Cover Image: The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front

The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front

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I have been buying these books for my mam when they are released and she loves them as they bring back memories for her as she worked there as a young woman she says she can picture most of the yard and says it’s wonderful how well described it is but she is also very invested in the characters

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Another great book in this series, it does help if you have read the previous books but if not it will take a few pages to get into this one but it is well worth the effort if that is the case. The characters and locations are well written and entertaining. 5 stars.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for this ARC

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Book 10 of the series is another strongly written book.The author captures the time-period and local area greatly. I love the slang it in book it makes me laugh been been from the area I can image myself in these places. Gloria oh she's such a doll. Pearl make me laugh so hard she such a feisty character. Lucille, what a cutie pie. These books are great, they put a right smile on my face and I felt really connected to the characters.

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I enjoyed reading this book but because l haven't read all the books in this series lit took me a long time to discover who is who.in the book. I enjoyed finding out about the shipyards in Sunderland and the work the women did on the ships.

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Oh my, I have never delayed the ending of a book so much. I was reading on the train and thought I can’t finish this here as I was gripped by it. I had to do this in a nice peaceful place. Now that I have done I can safely tell you it was well worth the wait. My heart bled for Helen.
I so look forward to the next one.

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Having read all in the series you still can't get enough of Rosie and the gang, fab characters and of course being from Sunderland it's nice to recognise places from the book that you know,absolutely love these books and can never put the books down because they are so addictive

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The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front by Nancy Revell is the 10th novel in The Shipyard Girls Series. This tale picks up where A Christmas Wish for the Shipyard Girls ends. This is a series that is best read in order (so you can understand the characters and what they have been through). I thought The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front was well-written. The author captures the time-period and locale. I can tell Nancy Revell did her research for this series and especially this book. I like how current events were included. This series has delightful characters (Rosie, Martha, Dorothy, Gloria, Angie, Hannah, and Helen). I look forward to each book in this series so I can find out what is happening next with this group of ladies. This group has dealt with many challenges since the outbreak of war. My attention was caught from the very first page and it was held throughout the book. I enjoy reading about the ladies’ latest experiences. The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front is an emotional novel. When one of the ladies receives devastating news, you need to have a tissue handy. The characters have gone through so much over the course of the series and the war is not over yet. I like how these women have formed a family. They care for each other and look after each other. It is wonderful to read about such a caring group of people. Each book in this series is better than the last. I am eager to read Shipyard Girls Under the Mistletoe. The Shipyard Girls Series would make a great PBS program. The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front is a charming book that has joy, love, grief, loss, humor, drama, and heartache.

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The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front by Nancy Revell is an excellent WWII era historical fiction novel that is the tenth installment in the amazing Shipyard Girls series.

If you have not read any of the books in this best-selling series, you are really missing out. While this book can easily be a stand alone (the author does a great job at giving summaries and quick backstories concerning the characters when appropriate), the book is really treasured as part of the series as a whole.

This series follows a group of women tied together by the unique and difficult times of WWII while working in the shipyards in Sunderland, trying to do their part for the war effort, and keep their fellow friends and family afloat.

What a wonderful cast of characters. I have really enjoyed the growth, changes, and storyline developments with the women welders: Gloria, Rosie, Dorothy, Helen, amongst others. There are always ups and downs, changes, and questions involving each story and it really adds to the complexity and interest to each book. It always leaves me wondering what will happen next in the next installment. I always cannot wait to get my hands on the newest book.

While each woman is different in their life circumstances, family situations, and the way they handle obstacles and adversity, they all are similar as well. All want love, acceptance, peace, a place/purpose/home, and all are sacrificing some part of themselves for others and for their country. It makes all these women more real, more honest, more raw. I think that is what draws me back time and time again.

Excellent book as always!

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Arrow/Random House UK for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR, Bookbub, Instagram, Amazon, and B&N accounts immediately.

