I just love this genre and it makes a change from my usual psychological thrillers. I absolutely loved this book and didn’t want it to end.

Great storyline with good strong characters. Very well written. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. Not really sure what to say about this book, I read it and did not like it or dislike it left me not thinking anything at all.

Emotional, compelling and dramatic, The Empire Girls is a wonderful 1950s Essex set saga readers are simply going to lap up! A fantastic read from a terrific new writer in the field, this gritty, engrossing and captivating tale continues to affirm Sue Wilsher’s standing as a rising star in the world of sagas.

Life is nothing exactly a bed of roses for the inhabitants of Tilbury. Money is tight, jobs are scarce and poverty an ever present and persistent fear. Attitudes are rigid, opinions freely given and conventions strictly adhered to. Unmarried mothers are treated with scorn and disdain and are seen as shameful and embarrassing by their families. When Doris, whose mother Vi owns The Empire Pub, falls pregnant out of wedlock, she is not given the reassurance and care which she is desperate for, but she is kicked out of her house and left to fend for herself. With a daughter to look after, no money and no prospects, Doris must make a new life for herself in Southend, where she hopes for a better future for herself and her child. Sadly, luck is clearly not on her side…

Doris had taken a job at a factory and had hoped that Southend would be her chance at starting afresh. But all her hopes to build a new life for herself were smashed to smithereens and she finds herself cast out, rejected and vulnerable once again. Unwanted, petrified of what the future might hold and desperate for a place she can call home, a dejected Doris finds herself having to reluctantly go back home. However, Vi does not welcome her daughter with open arms and slams the door in her face, leaving Doris cast out in the cold facing an uncertain future with no money and no hope of securing a decent job once more.

Homeless and with an illegitimate baby to look after, the future looks bleak for Doris and things look set to get even harder for her when she helps one of her neighbours, Claude to find a new life in Britain. This decision will have repercussions on Doris and her child; repercussions that will force her to decide where her heart lies and that might finally provide her with the happiness which she has been searching for for so long – but only if she has the courage and the fortitude to fight for the future she wants for herself and her child…

Fans of Call the Midwife, Donna Douglas and Mary Wood are going to love The Empire Girls! A poignant, heart-wrenching, evocative and involving 1950s saga, The Empire Girls vividly illustrates the hardships, cruelties and anguish that were endured in the middle of the 20th century and the unforgiving and unflinching prejudices of an often hypocritical and merciless society.

Sue Wilsher tackles illegitimacy, racism, injustice and enmity in The Empire Girls, but this is not a gloomy or depressing book, but a gripping page-turner about resilience, hope and the triumph of the human spirit readers will not be able to put down.

An outstanding read I wholeheartedly recommend, The Empire Girls is a fantastic read by a writer saga fans would do well to remember: Sue Wilsher!

Wow what a read and it tugs at your heartstrings. It’s a really insightful book into the way people were treated back in the 1950’s. An innocent young girl has a baby through no fault of her own and is disowned by her family in her hour of need. Frightened and unsure of what is happening to her poor Doris starts off on a journey of discovery with her young crippled baby. A fantastic read I highly recommend this book.

I found this a very traumatic story a real heart shaker,after giving birth on the floor in her bedroom Doris is sent away by her mother who is in shock and terrified the neighbours will find out.Doris gave birth to a little girl born with a club foot and sadly is not suitable for adoption so doris is told she has to take her daughter and leave.She goes to a home in southend but she yearns for her own mother and home so she runs back to tilbury.5*

This is the first book I've read by author Sue Wilsher and having enjoyed this book I intend to read more written by this author. A young naive girl named Doris becomes an unmarried mother and faces the harsh realities of raising a child on her own in an unforgiving 1950s prejudiced society. The story highlights a time in history when morals where held in high regard and intolerance and judgement were acceptable, a very different society in which we live today. The theme of Intolerance of race, gender, disability and social status ran throughout this book making it a gritty and sometimes shocking read. The story also explored the complexity of mother and daughter relationships which was emotional, often sad and hard to read at times. The characters were believable and had me feeling a range of emotions towards them along with championing poor Doris throughout. Overall I really enjoyed delving back in time and reading The Empire Girls and would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.