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The Ophelia Girls
A mother’s secret past and her daughter’s present collide in this richly atmospheric novel from the acclaimed author of The Animals at Lockwood Manor
362 pages, Paperback
First published August 10, 2021
186 people are currently reading
7093 people want to read
About the author
Jane Healey
3 books255 followersJane Healey studied English Literature at Warwick University and writing in the MFA program at CUNY Brooklyn College. Her short fiction has been shortlisted for the Bristol Short Story Prize, the Costa Short Story Award and the Commonwealth Short Story Prize.
The Ophelia Girls is her second novel. Her first, The Animals at Lockwood Manor, was published in 2020 and won the HWA Debut Crown Award.
She lives in Edinburgh.
The Ophelia Girls is her second novel. Her first, The Animals at Lockwood Manor, was published in 2020 and won the HWA Debut Crown Award.
She lives in Edinburgh.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 378 reviews
November 20, 2025
On my blog.
CWs: grooming, adult-minor relationship, drowning, homophobia, cheating
The Ophelia Girls is a heady and consuming book, one that absorbs you into the characters’ lives and doesn’t release you until the very end. When you’re reading it, it doesn’t feel like it’s cold and wet outside, but instead, that you’ve joined the characters during the hot and humid summer(s) over which events take place.
The story follows dual timelines: one, the daughter Maeve, recently in remission from cancer, and two, the mother Ruth, whose return to her father’s house in the country brings with it memories of her last summer there. Across both, Stuart, Ruth’s old friend, who insinuates himself, first into Ruth’s life, and later into Maeve’s (and yes, I do mean that as sinisterly as it sounds).
Let me start with what’s good about this book. As I mentioned up top, it’s a book that consumes you. It’s a book you read, feeling as though you’re physically there. There is, of course, good and bad to that (the bad — for me, I hasten to add — I’ll come to in a moment), but primarily I think it’s a great thing. And because you feel like you’re there, you also feel the creeping sense of unease that permeates the book.
That consumingness, that realness, extends to the characters as well. None of them are what you might immediately think of as good or nice people — they’re selfish and often unkind (and really effing creepy when it comes to Stuart), but they’re probably one of the realest groups of characters I’ve read in a long time. And I think that contributes to the book feeling very headily intimate.
So, just where did it fall down for me? That would be in the whole grooming aspect. This is, of course, a wholly personal thing, and I think that it was actually very well done. You, the reader, feel the creeping uneasiness about Stuart’s intentions even as Maeve welcomes them (and feels that she is in control, and consenting). But, for me, as much as I can see that it’s great writing, that unease left me questioning whether I could genuinely say I enjoyed the book. This is why I’m saying it’s personal — it’s less that this book didn’t do it well, it’s that it did it almost too well, and I am not the biggest fan of reading about grooming, and adult-minor relationships (especially when they get sexual, like here). It probably also didn’t help that I went into this book unaware that that was a central plotline.
But I don’t think that should stop you reading this book. I rate a lot on how I feel about a book, so of course, something that makes me uncomfortable will get a lower rating. That doesn’t make it a bad book (very obviously the opposite here).
If, then, you enjoyed The Animals of Lockwood Manor, or if you’ve never read Jane Healey’s work before, then I would recommend this one.
CWs: grooming, adult-minor relationship, drowning, homophobia, cheating
The Ophelia Girls is a heady and consuming book, one that absorbs you into the characters’ lives and doesn’t release you until the very end. When you’re reading it, it doesn’t feel like it’s cold and wet outside, but instead, that you’ve joined the characters during the hot and humid summer(s) over which events take place.
The story follows dual timelines: one, the daughter Maeve, recently in remission from cancer, and two, the mother Ruth, whose return to her father’s house in the country brings with it memories of her last summer there. Across both, Stuart, Ruth’s old friend, who insinuates himself, first into Ruth’s life, and later into Maeve’s (and yes, I do mean that as sinisterly as it sounds).
Let me start with what’s good about this book. As I mentioned up top, it’s a book that consumes you. It’s a book you read, feeling as though you’re physically there. There is, of course, good and bad to that (the bad — for me, I hasten to add — I’ll come to in a moment), but primarily I think it’s a great thing. And because you feel like you’re there, you also feel the creeping sense of unease that permeates the book.
That consumingness, that realness, extends to the characters as well. None of them are what you might immediately think of as good or nice people — they’re selfish and often unkind (and really effing creepy when it comes to Stuart), but they’re probably one of the realest groups of characters I’ve read in a long time. And I think that contributes to the book feeling very headily intimate.
So, just where did it fall down for me? That would be in the whole grooming aspect. This is, of course, a wholly personal thing, and I think that it was actually very well done. You, the reader, feel the creeping uneasiness about Stuart’s intentions even as Maeve welcomes them (and feels that she is in control, and consenting). But, for me, as much as I can see that it’s great writing, that unease left me questioning whether I could genuinely say I enjoyed the book. This is why I’m saying it’s personal — it’s less that this book didn’t do it well, it’s that it did it almost too well, and I am not the biggest fan of reading about grooming, and adult-minor relationships (especially when they get sexual, like here). It probably also didn’t help that I went into this book unaware that that was a central plotline.
