The Royal Lacemaker

by Linda Finlay

At only seventeen years old, Lily Rose scratches out a meager living as a lace maker in Devon, responsible for her siblings following the death of their parents.

But opportunity beckons. Hundreds of miles away, in London, Queen Victoria is preparing for her wedding. She will wear the most exquisite wedding dress in history, bearing the famous Honiton lace. When Lily is asked to be one of the select few to work on this top-secret commission it is the answer to her prayers.

Lily quickly makes an impression, both as an expert seamstress and a natural leader of the women working day and night to ensure their families' survival. But there are others who want to see Lily fail, including Squire Clinsden who issues her with a terrible ultimatum - work for him, and be subject to his unwanted advances, or lose the family home.

Torn between her duty and her dreams of a better life, Lily must remember where she came from or risk losing those most important to her.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical

432 pages, Paperback

First published October 9, 2014

About the author

As an Image Consultant, Linda has always had an avid interest in people. Helping them to regain their confidence after they've undergone life changing surgery is one of the most satisfying areas of her work.

Linda has always loved writing stories and won a competition run by the local paper when she was 11.

She has since been published in magazines and annuals. Moving to the spectacular Devon coast and learning about its local history inspired her to write her first novel The Royal Lacemaker. Under the patient guidance of a local teacher, she learned to make lace and is very proud of the 'spider' she produced.

She loves beach-combing, finding it the perfect excuse to indulge in a spot of people watching.

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is centred around the life of lily Rose, after lily is orphaned, the family are to be made homeless. Lily being selected to work on a top secret mission is then offered a position with squire clinsden, who will also house her brother and sister. Lily refuses the position as shes been subjected to his advances before.

Lily basically falls on her feet with Mrs Bodney and the mission. Securing her not only a job but a roof too. But over the 6 month contract there is a lot of turmoil for lily, unwanted advances, learning ways to behave and entertain guests etc.

Will she get her happily ever after??

I absolutely loved this book, and how lily grew as a person in this book. Standing by her beliefs and sticking to them.

[Soo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Living in Devon I enjoyed the book as most of it was set locally and I could picture the scenes. The description of lacemaking in the book led me to search out a book in my local library which had photographs of Queen Victoria’s wedding veil. The author had researched Honiton Lacemaking well, even learning how to make lace. It was a feel good book with everything turning out well for all the characters.

[Jo Dorman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, had me enthralled. Can't wait to read more by Linda Finlay.

[Annemarie Farthing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really interesting read 😃
Lots of great quotes...
'This might be 1839 but folk would still make me an outcast. Besides, I'm not a strumpet'

'Carefully placing her mug on the ledge behind her...' Oh dear!!!
At that bit I froze, and couldn't read on for ages. Phew!!!
I learnt about Lace making as well, also Queen Victoria's wedding dress.

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really lovely read!

15/6/25
This book is still a lovely read . The lead character Lily is such a feisty strong not afraid to say whatwhat she think type of woman whose life isn't smooth until she's given the most amazing chance to make lace for the Queen Victoria for her wedding. This gives her new chances and new opportunities, but it also puts her in the way of the horrible squire And interferes in her life of loving Tom with the appearance of Rupert as well.
The ending was a good happy one and it's been an enjoyable but to reread again.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a gentle story which in places I found to be a bit slow. It did however keep my intrest and I got more drawn into the story the more I read. I have a love for historical fiction, and this this book took me to a different area and a different subject matter. Making lace for Queen Victoria's wedding gown in a small Devonshire village is defiantly different from the usual tales of hardship set in London or Liverpool. I would read more books by this author.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely satisfying story set in the early 19th Century in East Devon. The story of Lily Rose, a young girl who becomes one of the best lace makers in Devon. I enjoyed the story particularly as I had lived in the area for quite a few years and I was also lucky enough to be able to learn to make the Honiton lace featured in the book.

[Carol Dobson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gentle tale of fishing and lace-making folk by the Lyme Bay coast of East Devon in 1839. Enjoyed the historical detail of the lace industry and aspects of local life, such as the dreaded owlers who frequented the footpaths at night. Well written and researched.

