Bev is my hero! Janet, the main character annoyed me somewhat, but Bev was glorious. Her speech about menopause really hit home. You never have these strong older women characters and these two were a joy. Back to the story. Janet Pimm is a retired civil servant, who was forced out of her main career at GCHQ. She's had a very unhappy personal life and is feeling very lonely. She's so used to shunning company that at the age of 72 she is suspicious of any overtures, thinking her neighbour, Bev is taking pity on her as an elderly project. Janet spends her days on her allotment caring for her herbs, but is seen as an aloof character there too. Until the allotments come under fire from the council and Janet comes into her own. Helped by Bev, the pair set off on an adventure which could have disastrous consequences. So many gems within the story - the Invisible Women's Graffiti Wall; Bev's aforementioned menopause speech, the night on the hills. And the final realisation of what love means to Janet. A joy. #netgalley #TheInvisibleWomensClub

I received an e-copy of this book from NetGalley and greatly appreciated the opportunity to read and review this story.

The Invisible Woman’s Club caught my attention firstly by the lovely cover and then the premise of the story which I liked due to giving a voice to older characters and the sense of community the book gives.

I quickly fell in love with the characters, there’s someone everyone who reads it can identify with, we all know folk who make up different elements of a community and I felt I could empathise with Janet a lot!

I live in a road made up of many from the post war generation and getting to know them has been a delight. I could picture many of them within this novel which is why I found it charmingly heartwarming.

As I mentioned, I loved that it gave a voice to an older generation which I don’t often pick up in books and it’s important to me to widen my reading repertoire to read more of other people’s experiences . I am terrible for sticking with what I know when it comes to reading so wanted to branch out and try something different and this was a marvellous choice.

Set amongst an allotment community (something I knew nothing about but very much enjoyed learning about) we meet Janet who reminded me vaguely of a female Victor Meldrew, at least that’s how the others see her to start with. But we readers see her despair at loneliness and her attempts to be seen for who she was, before life changed and she became known as a cantankerous single woman. I totally take companionship for granted. Chapter five reduced me to tears. My Grandma lived along, a widow for thirty years but she had us visiting weekly and I now feel nudged to do more and be a Bev! Imagine if every lonely person had a Bev to rally them on, the world would be a much better place. I can also relate to Bev being of a certain age and have been researching natural methods to ease things myself!

I should also comment quickly that the book is not all doom and gloom in case that’s the way my review is heading…… it’s full of beautiful humour. I’m a big fan of Come Dine With Me, I adore seeing all the wonderful characters and how they interact together and this book really highlighted that aspect for me. All the folk at the allotments with their parts to play, the chat and banter between them. The lack of names but nicknames Janet has given them… the Power Ballads and the Steer Manure, I loved it!
The added element of the mystery of the intrusive knotweed (I had heard of that plant before!) was wonderful too and I loved reading Janet’s knowledge of medicinal plants and their uses.

I don’t live too far from Biddulph Grange and it’s a wonderful National Trust garden which I’ve frequented and would recommend to anyone in the area too! To think Janet has been was rather special too and Windermere is another place dear to my heart, maybe I am a Janet?! 😆

To conclude I loved this story, encouraging women to support other women but even bigger than that, the importance of community, taking a stand and remembering we have voices to be heard. We are stronger than we often think and have a lot more to offer than maybe we realise. This book brought all the good together in a wonderfully engaging story which I would recommend.

A heart warming read for all women to remind us to stand up for what we believe in. And we are stronger together! Loved the sorry of Janet and Bev and the Seaview allotments. Great to hear about herbs and plants to help with the perimenopause!
An uplifting read for the summer.

A lovely story about two women of a certain age who bond over the local allotment - they are opposite creatures, but their differences work, the one prickly, the other outgoing - Janet and Beth have an adventure, but it is one that leads to the very best destination, true friendship and maybe learning they are not so invisible as society thinks they should be - a cosy read.
Read an advance copy, thanks to the publishers.

Women of a certain age are thinking that they have dementia, are witnessing their bodies changing, have become invisible, and most of all are feeling a rage! What if this rage is a super power? A tale about loneliness, unlikely friendships, and the magic that can happen when people come together...'The power of the people is stronger than the people in power'...

As others have said this gets off to a slow start.

And also randomly this is the 2nd book I've read recently where the main character is in her 70s.

This was a really nice cosy read, I loved the references to plants and flowers and their benefits. It deals with female friendship, adventure and the aging population being invisible in society.

Janet Pimm is a rather prickly character when we first meet her. She is not particularly warm and friendly to her fellow allotmenteers. When she tries to share her knowledge of plants with them it always seems to come out wrong, in a critical kind of way, so she’s not well liked there. She’s obviously a very intelligent woman and we get glimpses of what her earlier life has been. She’s also obviously endured sadness though for a long while we can only guess at what that has been. When her beloved allotment is threatened, the one constant in her life, she is determined that’s not going to happen and is on a mission to get to the bottom of what’s happening.

