Another great book in the series. This book was so well written. The characters were well developed.
I don’t want this series to end

A wonderful Christmas saga following the Shipyard girls. The penultimate in the series and as brilliant as the other books. Best read in order. Thanks Nancy your publisher and NetGalley

Great writing, great characters and a great storyline. Time to clear your schedule for the afternoon, coffee pot on and phone turned off - you won’t want to put this one down. This was a compelling and thoroughly enjoyable read from start to finish with a great storyline.

I really enjoyed this book, set at Christmas 1944. It was a lovely feel good story following Dorothy, Gloria and Helen, I would definitely recommend it.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read this book in exchange for a review.
I will leave this on Amazon too.

This was a brilliant read and is being featured on my blog for my quick star reviews feature, which I have created on my blog so I can catch up with all the books I have read and therefore review.
See www.chellsandbooks.wordpress.com.

Lovely feel good Christmas read. I haven’t read any of the other books yet still could follow the story. A lot of relationships full of all sorts of love and a dark character to keep them all on their toes. A great read.

Unfortunately this book was not for me. I read 122 pages but found myself not being able to concentrate and take the story in. Nothing wrong with the writing style just feel not for me.

As this series reaches Christmas 1944, anyone who knows about the Second World War will realise that the end is in sight. And so it seems it must be for the wonderful Shipyard Girls who I have been with since the beginning, who I have shared ups and downs with, tears and laughter with and that whenever I pick up the latest novel I am picking up with lost friends.

Dorothy shares a special kiss with someone who hasn’t proposed to her. She is in complete turmoil, as she doesn’t know what she should do for the best. Her friends all tease her, but dep down they all love Dorothy and want the best for her and just maybe the person on the other end of that kiss is the right one after all!

Helen Crawford, manager of the shipyard where the women work is still battling with her mother, who has appeared back on the scene and with the behaviour of her grandfather, Charles Havelock. A man everyone despises, but seems to always come up smelling of roses. Testament to how well a character is portrayed, Charles Havelock makes you want to throw your book across the room. The secrets that are being revealed over the course of previous books as well as this one are shocking and the current behaviour sees Helen question her own family closely and whether she will find her happy ever after.

Of course we still get to see all the other wonderful characters, Polly, Gloria, Rosie and Hannah to name a few and of course little stories are weaved amongst the main plots, so we know that there is more loose ends to tie up. So excellently written and so heartfelt in making sure that whilst good always overcomes evil, eventually! The spirit of the war, the strength of communities in adversity leaps from the page and it is full of plucky women at the centre. What more could you want from a saga?

As the Shipyard Girls, the Second World War and us readers reach the conclusion of this wonderful saga, I cannot wait for the final book in the series.

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

OMG What a book,

This book was unputdownable as has been the series, on the women who worked in the shipyards when second world war was on.

Still shocked after Bobby kissed her, Dorothy is now torn between him and Toby and is jut sure what to do about it.

For Gloria and Jack, they face problems from Miriam as she returns from Scotland, but are going to give it their all for for Hope's sake.

For Helen, she lives to visit her Grandmother and spending time with her. Each book just gets better, but this ones just fabulous, drawing you in and you feel for each of the girls, for what is happening in their lives, as if you’re there with them.

Highly recommend this series.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this series of book although sadly this one wasn't quite as enjoyable as the previous books. I found it much harder going with the nasty storyline of Mr Havelock's treatment and plot against his wife. I read before bed and it wasn't the light hearted easy reading that it has been in the past. The last third of the book was far more enjoyable once his plot had failed.

I also missed some of the old regular characters for example Lily, Charlotte, Bel, Joe. I know each character gets a main role in the different books and Dorothy's storyline was good but it would have been nice to involve the old faces.

Ank5er fantastic install went of life with the female crew of welders, loving how in each book the story of these women unfolds further can’t wait for another instalment.
Extremely well written series which always leaves you wanting the next book to wee what’s happening in the lives of the women. Keep up the great work!
A*

4,5 Stars

The fabulous Nancy Revell is at her addictive best with Shipyard Girls Under the Mistletoe, the latest installment in her heartfelt and enjoyable wartime series set in Sunderland.

It’s 1944 and the Second World War has been raging on for five years. Everyone has suffered pain, anguish and hardship, but at long last it seems that victory is within reach and this horrible war is about to come to a close. With Christmas just around the corner, for the first time in a very long while there is hope and magic in the year, however, the Shipyard Girls soon realise that just because the war might be about to end doesn’t mean that there will be no more problems or challenges in their future.

