Family Affairs at the Orchard Cottage Hospital

Orchard Cottage Hospital #2

by Lizzie Lane

Times are changing as secrets unfold…

Somerset, 1931
Doctor Frances Brakespeare continues to settle into her new life in rural Somerset at Orchard Cottage Hospital, striving to improve the medical treatments on offer to the community.

After successfully establishing a mother and baby clinic, Frances is determined to move with the times and add family planning advice to her roster – but are the residents of Norton Dene ready for such progress or will she face opposition?

In her personal life, her relationship with the Reverend Gregory Sampson becomes her safe haven whilst battling with an embittered family relative in London. As always, Frances strives to honour the values inherited from her late benefactress Izzy Brakespeare.

As further dark family secrets and sins unfold, it seems the Brakespeare family name will have more resonance to Frances than she ever imagined and when a stranger enters her life, Frances may finally have the answers she has always sought.

Perfect for fans of Rosie Clarke, Fenella Miller and Patricia McBride.

If you love this, try Lizzie's Tobacco Girls and Coronation Close series

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 10, 2024

Reviews

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Norton Dene in Somerset was where the Orchard Cottage Hospital was situated, and Doctor Frances Brakespeare continued to improve the hospital, with a mother and baby clinic about to open, plus family planning advice for those families who had many children already. Frances knew it would be a controversial topic, especially with the men in town, but she was determined. Originally adopted by Izzy Brakespeare when she was a young child, taken from the workhouse, Frances had adored her adopted mother. But when she died, Izzy's sister, Beatrice, was incensed that Frances had benefitted from the Brakespeare name. When Frances heard from Beatrice's solicitors, she passed it all on to a solicitor in Norton Dene, on the recommendation of the local vicar. She was prepared to see what would happen.

Reverend Gregory Sampson and Frances had become close, and was always Frances' safe haven. With the turmoil of the family's past, secrets hidden and horrors yet to be unfolded, the stranger who entered Norton Dene seemed to be searching for someone. Would Frances find the answers from her past any time soon?

Family Affairs at the Orchard Cottage Hospital is the 2nd in the Orchard Cottage Hospital series by Lizzie Lane and I enjoyed it very much. Following on well from #1 in the series - A New Doctor at Orchard Cottage Hospital - it was great to catch up with Frances again, as well as Lucy and Nancy; Ma Skittings was at her best once again - but the old fashioned prejudice from the 1930s era was horrendous! I'm looking forward to #3 already. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley & Boldwood Books for my digital ARC to read and review.

[Karren Sandercock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Doctor Frances Brakespeare continues her work in Somerset at Orchard Cottage Hospital, she wants to improve medical care for the whole community, and especially women and children and she's started a mother and baby clinic. Frances has witnessed firsthand the toll of having multiple pregnancies takes on woman’s bodies, and some haven’t gotten over the previous pregnancy and find themselves expecting again, the financial impact of having so many mouths to feed and the same amount of food has to be stretched further.

Frances knows she will encounter resistance and opposition about her advice regarding female reproduction and family planning in Norton Dene, but she determined to advocate for women and use her medical skills and knowledge to help them. Frances personal life adds another interesting facet to the story, she was born in a workhouse and to a teenage mother, she was adopted by a former suffragette Lizzy Brakespeare and her younger sister is still making trouble via her lawyers in London and sending her threatening letters.

I enjoyed catching up with characters from the previous book and in this case, Reverend Gregory Sampson, Frances friend, confidant and suitor, sister’s Lucy Daniels and Nancy Skittings, Sister Harrison and Ma Skittings, Captain Delvin Compton-Dixon and his mother Lady Compton-Dixon.

I received a copy of Family Affairs at the Orchard Cottage Hospital from Boldwood Books and NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. Another well written and thought provoking story by Lizzie Lane and the perfect choice for fans of English historical fiction and saga's.

The narrative highlights topics such as the challenges and plight of women, pregnancy, childbirth and contraception and how new and controversial it was, family and unexpected connections, secrets and discovering the truth, how times were changing and advances in medicine and people’s health.