But I don’t think that should stop you reading this book. I rate a lot on how I feel about a book, so of course, something that makes me uncomfortable will get a lower rating. That doesn’t make it a bad book (very obviously the opposite here).
If, then, you enjoyed The Animals of Lockwood Manor, or if you’ve never read Jane Healey’s work before, then I would recommend this one.
August 18, 2021
Isn’t the cover of THE OPHELIA GIRLS absolutely gorgeous?!
😍😍😍😍😍😍
Well, that is literally the only thing that this book has going for it. Slow moving with a lame mystery component, this book really was a struggle because nothing really happened. We get a very very very uncomfortable sexual relationship development and some conversations about art. I wish I actually DNFd this one, but I felt that the slow building developments were going to possibly create a story that I felt could be engaging. Alas, I was bored. I would actually recommend not reading this one. 🤭
😍😍😍😍😍😍
Well, that is literally the only thing that this book has going for it. Slow moving with a lame mystery component, this book really was a struggle because nothing really happened. We get a very very very uncomfortable sexual relationship development and some conversations about art. I wish I actually DNFd this one, but I felt that the slow building developments were going to possibly create a story that I felt could be engaging. Alas, I was bored. I would actually recommend not reading this one. 🤭
July 13, 2021
The Ophelia Girls is partially set in 1973, when Ruth and her girlfriends spend their summer days taking pictures of each other in the river with flowers adorning them, reminiscent of drowning Ophelia. It jumps to 1997, when Ruth has a 17=year-old daughter, Maeve, and two young twins. Ruth is barely holding it together, partially from the economic expense of their large, old house. She did her best during the years Maeve battled leukemia, finally beating the cancer thanks to a bone marrow transplant from her younger brother.
When Ruth and her husband Alex’s good friend from their youth, Stuart, stays with them, Maeve feels seen as an adult and not the sick child she was for so long.
This is not a fast-paced book. The writing is good, but some of the content made me wince a little. It’s fun to imagine the social mores of 1973 and 1997 and how I might have flourished or not under those circumstances, but I didn’t find this a particularly enjoyable read.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES AUGUST 10, 2021.
When Ruth and her husband Alex’s good friend from their youth, Stuart, stays with them, Maeve feels seen as an adult and not the sick child she was for so long.
This is not a fast-paced book. The writing is good, but some of the content made me wince a little. It’s fun to imagine the social mores of 1973 and 1997 and how I might have flourished or not under those circumstances, but I didn’t find this a particularly enjoyable read.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES AUGUST 10, 2021.
May 20, 2021
In the summer of 1973, Ruth and her four new friends form a fascination with the drama and darkness of pre-Raphaelite paintings. Ophelia, in particular, captures their imaginations and they take to submerging themselves in the cold lake water and photographing themselves as the famed drowned female.
In the summer of 1997, Ruth returns to her childhood home, with her family, including eldest child, Meave, in tow. Meave, with her sickly pallor and auburn hair, is the image of Ophelia herself, and figures from Ruth's past also return to remind her of it.
This entire novel evoked such nostalgia for lazy summer days and created such a feeling of delightful yet dark whimsy. These feelings intersected to form a reading experience that was as captivating as it was unsettling.
Healey's penmanship also mirrored the dream-like haze of decadence but also decline that featured in the plot. I was enamoured with this split-chronological tale and eager to learn all the secrets its slow unfurling would expose.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Jane Healey, and the publisher, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, for this opportunity.
In the summer of 1997, Ruth returns to her childhood home, with her family, including eldest child, Meave, in tow. Meave, with her sickly pallor and auburn hair, is the image of Ophelia herself, and figures from Ruth's past also return to remind her of it.
This entire novel evoked such nostalgia for lazy summer days and created such a feeling of delightful yet dark whimsy. These feelings intersected to form a reading experience that was as captivating as it was unsettling.
Healey's penmanship also mirrored the dream-like haze of decadence but also decline that featured in the plot. I was enamoured with this split-chronological tale and eager to learn all the secrets its slow unfurling would expose.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, Jane Healey, and the publisher, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, for this opportunity.
December 1, 2022
2.5 stars
This is definitely not a book I would have voluntarily chosen to read if I had known more about the content. It depicts an incredibly uncomfortable and predatory relationship, which explores the power dynamics implicit within the observer/observed interaction. How can women claim self-autonomy and control when being observed through photographs? Can they define the ways in which they are perceived, or does that reside in the eye of the beholder? These were intriguing questions posed, despite the discomfort caused by the relationship.
It also examines the consequences of a society that expects heteronormative relationships to be the default. We see the internal conflict that one of the protagonists suffers when they experience attraction to their friend.
