Welcome! Find out more about this new historical women's fiction and read my review below... Bloomsbury Girls: A Novel By Natalie Jenner Adult Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction Hardcover, Audiobook & eBook, 368 Pages May 17, 2022 by St. Martin's Press Summary Natalie Jenner, the internationally bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society, returns with a compelling and heartwarming story of post-war London, a century-old bookstore, and three women determined to find their way in a fast-changing world in Bloomsbury Girls. Bloomsbury Books is an old-fashioned new and rare bookstore that has persisted and resisted change for a hundred years, run by men and guided by the general manager's unbreakable fifty-one rules. But in 1950, the world is changing, especially the world of books and publishing, and at Bloomsbury Books, the girls in the shop have plans: Vivien Lowry: Single since her aristocratic fiancé was killed in action during World War II, the brilliant and stylish Vivien has a long list of grievances--most of them well justified and the biggest of which is Alec McDonough, the Head of Fiction. Grace Perkins: Married with two sons, she's been working to support the family following her husband's breakdown in the aftermath of the war. Torn between duty to her family and dreams of her own. Evie Stone: In the first class of female students from Cambridge permitted to earn a degree, Evie was denied an academic position in favor of her less accomplished male rival. Now she's working at Bloomsbury Books while she plans to remake her own future. As they interact with various literary figures of the time--Daphne Du Maurier, Ellen Doubleday, Sonia Blair (widow of George Orwell), Samuel Beckett, Peggy Guggenheim, and others--these three women with their complex web of relationships, goals and dreams are all working to plot out a future that is richer and more rewarding than anything society will allow. About the Audiobook Narrated by esteemed stage and screen actress Juliet Stevenson, enjoy the full unabridged edition of Bloomsbury Girls. “Stevenson delivers the satisfying triumph at the end with perfect polish.” —AudioFile Magazine Listen to an excerpt HERE. Advance Praise "Jenner follows The Jane Austen Society (2020) with another top-notch reading experience, using the same deft hand at creating complex, emotionally engaging characters [against] a backdrop chock-full of factual historical information... Fans of Christina Baker Kline, Kate Quinn and Pam Jenoff [will] appreciate this gem." —Booklist (starred review) "An illuminating yarn... Fans of emotional historical fiction will be charmed." —Publishers Weekly "Bloomsbury Girls is an immersive tale of three women determined to forge their own paths in 1950s London. Jenner has proven to be a master at spinning charming, earnest characters and paints a vivid picture of postwar England. I wanted to stay lost in her world forever!" —Stephanie Wrobel, internationally bestselling author of Darling Rose Gold "Bloomsbury Girls is a book lover's dream, one of those rare reads that elicits a sense of book-ish wistfulness and nostalgia. Jenner has created a colorful cast of characters in a story about friendship, perseverance, and the ways that determined women can band together in a man's world. You're in for a treat." —Sarah Penner, New York Times bestselling author of The Lost Apothecary "In a London still reeling from the ravages of World War II and the changes war has brought to English society, three young women take their futures into their own hands. With Bloomsbury Girls, Natalie Jenner has penned a timely and beautiful ode to ambition, friendship, bookshops, and the written word." —Janet Skeslien Charles, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Library “In post-war London, Bloomsbury Books survived The Blitz until Vivien Lowry, Grace Perkins, and Evie Stone set off their own bomb on the stuffy all-male management. What ensues is the most delightful, witty, and endearing story you will read this year. Natalie Jenner, bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society, proves