I loved this book once I was about 20% in. Before that I had to really concentrate to remember who the characters were. Beautifully written with three dimensional characters, flaws and faults. What a wonderful story of love, loss and forgiveness. Truly memorable, this will be a huge success.

Every so often, a reader comes across a novel which really touches them; for it to be a debut novel such as this puts the author on their 'must not miss' list!

The Garnett Girls are well known on the Isle of Wight; Margo, along with her daughters Rachel, Imogen and Sasha are all familiar figures. Rachel and her family now live in the house they all visited during their childhood holidays although she would really like to return to life in London. Imogen is engaged and thinks she should be marrying her fiance - but is he really the one for her? While Sasha, struggles to cope with both her fractured family and her controlling husband.

Most of this family's history we learn in retrospect, and a rich history it is. This is a riveting tale and one which kept me firmly glued to the pages long after I should have been fast asleep. There is incredible depth to this one and it is a spectacular read, especially for a debut and is beautifully written. No doubt about it, Georgina Moore is an author to watch. I adored her novel, and it easily earns five sparkling stars from me, and my highest recommendation.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

A family drama, Margot had to raise her three girls alone after her alcoholic partner Richard left them for his other family.
The three daughters, known as the Garnett girls, each tell their story about how they felt growing up and we can see the impact their childhood had on them as adults, particularly in their relationships.

This wasn’t for me, I disliked most of the main characters, storylines at points were quick (especially when Rachel’s daughter went missing, one page pointless drama).

I finished to the end and I thank NetGalley for giving me the opportunity but this one wasn’t for me. It was a slow burner that never really built up, but of an anti climax really.

I struggled to read this one and really disliked it so I didn’t finish it. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

The love affair between Margo Garnett and poet Richard O'Leary was all-consuming, apparently on both sides. Margo was just sixteen when they fell in love. Richard was twenty-one and described by Margo's mother as 'an older man'. Her parents worried that Richard's influence would take her away from what they felt she could achieve - going to Oxford and having a glittering career. In the event, they eloped and Richard took her away from the Isle of Wight. Margo did go to Oxford and went on to become a well-respected journalist. The couple had three children: Rachel, Imogen and Sasha. Life was lived in London and holidays were spent at Sandcove, the family home on the Isle of Wight. Even then the doubts about Richard's drinking were never far from Margo's mind: she would never be able to leave him in charge.

Then Richard left them.

We hear about that time in flash-backs. Margo retreated to her bed and most of her calorie intake seemed to come from alcohol. Her sister, Alice, was about but had young twins to take care of so it was eleven-year-old Rachel who held the family together, cooking for them all, caring for her mother and working out where her supply of alcohol was hidden. She'd go on to become a lawyer, marry Gabriel and have two children of her own.

Dreamy Imogen became a playwright and when we first meet her she's become engaged to William Bradbury. 'Become engaged' is probably the best way of describing what happened: William proposed on a trip to Venice, Imogen didn't actually reply and everyone assumed that it was a done deal. Imogen was slightly perturbed that no one asked how she felt about it all. William, who refers to Venice as it rather than she, was more worried about the expense of it all. Still, he's a decent man, of whom her mother approves.

The youngest child was Sasha who was little more than a baby when her father left but probably the only contact with reality her mother had in her darkest days. She now works for a medical crisis centre, as does her husband Phil. Phil didn't hide his impatience with the Garnetts and he's increasingly being more than a little impatient (and controlling) with Sasha. Three adult children, all influenced by what happened when they were children, all struggling to find their place in the world, all suffering from the trauma of Richard O'Leary's departure from their lives.

This is Georgina Moore's debut novel but she's been an award-winning book publicist for more than twenty years. She's worked with top authors and it's no surprise that she's set such high standards for her own writing. She captures the claustrophobia of places such as the Isle of Wight, where everybody knows everybody else, their business and - worst of all - their history. The family home - Sandcove - is a character in its own right. The crumbling facade, patched in places but with an out-of-character state-of-the-art kitchen stands as a neat metaphor for the lives of its occupants.