While I think the themes and questions implicated within the story were valuable, the plot itself wasn’t compelling to me and I felt that some aspects of the social commentary could have been more effective.
This is definitely not a book I would have voluntarily chosen to read if I had known more about the content. It depicts an incredibly uncomfortable and predatory relationship, which explores the power dynamics implicit within the observer/observed interaction. How can women claim self-autonomy and control when being observed through photographs? Can they define the ways in which they are perceived, or does that reside in the eye of the beholder? These were intriguing questions posed, despite the discomfort caused by the relationship.
It also examines the consequences of a society that expects heteronormative relationships to be the default. We see the internal conflict that one of the protagonists suffers when they experience attraction to their friend.
While I think the themes and questions implicated within the story were valuable, the plot itself wasn’t compelling to me and I felt that some aspects of the social commentary could have been more effective.
September 26, 2021
DNF @50%
I tried, I really did, but life is too short to continue reading a book that feels like it is a slog to get through. I found this story to be SO slow and boring. 🤷🏻♀️ I'm just one reviewer in a sea of many though, so look read other people's reviews before writing this one off!
**ARC Via NetGalley**
I tried, I really did, but life is too short to continue reading a book that feels like it is a slog to get through. I found this story to be SO slow and boring. 🤷🏻♀️ I'm just one reviewer in a sea of many though, so look read other people's reviews before writing this one off!
**ARC Via NetGalley**
September 28, 2021
This book was beautifully written, and Ruth and the other Ophelia girl's story was my preferred view. I found Ruth's development and Maeve's story line to be so heart breaking. Their interactions with each other and Stuart continually screamed red flags, making this a tough read for me.
June 1, 2021
This was not the book for me. I couldn’t connect with Maeve at all and found her relationship/fixation with Stuart disturbing way before the ending. Taking the Shakespearean Ophelia and a mother daughter relationship triangle was a disturbing dynamic.
Given Maeve was the primary focus of the book, sadly and regretfully, I just didn’t like her at all.
Given Maeve was the primary focus of the book, sadly and regretfully, I just didn’t like her at all.
July 21, 2021
Deliciously atmospheric and brilliantly constructed, The Ophelia Girls tugs at the reader from the very first page until its satisfying finish. Engrossing and rich in imagery, Jane Healey writes the way dreams feel. I loved it.
July 22, 2021
The Ophelia Girls is a sensual, captivating and intoxicating novel about art, illicit desire and the perils and power of being a young woman. In 1973, Ruth Hawkins had lived in a bucolic country house in Kent, England with her family and spent many a long hot summer frolicking through the countryside nearby with friends as they lived through their pre-Raphaelite phase. Drawn to the cold depths of the nearby river running alongside Ruth’s house, the girls pretend to be the drowning Ophelia, with increasingly elaborate tableaus. They were lauded as the Ophelia Girls by Ruth’s parents when they discovered the polaroids the group of friends were posing for and were very clearly heavily inspired by pre-Raphaelite paintings and age-old tragic heroines. But by the end of that fateful summer, both love and real tragedy finds them along the banks. Twenty-four years later, a middle-aged Ruth returns to the suffocating, once-grand house she grew up in after the death of her estranged father, the mother of young twins and seventeen-year-old Maeve.
Joining the family in the country is Stuart, Ruth’s childhood friend, who is quietly insinuating himself into their lives and provides Maeve with the attention she longs for. As a prominent and celebrated photographer, he is offered the guest living quarters and Maeve ends up posing for a series of suggestive portraits with Stuart sworn to secrecy. She is recently in remission, unsure of her place in the world now that she is cancer-free, she yearns for a safe place for her family to heal from their trauma and adversity together. Her parents just want her to be an ordinary teenage girl. But what teenage girl is ordinary? This is an alluring, seductive and beautifully rendered portrait of desire set against the backdrop of a rurally situated Gothic tinged estate that the Hawkins family have owned for many decades and that holds many memories for them. Alternating between the two fateful summers, The Ophelia Girls is a suspense-filled exploration of mothers and daughters as well as two daughters a generation apart. Highly recommended.
Joining the family in the country is Stuart, Ruth’s childhood friend, who is quietly insinuating himself into their lives and provides Maeve with the attention she longs for. As a prominent and celebrated photographer, he is offered the guest living quarters and Maeve ends up posing for a series of suggestive portraits with Stuart sworn to secrecy. She is recently in remission, unsure of her place in the world now that she is cancer-free, she yearns for a safe place for her family to heal from their trauma and adversity together. Her parents just want her to be an ordinary teenage girl. But what teenage girl is ordinary? This is an alluring, seductive and beautifully rendered portrait of desire set against the backdrop of a rurally situated Gothic tinged estate that the Hawkins family have owned for many decades and that holds many memories for them. Alternating between the two fateful summers, The Ophelia Girls is a suspense-filled exploration of mothers and daughters as well as two daughters a generation apart. Highly recommended.
