Stacey Halls’ latest book The Household, is set in a house for “fallen” women. This house did actually really exist: Urania Cottage was set up by, amongst others, Charles Dickens and Angela Burdett-Coutts.

Charles Dickens doesn’t feature in this book, although he is mentioned. This wonderful novel is all about the women.

Angela has been stalked for many years, her life made a misery by a man that no one takes seriously. He has been released from prison for another crime (as stalking wasn’t a crime until recently), and Angela is dreading the moment when he turns up again. And you just know it’s going to happen.

There is also the matter of a missing girl: one of the inhabitants of Urania Cottage has lost contact with her young sister, and she’s missing from the big house she worked in.

This book was captivating - the attention to historical detail, the development of the characters (particularly Angela and Martha), the way that with a modern eye, it’s supremely frustrating that young women of any class were held in such low regard. But these women do fight to get the life they want, and that must have been a reasonably rare occurrence.

This is well worth a read - another fantastic read from Stacey Halls!

Thank you to Netgalley and Bonnier Books UK | Manilla Press for providing me with a free e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This book was definitely an interesting read. The writing style was incredibly immersive and the writing style was lovely to read. However, I found the characters themselves felt like they all needed to be fleshed out a little more, and the plot itself felt meandering and disjointed.

Angela herself felt a little wishy-washy; one one hand you could care she really did care for the girls, but at other moments, it felt like she treated the house as a hobby; somewhere to grace her presence with once in a while to feel better about herself. That is not to say that she seemed selfish or full of herself, just that she felt a little inconsistent. <spoiler>And the way she treated Mrs Holdsworth at the end, despite the fact she was made aware she had requested help was frustrating. She wasn't perfect, but she absolutely cared for those girls and was doing the best she could in the situation she was given. It was a doomed idea from the start, but man.</spoiler>. I also did not enjoy the romantic subplot given to Angela, and felt her story would have been stronger if it hadn't been included.

Regarding the girls, only Martha and Josephine felt remotely fleshed out to me. Polly seemed to fade into the background and all the others were passing thoughts at best, which I suppose to some extent was the point, to emphasis the revolving door of girls at the cottage. Also, whilst I did feel they were more fleshed out than other characters, they still fell a little flat for me. I think the sheer number of plots Stacey Halls tried to incorporated weakened the book significantly.

Thank you Netgalley, Stacey Halls and Bonnier Books UK for the eArc of The Household.

This is a beautifully written historical fiction surrounding a half way house /social experiment called Urania Cottage, This half way house was to take women that were living on the fringes of society, help them set up the skills to become Household staff and then hopefully emigrate them over to the colonies of Australia. This narrative follows a few of those women who decide to stay, or to run away. The story also follows a millionairess, Angela, who is also a benefactor of Urania Cottage learns of some news that chills her to the bone. Her stalker has been realised from prison and it's only a matter of time until he finds her.

I love Staceys writing style. I felt like I was right there, in this cottage back in 1847. The countryside, London city and the surrounding areas were wonderfully described. The main characters from Urania Cottage, Martha, Josephine , Polly and the Millionairess Angela Barnett-Coutts were very strong female characters and so resilient to the lives they lead. The Household had me totally gripped from beginning to end and didn't want the narrative to come to an end !

I loved how Stacey interwove some true history as Urania Cottage did exist and was secretly set up and funded by Charles Dickens. Please do read the historical notes , her research and she even interviews a direct descendant of Angela Coutts.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5

I've read all of Stacely Hall's books and this one did not disappoint. The historical world building was as beautifully crafted as ever in The Household, and the cast of characters keep me reading on and on. It was in some ways a slower paced books than her others but it was fascinating enough to want to keep reading. Each chracters was well rounded and the story ended satisfactorily.

Urania Cottage, London. 1846. The cottage is ready to take its first guests, the project of Charles Dickens (yes that one) and Angela Burdett-Coutts (yes that banking family).

these guests are different, gathered together with no knowledge of each other, other than the world they have come from. A world where their plight was to fall into vice and crime. Extracted to Urania Cottage is to be the place to be saved from the fall.

But do all these women, want to be saved. Is this just another form of prison?

Although Dickens, is mentioned and referred to, it is Angela Burdett-Coutts who plays a more prominent role int he novel and in Urania Cottage. Richard Dunn is her stalker and has been released from prison and somehow has not lost his fascination and obsession. Which means the world of Burdett-Coutts and the young women of Urania Cottage become entangled into Dunn’s latest quest.

