and the pre-Raphaelite paintings.
During the summer, Stuart, an old family friend, comes to stay with all of them. Suddenly, he feels an attraction for Maeve and he makes her the subject of a series of photographs that recreate portraits of girls that pose as Ophelia, in the way Ruth did with her friends in the summer of '74. But we know that something went very wrong back then.
The book is full of suspense and some beautiful scenes, with wonderful ambiance. Although is a little slow paced, I think the book is phenomenal and I really enjoy the atmosphere.

The Ophelia Girls by Jane Healey
begins in 1973 England with teen Ruth and her friends obsessed with the romanticism of the character of Ophelia and often photograph themselves immersed in the river dressed as her with a halo of flowers on their heads. But the summer ends in tragedy.

In 1997 Ruth returns to her teenage home with her family and 17 year old daughter, Maeve, who has survived Leukemia. When friend and photographer Stuart starts to insinuate himself into Maeve's life, and all that implies, having her pose for compromising photos I just kept muttering, "No No No" over and over. Maeve wants to be seen as an adult and not the sick kid anymore and Stuart grasps onto that need like a vulture. Vulnerable and stressed mother and daughter just need a moment to see each other's pain.

This book is not a fast read. At times it is an uncomfortable book to read but the fact that the author's words have the ability to make such a visceral impact on the reader is the brilliance of this novel.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book was just not for me - the author does an amazing job; very eloquent, emotional and some tough topics such as childhood cancer.
I found it very slow moving - each chapter just revealing a little more. Also the questionable relationship between Mauve and Stuart. Again very well written -just not for me.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A young woman falls in love with a friend of her parents. The story both before and after the relationship make the love affair simultaneously dangerous, complicated, and somewhat innocent.

Great characterization and a well written story.

I loved The Animals at Lockwood Manor and liked this story, disturbing and fascinating at the same time.
The characters aren't likeable and grated on my nerves but the excellent storytelling kept me reading.
I love the style of writing and loved the dual timeline.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

There were things I liked and disliked about this one. I loved how the timeline changed from mother to daughter, and this technique worked really well in advancing the story I thought. As a character, Maeve was… strange. Her thought processes didn’t make sense to me a lot of the time and I found it hard to connect with her or have empathy. The situation she ends up in creeped me out (tw grooming). I loved the language used and I think that I will definitely read more from Jane Healey.

I was really grateful for a copy of this book to read but unfortunately really struggled with the content. I could see the storyline coming with the older male adult and it made me deeply uncomfortable.

The authors writing style was really strong and I wish her well. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for more of her books.

The story was well written and easy to read, but the outcome and the characters did not captivate me as much as they could have. The ending was realistic but felt abrupt. I would still recommend this book to friends!

It's always exciting to see an ARC from an author whose previous works you loved. I couldn't click REQUEST fast enough for this one.

I won't go too deep into the synopsis, as it can be read here and on Goodreads as well.

First of all, let me say that I think Healey's writing is spectacular. Just the way that she sets the scene and builds atmosphere is incredible. In this book in particular, I felt like I was there, in every moment described by the author. I wanted to be by the river and dip my skirt in the cold water (though I don't really wear skirts at all). It's fascinating the way she is able to create such atmosphere, without actually overwhelming you with information. It's incredibly captivating.

The story is told from the mother and daughter's perspective, and at times, we follow dual timelines, which is okay with me, as this always creates momentum and build up for me.

The characters in this book are so unlikeable. It's one thing to come up on dark, or grey characters, but here, no matter how hard I tried, I could not muster any sympathy for any of them. Maeve in particular got on my last nerve from the very beginning.

After the first 15% of reading this, I started to enjoy it less and less. It was frankly, a bit disturbing and creepy, especially the Stuart and Maeve aspect. But not just that, I thought the way Maeve thought was extremely disturbing. I just found myself not wanting to read it at all, because it wasn't an enjoyable experience. And not the kind where you are so emotionally devastated, but the kind where you just feel... for the lack of better words, weirded out.

Obviously, it wasn't a book that I enjoyed, and I won't be reading it again.

If you've read her previous book, you might enjoy it. But beware, the book does deal with homophobia and grooming and it can be very hard to digest at times.

The Ophelia Girls by Jane Healey is a disturbing but strangely enthralling book where a mother and daughter's secrets collide one fateful Summer. Ruth and her friends spent the summer of 1973 staging photos in the river, pictures of drowning girls like pre Raphaelite paintings or Shakespeare's tragic Ophelia , becoming closer to each other while growing into themselves. It was the perfect Summer until it wasn't and one of the girls is drowned. Ruth has done her best to put it behind her, but when she and husband and children return to that house twenty four years later, it seems inevitable that the past will catch up with her.
Meanwhile her daughter Maeve is seventeen and coming to terms with getting the all clear having survived cancer. She is adjusting to life as a carefree teenager, but it is not all smooth sailing and her relationship with her mother is fraught, When a face from the past comes to stay with the family, and starts to pay attention to Maeve it stirs up the past in some very uncomfortable ways.
There is no doubt that this is a strangely compelling read, but it also makes for very uncomfortable reading at times, particularly as we see the progression of the relationship between Maeve and her parent's friend Stuart. The slow building of the plot and the gradual drawing together of the two timelines may not be to every reader's taste but I enjoyed the journey I was being taken on .
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Thank you Mariner books and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.


As a big fan of Everything I Never Told You and mother/daughter relations in general, hearing about The Ophelia Girls was exciting.

And I was not disappointed.

The Ophelia Girls oscillates between two summers in the English country side; one in 1973 and the other in 1997. It follows the story of Ruth, the mother, who had a summer with her girl friends where they pretended they were all Ophelia, and her daughter, Maeve, who spent a great amount of her life sick and in hospitals, and is now learning how to be a teenager as she falls in love with a friend of her parents.