The characterisation is excellent. I was particularly struck by how nimbly Moore handles what seems - on occasions - like a cast of thousands but they all come off the page well. The Garnett women are superb but it was William who touched me: he's a little prudish and almost out of his depth with the Garnetts. I so wanted everything to work out for him.

Moore's writing is superb:

Neglect hung in the creases of their old tailored suits.

People are finely observed, their essence captured in a few words. The story builds gradually as you piece together what has happened. Moore has a talent common to all the best authors: she trusts her readers. She feels no need to over-explain, confident that we'll work it out for ourselves. This would be a superb book from any author but it's exceptional from a debut author and I'd like to thank the publishers for letting Bookbag have a review copy.

Sadly not the book for me. I really struggled to get into the storyline and wasn't particularly keen on the characters either as I just couldn't get into them.

The Garnett girls is the debut novel by Georgina Moore . It focuses on the story of sisters Rachel, Sasha and Imogen and their charismatic mother Margo. Their father walked out when they were young, leaving their mother struggling to cope for a period. The book details their adult relationships, how they dealt with the loss of their father in their lives and also shines a light on the strong bonds between siblings. The descriptions of the Isle of Wight where the family home is, were really vivid and beautiful. I was properly invested in the first half of the book and didn't feel the second half was quite as powerful but I was still interested to find out what would happen to each of the sisters.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and negalleyuk for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. The Garnett Girls is out on 15th February 2023.

I absolutely loved this, a full on family drama full of secrets and the ties that bind the three daughters to their mother and also to their largely absent father. Told in the present and also in flashback, the family home, Sandcove set on the beautiful Isle of Wight is also very much a character in the story. Completely absorbing, I just devoured it and was totally immersed in the lives of these women. A cracking debut and clearly an author to look out for, Highly recommend.
With huge thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is about a mothers (Isobel) relationship with her 3 daughters, Rachel, Imogen and Sasha and the impact their fathers abandonment had on the whole family. It looks at the their life leading up to, during and after his leaving and the subsequent relationships Isobel and the girls have which each other after.

The characters were well written and you got a real feel for the personalities and decisions each had taken and why. It isn't until later in the book that you get to know the real reason that Richard (the father) left and it was not what I was expecting.

The setting of the family home is a character in itself everyone wishes for a beach house where parties and confidences are shared during warm summer months.

This was a good story with well drawn and believable characters. I enjoyed this a lot and would definitely read more by this author.

The Garnett Girls is a story about family, love and forgiveness.

Meet Margo. Formidable and fabulous mother to Rachel, Imogen and Sasha. Their father Richard left them and now that the Garnett Girls are grown up, it's clear there's a lot of unresolved trauma. Margo was devastated by losing the love of her life and checked out of life for a year.

Rachel, eldest daughter, is living at Sandcove, an inherited family home by the sea. But she longs to be back in London. She's also worried about her marriage as her husband Gabriel seems distant.

Imogen, middle child, finds herself engaged to a kind man, but is this enough? When she meets Rowan, the leading actress in her play, she's electrified by lust, and begins a passionate affair.

Sasha, the baby of the family and the most angry of the girls, pushes everyone away. She's married to Phil, who treats her like a possession. She's also holding a secret about their father.

There is such depth to the writing in this book that we really gain an insight into each woman's history and emotional state. It's raw and messy and complicated, and makes for compelling reading. What I also loved is seeing this family of amazing women reconnect with themselves and each other and there's such a joyful conclusion that was really uplifting.

Character-driven, this is a story about sisters, mothers and daughters. The setting is intrinsic to their lives and so lyrically written that it becomes a strong character. The women have depth and humanity. As a reader, you are drawn into their claustrophobic world, and their fate matters to you. The dynamic between the sisters and Margo, their mother, is believable, and as their story is told, it's clear the mother's love and loss have affected them in many aspects of their lives. Each female protagonist has a unique story cleverly woven into the tale of the Garnett Girls. It's honest, sometimes humorous, poignant and addictive to read—a story to escape with and relive the beauty and devastation of love.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