June 29, 2021
This was very heady and bleak and melancholy, but I really enjoyed it. It was gorgeously written; I didn't mind the languid pacing because I enjoyed the writing so much. I had two issues that prevented this from being more than a 3.5 stars.
My first issue was with the framing device, the POV switch between mother and daughter and present/past and present, but I understand why it was necessary and I think the author handled it as smoothly as she could have, but I'm just not sure it worked as well as it could have had the mother's POV perspective been only in the past. My second issue was that the novel was sometimes very heavy-handed with its ~feminist~ themes; there were a lot of instances where the narrative explicitly said something that really did not need to be said, only intuited.
But otherwise I really, really liked this; it's such an easy, quick read (if a depressing one), brimming with complex and unlikable characters and fascinating thematic allusions to classics and mythology. I also really enjoyed the theme of flowers that emerged in both POVs.
My first issue was with the framing device, the POV switch between mother and daughter and present/past and present, but I understand why it was necessary and I think the author handled it as smoothly as she could have, but I'm just not sure it worked as well as it could have had the mother's POV perspective been only in the past. My second issue was that the novel was sometimes very heavy-handed with its ~feminist~ themes; there were a lot of instances where the narrative explicitly said something that really did not need to be said, only intuited.
But otherwise I really, really liked this; it's such an easy, quick read (if a depressing one), brimming with complex and unlikable characters and fascinating thematic allusions to classics and mythology. I also really enjoyed the theme of flowers that emerged in both POVs.
July 19, 2021
I had high expectations when I read the blurb and saw the stunning paperback cover containing lots of gold, plants and beautiful flowery details. The story had a promising timeframe (a sweltering hot summer in the 70s) and revolved around a group of teenage girls taking pictures of each other lying in the river dressed up as Persephone or Ophelia. Combine that with family secrets and a mysterious death of one of these "Ophelia Girls"... I was hooked. What the story delivered, however, were dull conversations between teenage girls, lengthy and often irrelevant descriptions, and a very slow plot that didn't turn out to be so exciting or mysterious after all. The revelation of the mystery was very underwhelming to me.
I was pleased to see that the story included references to art (Waterhouse, Pre-Raphaelite paintings), literature (Shakespeare's Hamlet and Ophelia) and Greek mythology (Hades, Persephone). These references tied into the plot, but there was nothing more to them than that. Don't expect depth or profound commentary on any of the themes either (e.g. grooming, motherhood, family dynamics, identity and young womanhood).
I finished the entire book (358 pages), but I didn't enjoy myself in the process. None of the characters were likeable, for example. As a result, there was no point to an epilogue in my opinion, because I couldn't care less how the characters were doing. The book focused a lot on descriptions of the group of girls in the 70s and Maeve in the 90s pretending to be Ophelia girls, which became repetitive and boring. I also figured out the mystery early on the book (the fact that Ruth didn't love neither Stuart nor husband Alex and had something against the scent of their perspiration gave it away for me). I wish there was something positive to be said for the climax and ending of the book, but to me it came across as overly dramatic and the revelation of other secrets were underwhelming.
Based on all this, I personally wouldn't pick up another book by Healey any time soon, but I can recommend The Ophelia Girls to someone who enjoys lengthy descriptions of who says what (no matter how mundane) and what the surroundings look like in minute detail. If characterisation isn't very important to you, you're OK with having no likeable characters in a book, and you don't mind switching perspectives per chapter and a slow, meandering plot, I'm sure you'd enjoy The Ophelia Girls.
I was pleased to see that the story included references to art (Waterhouse, Pre-Raphaelite paintings), literature (Shakespeare's Hamlet and Ophelia) and Greek mythology (Hades, Persephone). These references tied into the plot, but there was nothing more to them than that. Don't expect depth or profound commentary on any of the themes either (e.g. grooming, motherhood, family dynamics, identity and young womanhood).
I finished the entire book (358 pages), but I didn't enjoy myself in the process. None of the characters were likeable, for example. As a result, there was no point to an epilogue in my opinion, because I couldn't care less how the characters were doing. The book focused a lot on descriptions of the group of girls in the 70s and Maeve in the 90s pretending to be Ophelia girls, which became repetitive and boring. I also figured out the mystery early on the book (the fact that Ruth didn't love neither Stuart nor husband Alex and had something against the scent of their perspiration gave it away for me). I wish there was something positive to be said for the climax and ending of the book, but to me it came across as overly dramatic and the revelation of other secrets were underwhelming.