Dorothy has just been proposed to by her sweetheart, Toby. At long last, it looks like she is about to get her happy ending. Yet, with each day that passes Dorothy is troubled by the fact that she is finding herself drawn – to somebody who isn’t her fiancé! Dorothy knows that she should forget about her infatuation and start planning her wedding to Toby, but can she go through with the ceremony when she has fallen in love with somebody else?

After almost two years apart, Gloria is overjoyed to be reunited with her beloved Jack. The two of them can finally be a family again, but devastating secrets from the past threaten to jeopardise not just their future, but also that of their nearest and dearest. Will a heartbroken Gloria ever find the happiness she so desperately craves? Or will everything she has always wanted be snatched away from her all over again?

Meanwhile, Helen finds herself dealing with the fall-out of a shocking family secret that could have serious consequences for the Shipyard Girls whilst also derailing any hope she might have had of her own happy ending.

When all seems lost and desperate, the Shipyard Girls find themselves rallying together and hoping that a sprinkling of festive magic will provide them with everything they’ve always wanted this Christmas.

It is always a joy to be reunited with the Shipyard Girls and in the eleventh title in this engrossing and entertaining series, Nancy Revell pulls out all the stops and has written an emotional and evocative saga that kept me on the edge of my seat and turning the pages late into the night. As always with a Nancy Revell saga, her characters are nuanced and brilliantly realised, the drama is intense and believable and the humour and pathos tug at the heartstrings and make readers laugh out loud.

A stellar wartime saga from an outstanding storyteller, Shipyard Girls Under the Mistletoe is sure to delight Nancy Revell’s legion of fans and have them anticipating the next gripping installment.

It’s hard to believe that this is the 11th book in the Shipyard Girls series by Nancy Revell as it feels like only yesterday I first became acquainted with the group of women welders who work in a boatyard in Sunderland. But in fact it was five years ago back in 2016 that this series first began and it has gone from strength to strength since then. Shipyard Girls Under the Mistletoe was another brilliant read but I would say if you are new to this series it would perhaps be best to start at the beginning so you get a real sense for the series as a whole. Yes, there is plenty of backstory that if you did really wish to read it as a standalone you could do so at a push. But in my opinion to appreciate the genius of all the little sub plots, clues and details that have been drip-fed to the reader over many books and are now coming to fruition then go back to the very beginning.

As it’s June 1944 when this book begins we are heading towards the later end of the war and I got a sense whilst reading that things are starting to wind down and the conclusion of the series is not too far away. But I didn’t dwell on this for too long as there was lots here that as per usual kept me rapidly turning the pages to discover how things are going for all the characters that I have become deeply invested in. As I have come to realise with these books some characters feature very prominently in a book and then in the next they take more of a back seat. Rosie, the head welder, didn’t feature much here instead the focus was on Dorothy and her journey to discover who she really wants to be with and also Helen who is edging ever closer to certain secrets being exposed and if they do become well known that perhaps would be good for some but not for others.

The book got off to quite a slow start, it almost seemed like the calm before the storm but then the pace picked up and I found the book to become really event driven pushing the overall narrative on in a big way. Lots of things happened which revealed the real personalities behind certain characters and what they had been hiding and plotting for so long. I refer here to Charles Havelock who has to be one of the most spiteful and evil characters that I have read about in a long time. He is the grandfather of Helen but he is at the root of so much upset and turmoil for so many of the women that feature.

Charles rules with an iron fist and despite being well into his advancing years he shows no signs of any of his hatred and malic letting up. He is such a liar and a manipulator and hell bent on revenge and sets about achieving this at any cost. These qualities he possess really ratchet up several notches this time around and I find him to be so abhorrent and I fear if he gets his way what will happen to the girls and their family members whom they love so dearly? The plans he sets in motion are really meant to bring about the downfall of everyone and there seems to be no way for a happy ending if he has his way. He uses and abuses people especially his daughter Miriam. She is a character who I haven’t an ounce of sympathy for because she has treated both Helen and her ex-husband Jack so despicably. It’s like if Miriam can’t be happy than no one else can be either.

I never thought I would say this but for me the standout character has to be Helen. She started off as cold and aloof and not someone whom Rosie, Gloria, Angie, Dorothy, Polly, Martha or Hannah would want to be friends with but my god Helen is the one who has gone through such a transformation and done a complete 360 that in fact she in my mind has become the stalwart and centre of everything. Initially, you would think that Helen is caught between a rock and a hard place. Loyalty to her family, after all they are family, or being loyal to the group of women who over time have become her friends especially Gloria whom she can really confined in. But I’m glad Helen has seen the light and she has become exposed to certain secrets and she has shown such great courage, strength and determination.

