The premise of this was very good. It had some great plot lines. Excellent characters. The villain was dastardly. It wasn't too hard to follow as it went back and forth between characters and time. Lots of foreshadowing which I did manage to pick up on.

But for me personally--it would have worked just fine without the sex. it wasn't graphic, but you were definitely there in the bedroom. It's not my thing. And the book would have been 100% perfectly fine without it.

I also am not a fan of the F-word. Which made its appearance after about 70% of the book was done. Not needed even for added emphasis. There are a gazillion other word options that can be used without going for that one. Even for the lower class citizens.

Going to be 3 stars for me. Was a great story and the character build was lovely. I was entertained the whole story. But the sex and swearing always takes off a star for me. It was really just for driving the point home that they were secret lovers. Which was obvious anyways.

**I received this as an ARC from the publisher and NetGAlley. I wasn't required to write a review and all opinions are 100% my own.

A historical fiction which is a must read in 2024.

A descriptive story that takes you back in time. For fans of Downton Abbey this would be a hit. However, there can be a bit of confusion with the characters. I personally had a hard time keeping up with it.

There's a shift change in timeline from past and present and it was confusing.

Such a great, deep story about lives in an English manor. The secrets we hold, romance and what we have to accept to bring life full circle. I loved it!

Oh my! Five stars!!!
Secrets, scandal, and forbidden love…yes, please!

The great house is secluded…it’s haunted by scandal and everyone has a secret! Some are searching for answers while others are running from the past. Rules will be broken and love will be found!

If you are a fan of Downton Abbey this is your next five star read! I loved it! I had some trouble keeping up with all of the characters at the beginning but as you read it weaves together a story line that is perfection. Goes from past to present and keeps you reading to find out what will happen next!

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC!

The Housekeeper’s Secret is a haunting read that dives into the life of a housemaid in decaying Coldwell Manor. Readers will become engrossed in the lives of servants from the very start. This novel is a historical fiction/Romance that is told from multiple POV. Everyone is the house is not what they seem, and their past histories will unfold as the story progresses. I feel in love with Kate and Jem from the very beginning. Their love story is a slow burn with many twists and turns.

If you love historical fiction like Kristin Hannah’s “Nightengale” then you will want to pick up this read! I enjoyed how beautifully written this book was and the fast pace kept me on my toes. There is a mystery behind the characters and each point of view gave me a nugget of insight at the time. I was trying to figure out the mystery along with the characters. My only critique would be that the story frequently switched between POV and timelines. This requires the reader to truly get invested in this story! Overall, I gave this book five stars. I will be purchasing a hard copy when its released on August 13, 2024.
Thank you, NetGalley & St Martin’s Press, for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

* I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in return for a fair and honest review.
This historical novel is actually a mystery. Many of the servants at this English estate are not who they claim to be, and when two fall in love it sets the stage for danger. I enjoyed this book, but it did seem to drag after a while. There were no big reveals and the solution to the mystery was rather expected. Not a bad read, but not one I'd rave about.

Kate seems like the average housekeeper and Jem the lowly footman. However, neither are and both of the are hiding something. This book is full of longing and peeling back the layers to uncover the truth. The beginning was a bit chaotic with the duo timeline, introducing the characters all at once, and jumping prospectives. All of the action happened in the last half of the book when secrets were unraveling and villains coming out. I wish there was more closure with Jem’s secret. Overall, a solid historical fiction with a splash of romance and mystery.

After reading the description for this book I was very intrigued and thought it would be an interesting story. It ended up as a DNF because I was too confused with all the characters and the split timelines really threw me off. Personally I think it would’ve been easier to understand if each chapter was in one characters point of view. I would like the try reading this again at some point in the future but I just could not get through it. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the advanced reader’s copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Part mystery. Part historical romance. All subtle suspense.

This book reads like a long, beautiful heartbreak—in the best way. It gives you characters to care about but asks its readers to brace themselves from the very beginning.

The writing and scene-setting here are stunning, but readers will need to pay close attention in order to navigate not only multiple POVs but a narrative that moves between flashbacks and the present. This story cycles through all seasons (literal and metaphorical), but somehow always felt like winter to me. Beautiful but heavy, dark but promising a reason to hope.

Grey’s novel explores poignant questions of class systems. She gives a voice to the voiceless with this story, be it servants, abuse victims, or fallen soldiers.