Based on all this, I personally wouldn't pick up another book by Healey any time soon, but I can recommend The Ophelia Girls to someone who enjoys lengthy descriptions of who says what (no matter how mundane) and what the surroundings look like in minute detail. If characterisation isn't very important to you, you're OK with having no likeable characters in a book, and you don't mind switching perspectives per chapter and a slow, meandering plot, I'm sure you'd enjoy The Ophelia Girls.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 30, 2021
I have issues with this book, none more so than the handling of the “relationship” between a GROWN ASS MAN and a sixteen year old…that no one really seems all that bothered about?! Except to place the majority of the blame on the women…who also blame themselves…and like, are fine with it? NOPE
I initially picked this one up because it was sold as a mystery, but that’s not really the main focus of the plot, and there’s really no mystery to figure out?
Also, this is dual POV and there is only one narrator for the audiobook so it’s next to impossible to differentiate the POVs.
I will say, I think there was some great writing in here, and I could be convinced to pick up something else from this author but this was a big nope for me. I’m not sure I could in good conscience recommend this one.
I initially picked this one up because it was sold as a mystery, but that’s not really the main focus of the plot, and there’s really no mystery to figure out?
Also, this is dual POV and there is only one narrator for the audiobook so it’s next to impossible to differentiate the POVs.
I will say, I think there was some great writing in here, and I could be convinced to pick up something else from this author but this was a big nope for me. I’m not sure I could in good conscience recommend this one.
March 22, 2021
This dual timeline tale of a mother and daughter — in 1973 and 1997 — proved too unsettling for me with a creepy relationship and a troubled mystery. Not my Shakespearean cup of tea.
3 of 5 Stars
Pub Date 10 Aug 2021
#TheOpheliaGirls #NetGalley
Thanks to the author, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are mine.
3 of 5 Stars
Pub Date 10 Aug 2021
#TheOpheliaGirls #NetGalley
Thanks to the author, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opinions are mine.
August 3, 2021
3.5 stars
In the summer of 1973, Ruth and her friends spend their time in the river pretending to be the drowning Ophelia and photographing the beauty and tragedy of the tableau. By summer’s end, one of the Ophelia girls will succumb to real tragedy.
Years later, Ruth returns with her own family to the once grand home she grew up in that is now beginning to crumble. Her young twins keep her busy but she cannot settle into a sense of calm even though her oldest daughter, seventeen-year-old Maeve, is in cancer remission and can be a typical teen finally.
Ruth’s childhood friend Stuart, now an adventurous war photographer, has also returned to the countryside and is showing Maeve the attention she craves. But this dangerous flirtation causes old secrets and obsessions to rise to the surface.
Alternating between two fateful summers in the lives of mother and daughter, The Ophelia Girls is a coming of age novel with a gothic vibe; romanticizing youth, obsession, desire, and the flirtation and thrill of secrets with the complicated bonds of family and their influence over our lives.
Thanks to Mariner Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Ophelia Girls is scheduled for release on August 10, 2021.
For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com
In the summer of 1973, Ruth and her friends spend their time in the river pretending to be the drowning Ophelia and photographing the beauty and tragedy of the tableau. By summer’s end, one of the Ophelia girls will succumb to real tragedy.
Years later, Ruth returns with her own family to the once grand home she grew up in that is now beginning to crumble. Her young twins keep her busy but she cannot settle into a sense of calm even though her oldest daughter, seventeen-year-old Maeve, is in cancer remission and can be a typical teen finally.
Ruth’s childhood friend Stuart, now an adventurous war photographer, has also returned to the countryside and is showing Maeve the attention she craves. But this dangerous flirtation causes old secrets and obsessions to rise to the surface.
Alternating between two fateful summers in the lives of mother and daughter, The Ophelia Girls is a coming of age novel with a gothic vibe; romanticizing youth, obsession, desire, and the flirtation and thrill of secrets with the complicated bonds of family and their influence over our lives.
Thanks to Mariner Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Ophelia Girls is scheduled for release on August 10, 2021.
For more reviews, visit www.rootsandreads.wordpress.com
September 28, 2022
Seeing all the reviews saying it was a slog to get through, I'm surprised. Maybe it is that I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was quite good. I really felt transported to the hot summer days and I suppose this book is a lot about vibes, too. Really well written.
Make sure you have a look at the content warnings, some heavy themes in here.
Rep: lesbian main character, gay side character
Make sure you have a look at the content warnings, some heavy themes in here.
Rep: lesbian main character, gay side character
Want to read
August 6, 2021Oh fuck I have an arc of this and it's about to come out. I cannot start ANOTHER book I cannot I will not I have to actually finish something okay pray for me
July 16, 2021
via my blog:https://bookstalkerblog.wordpress.com/
𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒚 𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆, 𝒎𝒚 𝒐𝒘𝒏.
