The Ladies of the House

by Molly McGrann

On a sweltering July day, three people are found dead in a dilapidated house in London's elegant Primrose Hill. Reading the story in a newspaper as she prepares to leave the country, Marie Gillies has an unshakeable feeling that she is somehow to blame.

How did these three people come to live together, and how did they all die at once? The truth lies in a very different England, in the double life of Marie's father Arthur, and in the secret world of the ladies of the house . . .

Stylish, enchanting and deliciously atmospheric, this is a tragicomic novel about hidden love, second chances and unlikely companionships, told with wit, verve and lingering power.
About the Author
Molly McGrann is a literary critic, poet and novelist. A former editor at The Paris Review, she is the author of two acclaimed novels, 360 Flip and Exurbia. Originally from the USA, she now lives in Oxfordshire with her family.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Book Club

256 pages, Hardcover

First published March 26, 2015

Reviews

[Bettie · Rating 2 out of 5]

BABT

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05ntzhs

Description: On a sweltering July day, three people are found dead in a dilapidated house in London's elegant Primrose Hill. Reading the story in a newspaper as she prepares to leave the country, Marie Gillies has an unshakeable feeling that she is somehow to blame.

How did these three people come to live together, and how did they all die at once? The truth lies in a very different England, in the double life of Marie's father Arthur, and in the secret world of the ladies of the house...

1/10 Molly MaGrann's novel about the discovery of a deadman's double life and his dark secret

2/10 In this episode we discover the twists and turns that led her to a Soho peepshow and, eventually, to the door of Arthur Gillies's high-class brothel in Primrose Hill.

3/10 Tonight's episode flashes back to the arrival of Rita and Annetta at one of Arthur's 'houses' in the early 1960s. Then moves forward to the present, where a mistake at the bank leads Arthur's daughter, Marie, to discover the true value of her father's estate, which has been held in trust since his death.

4/10 As Arthur's illegitimate son Joseph fears he'll lose his home, his daughter Marie - oblivious to her half-brother's existence - makes plans for her future. Meanwhile, one of Arthur's former employees, elderly sex worker Rita, prepares for a date with a punter.

5/10 "Attractive, well-spoken older woman seeks someone to dine with." Elderly sex worker Rita goes on a date, hoping that it might lead to more than just dinner and a room somewhere.

Episode 6: Sal's story: Arthur's long-term mistress and the madam of the house in Primrose Hill.

Episode 7: Fifteen years on from his death, after a mix up at the bank, his daughter Marie has discovered that her father's estate contains millions of pounds, but still has no idea where the money has come from. She's secretly quit her job and is planning her first ever foreign holiday. Her elderly mother, Flavia, remains oblivious to it all.

Episode 8: Marie has mobilised Arthur's solicitor, Mr Wye, to sell the properties from underneath their sitting tenants: consisting of Arthur's former employees (the now elderly madams and prostitutes) and his illegitimate son, Joseph.

Episode 9: As he awaits a visit from Mr Wye, Joseph thinks back on his life growing up in the Primrose Hill brothel.

Episode 10: Marie's telephone harassment - and the threat of eviction - proves too much for Joseph, while Rita and Annetta are overwhelmed by memories from the past.

Read by Susan Jameson
Written by Molly McGrann
Abridged by Robin Brooks
Produced by Kirsteen Cameron

Theme music:
Track 16, "Patterns"
CD: Human Behaviour
Label: BBC Production Music BBCPM029.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really unusual read that grabbed my attention in a very quiet, getting under the skin way. When Marie Gillies reads a newspaper article about three people being found dead in a house in London, she feels guilty. Although she had nothing to do with their deaths, and had never met them, she did know exactly who they were. That is just the start of this story which is partly set in post war Soho and follows the fortunes of a group of prostitutes, or high class call girls as they prefer to be known. We see them arrive in London and “fall into” their trade and it was noticeable that they were not apologetic about it all, very matter of fact – it was just their job. It is not a graphic read by any means, the story is about the women and their relationships with each other.