Four stars from me, I recommend both Family Affairs at the Cottage Hospital and the previous book A New Doctor at Cottage Hospital and I’m eagerly looking forward to novel number three in the series and what happens to the two new characters a young boy and an older woman called Mary.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book in a new series and a very good read. While the first book was setting up the scene and the characters, there's a lot going on in this one.
Frances is settling into her new life and job. She gets a whopping surprise and another not so pleasant one when Beatrice, Izzy's sister, stirs up trouble with a demanding solicitor's letter. What an unpleasant, nasty, bitter woman Beatrice is.
The Reverend Gregory is here again, with the romance more muted this time but still in the background. Gregory is her buffer against the world.
A lot of the issues Frances is trying to address, concerns women's health. It's hard to believe how badly women were treated still in the 1930's. Also cruelty to children rears it's head. Men really were a different breed back then.
This book has it all, romances, sorrow, tragedies, surprises and secrets.
I thoroughly enjoyed the read. This author never fails to tell a good story. I'm looking forward to the next in the series and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys heartfelt stories with a touch of realism.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an early copy of this book.

[Louise Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Orchard Cottage Hospital #2

Somerset, 1931: Doctor Frances Brakespeare continues to settle into her new life in Somerset at Orchard Cottage Hospital, striving to improve the medical treatments on offer to the community. After successfully establishing a mother and baby clinic, Frances is determined to move with the times and add family planning advice to her roster - but are the residents of Northern Dene ready for such progress, or will she face opposition? In her personal life, her relationship with Reverend Gregory Sampson becomes her safe haven whilst battling with an embittered family relative in London. As always, Frances strives to honour the values inherited from her late benefactress Izzy Brakespeare. Family name will have more resonance to Frances than she ever imagined.

With the changing of the times, Dr. Frances Breakspeare wants to develop the medical care provided at the Orchard Cottage Hospital by opening a mother and baby clinic. Frances also tries to find out more about her adoption.

This is a well-written story about how things in the medical profession and the introduction of family planning advice just starting to take place in the 1930s. The characters are well-developed, the pace is steady, and I always like the author's writing style. I have not read the first book in this series, but it does read well as a standalone.

Published 3rd October 2024

I would like to thank #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks and the author #LizzieLane for my ARC of #FamilyAffairsAtTheOrchardCottageHospital

[Pat Langhelt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book with more mysteries with Frances being revealed.

[C.R. Comacchio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood for an ARC of this novel.

‘Girls who fall into wicked ways have no rights.’ Presumably, neither do the infants who are born to such girls. So declares the smug ‘lady director’ of a certain Sussex workhouse, which, even in the 1930s was still so oppressive that most mothers and children, even the ones successfully adopted, preferred any other fate.

As director of the Orchard Park cottage hospital, Dr Frances Brakespeare is frequently involved with people who were once workhouse residents. Often the younger ones have run away from bad homes or the workhouse itself, preferring even the former. Mothers are dealing with the physical and emotional after-effects of marriages contracted to get out, and keep out, of the dreaded workhouse.

Some are actively seeking the contraception that Frances, like Marie Stokes before her, tries to persuade them to adopt as an effective counter-measure in her newly-established ‘mother and baby’ clinic. This is a controversial program, however, even in 1930s England as Stokes had discovered.

This is fundamentally a story about relationships. Frances discovers the truth about her past and how she came to be adopted out of the workhouse. The woman who delivers the news, Mrs Devonshore, was one of the ‘wicked girls’ whose baby was born in the workhouse. A little boy who refuses to tell his name flees the hospital to avoid both the workhouse and his abusive adoptive family. And in the case of nurse Lucy Daniels, hired to care for a blinded Great War veteran with whom she becomes increasingly involved, his titled family, especially his mother. sustains both the hospital and many of the poor who find treatment there.

