Sign me up to anything with a female journalist (it’s what I went to uni for)

And I’m glad I did as this was an intriguing mystery that hit all the right beats for me.

Things I loved:
1. I loved the Victorian era setting
2. Interesting mystery with a great payoff
3. Great fmc
4. Explores tougher topic of women’s rights or lack thereof


This book had me hooked from the first page and I loved Douglas writing! I don’t want to spoil anything but I highly recommend

Thank you Netgally and Boldwood Books for the ARC

I'm not normally a historical fiction fan but this held my interest due to the excellent writing from Louise Douglas. Her Sea House book is worth a read too.

This is the first book I have read by Louise Douglas. It was very exciting, a real page turner. Nellie Brookes had an unfortunate history in her early life and had to endure 10 years at an asylum, installed there by her parents. For them it was less humiliating than admitting the fact that Nellie had given birth to an illegitimate child at the age of 15. Nellie’s Aunt rescues her from the asylum and Nellie gets a job on the local paper to write a ladies’ column. Nellie discovers some worrying facts about a possible murder. She is desperate to put things right and the story enfolds about the threatening and frightening events that happen to her. I recommend you read this story for yourself, you won’t regret it. My thanks go to NetGalley, Louise Douglas and the publishers, Boldwood Books.

Historical novels aren’t really my thing , strange really you’d think given that genealogy is my passion, however, Louise Douglas is currently one of my favourite authors, loved the Sea House series , but I digress, I absolutely fell in love with Nelly and her determined spirit . Great cast of characters, beautifully written and with a wonderful sense of place . I’ve never been to Bristol , not in person, only in a virtual way with my genealogical research , but that mattered not as I could feel it , the Christmas Steps, the alleyways where dark shadows lingered , all fabulously described. Absolutely highly recommended to anyone who enjoys this genre….and those , like me, who normally don’t!

If you found a body of a friend, would you wonder how and why she died. This is exactly what happened to Nelly. As a journalist she knew something strange was taking place and she uses all her investigative skills to uncover the truth. A woman in what was traditionally a man’s world, and with her own secrets, Nelly follows her head and heart even though she puts herself and her family at risk. An enjoyable read from a master writer.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and Net Galley for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions are my own.
This book was so good! It grabbed my attention right from the beginning. I liked the time period (1864) and all the descriptions. This is about Nelly Brooks, who is a budding journalist. It is hard for her to report on the big stories because she is a woman. She becomes involved in two mysteries-the drowning death of a seamstress and the possible murder of a young lady and her baby. Louise Douglas is an excellent author! The story is intriguing, and the characters are very well written. Highly recommend this book if you like mysteries with a gothic feel!

Louise Douglas writes books. books of brilliance. can this author do wrong. nope. she is a stunning and most excellent writer. her books bring me in and take over my life in ways i have no regrets from. i love her books!
this was another beautiful read from start to finish. she is a masterclass in writing the genre she does. i dont know how these novels come to her. magic? must be...
there were no tick boxes could be ticked for this novel. it was just one hugggge tick.
we are in the Victorian era this time. and our mystery takes us to a reporter who needs answers. but how we come to care for her and then see her being at risk truly shows how i was absorbed into this story. Nelly is a brave heroine thats for sure. she is approached by a woman who claims the death of someone they all know of wasn't what it seemed. however after this conversation the very woman who came to her is found dead. Nelly knows she needs to dig further into this now. but as of the time there is far more standing in her way than the risk. does this get in her way. haha no it does not! and so we are taken along for the ride and all the tension that brings. because there is more at stake here than just these dead woman's stories. and this is so very close to home for our Nelly.
another stunning book from a stunning author. just wow. brilliant.

Nelly Brooks is a journalist in a time when women are limited in not just professions but life. When a local seamstress comes to Nelly to report a story about a wealthy man's wife who was murdered along with her baby. When the seamstress is found dead the next day, Nelly knows she is onto a story but will she be able to investigate it as she is relegated to reporting on women's issues only. What is the truth behind the woman's death, did she die while giving birth or is there more to the story?

This was an interesting read, I liked the plot, the mystery that was involved in both the seamstress death and the death of the wealthy man's wife was well conceived. I cannot imagine the brutality of the times especially for women. The author does a great job of portraying the times and characters.

The late 1800’s in England. A well written story, great characters about the woman in the green shawl. It’s a must read, I loved it!

"The Emerald Shawl" is essentially a "who done it" set in Bristol in 1864. It is also much more than that as it highlights the inequalities of women of the time, having to bend to the pressures of society, parents and partners. Our heroine Nelly Brooks was incarcerated in an asylum for 10 years at the command of her parents, basically to save them embarrassment. Jobs for women were mostly menial and degrading, making the life of the single girl, particularly one hiding from or disowned by her parents, generally difficult.

Louise Douglas has given us another atmospheric and interesting novel. Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

An enjoyable historical novel from Louise Douglas. One with a difference in that the main female character Nelly is a newspaper reporter. Very unusual in the mid 19th century especially as she seems unable to keep out of trouble and insists on investigating more interesting things than women's fashion and house keeping! Although the story was obviously very well researched I did find it dragged a little in the middle and I did guess the ending well before the book actually got there. On the whole the book represented conditions for women and the poor in the late 19th century very well and Nelly's position showed how hard it was for women to succeed. I did find myself cheering her on even if she was a little bit unbelievable. Definitely worth a read.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy. All opinions are my own.

