[LISTENED TO: January 2024] No. 23 Burlington Square
I’m not sure why I listened to this book. There was a recommendation that if I liked a certain author I would like this. But I can’t find that recommendation now and can’t for the life of me think of what I like that this would have been compared to.
I thought it was a mystery novel but it isn’t (well, there’s a mystery in it, but it’s not a mystery novel). I also thought that maybe it was the audio book reader, Lucy Scott. But I hadn’t listened to her before either.
But the reasons for reading it are irrelevant. And I’m really glad I took a chance on it.
The book starts off with us meeting a young widow, Mercy. It in 1927 and she is interviewing for a room at No. 23 Burlington Square. The landlady is Agnes Humphries, a woman who says what is on her mind, but is never mean, just truthful.
Mercy seems like a great candidate and Agnes’ cat likes her. But instead, she decides to give the room to her niece Clara. It’s quite a surprise that we barely see Mercy again–only when Clara runs into her later.
Clara is a wild woman, going out to parties after 10PM, which is when Agnes wants everyone in bed. She is wealthy and beautiful and borderline insufferable.
Until she meets the downstairs neighbor Jemima Smith. She is a young wife with three children and a fourth on the way. Jemima’s husband is an ass. He makes the money but he spends it on drink and other nonsense. And he’s mad at Jemima that she can’t give him a boy.
Jemima is a stern feminist–prickly with the rich and foolish Clara until she realizes that Clara is actually making a change for the better. (more…)
I Just Read About That... 