I really enjoyed reading Small Pleasures a couple of years ago but I think Shy Creatures has just beaten it to being my favourite! I thought the setting of it - at the cusp of the 1960 psychiatry movement - and the relationship between Helen and Gil is beautifully realised with the right blend of romance and pathos that allows the reader to follow Helen as she develops within the story. I think Clare Chambers writes so gently about relationships, both at the beginning and the ending, along with all the hopes and frustrations of common lives that always makes her stories so absorbing. She interweaves the common narrative with the intrigue of William and his life that gives equal weight to both and guides the novel to a heartbreaking but considered end, A brilliant winter nights read when you just want to become absorbed by a story and its writing.

A unique blend of mystery and mental health commentary, I loved all the various storylines between our characters and how they all came together in the end. The writing was beautiful and I especially enjoyed the melancholic feeling Clare Chambers portrays in her writing, especially during Helen's wistful scenes with Gil

It is the early sixties. The world is caught between the straight laced post war 50's & the swinging sixties. Helen is an art therapist & works in a psychiatric hospital. She is involved in an affair with one of the psychiatrists, who tells her he can't leave his wife until is children are grown up. Still Helen hangs on snatching what time she can. When a young man (William) is admitted having been found in a dilapidated house with a beard down to his waist & mute Helen is intrigued by the art work found in the house. William seems to have never left the house for many years. The story switches time lines from 1964 to when William was a boy & through his lost years.

This was a captivating story. I loved it. The times were captured so well & the characters were totally absorbing. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read this great book. I loved it!

Can Clare Chambers write a bad book? Clearly not! I LOVED Small Pleasures so was so excited to read this book! The writing? Perfection! The characters? Deep, intriguing and well rounded. The experience of reading this book will stay with me for a long time. It's one of those ones you press into peoples hands, look them deep in the eyes and say "you can thank me later".

This one will sneak up on you. It's the story of William, who has been living in secret since before WWII, and Helen, the art therapist at a mental health facility who is determined to help him. This moves back and forth in time to tell William's story, the root of which will not be revealed until very late in the novel. Helen is there with Gil, a psychiatrist who is also her lover, when he's taken from his home. She sees something in him that others don't and she's determined to learn his back story. There's great kindness here but there's also a more than a little unhappiness, largely thanks to Gil. I liked how this unfolded, how layers were added to the characters, and the atmospherics. No spoilers from me on William's back story. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A wonderful read.

Another amazing story from Clare Chambers

Helen, an art therapist at a local mental health hospital is always putting herself last. Until she meets William.

William is admitted after being kept as a recluse by his aunt. Helen works hard to find out who William really is and what has happened to him.

There stories are intertwined and the two timelines are so well written. Clare Chambers talent for writing instantly makes you feel in the 1950’s with them.

There have been some excellent review for this book and I can see why. The narrative is well crafted and the language use is good. However, I found the story rather dull.

For me this was a book of two halves. The first I found a little slow and it took me a while to get invested in the characters' stories. William changed all that and the second half I found completely compelling. I love the fact too that Chambers' novels on stories which otherwise would have escaped my attention but which are fascinating in their own right too.

I first heard about this book when I attended a recording of BBC Radio 4’s Bookclub at which Clare talked about her previous book, Small Pleasures. That was a book I absolutely loved so I approached Shy Creatures with a mixture of trepidation and high expectation. I needn’t have worried because she has created another wonderful story.

Clare is an author who seems incapable of creating one-dimensional characters. Take Gil, the psychiatrist with whom Helen has been having an affair for the past three years. He’s attractive – and knows it – and the sort of man who can’t help playing on it. He’s cheating on his wife and is rather economical with the truth when it comes to the state of his marriage. Sounds a bit of a cad, doesn’t he? But the elements of his character that make him so charismatic make him a psychiatrist who can create a real connection with his patients. And he has a more enlightened attitude to treating mental illness than many of his peers, believing talking therapy is more effective than filling them up with drugs. It’s why he championed Helen’s art therapy as a legitimate form of treatment although, of course, he may have had secondary motives as well.

Helen is wrapped up in an affair that she finds hard to leave behind yet knows is wrong. She’s fairly clear-eyed that she and Gil view things differently. ‘She realised that, for Gil, intensity had always been more important than permanence, whereas she had wanted something lasting’. Yet a shock discovery still takes her by surprise. I really liked Helen. I admired her patience, her openmindness and the empathy she shows towards her patients, many of whom have been written off by society.

Small Pleasures was set in the 1950s, whereas Shy Creatures takes us forward to 1964. It’s a time of change, including in the attitude to the treatment of mental illness with the first glimpses of the idea of care in the community rather than shutting people away in asylums. As always, the author brilliantly evokes the period through the food people eat, the films and television programmes they watch.

As the author reveals, the character of William is inspired by a true story but she has given his story an entirely different trajectory to the real life case. Cleverly, it unfolds in reverse chronological order so it’s only towards the end of the book that we learn the reason why William was kept away from the world for so many years. Although born out of love and a desire to protect him from the risk of discovery, his isolation has had a profound impact on him not just physically but psychologically.