Lizzie Lane has set up a number of such relationships, taking care always to demonstrate the courage and resilience of the women in particular. Frances loves and intends to marry the kind Anglican minister Gregory, but while she appreciates his support, especially as many townsfolk are offended by her recommendation of ‘unnatural’ practices, she does not truly need him. She can fight her own fight and take up the cause of all women, poor and rich. Lucy and the blinded Devlin are far apart in wealth and status. She may be attracted to him but never hesitated to assert herself and the rights of all women. And Mary Devonshire, the key to solving Frances’ family mystery, was herself abused but never stopped trying, over many years, to overcome her tragic youth. So this is also very much a tale of hope and resilience and of women taking care of themselves and other vulnerable people.

[Jan Mawdesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the mining town of Norton Dene, Somerset in 1931 Dr Frances Breakspeare is contemplating her latest project, that of adding Family Planning advice to the Mother and Baby clinic.
She believes that women need to have a choice in planning a family, as too many women have little if any choice in regard to family planning. As the new Registrar she had been met with mix feeling for the townspeople and this new concept of Family planning was bound to upset many of the men.
Family Affairs at Orchard Cottage Hospital tells a time old story of tradition, poverty and the hardship faced by many women with little control over their lives as Frances, strives to make a change in the town.
A woman arrives at the clinic, Mary Devonshire, but leaves before Francis can examine her. Mary Devonshire is on a mission to find a child she gave up as a very young girl in service in London.
Frances has been bought up in a very suffragette based household, having been adopted from the Workhouse by Isabel Breakspeare as a baby, growing up with the firm belief that women can do anything they set out to do, regardless of societies dictates.
As the story unfolds Frances finds that her ‘Aunt’ is determined to have the name Breakspeare removed from Frances for her own reasons. As the days pass and more information comes to light about the Breakspeare family, Frances has to face some terrible and brutal truths about the family she was associated with through adoption.
Family Affairs at Orchard Cottage Hospital is part of a series written by Lizzie Lane that carefully portrays the life and times of the 1930’s, when women had little say over their everyday lives. A slow burn to commence, the narrative gathers momentum as the layers of a time old story unfold with devastating effect.

[Lily · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the latest book in the Cottage Hospital series, Lizzie Lane brings readers back to rural Somerset in the 1930s where Doctor Frances Brakespeare operates the Orchard Cottage Hospital and is prepared to drag it kicking and screaming into twentieth century modern medicine. Establishing a mother and baby clinic is only the first step, as Frances’ new plan is to add family planning for the women of Norton Dene, except the community is less willing to accept this particular change for its scandalous and revolutionary association. As her personal life and her relationship with Reverend Gregory Sampson continue to blossom, new challenges, particularly a legal battle with a bitter relative in London, bring past secrets involving her deceased benefactress Izzy Brakespeare to light. With a cast of brilliant and complex characters, Lizzie Lane balances the multiple perspectives and character secrets of the novel to life in this latest instalment, and readers will love discovering these new secrets and moments in the Cottage Hospital canon. Readers will particularly enjoy the addition of new perspectives in this novel and the further expansion of the characters’ backstory, and Lane has done a brilliant job in her expansion of Norton Dene, Frances Brakespeare, and the rest of the world in the latest novel starring Frances Brakespeare and her friends, colleagues, and patients.

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the advance copy.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm reviewing this via NetGalley, as part of a tour with Rachel's Random Resources.

This is the second book in the Orchard Cottage Hospital series, set in Somerset during the 1930s. I enjoyed the first instalment, so I was looking forward to this.

The protagonist is Dr Frances Brakespeare, and I was keen to see what might happen next for her. I was also pleased to see the return of some of the other characters that I fondly remembered from the previous book, such as Gregory and Lucy.

The author writes in such a way that allows the reader to get to know the characters very well, and connect with them emotionally. Frances is a great protagonist who speaks her mind and stands up for what she believes in.

In some ways, I found this an emotional read, as I invested in the characters and cared about the choices they made. I still found it a very comfortable, easy read, as the story flowed easily, and I found the tone to be lighthearted and pleasant.