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‘The Shipyard Girls On The Home Front’ is the tenth book in the bestselling series written by Nancy Revell. I have literally loved this series from the start. As soon as I finish reading the latest book in ‘The Shipyard Girls’ series, I then immediately look forward to the next book. I read the synopsis for ‘The Shipyard Girls On The Home Front’ and it certainly sounded like I was in for a treat. So without further ado, I grabbed a cup of tea, grabbed my copy of the book and I settled down for what I hoped would be a fantastic read. I thoroughly enjoyed every single second of ‘The Shipyard Girls On The Home Front’ but more about that in a bit.
I absolutely love all of the Shipyard Girls- even Helen and that’s saying something after the way she behaves in the earlier books. It seems unfair to pick a favourite. However if you were to ask me about the characters I dislike then that’s a different story. There are three characters in this series that I particularly dislike and I wish all three would take a very long walk off Roker Pier. I don’t really want to go too far into the ins and outs of why I dislike them as I would hate to give too much information away. The three characters in question are Charles Havelock, Miriam Crawford and Dr Claire Eris. Charles just makes my skin crawl for reasons which will become apparent as you read the book. Miriam just thinks of Miriam and woe betide anybody who gets in her way. Dr. Claire Eris- well what can I say there. She is devious, manipulative and extremely rude. She has something on the grandmother of one of the characters and she uses that to devastating effect. I just wish I could have jumped into the pages of the book to give Dr. Eris a darn good slap with a wet flip flop.
I was drawn into this book from the very moment I clapped eyes on the cover. I knew then that the book was imminent and that I just had to read it as soon as I could. As soon as I started to read ‘The Shipyard Girls On The Home Front’ that was it- I just knew that I wouldn’t be able to put the book down at all. The book wasn’t exactly glued to my hands but it might as well have been because it travelled everywhere with me. I couldn’t bear to miss a single second of the story. I became so wrapped up in the story that I lost all track of time and I blocked out the world around me. For me, ‘The Shipyard Girls On The Home Front’ was one of those books that I wanted to finish because I needed to know how the latest episode of the series ended but I was enjoying the characters, the storylines and the author’s writing style so much that I just wanted it to continue. I found this book to be a gripping read, which held my attention throughout and had me on the edge of my seat.
‘The Shipyard Girls On The Homefront’ is absolutely brilliantly written. The author certainly knows how to grab your attention and draw you into the story. She makes the city of Sunderland, which will always be part of County Durham in my eyes, come alive. I have relatives who lived in Sunderland around the time that Nancy’s books are set and reading this series makes me feel closer to them and gives me a greater appreciation of the conditions that they had to live under. This book has a bit of everything- there’s drama, love, loss, fun, humour and heartache. I really did feel as though I was part of the story myself and that’s thanks to Nancy’s very vivid and realistic storytelling. I know that this is a work of fiction but I find that if I enjoy a book to the extent that I enjoyed this one, then I tend to ‘live’ the story as if it were real. It’s just my opinion but I think that ‘The Shipyard Girl’ series would be ideal for adaptation into a television series. Nancy’s books are being compared to those of Catherine Cookson but I think that she is better than Cookson.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed every single word of ‘The Shipyard Girls On The Home Front’ and I wholeheartedly recommend this book, this series and this author to other readers. I will definitely be reading more of Nancy’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

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It’s hard to believe this is the tenth in the Shipyard Girls series as it seems like only yesterday we were first introduced to the remarkable crew of women that work in the shipyards in Sunderland. So much has happened since the beginning of the war but I wouldn’t worry if you are new to the series as Nancy Revell provides plenty of background information to all the main characters and the various plots that they are part of. Shipyard Girls on the Home Front was another great read. I love how the author just picks directly up where the last book ended and there is no fast forwarding of time instead those cliff-hangers that each book are always left on, well we get the answers to some of these but for other major storylines they continue on throughout the books. I feel we won’t get the answers to a lot of things until we reach the very end. Which I hope won’t be happening too soon as I really do love this series as I have become deeply invested in all the characters and the ups and downs of their lives during the war.

The war may be raging on but there is still an awful lot going on the women’s lives on the home front. Gloria, the matriarch of the group of women welder’s, has had a storyline running for the majority of the books and now at last what readers have wanted for her ever since devious Miriam had her way has finally come true. Her beloved Jack, father to her young daughter Hope, has at last been allowed to return home to Sunderland. His enforced abandonment of his new family was not of his own making and he abided by the rules but thanks to Pearl and Bel, Jack has returned home. You would think things would be all rosy for Gloria and Jack now that he is back where he belongs but there are still plenty of things sent in their direction that will test their love and commitment to each other. Nancy Revell certainly keeps her characters on their toes, once one obstacle is overcome than something else is placed in their path in order to throw their happiness off kilter. With the arrival home of Bobby, Gloria’s older son, having been injured in the navy, the secrets that Gloria has kept to herself have come to the fore and truly Bobby is not one bit happy.

I really couldn’t blame Bobby for feeling the way he did. He thought his life at home had remained the same whilst he was away and he comes back and finds his family unit has changed in so many ways. He must have been both angry and disappointed with Gloria that she had put off telling him the truth and how was he to cope with seeing Jack as the new man in her life? I could understand why Gloria felt the need to keep things secret but the minute Bobby arrived at her door she should have been honest. As always the girls come together as one unit and do their best to make Bobby see sense. Dorothy in particular takes on this role and I can see where this new storyline is going and it will be interesting to see how it plays out in the next book. The more I read the more I wished Bobby just got over things and was nicer to Gloria and accepted the new situation but maybe that’s because I am so familiar with everything and have a deep compassion and understanding of Gloria that I didn’t fully appreciate Bobby’s viewpoints.

