I love the Clarks Factory Girls! This is another of the great stories about this group of women who will steal your heartstrings.

Great new saga series and loved the characters and getting to know them. Can’t wait for the next instalment. Would recommend this book and author

I am really enjoying the CFG books. The story is interesting and the characters are brilliant - you feel like you really get to know them well. May writes very well and I can't to see what she comes up with next.

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. I enjoyed the first book in this series and I'm pleased to have enjoyed the sequel even more. I was absolutely invested in the characters and their stories. The book was well-paced, well-written, and heartfelt, and although I would have liked to see more of Louisa's story, the letters "from" her were written well. I also liked that the book followed on with the same characters without introducing many new ones, which I find is unusual with this genre, but helps develop your relationship with the characters.

This is the second book in the Clarks Factory Girls series. For the most part you can read this as a standalone story, but to get the most out of your read I would advise you to read the first book before this one. The stories focus on 3 great friends, their relationships with each other, their families, and men.

Set during wartime you can expect some heartache, but May Ellis always balances the good with the bad so that you don't end up feeling melancholy after reading one of her books. I was close to tears a couple of times while I was reading this, and I wondered how a particular character was going to cope with the situation she found herself in. I was pleased that the author wrote a believable storyline for her, not all sweetness and light, but not all doom and gloom either.

I enjoyed this latest installment of the Clarks Factory Girls and very much look forward to the next one in the series.

The continued story of Kate, Louisa and Jeannie is just as good as the first book in this series. The friends prove once again their love for each other in several challenging situations. Another enjoyable book by Mary Ellis. I look forward to what cones next. Thanks #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks

This was such a lovely book and I really enjoyed it. I haven’t read the first book in the series but I think it worked well as a standalone.

Louise, Kate and Jeannie are best friends and work together in the Clark’s shoe factory. It is wartime and many of the local men and boys are off fighting in the war. Louise gets awful news that her fiancé Mattie has died in battle. Louise is broken hearted and can’t imagine life without him.

Jeannie’s brother Lucas was best friends with Mattie and blames himself for Mattie enlisting. He signs up himself and Jeannie tries her best to talk him out of it but he is determined to go.

Kate’s dad is cruel to her and she is left alone with him when her mum dies and her brothers are all married. He takes all of her wages off her and expects her to do everything. She is unhappy at home and sees no way out.

The girls support each other through everything and look out for each other always.

I am looking forward to reading the next instalment and finding out more about the girls and their lives.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I read the first two books in the Clarks Factory Girls series, back to back. This second in the series is a continuation of the lives and stories of the people who live and work in Street, Somerset, in the UK and, once again, they welcome us with open arms. I love the characters (well, most of them) that May has created and the family and friendship they bring.

This time around, we discover more about the effects the First World War had on the men who fought and the women who stayed at home, as well as the backward beliefs that some characters had, resulting in heartbreaking decisions having to be made, particularly by young women.

I love the community spirit in this series. Almost everyone looks out for their friends and neighbours and will help them out any way they can if necessary.

If you love a wartime saga like I do, then pick up these books. Despite the setting of WWI, they are warm and cosy books with great characters who you just want to be friends with.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and review Courage for the Clarks Factory Girls by May Ellis.

Courage for the Clarks Factory Girls by May Ellis

Really enjoying this series and like the others is a very good read. Heartening at times , but it was lovely to see how the friendship of these 3 girls are going and how they are managing to cope during these years.

The second book in the Factory Girls series, and it’s as good as the first. Having been introduced to Louisa, Kate and
Jeannie in the first book, the second instalment finds the girls keeping the home fires blazing as they continue working in the Clark’s shoe factory. The girls have many difficulties to overcome but their friendship remains steadfast as they try and navigate the changes in their life’s due to the uncertainties that come with war. They each have difficulties and problems to overcome, can they win through, that’s the question?
This is a wonderfully detailed book and I loved every minute of it. I’m really looking forward to see what’s in the future for the Clark’s Factory Girls.
This is another 4⭐️book for me . Thank you to #NetGalley and #BoldwoodBooks for my ARC of this book.

Another wonderful read in this series. Courage for the Clarks Factory Girls did make for some heartbreaking reading at times (Louisa's story in particular). I just loved the friendship between thr three girls and how they were always looking out for one another during those dark days. I can't wait to see what the third book has in store for them.

Courage for the Clarks Factory Girls is the second book in The Clarks Factory Girls series by May Ellis.

Kate, Louisa and Jeannie are still working at Clarks Shoe Factory and Louisa’s love is fighting for his country in France. When the girls receive some news, it devastates them; Louisa discovers something that destroys her family life. Kate and Jeannie do all they can to support her but are struggling themselves.

I particularly love the characters in this series; the depth of their friendship is heartening despite their different faiths and beliefs. If only the world could realise that being kind is the best thing to be in life!

Grab your copy today!

I'm reviewing this via NetGalley, as part of a tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

This WWI saga is the second book in a series, and it follows Louisa, Kate and Jeannie - three friends who work together at the Clarks shoe factory. I read the previous book in this series a few months ago, and I really enjoyed that one, so it sparked joy to read about these characters again.

The main characters are very close friends, and that resonated with me; I love how supportive they are of each other. There is something about reading a saga like this that often makes me feel oddly nostalgic for a time period that I never lived in, and that was the case here too.

I found this a very easy, comforting read, and I cared a lot about the characters and what happened to them. Before I finished reading, I thought again about the use of the word “courage” In the title, and how brave the characters had been.

