Absolutely loved this glorious read. Felt immersed into this world straight away and I felt that I was walking those streets with Endurance. The Foundling hospital storyline was delicately done and so thought provoking.

This is a really unusual storyline, and Dorie stands out as a real heroine of her time. Its hard to say too much without spoilers but I was enthralled by the way she handled the constant put downs of her work.

Sweet, endearing Endurance, riveting.

Before reading this book I had very little awareness of the existence of bonesetters or what they did. I now know it involved a combination of the skill of an orthopaedic surgeon in setting fractures and that of an osteopath in treating painful joints. I certainly had no idea there were women who performed such a role. But, in her Author’s note, Frances reveals the inspiration for Endurance was a real person – Sally Mapp – a bonesetter who found fame in eighteenth century England. Other elements of Sally’s life are to be found in the story of her fictional alter ego, Endurance ‘Durie’ Proudfoot.

Durie’s story is a familiar one, that of a woman thwarted in achieving her ambition by discrimination and the social conventions of the day. Although her Aunt Ellen’s belief is that ‘if there’s work a woman’s got a talent for, she ought to do it’, it’s not as easy as that. Firstly, Durie faces opposition from her father who, whilst acknowledging she has skill, holds firmly to the belief that bonesetting is a man’s work. An unexpected, and initially unwanted, move to London for reasons related to Durie’s sister, Lucinda – plus a helping of good fortune – finally seems to provide the opportunity for Durie to perform the work she believes she was born to do. Her aunt’s commercial acumen initially brings Durie success but proves disastrous in other respects. Soon Durie is facing some pretty underhand tactics from those who cannot tolerate the idea of a woman bonesetter or, perhaps, feel threatened by her success. Unfortunately Durie’s plainspeaking and inability to ‘flannel’ only inflames the situation.

The three main female characters, Durie, Lucinda and Aunt Ellen, have things in common – determination, resilience and a desire for independence – but exhibit them in entirely different ways. Lucinda, despite coming across as shallow, hard-hearted and even duplicitous at times, nevertheless knows what it will take to succeed and nothing and no-one is going to stop her. Aunt Ellen, whom Durie concedes ‘was a lot more interesting than she’d seemed’ has built a successful business, eschewing marriage because it will mean her husband has control over everything she owns. Durie has an unflinching belief that she has the ‘knack’ of bonesetting and can help people who have been let down by conventional medicine.

There’s a feminist element running through the story. When a rift occurs between Lucinda and Durie, Aunt Ellen counsels them that they are stronger together. ‘All women are. You’ve both seen enough of men to know you can’t count on them. So make sure you can count on each other.’ As it turns out, there is one man that can be counted on.

One of the fantastic elements of the book is the way it immerses you in the life of Georgian London. There are lively scenes at the theatre as the audience’s appetite for sentimental storylines and outrageous adventures is quenched. We visit the coffee houses where patrons peruse the news sheets for details about the latest antics of members of the aristocracy – who they’ve been seen with, what they’re wearing, the establishments they patronise. The Georgian equivalent of today’s social media influencers, if you like. Not forgetting the residents of the Tower of London menagerie who play such an important (matchmaking) part in the story.

There are several heartbreaking aspects to the book: Durie’s erroneous belief that she is responsible for a tragic event; the unworldiness that means she is vulnerable to manipulation and betrayal; and an intervention made with the best of intentions but that is utterly wrong. In contrast, a particularly heartwarming storyline is neatly brought to a conclusion by means of a touching postscript.

In the Acknowledgments section the author talks about the experience of writing a second novel, including the nagging question: was the first one (The Smallest Man) a ‘fluke’? On the evidence of That Bonesetter Woman I can definitely say it wasn’t a fluke.

you had to invite one of the greatest storytellers round for dinner, who would it be, and I agree it would be Frances Quinn.

I absolutely adored her debut novel The Smallest Man and was beyond overjoyed to receive a copy of this new one. I am in awe at her ability to write about historical times - fictional or based on truth - and make them fun and modern and approachable, especially younger readers who many find anything set in the 1700s a bit dull. In the right hands, it is anything but dull, and Frances definitely has the right hands.

I’m so jealous of how talented she is at writing and storytelling. What I’d give to sit and have a cuppa with her to pick her brain. Just two novels in, she’s definitely up there with my favourite authors. The kind of author that means I buy everything I ever write and try to thrust the books under people’s noses.

I really loved the character of Durie. She is the heroine of our story so it’s not surprising we all want to root for her. I think she could be a new heroine for today’s readers. Okay so she may not do anything earth shattering, but in the 1700s, she stands up to her family, she enters a male profession, she does what can do to live the life she wants, not backing down from what she wants, and I think that’s important to see in fiction. It’s not feminism to shove down peoples throats or to tick boxes. It’s feminism that is needed to survive.