that she was not a one hit wonder. Like Austen, her second book is even better than the first.” —Laurel Ann Nattress, editor of Jane Austen Made Me Do It Print & Digital Purchase Links (Affiliate links included.) Goodreads | Bookbub | Amazon | B&N | Book Depository | Bookshop Audiobook Purchase Links (Affiliate links included.) Goodreads | Amazon/Audible | B&N | Book Depository | Bookshop | Chirp Book Trailer My Review BLOOMSBURY GIRLS is a story full of unique and interesting characters revolving around a bookstore set a few years after WWII. It sets a picture of society at the time, with the different complexities of women's and men's roles as well as race. Different relationships form and intersect all while the author weaves a story that pulls on the heart. A superb read for historical fans as well as those who find stories set in bookstores with a feminist vein to be quite their thing. Jenner's writing is honestly so well done that it makes it easy to become immersed in the story. It's written in a way so these characters come alive and also allows for moments of introspection as well as little nuggets of truth and wisdom. I found the whole historical setting and background in regards to women's roles and women authors to be interesting and relatable as a woman. Having said that, the story would appeal to everyone. It just especially resonated with me. There were definitely things that upset me, but also things that made me laugh and sigh. I couldn't help getting invested in these characters' lives and cheering them on, particularly Evie. I also could relate to the other characters. It was a masterly woven story from beginning to end. In the end, was it what I wished for? It was a marvelous story that pulled on all my emotions and left my heart full in the end. Highly recommended! Content: Two closed-door scenes and some innuendo. Source: I received a complimentary copy from the publisher through Austenprose, which did not require a positive review. All opinions are my own. A Message from Author Natalie Jenner Dear readers, I am immensely grateful for the outpouring of affection that so many of you have expressed for my debut novel The Jane Austen Society and its eight main characters. When I wrote its epilogue (in one go and without ever changing a word), I wanted to give each of Adam, Mimi, Dr. Gray, Adeline, Yardley, Frances, Evie and Andrew the happy Austenesque ending they each deserved. But I could not let go of servant girl Evie Stone, the youngest and only character inspired by real life (my mother, who had to leave school at age fourteen, and my daughter, who does eighteenth-century research for a university professor and his team). Bloomsbury Girls continues Evie’s adventures into a 1950s London bookshop where there is a battle of the sexes raging between the male managers and the female staff, who decide to pull together their smarts, connections, and limited resources to take over the shop and make it their own. There are dozens of new characters in Bloomsbury Girls from several different countries, and audiobook narration was going to require a female voice of the highest training and caliber. When I learned that British stage and screen actress Juliet Stevenson, CBE, had agreed to narrate, I knew that my story could not be in better hands, and I so hope you enjoy reading or listening to it. Warmest regards, Natalie About the Author Natalie Jenner is the author of the instant international bestseller The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls. A Goodreads Choice Award runner-up for historical fiction and finalist for best debut novel, The Jane Austen Society was a USA Today and #1 national bestseller and has been sold for translation in twenty countries. Born in England and raised in Canada, Natalie has been a corporate lawyer, career coach and, most recently, an independent bookstore owner in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs. Visit her website to learn more. Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads Did you read this author's first book, The Jane Austen Society? Will you be reading this one?