[Asma Siddiqui · Rating 3 out of 5]

https://youtu.be/j8s_n1ZBL70

[Lucy-Bookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in Devon in 1839-1840, this book follows Lily Rose, a young lace maker who is selected to work on a very special commission – making the lace for Queen Victoria’s wedding dress.
Lily’s family has been struggling since her father was injured at work, but after his death, and then the illness of her mother, Lily is left trying to support herself and her siblings. The lacemaking commission comes at both the right & wrong time. The job will give her the security she desperately needs, and hopefully enable her to marry her sweetheart, but she will need to work in the next village and it’s too far to travel every day.
With the help of her aunt & supportive friends, Lily is able to make it work, though not without a number of difficulties. We follow Lily as she excels with her lace, becoming a supervisor in the workroom & starting to mix in more refined company, learning manners & etiquette, though never leaving her roots. Throughout the story, Lily is shown to be determined, resourceful but most of all somebody who sticks to her beliefs.
It is apparent from the details given that the author had a knowledge of lace making, specifically the Honiton “part lace”, and has also researched the lace used for Queen Victoria’s dress. The character of Mrs Bodney was built on the real-life Miss Jane Bidney from Beer in Devon who received the commission and hired around 200 local lace makers to make the four individual lengths of Honiton lace that adorned Queen Victoria’s wedding dress, and were much prized by her. The inclusion of other details pertaining to the small fishing village & the “owlers” (smugglers) also gave it a great sense of time and place.

The pace was good though the storyline wasn’t particularly strong and not a huge amount happened, but the beauty of this genre is that it’s about the people not the storyline. It was a gentle, light read that will be appreciated by anyone who enjoys this sort of historical fiction, particularly as it takes place in quite a different area & with a different subject matter to many similar books.

[Aunty Harry · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found a secondhand copy of this novel at a book sale. Reading the back, the premise sounded good…..young woman with no parents to support her is given a job using her skills as a lacemaker to create the lace for Queen Victoria’s wedding dress.
Unfortunately, this book, despite other very positive reviews, was a huge disappointment for me. The dialogue was stilted and did not read as authentic even in an historical setting. The story was woefully repetitive with the same “threats” to the heroine being trotted out again and again with little story progression. I also thought the history portrayed in the book was limited. It seemed as if the author came up with half a dozen “nuggets” from the time period and simply kept revisiting those key words or factoids in lieu of delving deeper into her subject matter. I’ve rated this 2⭐️/5, but even that is being generous!

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would describe this as historical fiction about Lilly Rose a young 17 year old who has exceptional lace making skills and plucked from her poverty stricken life. Chosen among many older women to construct lace for wedding dress for Queen Victoria. We follow her rise amongst the older women and how she manages herself with some unscrupulous men. With her father already dead and her mother dying she’s even more driven to help her siblings and to keep them away from dangerous occupations. An Aunt comes to her rescue and secrets are uncovered. Support from unlikely allies propel her into her own business and karma visits the nasty despicable people who have bullied and caused harm. Great insight into life but bit repetitive.

[Alison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Probably should really be 2.5, but I'm rounding down for the repetitive nature of some of the descriptions. Not the kind of book I would normally pick up (was lent it) so was pleasantly surprised by enjoying most of it. The pace was good and though the supporting characters were rather sketchily drawn they didn't interfere too much with the running of the plot to an (unsurprisingly) happy ending.

[Jenny L · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was probably a 2 1/2 stars. It was fine - an easy, untaxing read. Not terribly exciting, nothing much happened! But fairly typical of the genre (not sure what that would be however...). You can tell from the cover the sort of story you are going to get. Pleasant, but doubtful I will be seeking out any more from Linda Finlay.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad, some strange terms old English, NUNCHEON for lunch, BREAK THE FAST for breakfast . Subject was about making lace for Q.Victoria's wedding dress , trials and hardships of that time in history .

[Thelma MacDonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent well written historical story

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice read

[Roxanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF'd at 30%

[Nicola Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok but a bit monotonous and needed a bit more of storyline. So overall a bit slow but I liked the characters in the book, just wanted a bit more drama!

[Lizzie O · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this slightly weak story line wise, but it was good enough to maintain my interest and I enjoyed finding out about lace making.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I started this book I thought I was about to read a thinly veiled Mills and Boon-esque romance novel, and quickly flung it aside. But with a lack of other books to read, went back to it and I am glad I did. Whilst the naive attitude of the main character was at times grating, not to mention the expectations of the village squire toward her, it was worth getting to the end of this book. Not earth shatteringly life changing but a satisfying way to while a day or two away on holiday.

[Catalina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book for free as a first reads giveaway.
I enjoy historical fiction very much, and this book was lovely. I have enjoyed reading the story of Lily Rose and seeing her transformation and development. Lily is a poor peasant girl, orphan, with a lot of responsibility on her shoulders, from an early age. When she is commissioned to work on the lace for Queen Victoria’s wedding dress she feels special and extremely lucky. The story only lasts six months, while the lace is completed, but it’s full of action and turn of events. When she starts working for Miss Bodney, she is a shy, quiet and gullible young girl, however she quickly learns that not everyone is as kind-hearted and compassionate as she wanted to believe. At the end of a novel she is a much stronger woman, who everyone is expecting to achieve a lot in life.
There are other interesting characters in the book, that help or put stumble blocks in Lily’s way. Tom, is her betrothed, a kind man, with strong principles, who feels very protective towards Lily, but also allows his jealousy and insecurity to get between them. Aunt Elizabeth is another person who for a few short moments mistrusts Lily’s sincerity, but who in fact has her best interests at heart and wants to help as much as her means allow her to. The Squire and his wife are two opposing characters. One is determined to get what he wants at all costs, regardless who gets hurt in the process, while the other is a charitable soul who wants to help the poor.
This was a great book and I am looking forward to the sequel. There must be a second book as there are too many loose ends.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book it was an easy read but still had the drama and excitement that every good book should have.