I didn’t like Lucinda from the off. She was entitled and spoiled and far too self-cantered for me. Even when she tries to turn herself around, I still wasn’t a fan of her. The same for their Aunt. She blew hot and cold for me. I enjoyed her characterisation immensely, but every now and then she’d do something or say something that irked me. There were a few other characters I have choice opinions on but to voice them would be to spoil the plot so I shall hold back on them.

The chapters are relatively short which is always a bonus in my book. The book, at 448 pages is longer than ones I normally enjoy, but the short chapters help it seem fast and snappy, and it never drags on. The thing about short chapters that I like so much, is that you can read a couple in the evening and then put it down, revisiting it in the morning for a couple more chapters. But I should have known with Frances’ writing, it’s not easy to put it down. Which is why I managed to get through it in a day, as it was so tantalising and thrilling, I just had to know what happened to our cast.

Before this, I had no knowledge of bonesetters at all, so this has given me a new interest, especially in female bonesetters, and female physicians, and generally, in females who stood up to the norm. This is what she did with her first book. It’s based on truth, a truth that has gone unheard, and so you feel like you’re being entertained and educated at the same time, and that’s a fine balance to find. Much like her first book, I think this would make a stupendous movie or television series. It’s so visual, it’s all there, down to the touch of the clothes on the characters’ backs, the smell of the streets, the insults in the coffee shop and the power of our protagonist.

I will certainly be recommending this to all my family and friends as one of THE books of 2022.

I fell in love with the cover, fell in love with the story, and fell in love with Durie (even if Perdurance Proudfoot would have been a perfect hobbit name).
This is a fictional story but there's a well researched and realistic historical background and a strong MC. I rooted for Durie even if things weren't always easy.
It's an excellent, compelling, and riveting historical fiction I loved.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Endurance Proudfoot never felt like she fit in. Her big hands make embroidery and other ladylike pursuits difficult and her knack for honesty often lands her into trouble. When she goes out with her father while he works as a bonesetter, suddenly she finds a calling. This is what she’s meant to do. Unfortunately, she’s a woman and bonesetting is a man’s job. Or so they say.

After her sister Lucy gets into trouble, they are both packed off to London to live with their Aunt. There Durie becomes determined to follow her dream, no matter what it takes.

Drurie is one of those characters that will stay with you for a long time. Her resolve, strength and sheer stubbornness to overcome any adversity thrown at her made her such a fantastic heroine. The issues she faced in Georgian London still have parallels today; the male doctors diminishing and insulting her at every opportunity simply because they felt threatened.

Frances Quinn creates a world where against all odds this clumsy, plain, big woman achieves the impossible but it’s not without heartache and loss. We follow Drurie through all of the ups and downs and you cannot help but cheer for her. Quite simply - I loved her and I loved this book.

This is one of the most captivating books I’ve read in 2022. Meet your new literary heroine, Endurance ‘Durie’ Proudfoot. It is 1757 and she is the bonesetter’s daughter. Not dainty or refined, or traditionally good looking, Durie doesn’t want to adhere to her gender norms. She wants to become the next generation of bonesetter like her father and grandfather. Though a physically demanding job, she’s well able, dare we say, much more equipped than her brother. But it is the 18th century and very much no job for a woman, so she and her sister are sent to London to work in their aunt’s tea shop. As Durie’s sister takes to the stage, no one could predict that Durie herself will become more famous than anyone anticipated. But that fame comes at a price and not everyone has the best of intentions as regards her new notoriety. Will her status be her undoing?

Thanks for the opportunity to read and review.

I loved The Smallest Man and I enjoyed this book too. Great characters (including some not very nice people), fascinating stories and a reminder that very few women had rights in this era.

I enjoyed The Smallest Man, Frances Quinn’s debut novel. and was keen to see what the author did next. I wasn’t disappointed. Set in Georgian London via Lewes, this is Endurance’s (Durie’s) story. Very different to her pretty and dainty actress sister, Durie knows she has a gift for bone setting - her father’s occupation. She has the physical strength for the job and a talent for the role, but societal norms at the time didn’t encourage women in the job. The book rebels against that and has a cast of strong women, which I really liked.
Durie is the star of the show and you will be rooting for her and hoping she succeeds (and plays the game enough to make this possible.)
I really enjoyed this book and recommended it to those who like a historical novel based on a true scenario with a strong relatable female lead.
Thank you to the author, her publishers and #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an early copy of the book.

In Frances Quinn's 'That Bonesetter Woman' Durie Proudfoot is determined to follow in her father's footsteps and become a bonesetter. She feels clumsy and unskilled doing anything else but manipulating joints and backs. However, bonesetting is only ever passed from father to son, and Durie has a half brother Richie. Despite her evident skill, when her sister Lucina becomes pregnant after falling for the promises of her employers son, she is sent to London with her to work in her Aunt's confectionary shop. There she has to wait for the baby to be born away from village gossip, and away from her father and his trade.