All of this fascinating history, brought to life through this book was slow at times and felt like I was reading two different books, it was interesting, and eventually with a few twists, does all play out and come together. I knew little of the existence of such a place or the philanthropic work that women did in the Victorian Times. If nothing else, this book pique my interest and I went to read more about what Burdett-Coutts actually achieved through her donations and work.

Good historical fiction, with a much more truer background than you initially think.

I absolutely devoured this book. I was hooked from page one!

Can’t wait to read more from this author.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have read and very much enjoyed all of Stacey Halls' previous books and this one did not disappoint. Set in the 1800s in a house for "fallen girls", this is a wonderfully recounted story of several very interesting characters and with some excellent plot twists that I did not see coming! Halls' writing style is superb and if you like historical fiction, I can definitely recommend this book.

Stacey Halls writes enthralling historical fiction. This story is based on real people and places. It is set in 1847 and tells us about Urbania Cottage; set up as a place for 'fallen' young women to learn how to run a home and become useful members of society before they emigrate to Australia.
Urbania Cottage existed and one of it's benefactors was the author Charles Dickens. The benefactor we hear most about though is Angela Coutts of the banking family. A fabulously rich but rather sad figure who also existed and has a rather troubled life.
The young women in the story have all had problems but show us that with determination, friendship and forgiveness we can all make the most of second (and even third) chances.

The Household may be the best yet from Stacey Halls. Taking real people and places as anchor points, she has crafted an engrossing story encompassing life in Dickensian London. Urania Cottage was a real place - opened as a place of safety and education for ‘fallen women’ who are vetted to ensure their suitability for rehabilitation. Once at Urania Cottage they receive an education: reading and writing, are schooled in the art of running a home and taught religious instruction. They have a warm bed, good food and the opportunity to see themselves as women with a future. Urania Cottage was driven by Dickens and by Angela Coutts, whose vast fortune funds and underpins the project. Dickens himself is an off-stage character; the primary focus is on the female protagonists which range from Angela Coutts herself, to Mrs Holdsworth in charge of the day to day running of the house and the various young women who find themselves there. Each character has her own backstory and challenges to face, all cleverly interwoven. The stories are tense and compelling. A wonderful novel!

I enjoy Stacey halls writing and this did not disappoint I loved the characters and their interlinking read this in 2 days couldn’t wait to find out what would become of them all

Stacey Hall can sure knock out some fascinating thrilling superbly preformed characterisation of books that keep me totally enthralled, invested and entertained plus….. Urania Cottage was co-founded by Charles Dickens in Shepherd’s Bush on the then western outskirts of London in the late 1840s so although fiction it’s a fact.

A house for “fallen girls/women” which involved some that didn’t even realise they were seen that way.

There are a mixture of strong characters to those not so strong. Emotionally challenged.
The bonds formed within that house were touching.

The class distinction totally exact.

This author has fast become a favourite of mine as she takes parts in history that are very rarely explored and opens a readers mind to aspect of life that you never thought you’d want to know about, until one of Stacey Halls books and then it won’t leave you alone. You will always remember what the book was about.

Very impressionable.

If you’ve never read a book by this author and like historical fiction that delves in other than WWI OR WWII, try this.

Unfortunately a DNF as I was not drawn into the story and engaged in it. The premise was interesting but the characters were boring and I was not interested in continuing. A shame as I have previously enjoyed one of the authors books before

In a quiet house in the countryside outside London, the finishing touches are being made to welcome a group of young women. The house and its location are top secret, its residents unknown to one another, but the girls have one thing in they are fallen. Offering refuge for prostitutes, petty thieves and the destitute, Urania Cottage is a second chance at life - but how badly do they want it?

Meanwhile, a few miles away in a Piccadilly mansion, millionairess Angela Burdett-Coutts, one of the benefactors of Urania Cottage, makes a discovery that leaves her her stalker of 10 years has been released from prison . . .

As the women's worlds collide in ways they could never have expected, they will discover that freedom always comes at a price . . .