I think readers may enjoy this second instalment, even if they didn't read the first book previously, but if you like historical sagas, I would recommend this series.

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel's Random Resources, Boldwood Books, and to the author, for the opportunity to read and review this.

[Nicola Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frances Brakespeare is a fully qualified doctor and is working at the Cottage Hospital in Norton Dene. It is 1931 and Frances is determined to help the women in the town with birth control. Frances who was adopted by her benefactress Izzy Brakespeare understands the hardship faced by the women but supported by her fiancé the Reverend Sampson is keen to make a difference for the women. This pits her against some in the village who would rather the women did as their husband asked. The mysterious Mrs Devonshire seems to be trying to thwart Frances but is there some other reason for her presence in the village. And Frances must deal with her aunt who is obsessed with removing her right to her surname now that Izzy is no longer around. All of these challenges test Frances' resolve but inspired by her strong benefactress she remains true to her principles.

I liked this story which was pacy and engaging with lots of twists and turns to keep the reader's interest. The time period was also well chosen as women were still very much treated as the inferior sex and so it allowed Lane to examine what women faced in their daily lives. There are some hard hitting issues explored in this story which some may find upsetting. With thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood for a copy of the arc.

[Lynda · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book in the Orchard Cottage Hospital Series, set in Norton Dene, Somerset, featuring Doctor Frances Brakespeare. This is a saga and as such I really recommend reading book one first as it sets the scene for everything that follows in this book. The main storyline in this book is centred around the recently established mother and baby unit and Frances controversial decision to offer family planning advice.

Briefly, although Frances was expecting some opposition to her advocacy for family planning she certainly couldn’t have expected some of the violent reactions she received. At the same time her adoptive mother Izzy’s sister is still trying to cut all ties between them, going as far as to try to prevent Frances using the family name.

Alongside Frances’s storylines there are a number of other threads, a new one about an abused child and an ongoing thread about Captain Delvin Compton-Dixon - both compelling stories. With more dark revelations from the past and shocking experiences in the present this is another excellent addition to the series highlighting social and medical history of the times. A very enjoyable and entertaining read.

[Storied Conversation · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Family Affairs at the Orchard Cottage Hospital by Lizzie Lane, Dr. Frances Brakespeare continues her work at Orchard Cottage Hospital in Somerset, determined to improve medical care for women and children. She establishes a mother and baby clinic and offers family planning advice, facing opposition from the local community. Frances, adopted as a child from a workhouse by suffragette Izzy Brakespeare, also deals with family drama, including threats from Izzy’s sister, Beatrice, over her inheritance of the Brakespeare name.

Amid professional challenges, Frances leans on her close relationship with Reverend Gregory Sampson. As secrets from her past begin to unravel, a mysterious stranger arrives in town, intensifying the tension. The book, filled with rich character dynamics and 1930s-era societal issues, revisits familiar faces from the first installment while exploring themes of healthcare, family, and personal growth. It’s a captivating continuation of the Orchard Cottage Hospital series.

Thank you to NetGalley, Rachel's Random Resources, Boldwood Books, and the author for providing me with an ARC of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

[Jeanette Fallon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tuesday, October 8, 2024
Family Affairs at Orchard Cottage Hospital



Dr. Frances Brakespeare has many unanswered questions about her birth and her adoption. She needs to find answers especially after her adopted mother's sister threatens to take her name and reputation away from her. Frances is a fighter and she will get the answers. But the truth might come at a cost.

On a historical note, it covers a time period where birth control is just being introduced to women in this community. It's frustrating in seeing how some husbands felt it was a threat. A threat to what?

This is Book two of the series. I was familiar with the characters as I read the previous book. I loved catching up with them.

I expect this story will continue as it ends with wanting more. I'll be right there ready to read more about Frances and the Orchard County Hospital.

[Leanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr Frances is settling in too her new job role at Orchard Cottage Hospital. She is providing quality care for the community and is setting up a new mother's and baby's clinic as she knows how tough childbirth is on the women. So she is trying to provide the use of contraception but not everyone is on board with this! Dr Frances also has some turmoil in her private life as her adoptive mother's sister Beatrice is out for blood. I feel like Beatrice is a horrible woman! Frances also has a lot going on in her love life with Reverend Gregory. It's hard to believe how women and children were treated in those days with abuse and no voice. There is certainly a lot happening in this book and it kept me highly engaged! I welcomed the characters from the previous book and it was nice to read them again particularly the nurses.

[Rachel Brimble · Rating 5 out of 5]

Family Affairs at the Orchard Cottage Hospital is the second book in Lizzie Lane’s latest saga series set in the fictional town of Norton Dene.

In this instalment, Doctor Frances Brakespeare is embarking on a mission to bring family planning into the homes and consciences of the women struggling to survive the very real prospect of poverty while fighting to provide for their children and keep their husbands happy. An easy mission, it is not!

On top of this, Frances has more than enough to deal with when the sister of her adoptive mother takes umbrage to Frances keeping the gentry family name. A name that means everything to Frances, both personally and professionally.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, maybe even a little more than the first in the series, A New Doctor at Orchard Cottage hospital – recommended!

[Linda Oleniuk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This historical novel takes a vivid look at the English class system in the 1920s and early 1930s. It deals with the effects of “shell shock” from WWI and how solders and nurses coped.
A combat nurse Frances ,raised by a headstrong, independent woman Izzy, loses the love of her life on the battlefield and decides to become a doctor.

Frances moves to a small English mining village after a disagreement with a London male physician in the London hospital where she worked.
She is met with some opposition because she is woman from London and Frances is a woman doctor with big ideas for improvements.

Of course there is some romance , a nasty aunt , a sexual predator, an undesirable boss and a wealthy benefactor , a friend of Izzy’s.
There are some surprises in this read.
This was an enjoyable book and I am looking forward to reading the third book.

[AnnMarie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although this is the second book in a series, it can be read as a standalone if you haven't read book 1 already.

It's a thought-provoking story that made me realise just how things have improved over the years when it comes to people's attitudes toward women in the workforce and family planning to name just a couple of things.

Along with the educational side of the story, of course, there are the characters and their relationships to get fully engrossed in and enjoy. There were romances or possible romances, bitter people who you aren't sure whether they need your pity or your anger, and some reconciliations that brought tears to my eyes.

I enjoyed this book and am happy to recommend it.

[Becki Basley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Family Affairs at the Orchard Cottage Hospital (The Orchard Cottage Hospital # 2) by Lizzie Lane. (Audiobook read on Hoopla app)

Dr Frances continues to settle into her life at the Orchard Cottage Hospital and to her life within the community. Most of her improvements to the hospital are well received but her family planning project may meet with some fierce resistance. She also continues to be plagued with her mothers vindictive sister causing trouble but has found a quiet companion to help weather an upcoming revelation about her past.

Meanwhile a certain patient and a certain nurse may finally be set to reveal their true feelings for each other much to the delight of the patients mother. A somewhat somber read at times but a interesting book

[Leona · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second book in the Orchard Cottage Hospital series and yet again I found this to be another great read . Yes it can be read as a stand-alone but I highly recommend reading both .
We meet back with characters we were first introduced to in book one . I loved
to read of the progress of these characters and to get acquainted with some new characters .
Dr Frances Brakespeare is a wonderful advocate for women’s rights and entitlements . She doesn’t want them treated like second class citizens and sets up a family planning clinic as well as a mother and baby clinic. Not everyone how ever is in agreement with this new clinic . As well as trying to implement changes Frances has a lot going on in her personal life and is doing her best to deal with all this as well. There are dark secrets that have been kept hidden and are about to be revealed.
This book kept me completely invested from the very start and I look forward to reading the next book in this series .
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Angela Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had read the first book in the series and looked forward to this one as I shall the next (fingers crossed) - this certainly did not disappoint.

