Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

First thing that drew me to this book was the gorgeous cover! And for some reason I thought this was a Christian book...it is not! It is historical fiction which deals with some atrocities of the time period, not only the differences in the class structure, but also the blatant abuse that occurs between the two.

The story centers around Enid and it was a very emotional journey she encounters. Some of the situations and the "evil" characters felt a little over the top. Overall, it was a solid story, but the ending felt so abrupt and there wasn't full closure. I'm not sure if this is the start of a series, so maybe we will find out what happens next...and especially where is Jimmy??

3 stars

A quick, easy read where we catch up with some familiar characters, a reminder for us just how vulnerable women were at this time and highlights the gap between classes.

The Workhouse Girl is a quick, engaging read. The story centers around Enid and her experiences as a maid. There is a theme of overcoming adversity and standing up to the people who have wronged you.

This is a feel-good story which I think it made it feel improbable to me at times.

The ending seemed abrupt and for me was not particularly satisfying. I am assuming that the author plans to write additional books about these characters since the story, especially related to Enid and Jimmy, was unresolved.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this story and I was interested in the outcome of the main character who was a kind and strong woman. My final rating would be 3.5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I became a fan of Lynette and her work a couple of years ago. I am steadily making my way through her earlier books. I read the synopsis of 'The Workhouse Girl' and it certainly sounded like the sort of book I have come to expect from Lynette - a gripping and emotional saga. Well it was certainly all that and so much more. I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'The Workhouse Girl' but more about that in a bit.

The cover of 'The Workhouse Girl' was enough to grab my attention and draw me in. How could I ignore a cover featuring a ginger haired young woman? It's a ginger thing. Anyway back to the point. When I started reading the story itself I quickly realised three things - firstly that I was reading something special, secondly that I was going to become addicted to the story and thirdly that I would struggle to put the book down. Guess what? I was spot on with all three predictions. i initially picked the book up only intending to read a chapter or two but I became so wrapped up in the story that I lost all track of time and just how quickly I was getting through the story. I did struggle to put the book down. My Kindle wasn't exactly glued to my hand but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me. I couldn't bear to miss a single second of the story. I had warmed to the character of Enid so much that she ended up feeling more like a friend than a character in a book. I had to keep reading to see if the story was going to play out in the way in which I thought it would. The more of the book that I read, the more I wanted to read and the quicker the pages seemed to turn. All too quickly I reached the end of 'The Workhouse Girl' to be a gripping and emotional saga which certainly kept me guessing and kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.

'The Workhouse Girl' is superbly written but then I have come to expect nothing less from Lynette Rees. Lynette has an easy going writing style that is easy to get used to and easy to get along with. Lynette certainly knows how to grab the reader's attention and draw them into what proves to be one hell of an emotional story and then some. Lynette's love for her characters shines through in the very vivid and realistic way in which she describes them. She makes her characters seem just as real as you and I. On more than one occasion, I kept wanting to jump into the pages of the book to give Enid a hug. It's obvious that Lynette has done a lot of research into the time period during which the story takes place and this helps the story seem that bit more authentic. I have a particular fascination with the Victorian era and stories such as this one are going to be the nearest I can get to being able to experience that era myself. I love the way in which Lynette makes the reader feel as though they are part of the story and at the heart of the action. That's how I felt anyway.

In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'The Workhouse Girl' and I wholeheartedly recommend the story to other readers. I look forward to reading much more of Lynette's work in the future. Lynette is a superb author of superb historical fiction. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

This delightful saga takes place alongside the first in this series "The Winter Waif" and tells the story of Enid Hardcastle, Betsan's friend she encounters when first venturing into the part of town called "China".

Enid and her family are forced into the workhouse and are thus separated, but Enid's story is only just beginning as she is boarded out to work in service with the Clarksons. But alas, circumstances conspired against her and she was sent back to the workhouse and then onto Cardiff, where she confided in the house mistress there who encouraged her to write to her former employer explaining what had happened.