But what connects these women to Marie, a 50 something spinster who has led a very quiet uneventful life with her mother following the death of her father some years ago? And at the end of the day, who is the happiest? Who got the better end of the deal? It is a book that had me really thinking about the characters. A thoroughly enjoyable read. Many thanks to the publisher for the review copy.

[Maya Panika · Rating 4 out of 5]

An advance review of a book due to be published on 26th March 2015

A high-class brothel in Primrose Hill: the ladies of the house, the prostitutes, once young and beautiful, have grown old. One is suffering from dementia, another dying from cancer. One still plies her trade, though her beauty is long gone. And now the owner of their house is dead and his daughter only now discovering just what her father's business was and just how rich it made him.
This was a terrific read from start to finish - marred only by another (there are so many) ending that wasn't an ending but where the narrative simply stopped. And the ending we did get - the explanation for all those deaths detailed at the start - was more than a wee bit daft.
Don't let it put you off: in every other respect The Ladies of the House is a tremendous page turner, with a plot packed with detail - a host of little incidents that add up to an intriguing and gripping whole. The tale is carried by the characters - each chapter told from the point-of-view of one of eight individuals - and what a richly layered and surprising story it is, and totally fresh, I really don't think I've read anything quite like it before. The characterisation is superb. The only thing that disappointed was that non-ending. If ever a book needed at least one extra chapter to tie up those loose ends, this was it.

[Join the Penguin Resistance! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review:  THE LADIES OF THE HOUSE by Molly McGrann

Compelling and mysterious, THE LADIES OF THE HOUSE narrates the steamy pasts and inglorious present of a trio of "ladies of the night":  Rita and Annetta, young women, and Sal, the woman who managed the house in which they worked. London, their backdrop, the three "ladies," and all the various men and women they encounter, are treated vividly, examined from deeply internal character to external actions. All are unforgettable.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

~ Book reviews on my blog: www.snazzybooks.com ~

The Ladies of the House is a story about many things, but what stands out to me the most are the themes of longing, oppression and the unfairness of life.

First off, i have to say that this novel is quite depressing in its subject matter and at times I struggled reading it. At points it really made me feel sad and even disgusted, which didn't make it perhaps the most enjoyable novel to get immersed in, but that doesn't take away from the fact that it is a well-written, interesting story.

The novel feels a little slow at times, but I feel like this builds up the character development and narrative further, making you feel like you really know some of the women personally; it's like you've been there in their crazy/ horrible/ mundane lives. The mix of backgrounds and classes of Arthur's 'women' are intriguing to read about. Some of the characters I really felt empathy for, some I felt hugely frustrated with and just wanted to grab and shake some sense into, whilst others I absolutely HATED with a passion. The fact that The Ladies of the House stirred up such strong emotions in me whilst reading it is a testament to the skilled character creation and writing of author Molly McGrann!

At times I did get a little confused about who everyone is as it flicks back and forth between characters a lot, and also between timescales too, and sometimes you don't return to the narrative of a character you've met earlier on for quite a while! However it wasn't long before I figured out who was who, and I then remembered how they are connected to the storyline, an aspect of The Ladies of the House that I love.

The writing flows well and the plot and characters are complex and multi-faceted without being completely baffling. I felt that the ending was quite abrupt but this fitted in well with the subject matter, though I would have liked a bit more of a 'tying up' of certain elements, just because I wasn't sure I completely got the ending myself!

I'm really glad that I got the chance to read this skilfully crafted (though at times shocking) book with added substance!

Rating: 3.5/5

Many thanks to Pan Macmillan for an Advance Reading Copy of this book in return for an honest, unbiased review.

[Charlotte Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read 40 pages and dnfed. The synopsis on my edition made it sound like a cosy mystery and didn't mention prostitution at all. Hence I went into it not expecting all of the non-consensual scenes or the horrific men.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this usual and original portrait of the world of prostitution and brothels in post-WWII England. Arthur Gillies runs a chain of brothels but he’s no underworld pimp but almost a respectable family man who cares about the well-being of his “girls”. It’s certainly not a sordid or depressing (although quite sad at times) read, something you might expect from a book about prostitutes, but actually a very human tale about independent women making their way in an often difficult environment. The story opens with the death of three elderly women in a house in Primrose Hill, London. When Marie Gillies reads about it, she instinctively feels that she is somehow implicated. The narrative goes on to fill in the back story and does so in an engaging and empathetic way. I found it a great read, atmospheric, full of period detail, an intriguing story about ageing, death, morality, friendship, longings and loss.

