Audio version of this book 📚- I really struggled with this one , I just couldn’t get into it and found it hard to relate to the characters.
Saying that the narrator was excellent and made it easy to listen too

As a child of the 1970's I was brought up with Hudson and Mrs Bridges of Upstairs, Downstairs which is what I immediately thought of when reading the blurb for The Housekeepers.

Although not at all alike in storyline, the setting is similar and made me feel notalgic for those, now lost, childhood days.

This is not simply the story of a robbery. There are mysteries and half truths that throughout the course of the story get more elaborate and shocking before reaching it's ultimate conclusion.

I was entranced by the intricate detail that was employed in the creation of this novel and look forward to whatever comes next from Alex Hay.

I was keen to read The Housekeepers - based on the title, I assumed it was going to be the trials and tribulations of the staff of a grand house (like Downton Abbey which I loved!) But it was far more exciting than that!
Set in 1905, the book starts with the dismissal of Mrs King, the housekeeper of a grand house on Park Lane, London, who has been found in disgrace in the men's quarters. The mistress of the house, Miss de Vries has just lost her father but is determined to hold a grand costumed ball, primarily with the aim of finding a husband and launching herself into society.
Mrs King is not who she seems - and is determined to get her revenge. On the night of the ball she intends to strip the house of all of it's belongings, making her and her fellow companions very rich. There is Mrs Bone who runs various criminal trades and is well placed to help run the heist. Mrs King's half sister Alice works as a sewing maid in the house. Hephzibah is a former employee and is now an actress and Winnie who was the housekeeper before Mrs King. Mrs Bone also brings on board the two Janes - both skilled acrobats!
As the plan is put in motion, it becomes clear that more than one character has another reason for revenge on the house and its occupants.
I listened to the audio version of this and I loved the voices of the different characters which brought the book to life! I loved the idea for this book - an amazing group of women back in a time when women were still treated as second class citizens. It was fabulous to read a book primarily about women who all have their own strengths.
I loved the historical setting and the ingenuity of these women. A strong debut by Alex Hay and I look forward to what he does next.
With thanks to Headline for my proof and audio copies.

I finished this audiobook earlier today but I needed an hour or two to get my breath back. To say this story is a suspense thriller would not be doing it justice. The tension is so tight that at times I nearly had to pull over to the side of the road as the story demanded my full attention.
Be prepared for more than an ‘upstairs, downstairs’ heist caper; this is so much more with at times a great love story, an exploration of feminism and of course marvelous sisterhood.
I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook and would recommend to anyone who enjoys a fast paced and most enjoyable and engaging story.

Set in victora times this has it all. The narrator really brought the characters to life . The narrator pace was perfect they got me hooked in the story desperate for a conclusion. Each character was skillfully read with the cottect tone boice and pace. It brought the story to life hor me. I was really sad when it was over.
The story itself was full of suspence with lots of twists and turns with a variety of characters .. Its essentially about a perfect heist of a posh house where the housekepper has been dismissed. However its so much more. I really enjoyed everything The only thing was at times I was screaming as I wanted to lknow more about the history of the characters. However upon a second normal reading i was so lucky to have both versions i came to the conclusion it was deliberate just enough to craft the story and character arc but not to alter the pace.

Highly recommended solid 5 star. Look forward to the next one

Great fun. An engaging set of female characters, who each has her own reason to take part in the heist, and brings a particular set of skills. Their stories unfold gradually alongside the beautifully choreographed build-up and execution (by the author if not the characters!) of the crime.

I listened to the audiobook and the narration was perfect for the book, with a slightly theatrical, heightened quality. Jasmine Blackborow gives each character a distinctive voice, and captures the pace and the mood of every scene.

Ideal holiday read.
*
Copy from NetGalley

Based on the blurb, I really wanted to love THE HOUSEKEEPERS, but instead it sits firmly in the “was entertaining enough on the first read, but won’t pick up again” category.

This is an intriguing book with several delicious twists and turns. However, the heist was far from grounded in… any kind of real plausibility, and not in a particularly fun way, which I might have been able to forgive if it weren’t for the fact that I totally lost track of it by the end. There is a satisfying build up, with relationships being revealed and motivations unfolding—and I do love a spot of revenge, which was a key motivation for several of the main characters—but the heist itself dragged on, all while getting increasingly fantastical, until I pretty much zoned out (I was listening to the audiobook).

Numerous characters had POV chapters, which I enjoyed in the beginning because it brought a real tension to the premise by establishing the relationships between the everyone, however later on I felt like this came at the expense of a greater depth to the characters. I think this is probably my biggest reservation with the story - as a very character-driven reader, the majority of the main characters didn’t really have the meat to satisfy me. When a character is given chapters from their point of view, I expect them to do more than act as a vehicle for the broader story, which is how I felt pretty much all of them except Mrs King.