Whilst the story in this novel follows a fairly simple arc, there are lots of issues tackled. These include how a child can erroneously take responsibility for their mother's death in childbirth, societies focus on appearance, attachment theory and foundling hospitals, societies expectations of what women are capable of and how they should act, and the positives and negatives of marriage for a woman. Quinn tackles all of these lightly and with humour so the reader does not feel beaten over the head, but characters within the novel are able to explore the issues and come to their own conclusions. Durie Proudfoot is also an excellent heroine and someone the reader is rooting for throughout. I would recommend this story to others.

Durie is a wonderful main character, as readers follow her throughout her life and as she becomes comfortable with who she is and the job she knows she is meant to be doing. She may not fit into typical Georgian society but she is strong and intelligent, and decides to stand out, rather than fit in. I really felt myself rooting for her, particularly as you can see her thoughts and vulnerabilities, but also how stubborn she is to create the life that she wants

The book is very easy to get into and immerses readers in 18th Century London. It moves around the coffee shops, Foundling Hospital, theatres and the menagerie at the Tower of London. There’s also a mix of interesting characters, with particular favourites being Durie’s Aunt Ellen and friend George, who support her in different ways, but see her potential and support her choices

Like with Nat in The Smallest Man, the author’s debut novel, Durie is based on a real person, Sally Mapp a Bonesetter in Georgian England, and aspects of this story follow Sally’s, including some of her relationships and the conflicts she found with doctors of the time, which I found really interesting and which made for a really great booki

After reading this one, and loving The Smallest Man, Frances Quinn is definitely an auto-buy for me. She creates interesting and charming characters and stories which are easy to read and thoroughly enjoyable. I can’t wait for book number 3!

Thank you NetGalley, Simon and Schuster and Frances Quinn for this eARC

I absolutely adored this book and Endurance Proudfoot is my new favourite character. I'd love a sequel to this, to know what's next in her life! The way Fran Quinn puts her (and us) through the wringer emotionally, I was rooting for Durie the whole way through, when she gets knocked back time and again, then gets up again. You just have to read this book, it's phenomenal and inspirational.

Endurance Proudfoot is a heroine from 1700's but could easily have been from today. Strong, stubborn and wilfull, this is a superb, historical fiction story and most enjoyable

An enjoyable, easy-to-read historical novel that I finished over the course of a weekend. I was surprised at how little time it took me to read it but this absolutely doesn’t mean the quality of the story is compromised. I found myself engrossed in the story of Endurance ‘Durie’ Proudfoot and her sister Lucinda from beginning to end and shared in Durie’s emotions as her circumstances fluctuate.

The novel is set in the mid-1750s and, after seeing her father at work as a bonesetter in a rural part of Sussex, seventeen-year-old Durie desperately wants to follow in his footsteps. Despite clearly having the right skills for the job, her father is reluctant to agree, since it’s not a job for a woman and he has his son also eager to join the family trade. Durie feels she almost has her father convinced when her sister finds herself expecting the child of a local bachelor. To avoid scandal, the two sisters are sent to London to live with their aunt and Durie suspects her hopes are dashed. However, Aunt Ellen is a shrewd businesswoman and spies an opportunity for Durie to do what she loves... but will the gentry of London accept a female bonesetter?

This book really gives your emotions a work out! One minute you’re furious at the treatment Durie receives because of her appearance, the next you’re cheering her on for sticking to her beliefs, before starting to worry about her future both professionally and personally. As well as Durie and Lucinda, there are some great characters – goodies who you will be pleased are in their lives as well as baddies you will be silently ‘boo-ing’ as you read all the nasty things they get up to. I also enjoyed spending time in Georgian London – the author does a great job of describing places like the Tower of London and the theatres, so you get a real feel for the atmosphere of these public attractions at this time.

I found the author’s note about the real people behind Durie and Lucinda really interesting. I love books that are based on fascinating people from the past that we ought to know more about. What I also found interesting, and quite sad, is that people today are still heckled in the street and considered easy targets due to differences in appearance. A shame that we’ve not really moved on from the 1700s in that regard, but Durie is a great inspiration and reminder to keep focused on achieving your own goals.

Many thanks to the publishers, Simon and Schuster, and to NetGalley for the advance copy of ‘That Bonesetter Woman’ on which this review is based.

