The Briar Club by Rose Quinn is a wonderful story, full of amazing characters that is such an original and entertaining read.

Mrs Nillson runs a boarding house in Washington DC during the early 1950s which is home to five women. The arrival of new boarder Grace March changes the atmosphere in the house and a new chapter begins.

The incredible back stories of each of the characters and how they live together following the arrival of Grace forms the body of the narrative which catches the reader up to the present day of Thanksgiving in 1954.

Rose Quinn is already an impressive author and The Briar Club will further enhance her reputation. This is an excellent story.

Excellent novel that will keep you guessing to the end. Set against the background of 1950s Washington, the McCarthy hearings and trial of the Rosenbergs, The Briar Club is set in a house let of single working women with a variety of jobs - an English woman married to an absent naval doctor, an artist from Vienna, a widow from Iowa, and others (and are they what they seem? - some are).

It is about friendship, loyalty, trust and like all Kate Quinn's novel is a superb read. I can't recommend it highly enough. If there were 6 stars this would deserve it.

With thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins.

Another glorious book from Kate Quinn. Set in the McCarthy years of 1950s America and woven through with well-researched historical detail and period feel, the novel tells the disparate stories of the residents of a boarding house, drawn out by the observation and subtle listening skills of Grace March, the occupant of the tiny attic room. She transforms the lives of each of the residents and improves the atmosphere of the whole house. A clever device lets us view Briar House from the perspective of the building itself, as it struggles to make sense of the crime scene it discovers and returns to throughout the book, intriguing and engaging the reader in it's characters and events that lead up to the crime. A warm, feel-good book with fascinating tales and dramas, but also a strong sense of kindness and understanding. I thoroughly enjoyed it. An excellent read!

The Briar Club takes place in 1950's Washington DC in a boarding house solely for female tenants. It tells the stories of these women and how they share the same destinies without realising. The background is the McCarthy era and how it affects the racial, social & political issues of that time
There is humour, anger, sadness and hope. There is a murder mystery and recipes. Very satisfying read.

A cracking read, good characters, gripping story, good twist, based on true events, the whole package. I loved The Rose Code and recommended it widely and I shall do the same with this one. Warmth, laughter, shock, fear all abound to make a great read.

Another brilliant read from Kate Quinn, The Briar Club has a different feel at the start to her other novels I have read. Set in 1950's America, Mrs Grace March arrives at Briarwood House, an all female boarding house that has seen better days. Her warmth and firiendliness gradually brings together her fellow residents, each one has a secret which they open up to Grace, but Grace herself remains a mystery.
I loved Grace, the other ladies (even the unlikeable ones) and the men that make this story so captivating.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read The Briar Club.

Kate Quinn does write a good book - there are great characters, top plot and enough historical information to make you believe that you learning and therefore improving your mind! I have to be careful not to drop any breadcrumbs, but gosh what a great twist! I very much enjoyed my time with the people and house of the Briar Club - perfect on a sunlounger this summer!

Set in 1950s Washington DC in a boarding house, the story begins with police arriving at the house to a double killing. The rest of the story examines each tenant's story and is a great insight into the McCarthy era, and various facets of American life. They are all very different but when Grace comes to live there and begins her supper evenings as a way to help the landlady's children have some care and good food. Gradually the women (along with their various friends) learn to support each other and their lives.
A clever, well crafted story. I learnt a lot.

I really enjoyed this historical novel set in 1950s Washington, D.C. following a group of women who don't have much in common except living at the same boarding house. At least they don't at first, until Grace moves in and pulls them all together into an unlikely friendship.

I'm not going to tell you much about these women because I think it's best to discover who they each are through reading the book. The one thing I will tell you is that I found all their different perspectives very interesting, and I ended up loving (almost) all of them.

