Another great read in the working girls series. This book tells the story of Sapphire/Sophie and how her life changes when her Mum dies. Two sisters put into the care system and their lives took completely different routes just because of the way the care system treated them. I have really enjoyed catching up with the girls and finding out how Sapphire ended up as a sex worker. My heart went out to Sapphire especially with the way the Rowbothams treated her when she confided in them. I highly recommend this series five stars from me ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this gripping book

Sophie and Kelsey life is about to be torn apart… their mother has been diagnosed with cancer …

Their father has another family and doesn’t want to take them on

Sophie and Kelsey life changes after their mother dies with them both being taken into care … it’s a rough introduction and it’s not long before Sophie runs into trouble and is cast into the role of trouble maker

They both get fostered into two different families and it doesn’t take long before the cracks start to show in their relationship

With Kelsey’s fostering being successful and Sophie’s not working it’s not long before Sophie runs off

This is a hard hitting book about the destruction of a young girls life snd the choices left open to her

Brilliantly written and keeps you engrossed till the end

Will be keeping an eye out for more of this authors works

Life

I’ve had the pleasure of reading all of the books in the working girls series and have to say each are a great read. The topics covered are sad, shocking but most of all realistic and shows how life can change in the blink of an eye and render a person desperate enough to survive to be sucked into the shadier side of life that most of us are unaware exists.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’d like to thank Head of Zeus and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Sapphire’, the fifth book in The Working Girls series written by Heather Burnside, in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

The lives of sisters Sophie and Kelsey are turned upside down when their mother dies and they’re taken to live at Rushthorpe Children’s Home. Kelsey moves out to live with a foster family whereas Sophie is cared for by Kenneth and Cynthia she’s let down she has no alternative but to run away. Sophie is now homeless, has no money and no contact with Kelsey, so she begs and steals to survive before becoming a working girl on the streets of Manchester.

‘Sapphire’ is the name given to Sophie as she works on the streets of Manchester and we again meet Crystal and briefly Amber, Ruby and Angie from the previous books in the series. This is a novel that’s sad at times as it recounts what Sapphire has to do to survive but shows her strength as against all odds she battles to become a better person and hopefully meet up with her sister Kelsey again. This has been a gripping and down-to-earth novel with tough strong-minded female characters and a well-written plot that I didn’t want to end. I found Sapphire to be a genuinely likeable person and was there rooting for her during those final chapters urging her to succeed. I was so pleased at how the last pages made the story complete and I congratulate Ms Burnside on another brilliant book.

This is an author who is new to me and so I was intrigued when I saw this book. Even though it is part of a series it is one that can be read as a stand-alone.

Sapphire is the name of Sophie, older sister to Kelsey. Life goes from bad to worse for the pair when their mother dies and their father wants nothing to do with them as he has a new family. The girl's des[erately want to remain together but it is hard to find places for teens, so when Kelsey is offered a place with a foster family Sophie lets her go.

As the story continues life for Sophie doesn't go the way it did for her sister, the two slowly drift. The point where Sophie becomes Sapphire is further in the story. It is a heartbreaking story and one that was tough to read. Unfortunately, it is one that could very easily be true. It is the story of how a teen finds herself alone, on the streets and homeless.

The author has given a very harrowing account of Sapphire and her experiences, the hardships the dangers and the addictions. It is one way of showing how living in a nice warm and comfy home can go wrong and that all the things that follow are a downward spiral.

The author takes the reader into a world of poverty, drugs, destitution, prostitution and death. It is not a pretty world or a nice one to read about. All the while I thought this is how easy it could be if you are completely alone and think you have no choices or options. It does have a grim reality to it.

This is a gangland styler crime thriller, it is brutal and does explore various aspects of homelessness and living as best you can. It is quite an addictive read and one I found very difficult to put down. It is one I would recommend.

# although Book 5 in the Working Girls Series can 100% be read as a stand alone #

Heather Burnside is back and having read all of her previous books I knew I was in for a good read, this author had not disappointed in the past and ‘Sapphire’ was another great book
We meet ‘Sophie’ in her younger life and via a family tragedy she and her Sister end up in care, her Sister ‘s life takes one turn and Sophie’s the exact opposite
Sophie’s life is then told as she battles with homelessness, drugs, prostitution and crime and renames herself ‘Sapphire’ ( after meeting other members from the Working Girls Books) the book then follows her many trials as Sapphire until the conclusion..but I wont tell you about that!
I really had a soft spot for Sapphire, she was inherently good and kind and her life through no fault of her own pushed her further and further into the gutter ( having some terrible ordeals along the way ) BUT she never lost that spark of goodness in her personality nor most of the time her positivity and as said I really liked her, her battle with her sexuality on top of all her other traumas was an interesting sideline story
Written so well you feel like you are there with her and her ( often dubious ) characters she ends up with and I was really rooting for her to do well and to see some, any light at the end of the tunnel
These books are brilliant and show ‘gangland’ and family drama with heart and emotion, loved it

10/10
5 Stars

Sapphire's story is the final installment in the Working Girls series. Which I will be sad to say goodbye to.

Sophie and Kelsy are unexpectedly left abandoned by their father and finding life hard in the care system.

Poor Sophie (Sapphire) has a rougher time than her sister.

Awful to think that this situation unfortunately does happen in the real world.

This is a heartbreaking read which Heather has written fantastically and you will root for Sapphire to be able to turn her life around.