This book grasped me from the very first page and didn’t let go. Beautiful, poetic, and tragic all at once. The book resembles a really personal look into the lives of a family. The narrative voices are distinct, the choice to have one in third person and the other is exquisite.

I feel this book is a staple of literary fiction. It feels like everything and nothing happens, and it all crashes down. It’s slow burn, character driven, and gorgeous. Can’t recommend enough.

There is no way that I am going to be able to write a review that this book deserves. I am not going to be able to come up with the wording to express the melancholic beauty and expertise evoked from the story and the writing. The writing itself was sophisticated, eloquent, and expressive. I savored every word written, I did not want to miss a single thing. I had the impression that each and every word was crafted with precision and thought, they deserved the attention from the reader that was put into them by the author.

I found myself immersed in the story, deeply engaged with the characters. And about those characters! The author created and portrayed her characters in such a way that they breathed life, I felt connected to them and felt such empathy and emotion. Sensitive topics are immersed throughout the book, but they were not excessive or detailed, they were tastefully and masterfully presented and positioned. This would be a perfect book to for a book club, or for anyone who likes to dig deeper into what they are reading, to be able to pull more from what is on the surface. There are so many topics that could be analyzed and discussed, and I would love to attend an event to listen to this author provide her own discussion on the background of writing this novel.

I was quite impressed with this novel for so many reasons. I highly recommend it!

The Ophelia Girls was spellbinding. The author takes you on a journey spanning 20+ years through the idyllic English countryside.

First we have Ruth, Ruth grew up on a beautiful estate and every summer her and her friends would go down to the river and recreate Pre-Ralphaelite paintings through film photography. They call themselves the Ophelia Girls. The girls are heavily influenced by art, Shakespeare and often highly romanticize their every day lives. At the end of the summer, tragedy strikes. Did one of the girls take their fantasizing too far?

Fast forward 20 years and we have Maeve. Maeve is Ruth’s daughter. After Maeve is in recovery from Leukemia, they move to Ruth’s childhood home in the countryside for some fresh air and a change of scenery. The estate has been neglected for years and the house is crumbling. Maeve meets Stuart, a person from Ruth’s past and it sets off a chain of events that uncovers decades of fear, secrets and lust.

The dual timeline in this book, between 1973 and 1997 was just perfect. Comparing the lives of Ruth and her daughter Maeve shows the difficulties of having a teenager and two small children. I cannot say enough how much I enjoyed reading this book. Parts were definitely disturbing and my jaw dropped a few times. I would highly recommend this to anyone.

A beautiful story told in 2 parts, by the mother set in the 70's & then present day story told by her daughter.
When Ruth and her husband's friend from their youth, Stuart, comes to stay with them, Maeve feels an instant connection and feels seen as an adult and not the sick kid she's always thought of.

This was a slow read but very enjoyable, I loved the friendships that Ruth had when she was younger & even though the relationship between Stuart & Maeve is a bit "creepy" I would have felt the same was as Maeve did so I enjoyed that relationship.

I think that there's a certain type of girl, who, after the first she encounters Ophelia, she...develops a fondness for this tragic character. She's held up on a pedestal, a romantic icon with a tragic end, almost a less stupid Juliet.

The Ophelia Girls is a story of a mother and daughter. A mother's youth and a daughter's innocence. Of a man who changes both of their lives. Of mistakes and of choices, of tragedy and of secrets, of lies and of confronting a lifetime of hiding. This isn't an easy read, not in any case. There are HARD topics that are covered - grooming, LGBTQ, homophobia, death - but these are integral to the story and it adds to the plot.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is an incredible book and I am glad that I received an e-arc, thank you Netgalley and the Publisher. The slow unveiling of the story is incredible and is perfectly paced. The pov shift from first person to third person was bit jarring in the beginning but 20% into the book I was not bothered by it. I highly recommend the book and will be getting a physical copy myself.

In the Ophelia Girls author Jane Healy has a woman and her family living in her childhood home. The mother's thoughts keep straying back to her mid teens in the house, and we also have the story of the 17 year old daughter's coming of age there. I want to thank NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for an early copy to review.

Beautifully written. Another reviewer put it best: the author writes the way dreams feel. I couldn't agree more.

Two tiny histories are offered in tandem - the first is Ruth's story from the early 1970s, her involvement with her friends in their homemade photography project as the Ophelia Girls, dressing up in turn-of-the-century togs and floating on the river's surface - or just below - and the second is the late 1990s story of Ruth's daughter, Maeve, a cancer survivor, still unsure of who she is at the brink of 17, having spent most of her recent past fighting her disease instead of being an otherwise everyday teenager. The histories provide a glimpse at two summers, one for each character, with the common thread the mildly (?) creepy Stuart, Ruth's childhood friend, who insinuates himself back into adult Ruth's life for the summer, and appears to be trying to insinuate himself very much into Maeve's life.

The reader recognizes classic grooming behaviors very early on, both from Ruth's flashback and Maeve's story. This was a particularly stressful read, because the reader is the only one picking up on the cues, to the point that we'd like to just quickly insert ourselves into the book and whisper into the ear of the loved ones who should have a better idea of what Stuart is all about. Argh.

There's a little something for everyone in this book; I've heard that's the Jane Healey standard - using lighter-than-air words to lightly tiptoe through memories that are common to almost anyone: youth, love, loss, and overcoming the harshest elements of each while trying to maintain the tenderest as well.

Four stars. Time for me to go grab more from this author. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a pre-pub ARC. This in no way influenced my rating or review.