I have been a fan of all of Ruth Hogan's previous works so it was delightful to have access to an early sampler of The Phoenix Ballroom before purchasing the book!

The Phoenix Ballroom by Ruth Hogan

Venetia Hamilton-Hargreaves has just lost her husband Hawk and life is now going to be very different. Her son Heron and his wife are moving out to Paris for work and have decided that their son Kite will be attending his school as a boarder from now on. Hawk is worried about his mother and suggests that she employs a companion and home help. Liberty Bell is also grieving. Her mother has recently died after a short illness and a long-standing love affair has ended, but since her lover was also her married boss she has no job either. When she’s summoned to the solicitor she assumes it’s to deal with her mother’s will, but she’s shocked to find her mother’s wishes were not straightforward. She has left a photo album containing pictures of Liberty at different points in her life, alongside a cryptic message. She must commit to meeting with the solicitor every few weeks and when he is sure Liberty has met her mother’s expectations she will receive her inheritance. Yet with no idea of what her criteria is, how can Liberty succeed? Also, having moved in to look after her mother, she has now lost the roof over her head too. She applies for the job with Venetia because it is a live-in position, but isn’t sure that this vibrant and lively 74 year old actually needs help. Crow has been living in a hostel for some time, but struggles to deal with the chaos and noise. In the evenings he lets himself into a building that houses a spiritualist church and drop-in centre downstairs and an old ballroom upstairs. When the building is put up for sale he worries he may lose his sanctuary, not to mention all the people who receive help and support from the lady called Evangeline downstairs. When Venetia finds out that the old ballroom where she taught dance as a young woman is being sold for luxury flats she decides to take a look. So many of her memories are bound up in this place. It’s where she fell in love, with dance and with a very special man. She met her husband Hawk here and she can see the good work being done downstairs. She decides with the help of assistant Liberty that she will buy the building and restore the ballroom to its former glory, uncovering many secrets and changing lives along the way.

Ruth Hogan’s books are always whimsical, entertaining and uplifting so it’s been the perfect choice while battling COVID. She always creates fascinating and eccentric female characters who are going through a journey of personal growth. Here there was a very specific theme and a rather inspiring one, especially while feeling very unwell. This book was about what fear does to a person, whether that’s fear from a specific event or a long-standing fear of failure. Something I have learned the older I get is that you only fail if you stop trying. Liberty starts the book as quite a cautious person who is thrown totally out of her comfort zone. The job with Venetia gives her a roof over her head, but Venetia’s trust in her abilities really boosts her confidence. Soon she is helping with Kite, making lists for the renovation of the ballroom and supervising the work. However, I believe it is friendship that also makes the difference to Liberty. When Venetia’s eccentric sister-in-law Swan appears at the house Liberty finds her frankness and eccentricity a little startling, but they are soon a regular twosome with Swan even accompanying Liberty to her baffling meetings with the solicitor. I was hoping that some of Swan’s haughty and direct manner would rub off on Liberty and was rewarded with a startling display of assertiveness when Heron appears at the house. I also wanted some of Swan’s colour to inspire Liberty, giving her the courage to stand out and take up space. Venetia is less transparent and there were a few mysteries around her past life that I couldn’t work out. She’d clearly been an accomplished ballroom dancer until meeting her husband Hawk, but there was no real explanation for why she’d given it all up. She was a teacher as well as a competitor and Hawk didn’t seem to be the sort of man who would have insisted on her giving up something she loved. They were also incredibly different people and I didn’t feel that their relationship had been a lightning bolt of passion. There were little hints of a event in the past that changed Venetia and not just emotionally.

I thoroughly enjoyed untangling all these stories, including that of Crow, the homeless man who rescues Kite from bullies and spends his evenings in the quiet of the attic at the church. He’s mysterious and although he’s technically breaking and entering I didn’t get the feeling he was a bad guy, just in dire circumstances. I was interested to see where he would fit in to this group of characters who were very slowly becoming like family. Similarly, Venetia’s son Heron seems pompous and irritating but I sensed good intentions below the surface. He just needed some of these strong women to put him in his place and explain that his mother isn’t in her dotage. I was also fascinated with the mystery of two unknown men who’d appeared at Hawk’s funeral, along with the hidden book with a cryptic inscription. This was a beautiful side story that brought home the main theme of the book - we regret the things we haven’t done more than those we have. This is the sort of book that is perfect for summer holiday reading and which certainly cheered me up as I was stuck in bed with COVID.

I Can’t comment as I was only sent one chapter. The book Looked promising and I enjoyed the writing style but sadly can only give one star as unable to finish

Its obviously difficult to tell where a story will go from such a short extract, but the scene is set for some interesting family dynamics, although I did find all the ludicrous names very off putting and not sure I could cope with a whole book full of them!
Thank you to netgalley and Atlantic Books for a short sampler of this book.

There's not much on this sampler to say how the story will go, but I love the characters already - all named after birds and established firmly as quirky ndividuals in just a few pages. Ruth Hogan;s stories always intrigue, delight and satisfy, and I think this book will be no exception. Can't wait to read it in full.

Ruth Hogan never disappoint and I enjoyed this life affirming and heart warming novel.
Well plotted, compelling, well rounded characters
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Thank you to NetGalley for this taster chapter of The Phoenix Ballroom by Ruth Hogan.
I was absolutely gutted to reach the end, I wanted more!
A sumptuous, intriguing read with larger than life characters who practically strut off the page, and the most wonderfully memorable names, Venetia! Hawk! Kite!
I can't wait to get my hands on the full version of this novel by one of my auto-buy authors.

I really enjoyed the keeper of lost things. And from the premise of the Phoenix Ballroom I believe this will be a hit too. I was excited to read the sampler, but there wasn't enough to get my teeth into to understand if I would enjoy the book or not. I'm rating based on previous work as I just wish there was more of the sampler!

A short sampler of the book The Phoenix Ballroom due to be published in June 2024. It was only a tiny amount of reading but it’s certainly piqued my interest, and I would love to read the rest of the book!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Publisher for this brief e-book sampler. Opinions are entirely my own.

I received an early sampler of ''The Phoenix Ballroom'' from NetGalley.
This sample was VERY short but i could already ready see from the opening scenes, that it's gonna be a great read. The writing is strong and pretty concise, which i really loved for this novel. I'm incredibly excited to pick this up when it releases in June.
Ruth Hogan's ability to so quickly create lovable characters is a skill many authors should learn from.

The first chapter was definitely interesting. Hoping to get more about Venetia in the rest of the book. I really appreciate the detailed description of the funeral so it should bode well for the rest of the book. Im being primed to not like Hawk so who knows. Looking forward to seeing the rest of the book!

Well, this (very!) short sampler has left me wanting more! It certainly sets the scene for what I'm sure will be another inspiring read from Ruth Hogan. But I'll have to wait for June for the rest of the book 🤷🏼‍♀️
Interestingly, the release date is very near to my birthday (27th June, and my birthday is 2 days later). Sounds like the ideal birthday present for myself!

It’s quite hard to get the feeling of a book from such a short sampler. I usually enjoy Ruth Hogans writing so I would definitely keep on reading the full book.

Only a few pages in the preview and I want to know more and am inwardly cheering for Venetia already, whatever her story becomes. I look forward to reading the full book.