What a sad event to open with and then a dilemma for Mary. I really enjoyed her story and the characters she met/lived with along her journey. Living in Northern Ireland I can understand her struggle with the weather hampering many enjoyable routines like walks and social events etc but, thankfully, the days of female and religious oppression are generally the exception. I love how Ruth saw how she could make a difference to Mary’s future and gave her the basic tools to make that happen. The ethical themes of the book in helping others and having personal integrity permeate but it also tackles the nastier side of humanity with abuse and coercion. This was a great holiday read for me and gave me my two favourite ingredients in spades
1. Character development and perspective
2. Insight into the times for women and for war impact
A sound four star read

What would you do when mistaken for someone else? Would you run with the lie and live that person's life? It's a hard one to think about but war makes people disappear and sometimes reappear as other people. The book follows the life of Mary as she becomes Elizabeth and she tries to make the best life she can and help others too with her good fortune.

A lovely story.

The girl with the suitcase
Housemaid Mary meets Elizabeth in a cafe on the eve of Elizabeth’s new life - claiming her inheritance, a cottage in Ireland left to her by her godmother. Mary and Elizabeth hit it off and Elizabeth soon invites Mary to leave her life as a maid behind and come to Ireland with her.

When the sirens sound for an air raid, Mary and Elizabeth head down into the tube station together. When a bomb hits Mary and Elizabeth are buried in the rubble.

When Mary comes round in hospital, the nurses have mistakenly identified her as Elizabeth, and tell her that her friend Mary, was killed.

Mary decides to play along, after all, her new friend had wanted her to go and start her new adventure with her.

After some soul-searching, Mary, now Beth, decides to go to Ireland and claim Elizabeth’s cottage for herself.

What follows is the story of Beth’s new life and loves, interspersed with excerpts from her old life as Mary. We grow to understand the decisions she made and why and we follow her as she finds herself in Beth.

This is a thoroughly enjoyable story, although Mary has been through some horrifically traumatic events in her life, her kindness and hope shines through.

Definitely one for a rainy afternoon with a cup of tea. Get lost in Beth’s new life.

This is another fantastic book by Lesley Pearse, set in World War 2 in London. It has the usual drama and difficult themes, but it's not as gritty as her earlier books were. It's still an excellent read, with well defined characters. I enjoyed reading it.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my arc.

Every so often I feel like I need a nice comforting easy read, and that’s what I got with this book. Set during World War II, initially in London in 1941, moving to Dunmore East, Ireland and then back to Clifton, Bristol as the war is coming to an end, this is Mary Price’s story and it’s a bit of a rags to riches tale. I’m a Bristol girl so loved all the historical local settings and detail and have also visited Dunmore East so could envisage that too.

Briefly, Mary was brought up in the East End of London. After her father died, her mother took up with a man who forced her into prostitution and beat both Mary and her mother, forcing himself upon Mary when she was just 10 years of age. As soon as Mary was old enough, she ran away and got a job working for a family in London. The work was hard and she was very badly paid so she decided to find a new job. Then she meets Elizabeth Manning in a Lyon’s Corner café never guessing that this would change her life forever, and her name to Beth!

There are a lot of strong women in this story, not just Mary and Elizabeth, but two caring B&B landlady’s, Kathleen her housekeeper in Ireland and the most wonderful of them all lovely Rose in Bristol. I did think maybe Mary/Beth was a bit flighty, and a lot of good luck came her way, but I overlooked that and just went with the flow. A lovely gentle, enjoyable read. 3.5⭐️

I love Lesley’s books and have all of them in my collection, this one will be added too.
I have to admit that although I did enjoy it I didn’t have the usual unable to put it down until I had finished it feeling. There was nothing wrong with the story, maybe it s just me having a reading slump ? So apologies for the 4 stars instead of 5

Wartime London and bombing raids are common at any time day or night. Elizabeth is having tea in a Lyons Corner House when Mary comes in and Elizabeth offers to share her table. Mary has been job hunting to escape the drudgery of her 'in service' life. Elizabeth is about to go to Ireland, having been left a cottage by her godmother. When the air raid siren goes off they set off to shelter in the Undgerground. However, it is not all that safe and Mary wakes up in hospital. Everyone is calling her Elizabeth and she is told her friend is dead. As everyone seems to think she is Elizabeth, should she go along with that?

Although this wasn't the most demanding of reads, it was a relaxing one. It's fiction, so leave behind logic and enjoy the ride. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book

London 1941 WW2 and we follow the story of Beth as she navigates the challenges of her past and present.

An easy read with a host of likeable characters, the plot was repetitive and slightly disjointed in parts and it just lacked drama it just fell short of the early books that I have enjoyed by this author.

Lesley Pearse never fails to please. I have read all of her books and have enjoyed every one of them. I found the story so engaging, it was so easy to read over a couple of nights. Love the way the characters and plot are all woven together. Well done again Lesley.

The Girl with a Suitcase is the 32nd novel from prolific writer Lesley Pearse.

Set in wartime London, Ireland and Bristol it is the story of Mary, who having survived a bombing takes on a new identity after being mistaken for someone else.

