Joanna Miller's The Eights doesn't have a plot as such. Rather, it's the story of a group of women at Oxford after World War I, delving into each of their histories and gradually revealing the circumstances underlying their decisions to matriculate at Oxford. Miller's historical grounding is impeccable--the level of research she did shows. I suppose I would have appreciated more of a narrative to carry the story along, though I did find many of the women's backstories interesting. It's a thoughtful, well-researched book, but it isn't particularly enthralling.

This book was a fun story about female friendships in early academia. Sad to say, much has not changed in terms of taking women in academia seriously. The camaraderie between the Eights felt very real and well-written.

Super grateful for the ARC from netgalley and Book Huddle!

Thank you so much to Joanna, Penguin Group, Putnam and NetGalley for gifting me with an e-ARC copy of this novel!

Set in 1920, four pioneering women - Beatrice, Dora, Marianne and Otto - are among the first women ever admitted to Oxford University. Each woman has her own dreams and expectations for their experience, and also come with their own postwar woes and secrets. Dora is mourning the loss of her brother and fiance; Beatrice struggles with idolizing and existing in the darkest shadow of her mother; Otto was a war nurse who saw enough to make her not want to forge a traditional path; and Marianne who has a secret she holds very close to her chest. This is an exploration of found sisterhood and the power of friendship during a pivotal moment in women's history.

4 stars!

The Eights just got better and better! The more you get to know the four women, the more you care about their academic success at Oxford, their relationships with one another, and their experience as female students on a male-dominated campus. The Oxford women are made to feel less than, that they do not bring anything useful to the table academically or in intelligent conversation and that they should return home to find husbands and keep house.

The Eights is an excellent example of lifting one another up; of women accepting other women as they are and applauding them for their unique qualities and backstories, and understanding when a friend needs kindness, care and support in any number of ways.

If you like historical fiction, stories of female resilience and a style of writing that balances historical accuracy with the raw experiences of the novel's characters, then add this one to your TBR. Face adversity, ignore ignorance and challenge the naysayers with the ladies of the Eights.

This isn’t a bad book it just wasn’t for me, unfortunately. I have very little knowledge of Oxford college so all the references to historical events and important landmarks went over my head. Otto was the only character that really stood out to me, the other three blended into each other too much. I really enjoyed the writing style though, so I would be interested in possibly reading more from this author.

It is an incredible story about the first women to attend Oxford and the challenges they faced in a male-dominated time. Thank you, NetGalley!

“I often ask myself,” she begins, “if women had always been taught to paint, sculpt, publish, report, write, calculate, translate, and experiment, what kind of world would we live in now?”

A historical novel set at 1920s Oxford, The Eight centers around four young women who live in Corridor Eight and are among the first to officially matriculate through the college. We see their ups and downs as they traverse their first year, learning each of their back stories and seeing how the Great War has drastically impacted each of their lives.

Each of the characters had a distinct voice and personality, and they all felt realistically flawed in a way that the reader feels for each of them and wants them to succeed. Through their stories, the book covers topics such as women’s rights, the widespread tragedies of war, class differences, the Spanish Influenza pandemic, and the unequal and unfair standards female scholars were held to.

I loved the bond that these very different women grew during the book, as well as learning more about this time period in Oxford’s history. If you enjoy historical fiction, this one might be right up your alley!

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Putnam for the advanced copy of the ebook!

Did you know the average life expectancy of a British officer serving in WW1 was six weeks? Six weeks. I loved how this story tied in the suffrage movement, WW1 frontlines, nurse life and postwar rehab care, the challenges of women receiving higher education, predjudices of their time, and also the great achievements of women. This is a must read historical fiction if you love the World War 1 and 1920s era!

This book was exactly what I hoped it was going to be and exceeded my expectations. A huge thank you to @NetGalley and @Putnam's Sons for an ARC!

The story follows four young women who are among the first to attend Oxford following World War 1.

