. Thank you so much to @NetGalley, Picador and the author AJ Pearce for the copy of this!

Just like with Dear Mrs Bird, the research into the era is amazing and you really feel like you’re transported into wartime Britain. This is an author who does their homework and it definitely shows!

I was in a bit of a reading slump when I read this and it was slow to get into because of this so I’m giving 4 stars!

I would like to thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. Having read Dear Mrs Bird by this author I was really looking forward to this book and I wasn't disappointed, it was a great story with great characters.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for sending me a copy of the book in exchange for a review.

I loved Dear Mrs Bird; a quiet and impactful little book that has stayed with me every day since I first read it. So, to have access to the next book (which I had no clue was going to be released) was amazing.
It was so good to head back into the historical setting, with Emmy and her hard working self trying to get through a traumatic period in time which I’m sure we can all relate to right now.
Highly recommend.

This was a good follow up from the first book. I did find that it wasn't quite as good as the first one, but it still had the great characters and some wonderful humour.

I'd wanted to get into Dear Mrs Bird but found the tone too twee for me, but I really liked the central idea so I gave this a go, but, sadly, it's just not for me; no reflection on the quality of the writing. Totally get why others love it.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for review.

Set in England, Yours Cheerfully begins in June of 1941, with Emmeline (Emmy) Lake, in the office of Woman’s Friend magazine as an editorial meeting is about to get underway. Emmy is to be Mrs Henrietta Bird’s replacement as the columnist for ‘Yours Cheerfully’ a women's advice column/ problem page, working alongside Mrs Mahoney. Emmy has started the column when the Ministry of Information requests a meeting with many of the women newspaper editors including those of the Woman's Friend. There is a shortage of workers in factories that supply munitions and other items to the front lines and editors are asked for ideas so more women workers can be recruited. Emmy puts forward an idea to interview new female workers and she and her friend, Bunty meet Mrs Anne Oliver who gives them the lowdown on the harsh realities of war work.

AJ Pearce's characterisation is very strong and adored the majority of the cast, especially Emmy herself, and Bunty. The author has a refreshing style that lifts the reader through some wearying sections. A moving and amusing novel with a great ending and a must for lovers of light historical fiction.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Pan Macmillan/ Picador via NetGalley, and this review is my own unbiased opinion.

I loved Dear Mrs Bird so I was delighted to discover a follow up book about Emmy. Our heroine is plucky and gets into many scrapes but seems to come out of each one smelling of roses. Surrounded by adoring friends, the ever-present Bunty, her boss and her boyfriend, Emmy goes from strength to strength in this book.

An easy read that draws you in and makes you want everything to go right - but also exposes some of the difficulties that people experienced in WWII.

A thoroughly enjoyable read - would be a great TV series or film!!

Yours Cheerfully is the second book featuring Emmy Lake, the wannabe ‘lady war correspondent’ who we first met in Dear Mrs Bird. All of the gang are back, not least Bunty, Charles and the staff of Women’s Friend.

As the war continues to dominate the lives of all, the Ministry ask women’s publications to promote the need for women to join the war effort by taking up work in heavy industry. Emmy is up for the challenge, not least because she has made acquaintance with Anne, who is shortly to start work in a munitions factory. As Emmy’s articles make an impact they veer from the true difficulties that working mothers with small children (and husbands at war) inevitably face.

Despite being set during WWII, Yours Cheerfully is a delight. Less of a page turner than Dear Mrs Bird but no less charming. Flushing out societal issues that remain prevalent, while continuing to pootle along with a bounty of great characters.

Thanks to Harper Collins and Netgalley for the ARC.

I was delighted to have the opportunity to read this earlier, having so enjoyed Dear Mrs Bird in 2018.

Yours Cheerfully picks up Emmy Lake’s storyline as her romance with Captain Mayhew blossoms and she prepares to take big steps in her career to support the government’s recruitment of women war workers. Fans of Dear Mrs Bird will not be surprised to learn that her big heart soon finds her right in the middle of a problem, trying to help.

Easy prose and very affable characters. Cheery nostalgia to lose yourself in.