I'm thrilled to share the news that Natalie has a second novel, Bloomsbury Girls, releasing on May 17, 2022. Check out the cover of this novel in this post.

A book cover reveal and a preview of the new historical fiction novel Every Time We Say Goodbye by bestselling author Natalie Jenner.

Welcome to my tour stop! Read an excerpt from this new historical fiction below... Every Time We Say Goodbye By Natalie Jenner Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction Hardcover, Audiobook & eBook, 336 Pages May 14, 2024 by St. Martin's Press Summary The bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls returns with a brilliant novel of love and art, of grief and memory, of confronting the past and facing the future. In 1955, Vivien Lowry is facing the greatest challenge of her life. Her latest play, the only female-authored play on the London stage that season, has opened in the West End to rapturous applause from the audience. The reviewers, however, are not as impressed as the playgoers and their savage notices not only shut down the play but ruin Lowry's last chance for a dramatic career. With her future in London not looking bright, at the suggestion of her friend, Peggy Guggenheim, Vivien takes a job in as a script doctor on a major film shooting in Rome’s Cinecitta Studios. There she finds a vibrant movie making scene filled with rising stars, acclaimed directors, and famous actors in a country that is torn between its past and its potentially bright future, between the liberation of the post-war cinema and the restrictions of the Catholic Church that permeates the very soul of Italy. As Vivien tries to forge a new future for herself, she also must face the long-buried truth of the recent World War and the mystery of what really happened to her deceased fiancé. Every Time We Say Goodbye is a brilliant exploration of trauma and tragedy, hope and renewal, filled with dazzling characters both real and imaginary, from the incomparable author who charmed the world with her novels The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls. (Affiliate links included.) Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop | B&N | Target Excerpt Everything in life was a matter of pacing. Lassiter had noticed the woman, or thought he had noticed her (could he be slipping?), a couple of times now. The first had been on a mild February day as he sneaked out of a private meeting at Cinecittà. She had rounded the corner of the studio on a peacock-blue bicycle, the front wicker basket holding a stack of paper weighted down by a pair of tangled high heels. Her bare feet were pedaling fast, and immediately he assumed she was one of the script girls. Or—better yet—an actress, with her wavy raven-black hair and stylish manner. The second time had been at Peggy Guggenheim’s Carnival party on Mardi Gras a few weeks back. They were both been in costume, which must have slowed him down—by the time he made the connection, she was gone. He had not seen her at the studio since. He had certainly not expected to find her here, wandering the Via Sacra alone. He liked to cut through the Forum as he slipped home from Anita’s apartments, long before the photographers were up. At dawn, the cats had the run of the place and it made him feel positively feral. In his early fifties, he still showed the American athleticism of his lost youth, strolling the sampietrini of Rome’s battered postwar streets with the nimbleness of a man half his age. When he saw her standing there in her white knotted men’s shirt and bright peasant skirt, pensively taking bites of a maritozzo still in its café wrapper, he wondered if now was the time to say something. In a movie it would have been the perfect moment: minute nineteen out of ninety and the third encounter between the leads. Then, as with so much in the movie industry, it was taken out of his hands. She turned back to the blue bicycle leaning against a two-thousand-year-old cracked column, finally noticed him, and walked on past. If she recognized him, she gave no sign of it. “Mi scusi—” She wheeled around at his words, wiped a bit of cream from the corner of her lips, and gave a smile that bordered on a smirk. “Don’t strain yourself. I’m a foreigner, too.” Her words, spoken with an impeccable British accent, made the back of his neck tighten. “Actually, I live here.” “So do I.” “I mean I have done, for years.” “I don’t think that’s what makes someone Italian, do you?” He saw that she was joking with him in that very contrarian, British manner that he had always found tiring, even in a woman as beautiful as her. He also saw that she was not going to make this easy for him. “I believe we were both at Peggy’s Carnival bash.” She pitched the now-empty pastry wrapper into the bicycle basket. “I don’t recall being introduced.” He extended his hand. “John. John Lassiter. Artemis Productions.” The sun was slowly rising behind him and she shaded her eyes with her right hand to peer more closely at him. “The warrior goddess,” was all she replied. “Among other things.” He quickened his pace ahead of her to reach the bicycle and turn it around in his hands, then motioned for her to proceed as he gentlemanly walked the bike. Noticing the script in the basket next to the crumpled pastry wrap, he tried again. “You’re in Teatro 5, right? Starring in…?” “Not in. On.” She looked amused by his reaction. “I’m doctoring the script for When All Else Fails.” “I hear it’s in rough shape.” “It’s as crumpled as that wrapper.” She laughed wryly. “I appreciate your directness, at least.” The words at least did not escape him. He had only a few yards left of Via Sacra to make his pitch. “Do you walk through here often?” She shook her head. “Only for inspiration—and the history, of course. Today is the Ides of March, as you know.” He did not know. For all his morning-after walks through the Forum, Lassiter was unaware that he had found her standing where Julius Caesar had been cremated following his assassination on that famous date. The producer had huge gaps in his education that he had spent a lifetime hiding through almost any means short of actually opening a book. “Exactly,” was all he said instead. They exited onto the pavement alongside the screeching, careening cars of the Via dei Fori Imperiali. She reached for the bicycle handles and he released them slowly, allowing his taut, tanned arms to brush against hers, pleased when she did not step back as quickly as she could have. “See you at the studio, Mr. Artemis.” “Lassiter,” he was pained to have to correct her. But she only smiled, and he realized she was teasing him again. “And you are?” “Lowry. Vivien.” She ascended the bicycle and sped off, but he noticed she looked back at the corner. He had paced it well enough in the end. Chapter 3, pages 25-28 Excerpt from Every Time We Say Goodbye, by Natalie Jenner © 2024, published by St. Martin’s Press Other Books by the Author (Linked to my reviews.) About the Author NATALIE JENNER is the author of the instant international bestseller The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls. A Goodreads Choice Award runner-up for historical fiction and finalist for best debut novel, The Jane Austen Society was a USA Today and #1 national bestseller and has been sold for translation in twenty countries. Born in England and raised in Canada, Natalie has been a corporate lawyer, career coach and, most recently, an independent bookstore owner in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs. Visit her website to learn more. Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram Have you read Jenner's previous books? Have you or will you read this one? Does it sound like a book you'd enjoy?

A feature of The Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner, also the author of The Jane Austen Society.

