May Ellis is beyond brilliant with the heartwarming saga of New Hope for the Clarks Factory Girls.
The characters are like your family members and neighbors down the street: strong female characters who worked to provide for their families during WWII, waiting for the men who returned and missing their loved ones who didn't.
I am always pleased to read anything written by May Ellis, and New Hope for the Clarks Factory Girls did not disappoint.
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Set towards the end of world war 1 and following Kate, Jeannie and Louisa. The 3 are joined by family aswell as friendship and I like how we move along with them. They all work together but have different situations that caused them some minor discontent that they individually work through whilst supporting each other aswell as others in their community.

Kate is somewhat left out but she's had a tough time of it and I think that keeps her wary of moving on. She finds her way later on which brings them back in sync.

I like how this brings up issues of the time period and the difficulty women faced with deciding on career versus marriage/children. The taboo of the married love book seemed amusing but at the same time you can imagine how empowering it could be to allow women some sort of control in such an intimate part of their lives/relationship.

Quite an enjoyable read that reminds us of how things were for people back then and how things have changed for us now.

The fourth book in a series and it didn’t disappoint. Best to read in order as Kate, Louise and Jeannie all find love and continue to navigate village life and Clarkes through WW1 as war comes to an end. I can’t wait for her new series based through WW2. Thanks to May and her publisher. Thanks also to NetGalley

With the war coming to a end Louisa, Kate and Jeannie are looking forward to the future but the worst is yet to come. The three girls are facing so much tribulation and grief you need to be prepared to go through the emotional wringer. There is also joy with new life and hope for a much brighter future. I went through so many tissues with this story because it broke me. I also smiled a lot because of the young children especially the cheeky monkey Ruby! The plot is strong and forthright with it's impossible to put out of your mind characters.

Continuing the story of the Clarks factory girls through the war. We follow them through ups and downs,loves and losses A heartwarming read.

It is 1917 in the village of Street. Friends Jeannie,Kate,and Louisa who started the Clark’s factory together have gone through a lot since the war started.Kate has moved out of her family home when her abusive father remarries . Kate is set to be a spinster as he sweetheart has gone away to war and says he is not coming home and Louisa has Matties baby ,who has been killed in the war but gives it up to Peg and Will as they can’t have a family and Louisa’s family won’t let her home with the baby. Lucas ,Matties best friend suggests marriage to Louisa so she doesn’t have to go to live in Exeter with her mother when her pa dies.Ted who Jeannie has fallen for can’t marry as he is already married so says he will save up for a divorce.What will happen to Kate as she is still afraid of her father?Will Ted manage to save enough money for his divorce and will Louisa find love with Lucas.This was a great read.Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books.

this book really hit home with the realities of the time. i appreciate how hard it must actually be to write about this time when for many it was a harrowing time. they key would be trying to keep hope and or grabbing any and all of those hopeful moments whilst you can. books of the time might feel deviate from so much doom and gloom otherwise im not sure we could cope in the land of fiction. so getting the balance right must be really difficult. this book felt alot braver when it truly depicted some of the occurrence of that time.
i felt for all our characters and my heart was going out to them. i cant imagine trying to be brave at that time. and i find people in their every day lives and those fighting that bit extra extremely inspiring.
in this book the war is still ongoing. men are still being lost or coming home injured in mind and or body... or both. the three girls are trying there best to keep things together. they are also facing prospects of their own lives not being what they thought it would ever be and adapting to what the war has done to the people they love.
life tries to go on in the street and the girls are trying to keep things strong for themselves and those they care about. Jeannie, Louisa and Kate are all finding their own individual circumstances are forcing them to make decisions.
the girls still show us that even in times of war there is hope and joyous moments to be found.

A fantastic read, I love these Characters and how all the friends lives intertwine and change, bit of a tear jerker so have tissues handy, been a fantastic series, sad to see it end.

Now that the war is winding down can Louisa , Kate and Jeannie find a new life with each other and the ones they love. Friendship will always help things get better .

I have loved this series and being a Somerset girl (though not Street) I knew of some of the areas.
I was quite sad to finish the book and realise the series had come to an end.

