I'm not familiar with how business works in England, so I found this one fascinating. Family owned business saga. I am sure a similar story could be told about U.S. companies that are family owned! Good story.

A very interesting book, loved and really enjoyed the reading. Strongly recommend the book if you are into page turning books.

This book gives a wonderful insight into the social, technological and political changes from 1916 through the eyes of the Murgatroyd family and their employees at the pen factory. Bill Murgatroyd is already dead and right at the beginning Jean Murgatroyd dies in a Nursing Home. The family business is then placed in the hands of Brenda who has contributed considerably to the business and encouraged entrepreneurs. Most impressive is how Jean & Brenda had wiped out the stench of capitalism and broken down the social barriers between "them and us." James, the headstrong, ambitious son puts power & revenge before family loyalties and wants to make the company multi-national. Brenda is eager to keep the community together. I was staggered to learn that 10 million days were lost in strikes in 1977 when the Trade Unions were killing the manufacturing base and then Thatcher came along, hated the power of the unions and now there's no industry left in the north. The characters were fleshed out well although I thought there would have been a good story in the Bill-Jean-Brenda era instead of skimming over it with narrative and retrospective anecdotes. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers.

I really enjoyed this story with its main setting in the strike ridden 1970s. Like the author that was the decade in which I started work. The story is strong and the characters well drawn. It's a four star read. But I dropped a star because of many irritating proof reading and editing errors. In one case Murgatroyd was spelled incorrectly and in another its' was used. That's not English. Several more places where commas or conjunctions are missing.

Weaving a family saga, spinning a history of the advent of personal pens, and capturing the spirit of two women driven to success by sheer determination, Martin Gore gives us "Pen Pals." Beginning with Jean Murgatroyd's obvious last moments, the reader is taken back to the first plans of design of the pen for personal use, and on through the company's development. While Jean supports her husband's growing legacy, she learns his most trusted employee is also his lover. But when Bill passes unexpectedly, Jean surprises everyone, including herself- by appointing his mistress as one of the businesses most important Union leaders. A beautiful story of two women who learn to put their personal differences aside and allow a friendship of sorts to blossom while planting the seeds to grow a company that the whole town relies upon and admires. "Pen Pals" draws you in and keeps the one engrossed up until it's final chapter , invested in the business as much as the town and the families it brings together.

I got my serving of an epic family saga by reading this book. I loved the pace and if there is one thing that I believe the author succeeds in with this one, is that he does not spill the beans or reveal the mystery behind what unfolds in the book. He leaves all this to the reader and it is a great feeling to be immersed in a story.
I got this off NetGalley and I am grateful to them, Troubador Publishing Limited and especially Martin Gore because I am looking forward to reading more of his books.

A lovely family saga of a family whose lives are written in the success of a pen factory. Will unions, an illicit affair, lack of modernization or time be the last stroke for this factory and this family or will both survive time and trauma?

I am really glad that I have found and read this book. It is one of my favourite genres: family saga spanning several decades. To begin with I was a little surprised that the author prefers telling the story instead of showing, but I soon realised that it was a captivating story with very loveable characters and really interesting plot twists. So it was a really satisfying experience after all.

First off, I must say that I really did love the story that the author told in this book. Unfortunately, the way it was written was extremely confusing for me which is why I can't give this book more than 3 stars. There are so many characters in this story and it switches back and forth between view points so I kept having to go back and re-read parts over and over to understand who's who and how they're related to the story. I think if the author provided a Murgatroyd family tree in the beginning of the book it would have been very helpful. Also, while I did enjoy reading about the history of Murgatroyd's and the characters' backstories, it would have made it less confusing if the author hadn't switched back and forth between the past and present so much because it made it hard to keep track of everything going on. Lastly, the title of the book, Pen Pals, does not fit the story at all in my opinion. Yes, Murgatroyd's is a pen company, but when you think of pen pals, you think of people writing back and forth to each other, not about the history of a pen company.

This is a wonderful read, a saga set in a northern town with a mill at the heart of it, set in the 20th century and a worthy read.

The cast of characters include both management, staff and their extended families. A really good book to get your teeth into and as satisfying a read as anything by Catherine Cookson or Jeffrey Archer. I am astounded this is Martin Gore's debut novel and shall certainly be looking out for more from him.

If you enjoy a good British saga you won't go wrong with this one. A full five stars - easily!

I received an arc via Net Galley in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

4 and ½ Stars

This is a wonderful book and very well written. It is the saga of the Murgatroyd family with all its warts.

In the early 20th Century, two friends started a pen company; an unlikely setting which in this case works very well for the story. As the years pass, the personalities of the Murgatroyd family and its cohorts make up much of the story. They were an interesting lot and for many years things went smoothly. The business expanded and grew and was successful.

Then the sixties and seventies came and Murgatroyd’s was in trouble. I won’t spell out the details here – you’ll have to read the story for yourself.

In the year 2000 Jean Murgatroyd, the matriarch of the family passed away. Left behind her was dissension and pain.

At first I didn’t know what to make of the book. I had to think about it for a bit before I could write my review. I knew I liked it – a lot – but something was holding me back on giving it my full support. I guess I just had a hard time classifying it. Everything in my life seems to have to fit into a category. How frustrating that can be! I decided to just love the book for what it is and let the rest go.

As the old saying states, “What goes around, comes around.”

I very much look forward to reading more of Martin Gore’s novels and I do so hope he continues to write.

Thank you to Netgalley and Troubador Publishing Limited/Matador and Martin S. Gore for forwarding to me a copy of this most wonderful book to read.

Pen Pals: Two Pens. Jean Murgatroyd leaves hers to Brenda's daughter. The other is in the hands of someone who holds the key to the future of Murgatroyd Pens.
Price: $5.79

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!, January 18, 2017

This review is from: Pen Pals: Two Pens. Jean Murgatroyd leaves hers to Brenda's daughter. The other is in the hands of someone who holds the key to the future of Murgatroyd Pens. (Kindle Edition)

What a find! Pen Pals is at once a complex story of relationships within a family, a recounting of the up and down history of their business, and a study of the issues of manufacturing in England. The last is obviously something of interest and expertise for the author. As a first novel, I was very impressed with the author's writing style and technique. I hope to see much more from Martin S Gore.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the time-limited ecopy of this book.