Janet is well used to being on her own and accepts that as her lot. She doesn’t particularly appreciate her cheerful neighbour Bev always trying to befriend her as if she was some kind of worthy cause. In her own way, Bev also feels she has become invisible, something many women experience as they get older. Her feelings are so easy to understand.

I had expected most of this book to be about the fight to save the allotment but in fact it’s just as much about Janet and Bev’s unexpected adventure and all the more enjoyable for that. Janet’s determination to save the allotment is certainly the catalyst for what happens but we find out just what this invisible woman is made of and it turns out she has a core of steel.

The friendship that developed between Janet and Bev was truly remarkable. Janet was known for being difficult to approach, making it unlikely for her to form close friendships. Yet, Bev’s sunny disposition managed to break through her barriers and positively transform her life. It would be unwise to underestimate these “invisible women” and disregard their potential contributions.

This is a really heart-warming book about a community which rallies together to protect what is important to them. The author conveys an important message about the need to care for nature, not just on the small scale of an allotment but also for the wider world. I was inspired by the idea that growing plants and nurturing the earth is not only about the present but also investing in the future. This is so true on many levels. The Invisible Women’s Club is a captivating book which will have you cheering on the characters. It’s an uplifting read celebrating community, friendship and the resilience of women, especially when they band together.

No matter what kind of mood you're in, this is a book to read.

Janet has realised that at seventy-plus, she has no time for other people. She much prefers plants and spends her days on her allotment. Her neighbour, Bev, always seems to be pestering with leaflets for one cause or another and Janet just really can't be bothered. However, when the council threatens to shut down the allotments, it's a case of all hands on deck to try to save them, and Janet swallows her pride and enlists Bev's assistance. As they begin to fight back, Janet realises that she might need other people after all and that there's more to Bev than she first thought.

This is such a lovely novel to read - there is a fine array of characters each with their own idiosyncrasies and talents. We can all be guilty of judging by appearances = like Janet - and not opening our minds as we should. A marvellous story of fighting for a cause and how it brings a community together with a generous dollop of humour thrown in. Well written and completely enjoyable from beginning to end, I have no doubt this one will race up the charts. 5*.and my recommendation.

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

There's a quote that says: "I'm old not dead" and I think that my role model are Esme Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg. Try and tell them they're invisibile if you care for your life.
The women in this book could also be a great role model because they choose to live and to be heard. Being invisible is sometimes a choice or being amongst the wrong people.
A life affirming and well written book.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I loved this! I really enjoy multi-generational stories, and particularly those with older women. I passionately believe that all women should have the chance to tell their stories and be the main character, that they don’t become invisible as they age.

I loved Bev’s quote about all the women you’ve been, and all the women you’ll still be, it really struck a chord with me. I’m 40 and almost certain I’m in the perimenopause so I really felt everything Bev raged about, her boiling need to act, to not be ignored anymore - and the fantastic chapter where she doorsteps Marsh and let’s him have it both barrels!

And JP, I came to love JP sincerely, so much sadness and disappointment, it’s no wonder she ends up as she does but the idea of hope, new friendships and new beginnings being possible at any age, if you just open yourself up and let people in.

Patrice was a brilliant character, I loved her sharing her experiences of Greenham and her rich history or protest. In fact I loved all of the people on the allotment with their very personal (and sometimes political) reasons for needing the space and all it offered them.

It was a beautiful story, very funny at times yet very heartfelt and tender. Highly recommend.

I adore this book and can't wait to gift copies to friends and family who I know will see its joy and heart in it while they relate to the characters.
Janet with her encyclopaedic knowledge of medicinal plants is a prickly character but a hero to cheer on and it was a joy to see her evolve.
Bev was outspoken and her observations on menopause were spot on.
With strong characters, quirky plot and relatable rage and fight that left me uplifted, smiling and seen this book is one of my favourites this year.

The invisible women’s club is a heart warming tale of finding yourself and remembering to live!

Janet is lonely, but thinks she has found the answer in a voluntary post with the national trust. Nothing is quite as easy as Janet thought…but she finds herself in a crazy journey that makes her take a good long look at herself, her past and her future.

Janet finds that the answers she seeks are all around her, and with the help of a new friend, plus some old ones, she realises life is still there for the living.

Loveable characters and hilarious antics. This book will have you smiling.

Janet Pimm lives a lonely life. She is invisible to most people and does her best to blend into the background.
She is a keen gardener and loves to work on her allotment plot.
When the allotments are threatened she turns to an old acquaintance for help, simultaneously making a new friend whilst doing so. And the adventure begins.
Janet goes from zero to hero in the blink of an eye and discovers things about herself that she had long forgotten.
A lovely tale to dastardly deeds and friendship. Enjoy.