My Review Bloomsbury Girls is a historical novel set in post-war London. Bloomsbury Books is a wonderful, old fashioned bookstore that needs just a bit of change. That change may come in the form of three female employees: Vivien Lowry, an ambitious and forward thinking young woman whose fiance was killed in World War II; Grace Perkins, a young mother who is working to support her family; and Evie Stone, a bright, very young woman who didn't find her place in academia. I wanted to read this book because I love historical fiction, especially books centering on this time period. I worked in bookstores for years, sell vintage books, and found the bookstore setting immensely appealing. This is such a lovely, engrossing book! I can't believe I haven't read The Jane Austen Society, which evidently is linked to this story, but now I clearly have to. The author does a wonderful job at setting the time and place. She has three distinctly different protagonists, but they are all fully realized characters, appealing and interesting in their own way. I found Vivien's story particularly compelling and especially enjoyed her storyline - which included meeting literary figures like Daphne Du Maurier. I like the framework of the novel, with chapters that begin with a rule from the bookstore, i.e. "Rule No. 27 Fraternizing with customers outside the shop is strictly prohibited" (eBook location 1311). Of course, the following chapter relates to each rule. I have already started telling friends about Bloomsbury Girls, which I enthusiastically recommend for fans of historical fiction, especially for anyone who loves bookstores and a bookish setting. Book Synopsis Natalie Jenner, the internationally bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society, returns with a compelling and heartwarming story of post-war London, a century-old bookstore, and three women determined to find their way in a fast-changing world in Bloomsbury Girls. Bloomsbury Books is an old-fashioned new and rare book store that has persisted and resisted change for a hundred years, run by men and guided by the general manager's unbreakable fifty-one rules. But in 1950, the world is changing, especially the world of books and publishing, and at Bloomsbury Books, the girls in the shop have plans: Vivien Lowry: Single since her aristocratic fiance was killed in action during World War II, the brilliant and stylish Vivien has a long list of grievances--most of them well justified and the biggest of which is Alec McDonough, the Head of Fiction. Grace Perkins: Married with two sons, she's been working to support the family following her husband's breakdown in the aftermath of the war. Torn between duty to her family and dreams of her own. Evie Stone: In the first class of female students from Cambridge permitted to earn a degree, Evie was denied an academic position in favor of her less accomplished male rival. Now she's working at Bloomsbury Books while she plans to remake her own future. As they interact with various literary figures of the time--Daphne Du Maurier, Ellen Doubleday, Sonia Blair (widow of George Orwell), Samuel Beckett, Peggy Guggenheim, and others--these three women with their complex web of relationships, goals and dreams are all working to plot out a future that is richer and more rewarding than anything society will allow. Author Bio Natalie Jenner is the author of two books, the instant international bestseller THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY (2020) and the forthcoming BLOOMSBURY GIRLS (2022). A Goodreads Choice Award runner-up for best historical fiction and finalist for best debut novel, THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY was a USA Today and #1 national bestseller, and has been sold for translation in twenty-one countries. Born in England and raised in Canada, Natalie has been a corporate lawyer, career coach and, most recently, an independent bookstore owner in Oakville, Ontario, where she lives with her family and two rescue dogs. Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram

A feature of The Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner, also the author of The Jane Austen Society.

Title: Bloomsbury Girls (The Jane Austen Society #2) Author: Natalie Jenner Published: 17th May 2022, Allison & Busby UK Status: Read June 2022 courtesy Alison & Busby/Netgalley ++++++++…

The multi-talented actress and star of the critically acclaimed film The Whistleblower, doesn't let a high-profile Hollywood career or a high-profile relationship change her

Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner is a book about books, bookish people, women supporting women, and the writing life set in post-WW11 London.

A feature of The Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner, also the author of The Jane Austen Society.

A feature of The Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner, also the author of The Jane Austen Society.

A feature of The Bloomsbury Girls by Natalie Jenner, also the author of The Jane Austen Society.

PS makes wellness more accessible through real-life stories, first-person perspectives, and expert-backed information. Our staff of journalists and subject-matter experts research, report, and produce articles, videos, and social content that help people feel good about their well-being choices, no matter what they are. Via our core verticals — Health, Fitness, Beauty, Balance, Identity, and Shopping — we help our audience proceed with confidence.

Alan Cumming joins “Prodigal Son” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14) for a two-episode story arc and appears to have a blast doing so. He portrays the impossibly vain Interpol sleuth Simon Hoxley.

A feature of Real Bad Things by Kelly J. Ford, also the author of Cottonmouths

The years between the publication of Mary Wollstonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) and of John Stuart Mill's essay On the Subjection of Women (1869) - a crucial phase in the emancipation movement - also saw the emergence of England's greatest women writers, whose response to the flux of new ideas as revealed in many outstanding works of fiction Dr Mews here examines. The central chapters of the book take the form of a perceptive and humane analysis of the way in which the greater women novelists conceived the role of women, on the one hand as young girls, wives and mothers, on the other as individuals standing alone in spinsterhood, as teachers or artists. The writers examined in detail are Fanny Burney, Maria Edgeworth, Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters, Elizabeth Gaskell, and George Eliot. Such a comprehensive study has not been attempted before. It throws light not only on the novel and the novelist in society but also on the transmutation of deeply felt experience into creative work.

Meet Natalie Jenner the author of Bloomsbury Girls , a Loan Stars pick!