[Izzie · Rating 2 out of 5]

thank u to the coach for making me finish this book x

[Cleopatra Pullen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Ladies of the House is an unusual and enticing read from Molly McGrann, a read that worms its way under your skin and won’t let go. The gentle unfolding of a quite straightforward story got to me and that despite the fact that I found some of the scenes quite hard to read precisely because of the lack of drama.

So what is it all about? One day Marie Gillies is on her way to Heathrow when she spots a headline in the paper, three elderly people have all been found dead at a house in Primrose Hill. The weather had been very warm, there had been a spate of deaths, particularly in the vulnerable so why did Marie feel that these deaths were somehow connected to her?

I really don’t want to spoil any of the story for those of you who want to read this unusual novel but the house is the site of a former high-class brothel and at least one of the occupants has been present throughout its history but Marie lives in Kettering, with her widowed mother, many miles from Primrose Hill. Marie has a job in a linen shop, she isn’t any great beauty and her life consists of work followed by an evening eating treats in front of the TV with her elderly mother. This is ultimately a story about long-kept secrets, some which are discovered and others will forever remain a mystery to all except the characters who reveal them to the reader.

As is fitting for a book whose beginning starts in post-war England the story is told in the present day and using flashbacks allowing the reader to build the elements together to the finale, which quite frankly was a bit far-fetched but at least gave us the answer to the questions I posed in the opening paragraph. The author did give a good sense of time and place, I could easily visualise Soho from her descriptions as well as seeing the house which has deteriorated both in sense of looks and vitality from the days when it welcomed wealthy gentlemen to its inviting party atmosphere, for them a place of pleasure and relaxation.

This book has a lot to say but what it is telling us lies as much in the unsaid as the said, the characters are all, without exception individuals for whom life hasn’t gone the way they wanted it to, and their response hasn’t been to change and evolve, rather they have got stuck playing parts assigned to them many years ago. They live in a narrow world, one where other people rarely play a part and this gives a great feeling of claustrophobia and disappointment which co-exists against the stories told from years ago. Unfortunately this book had a vein of sadness running through it, despite being billed as a tragi-comic novel about hidden love and second chances, I only felt a profound sadness for many of the characters. For all that it is a book I’m glad I read, it kept my interest until the final page and I have a feeling that this one will be a book that it is hard to forget.

I’d like to thank the publishers Pan McMillan for allowing me to read The Ladies of the House which was published on 26 March 2015.

[Sid Nuncius · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't get on with this book. It is a good idea for a story but for me it wasn't sufficiently well written or structured to work as a novel.

It is revealed early on that the chief protagonists of the book are former prostitutes now grown old, and the book is concerned with their histories, their characters and what took them along the path they ended up on. It is also about attitudes to them both in the past and the present, and how humanity or lack of it may affect people's lives. It's an original and interesting idea and I was looking forward to reading this book, but I'm afraid I was very disappointed.

The problem for me is in the quality of the writing. Molly McGrann has a slightly stilted style in places which often feels rather self-conscious. Her descriptions of characters and their inner worlds felt forced to me, without delicacy or finesse and with little real insight. This, and the rather frequent use of stale phrases like "next thing she knew," for example, meant that they began to feel like rather crude stereotypes rather than well drawn characters. As a result, I began to lose interest in their stories.

The prose is too often awkward, especially from a "literary critic, poet, novelist and former editor at the Paris Revue." Take this sentence, following a (rather predictable) rant about people who strip all the character out of old houses: "So too would this house soon have that fate." I found that a badly structured, stilted and ugly volley of monosyllables which threw me straight out of the narrative, and the same thing happened in quite a few other places. It often seemed rather amateurish to me - including the ending which was intended to be moving but which I just found absurd in its ridiculous implausibility.