I received a free audiobook from NetGalley - the narrator Jasmine Blackborow did a good job in distinguishing between this vast cast of characters, however I would recommend people listen to a sample first, because it’s the sort of narration done with great and repeated emphasis that isn’t to everyone’s tastes.

I really liked the premise but sadly, the execution didn't work for me at all. Who doesn't like a heist, and a major one at that? I thought this would be very clever and atmospheric but it was just mainly bland. The book lost the momentum and dragged on for way too long to care about the outcome. There wasn't a single well-developed character, or anyone interesting at all, which is a pity. The actual clearing out of the house was also so far-fetched and tedious it just completely failed to impress, as did the twist. This was not the best book I have read

The idea for this story was definitely a good one. Whilst not completely unique, it was able to create its own path and took me through twists, turns and surprises.

I think the character depth was a bit of a let down and was sacrificed to try and keep the story moving at a rapid pace.

Without overly caring about the character outcomes, I struggle to stay super invested.
However I did think the story wrapped really well in last 15 percent

Fun and frolics in this heist caper. Suspend reality for a bit and join Mrs King and her gang as they plot and execute the heist of the century.

Enjoyable plot, easy reading, my only reason for not giving more stars is I just couldn’t quite connect to the characters.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Downton Abbey meets The Sting in this wonderful unique story!

👩Our Protagonist...let's call her 'Mrs King' 😉, has recently been sacked from her position as housekeeper at the grandest house in Park Lane, Mayfair.... But there's much more to Mrs King than meets the eye, she has scores to settle!!!!

💰..Cue a sensational heist involving some fantastic female con artists all wrapped up in a turn of the 19th century bow of splendor...

I absolutely recommend this to everyone, it's compelling, great fun with plenty of twists and turns 👏

I was impressed by the tension between the characters in ‘The Housekeepers’, by Alex Hay. It is wickedly done! There's a tensile pull between characters in their interactions with one other that makes for a fizzing read.

However, I found the actual writing a touch heavy-handed or clumsy at times: 'never underestimate the kitchen girls'!

Ultimately, ‘The Housekeepers’ lost my attention and I felt that the end of the novel flopped.

A large part of my reservations about this title stem from Jasmine Blackborow’s style of narration on the audiobook.

I found Blackborow’s performance too severe. I began to hear every sentence uttered like a curse, or a sarcastic comment.

I found myself wishing that I was reading a physical copy. I expect my experience of the story would be completely different if I were able to put a softer edge on Hay’s descriptive passages, and release characters' speech from the sharp twist that Blackborow adds to every phrase. I grew weary of the derogatory tone that Blackborow adopts, and found I could only listen to short snippets of ‘The Housekeepers’ at a time because of this.

My thanks to Headline Review, an imprint of Headline Publishing Group Ltd, for an advanced digital copy.

I just reviewed The Housekeepers by Alex Hay. #TheHousekeepers #NetGalley

This was brilliant and the narrator made it so easy to follow. She did different voices for different characters and was absolutely amazing.. I would definitely read more of this author and DEFINITELY with this narrator!

The moral of the story is “Hell Hath No Fury Like A Woman Scorned….”

BRILLIANT!

Downton Abbey meets Oceans 11… that certainly had my attention. I have never read anything like this, an historical heist novel and it was a lot of fun. The audio narration was excellent, with such a large cast of characters, they made it easy to distinguish between them all. Aside from feeling a little long at times, I really enjoyed my time in 1905 London.

When housekeeper Mrs King is dismissed from Manor House, revenge is in her mind. She gets together a team of friends and plan the robbery of the century, during the lady of the houses party of the century. There were many laughs, but some more serious subjects also came up.

If you enjoy historical fiction then give this one a go.

Thanks to Headline and a NetGalley for the advanced listening copy to read. Out in July 6th.

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline publishing group for the arc audio.

This was such a great read, someone read it and recommended it to me. I am so glad they did. I loved the historical setting, the fact all the main characters were women and also that it was like Ocean’s Eight/Eleven. It was so much fun, but there are a few serious things covered in it, so check trigger warnings if you need to.
I loved how all the characters worked together, but also all their own individual characteristics and the way it was told through different characters pov. It was just such an enjoyable read, I loved being taken along for the ride!

I’d like to thank NetGalley and Headline for approving me for an ARC of this book.

🎧The narration of this story was brilliant. Jasmine Blackborow makes each voice feel distinct and unique. meaning the story was easy to follow.

🪜Set against the backdrop of a Mayfair Manor, this upstairs, downstairs heist is entertaining from start to finish.