Perfect for fans of Downton Abbey and the Brontë sisters. I haven’t read anything like this in a long time and highly recommend it.

This book is a historical fiction with touch of romance featuring dual POV and alternating timelines.
Set at Coldwell Hall in England, Kate, the housekeeper there, begins a romance with Jem, a footman who has arrived to Coldwell Hall with his own agenda.

The story features alternating timelines between the manor and the frontlines of WWI.

As god is my witness if my iPad bleeps out a third time as I write this review there will be no review! Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. Labeled as Historical Fiction the book runs three timelines (Kate, Eliza, Jem ) during WWI with a bit of the story preceding the war. As far as historical, yes, there was a WWI and any number of crumbly old English manors existed.

The story may be satisfying for super fans of Downton Abby and Jane Eyre. The writing is lovely. I could feel the steam in the kitchen used by the servants. The shabbiness of the servants’ surroundings in contrast to the “elegance”expected by the lord of the manner was palpable. I could feel how cold it was in the basement where the servants were expected to work and sleep.

The story development is a little confusing because of the timeline moving back and forth. There is a lot more blood than love story and quite honestly for all the build up where is the love story? Kate’s secret? I didn’t guess it. Henderson? Given away in early chapters with the adjectives chosen. Epilogues? Too easy. I gave it a 3 because the writing is good.

How do I even begin to describe Iona Grey and her masterpiece that is The housekeeper’ secret? The story has beautiful prose, atmospheric setting, and has desirable romance that makes it an absolute must-read.

The writing and description was exceptional in this book. I loved the characters and could really empathize with some of the things they were going through. Living in the manor was enough to traumatize anyone.

The FMC was smart and strong. She had been through so much in her short life that by the time she reached 30, she wasn’t willing to drop her walls for anyone. However, Gem just might be the exception. She is the current housekeeper of the manor and has run the house for many years. Things are about to change when she inherits a new boss that comes with a wretched sidekick. Will her secrets come to the light, or will they be taken to the grave.

She has come to hide from her past, while he has come seeking answers from it.

Gem is trying to find out what happened to his little brothers years ago. Every scrap of evidence points to Coldwell Manor and he is determined to find the truth. Our MMC is focused while remaining a gentlemen. He males mistakes along the way but continues to try to be a good person while needing to be relentless in his pursuit of the truth.

I rated it 3 ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ so clearly there were some issues I had with this book.

One of the issues I had was with the multiple POVs and timelines. I found it difficult to know whose POV the writing was coming from on many occasions. This led me to forget the names of the characters or get them confused a LOT! While I knew what role they played, eventually…. I could barely remember their names (except Gem).

The relationship was not a relationship. They had attraction and tension but that was all I saw. Next thing I know, they are in love. While I get that she told him her secret and he comforted her a couple times, there really was not any more meaningful conversation. The POV and timeline switched so much that it did not leave room for more. This was a summer tryst that supposedly consumed them for years later after they were separated.

The end was ABRUPT! Like, really abrupt. It was moving along at a plodding pace then BAM! Prologue. I was very disappointed. It was an HEA but it just did not feel organic or satisfying. I also felt like we’re got way too in depth for certain things and then not enough for others. For instance, her name is never cleared? We never get more info on Joseph and how he did what he did?

Overall, the writing was beautiful, the descriptive words made me able to picture the scenery and the people there. I was emotionally invested in out FMC and curious about the many secrets above and below stairs. However, the issues listed above made it difficult to understand who was who for the first half of the book and as soon as I become invested, it comes to an abrupt and unsatisfactory end.

4/5 stars
mild, tantalizing spice
- Downton Abbey Edwardian Era Intrigue
- Secrets and mystery
- Gorgeous detail
- complex characters
- handsome and protective MMC
- heavy on the mystery, lighter on the romance

I loved this book. I still love this book. I need one for my bookshelf in hard copy that I can display like a trophy. Kate is the inexplicably young Housemaid at Coldwell Hall, a crumbling and decayed countryside estate full of secrets and a dark history. A handsome stranger is hired on as a new footman, unearthing his own mystery that brings those dark secrets to light, all while falling into a love affair that is forbidden. The story is told by love letters written while on the front lines and retellings of previous events from multiple points of view, which just gripped me into this book from page one. Love confessions every few chapters while told by a lovesick solider? Be still, my heart!