For me the two strongest storylines in this book that have been developing over the course of the last several books was that of Helen and Dr. John Parker and Helen’s new discovery regarding her grandmother. Helen for me is the one character who has done a complete 360 since the first book. I disliked her immensely and so did all of the women but she is a reformed person and in a way she seems to be on the girls side especially when it comes to the dealings of her grandfather Charles Havelock. He really is a bane in everyone’s lives for as long as he lives. His storyline adds so much mystery, secrecy and the struggle for power over everyone and the way things are at the moment I can’t see this aspect resolving itself all that easily. Just one wrong slip and the axe could fall for so many as each women harbours a secret that they do not want the wider world to know. Of course the girls share their troubles and secrets with each other and have become like a sisterhood through doing so and that’s what makes this series so special. That through the good times and bad, the ups and downs really they can always turn to each other.

As for Helen she has certainly been through the ringer and the reader can see happiness is just within her grasp. She has proved her worth and been forgiven for her past misdemeanours of which there were many. But really my heart breaks for her, she is desperately in love with Dr. Parker but his co worker who works as a psychologist, Claire, well she has gotten her claws into him and she is not letting go in a hurry. Claire is now the character I detest, there is not one good thing to be said about her. I can’t quite fathom how a woman can be so cruel to a fellow woman and get such satisfaction from it? The threat she is dangling in front of Helen to stop her admitting to John how she feels. You’d think Helen would say sure I don’t care, do what you will, I want to express how I feel. The old Helen would have done that in a heartbeat but it just goes to show how much she has changed and how she now has more empathy and understanding that actions have consequences. She may not be as firmly planted in the women ship welders group but still they are her friends and the leverage that Claire holds over her is just too explosive if revealed.

I admired Helen in that she had realised that her own happiness should come first and she should resurrect a love that she had entombed for so long. But then just when she had plucked up the courage to do this, bitter and twisted Claire steps in. My admiration grew when Helen thought about things and she knew to pursue anything with John would just lead to heartbreak for so many others. This shows how much she has grown since we were first introduced to her character. I feel there is a lot more in store for Helen and that there will be many testing times coming her way. I am completely riveted by her storyline as it connects to so many others in the books. Nancy Revell has done a brilliant job of interweaving everything. There are so many balls up in the air that all it will take is for one to drop and so many earth shattering things will come to the fore.

I got the feeling that for the majority of this book was like a waiting game. The characters were holding their breaths in more ways than one. Waiting for the planned invasion of France to occur, waiting on news of the Allies making advancements around the world and waiting for someone to let slip something that would upset the apple cart altogether. For head welder Rosie, she has been in limbo ever since her new husband Peter left for France. He is deep in enemy territory carrying out work that Rosie can only guess at. This aspect of the overall storyline was tension filled and packed full of emotion. So raw, heart-breaking and visceral as you read and experience a tumultuous set of emotions. Rosie and in fact all of the women that feature deserve happiness as they make so many sacrifices at a time when the world needs all the help it can get. But what price may they have to pay?

I loved The Shipyard Girls on the Home Front from start to finish. There are so many brilliant themes being explored against the backdrop of war and the more the series progresses the more I think it would make a brilliant tv drama. Perfect to curl up and watch on a Sunday night. The only complaint I have is that I couldn’t start a new book as soon as I finished reading this one as I am beyond eager to see what direction things may go in next. I’ve a bit of a wait ahead as the next instalment Shipyard Girls Under the Mistletoe is not published until the end of September.

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This is book #10 in the Shipyard Girls series. Whilst I have read most of the series, I missed the last book, but you are easily able to pick up any of the books and read them as a standalone story. This latest book in the series takes us to the beginning of 1944. The war is still on, but it’s beginning to look like things are changing, both for the country and for the women welders that this series is about. After reading so many of the books, you feel like you know all of the characters personally and starting a new book in the series makes it feel like you being welcomed back into one big family. The women are still struggling through the ravages of what the war has brought, and many of them are still waiting for news of their loved ones. Of course, good news and bad news filters down to the women throughout the story, and we share the emotions that the Shipyard Girls go through.

I loved the location of these books, and whilst I’ve never been to the North-East of the country, I could just picture the area as I read along seeing what it must have been like throughout the war with all the shipyards where the women worked. The camaraderie of the women in this book was wonderful and heart-warming, showing how everyone was supporting and being there for each other. The era is well researched and gives you a glimpse of how difficult it must have been for the women left behind. This book definitely takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions, bringing you to tears of sadness and happiness equally. I have heard that this series may be coming to an end soon, which will be such a shame as it’s one that I have really enjoyed. I would definitely recommend this book, and the series!