We meet Marianne- the daughter of a clergyman and without a mother, Marianne is studying English and hopes to build a new life for herself despite her many secrets. She develops a close friendship with one of the fellow Oxford students (WHO I LOVED) and I loved her perspectives and her story (and the end!)

Then we meet Otto- one of many daughters, Otto is searching to find her place in society. As a former WW1 nurse she is full of spunk, quick wit, and unwaivering loyalty. Otto's love for her friends really was touching and she is one of my favorite literary characters.

Beatrice- daughter of a renowned suffragette, Beatrice's outside the norm perspectives and drive keep the friendships moving and while she has her own semi troubled past, Beatrice doesn't let anything get her down.

Dora- sweet, sweet Dora! I really loved her character development- Dora enters the story having lost her brother and her fiance in WW1 within two weeks of each other. Dora's place at Oxford is simply because her brother wasn't alive to attend and she is trying to make the most of it while in her grief. She is fierce and one of my favorite chacters as well.

The writing was so well done and I loved the tone and the narrative behind each character. It felt immersive, historical, and like I was right alongside the characters.

I highly recommend for fans of The Testament of Youth, Emma M. Lion series, and Where the Wild Flowers Lay. Explores themes of lost youth, war, grieving, forging new paths, found family, etc.

Content: brief descriptions of assault, child birth, etc.

I wanted to love this book, but I merely liked it. I liked getting to know all these women and understand their experiences at Oxford and how they tried to get around the rules. But it moved pretty slowly. 3 1/2 stars.

4.25/5 stars! This is a page-turning historical fiction handling themes of sexism, judgment, and discrimination yes at Oxford post WWI. This reminded me of the movie "Hidden Figures." There was a lot to love about this book. At times, I did find the pacing to be a bit redundant, but I really appreciated this and was pleasantly surprised to learn it was a debut novel.

This novel is set at Oxford University in England in 1920, when the very first class of female students were officially allowed to matriculate. The title refers to the four women who are randomly assigned to live in Corridor 8 and become fast friends. Otto comes from a wealthy family who may have a reputation as a flirt but is still scarred by her time working as a nurse in Oxford during WWI caring for soldiers who returned home. Beatrice is the daughter of a famous suffragist who feels like she can never win her mother’s approval. Dora lost both her brother and fiancé in the war. And Marianne is a rector’s daughter with her own secrets, which are kept secret from the reader for most of the book too.

Alternating between the four women’s perspectives with occasional flashbacks as well, it took a minute to be able to keep all the characters straight. But once I did, I was totally charmed by this story of female friendship and the courage it took to be the first female students, with the shadow of WWI hanging over so much. I’d gladly read a sequel about these women - or whatever else debut novelist Joanna Miller chooses to write next!

The Eights struck me as a love letter to Oxford; the colleges, the history, the scenery and the scholarly.
It started out very slow (and a little dull) but became interesting once the friendship between Ottoline, Beatrix, Marianne and Dora began. They’ve each experienced trauma from war and family challenges, the scars of which played out in the book. Their love for learning formed the bond between these four very different characters and I enjoyed reading their story.
Advanced reader copy courtesy of the publishers at NetGalley for review.

What an absolute delight to read! The inter-war years are one of my favorite time periods to read about and this book does a wonderful job conveying the feeling and changes in the years between world wars. This story brings together friendship, female empowerment, trauma, and survivor guilt against the backdrop of a rapidly changing post-WWI society. Miller's prose is beautiful and descriptive, her characters are well developed and I was thoroughly immersed in the history and landscape of Oxford. These 4 women, the "Eights," will stick with me for a long time. I look forward to more by this author!

Thanks you NetGalley for an advanced digital copy. All opinions are my own.

