I was drawn in more by the mystery of the virgin birth than the story of jean, so the more the novel focused on the latter the less I was interested. I've also started to really dislike references to how things will ~go wrong~ later on in the story which chambers does a lot here, I find it really irritating. ultimately not bad for what it is, I think I was just hoping for something more mysterious and magical with the involvement of such a divine phenomenon. the ending also reminded me very much of that movie Remember Me that randomly turns out to be about 9/11 out of nowhere, a choice I've never liked, and it also did nothing for me here

Good bit of historical fiction by Clare Chambers following the story of a woman named Jean, who works for a newspaper and is chasing down the truth of a story she is investigating. It is pretty well written, but nothing particularly special about the prose or story that made it especially compelling. The ending was very abrupt and leaves the reader slightly off-kilter.

I enjoyed the story and the writing but I have to say the ending killed this one for me. I felt cheated and I didn't see a reason to for the author to include this historical event into the story.

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers was exactly the reading experience I needed right now.. I’ve not read Clare Chambers before, but I felt like I was reading Dorothy Whipple. The sense of place was so strong, I actually felt like I was at each of the tube stops and stations as Jean commuted between home, work, the jewelry store and the Tilbury home. . I love books set in the 50s, and Small Pleasures opens in 1957, where Jean Swinney, reporter for the North Kent Echo, is following up on a reader’s response to a study on parthenogenesis in animals and questioning whether it was possible in humans. The Reader, Gretchen Tilbury, believed her 10 year old daughter had been conceived “without the involvement of any man” and offered to give more information. Jean accepted the assignment to investigate and thus begins Jean’s relationship with Gretchen, her kind, jeweler husband, Howard, and. precocious daughter, Margaret. Busy with her job, household duties and demanding (selfish?) Mother, Jean doesn’t get out much, and is quite the loner. Her involvement with the Tilburys gives her a totally new perspective . She relishes her outings with Margaret and declares herself an “Unofficial Aunt”. The author intersperses little articles from Jean’s feature columns between the chapters of the book, and the influence of the new relationship can be read between the lines. The unsatisfactory ending is what kept this from being a 5 star read for me. Thanks to Net Galley for the advance read of Small Pleasures.
#SmallPleasures. #NetGalley

This is a bittersweet period piece, a mystery and a love story, set in suburban London in the late 1950’s, inspired by two news stories during that time. It reminded me quite a bit of that lovely movie, Brief Encounter, even though the plot lines are different.

When reporter Jean becomes intrigued with a woman who says her daughter was the result of a virgin birth she has no idea how her own life will be impacted.
Jean connects Gretchen with doctors and researchers who try to find scientific proof of the claim. She also becomes a friend
of the Tilbury family while continuing to research Gretchen's past. These two activities prove to be disastrous.
The story explores the dilemma of what we owe to others.
The ending, unfortunately, comes upon the reader as an abrupt surprise - it appears as an Afterword where an Epilogue would have been more appropriate.
Thanks to Netgalley and the
publisher for the opportunity to read the book.

This title lands in that lovely space between popular fiction and literary fiction. I did, by the end, completely lose a connection I was obviously supposed to keep, but the author's note caught me up quickly which I believe was the point.

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers. This is the story of Jean who works at a newspaper in 1957. She ends up investigating a woman who claims a virgin birth. I have not read this author previously. I really enjoyed her writing and storytelling. The characters were very real and the story believable. The relationships in the story were spot on and explained very well. I loved the humor of Howard! I was wondering how the author was going to tie in the railroad accident. Well now I know! The story ended abruptly. I have many unanswered questions. But I'm guessing that's what the author wanted. I will recommend this book. Thank you for letting me review o

This was an enjoyable and interesting read, when I finished I was still wanting to read more! Jean is a feature writer for a local paper who gets a story that she sets out to find the truth of. The more she investigates the more she gets to know the family and her life changes in great ways

One of my favorite reads of the year! A wonderful tapestry of friendahip motherhood and love against the backdrop of a questionable birth. Utterly immersive and compelling!

The title of the book is perfect because in the book it's based on this writer called Jean and how she was taking care of her mother and then the story gets a little bit complicated open complicated she needs this woman woman who said She was had a miracle birth Her daughter was named Margaret but there's a lot of twist and turns to this story sir Jean as a reporter for this newspaper went to interview this lady and it's like a mystery street how this woman gave birth without a man She was married to a man named Howard and he was really not very happy with the situation but he married her anyway because she was pregnant with this child So Jean shows up and he realizes he could have this wonderful relationship with women and and they go up to his aunt's house it is aunt's house and they had a lot of fun that day and this is This is how Romantic relationship started Jean is writing a story about this lady's miracle of birth If she starts to interview these girls who are at this Catholic hospital or diseases And she starts to uncover a lot of crazy stuff One of her best friends was a lesbian and when she found out she was pregnant she couldn't like broke off the relationship right away And it's like a mystery because you find out a lot of stuff at the end of the book and advertise everything together And Howard and Jean got a one famously really well they will they really truly love each other and you'll see this at the end of the book

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers is a beautifully written fictional story of ordinary people, who lead ordinary lives until unusual circumstances change their lives forever. The writing is so beautiful and simplistic, and I was drawn into the story and into the character’s lives quickly and I couldn’t stop until I was done with the book.