It brought together the loose ends hinted at in the first book regarding Dr. Frances Brakespeare and her adoption. In some ways it was incredibly sad - and highlighted how entitled some men felt they should be.

It was well written as are all of Lizzie Lane's books - and had the right amount of light heartedness as well as heartache.

Set once more in the mining area - called Norton Dene by the author - of Somerset, it was a great read.

Hope there will be more

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

The brilliant second installment in the Orchard Cottage Hospital series.

I absolutely love Dr. Frances, although her opinions do seem incredibly advanced for the time. But i suppose someone had to be "ahead of their time" in order for change to come about.

This book revealed some rather shocking secrets about Frances' parentage, although I had guessed who her father was.

There's just the right amount of romance too sometimes this genre of book goes a bit scmaltzy and I'm glad that's not the case here.

I can't wait to find out what the future has in store for Frances and the Rev, and all their friends in the village. Especially as WW2 creeps ever nearer.

[Margaret Yelton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Family Affairs At Orchard Cottage Hospital is the second book in the series written by Lizzie Lane. I found this to be an entertaining read, the author is able to make her readers connect with the characters in her story line. I would recommend having read the first book in the series as you get a more in depth feeling for some of the people in the series. There was plenty going on in the book, so it kept me turning the pages. I would recommend this book to others.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Boldwood the publisher, and I am leaving my review voluntarily

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a lovely story. I was happy to be reunited with Dr. Frances Brakesphere it was like meeting up with a friend.
This is the second installment of Orchard Cottage. Hospital.
Set in Somerset it opens up the charm and friendly villagers that pop up. There are truths to be uncovered. Dr Brakesphere is trying to set up a supporting mother and baby clinic which to men is unheard of. She wants women to have the right to contraception and stop the amount of babies and large families they have to feed clothe and care for.
I really enjoyed the story. and the characters.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Doctor Frances Brakespeare has settled in well to her life in Norton Dene. Things are going to change very soon for when Mary Devonshire turns up in the village and gets a job in the Laundry at the Manor House. All the questions that Frances had about hers and her adopted mother Izzy’s lives are about to get answered. Is Frances ready for the shocking truth. I throughly enjoyed this second book in the series and look forward to reading the third book.

[Theresa Winchester · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book, lizzie lane wright in away that you feel light you are there with her, bring her worded to life. I can see the people she is writing about. I can't wait to read the next page. Or the next book in my case.
With some books it take a while to get into the story but with lizzie books your there within the first few pages.

[Sue Rouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great follow up book and it didn’t disappoint. Dr Frances continues to explore her adoption and who her adoptive Mother was. Alongside this the hospital looks to develop its work amongst women and children much to the disapproval of some men. Thanks to Lizzie Lane and hr publisher.

[Yvette Salmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Firstly thank you to @theboldbookclub for the chance to read this book, I’m loving the series. This is book 2 and there’s lots going on where book 1 sets the story for us. Great storyline and great characters well worth a read.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second book in the series and even though I enjoyed the first, this seemed better. Maybe, because the characters were familiar and I enjoyed seeing how their stories progressed. Dr. France’s Brakespeare is the main character and she is trying to modernise the hospital as well as introducing new concepts to the villagers. This is set in 1931 and many men still believe in men’s rights and their wives being their property. The Rev. Gregory Sampson played a big part in her life and is a good support and sounding block, when Frances was faced with opposition from an unknown source. There was a stranger in the village who has something to tell Frances but is unsure of her reception. This was a lovely story, heart breaking at times, but very much a village story with a variety of different characters. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Lizzie Lane novels and this is no exception! Although it is part of a series, you won’t mess anything by jumping straight in with this one as explanations are given. Having said that, you will get a much better experience if you do read the previous ones.

Grab your copy today!

[Christine Leake · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely story to enjoy

Well done Lizzie Lane l like the way you give your characters life and the way you draw out the nub of the story in small detail l will be looking forward too the next instalment of this tale