It sounds very cliché to say that she wants to see good triumph over evil but she really does. She knows the whole story involving her grandfather has such implications for those she cares deeply for and as the extent of what he is prepared to do becomes clear it makes her all the more determined to see many wrongs put right. I really loved the way Henrietta’s story, Helen’s grandmother, took precedence over other subplots that had been developed. My heart was in my mouth at one stage and I was desperately hoping for something not to occur that would be irreversible. This gave Helen the opportunity to show the reader what she was really made of. That she is able to play the game just as well as anybody and even if it means putting her own feelings regarding a certain someone aside she will do that. Regarding that and her love life, I’m still left wondering will she ever get the happy ending she truly deserves? She gave up her own contentment so others would be safe and this deserves nothing but admiration but should she always be made to suffer? Will she pluck up the courage to express how she really feels even though someone has her over a barrel and is hell bent on seeing Helen suffer and be sad?

Helen’s strand of the story ties in with so much else going on and Nancy Revell has been really clever about connecting everything together. I think it’s all building up to what will be a magnificent conclusion but I am not quite ready for that to happen yet. The other girl to feature prominently in this story was Dorothy. I find her to be so frustrating in that she seems to lead men around. She became engaged to Toby but you knew this wasn’t what she wanted and I felt she was just messing him around. Yes, she had wanted an engagement for months but when it came she wasn’t happy. Bobby, Gloria’s son, has returned injured from the war and she is really drawn to him. I wanted her to make up her mind who she wanted instead of leading poor Toby up the garden path. But Dorothy’s insecurities are highlighted and when she explains how she feels a bit more my opinion of her changed and I could see why she acted the way she did but still I just wanted to her to do the right thing.

Given the title and cover of the book Christmas does feature, although this is not an overly Christmassy book by any means. It didn’t need to be given the ongoing storylines are so strong and riveting. But Dorothy does show her good side in organising a Christmas extravaganza for the soldiers and the Christmas element of the story really does come into play towards the end and the ending is lovely. Although, there is still lots left to be sorted which only makes me even more eager to read the next instalment Three Cheers for the Shipyard Girls which is due to be published in March 2022. But in the meantime do yourself a favour and read this excellent story or if you haven’t discovered the Shipyard Girls until now, enjoy going back to the very beginning and being able to read one book after another.

Yet again a beautiful Christmas story. Full of love and family. Was a nice saga from the series. If anyone is looking for a nice easy read and some festive cheer this book is for you

WOW What a book, Nancy Revell has had me gripped with this series about the women that went to work in the shipyards during the second world war. Dorothy is still so shocked after Bobby kissed her that she is torn between Toby and Bobby and no idea what to do. Gloria and Jack know they face problems from Miriam when she returns from Scotland but are determined to fight back for Hope's sake. Helen is so taken with her Grandmother and visits her often she loves spending time with her and listening to her. This series has got better with each book and this one is BRILLIANT, you get drawn in and feel for each of the girls and what they go through each day you even feel as if you are joining them when they go for a drink.. I have loved this book it is a Beauty and well done to Nancy Revell on another FANTASTIC book that is worth more than 5*

I am always engrossed in every one of Nancy's books, it's like stepping back in time and coming home to Sunderland once again and joining all the character's in the hard work as women welder's at J.L.Thompson's & Son Shipbuilders. Another remarkable story that readers are going to love.
This is book eleven in June 1944, Dorothy, Gloria, Rosie, Polly, Angie and Martha, Dorothy Williams is tied between two men Bobby Armstrong and her shared a surprised kiss that has set emotions running around her head, she is marrying Toby isn't she? all the girls are teasing her she has got herself in a right pickle, with the war seeing no chance of ending yet it's work as usual in the Manor Quays working on the launch of the magnificent Empire Dynasty on her maiden voyage.
Helen and Gloria share with us their heartache and secrets along the way.
Oh how much I enjoyed every bit of this book as it takes us through to Christmas day 1944 a perfect ending to this remarkable story with plenty of stolen kisses under the Mistletoe, once again the authors work has left me a happy contented Booklover, her fans will be too. 5***** and more.
And I cannot wait to read the next book.
My thanks to Netgalley and Publishers for the Arc copy

Shipyard Girls Under the Mistletoe by Nancy Revell


This is No. 11 in a series, and the very first one I've read or even knew existed .
After reading it , I sure have been missing out and now need to go back to number 1 and start from the very beginning !
The three main characters are Dorothy , Helen and Gloria and the year is 1944 and set in Sunderland.
Christmas is almost upon them and whilst they don't know it , it will be the last Christmas they have to endure during the war .
I loved finding out about their individual characters and friends , boyfriends and family and how they are planning to make Christmas special , including the highs and lows.
All in all a heartwarming , cosy story .