Well worthy of 5 stars.

The Working Girls Book 5

Sophie and Kelsey have always had each other. When their mum is diagnosed with cancer and their dad fails to step up, they're forced to move into the care system. But Sophie knows they'll be okay as long as she's there to protect her sister. But when Kelsey is found a foster family and Sophie can't join her, Sophie is left in an unsafe situation in the home, forced to do things against her will. Finding her own foster family feels like a relief, but it's short lived when her trust in her new foster parents is betrayed.

Sophie runs away from the religious family that fostered her after her mother died and her father refused to take her and her sister, Kelsey, in. Sophie ends up on the streets. She changes her name to Sapphire.

The pace is steady in this well written book. I don't think life on the street, living with drugs and prostitution, were realistically portrayed. The characters were a mixed bunch of likeable and unlikeable. I felt the ending was a little disappointing. This book can be read as a standalone.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #HeadOfZeus and the author #HeatherBurnside for my ARC of #Sapphire in exchange for an honest review.

This was a good book I hadn't realised that this was the fifth installment. But it didn't matter as this is a book in its own right. From start to finish it was a page turner . Two sisters pulled apart from the care system one girl has the dream home the other resorts to the streets. A raw and emotional journey to happiness

Two sisters living with their mother, who dies of cancer, are forced into the care system. They are separated and Sophie ends up on the streets on a downward spiral of drugs. It's a sad portrayal of the care system, drugs and prostitution but is well written and flowed well. A quick read with an unrealistic ending. Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

Absolutely riveting read
Another page turner
Don’t expect to do anything else once you start
Can’t wait for the next one

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. When Sophie's mother passes away her life is no longer the same. Her sister finds a good foster family, but Sophie wasn't that lucky. Sophie is finding it hard living on the streets. I liked this book.

Another fabulous instalment in The Working Girls series. Once again exploring a brutally dark and gritty world but done authentically rather than sensationally. Brilliant storyline and characters.

Was over the moon to be accepted to read an early copy of Sapphire, couldn't wait to start reading it. I've read all of Heather's books and this one certainly didn't disappoint. This is the 5th book in The Working Girls series and while I think you could read this as a standalone, I would advise you read the previous 4 first to be able to grasp the full story as the people involved in the series are mentioned in each book.
I know it's not a true story but it's heartbreaking to think young girls could actually be living this type of life and going through all sorts of abuse. I really enjoyed reading this book as I have with all of Heather's books but be prepared, once you start reading, it's hard to put down.

I was so gripped by this book I had to find out what happened to Sophie and sapphire. The book really flowed so well I absolutely loved it.

Sophie and Kelsey are sisters and live with their mother in Manchester. There father divorced and left them and re-married. When the girls mother dies of Cancer and the father abandons them, they end up in a foster home. The girls are so glad that they have each other. But in grief, the girls cope with the death of their mother differently. While Kelsey is the quite one. Sophie is headstrong but she doesn’t cope with the death of her mother that well and she starts lashing out. So, when there is talk of the girls being fostered. The girls are torn apart, and Kelsey is sent to a nice loving family, but poor Sophie’s are weird, and her life starts falling downhill from then on.
Sophie runs away from the foster home she lives in which starts her off in a life of homelessness, sex, drugs and stealing and abused from people she tries to get close too. She has hopes and dreams like anyone else. But will her life get any better.
Thanks Head of Zeus and Aries for a copy of Sapphire from Heather Burnside. This is another gripping, and realistic account how someone call fall through the system and no fault of their own become homeless and do what they can to survive. This was quite sad in places, and I felt sorry for Sapphire. But saying I really enjoyed this and I highly recommend.

Thank you to the publisher and author for the invitation to read this book.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author and the premise looked like my sort of read. I thought this was a good read, it was written well and pulled me in from the start. It just didn’t wow me or have me desperate to know what was coming up next. The main character is Sophie who has to look out and fend for herself from a young age. Parts of the story are sad, and I think the author has portrayed life on the streets, drug addiction and prostitution very realistically and believably. The characters were ones I either really liked or hated, I thought the story flowed really well and that the story had a good and fitting ending. I will probably look to reading the authors other books at some point.

Sapphire, homeless, junkie a tosser, in Manchester this is her story.
Sophie Tailor lives with her mum Sue her sister Kelsey, their dad Roy is now with his second wife and two step siblings and the girls knew they were not wanted in his new family so decided they did not want to see them no more.
As years go by tragedy happens and mum Sue dies of cancer, their father doesn't want them and social services put them in care. Kelsey gets fostered out to a loving family but things are a lot harder for Sophie and she is in for a heart breaking journey ahead as she becomes known as Sapphire to the working girls, she has to survive out there in the tough world.
Oh my I was total in grip reading this series and this book is such a book to pull at your heart as you read her story full of ups and downs with no way out, It left me wanting to reach out to the character.
I love the way the author has turned around the chapters to keep you wondering what is going to happen to Sapphire next and will she find happiness and a new life, along with old characters from previous books in this series, I just loved the feeling of belonging in there with them all. great read from start to finish.

Absolutely loved this book I couldn't put it down . You just want to see what happens to Sophie/sapphire . Just brilliant enjoyed this so much .

Found this book a hard read, but that’s because of the brutal storyline, sapphire has had a hard life but she doesn’t tent to come off as a victim. I would highly recommend this book