I really wanted to like this book. But it just wasn't for me. It was just a tad too long-winded and I didn’t warm to the characters. Margo, in particular, irritated me tremendously. I’m sure there will be readers who adore it, we don’t all have the same tastes - I wished I liked it more, as the synopsis sounded like a book I would love.
However, I would still give her future books a read.
Thanks so much to Netgalley and Harper Collins for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a delightfully warm hearted and accomplished debut from Georgina Moore, a nostalgic family drama, featuring that eponymous Garnett Girls, the vivacious, free spirited mother, Margo, and her daughters, lawyer Rachel, married to Gabriel with 2 daughters, writer Imogen, and the more distant Sasha, with her troubled marriage to the controlling Phil. Set in the beautiful Isle of Wight and the family home of Sandcove, and in London, I had the pleasure of both reading the book and listening to the audio, wonderfully narrated by Tabi Craig, 9 hours and 40 minutes long. In a story that goes back and forth in time, it focuses on the trauma and repercussions on the Garnett women through the years of husband and father, Richard, an alcoholic and aspiring poet, who walked out on them.

Richard leaving left Margo unable to function for an entire year after the loss of her all consuming, life altering passion and once in a lifetime love as she retreats to her bedroom, leaving the girls to fend for themselves, with the young Rachel, sacrificing her childhood to ably shoulder the adult responsibilities of taking care of them and Sandcove, with the help of Aunt Sylvia. We learn of how Margo and Richard got together, with Margo having to fight for their love in the face of her mother's disapproval. In the present, with Richard's name forbidden through the years, Rachel is living in the crumbling Sandcove with her family, feeling an underlying discontent with her life, Margo still treats it as her home, still organising parties that people want to attend. However, Gabriel is content here, so how does she persuade him to move to London? Imogen finds her plans to marry William go awry, whilst Sasha is seething with resentment and a secret that is eating away at her and an ageing Margo begins to reflect on her current lifestyle and its impact on her girls.

This is a wonderfully entertaining read and listen, of a loving family of women, of a mother and her daughters, the addressing long standing issues between the sisters and the healing of their relationships, the emergence of lies, secrets and deceptions, marriages, misconceptions, of identity and sexuality. Everyday life is depicted in all its dramas, but it's the complex trauma of Richard as husband and father that is buried deep within the women, and untangling the emotional fallout of parental errors lies at the heart of this enthralling novel, and I particularly appreciated the poignant epilogue. Moore evocatively creates a wonderful sense of location, of sunkissed days on the beach, in the present and the past, and the central place of Sandcove, a place that no matter what, is home. Highly recommended! Many thanks to the publisher for the ARC and audio.

An impressive debut novel set in and around an evocative mansion house on the Isle of Wight. Family secrets set to divide the once close Garnett sisters as they struggle to live beneath the shadow of their parents passionate and intese love affair and their mothers heartbreak.

I really enjoyed the style of writing and the empathy I felt for all the flawed characters in the Garnett family. I was attracted like a moth to their glamour and self destructive behaviour. A powerful novel with great female characters.

I really enjoyed this book, all about family drama of a mother and her three daughters and their relationships after their father left.
It’s very engaging. I loved the characters which are well written and their intertwining relationships. I also enjoyed the settings, London and the Isle of Wight, which add rich dimensions to the story. The writing is so descriptive you can imagine yourself there are you read.
A brilliant debut novel. I look forward to future books from this author.
Definitely recommend for anyone who enjoys reading strong family drama.
Thanks to #NetGallery #HQStories for an arc of #TheGarnettGirls in exchange for an honest review.

When Margo's husband Richard walked out he left behind their three daughters.
Margot and the girls became a tight unit but times have moved on and the girls are grown up.
Each one of them is facing their own life changes and suddenly Richard is back in their lives.
He has a new family but is dying..
Their one refuge has been the family house on the isle of Wight and it is the one place they all gravitate to.
Can they sort their lives out and all find the happiness they deserve.

Who exactly are The Garnett Girls, do they know themselves and will we ever find out by the end of this mesmerising debut novel from Georgina Moore.

Margot, mother to Rachel, Imogen and Sasha takes her to her bed when her husband and the girl’s father, Richard leaves. Their whole world is turned upside down and when Margot emerges from this pause in her life, that man is never to be spoken of again and it is simply these four women against the world.