I'm sorry to be so critical, but I really didn't think this was very good. Others have obviously enjoyed it so do read their reviews before you let me put you off, but I really can't recommend this.

[Artemiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

After the Second World War, when everything was in short supply, there was more women than men and the ones that where left/come back from war, where maimed, injured or otherwise traumatized. But there was one man, who returned uninjured, even brought a wife from Italy with him and he started a very lucrative business - he collected houses and used those houses to make a business with ladies. Those ladies where not tenants of his, they lived in houses and earned their living on their back or in any other position that the patrons wanted. Arthur's Italian wife and his daughter lived in suburbs and knew nothing about his business. Arthur's leading lady was managing his most profitable house with two other girls - Rita and Annette. This was a house for movie stars, politicians and other big noses in post war London and ordinary johns had to save money for years to just be once with Sal's girls.

This book is a story about Arthur's wife Leonie, his daughter Marie and about Sal's girls Rita and Annette and Sal's son Joseph.

The way the life in post war London is described is interesting and the ilfe these characters lead some forty years later is down right depressing. Leonie has always been afraid of this strange country and her husband and now when the husband is dead, she is afraid of everything. Marie has lived modest life since she does not know about her fathers fortune. Rita is the only one from Sal's house who still has all her marbles, but she does not live in the house any more, so when Annette has another of her moments she is not here to find her, and Joseph is not fit to do things like that, he is not fit for outside world, he just likes buses.

Just one chance moment chances their lives.

It was a good read, although depressing, but still good.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story begins at the end, then tells us how each of those characters came to be where they are. The Ladies of the House are prostitutes or high class call girls as they call themselves. They all work for Arthur Gillies, who owns a string of brothels, unbeknown to his family. The other ladies whose stories are entwined in this book are Arthur's wife and daughter.

I never really got into this book. I found the story jumped around a lot between different character POV and also back and forth in time. I didn't really like or care about any of the characters. The writing style made me feel I was looking on from a distance more than part of the story.

This would appeal to people who like slow moving drama, historical fiction from the mid 1900's and literary fiction.

I recieved this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Priyanka Madan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a strange story of prostitutes who lived in brothels owned by Arthur Gillie. He was a married man that lived two separate lives.After his death, his only daughter Marie, reads about the death of 3 elderly people lovong in one of the houses owned by her deceased father and she somehow feels responsible for their death. And then the story is shown in flashbacks recounting lives of all these people.

It seemed as if they are chapters of different books, as the story didnt really connect as a whole. When I listened to the first chapter, I expected it to be a murder mystery. But it was far from that. Story was flat and boring. I couldnt care less about the characters. I finished this book for the heck of it. Ending was bizarre as well.

I can easily tag this as one of the most disappointing books I have ever read with no character building at all.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent writing that fizzes and snaps at you all the way through. Really a 4.5 stars

The characterisation is impeccable in this book, every character has depth and truth, and several are dealt with. I was never bored reading about each one. It's seedy and compelling and very evocative of the 50's & 60's in past flashback sections.

Those with a puritanical streak may feel squeamish, I found it fascinating. The life of high class prostitutes during and after their working life is done is handled honestly but with humour and no judgement.
This book reminded me of Muriel Spark's novels The Girls of Slender Means & Momento Mori - though both books handle different subjects. McGrann has the same black humour and melancholy compassion operating.

Will read more by this author.

[Lisa Bentley · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Ladies of the House by Molly McGrann is a strange little story about two families connected by one man: Arthur Gillies.
You have Marie and her mother who live quite a quiet and sheltered life but when Marie discovers her dad lived an alternative life that she had absolutely no prior knowledge of, she also learns that he is a multimillionaire.

In another part of London lives Arthur’s alternative family – Rita, Annetta and Joseph. They all belong to Arthur. Joseph – his illegitimate son lives with two women who used to be part f the ladies of one of the brothels that Arthur owned.

I can’t say that I loved this novel. Actually, I don’t think I even liked it. I found that I kept asking myself what the point of it was. When that happens I know that I reading a clanger. I read it to get the book finished not because I was enjoying the story.

The Ladies of the House by Molly McGrann is available now.