The structure of the book devotes only one chapter to each of them, and the chapters are all pretty long (there's only 9 chapters in a 400-page book). And in between chapters are little interludes from the POV of the boarding house. Sentient houses are something you'd usually only expect in fantasy books, but somehow it worked here, without taking anything away from the realism of the story.

The story was well-paced and kept me turning the pages. The only part of the book I was skimming were the recipes - there's one or two recipes in each chapter of the things the characters eat or drink for their weekly dinners together. Other than that I was completely captivated.

The book really brought the McCarthy era to life and I enjoyed being transported to this setting. (I did notice an unfortunate reference to the Berlin Wall, which in the 1950s should've been a reference to the inner German border instead, since the Berlin Wall hadn't been built yet. But as someone who isn't a history buff and most of the time wouldn't notice mistakes like that in historical fiction, I don't have a problem forgiving such mistakes when I do notice them. As long as I'm getting a good story, I don't care if a book gets every single fact in every throwaway line right.)

My favorite character, if I absolutely had to pick one, was probably Nora... or Grace..., but I really enjoyed the little Easter egg that Fliss was related to Beth from The Rose Code, which is my favorite Kate Quinn book yet.

Thank you HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction for providing a review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

If I could give this 10 stars I would. I love Kate Quinn's novels and yet again she has knocked it out of the park., with a whole house full of strong women.

When I started this book i thought it was very different from her usual style, not set during a war and in suburban America. But as the tale unfolded of course all was not as it seemed.

I loved Grace, the central character, but also enjoyed the stories of the other women and men forming the Briar Club. Sometimes family isn't blood related and you genuinely felt close to all the residents and their friends.

It covers true history. I always love reading the author's notes to see where fiction meets fact. It was so well researched and I couldnt put it down. Just a joy to read. Thank you Kate, you've done it again!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"The Briar Club" is a wonderfully dense and evocative novel about a little known (certainly by non-US citizens) period of American history. Even the idea of a boarding house for single ladies is something we are no longer familiar with.

The residents of Briarwood House, Washington DC in the early 1950's were certainly a mixed bunch. However, it only took one of these determined women to bring them all together and create a family of sorts. At this time World War 2 was a recent memory, things were kicking off in Korea and Senator McCarthy was chasing communists on home turf.

This book is really engrossing and a joy to read. Thanks to Kate Quinn for writing it and to Net Galley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read and review it.

A Kate Quinn novel is always something to look forward to. They are never the same, always picking a different era of history and written in a style which suits that particular timespan.
Her description of Washington in the 1950’s was excellent and the different characters all burst into life..
briarwood House offers rooms to ladies and as the story progresses we discover more about the residents and the landlady and her son Pete.
Sometimes it feels as though this is a series of short interlinked stories, linking people to events in history, but this gives the author a wealth of material to work with.
Maybe not my favourite by Kate, but very enjoyable.

I breezed through the book in 2 days. The story is fast paced and characters, interesting. The story takes place in a boarding house for women and each woman has a backstory. Kate Quinn captured the current affairs of the 50s and weaved them jn the story so very well. I loved how the women came together through Grace's nudging. Grace being the FMC had a really interesting role. The male characters felt very one-dimensional. But I have no grudges about that. Female characters have been treated that way in way too many books.
All in all a great read!

There aren’t enough words to describe how fantastic this book is. I loved the different tenants within Briarwood House, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about each of the women and their back stories. I was hooked on the story, especially as it’s told in dual timelines. Quinn certainly knows how to build up the mystery and suspense. I felt I was a part of the house and the drama what went on there. I keep recommending this book to anyone I speak to. An easy 5 star for me.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for this eCopy to review

I really enjoyed the Briar Club, it's ending was fantastic and one I didn't see coming. It was different giving the house it's own chapters, I liked how the children and guests all grew and started to become a family once Grace moves in and starts her supper club. Full of great characters and great stories plus it has recipes and music suggestions which is something I always love in a book as you can recreate them at home.