I don’t normally mention the ending of a novel early in my review, but this one spoke to me. It was a moment of strength, of taking power back and yet nothing explosive nor out of the ordinary. A quiet moment loaded with meaning at an exhibition. It is the summer of 1973, teenagers Ruth, Joan, Linda, Sarah and Camille spend their free days photographing each other floating along the frigid waters of a river in the woods, striking tragic poses. Draped in ethereal dresses, embracing the cold lick of the river, there is power and beauty in the art they are creating. Flirting with death as they imitate the drowning of Ophelia, they become 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴. It is the one place they are free of the restrictions the world and their parents put on them. A place away from the gaze of teenage boys, who would never understand why this world they’ve created empowers them and would only lust after the erotic scene. No one is as free to be her natural self as Ruth, unlike her friends whose families summer at the surrounding houses, she is a permanent resident. A “well off” resident, raised by her strict, emotionally distant father who pressures her to be more of a lady, less of a tomboy and think about the future. Without her mother to guide her, there doesn’t seem to be much warmth nor understanding in her home, not a lick of loving attention from her father since she turned nine. In the river, she can escape the person he wishes she could be, and instead seek solace in the unique sisterhood they’ve created. It is also the only place her body comes alive, and belongs to her. It is in the arms of the river where they find glorious abandon. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴 are blooming, friendships forming tight as knots but the world and it’s tragedies isn’t as far away as the girls believe. Soon, they won’t have to feign tragic airs.
Stuart lives with his dad, the groundskeeper working for Ruth’s father, when he isn’t back in London with his mother. Straight away he is enamored of Ruth. Her father is grooming him for a career in law, naturally she is jealous of their time together, longing for Stuart’s undivided attention. Lacking the courage to confide to her father that she wishes to study art, there is comfort in Stuart’s friendship, always admiring and supporting her dreams. She doesn’t love him though, not like that. He is present that tragic summer that begins with the first photograph, taken by Ruth. There are secrets and confusions Ruth herself doesn’t understand, a death that follows her twenty-four years into the future, now married to Alex, the friend she and Stuart made at university. Their lives took separate paths, Stuart becoming a celebrated war photographer and Ruth and Alex married with three children- their six-year-old twins Michael and Iza and their seventeen-year-old daughter, Maeve. They are spending the summer back at Ruth’s home, after Maeve’s grandfather’s death, a place with twenty-seven rooms in the countryside which will be good for her. Maeve knows more about the shadow of death than most seventeen-year-old girls, having emerged from cancer. She has been schooled on the fragility of life and the struggle to see another day more than even most adults have faced. She may be in remission, but the fears, habits of illness seem to follow her with each waking day. Darkness isn’t so easy to shake off, how do you learn to live again and trust that the next day is waiting when you lay your head down and sleep? She knows far too much about how easily it all can end, how tenuous the link between life and death truly is. How can she fathom her own future, when it wasn’t promised before? What if she comes out of remission? What if she can’t build back her strength? Still so much a child, robbed of the freedom healthy children are afforded, and yet on the cusp of womanhood, she longs for something, what she can’t name nor explain. She is back at the place her mother had a whole other life, and with it a friend named Stuart who is about to turn their world upside down. He is just the eye she needs as a witness to being alive, someone who she can become someone else with, not just a former sick girl nor an average teenager but someone coming into herself, rooted in a mind and body desperate to bloom. A solid, beautiful thing. She also is beginning to push away from her parents, as the young do, as a means to discover who they are as an individual. Not quite a child, not yet an adult, but nestled in that space between.
That long ago summer, Camille once asked “How long do you think it would take for someone to come looking for us if we stayed here forever?”, the truth being that a part of Ruth has remained rooted there, had never stepped out of the river. Guilty over what happened, unsure how much of the cross is hers to bear, she feels forever underwater. There is a heaviness she carries, and now that her family has watched their girl suffer and heal, a miracle in and of itself, it’s hard to believe misfortune has left their door. Having spent every moment attentive to Maeve’s need, watchful over her health, terrified of losing her, she has a hard time letting go and believing they are done with the worst. She knows that you can’t stop the hand of fate, that you can’t outwit death. Her husband Alex’s reminder about their daughter, that “she’s fine” echoing in her head isn’t enough to comfort her. Now returned to her family home, the past is back and Stuart with it, his presence a reminder of who she once was and making her question the woman she tries her hardest, at present, to be. How has she become such a liar?
Something shockingly tragic happened one summer twenty-four years ago, and something transformative will happen again, but will it also have an air of tragedy? Of death? What does it mean for Maeve’s marriage, her friendship with Stuart, and more importantly, her bond with her beautiful, hungry daughter? How could she have forgotten how famished the young are and ready to fill themselves with the first experience that presents itself, often dangerous and forbidden? Some moments change entire lives, no one understands this better than her. There is a choice, to embrace your desires or deny them. Maybe Maeve isn’t the only one who has to figure out who she is and what she wants, nor is she the only one that needs to leave the shadow of death behind.
This is an intelligent novel about young girls and what they kill off in themselves for acceptance. It also about where they find power and how they decide to move forward, what they chose to build their lives upon. The most important story, I think, is between Ruth and her daughter Maeve. It is through her own daughter’s choices, the exploration of her budding sexuality, that she must face herself. Why does she feel like she is failing Maeve, as she has failed another before, dangerously so? There is also abuse of power and manipulation, vulnerability and misguided ideas. Innocence, awakenings, love, shame, guilt, confusion, and the journey into adulthood filled with secrets. Girls as victims of their desires, or the masters of them. Powerful stuff here. Yes, read it!