[Molly Farrugia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked in in the sense I found it interesting and wanted to keep reading but it had a general strangeness about it in terms of the characters, the ending and the way it was written. I did like the way it was written and like the dry humour. Some parts were a bit repetitive when describing the life of each woman. I found it difficult to imagine each character and their age. The beginning confused me at first. I found it a bit depressing in some ways and the endless food references annoyed me. I just found it a bit sad and weird. A bit of a strange read but I would reccomend if your into gritty post war fiction about people's weird and wonderful lives.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel I was missold this - the blurb was quite misleading. I expected an unravelling of the mystery of the three people dead in the house, but that's not what I got. There was no mystery, just coincidences. It wasn't a bad read, but it wasn't what I expected and I probably wouldn't have bothered if I'd known what is was really about.

[Judith Sulivan]

Hi what a lovely and funky specimen this is.

Takes us behind the scenes of grand North London homes and allows us a peek into lives that are hidden both physically within a building and narratively in the reshaping and remoulding of stories. We all do it to a degree and here McGrann gives us a personal tour into the truth and the truths tucked away in this lovely Primrose Hill home.

[Laura Tassoni · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know why I didn't massively rate this book. The situations were interesting, the characters were interesting enough, but they just didn't grab me. I nearly didn't finish, but ploughed on to the end, which is kind of predicted at the beginning anyway, so ... meh ...

[Jenny L · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of those (in my opinion) pointless stories. Disappointing to say the least.

[Balthazarinblue · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is less than 300 pages but it took me three weeks to read the first 50... It just isn't that interesting.

[Fran Dorricott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to Katie Green at Pan Macmillan/Picador. I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Having browsed through a few of the Amazon reviews available for this book, I’m seeing a theme emerging and an agreement with some of the points I am about to make. I think a lot of people were a bit disappointed with this book, and currently its average rating is only 3.6 stars (3 stars on Goodreads). Some of the reviews are a bit harsh, but I can see why there is such a mixture of opinions.

I don’t really know what I expected from this novel, but the story itself was a little convoluted and a bit removed from my expectations. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The novel tells the stories, primarily, of Rita and Annetta, high-class prostitutes who are still living in the brothel they have called home. Now it’s just a house, and they live there alone with Joseph (the son of the brothel’s leading lady and its proprietor). One of these women suffers from dementia, and the other is dying. Through a series of vignettes we get a sense of their lives, of who they are and how they have come to be living in this house together, even into old age. I think this novel is what I’d call, jokingly, a “Coming of AGE” novel. A good idea, just not what I was expecting.

What I liked:

1. The past

Some of the scenes set in the characters’ pasts are the most interesting. Although I like the retrospective telling of the story, the idea that these characters have continued to age and grow after their experiences, I found myself better captured by the scenes where Rita and Annetta were young, and where they were still struggling with the way their lives were unfolding. I felt trapped with Annetta in the dark world she had come from, and I felt sympathy for the young Rita who could never seem to get what she wanted most: human connection.

2. The writing

Molly McGrann writes beautifully, and I did enjoy her descriptions and turns of phrase. There were sections of the book that were very adept at making me feel very strongly, but sadly there was not enough of this beautiful writing to overshadow the problems I had with the plot.

What I didn’t like:

1. Older Rita

I quite liked young Rita. She was sparky and angry and clever, if vain and selfish. But old Rita – she is all her negative qualities multiplied by five. I understand that this is probably the point, and that I’m probably missing some big trick, but old Rita really just didn’t do it for me, and by the end of the novel I have to confess I wasn’t sad that she was dead. Oops!

2. The ending

Endings are a big a deal, and this one just didn’t cut it for me. I felt that the climax of the novel happened too late, while simultaneously being too short. At the end I felt a little cheated and dazed and I had to spend a good twenty minutes just thinking things through – but not necessarily in a good way.