I enjoyed this easy read through a few week's of Janet's life. This book gave me an appreciation of older people and how their life and experiences all add up to make them who they are. A reminder to us all to grab opportunities and hold on to those we love.

I’d like to thank Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Invisible Women’s Club’ by Helen Paris in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Janet Pimm is seventy-two and feels life has passed her by, and if it wasn’t for her allotment at Seaview she doesn’t know what she’d do. So when Hastings Council puts a barrier around the allotments claiming them to be a biohazard due to an invasion of Japanese Knotweed, Janet knows she has to do something to keep the allotments open for herself and her fellow allotment holders. She inadvertently seeks the help of her annoying neighbour Bev who makes her realise that women have a voice even if they are over a certain age.

‘The Invisible Women’s Club’ is a wonderfully uplifting story of friendship, life, love and loss. How true Janet and Bev are, that once a woman reaches a certain age she becomes invisible; I know it for a fact as I’m one of those women. From page one I liked Janet and the further I read the more the story appealed to me as being a keen gardener I was enthralled learning about the herbs I’ve otherwise taken for granted. I cheered on Janet, Bev, Patrice and the others who fought against a council’s decision and oh, how I wanted to be there with them. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading this amazing story, the characters were brilliant and the plot was compelling. Helen Paris has written a captivating novel that flows nicely and is enjoyable to read, that’s had me smiling, chuckling and laughing out loud. Janet Pimm is a true legend in her own right and I’d love to read more of her and Bev.

What a lovely book! I thoroughly enjoyed spending a few hours with Janet and her new friend Bev, as they plot to save Janet's allotment and raise the profile of invisible but formidable older and middle-aged women. I can never resist a book that has female friendship at it's heart, and I wasn't disappointed.
The setting in Hastings and the characters, especially those with allotment plots, were all perfectly described. There were laugh out loud moments and a few tears. What's not to love?
I definitely recommend this book for a heart-lifting and thoughtful read, that gives a huge shout out to the power and strength of women. .Buy it for your friends, your Mum and your daughters.

Paris does a wonderful job in this novel of illustrating just how brutally society dismisses women of a certain age as an irrelevance. They are at best invisible, and at worst, a nuisance.

Now in her seventies, Janet Pimm has become inured to being ignored - no one seems interested in anything she has to offer so, unable to share her knowledge, she throws all her energies into gardening.

The results include an unusual set of plants in her allotment. But then, the local council points to a knotweed infestation and threatens to shut down the allotments. Which just happen to be located on potentially valuable real estate. Janet is far from the only one upset by this.

And even though she doesn't play nicely with others - including Bev, who is fighting her own battles with the menopause - it would be a mistake to underestimate Janet. There's more to her than meets the eye...

This is a novel of sly pleasures, but one that has much to say about things that are too rarely spoken of. In short, it's a story worth reading, for a whole variety of reasons.

The main character, Janet, was so harshly drawn in the opening chapters I almost put the book down, but I am so very glad I didn’t because I ended up absolutely loving her story.
Janet is in her early seventies, intensely prickly and full of her own importance. But that hides a terrible loneliness, so achingly described; the loneliness of never having a meal cooked for you by another person, of going through whole days, weeks, months, without having a conversation. Her one solace is her allotment, but even there she seems apt at falling out with other gardeners. The point being, that when you are alone so much you are likely to lose your social skills.
But then the allotments are threatened and Janet smells a rat. She decides to consult a former colleague at the other end of the country and by fluke her outgoing neighbour, menopausal midwife Bev, ends up taking her. And then Janet’s adventures really begin.
This book is all heart and all soul, with a huge dollop of feminist militancy and just the right amount of humour. The more I read, the more I adored it and I thoroughly, thoroughly recommend.

A slow start but I really enjoyed this, I loved unpeeling the layers of Janet’s story and her realisation that she could make new choices, even in her 70s. I also loved Bev, and I found her experiences with the menopause to be extremely relatable. It made me so happy when the two of them finally click into being firm friends, and together they are definitely not so invisible.
This is an uplifting and empowering book, about so many different things but mainly about fighting for what you love.

I loved this book so much and it captured my heart wholly.

Janet is 72 and feels completely alone. The only thing she has that keeps her going is her allotment. But even here, she feels out of place with the other allotmenters. She blames herself for a choice she made many years ago.

When the allotments are threatened with repossession, something feels off. Sick of being invisible, Janet vows to fight for her precious green space. She sets out to meet an old colleague, and neighbour Bev lends a helping hand. Finding her well-meaning but annoyingly enthusiastic, Janet tries to detach herself. But as her and Bev end up in a sticky situation, Janet begins to see that we are all more than first impressions might indicate. The blossoming friendship is beautiful to read and the welcome back Janet receives goes a long way to healing her battered heart.

A story of courage and strength that's witty, warm and filled with wisdom.