The end of WW1 was always going to be a sad time - so many didn’t come home, so many came home maimed either in body or mind or indeed both. This was all reflected in the book. As was the immense tragedy afforded by the outbreak of Spanish Flu. One characters demise was terribly sad.
While it would be possible to read this as a stand-alone there really would be far more context if one had read the whole series. There are far too many mentions of past events for a new reader to understand in my opinion.
Jeannie, Louisa and Katie had grown into women in this book - one had married for convenience which flourished into love, one married her love eventually and one realised that her feminist views had their place but so did love. She also leant that she could get more education and change her role within Clark’s - even work after marriage. I felt the Marie Stopes part of the story was handled well.
I also found the dynamics between the male characters interesting and the work done by Tom making prosthetics both for war-wounded and those disabled. The mental health aspects were harrowing - as was the treatment of Kate by her wayward father.

My one disappointment was with Jeannie and her pregnancy whereas with Louisa we had the births and all. In the last chapter Jeannie was ill with a twin pregnancy and in the epilogue she had the babies. No flow between the two - it felt that the end was a bit rushed as if the author had run out of enough words.
But that doesn’t detract from a great book. There were still mentions of the differences between the Quakers and in this case the Methodists and some mention of the work done in the Clarks factory but much less than in the previous books.

I could put so much more but don’t like providing direct spoilers. It’s enough to say that this is a cracking read - and it seems end to the series.

This is such an amazing series, I was so excited when I found the next installment into this Clarkes factory girls series, it is the most amazing books ever I love each and everyone of them, they are written so beautifully and they make you want to read more and more, I can’t recommend them enough they are amazing.

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. I've loved the Clarks Factory Girls series, and I am disappointed this was the final installment. Louisa, Kate, and Jeannie's stories were wrapped up beautifully; it has been enjoyable seeing their stories develop over the course of the series (and WW1). This final story was a perfect continuation of the previous books, filled with emotion. I also liked that it ended a couple of years after the war and explored other contemporary issues of the day. I am looking forward to reading Ellis' future books.

New Hope for the,Clarks Factory Girls by May Ellis

I've really enjoyed this series . This time we are in book 4 and finding out more about Kate , Louisa and Jeannie and the tail end of the war. As usual the book is full of love , hardships , loss and heartache but the story is told in a way that you can't put it down.
I almost feel I could call the main characters my friends and keep wanting to hear all about their lives .

An utterly enchanting read! The war ends, the girls find romance, and the Spanish Flu changes everyone’s lives. I wish this wasn’t the end - that we’d see Street with the changes in the 1920s and watch the kids grow up.

Book 4 of 4 - I suggest reading these in order. I was very happy with how these stories were written. It was interesting following these girls through their WWI lives.

This novel was set in England during WWI with the story of three girls who work in the Clark Factory where shoes are made. We find them with their families, their friends and each other. It is a difficult time made more horrible with personal issues that lead to estrangement and cruelty between one of the girls, that being Kate and her drunken father. As her sisters and friends gather around her, we learn their stories and the bonds that keep them together. This is a highly emotional book, but one filled with warmth and love in spite of the war and personal issues. The book was wonderful, one that I enjoyed immensely. The characters were well developed, the writing kept me glued to the pages. This is my first book by this author and I know it won't be my last. Highly recommended...5 stars from me. My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Grab the tissues. This story will put you through the wringer. World War One is still going on. Lives are being lost. Men are returning with severe injuries. Mustard Gas is destroying good men. But life must go on in Street.

The girls are finding their happily ever afters, but, Oh My, are there a lot of challenges. Jeannie and Louisa are making families. Kate remains alone, until one day her past returns from the war. He is determined to show her he is here to stay.

Drama and emotions fill the pages making for a very enjoyable read. I made the mistake of forgetting their were worse things to come. Death is not done with those in Street. The Spanish Flu has come to destroy many who have survived the war. The Spanish Flu does not care who it grabs in its hands.

The story is filled with joyous moments. The story has many heartbreaking moments. The strength of the Clark Girls is an inspiration I will not soon forget.

received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

I love this series they are such a lovely read. I love reading about all the characters and there problems with boyfriends and work in general. It makes me escape real life for awhile. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Oh this one is the best of this series..
Thank god the war is over.
This book made me cry like a baby not once but twice. It's such an emotional story.
So sad it's finished but oh wow such a powerful series of books and this last one has it all love, heartache, sadness and hope.
The last paragraph was the perfect end to this book and it made me smile.

Following her recent marriage to Lucas, Louisa is delighted to discover she is expecting. But after everything she’s lost since the war began, dare she believe that this is a sign of brighter days ahead?
An absolute corker . . . totally engrossing and superbly written ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