If I’m honest it did take me a couple of chapters in to really get into the story but once I got over that I couldn’t put it down and found myself finishing it in no time at all.

The story was full of twists and turns from the onset and throughout which I thought was a really good attribute to the story and made it a real page turner. Especially about three quarters of the way through the story there was a real bombshell that was dropped on Lily and not only did it change Lily’s life but also changed the story in some parts completely.

Even though there was a lot of drama and excitement throughout the book it also had its fair share of romance, friendship and in some parts humour which gave it that light heartedness.

All the characters during the story are very strong and play a big part not only in the story but also in Lily’s life, whether that be the love of her life Tom, Mrs Bodney Lily’s employer, Aunt Elizabeth or the very slimy Squire Clinsden who tries with all his power to make poor Lily’s life a living hell.

As I said at the beginning I really enjoyed reading this book and I highly recommend that you give it a read and also maybe some of Linda Finlay’s other work as I definitely will be reading more of her work

[Alana Muir · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Disclosure: I received a copy of this book for free as a first reads giveaway.) I liked this book. It isn't going to go down as one of the great novels of all-time, but it is a good story with likable characters. What attracted me to this story in the first place is that even though it is historical, it isn't really a historical romance. There is a romantic sub-plot, but the main story is more of a coming of age story about a young woman holding her own and gaining respect and success in her professional life, even when her family is against her. She doesn't succeed because she is pretty. She succeeds because she is smart and she works hard. I don't know if this is being marketing as a YA title, but I would heartily recommend it to younger readers.

The only part that I wasn't crazy about was the ending. It seems to just kind of end, without truly wrapping up some of the plot lines. I would have liked to see what happens with Lily working for the Squire's wife, and her own wedding, and her relationship with her aunt which was kind of left hanging. Maybe planning for sequels? In any case, it was still worth reading, and if there are sequels, I look forward to them.

[Jennifer Moville · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book as part of Good Reads First Reads

This is a story , historical fiction, of a young woman called Lily Rose
She is a lacemaker and is commissioned as part of a team to make the lace for Queen Victoria's wedding dress.She is a poor girl and this job secretly is her perfect job - and could lead to a better job. She works hard to impress but there are those who want to see her downfall and Lily Rose must choose - her job or her family

A good story with good characters - the lifespan of the story doesn't take long - about 6 months - but it fills the time the author wanted to tell - I don't think it could have been expanded any more

[Sarah-Jayne Windridge-France · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very lovely, and I imagine historically authentic, tale of a young lacemaker and the austerity of her lifestyle coupled with the ferocity of the times and her heightened emotions. I learnt a lot about lace, life, love and loyalty in reading this book.

It was beautifully written, with some really clear imagery and I was easily taken into Lily's hobnail boots.

I look forward to reading more of Linda Finlay's work.

[Georgia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great read but the main character naivety really irritated me. For example when in Honiton and hears the other girls talking about a country bumpkin and feels sorry for her whoever she is without realising that she is the country bumpkin, and the way she gets confused about saying like "Now, why would I have a dog and bark myself."

But it was a cute story and an enjoyable, light read.

[CJ Browne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Royal Lacemaker gives a captivating glimpse into life in Victorian England. A powerful story with strongly drawn characters and a delightful setting. It will be of special interest to anyone living or visiting East Devon, once the heart of the lacemaking industry. This charming story flows from the page with the poise and pace of Lily's bobbins, with lots of cliffhanger moments. It's unputdownable.

[Kittykorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book via goodreads first reads

This was the first historical fiction that I've read, and I loved every minute of it. I loved this book it flowed along lovely kept me turning the pages all the way through, I loved the character lily and her Tom. I will definitely be reading more from this author, she has opened me up to historical fiction ;)

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a typical piece of historical fiction, much in the style of Katie Flynn or Maureen Lee. It was set during the early reign of Queen Victoria and the main character was Lily Rose. To be honest the book was very readable but I started to find the character of Lily quite annoying and unlikeable. She was a bit of a moan at times. Overall worth a read if you have a free afternoon or two.