The storytelling is so brilliant, the detail so intense. This time period, with forbidden desires and the dichotomy of upstairs/downstairs staff, is captured so well. The characters are so complex that I was easily swayed to invest in their journeys. I appreciated the extreme research that Iona Grey must have conducted to make this story as detailed and historically accurate as possible, but it did make the love story between the main characters stand out a little less and I really, REALLY wanted more of it. Kate and Jem will have my heart forever.

The Housekeeper's Secret is overall an enchanting read. Told in multiple POV's, it takes it's time getting to the real heart of the storyline. These nuggets of insight, from all the differing angles, truly give you a picture of the secrets imbeded within the story and help you to understand the motivations of each character and why they take the actions they do. Told mainly through our two main characters POV, other supporting actors are often given a voice to help push the story where the author would like for it to ulimately unfold. I will admit it took a minute to establish the timeline in my head and begin to understand with each new snippet where the characters sat on the chess board of this story, but I trusted the author to get me there and she did - quite admirably.

The tale truly starts to pick up when our main characters are mired in the heat of an English summer, but the plot still goes by as slowly as the heat abates at the end of each day. Ultimately, all the secrets are revealed and a satisfying ending was achieved. These characters stayed with me after I read the last page and I found myself wanting to know more about how some of the supporting characters fared. The book is not a page turner - it's an investment of time into the overall well written actors within it's pages. I wanted to know more.

Set at a time of great change both in England and around the world, The Housekeeper's Secret staddles the line between a regency and a war time romance. The story explores and gives insight into what it was like in a formal English home - the strict rules the staff had to abide by and how those strictures dictated behavior. So much of that is what dictates the secrets each person holds - those secrets they want to hold, and those secrets they feel they must hold.

I enjoyed this book. This was my first Iona Grey book, but it will probably not be my last.

I was intrigued by the description of this book. I was excited to receive a copy of this ebook from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion, I don’t want to have to DNF…but sadly I just could not get into it. I had a hard time keeping track of the characters and the plot confused me.

“The Housekeeper’s Secret” is a historical fiction book by Iona Grey. I struggled at the beginning of this book - the beginning was slow, confusing, and characters were thrown in in various ways (sometimes by job title, sometimes by last name, sometimes by first) that I wished I had kept notes about who was who and working where. I think the overall idea of this book is a good one, but between the timelines (changing) and the POV voice changing (second, third), it was a difficult book to get through. I’ll give it three stars because I think the bones are there, but one needs to push through the story to see them.

"The Housekeeper's Secret" examines the goings-on of a fictional estate in the early 1900s. There is intrigue, drama, and politics abound among the service staff, which fuels the story of Kate Furniss, the housekeeper, as she aims to keep her secrets veiled. The book particularly focuses on one summer, when her heart was stolen by the new footman, Jem (who is quite a jem).
The story was a slow start, and like many other have said, a bit confusing. Many characters were introduced rapidly and called by various names (first name only, last name only, or their station in the house) which became confusing. I found myself wishing I took notes at the beginning. Furthermore, there are 2-3 (?) timelines occurring at points, which was slightly confusing in the manner it was presented. Sometimes a place, date, or only a season, or sometimes just a new chapter section would indicate the timeline jump, and it was hard to follow at points.
That being said, the book became very engrossing as it went on. I would say this is more of a love story with mystery elements set in the early 1900s as opposed to a full historical fiction novel, but it was enjoyable all the same. I would recommend to fans of slow burns with sharp and satisfying twists. I found myself gasping out loud at times. The writing was very effective in mental illustrations, and was poetic throughout. I appreciated the author's writing style as it added to the otherwise drum landscape of the moors. Overall, I would give the book 3.7 stars!
Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Kate has been the housekeeper at Coldwell House for five years, and in this time, she’s almost come to believe that’s all she is. When Jem joins the household staff in 1911, Kate finds herself falling for the handsome footman.Vacillating between the glories of Edwardian and the the miseries of World War I battlefields, this is an immersive and unforgettable story

The present tense and switches between second and third person voices in the same POV, while also being part of a multiple POV book was very confusing for me. This took far too long for me to read because of this (and I’m a speedy reader). I feel like the writing is lacking in the sense of grammar, usage, and mechanics. Even so, the storyline was entertaining and the character development was great! If it goes through another round of edits, this could be gold.