Henceforth, the letter lead to a meeting which then lead to greater things for Enid in the form of a respectable position in a far welcoming household. She made friends and something of herself as she was promoted to upper housemaid, to whom all the other maids answered and looked to.

But life was no easy by any measure. She was separated from her family and longed for her childhood sweetheart, Jimmy Corcoran. But the one who had ruined her life was to enter it once again but this time Enid was ready for him.

A delightfully easy read, it was lovely to meet up with Enid, Jimmy, Mags and even Betsan again. I knew little of Enid's story from Betsan's in The Winter Waif" but it was good to see it expanded on so we got to know her better.

A wonderful read.

I would like to thank #LynetteRees, #Netgalley, #BoldwoodBooks and #RachelsRandomResources for an ARC of #TheWorkhouseGirl in exchange for an honest review.

This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.

I’m a huge fan of this genre and really can’t believe that this is the first book I’ve read by this author. After finishing this book I will certainly be reading more. The Workhouse Girl is a really great read and right from the very start I just knew this one was going be a must read for me. I was immediately captivated by Enid and her story. A book filled with excellent characters and how even the poorest of people did their utmost to survive during the bleakest of times. Enid was such a strong and brave young woman and I was completely in awe of her. A wonderfully written emotional saga that was an absolute pleasure to read.

Enid worked hard to keep her family together. She loved her family and she loved Jimmy. Jimmy was a neighbor boy who just returned to the area.

Everything quickly changed in one night. That night took everything away that Enid loved. Could Enid survive the trauma?

Enid is what we would call a survivor. She wouldn't allow herself to remain a victim.

I really liked Enid. She was a good friend to Connie, a girl she met in the Workhouse. She did what she could for her family. She put herself at risk to protect others.

What an amazing story with a amazing character. A wonderful heartwarming tale that has a happy ending

Enid Hardcastle lives in the workhouse when her family become homeless. Separated from her family she tried to get on with life.The matron then tells her she has a job as a maid in a big house where the son of the family miss treats her.I really enjoyed yet again another great book by Lynette Rees.Thank you to Boldwood and Netgalley.

I received this book for free. This does not impact my review in any shape or form.

The Workhouse Girl, by Lynette Rees, is a historical woman’s fiction about overcoming adversity, even if you have to dig a little to find the strength to prevail. Enid Hardcastle has had a hard life; with her family getting thrown on the streets and being sent to a workhouse, it’s all Enid can do to find a place for herself in a world that frowns on women. Despite her troubles, she finds comfort in the most unlikely people and takes steps to save herself and her loved ones. 

I like Enid’s self-reliance. She reminds me of me when I was younger, worrying over the family’s future finances to make sure everything was alright. While neither my family nor I were thrown out to the streets, when I was in grad school, I was definitely working to the bone to prepare for some financial disaster that would befall my either then boyfriend or my parents. (It still hasn’t happened, but you never know). I enjoy Enid’s refusal to back down from any challenge, and although her assault was something that should’ve never happened, she takes it in stride and keeps going. True, she could rely on so many people, from Connie to Mr. Clarkson and Mr. Darling, to even Cook and other servants. Everyone had gone out of their way to help her, which begs the question of how often other people like her have been assaulted and how many had caved under societal pressure to forget it. 

A sobering thing that Rees gets right is how people, both men and women, may react to an assault. I absolutely hated Mrs. Clarkson and how her son could do no wrong in her eyes, nor did I enjoy Arthur putting his daughter down, convinced that she was promiscuous, to begin with. Some good people will help those who have experienced sexual violence, such as the aforementioned in the previous paragraphs, but they’re few and far between. While people are getting better at being more empathetic and providing support to such individuals, it’s hard to get people to actually take survivors seriously, especially if the abuser is a loved one. Then again, this was the road Enid was initially going down before Mr. Clarkson stepped in, but I digress. 