Having read and enjoyed many many books by this author I was really looking forward to another brilliant read, but I was disappointed to find that it didn't have the same intensity that I enjoyed with her earlier work. Certain events were repeated too many times and there were too many coincidences that ruined the believability factor. Having said that though, it was an easy read with an interesting story and I am sure it will appeal to a lot of readers.

3 stars***

I do love a good Lesley Pearse novel, and this one didn't disappoint. Set in the 2nd world war, it kept me captivated - and a good little twist right at the beginning that I didn't see coming.

Always a good story by Lesley Pearse. The Girl with the Suitcase begins one night in 1940 when Elizabeth Manning and Mary Price meet in Lyons Corner House in London. Similar ages, they hit it off and Elizabeth invites Mary to Ireland where she has just inherited a house. Following a night in an underground station sheltering from a Blitz attack, Mary agrees. But tragedy strikes and only one makes it out of the station. The book is the story of the inheritance and what Beth does next. A hard time during the war in England. Love and a good heart win out. #netgalley #thegirlwiththesuitcase

I've read everything that this Author has written, I'm a big fan. This was another amazing book. Fantastic storyline, a real tale of friendship and hardship, you'll need tissues. Beautifully written with characters you can't help but love.

A chance meeting with a total stranger alters the course of Mary’s life forever and with the unexpected chance of a completely fresh start, Mary grabs the opportunity to move away from her life of drudgery and hardship. Set against the backdrop of WW2 we travel between war torn London, rural Ireland and affluent Bristol in a story which tugs away at the heartstrings with a remarkable young woman who takes whatever life throws at her and does so with that innate steadfastness of all those who’s survived wartime.

Beautifully written as only this author can, it is very easy to be drawn into the world which she recreates so sensitively. I loved Mary’s character, she’s such a strong person and yet it’s also the other characters who bring the story to life, especially Kathleen in Ireland and Rose in Bristol. A story of strong women who support Mary in everything she does. At its heart are a couple of empathic love interests, good and kind men who take away Mary’s doubts about the shadows of her past with an indifferent mother and an abusive stepfather.

The Girl with the Suitcase is the author’s 33rd novel and is another lovely story from this sensitive and considerate writer.

I can never wait to get my hands on any new Lesley Pearse book and as always this one certainly didn't disappoint. Great storyline and characters while always a suspense as to whether Mary is going to get caught out and exposed. Definitely one that I will keep to read again at a later date

What a lovely book this was to read. A great storyline and characters you so got into and enjoyed following to see what happened next to them. Definitely a book to highly recommend people read.

I loved and read all of Lesley Pearce’s novels in my late teens/early twenties and I quickly fell back into her easy/comfortable style. The girl with the suitcase completely draws you in from the beginning.

The novel was immaculately spaced out and perfectly timed.

Mary and Elizabeth meet in London, 1941 right before an air raid finds them in an underground shelter.

Elizabeth is independent and brave- about to embark on a new life in Ireland where she has inherited the house she is moving into.

Mary couldn’t be further from this, downtrodden. And plagued by hardship.

Their chance meeting and the sequence of events that follow give Mary the chance to be more Elizabeth!! Will she take the opportunity for a new life? Really loved this heart warming, novel.

I really enjoyed The Girl with the Suitcase, although I must confess to being a Lesley Pearse fan.
This new novel did not disappoint, as soon as I started reading I was in.
It was set during World War 2. The characters were all very believable and was an enjoyable read.

I would like to thank Michael Joseph, Random House and NetGalley for the ARC for which I have given my unbiased review.

Mary Price is looking for an escape from her hard work in service when by chance she meets Elizabeth Manning in a Lyons Corner Café.

The two become fast friends, although their worlds are completely different, but Elizabeth sees something of herself in Mary and offers her the opportunity of a lifetime, to come on an adventure with her to Ireland and a cottage that she has inherited from a distant relative.

She is leaving the very next day, but it is an offer Mary can't refuse, although she is uncertain at first. It would be such a change from her difficult life to date.

Mary is still considering her new friends offer when the air raid siren sounds and both women are forced into an underground shelter. This is where tragedy strikes. Elizabeth is killed and Mary wakes up in a hospital bed being identified as her new friend.

She makes a split decision there and then to take on Elizabeth's identify, to make a better life for herself, as is sure that Elizabeth would have wanted her to. And she won't be the only person during a War that is using false papers...

From here on in, her life should be easier, Elizabeth has been more fortunate than Mary that much is clear.

But in wartime nothing is straightforward and Mary's real hard work is only just about to begin...

This is a wonderfully written novel and I look forward to reading more from this author. I particularly liked some of the locations used. Although I am based in South Wales, I am very close to Bristol and was familiar with some of the spots mentioned, and it was interesting to think of how they might have been in WW2.

The Girl with the Suitcase is a gripping and emotional tale that explores the complexities of Family ,secrets and survival .Set during ww2 in London ,Bristol and Ireland the story follows the journey of a young girl all alone in the world who is suddenly given the chance to be someone else .I loved Beth and Rose great characters ,I enjoyed this book very much .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC