‘Something’s not right here.’
I was aware of Mr Booth’s eyes on me, and he seemed to hold his breath. ‘What do you mean?’
‘In the house. With the family.’

West Yorkshire, 1904. When newly graduated nurse Ruby May takes a position looking after the children of Charles and Lilian England, a wealthy couple from a powerful dynasty of mill owners, she hopes it will be the fresh start she needs. But as she adapts to life at the isolated Hardcastle House, it becomes clear there’s something not quite right about the beautiful, mysterious Mrs England.

Distant and withdrawn, Lilian shows little interest in her children or charming husband, and is far from the ‘angel of the house’ Ruby was expecting. As the warm, vivacious Charles welcomes Ruby into the family, a series of strange events forces her to question everything she thought she knew. Ostracised by the servants and feeling increasingly uneasy, Ruby must face her demons in order to prevent history from repeating itself. After all, there’s no such thing as the perfect family – and she should know.

My Thoughts:

This is a little different to my usual reads but for some reason I wanted to read it and it sounded good. After reading it I will be looking out for more of Stacey’s books in the future. I loved the writing in this, it is set in 1904 and is all about a nurse that looks after children. To read about what a nurse (though these days we call them a nanny or child minder) use to have to do and how different it was back then to what it is like today was very interesting. Ruby May is the new nanny to the four children of Mr and Mrs England. It is hard at first but once Ruby starts getting involved she can’t think of being anywhere else. Though she starts to wonder why Mrs England doesn’t show much interest in her children or her husband for that matter, but when she finds out why both her and the reader will be in shock. It is not easy being a nurse looking after four children and other struggles but Ruby is tough and can face whatever life throws at her, she is a very determined girl and I liked her for that. I just loved how the story flowed through out, it was a gentle and eye opening story.

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