A dual timeline rich in detail and well researched. The story covers the early years of the women’s suffragette movement, women’s rights and constraints, family secrets and even the Titanic disaster.
We follow the life of Ida from 1911 in Berlin and Laura in 1965 Australia.
Ida assists her father in making violins but this stops when her mother dies and she becomes responsible for keeping her father’s house. She feels the stirring of a feminist spirit which sees her fleeing the confines of her home and escaping to London with the help of fellow suffragattes
Violin virtuoso Laura Hartley who has synesthesia, where people can perceive colours when listening to music, world is is shattered when her beloved violin is stolen and she then learns of her much loved grandmothers death. She travels from Berlin to her grandmother’s home in the Australian outback where she undertakes an emotional journey.

If you like historical fiction with strong female protagonists and great storytelling this is a wonderful read.

This was my first book by Alli Sinclair (but I do have another one of hers on my tbr pile) and I absolutely loved it.

I love the dual timeline, starting in 1911 with Ida and then in 1965 with Laura.
The struggles for women in both timelines were very different and disappointing to see.
1911 sees Ida being the property of her father, unable to follow her dream of becoming a luthier or marry a man of her choosing and not being allowed to vote. 1965 sees unmarried women denied access to contraception, unmarried mothers snubbed, racism, women not allowed in the front bar of a pub and men ashamed to admit they like pursuits such as cooking, singing or playing a musical instrument.

Alli has created such wonderful characters in Ida, Elizabeth, Laura and their supporting cast.
I was so involved in their struggles, laughing and crying and cheering along with them.

Thank you to Penguin Random House Australia and NetGalley for the digital arc. All opinions are my own.

1965. Laura Hartley is a world famous virtuoso, when her violin is stolen and she’s notified her grandmother has passed away, Laura's fiancé doesn’t understand, and her music career is in tatters. Laura has a gift of seeing music in colours or synaesthesia, without her violin she can’t write or preform and her world is grey.

Laura travels to the Australian outback and Queensland, to a little town called Gungderring, to sort out her Nana’s affairs and with the plan to return to Germany in six weeks. Laura meets the locals and that's an experience she will never forget, and as she slowly goes through Elizabeth things she discovers sheets of music, while her grandmother encouraged Laura to excelled at the violin and she had no idea she was musical herself.

The story has a dual timeline, it’s set in 1965 and 1911 and is easy to follow and ties together perfectly.

1911. Ida Naber is a luthier, since her mother passed away six months ago her father has banned her from making and repairing violins and instead she has to be his housekeeper. He’s a selfish man, doesn’t care about Ida’s feelings or happiness, and she secretly attends The German Association for Women’s Suffrage meeting and is inspired by these women. When her father announces he wants her to marry a man she hates and he has no idea she’s fallen in love with another and she has to fight for her freedom and take a big risk.

I received a copy of A Woman’s Voice from Penguin Random House and NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Alli Sinclair’s new novel takes you on a journey to Berlin and Vienna, and London and Australia and it includes so many important and significant historical events and topics, such as the suffragette movement and rights for women, the launching and sinking of the Titanic.

Interwoven in this are real 1960’s issues including society’s attitudes towards contraception and unwed mothers, indigenous Australian’s and women not being allowed in the front bar of a pub, and men having non-masculine hobbies such as singing, playing a musical instrument and cooking.

I loved the close knit community of Gungderring and the people who lived there and for me the characters were interesting and diverse, funny and annoying and very realistic.

The message I gained from the story was the power of music and performing no matter the size of the crowd, and secrets always come out in the end, live authentically and be yourself. Well done Alli Sinclair, I was captivated by your dual timeline saga, it’s one of the best books I've read, perfect in every way and I cheered and cried, while I adored and booed some of the characters and five stars from me.

Alli Sinclair writes such beautifully evocative historical stories and this one was no exception. Has left me searching for the one single title that I haven't read yet.
There are so many big historical moments interwoven throughout this story. We have mentions of the Titanic, the suffragette movement, and there was another that I can't capture right now.
Two women in history that lived through a time that modern women could not even imagine - but do have to thank them for. A time when women were little more than property and could make no big decisions for themselves. At the mercy of the men around them for everything.
There was quite a vein of mystery that I did manage to click to early but I loved the way it all played out.
Another story I would love a sequel to check in on the characters down the track.

What an absolutely beautiful tale, beautifully written and one I was completely enthralled with. Violin virtuoso Laura Hartley has her life's passion stolen from her and retreats to her grandmother's outback Australian home. Here she has to find herself and make many hard decisions. This is truly a book that will get into your heart and your head.

I do love Ali Sinclair books and this was no exception. She is a wonderful writer and the characters she develops are so real and fill you with love and emotion. The research in this and all her books is well done, where fact and fiction combine to create a strong and courageous story and bring women to the fore, showing their strength of characters, their courageous nature and the love they have in their hearts. I highly recommend this book and can't wait to see what Ali Sinclair writes for us next.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House Australia for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

It was Berlin, Germany in 1911, and only six months since Ida Naber's mother had passed. Her job, working with her father on repairing and making violins, had immediately ceased as she now had to keep house for him. Ida was devastated. She was almost finished the violin she'd been making for her mother when she died, so needed to finish it in her honour. But her father banned her from the workshop, his rough abuse heartbreaking. A new neighbour appeared, Johann Weiss, and soon they were more than friends. But knowing that she had to keep it from her father made it difficult. It was after Johann had gone to London to play in the orchestra that her father ordered her to marry the man he had chosen. Ida refused and the night before the wedding, she escaped.

In 1965 Laura Hartley had her beloved violin stolen. It was the one her grandmother had gifted her, and the concerts far and wide - Berlin, Vienna and further afield - saw audiences enamoured by her music. But the loss of her violin, at the same time she learned her grandmother had died, shattered her; her music was gone, her ability to make music, as well as write it, taken from her. Devastated by grief, Laura made her way to Australia, heading for the small town her grandmother had called home, to sort out her estate, pack up the house to sell, then return to Europe. But with Laura's discovery in the house, she began to learn secrets from her past; secrets she'd had no idea existed. Was her whole life a lie?

A Woman’s Voice is a spectacular historical novel, well researched, fiction based on fact which I adored. Aussie author Alli Sinclair always manages to hit the right notes for me; the suffragette movement which spread from Berlin, to London, to America - all women helping one another, protesting their rights. I thoroughly enjoyed both time frames (often it's only one over the other) with both Ida and Laura's stories equally poignant. It's been awhile between books for Alli Sinclair but this one was well worth the wait! Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley & Penguin AU for my digital ARC to read and review.