Discovering he has a talent for drawing, Helen sets out to help him return to the outside world through the medium of art. It’s a slow process. At the same time, she starts to delve into his past seeking anyone who can shed light on his story. What she discovers is something dark but it also results in an entirely unexpected act of generosity that is in effect repayment of a debt.

Small Pleasures ended with a tragedy. (That’s not a spoiler as it’s revealed in the opening pages.) In comparison, although nothing is spelled out, the final chapter of Shy Creatures left me with a feeling of hope.

Having loved novels by this author before I was excited to pick up Shy Creatures and I was certainly not disappointed. I just couldn’t put it down. The novel tells the story of Helen, an art therapist at Westbury Park Psychiatric Hospital and her affair with one of the married doctors. It also tells the story of William Tapping discovered mute and unkept in his elderly aunts ramshackle house having not been seen for many years. Set in 1964, the author catches the era perfectly, and as William story comes to light, we are taken back through the years to 1938. Based on a true story, this book was not scared to tackle some difficult issues such as child abuse, and the way in which mental health patients were sometimes treated. I will certainly be looking for more of this authors blacklist and looking forward to her next novel. I would highly recommend this book, and I think it is one that will stay with me for sometime to come. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this novel in return for a honest review.

For me this was an OK read until William came onto the scene this is when the book got interesting for me.

Shy Creatures is a quiet book which gently unfold the back story of William.

The characters are well developed and the writing is wonderful. An “easy” read but one that made me pause, re-read and laugh. A book of 400 pages that could have been longer for me and, lately, I have been muttering that books are too long!

“ His sudden rages prompted by some trivial domestic inconvenience a missing cigarette lighter, sour milk in his tea, kept them all in a state of quivering obedience. Forseeing and heading off the sort of event that might trigger an explosion required a level of the vigilance that made complete relaxation impossible ”

Highly highly recommended.

Thank to Netgalley for the ARC.

I really enjoy Clare Chambers books. I love the characters in this book and found it very heartwarming and couldn't wait to get back to it everytime I sat it down.
Would definitely recommend this.

Clare Chambers’ Shy Creatures captivates from the first page, immersing readers in an intriguing tale of hidden pasts and complex relationships. The story revolves around William, who has spent years in isolation with his spinster aunts. As Helen, an art therapist at a psychiatric hospital, delves into his mysterious past, larger questions emerge—questions of control, protection, and the blurred lines between love and power. Chambers masterfully explores how status and relationships can shape one's autonomy, probing the possibility of healing from past trauma. The conclusion is thoughtful and satisfying, leaving readers much to reflect on. A compelling, beautifully written novel, this is a must-read for anyone seeking depth and insight. I’ll be watching for more from Chambers.

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Shy creatures.

65% read. I found it a long read. I struggled with this. Even though the story was good it seemed to drag. It took a long time to read and eventually I thought I need a break as it doesn't seem to have gone very far but then my loan expired so I dont know how it ends.
I really enjoyed small pleasures so i wanted to love this. The style of writting is beautiful and the part I read was very descriptive but I just wasnt gripped by this one.

Clare Chambers took her inspiration for this 1960s set story from an article she read about a Bristol man who was discovered naked and dishevelled, with long hair and beard, living as a recluse with an elderly aunt. Apparently he had existed under the radar of neighbours and the authorities for decades, with huge historical events all passing him by. It's a fascinating premise and what Chambers does with story once the man is discovered is both clever and interesting. She is very skilled at getting inside her characters and possesses a humanity and compassion for all of them that allows us to empathise with even the very worst of them I really enjoyed this novel.

Such a beautiful book. An engaging read with a captivating story. I enjoyed the writing so much I’m planning to read it again later in the year.

I am always interested in the way that mid century /post war Britain Is portrayed in literature, and Clare Chambers has once again shown us how it is done. In her latest novel she introduces us to Helen, an art therapist working in a mental health hospital in Croydon, and her new patient, William. While Helen is likeable and relatable, it is William who will steal your heart - both the traumatised and confused man we meet in 1964 and the boy we learn about as his back story is revealed.
I highly recommend this intelligent and accessible literary novel. It will stay with me.

I thoroughly enjoyed Shy Creatures by Clare Chambers. The story revolves around Westbury Park hospital and new patient, William, who has been discovered in a nearby house living unknown to locals.

The development of the story is so well handled as William’s (and his friends) past is teasingly revealed in chapters that go back to his childhood and explain how he ended up where he was found.

A wonderfully told story, I would highly recommend this and Clare Chambers’ other novels.

Hauntingly Beautiful, and Achingly Sad.....this latest offering from Clare Chambers is compulsive reading.
The duel timelines of 1930s and 1960s Britain give this story an interesting depth. You feel the mood of post war Britain, and you see how issues such as mental health and childhood abuse were regarded back then.
Essentially the power of acts of kindness, both big and small are the saving grace here.