~*~

The novel is perhaps a little ambitious, telling too many characters’ stories in less than 300 pages. I think it could have benefitted from fewer intersecting story-lines and more focus on each one. For instance, given that the blurb makes mention of this “unshakable feeling” experienced by Marie Gillies about the deaths in the house, I think I expected the book to explore her guilt or something more than it does. Marie, for me, was nothing more than a passing fancy. And as for Marie’s mother, and the scenes with Joseph… I actually had trouble remembering Joseph’s name, so I don’t think they really did anything for me.

But some of the scenes are wonderfully captivating and the writing really is beautiful. It’s only a short book, and I did enjoy it. I actually read it in one sitting. Definitely worth a read but perhaps ultimately not a favourite.

[Sam Still Reading · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes (actually, quite a bit) I feel really guilty about the number of eARCs I have from Net Galley to read. But recently I hit upon the idea of buying the audiobook to try and cut down my unread galleys and make me feel a little better. While it’s probably not an investment for everyone, I think it’s been good for me as it cuts out the ‘what should I listen to next’ dithering that I do each month at Audible. The Ladies of the House sounded like a bit of a different read, especially after seeing that cover! It did take some getting into the swing of which I think was exacerbated by listening rather than reading.

The story opens with Marie going to the airport, feeling rather guilty about the death of three women in a house. She’s never met them, so why does she feel this way? But it turns out that Marie is in fact linked to these women. As the story unfolds, you find out how this happened with the story alternating between Marie and the ‘ladies of the house’. For the ladies of the house, we find out how they came to be where they are today. Initially, we’re introduced to Rita, who is not only a looker, but rather crafty. Even in her advanced age, she’s still trying to earn some cash on the side through the personal ads (in between husbands). Sal’s story is a bit more straightforward, she was in love with Arthur, the owner of the house and Marie’s father. Annetta’s story was more painful and the images in the present day are truly sad, as she suffers dementia.

It was a little difficult to keep up with who was who, with the exceptions of Rita, Flavia and Marie. Rita is a real cracker, she’s feisty and never afraid to grab what she wants. I always looked forward to learning more about her life. Imogen Church is an excellent narrator and it was easy to follow when Marie and Flavia were the focus of the novel. Marie had a gruff, deeper voice especially when talking to mum Flavia – it had all those teenage frustrations grumbling under the surface. Flavia is Italian and exceptionally devoted to Marie (she calls Marie’s work when she’s half an hour late) – I felt sorry for her as Marie really didn’t treat her mother with respect, especially after the link with the ladies of the house is revealed to her.

The story is interesting, but I did lose track a few times along the way as the majority of the characters are introduced very quickly. I didn’t find Sal or Annetta’s stories particularly grabbing, although I think Rita’s story more than made up for it (what a wonderfully constructed character she was!). The jumping back and forth between characters too was a bit of a problem as I felt the storyline lost its flow. Whether this is a problem in the written book, I’m not sure. The ending was a bit odd too, I thought it might tie up some suspicions but it didn’t – not even a hint. But overall, this is a book that is written well and has enough quirkiness in it to make it stand out.

Thanks to Pan Macmillan for the eARC, I bought my own copy of the audiobook.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com

[Kate Vane · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel begins with the death of three people in a dilapidated house in London’s affluent Primrose Hill. Marie Gillies, on hearing the news, feels that she is somehow to blame. As the story unfolds we learn that they were all, in their way, under the power of Arthur Gillies, her father.

Arthur Gillies was a wealthy man. He made money from brothels, but his fortune was ultimately made by the bricks and mortar rather than the women who lived in them. His ‘business’ was a secret from his timid wife and daughter, even after his death. He allowed them to live in modest comfort but not luxury, expecting his wife to manage the housekeeping budget and his daughter to earn her own living, a sort of brothel-keeper’s Warren Buffett.

The book tells the story, through a series of flashbacks, of the women in his life - or perhaps lives - and the events leading to the death of Rita, Anetta and Joseph who were still living in one of his houses, decades after the women have lost their earning power.

There are some nice vignettes – particularly Rita who retains her spirit despite her age. The author captures the poverty of post-war London and the culture of Soho. She raises the question of whether women selling their bodies for sex was any more exploitative or degrading than selling their bodies to scrub floors or do back-breaking work in a factory.