Trouble is everything that happened in them formative years and the life their mother has led since has had a lasting impact on the siblings.

Rachel the eldest daughter and the one who suddenly has to grow up and look after her younger siblings, is still the most level headed and practical of them all into adulthood. With husband Gabe, and two young daughters, Rachel lives in the family home Sandcove.

Imogen the middle sister feel very much that, stuck in the middle and her engagement to Williams seems only to give everyone else joy apart from her. A discovery about herself sets her on a different path and one that won’t fit in with her mother’s perception of a life well led.

Sasha, the youngest perhaps always missing that male influence whilst growing up now has Phil. But she is trapped and cannot see a way out. Will anyone notice what is going n.

All these women are tied up with their own lives, their personal struggles of the present as well as the influences of the past. All of them it seems tied up with the larger than life mother of Margot. A character I grew to dislike and like in equal measure, her actions leave a lot to be desired in both the present day and the past. Her self centeredness made we want to scream in frustration as she seems to be really only interested in her own happiness, forgetting that her three daughters all needed their mother at some point throughout their lives. Margot is simply a wonderful character who was created by this debut author with so many layers, you continued to find out more, I changed my mind about her and I don’t think I really have settled on what I think once I had finished the book.

The same can be said of all the main characters and to a degree the secondary ones as well. They were all there in the story for a reason, they drove the plot, they ensured that we really got to understand this family dynamic.

As a reader I didn’t know where this book was going to take me. It successfully took me to the Isle of Wight, which was the main setting for the overall book and a place I am familiar with as a trip down the road for me, can see me looking out across it. Beautifully described and brought to life in the height of summer on those beaches that I have walked on as well as the grey miserable weather of the winter which can isolate a place so well.

I knew the setting, I got to know these characters and this book took me on an examination of a family that had been stripped back, to see what structure it had, to see what malignancy still lingered after events and years had passed.

A fantastic debut novel which was something a step above being simply women’s fiction it is on a much deeper level than that. For anyone who wants to peep into family life and be completely absorbed.

I am a huge fan of thrillers/physiological reads but this book was a real gem in the book world (in my opinion). The blurb sounded interesting and some-what spell binding and I loved reading this novel.

We meet the Garnett family, Margo and Richard are the parents and they have daughters Imogen, Sasha and Rachel. Each female is independent and complete opposites. This novel is told from their perspective with different time lines and we really get to learn in vivid detail about this family and how their past have shaped their lives today.

Margo and Richard had a very much in-deep kind of love, but with problems. When Richard leaves Margo to bring up their girls she has a mental breakdown and can not look after her children. The kids then have to "grow up" in a way and pull together to look after themselves and their mother and their beautiful home Sandcoves.

Each woman grows up tainted by their past experiences and we really get to see how their life now has been depicted by the past.

This is a brilliant novel, really driven by each individual character. If you love a brilliant novel with fantastic characters and love to read about how they have become who they are then this novel will be loved by you.

Thanks to Netgalley, Georgina Moore and the publishers for allowing me a copy of this wonderful novel.

The Garnett Girls is a novel that's been shouted about quite a lot on social media and absolutely rightly so! I went in somewhat blind, having not fully read the blurb, so it was very different to what I expected, but nevertheless a brilliant novel and a fantastic accomplishment for a debut author.

The Garnett Girls is incredibly hard hitting and emotional and I loved the way that Georgina Moore pinpointed the character's emotions so that the ferocity of them almost crept up on me. The family life experienced by the characters is observed so sharply and poignantly and like all families, they have secrets. I loved that these were revealed gradually, in an almost understated way. It's not what I'm used to, but it's so much more emotionally powerful.

Georgina Moore has created characters in the Garnett family that will live on far beyond the pages of the novel. They are all very different, but they all have so many layers which are peeled back gradually as we read and I loved spending time with them.

Throughout The Garnett Girls, we see the characters navigate a number of issues, which are all relevant to today's society. The author has clearly researched them in detail and she approaches them in a sensitive yet emotional way.

I hope there is much more to come from this author!

A story of mothers and daughters, sisters and relationships. An engaging family saga with a wonderful setting.