Strongly researched and very cleverly depicted ..I was really and truly transported to 1864 with the smells and sights, injustices, powerful men and higher class authority. There was actually so much going on without being overwhelming or feeling like loose ends were left untied. I really loved this.

Nelly is the type of woman I absolutely love. She has a vulnerability and compassion about her that doesn't stop her strength in truth finding and moral pushing. There were some great characters throughout, I absolutely recommend this.

Quite a different book. A historial novel full of intrigue and mystery. Very different in that a female reporter was the lead character, an unusual profession for a woman of that time. The story draws you in and holds you to the end.

The Emerald Shawl paints a dark yet nonetheless truthful picture of the limited agency possessed by 19th-century women. While our heroine Nelly is to be admired for claiming a degree of independence as the Bristol Courier’s first woman reporter, everywhere she turns, she faces reminders of how tenuous a thread that independence hangs from.

Despite the constant threats to her freedom and physical safety and haunting memories of her own traumatic past, Nelly is unwilling to stay quiet when she learns of another woman who had her voice stolen from her, a woman who deserves justice. She throws herself headlong into the investigation even when it means risking all that she's fought so hard to gain.

Douglas’s handling of the desperate situation of women in the time period was spot on, and I appreciated her historical tip of the hat to some notable women who were trying to raise awareness and effect change. While the mystery was interesting, I thought that it was fairly easy to predict how it would end, and after all of that lead-up, a less rushed conclusion would have left me feeling more satisfied.

4 stars.


Thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A great read with the historical background really being part of the story! I loved it! Very well researched, the reader gets an accurate portrait of the power of men over women (asylum, marriage, motherhood..) whatever their age is... The town of Bristol is atmospherically painted in shades of grey, with many shadows lurking in its streets. Beautifully done!
I loved Nelly and her strong will to get over the unjust treatment she suffers at the newspaper office, her strong will to recover from a past that is still taunted her. With her feminist mind she throws herself into an investigation which will prove dangerous but also fulfilling somehow.... A plot that kept me on the edge of my (arm)chair, with its ever growing tension! This is the first book in the series, and I hope not to wait too long for the next one.
I received a digital copy of this novel from NetGalley and I have voluntarily written an honest review.

Thanks to Louise and NetGalley for allowing me to read The Emerald Shawl before the publication date.

The setting for this book is Bristol in 1864, with bustling docks , dirty cobbles, dark narrow alleys and families crowded into insanitary accommodation. Money talks and corruption is rife.

It explores the culture of the era, particularly women’s rights, or rather the lack thereof.

The characters are many and varied, some with colourful backstories, others with very sad lives.

The central character is Nelly Brooks, the first woman reporter at the Courier, albeit that her role is to write articles which will appeal to the women readers (heaven forbid that she should even consider writing about something serious or might upset the sensibilities of the women readers, although I doubt that anyone actually asked the readers for their opinion).
Nelly has a disturbing history before arriving at the Courier and that will impact on her decisions. Her saving grace is her aunt Angela, aka Angel, who, with her wisdom and kind heart, will always be there for Nelly.

Louise has introduced a tiny bit of humour in what is a very sad story by using names for a couple of the characters which reflect their responsibilities ( i.e. Mr Snitch, the timekeeper and Mr Cuddy, the coachman).

I hope that this might be the start of a series.

I really enjoyed this! I love Louise Douglas' books anyway but this is one of her best. The story itself is enthralling and becomes increasingly gripping. The cast of characters - from the office staff to the homeowners Nelly lodges with, to the people in the pubs she meets along the way - are all really well drawn and interesting. I loved the little will-they-won't-they romance too. But it's the setting and the description of the time period that really makes this book. It's atmospheric, so real that the reader can almost smell and taste it, feel the fog and mist. A wonderful read.

The Emerald Shawl is a novel set in Victorian England. Nelly, an aspiring journalist, acquires the shawl, when its owner leaves it behind, after telling Nelly that she has heard that a high ranking gentleman had murdered his wife and new born baby. The very next day Nelly witnesses the woman's lifeless body being pulled out of the docks. Nelly is determined to investigate, despite the consequences being potentially devastating for Nelly herself as she has been rescued by her aunt from an asylum, after her parents at fifteen for giving brith to an illegitimate child. The child is in potential peril also, as her parents have sent her to a reform school, which by coincidence, is in the same town where Nelly is working.

I enjoyed this novel. I am not a great fan of historical novels, but this piqued my interest. The way in which women were at the mercy of their parents and their husbands in times gone past is eye opening and disturbing, with the options open to them being narrow and challenging, and then only if they went against societal norms. However, the mystery at the heart of this novel is well written too and drew me in. I was sorry about some aspects of the endings, but my preferred ending is probably too saccharine and sentimental and not true to the period! Definitely recommended.

This was a descriptive and suspenseful mystery that drew me in from the first pages. I love a strong female heroine and Nelly Brooks did not disappoint. There were certain plot twists that took me completely by surprise, and others I suspected were coming, but not in a way that diminished my enjoyment of the story. Although not everything was resolved at the end, I didn't feel that the story lacked closure. I came away satisfied that all would be well for Nelly in the future. The emerald shawl didn't play as much of a part as I thought it would, given it's the title of the book, but that was really my only disappointment.

4.5 stars!

This story ticked all the boxes for me; 1860s England, a mystery with great characters, easy to follow, and a great wrap-up. Not only was this an enjoyable read, it explored the hardships for women during their childbearing years and how women were at the mercy of the men around them. I highly recommend it!

Thank you, Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this ARC.