Thursday Nights at the Bluebell Inn: Six ordinary women tell their hidden stories of love and loss

by Kit Fielding

' Kit Fielding's debut is a triumph. A story told with brutal honesty, underpinned by humour, love, hope and the inestimable power of friendship.' RUTH HOGAN, author of The Keeper of Lost Things

In every pub in every town unspoken stories lie beneath the surface.

Each week, six women meet at The Bluebell Inn. They form an unlikely and occasionally triumphant ladies darts team. They banter and jibe, they laugh. But their hidden stories of love and loss are what, in the end, will bind them.

There is Mary , full of it but cradling her dark secret; Lena - young and bold, she has made her choice; the cat woman who must return to the place of her birth before it's too late. There's Maggie , still laying out the place for her husband; and Pegs , the dark-eyed girl from the travellers' site bringing her strangeness and first love. And Katy : unappreciated. Open to an offer.

They know little of each other's lives. But here they gather and weave a delicate and sustaining connection that maybe they can rely on as the crossroads on their individual paths threaten to overwhelm.

With humanity and insight, Kit Fielding reveals the great love that lies at the heart of female friendship.

Raw, funny and devastating, all of life can be found at the Bluebell.

352 pages, Paperback

Published June 14, 2022

Reviews

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah what a book
I am so sad it ended, I loved all the girls and the stories.

[Rachel Noding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story but didn’t quite live up to the hype

[Christine Rennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thursday Nights at the Bluebell Inn by Kit Fielding is a fascinating story of six women who form a darts team at their local pub. They aim to win the trophy this year and we watched how they perform over the year. We also found out their secrets that they don’t tell anyone else. Some are sad stories and some are life moving on whether they want to or not. There is a dark humour and brutal insights into the women’s lives they don’t share with each other.
Highly recommended

[Natalie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really don't know what the point of this was. As far as I can tell, a bunch of emotionally damaged women meet up a couple of times a week to drink and play darts, then go home and do some long hard thinking about their miserable pasts. None of the characters are likeable or relatable, there is zero plotline and it's crudely written. Definitely could have done without this gamble of a read.

[Archob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a heavy novel that circles around the lives of six women. Some had happy endings but others had bittersweet ends. I loved the writing, narrating enough for the readers to know what has happened but not elaborating on the whys and leaves everything for the readers to either judge or understand. Definitely need to read something lighter after this.

[Nathan Hunt · Rating 3 out of 5]

i wouldn’t use ‘extraordinary’ to describe these women or the writing either. it started interesting but the writing lost its flair over time.
also there was a certain part of this book that was giving me very much colleen hoover energy and that’s not something i want much of xxx

[Liza Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow wow loved it what at amazing book

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this book… read it in 2 days which is amazing for me now!!!
Massive recommendation x

[Paul Ingrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant, life and reality in one book. Essential read.

[Janet Wiggins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gritty, funny characters in an absorbing story - loved it 🌟

[Deborah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved every minute of reading this book totally recommended

[GILLIAN · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic book that is so real and down to earth. My favourite book of 2022 so far .
Its funny, sad, emotional and true to life.

[Jackie Northall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant read, funny & emotional & shocking

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a 3.5 it was good nosey book into people's lives and their pasts, would of liked an epilogue to see how they get on a few months down the line, maybe there will be a book 2

[Katherine Nash · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sad but beautiful stories

[Claire Simmester · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sad and thoughtful book, that makes you realise how many of life's tragedies are caused by men and sex.

[Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's raw and brutal and sad, that's life for these women linked together by their weekly dart games. We get their stories amid a wash of alcohol at the pub where they play. We do not get romantic tete a tete's where they confide in each other etcetera but we see them dealing with their lives and their hurts and going on to play. As if the dart games, their team, their camaraderie whilst there is part of the necessary shoring for their lives.

[Maxine · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10
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