Publication Date: August 10th, 2021
Mariner Books
𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒚 𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆, 𝒎𝒚 𝒐𝒘𝒏.
I don’t normally mention the ending of a novel early in my review, but this one spoke to me. It was a moment of strength, of taking power back and yet nothing explosive nor out of the ordinary. A quiet moment loaded with meaning at an exhibition. It is the summer of 1973, teenagers Ruth, Joan, Linda, Sarah and Camille spend their free days photographing each other floating along the frigid waters of a river in the woods, striking tragic poses. Draped in ethereal dresses, embracing the cold lick of the river, there is power and beauty in the art they are creating. Flirting with death as they imitate the drowning of Ophelia, they become 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴. It is the one place they are free of the restrictions the world and their parents put on them. A place away from the gaze of teenage boys, who would never understand why this world they’ve created empowers them and would only lust after the erotic scene. No one is as free to be her natural self as Ruth, unlike her friends whose families summer at the surrounding houses, she is a permanent resident. A “well off” resident, raised by her strict, emotionally distant father who pressures her to be more of a lady, less of a tomboy and think about the future. Without her mother to guide her, there doesn’t seem to be much warmth nor understanding in her home, not a lick of loving attention from her father since she turned nine. In the river, she can escape the person he wishes she could be, and instead seek solace in the unique sisterhood they’ve created. It is also the only place her body comes alive, and belongs to her. It is in the arms of the river where they find glorious abandon. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴 are blooming, friendships forming tight as knots but the world and it’s tragedies isn’t as far away as the girls believe. Soon, they won’t have to feign tragic airs.
Stuart lives with his dad, the groundskeeper working for Ruth’s father, when he isn’t back in London with his mother. Straight away he is enamored of Ruth. Her father is grooming him for a career in law, naturally she is jealous of their time together, longing for Stuart’s undivided attention. Lacking the courage to confide to her father that she wishes to study art, there is comfort in Stuart’s friendship, always admiring and supporting her dreams. She doesn’t love him though, not like that. He is present that tragic summer that begins with the first photograph, taken by Ruth. There are secrets and confusions Ruth herself doesn’t understand, a death that follows her twenty-four years into the future, now married to Alex, the friend she and Stuart made at university. Their lives took separate paths, Stuart becoming a celebrated war photographer and Ruth and Alex married with three children- their six-year-old twins Michael and Iza and their seventeen-year-old daughter, Maeve. They are spending the summer back at Ruth’s home, after Maeve’s grandfather’s death, a place with twenty-seven rooms in the countryside which will be good for her. Maeve knows more about the shadow of death than most seventeen-year-old girls, having emerged from cancer. She has been schooled on the fragility of life and the struggle to see another day more than even most adults have faced. She may be in remission, but the fears, habits of illness seem to follow her with each waking day. Darkness isn’t so easy to shake off, how do you learn to live again and trust that the next day is waiting when you lay your head down and sleep? She knows far too much about how easily it all can end, how tenuous the link between life and death truly is. How can she fathom her own future, when it wasn’t promised before? What if she comes out of remission? What if she can’t build back her strength? Still so much a child, robbed of the freedom healthy children are afforded, and yet on the cusp of womanhood, she longs for something, what she can’t name nor explain. She is back at the place her mother had a whole other life, and with it a friend named Stuart who is about to turn their world upside down. He is just the eye she needs as a witness to being alive, someone who she can become someone else with, not just a former sick girl nor an average teenager but someone coming into herself, rooted in a mind and body desperate to bloom. A solid, beautiful thing. She also is beginning to push away from her parents, as the young do, as a means to discover who they are as an individual. Not quite a child, not yet an adult, but nestled in that space between.
That long ago summer, Camille once asked “How long do you think it would take for someone to come looking for us if we stayed here forever?”, the truth being that a part of Ruth has remained rooted there, had never stepped out of the river. Guilty over what happened, unsure how much of the cross is hers to bear, she feels forever underwater. There is a heaviness she carries, and now that her family has watched their girl suffer and heal, a miracle in and of itself, it’s hard to believe misfortune has left their door. Having spent every moment attentive to Maeve’s need, watchful over her health, terrified of losing her, she has a hard time letting go and believing they are done with the worst. She knows that you can’t stop the hand of fate, that you can’t outwit death. Her husband Alex’s reminder about their daughter, that “she’s fine” echoing in her head isn’t enough to comfort her. Now returned to her family home, the past is back and Stuart with it, his presence a reminder of who she once was and making her question the woman she tries her hardest, at present, to be. How has she become such a liar?