If you enjoy wartime sagas, I would recommend this. I think readers will enjoy it even if they haven’t read the previous book in the series, and I would be interested in reading more by this author in future.

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, Rachel's Random Resources, and to the author, for the opportunity to read and review this.

I have been wearing Clark Shoes for years. Great shoes that last a long time. I was intrigued by the title. This is part of a series. I recommend reading the previous book as it gives you a better understanding of the plot.
This book continues the story of three girls who work at the Clark Factory. They become very close friends. Kate, Louisa and Jeannie are there for each other in every way possible. It is rare to find friendships like that.

I loved the story. It was heart wrenching at times. It brought you to WW2 when the local lads went off to serve their country. This caused grief and hardships for the families they left behind.

I look forward to the next chapter as the ending leaves you hanging!!

Clarks shoes were an absolute staple when I was growing up and although I know this is fiction I love reading about the factory and the girls that work there.

It's 1915, times are dark and the war is raging. Ellis' writing style allowed me to slip back in time and easily picture the scenes as they emerged from the pages.

Jeannie, Kate and Louisa are such wonderful characters who are being buoyed along by their friendships and camaraderie.

The story is highly enjoyable, heartfelt and a brilliant inclusion to the saga.

What I love about these characters is the inner strength that they demonstrate. Indeed, they are only discovering their personal bravery for themselves, and it is delightful to be accompanying them on this journey. In different ways they each have challenges to face, and they accomplish this with the strong support of one another.

The book exhibits much about how the role of women differs from today. It is difficult to speak of the specifics of their challenges without creating huge spoilers. Suffice to say that they face potentially life changing situations where we observe them changing from girls to women. They each are so brave in their own way.

This is such a good read and I highly recommend it.

In the second book in May Ellis’ Clarks Factory Girls series, readers join Kate, Louisa and Jeannie after many of the men in the village and from the factory have enlisted to serve in World War I. All three women receive devastating news related to their families in 1915, and they must cope, together and alone, to overcome their grief and anger and rebuild their lives in these dark times. Supporting each other despite their own troubles becomes difficult, especially when Louisa’s parents cast her out, and when Jeannie’s brother Lucas enlists, their fears and worries only grow. In the dark days of 1915 amidst their grief, the Clarks Factory Girls must find their courage to support each other and keep the home front together. Louisa, Jeannie, and Kate continue to be fascinating, strong, and complex heroines, and the alternating perspectives balance each other out throughout the novel. The new challenges and new characters in this book add to those relationships and challenges established in the first book of the series, a realistic development for these fantastic characters. The village and the factory remain central characters in this novel, and Ellis continues to develop the setting in the second book of the series.

This is the second book in the Clarks Factory Girls series, but can easily be read as a standalone.
It’s September 1915. Eighteen-year-old Louisa Clements lives in the village of Street in Somerset. She is planning to marry Mattie Searle, once he gets home from the war in France. She works at the Clarks shoe factory along with her friends Kate and Jeannie. But then Kate’s sister Peg arrives to tell her the worst news – Mattie has been killed.
Kate and Jeannie have their own problems too. Kate’s mother has recently died and her father gets drunk and hits out. And then there’s Beryl, but I’ll leave you to find out about her. Oh my! Meanwhile, Jeannie’s older brother Lucas (19) decides to enlist, leaving only Jeannie, her mother and two younger twin brothers – Peter and John - at home.
Meanwhile, Louisa has more problems to deal with, her parents insisting she move to live with her aunt. Peg is married to Will Searle (Mattie’s brother) and when they move to Lincolnshire (my home county!), Louisa escapes with them.
I enjoy books set in England in the past and featuring great female friendships. I love all the historical detail and finding more about the time when my Nanna (1907-2007) was young. I especially enjoy the social aspect of it, particularly how women managed with their partners, sons and brothers at war and how they kept life at home stable. In this story, it’s shocking that an eighteen-year-old has to deal with the enormity of losing her fiancé in war, because she seems so young, but of course, this kind of thing happened all the time during WWI.
It was also interesting finding out about the girls’ work at the Clarks shoe factory and what their job entailed. It’s all beautifully described with the smells and the sounds painting a vivid picture.
The story was really easy to get into, I was hooked at the first page. You feel so much sympathy for young Louisa and get drawn into the world of her, her family and friends in 1915. It’s well-paced and holds the reader’s interest throughout, as we follow the lives of the characters with all the ups and downs.
Overall, I enjoyed every aspect of the novel and look forward to catching up with the characters in future books.

This is a beautiful book and it is so amazing, the story is so lovely and very enjoyable to read. i loved everything about this book and i would recommend to anyone who loves reading to give this book a go. it is a lovely book and i will read other books from this author.

This is the second book in the Clarks Factory Girls series and it was for me another wonderful read. It’s a dark and scary time for the Clarks factory workers and many of the male employees have left to do their duty.in the army. Those that are left behind worry about their loved ones who have gone to fight in the war. The story again focuses mainly on the three friends Louisa, Jeannie and Kate. Each of them are dealing with their own personal problems but they are always there to help and support one another. I just love the characters in this book, especially the friendship between the three girls. Admittedly there are some pretty nasty characters as well but in a way I love them also as the author writes them so well I can almost picture them in my head and feel their nastiness oozing out of the pages ! The descriptions of the factory and life in Street is depicted so well in the book and I truly loved every chapter. I can’t wait for the third book to catch up with everyone again.