This is an enjoyable & interesting dual timeline story with both narratives (in the main) set at Gately Hall. Margaret finds herself working there as a Lady’s maid in the 1940s. Claire accepts a job there in 2015. She finds a fairly recent letter from Margaret asking for help to find Tabitha. Who & where is she? Margaret was tasked by her mistress to give her daughter Tabitha a piece of her jewellery. Time is running out for Margaret. The story continues with a trip to Florence by Claire. We discover that Margaret also took a trip to Florence, later in life. The two storylines are interconnected, & intertwine at the end. A wonderful family saga. All the pieces finally fit together.

The Florence Letter AUDIO by Anita Chapman was a lovely story in two timelines: Margaret, a lady’s maid during World War II and Claire, a woman in transition, putting together a story of the downstairs workings of Gatley Hall. Claire comes upon a letter that is several years old and decides to follow up. She discovers an old woman, ninety years old, who wants desperately to fulfill a promise she made to her dying mistress over seventy years earlier. The story chronicles Margaret’s life, touching on the time she spent at the hall as well as her two marriages. It is a comprehensive and enlightening look at a life. In the second timeline, Claire is recovering from her father’s death as well as a bad breakup. Moving to Gatley Hall is her new beginning. The cottage in which she lives has been split into halves and she begins a friendship with her cottage-mate, that beings revelations.

This was a wonderful listen, not always pleasant, but always understated. The workings of human relationships can be complex and many of those relationships are detailed in this moving novel. Life is often not easy, often of one’s own making, but usually from lack of knowledge. It is a testament to long engagements, and friendship before love, if nothing else. The characters are interesting, all having backstories which make it a compelling overall read. The charms of the past are on full display as the story develops. Thanks Anita Chapman for a wonderful story.

Emma Powell and Sophie Roberts did an amzing job with the narration, keeping it low-key but moving the story along. Kudos!

I was invited to listen to The Florence Letter by Bookoutre Audio. All thoughts an opinions are mine. #Netgalley #BookoutreAudio #AnitaChapman #EmmaPowell #SophieRoberts #TheFlorenceLetter

It took me a while to get into this one. I was listening to the audio version, and the narrator did a fine job, but it was very hard to keep track of characters and timelines at first. Once I got past the first quarter of the book I was able to settle in to the storyline and enjoy it. It was a bit slow, but I liked how the two timelines dovetailed in the end. The romance piece was annoying--will they, won't they went on for way too long and I just wanted to slap them both.

Claire finds a long-lost letter in which a Lady Violet wants to bequeath her daughter a piece of her jewellery and sets about trying to make it happen, with very little information to go on other than the name of a bakery. So many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC/audiobook, and thanks to the narrator for a soothing voice.

A beautiful historical novel, about loyalty, friendship and courage told over a split timeline.
1940’s during WWII Margaret is working as a shopgirl, to the disappointment of her mother who has paid for elocution lessons, in the hope that she’ll follow in her footsteps and become a ladies maid, her mothers wish comes true then the city and the store Margaret works in are bombed and ablaze. It’s decided all round that she should get out of the city for the remainder of the war. Mags fancies being a land girl but instead ends up looking for live in work at Gately Hall. She must dull herself down in order not to outshine her charge Lady Violet. They get off to a bumpy start but end up as firm friends.

Claire has taken a job at Gately House, modern day, after stepping away from a prestigious city art gallery to be free from commute and following her fathers death, she begins work at office in old servants quarters which is being prepared for The Below The Stairs exhibition, in a bid to raise funds for the upkeep of the estate. Claire dresses up for work lives rose cottage, we discover that while Claire children, while Mikes did not, things come to a head and she is dumped by Miles and on the very same night applied for the job and cottage. She soon makes friends with Jim and Helen.

Working through archives and paperwork she finds a letter looking for Tabitha from Rose cottage, from Margaret.

Then - Margaret befriends Lilian and Tom and meets Italian POW Luca. She starts a diary to document the war. Post war Mags marries Tom, he drinks but works hard, and becomes quite verbally abusive and it’s not a happy marriage. When he dies and her aunt has left her a cottage and Tom quite a lot of money, she’s in a position like never before and inspired by A Room With A View she takes a trip to Florence with Nathan who she met at Italian classes.
Claire and colleague decide to visit Margaret - Margaret gives a copy of A Room With A view she urges them to watch the film, when she also offers to pay to find Tabitha in Florence possibly living as Lucia. Jim ends up going as (Helen ) has a bug - a created bug

When they arrive they track Luca down and discover he has seen Lucia, they wrote but they fell out, he remembered she married and her name is like a flower.

Can Margaret and Claire track down Lucia, and get the house ready for opening, and what secrets are waiting to pour out.

I really enjoyed the story, shamefully I’ve never read A Room With A View, but I’ve been inspired to add it to my reading list. Tge writing and narration were really lovely, this is a sweet and endearing book and an easy 4 stars.

My gratitude to NetGalley and Bookouture audio for this advanced copy.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the audiobook arc of “The Florence Letter“ by Anita Chapman in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I did think the dual POV made the book more interesting, however personally I thought the story did drag on for quite a bit.

Furthermore, the blurb does contain a lot of spoilers (such as the Tabitha’s parentage) and is more a summary of the entire book. Some plot points which aren’t revealed until the last chapters are mentioned in the blurb which I find quite odd. Also, I thought the title and cover were a bit misleading as 80% of the book does take place in England and not in Italy.

I also did not find the love story of the present-day couple (Claire and Jim) believable as they were seeing other people casually throughout the book.

I did love the WW1 setting and thought that the story line in the past was very interesting.