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Wow I don't want this series to end. Now finished I feel like I am one of the girls lived through their highs and lows x Roll on the next one

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What more can there be to write about a book and a series when I have been with it from the beginning - apart from the obvious: you need to read it and start from the beginning because you will now have ten glorious books to catch up on. 

It is 1944 and the year you could stay that the tide turned for the Second World War, but it is also the year that tide turns for many of our Shipyard Girls as well. All those we have grown to know and love are featured, of course as you would expect some more predominantly than others. 

Gloria has had some of her dreams come true, when the man she loves returns. Her only wish now is for her to see her sons, both in the Navy and serving the country. The only trouble is whilst, Gloria might have told them about her change of address and work in the local shipyard, she might have forgotten to mention their baby sister, Hope and her father Jack. 

Dorothy seems to be smitten with her love Toby, but when a new face arrives in Sunderland, Dorothy's emotions are all of a flutter and she really doesn't know what to do anymore. As we see this new relationship develop we can see what is most obvious, but for Dorothy it takes a bit more time. 

Rosie is still living on the snippets of information she gets about her husband, Peter. With the demand for the landing craft for the proposed push in the summer to open up another front and move the war to a conclusion, Rosie thinks the quicker they build these vessels the quicker her husband can come home. 

But war has a funny way of playing out and when bad news comes for one of the women, it seems that the best they can do is pull together and support each other. You need copious tissues at this point, it was so well written and because I have been invested in this series from the outset I felt I was unable to give comfort to a friend, my heart almost broke with the sadness of it all. 

In an ongoing series there are highs and lows and that is certainly the case in this book, luckily the highs are just important as the lows and we get to celebrate marriages and declarations of love. Of course not everything is as it seems, there are still some secrets which are being kept and there are still some who are seeking revenge. 

All of that though will need to wait for book eleven.

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I absolutely love this series of books and was horrified to read somewhere that this was the last in the series. I therefore rationed myself to just a few chapters a night to prolong the enjoyment. With just a few chapters to go the author then reported this was not the last book so I sat down and finished it there are then! The characters feel so familiar now and all I think the reader wants is happiness for them all. Once again the series brought laughs, happiness, tears and frustrations and readers will not be disappointed. I cannot wait for an end to the Covid situation to be able to visit Sunderland, which is not far from me, to walk in the girls footsteps.

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A heartwarming but also heartbreaking story of a group of women who worked in the shipyards of Northern England in the second World War. The women from different backgrounds and social class all pulled together as one as they did jobs that the boys and men had once done. I enjoyed the book, it was well written historical fiction and I can highly recommend it.

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Well what a multitude of emotions reading this book gave me ,i have followed the shipyard girls from the begining and with each book they have become friends. Gloria still can't get over the shock of finding Jack on her doorstep and to find out that he is back for good ,little Hope squeals with delight and Jack holds them both saying he will never leave them again .Dorothy Angie Martha Rosie Polly and Hannah along with Helen are all happy for gloria after she has suffered a hard couple years with jack stuck in scotland.Life and work has been hard for the girls building and repairing ships to see them off to war then they are given new orders and with these Polly returns to work knowing Artie will be well looked after. I have to say that this book has given me so many emotions and enjoyment that i made it last as an avid fan of Nancy Revell and a lover of this series i know the end is near and i have my tissues ready. If i could i would give more stars but it has to be 5* I can highly recommend this series you will not be disappointed.

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Book Ten, and another fabulous read from Nancy, one of my favourite author's as we begin at the end of 1943 in Sunderland County Durham. All the girl's all keep their spirits up and a smile on their faces working at J.L. Thompsons and sons shipyards in North Sands. 1944 hopefully will begin with health wealth and happiness, for all the women welders during wartime, a lot has changed and a lot has happened but that just makes the bond stronger between them, especially for Gloria as we welcome back two old characters into the book that is a big surprise for her. Kept busy at the ministry of war want the Empire Pitt down as fast as possible, the cargo has a way to go before she is ready for launch. 1944 also see the arrival of the young Americans, oversexed, overpaid and definitely over here. How wonderful to be now reading book ten of the shipyards girls that have became family, every one has giving all readers so much pleasure, the girls are all heroin's in their own lives in work and play, it leaves you content reading breath taking details of the war on the home front. J.L. Thompsons and sons Sunderland has lived on through this author, giving so much pleasure and you will shed a few tears reading to a touching ending so prepare yourself. Outstanding once again.

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