👧🏻Our leading lady, Mrs King, is joined by an eclectic collection of ladies. From the ever-resourceful Mrs Bone to mild Alice, each woman plays a significant role in the heist. The Janes were my favourite of the group.

🌟Alex Hay has created a story filled with tension, entertainment and secrets. I was engrossed from the beginning, constantly wondering if the heist would be successful and asking myself why all these ladies would be willing to take part in this dangerous operation.

All the answers are revealed in this Ocean’s 8 meets Upstairs, Downstairs, thrilling read.

THE HOUSEKEEPERS is a historical heist caper as a group of women decide to rob a house of all its contents during a ball.

The heisters are all working class women across a range of ages. I loved seeing older heroines (Mrs Bone is probably in her fifties, Mrs King is 35), all that accumulated wisdom that comes from living life. They're women in the underworld, with contacts and businesses. They know what life is like and they use that to their own advantage.

The best thing about heist books is when things outside the planners' control going wrong. It's a clever plan, but then it unravels due to random chance - and it's up to the women pulling the job to think fast on their feet. That, of course, happens here. It was a lot of fun predicting some of the things that happened, that suspense of waiting for it to go wrong and wondering how they'd all react to it.

There are eight perspectives narrating this book - the seven women at the heart of the heist and the woman they're robbing. I liked seeing Miss De Vreis' perspective, seeing it unravel around her. As for the heisters themselves, Mrs King and Mrs Bone had the most page time, really getting an insight into these impressive women.

Lots of the narrators used their "world-given names" - their work or married names, or the ones others had given them. Very few used their first names, even when it was in their narration. It was an interesting way to look at how the world shapes people and their perceptions of themselves.

The narrator, Jasmine Blackborow, did a fab job. She kept the eight voices distinct enough to work out quickly who was speaking. There are also quite a few of the women (and the assorted other characters of the book) with East End accents, which were done well.

This book has a host of entertaining characters, led by Dinah (call me Mrs King!), who, when dismissed from her position of housekeeper in the household of Miss De Vries in Park Lane, Mayfair, plans a massive heist - the goal to empty the property of it’s full contents, at the same time as a high society costume ball is taking place at the house.

I enjoyed the way the author gradually revealed more secrets about the household, which entangled each of the eclectic group of misfits in the lives of the wealthy inhabitants and revealed how they all had motivation for revenge.

The class system is fully exposed, by this slightly unbelievable but fun read, full of decadence and corruption.

I listened to the audiobook, which was excellently narrated by Jasmine Blackborow.

3 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review.

This isn't a read, it's a journey: I'm empty now that it's finished. The writing is so alive that you can see the scenes played out before you, like a TV mini-series.

The twists it takes as the plot begins to heat up are truly unexpected and the ending is fully finished - none of this "let's leave a bit hanging to ensure we can go for part 2" nonsense. There is totally a part 2 available, but it does not feel unfinished in this state.

It's a book about revenge, pure and simple. But so beautifully executed, you almost don't notice those undertones. Very well read, although rather slow, so needed to be sped up.

I just finished listening to "The Housekeepers" by Alex Hay, was such a glorious historical romp !
I went into this book without any expectations, and wow, it was so much fun! 


First things first, can we talk about that gorgeous cover? It's got those vintage sign writer vibes that totally caught my eye. 👀 Props to the designer who absolutely nailed it!


"The Housekeepers" is all about revenge and badass female characters who don’t stand for being treated badly! While this is absolutely historical fiction, the book had a contemporary feel to it, which I absolutely loved. It's a perfect blend of plot-driven and character-driven storytelling and I adored the revamp of the traditional upstairs/downstairs trope. When a housekeeper gets fired from a fancy house, the elite upstairs remain oblivious while the women they wronged plan their revenge. Cue this thrilling caper!


Speaking of heists, if you ever watched my content or read my reviews before you know I am a Heist Stan. And the audacity of these women to pull off such a massive heist had me cheering them on. Sure, it may not be the most realistic scenario, but who cares when it is so much fun!

I have to mention the cast of characters. It's a big one, so make sure you give this book the time it deserves. Each character brings something unique to the tale, and their interactions kept me engaged from start to finish.


As I received the audio arc lets talk about narration- Jasmine Blackborow did an amazing job! The narration was engaging and so clear. I'm a fast listener, usually on x2 speed or above, and I had no trouble following the story. Major kudos to the narrator for their excellent performance!

I'm excited to see what Alex Hay has in store for us next. This book was a solid 4 stars for me, and I'm definitely going to grab a physical copy for a cosy fireside re-read come autumn. Trust me, this one's a must-have for your summer holiday TBR as well!