The main story focuses on Jean, a very ordinary small-town journalist who discovers a woman, Gretchen, who claims to have given a virgin birth to her now 10-year-old daughter, Margaret. The book revolves around Jean, doing the research to try and find the truth to her claim. In doing the research, Jean becomes very involved with Gretchen and her family. Gretchen’s husband, Howard knows about the circumstances surrounding Margaret’s birth and he believes his wife’s claim. Jean also takes a liking to the daughter, Margaret, the outcome of the virgin birth, and she eventually feels very protective of her.

I liked that this story gave a realistic view of a time in the past. So many books romanticize a time period, making it sound heroic and gives a nostalgic look at the time period. The author here gave the reader a very realistic glimpse at life in Kent in 1957 for an average person. The book is full of normal and mundane details of the time, giving the reader a real sense of what life was like and how people managed their daily life and chores during that time period.

Jean’s research into Gretchen’s claim gives the book a bit of mystery as we wonder if Gretchen’s claims are true and if so, how did Margaret’s conception occur? The details of the medical tests and Jean’s search for the women who lived in the convalescent home where Gretchen was a patient during the time she became pregnant with Margaret are interesting and give some insight to care for the very ill during this time period.

Small Pleasures is a book that you’re going to love, or possibly dislike, as it’s not glamorous, or filled with exciting scenes, but it’s so ordinary and simplistic that it’s beautiful. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Oh, how I love this book. When I opened it, I intended to only read a couple pages. Well. I became so engrossed that I could not put it down. For the next several days, I lived and breathed this story and these characters. As I went about the daily business of life, I was so eager to return to Small Pleasures.

This is a lovely character-driven novel. The author has crafted a plot that is suspenseful because it seems so much like real life, especially as Jean makes new friends and their relationships become more complicated. Jean, Howard, Jean's mother, and Margaret are well-drawn characters who seem like real people. I felt I knew each of them intimately. Gretchen is a little harder to get to know, but that's likely on purpose.

The mystery element in terms of proving/disproving the Virgin birth is an added element of interest.

The novel's ending broke my heart and yet it seemed right for the story.

Chambers is such a talented author and I'm now excited to read her backlist. Small Pleasures is highly recommended for fans of literary and character-driven fiction. This novel is destined to become a classic.

I found this book hard to put down! Jean Swinney is a newspaper journalist working for a local paper. She recieves a letter from a woman named Gretchen, claiming that she had a "virgin birth" 10 years ago, and she and her daughter are willing to undergo medical tests to prove the same. Set in England in the 1950's, the story centers around Jean and her relationship with Gretchen and her family, and Jean's efforts to prove Gretchen's story. Jean's life before meeting Gretchen was very predictable, centered around her job and caring for her mother. As Jean digs deeper for the truth, she finds herself developing relationships with each member of Gretchen's family, breaking the monotony of her daily life. Jean finds herself happier than she has ever been, but that happiness comes at a price. As Jean gets closer to the truth, Gretchen's family starts to unravel, and secrets are revealed. The characters are so well drawn, I could picture them clearly in my mind. I cared about what happened to each of them. I highly reccommend this book!

I have mixed emotions about this book, as I enjoyed a lot of it, and strongly disliked other parts of it.

The premise of the "virgin birth" mystery pulled me in. The descriptions of life in the time period, and Jean's quiet life filled with her job and the caretaking of her mother, kept it interesting. The desire to solve the "mystery" kept me going to the end.

What I didn't like, maybe because I was not expecting them, were the convoluted and complicated love stories of Jean and Howard, and of Gretchen and Martha. The solution to the mystery felt totally underwhelming. The ending was abrupt and a totally unnecessary twist.

I know the book is receiving great reviews, and most people love it, but it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Thank you to NetGalley and Custom House for the advanced reader copy.

Small Pleasures is part mystery and part love story. The main characters Jean, Gretchen, and Howard work to figure out what they want while the mystery unfolds. Jean and Howard are more sympathetic characters because of their circumstances.

I was incredibly intrigued by the blurb of this book, and was expecting something quite different. While I still enjoyed it, I was a tad disappointed by the direction it went.

The premise was really interesting; I wish the ending had occurred later in time so all the loose ends would have been tied up instead of leaving some of them to the reader.

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers is a fascinating and complex novel that ran me through the full gambit of emotions. Quite unique!

This is such a complicated and complex story. The pacing is a slow burn, until the end. Jean is such a wonderfully drawn character and although I thought I knew where this was going, I find that I most certainly did not see that ending on the horizon. Heartbreaking to say the least. However, it doesn’t make me dislike the story any less.

4/5 stars

Thank you NG and Custom House for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication.