A Pearl for My Mistress by Anabel Fielding Blog Tour

An enchanting first novel from author Anabel Fielding, A Pearl for my Mistress is the story of Hester a bright, ambitious working class girl who longs to escape the dreary Northern town where she grew up. Her sister, a singer with a jazz band has already escaped to London and Hester too dreams of the bright lights and the chance to find love and to be herself. Hester believes that a job as a lady's  maid will offer that escape. She finds employment with the Fitzmartin family, accepting a tiny salary for the chance to find excitement as lady's maid to their wild and unpredictable daughter Lucy. This is 1934 and many aristocratic families are living in straightened circumstances and a life in service doesn't appeal to the majority of young women but Hester is soon caught up in the whirlwind of Lucy's exciting, aristocratic life and entranced by Lucy herself. but her loyalty to Lucy will be tested when she realises that her Mistress is involved in a dangerous game. Lucy has begun to write to supplement her meager allowance and to express her political opinions which are very different from her parents'. Lucy falls under the spell of Mosley and the Blackshirts and that begins to have very real consequences for Hester. Leaving the young maid with a dilemma can she put aside her own views for love?
A perfect novel for fans of Downtown Abbey, Love in a Cold Climate or I Capture the Castle this wonderfully researched story evokes a bygone era of debutantes and London seasons, of shooting parties and smoky Jazz clubs. The contrasting lives of upstairs and downstairs are brilliantly drawn and the language is spot on for the era. If like me you love reading about The Mitford Sisters then this little gem will be right up your street.
Published by HQ Digital. Thanks to NetGalley and the author for a chance to read this book. You can download this book now for only £1.01 or $1.36 in the USA, making it a perfect comfort read for a wet and dreary afternoon, follow the links below.
Amazon UK
Amazon USA

Arrowood by Mick Finlay

Arrowood is the debut novel from Mick Finlay. It's set in South London in 1895 and it features a consulting detective, but this is not Sherlock Holmes. The tagline for this story is "London Society takes their problems to Sherlock Holmes everyone else goes to Arrowood." Arrowood is fat, balding, often drunk. He's a terrible brother an even worse employer and friend and he hates Sherlock Holmes with a burning passion. The police generally aren't interested in his help so he has to use unconventional or even illegal methods to find information but somehow he and his partner Barnett seem to get the job done. When a young French woman seeks their help in locating her missing brother Barnett and Arrowood soon find themselves embroiled in a mystery that includes a dangerous criminal gang, Irish American revolutionaries and corruption at the highest levels of power. The writing is furious and fast paced Finlay knows his way around Victorian London and like Arrowood he knows people; from the drunks at the bar to the kind hearted women like Arrowood's sister who nurse the sick and the destitute, to the servants quarters and flop houses this is a Victorian London that's richly peopled and beautifully drawn. If you a fan of Sarah Pinborough's Mayhem or if love the camaraderie of Frey and McGray in Oscar de Muriel's books then Arrowood is for you. If you are fan of Sherlock Holmes you will probably love it all the more. All the familiar Sherlockian tropes are there but they are subtle and carefully used and the whole story is also shaded with political ideas and a darker and grittier tone than Conan Doyle ever used. This is a fantastic start to what I hope will be a longer series.
Thanks very much to the team at LoveReading and to the publishers HQ (Harper Collins) for the chance to read and review this novel before release.
Arrowood will be out on 23rd March 2017 in hardcover

An Almond for a Parrot by Wray Delaney

An Almond For a Parrot is the spectacular adult debut from award winning children's author Sally Gardner and be warned it is very much a book for adults. The novel is the tale of the life, loves and romantic and sexual awakening of Tully Truegood.
Following in the footsteps of eighteenth century heroines like Moll Flanders and Fanny Hill, Tully's story begins in 1756 in Newgate Prison where Tully awaits trial for murder. Through a series of recipes and recollections Tully recounts her journey from a neglected childhood with her drunken father to a life of luxury as the mistress of a Lord.
Treated as little more than a servant by her father, who gambled and drank away what little money they had after her mother's death, the only kindness Tully receives is from a indifferent gin-soaked cook. Her father trades Tully like a commodity; at 12 she is a bride in a "Fleet Marriage" at 16 she is the payment for a gambling debt. Tully enjoys fleeting happiness when her father brings home a new wife; as she has the kindness of a mother and a chance at learning, as well as new gowns and shoes but it is all too soon snatched away. When Tully finally makes her escape from her father's house it is the first time she has ever set foot outside and she is dazzled and thus begins her progress through the highs and lows of the decadent London of the eighteenth century.
With a powerful physic ability and a beautiful face Tully is soon the most celebrated courtesan of her age, before a shadowy figure from her past emerges to challenge her safety and position.
This is an incredible page turner full of immaculate period detail and peopled with great characters. A writer to watch.  If you are a fan of Debra Daley, Laurie Graham or Sarah Waters then you will love this book.
Publishing next Thursday; 3rd November and coming from new imprint HQ; part of Harper Collins this is a book that should not be missed. An Almond for a Parrot has already been listed in Buzz Feeds 24 most anticipated books of the Autumn and you can expect to hear a lot more buzz about it as publication approaches.
Thanks so much to Sophie Calder at Harper Collins for a copy of the book.