Unfortunately, the story fell a little flat for me and I did not feel the same excitement after I read the blurb, The storyline is no doubt intriguing, particularly as there are real life aspects to it; this is the premise of a story around Charles Dickens and Angela Burdett-Coutts investing in a "halfway house for fallen women" being Urania Cottage in the 19th Century. Halls is a brilliant writer and you can sense the research that was carried out in the creation of this book. However, I felt this was not translated into the narrative itself.. Although I appreciate the need to show women from different backgrounds and how fate brings them together, often we see that with juggling multiple characters and storylines, there was alot of words but not alot of movement in the plot itself. At times, the story also feels disjointed as the POV jumps to a different characters multiple times within the same chapter and this made it hard to follow for me personally. Although the plot did thicken and build up in parts (I found the twist regarding Richard Dunn a noteworthy attempt to switch the pace of the book in the second half) but otherwise, I was not able to connect to the characters sadly and there seemed to be something missing. None of the romantic interests made sense to me - unless the moral of the story was that women at the time did just pick and settle with anyone because there was no genuine feeling/ability to have a "true connection".

Overall it was not as impactful as I hoped when I picked this up and I was struggling to get through this read at one point. Disappointing as this is the first book I have read by Stacey Hall and hope I can read Stacey's work in the future as the reviews of this book and others have been fantastic. Sadly it was not one for me but I do laud the attempt at bringing light to a part of history and time period which I had never come across before.

Thank you Netgalley, Bonnier Books UK and Stacey Halls for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an unedited, honest review.

I really enjoyed this book & the fact it was inspired by real people & events was what piqued my interest.
I have read most of this authors books & have really liked them as I did this one.
Well written with good characters she sets the scene beautifully.
Set in 1847 this interesting plot takes us to a quiet house in the countryside in a secret location.
This is all about second chances given to a group of fallen girls.
Non of them know each other they range from prostitutes petty thieves & the destitute.
The question is how badly do they want their second chances.
Meanwhile the wealthy benefactor of this house Angela Burkett- Coutts has just found out some shocking news.
Her stalker locked away ten years ago has been released from prison.
How long will it be before she has to face the nightmare of it starting again.
The worlds of the women come together in ways they never expected.
Captivating heartwarming read.

I absolutely loved this book.Set in a very interesting era.I have read or listened to all of Staceys book now.Shes a fabulous talent, love the research she does on books andshes only just starting go Stacey.Loved, in this book she used real historical figure in novel.

I’ve read everything Stacey Halls has written to date, and with varied success. I LOVED The Familiars, I enjoyed The Foundling, but Mrs England was lacking a bit of depth for my tastes. The Household falls between Mrs England and The Foundling for me, and I think if you enjoyed either or both of those books then you’re going to love this one too. The vibes are a good match, and the sort of story feels inkeeping with those two. I do think The Familiars is a bit of an outlier, it doesn’t read in the same way as her others. Or perhaps I just feel that way because it was the first I read, and now it’s been a while - maybe I’d feel differently on a reread.

All that to say, The Household is a solid book. It takes an interesting time in history (set against the backdrop of Charles Dickens' home for fallen women) and delivers its story with compelling characters that move the plot along. It doesn’t do anything ground-breaking, but it’s also not trying to. I think this is the sort of Historical Fiction that can appeal to non-Historical Fiction readers, and gives it a wider appeal.

Not one that will stick with me, but a fun time, and worth giving a try next time you want a nice quick easy-reading HF to curl up with, this one delivers that perfectly.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.

The premise was very interesting, but The Household didn’t live up to it and I was mostly bored. The pacing was a problem, none of the characters really grabbed me and overall, I struggled to stay engaged.

Stacey Halls has written yet another historical fiction that ticks all the boxes. I loved this story, how it unfolded and the characters involved. The wonderfully realistic characters each have their own backstories which has impacted how life has moulded them into how they are now. The friendships and bonds that grow and develop between the characters is truly heartwarming.

The book also really makes you think about how women - class irrelevant at times - have been treated in the past and viewed as something lesser than by many in society.
I enjoyed The Household so much, the plot is packed full of drama and suspense and gallops along nicely with surprises galore. It will suck you into the pages and make you feel as if you have stepped back in time and are part of the lives of the characters.

I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book through NetGalley and Bonnier Books UK, Manilla Press, which did not influence my unbiased and honest review of the book.

This was an enjoyable read that was brilliantly written & wonderfully descriptive.
A great historical fiction read.

When I thought that Stacey Halls wouldn’t beat The Familiars, or at least wouldn’t be able to repeat my love for it, I was wrong again. The Household is an absolutely stunning read, wonderful writing, a story that is engaging and will get hold of you and not let you go, if you’re looking for a book you will not forget, this is for you.