This book is an utter triumph. I raced through it and didn’t want to put it down. Taking her inspiration from Sally Mapp , a bone setter who worked in Epsom in the 1700’s, Frances Quinn paints a picture of a strong woman determined to use her gift against all the odds. The character of Durie was so engaging- not blessed by looks and regarded as large ,clumsy and often the butt of jokes she is determined to succeed in a world full of men and yet despite her strength of character she is so naive when dealing with that world. I loved the images the author created of London- the frozen Thames, the menagerie at The Tower of London and not forgetting the wonderful pastries of her aunts shop. The characters are well formed and you can’t help but love or hate them. So relatable to the present day when Durie’s character and profession is smeared by those who are jealous of her talent by a campaign in the papers…and we thought that that was a new phenomenon with the advent of the smartphone and the internet! I can’t recommend this book highly enough. A real winner and I can’t wait for the next.
A huge thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read the ARC of this book in return for an honest review. It was a pleasure.

After really enjoying Frances Quinn’s debut novel The Smallest Man I was delighted to be given an advance digital copy of That Bonesetter Woman.

This is the story of Durie who leaves her home town to support her sister and tries against adversity to make her way as a bonesetter in London. She is a dogged and determined woman trying to earn a living in a completely male environment, facing much cruelty and misogyny along the way.

I was rooting for Durie throughout; cheering her successes and shedding a few tears when times were tough.

Once again the author has taken inspiration from real life figures in history and turned them into a wonderful story. I loved this book, I read the digital version and I NEED a paper copy now to keep on my bookshelf!

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the chance to read an early copy.

I absolutely loved “The Smallest Man”, so I was incredibly excited to read this. If anything, I love this book more!

Frances has a way of writing that just grabs you from the very start, I wasn’t particularly in the mood for this book when I picked it up but within 5 minutes I wasn’t regretting it at all and I easily finished it in just over a day.

The sisters are hilarious, and absolutely unashamed- behaving exactly as they want, with that amazing Aunt having to put up with them. My heart stopped a couple of times….

Another triumph for Frances! Strongly recommend.

My thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster UK. for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review

I absolutely loved this book. It was an unusual historical novel. The job of a women Bonesetter was new to me and I was impressed that it was based on an actual person working in London in the 1700s: her name was Sally Mapp and her story has provided Frances Quinn with the inspiration for her latest novel.

Endurance Proudfoot – known as Durie arrives in London in 1757 with her sister, Lucinda. The unmarried Lucinda has found herself pregnant and, with Durie accompanying her, has been hastily packed off to stay with an aunt so that she can give birth away from prying eyes at home. Durie is not at all happy to be sent away; she had been on the verge of persuading her father, a bonesetter, to allow her to work with him as his assistant. Durie has large hands and feet, social awkwardness and tendency to always say and do the wrong thing but bonesetting is the one thing she’s discovered she’s good at.
Unlucky in love and many twists and turns that kept me engrossed from beginning to end. Definately not a traditional love story.

Thanks to Netgallery.co.uk for my free copy of this book for my unbiased personal review.

That Bonesetter Woman by Frances Quinn
I chose a peculiar time to read this novel. I am currently recuperating from a dislocated ankle and have broken two bones in my ankle and my shin bone. So to read a book about a woman who puts people’s bones back into place was a strange choice but one I am so glad I made.
The story is set in the 1750’s and focuses on Durie who sees herself as a big clumsy woman but who then finds that her strength could be put to good use helping those who have broken or dislocated bones. Her father is a bonesetter is she is in awe when she sees him put back in a man’s dislocated shoulder and ease his terrible pain almost instantaneously. I love the scene where she hides in a cupboard in her father’s practice room and is so horrified when the reverend lowers his undergarments and reveals what is underneath that her hiding place is revealed.
She is determined to persuade her father that she can work with him despite being a woman but she has a younger brother who should, because he is male, work with his father. Then events occur which thwart her plans to prove herself to her father. Her sister, who is charming, graceful and eye-catching, becomes pregnant and has to be sent to live with an aunt in London until her indiscretion can be resolved.
In London her story develops in a fascinating manner and the minor characters we meet are well drawn. The life of a woman in London is not easy and the obstacles which Durie has to overcome are numerous. The author creates a vivid picture of London in the 1750’s with its cake shops, theatres and coffee houses. The menagerie in the Tower of London and the Foundling Museum and the way it conducted its business are also well imagined. I found Durie a believable and empathetic character and will be wholeheartedly recommending this novel to members of my various book groups. Also, if you have not also read it, I would recommend Frances Quinn’s previous novel The Smallest Man.
Many thanks to Frances Quinn, Simon and Schuster and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this novel in return for an honest review.

Ahhh this is such a fabulous book! Our main character, Durie, is a headstrong, independent and ambitious woman in a time period dominated by men, stereotypes and prejudice. Her aunt is fierce, her sister - bloody annoying ! But thats families for you.

I found this to be a book full of heart, incredibly emotive - I cried several times - and would recommend to anyone who likes female driven historical fiction.

I enjoyed this book so much!

I thought durie was fantastic, paving her way in a world set against women succeeding.

I really enjoyed the dynamic between the sisters and aunt, I just wish we had gotten to know more of aunt Ellen’s story!