Overall, though, the book feels repetitive. The voices of the prostitutes, despite their different backstories, all sound a little the same. The men who visit the houses are generic, perhaps a reflection of how the women see them. Life in the crumbling house in Primrose Hill, with its bleak emptiness, is bleak and empty. Arthur’s wife’s story of housework and yearning, is, like real housework, relentlessly monotonous.

There isn’t much plot and what there is doesn’t, for me, draw together the strands of the story. I waited for an injection of narrative tension. To learn how and why Rita, Anetta and Joseph died together and why Marie felt responsible. I expected them all in some way to confront the role Arthur had played in their lives and reassess it. But the end when it came felt a bit muddled and incidental.

The book is nicely written but this is a short novel which still felt too long.
-
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Ellie M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to the publishers for a review copy of this book.

I found this a difficult book to rate. I liked the story but felt that it didn't go anywhere. I think it deserves more a 3.5 than a 3 but I can't half star rate. That's not a criticism, but from the blurb I was wrongly expecting that this might be more of a mystery rather than a meander through a few people's lives, so in that respect I was a little "hmm, now what?" about the story.

The premise of the book was interesting - a woman is about to leave to go to Italy when she sees in the paper that three people have been found dead at a house in Primrose Hill, London. She doesn't know those people personally but she knows of them.

The three people living in the house are introduced to us - Joseph likes riding buses all day long, Anetta has dementia and craves the love of a woman she's lost touch with, and Rita has lost her beauty but she is still dating and on the search for husband number 6. We are also introduced to Rita, Marie and Marie's Italian mother, Flavia. The connection between them is Marie's father and his business dealings, and it is Marie who is leaving for Italy.

The book has sexual references, which is not unexpected given that the business dealings are related to a high class brothel. We hear the life stories of each of the different women and it is an interesting contrast between Flavia and the ladies of the brothel. We see the characters of Anetta and Rita have aged and they no longer ply their trade from the house, but instead live their courtesy of Marie's father. Marie becomes aware of her father's business dealings and realises just how rich he is, despite her and her mother scrapping a living to get by. It's not entirely clear whether Marie is aware who Joseph is, and that he is her step brother, and the son of Rita, the favoured lady of the brothel. I thought it was good that this was left unsaid.

Overall I enjoyed the story and the little vignettes about each character, but I found the ending a little sudden, and slightly implausible. I will read other works by the author as I thought she writes in an engaging manner.

[Angela Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Molly McGrann's third novel, 'The Ladies of the House', is peek behind the curtains of an upmarket brothel in London, and a fascinating glimpse into the lives of ladies who inhabit it. Marie's father Arthur died years before the action unfolds, and Marie lives an ordinary life with her Italian mother, Flavia, trudging off to work in her retail job day after day. But Arthur still has a shock in store for Marie and her religious mother. Dreaming of a holiday for herself and her mother, Marie approaches the bank to see if they have enough left over from their father's will to afford a small holiday to Flavia's homeland, Italy. What Marie learns is that, in fact, she and her mother are millionaires, owning over 20 houses all over London. But Arthur's will has been drawn up in such a way as to prevent them access to much more than their small allowances. Fortunately, Arthur's corrupt solicitor, Mr Wye, is more than happy to assist Marie in accessing the money. Her actions set in motion a chain of events that will end in the death of three people living in one of these houses. Who are they and why are they still living in one of the many houses Marie has now inherited? And more importantly, why won't they leave?

McGrann's novel is by turns sinister and darkly funny, a wonderful expose of social mores in post-war England. Arthur Gillies inhabits the seedier side of London, exploiting people's new found freedom. McGrann jumps from one character's perspective to another, revealing every facet of this sordid and sad tale. All are victims of Gillies' deception, fooled by his gregarious and charming nature. Some are vulnerable, some make choices and some never even know the nature of their own victimisation. Marie evolves throughout the book into a character who is barely recognisable by the end of the narrative. There is a moral ambiguity about her decisions that is very reminiscent of her father. Reminiscent of the likes of Sarah Waters, McGrann is very interested in exploring the sexuality of her characters, revealing the sensuality we all hide beneath the facade of suburban respectability with wit and ease. A sophisticated novel of greed and desire.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

*I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Perhaps I didn't read it right. Perhaps I stopped paying attention halfway through. But this book was not what I thought it would be about.