Feel-good stories are always a little iffy to me. While I do appreciate a happy ending to a character’s extremely traumatic plot, it’s so easy to turn the story into more wish fulfillment. When it comes to The Workhouse Girl, it teeters on that line, but it also gives hope to the people who have gone through what Enid had experienced. So for right now, I would give this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

Firstly thank you Netgalley for this Arc

What a lovely story all about Enid in the workhouse. Emotional family saga at its best

Thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for an early review copy.

I enjoyed reading this historical novel.

The story is about Enid, whose life hasn’t been easy. Living in the Workhouse after her family have to leave their home, she sees a different side to what she knew.

Finding a job as a maid, she is mistreated by one of the family members. After which, her life takes another bad turn as no one takes her side. But with help from others, Enid she decides to do whatever she can to give herself a new life.

The story was well-written, and kept you turning the page to read what happens next.

I highly recommend this book.

A beautifully designed historical saga following Enid Hardcastle as her family end up in the workhouse. Enid gets a place of work in a prestigious home where she is set upon by the son of the manor who in his mother's eyes can do no wrong. The struggles that are overcome in the story are horrendous and show the strength of young Enid. She is also a kind person and always has a smile for everyone. An emotionally charged tale of love and the end of this one was rather abrupt so I am thinking that there will be another book. I really hope so as I have loved both of the books in this series.

Thank you for the chance to read this ARC in return for my honest opinion

I really enjoyed this book but I must have read about a third before I realised that it was a follow-on to the previous book 'The Winter Waif' and that it contained several of the same characters.
I had thought at one point I had read this book before as I recognised names and events then the penny dropped and I checked the authors previous books.

This one centred around Enid Hardcastle and her family and their lives in various workhouses. It seemed that sometimes workhouse inmates were sent to 'big houses' as domestic staff and this was what happened to Enid and the inevitable happened when the Masters son decided to exert his 'rights'
I did find the 'Masters' role in getting Enid into more work was slightly unbelievable but it did fit into the narrative.

The book, as with the previous one, was well written and well researched.
I did feel that the 'Jimmy' part of the story could have been explored further but I wonder if this will become another book in the series maybe. Though perhaps it could be another characters story?

As with all these saga type historical fiction books there are characters to love and those that one despises.
For me the end was very abrupt - I expected at least one more chapter but there wasn't one.

This deserves its 5 stars

I have read most of Lynette Rees books and this one did not disappoint. Just loved this book and the story of Enid Hardcastle and her struggle to make a better life for herself and her family. She overcomes pain and such sadness but all the while she still thinks about Jimmy. Maybe a follow up in the next book ?
My thanks as always to Netgalley for the early read and to the publisher Boldwood Books

Lynette Rees does a great job in writing this book, it had that historical element that I wanted. I thought the characters were realistic and glad they had that feel that they needed. The overall story was what I hoped for and enjoyed the way Lynette Rees wrote this.

Enid Hardcastle leads a hard life. She lives in the Workhouse and when she finds a position in a house as a maid she is preyed upon by one of the family men. Her life goes from bad to worse as she is sent away and of course no-one will believe her story. With help from her fellow workers she fights. for a new life.

Wonderfully descriptive and a good storyline, loved this tale of the struggles that were overcame, gripping story that made u want to read to the end

This is the 1st I have read of this author and i really enjoyed it some of it dufficult reading and very emotional at times. It follows Enid Hardcastle and her family they have had hard times in this novel. Enid such a lovely person has a fair few hardships but cares so much about her friends and family and that shines through in book. Will look out for more by this author thankyou for advanced copy.

Set in Victorian Britain this novel centres around young woman called Enid Hardcastle, whose family has fallen upon hard times. When they are evicted from their rented home the family is forced into the Workhouse and Enid starts to see the darker side of society.

Historical fiction that reminds us how vulnerable women were at this time and highlights the gap between classes.  A quick read that covers some difficult topics.