Yours Cheerfully is the incredible sequel to Dear Mrs Bird in which AJ Pearce brings to light perhaps lesser-known narratives of the women left at home during WW2 but which are no less important than those fighting on the front line. We return to Emmy and Bunty only a few months down the line from where we left them, here Emmy navigates her way through her first journalistic assignments under the direction of the new editor, Mr Collins. Woman’s Friend has been commissioned by the government to help recruit women to the war effort, and as part of this, Emmy discovers that this is far more complex than simply getting women to sign up. Emmy is determined to help these women and this story shows what can be achieved when women stick up for each other.

Yours Cheerfully brings to life the voices of these young women who are determined to Do Their Bit to help win the war and as in the first book, it is an endearing and witty but emotional read, I laughed out loud in parts and had tears in my eyes in others. I loved Dear Mrs Bird, but I think Yours Cheerfully was even better, I adored this book, it is so incredibly well written and researched, humorous but with a seriousness to the message it communicates. I can’t recommend this series enough; I would love to read what happens next in Emmy’s life at Woman’s Friend. Thanks to NetGalley and Picador for a digital copy for review.

Yours Cheerfully is the second instalment in the life of Emmeline (Emmy) Lake and the Woman's Friend Magazine during WWII. This time Emmy is settled in her job at the magazine but is not about to settle for any easy life. Whilst happy in love and looking to the future with Charles and all that entails, a chance encounter with a mother of 2 that does factory work for the war effort and a Ministry of Information's request to the magazine for help, see's Emmy and her friends take on a new quest to help the woman helping the war effort.
Although this is a follow up to Mrs Bird, which introduced us to the characters, it can still be read as a stand alone.
A thoroughly good uplifting read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for a free copy in return for a honest review

I absolutely loved “Dear Mrs Bird” when I read it so was delighted to see there was a recently published sequel. I really enjoyed catching up with all the characters, particularly Emmy who narrates the story, Bunty her best friend, Guy, her boss and Charles, her boyfriend who is in the army.
Emmy works for Woman’s Friend magazine in London and when the government encourages the press to try and attract women to vital war work, Emmy and her coworkers get on board. Guy Collins is now the editor and he is very keen to give Emmy more responsibilities as he can see her potential as a journalist.
Somewhat fortuitously Emmy has met Anne and her two young children on a train journey and become friendly with them. Anne is just starting work in a munitions factory and Emmy decides to do a magazine feature about her life as a war worker in order to encourage other women to consider it.
However there are a number of difficulties for female workers at this time which Anne and her fellow factory workers certainly hi light. This piece of social history was well researched and very interesting as I did not know much about the lives of women on the home front during World War 2..
I found this novel particularly charming maybe because I just adored the characters so much. They were so well portrayed- their cheerfulness in the face of such wartime hardships was inspirational.
I just hope that there will be another book so I can find out what happens to Emmy and all her wonderful friends.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my arc in exchange for an honest review.
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This is the follows up to Dear Mrs Bird and I thought it was just as good. Set in 1941, it continues in the same style and with the same lovely characters, as well as some lovely ones. It's a gentle, sweet and heartwarming story, and is beautifully written.
With grateful thanks to Netgalley, Pan Macmillan and Picador.

“I always think that keeping your chin up isn’t that hard. You just need to lift your face. It’s your heart that takes the effort. When it falls over it can be so stubborn about getting back up.”

London, Nov. 1941. Following the departure of Henrietta Bird from Woman’s Friend magazine, things are looking up for Emmy Lake.

When the Ministry of Information calls on Britain’s women’s magazines to help recruit female workers to the war effort, Emmy meets a young woman who shows them the very real challenges they face. Now, Emmy must tackle a life-changing dilemma between doing her duty and standing by her friends.

Dear Mrs. Bird is one of my favourite books set during WWII and I am thrilled the author wrote this sequel which revisits the much-loved characters.

Yours Cheerfully recognises the efforts of women which are critical to any economy. It addresses the real world problems women face and Pearce does a brilliant job of focusing on them with taut wisdom and a calm, gentle sense of humour.

Emmy’s grit makes her a spirited character, one you easily come to adore. Her mistakes are human and her determination inspiring, making her the perfect protagonist for this series.

I must mention, Guy Collins, the sharp, witty and often mysterious magazine editor, was one of my favourite characters and to have him return in the sequel is simply delightful.