What I read was an intriguing novel of two families joined by odd circumstances: two separate sets of women linked by a lover/father who neither of them really knew. To his wife and daughter, he was a businessman who lived at home only on weekends. To his son and girlfriend, he was the high-powered owner of a chain of London brothels. I read this novel as a study of women and their lives, how they deal with family and understanding what love truly is.

But that's not what was described by the publisher. "On a hot July day, three elderly people are found dead in a dilapidated house in Primrose Hill. Reading the story in a newspaper as she prepares to leave the country, Marie Gillies has an unshakable feeling that she is somehow to blame. How did these three people come to live together, and how did they all die at once? The truth lies in a very different England, and in the secret world of the ladies of the house..."

Doesn't this sound like a murder mystery to you??

I'm here to tell you, this is no murder mystery. Marie ends the book with only a fraction more knowledge about her life than when she started. And really, the deaths of those three people (which are only really alluded to) have nothing to do with her story. There is no suspense in these words. There is no mystery. Everything is laid out like a well-told story. So I was slightly disappointed that I wasn't reading an intriguing thriller.

Otherwise, the book is enjoyable. My only criticism is the change of time from one chapter to the next can often be confusing. There is no delineation between past and present in many passages which left me struggling to understand the point of some of the flashbacks.

I wouldn't recommend this novel as it is marketed, but if you like an interesting look at women struggling with real-world issues, you will likely enjoy this book.

[Jan Hills · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some horrid characters but a good story line

[Vicky-Leigh Sayer · Rating 3 out of 5]

the Ladies of the house from its outset, is an intriguing novel. The opening chapter setting the scene for mystery that follows. A mystery, I felt as a reader that was never entirely cleared up, and left me wondering if I had missed something along the way.

the Ladies of the house begins in the present day with the discovery of three bodies in a London house and Marie Gillies at an airport for the first time in her sheltered life learning of the deaths via a newspaper. She feels in some way responsible for those days, but why exactly is that?

Arthur Gillies, Marie's father was a wealthy man, who kept his true worth from his family until he died, and even then it is only revealed by an inexperienced bank clerk. It is made clear to the family that they must never again mention Arthur Gillies' fortune, and instead must consult with Mr Wye regarding any financial matter.

But what does all this have to do with the bodies in the house? Well, as the plot develops it becomes easy for us the reader to see exactly how Arthur made his fortune (and why he thought it might be a good idea to keep it from his family).

Sadly it is less clear why Marie feels somehow responsible for the deaths that she reads about. And I'm still not sure whether I misinterpreted the ending of the novel, whether I missed something, or indeed whether there was anything for me to miss!

the Ladies of the house I think is a book that some will love. Me, well I'm still not sure, but it certainly was 'different' to anything I've read previously.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ladies of the House proved to be an inviting read. It tells the story of girls who worked as high end prostitutes in London after the war. Where they came from, how they came to be in that line of work and how they ended up living and working in the same house is the crux of this story. One man, Arthur Gillies, employs them, and stays weekdays with them, then returns to his wife and daughter for the weekend.

Each character's story is told reflectively from a retiree’s perspective. All except Marie, Arthur’s daughter, and Joseph, Arthur’s bastard son, that is. The difference in lifestyle and personal expectation from Arthur’s poor, long suffering wife, Flavia, to the well groomed and pampered working girls, Sal and Rita, is quite a gulf. He seems to love and 'care' for all these women but in very different ways. Some are happy with their lot in life, others aren’t, but all are left wanting more in one way or another. I suppose I would say this is a book about yearning.

I found the story a bit sporadic at times. We jump from various narrators, times (modern day to the past) and locations with no problem but at times the continuity seems off. The end didn’t really stitch up as neatly as the reader may like. The blurb about the story could have worked into the story to explain the end a bit better. The finale felt at loose ends and abrupt. A stronger finish would improve this story and bring closure for all the women we come to know very well.