The sharing of their secrets, hopes and dreams was beautiful to read about and gives you hope and the courage to go out and achieve yours. The fear of communism was palpable and gave some interesting history on a period I don't know much about

One of my favourite books of the year!
A boarding house in 1950s Washington DC with a body in the attic. As we learn the stories of the inhabitants that live there we uncover a bit more of the night in question.

A great novel, a disparate group of boarders who are united by newcomer Grace. As the boarders become friends the house unfurls and secrets are uncovered.

I love Kate Quinn’s books and this one didn’t disappoint!

Thank you to Harper Collins and NetGalley for the copy to review.

Set in 1950s. The author takes us in the life of each character. If you like character driven books with food recipes in it, read it. There are five women and their stories will deeply touch you. Each of them is harbouring a secret. While when dead bodies are found in the Briarwood House. The investigation unveils secrets and mystery. The book is about female friendships and secrets.

Thanks to the publisher and Author.

For my money, this is the best book of 2024, and boy, what a film this would make! Set in the 1950’s, the era of McCarthyism, Briarwood house is an all female boarding house in Washington DC.
Written during the COVID Pandemic, you can feel the desperate need for company and gossip, the loneliness of enforced isolation and the yearning for normality, which is skilfully portrayed in this novel. Each chapter relates to a different woman. We learn of her life story, her secrets, her unfulfilled dreams and desires. As each woman becomes familiar, we start to care about them, the way they come together for their Thursday Night supper party, and each woman gives us a favourite recipe, but I haven’t tried any of them yet!
The narrator is uniquely placed to observe the comings and goings of these women, Briarwood house doesn’t miss a trick, and whereas before, the house felt cold and neglected, it also begins to relax with the company of these women and grows more warmer and protective of their well being.
When two dead bodies are found within Briarwood House, the house is fascinated, it’s the most excitement it has experienced since being built, and it wonders how the guilty party is going to get out of that scrape!
The crime was full of red herrings and many surprises. Set in a political era, but it wasn’t too heavy on the political details as such, but showed more social details, the misogyny towards females, the lack of rights in matters of employment, money and a voice in family matters.
I was pleased to read about the work regarding the contraceptive pill, and the freedom that brought to being able to space out children and to be able to enjoy sex!
I found this to be a very lively and engaging story. It was heart warming, full of loyalty to friend and it also showed a willingness to break the rules to protect those who we are close to.
My thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK, the publishers for my advanced copy, freely given in return for my honest review. A five star read, I just wish I was allowed to give more!
I will leave a review to Goodreads and Amazon UK upon publication.

A fabulously enjoyable tale!

Briarwood House is an all-female boarding house in the heart of Washington D.C., run by a deserted wife as a means of keeping her family together. The residents keep themselves to themselves until, that is, Grace March moves into the attic room and takes an interest in everyone living there. Before long, her weekly supper clubs have brought them all together and they become almost a family. As everyone else's secrets come out into the open, Grace affects them all with a sort of healing balm; but what about her secrets? Who can soothe Grace?

Set during the McCarthy era, this is a wonderfully told story about women from every walk of life living together, each with very different kinds of life. It's fair to say I was completely enthralled throughout, enjoying a peek into the lives of so many in a time before I was born. A thrilling and very, very enjoyable read and one I most definitely recommend. 4.5*.

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

This book brings 1950s USA to life during the Red Scare and McCarthyism. It follows women living in Mrs Nilson’s guest house and opens with a dead body and a murder.

The book is character driven, a change I feel from previous Kate Quinn books and each long chapter focuses on the lives and backstory of each of the women. They are all brought together every week through a supper club - The Briar Club and here we see the women forming friendships and caring for Mrs Nilsons two children.
As we learn the backstories of these women you get a strong feeling of these characters motivations and decisions. Sprinkled through the book are recipes which add an extra something.
This is a book about women, friendships and secrets set in a time when America found itself fearful of Communism and I enjoyed this slow character driven story.