A poignant and endearing story of women supporting women amidst the hardships of war, this celebrates female friendships and their power to bring change. If you’ve read Dear Mrs. Bird, you know you’ll love this.

This ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Pan Macmillan.

Following on from the wonderful Dear Mrs Bird, we are back with Emmeline Lake as she tries to break into some more serious journalism from her role on the women’s magazine – Women’s Friend.

Taking a more front line role in responding to the letters to the readers and inspired by the Ministry of Information’s call to get more women to take on men’s work, Emmy finds herself drawn to the Munitions’ factories.

With her close friend and housemate, Bunty they both meet a young woman, balancing life as a war widow, two young children and doing her built not just for King and country but simply for her own families survival.

Emmy finds herself drawn into these factory workers lives and the fact that they are juggling so much, she sees what these women really have to face and suddenly finds herself fighting their corner.

Alongside Emmy’s crusade for these women, helped by her friend, she is thrilled to be seeing more of her beau Charles and when an opportunity for him to more than do his bit, it seems their romance is about to speed up down the aisle.

We are yet again drawn into Emmy’s world and life on the home front during the second world war, as romances blossom and beaus are mourned. As women survive however they can without sacrificing everything they believe in, Emmy has to decide what is most important and a critical point in her life.

Although this book is set very much in the past, it resonated with me and there was something of the present battles that women are still facing to this very day. A book full of strength of female bonds, friendship and a common goal that drives them all.

I hope we get to go back between the pages of Women’s Friend as there is much more that Emmy can report on.

What a wonderful book. It was so good to be back in Emmys world.
I love the writing style, it’s like getting a great big hug.
Looking forward to reading more by A J Pearce.

I read the first one and loved it, was looking forward to this follow on. Good read but didn’t give me to wow factor. Felt like it was missing something however I did finish but wanted more. Thankyou for my ARC.

The story follows Emmy Lake, working at a women's magazine and her responsibilities include answering the advice letters in the Yours, Cheerfully column and writing articles about women working in factories to help with the war efforts. When some of her new friends, widowed mothers with young children come into trouble for bringing their kids to work, Emmy rallies her friends, colleagues and editors at the paper to try and improve their situation. All the while, trying to plan her wedding before her soon-to-be husband has to be sent off to the front. Will she manage it all, and keep her own job?

I went in absolutely unaware, thought it was a standalone book, but turns out that it's a sequel! I loved the diverse cast of characters, the dialogue was dynamic, vintage and had a cheeky bite to it. The situation Emmy found herself in was really interesting and you could tell the stakes were pretty serious for her, her friends and other women across the country, helping with the war effort. I love learning more about people's daily lives during the war so this was a fantastic book for me. I'll definitely be picking up Dear Mrs Bird as soon as humanly possible and I'll be seeking out more books by AJ Pearce, or reading upon on more authors with a similar writing style and genre!

An absolutely enjoyable read from start to finish that I just couldn't put down! I loved it so much, I even preordered the Waterstones special, signed edition!

Thanks to Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for a review.

I absolutely loved Dear Mrs Bird so was delighted to receive a copy of Yours Cheerfully. Although we follow the same characters in this book, it could be read as a standalone book. We meet Emmy Lake again and follow her work at Women's Friend magazine.

This book did not disappoint and I loved it as much as Dear Mrs Bird.

This is the most wonderful book, and a sequel to the very wonderful 'Dear Mrs Bird', but can easily be read as a stand alone book. It is set during World War II, and Emmaline Lake is assisting with the letters page in the Woman's Friend magazine, as Mrs Bird has left the paper. When Emmy and her friend Bunty meet Anne on a train, struggling with war work in a munitions Factory and 2 children, Emmy decides to take up the cause of ensuring the female factory workers have access to a Government Nursery for their children. Emmy has several meetings at the Factory, which don't exactly go to plan, so she decides to approach the problem from a different angle. However, Emmy being Emmy, things get a whole lot more complicated before they get better.

This is a wonderful 'feel good' story, which will make you smile. It has likeable and believable characters, and is sympathetically written to evoke a really strong feeling of the war years. I really hope there is a third book so I can find out what happens to Emmy next.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4069564822