Ehhh, I struggled with this one and am still struggling with how to review this one. I loved the concept and history of this book. Who wouldn't want to read about the first 4 women to matriculate at Oxford University in the 20?! The history was incredibly well done and I could picture the time period through the words. But unfortunately, that is where the enjoyment ended for me. I found that the 4 main characters were hard to keep track of. They all had their own trauma, personalities and experiences, but also very similar. The way the book was written made it at times difficult to keep track. I enjoyed the friendship and bond between these history-making women, but also wanted more personality from them as individuals to make it easier to differentiate. I truly enjoyed the history part, what Oxford was like after the first World War, misogyny and the threat of influenza. There was a ton of research done, which was obvious throughout the book, which was my favorite part of the story. 
Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader copies.

A big thanks to the publisher for sending me an ARC of The Eights. I heard about it on a bookish podcast and the description was intriguing.

I really enjoyed this one. I would describe it as historical fiction with heart. In The Eights, 4 young ladies are in the first group of women allowed to matriculate at Oxford University in post-WWI. Really, though, this is a story about female friendship. The first bit of the book was slow to me and I had some trouble keeping the characters straight, but once I knew who was who and the plot started to pick up I really was invested.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loved The Whalebone Theater by Joanna Quinn or The Briar Club by Kate Morton. It's a lovely book!

This was an interesting book about the bonds women form in difficult situations. I enjoyed all of the characters and the setting. The book did a very good job of reflecting on the difficulties of women during the time period. I would recommend this title.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House for this ARC! I love books that surround Oxford, so I was very excited to start this one. What a ride. I was, of course, rooting for the main characters right away. Given their feelings of not belonging and everything they went through I had to keep trudging through even through the triggering mistreatment they suffered. The care taken when writing this book to get the history and the dates right is incredible. Overall I was very impressed.

What a brilliant and moving debut! I find the events around the time of WWI very interesting, but the personal aspects brought The Eights to life for me!

The story alternates between Otto, Beatrice, Dora and Marianne’s POV, all touched by the war and the struggles women faced at that time. So many challenges being part of the first group of women to potentially earn a degree from Oxford in 1920. Nicknamed “The Eights” because of their residence building, they bond over their experiences drawing close. Their friendship and support of each other was moving. There was a little bit of romance, but it was a small, but wonderful part of the story!

Otto is haunted by her memories of volunteering during the war. Dora deals with the loss of her brother and fiancé. Beatrice’s mother loved fighting for women’s rights more than her daughter. Beatrice’s mother was awful! Then there’s the pastor’s daughter, Marianne, carrying a secret. At first, I thought she was the least interesting, but she ended up being my favorite by the end! I loved them all, though!

3.5 stars
I enjoyed this story of a group of women attending Oxford university together following the First World War. These women dealt with all of the misogyny they encountered from teachers to fellow students, and even their families. There was so much trauma following the devastation and death from the war & this book brought that to foreground. I appreciated how these women kept their spirits high and they bond to each other tight as they navigated a new world while discovering who they each wanted to be.
*Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley

This novel kept me engaged in the stories of the women who first got into Oxford. The women were from different backgrounds which helped to keep the story interesting. I enjoyed the insight into Oxford and how it operated in the 1920s. The women had a lot to prove and faced a lot of hurdles to keep up with what Oxford expected.

The aftermath of WW1 was also prevalent in their stories, grief and societal norms. Women did a lot of jobs during the war and then suddenly had no jobs and it added to them feeling unimportant. I applaud their bravery at being the first women to matriculate. The friendships that formed were what made the novel flow.

This was a wonderful historical fiction with a topic I was not familiar. I am glad I read the novel and thank Netgalley for the chance to review the book.

Oxford 1920 when the first women were allowed to enter. The women had quite a few very strict restrictions on them - their dress, where they could go, who they could talk to, and especially being around the men. These women were fictional characters not based on the real women who were the first to attend Oxford. I would have preferred something based on the real women who first entered Oxford.

The characters all had background stories that were slowly unfolded in the book, which were more interesting than the actual storyline.

I got a flavor of that time period and the bravery of these intelligent women facing a lot of restrictions on their lives. Overall I felt the book was too slow and I was hoping for more to happen.

My thanks to Net Galley and GP Putnam Sons for an advanced copy of this e-book.