Something shockingly tragic happened one summer twenty-four years ago, and something transformative will happen again, but will it also have an air of tragedy? Of death? What does it mean for Maeve’s marriage, her friendship with Stuart, and more importantly, her bond with her beautiful, hungry daughter? How could she have forgotten how famished the young are and ready to fill themselves with the first experience that presents itself, often dangerous and forbidden? Some moments change entire lives, no one understands this better than her. There is a choice, to embrace your desires or deny them. Maybe Maeve isn’t the only one who has to figure out who she is and what she wants, nor is she the only one that needs to leave the shadow of death behind.
This is an intelligent novel about young girls and what they kill off in themselves for acceptance. It also about where they find power and how they decide to move forward, what they chose to build their lives upon. The most important story, I think, is between Ruth and her daughter Maeve. It is through her own daughter’s choices, the exploration of her budding sexuality, that she must face herself. Why does she feel like she is failing Maeve, as she has failed another before, dangerously so? There is also abuse of power and manipulation, vulnerability and misguided ideas. Innocence, awakenings, love, shame, guilt, confusion, and the journey into adulthood filled with secrets. Girls as victims of their desires, or the masters of them. Powerful stuff here. Yes, read it!
Publication Date: August 10th, 2021
Mariner Books
December 27, 2022
My interest with this novel really waxed and waned. I was very intrigued by Maeve's storyline of her being very sick and wanted more of that. I also liked the parallels with Stuart from the past story and the present.
This novel was excellently written. The language was beautiful and almost lyrical at parts. I loved how it focused so much on an artform (photography) too, as that felt fitting.
However, the gorgeous writing and the setting also made me keep forgetting that the newer storyline was taking place in the early 2000s (it read much more historical than that to me). This wasn't a major flaw, but it was a bit jarring at times when things like cell phones were mentioned and it just didn't feel like it fit.
There was some very sexy parts of this novel - the swimming, the forbidden desires and affairs, the photographs. Some of it was a bit racy and potentially triggering with underage girls but all in all I thought Healy handled those more illicit parts pretty well and without crossing the line too far.
It took me a bit to get into this (hence the waxing and waning), but once I did, I really enjoyed it.
This novel was excellently written. The language was beautiful and almost lyrical at parts. I loved how it focused so much on an artform (photography) too, as that felt fitting.
However, the gorgeous writing and the setting also made me keep forgetting that the newer storyline was taking place in the early 2000s (it read much more historical than that to me). This wasn't a major flaw, but it was a bit jarring at times when things like cell phones were mentioned and it just didn't feel like it fit.
There was some very sexy parts of this novel - the swimming, the forbidden desires and affairs, the photographs. Some of it was a bit racy and potentially triggering with underage girls but all in all I thought Healy handled those more illicit parts pretty well and without crossing the line too far.
It took me a bit to get into this (hence the waxing and waning), but once I did, I really enjoyed it.
March 5, 2021
Thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for providing an eARC of “The Ophelia Girls” by Jane Healey through NetGalley for me to read and give an honest review!
Jane Healey’s eloquent novel, “The Ophelia Girls'', is full of hauntingly beautiful and suspenseful moments from seventeen-year-old Meave’s present and her mother, Ruth’s, past as they both navigate their world as budding young women. Healey does an outstanding job alternating between the two fateful summers-- both taking place at the family’s grand summer house. While some moments might be unsettling due to the nature of the relationship between Stuart and Meave, I felt as though it told a truly complex and profound story exploring the relationship between mothers and daughters, clandestine desires, and what it means to grow up as a young woman. I found myself captivated by the fanciful but prudent storytelling, unable to put the book down, always wanting to know not only what tragedy occurred during the summer of 1973, but also how the events of Meave’s present summer would culminate. Overall, I thought it was a deep-seated tale, one whose aura reminded me of that of Jeffrey Eugenides’s “The Virgin Suicides”.
Jane Healey’s eloquent novel, “The Ophelia Girls'', is full of hauntingly beautiful and suspenseful moments from seventeen-year-old Meave’s present and her mother, Ruth’s, past as they both navigate their world as budding young women. Healey does an outstanding job alternating between the two fateful summers-- both taking place at the family’s grand summer house. While some moments might be unsettling due to the nature of the relationship between Stuart and Meave, I felt as though it told a truly complex and profound story exploring the relationship between mothers and daughters, clandestine desires, and what it means to grow up as a young woman. I found myself captivated by the fanciful but prudent storytelling, unable to put the book down, always wanting to know not only what tragedy occurred during the summer of 1973, but also how the events of Meave’s present summer would culminate. Overall, I thought it was a deep-seated tale, one whose aura reminded me of that of Jeffrey Eugenides’s “The Virgin Suicides”.
Want to read
July 30, 2021honestly, i trust my twitter oomfs book recs more than people from any other platform. and thats that. now gimme this book *grabby hands*
August 9, 2021
First and foremost if your not familiar with the pre-raphaelite brotherhood and their muses, google it. The paintings and the story is very interesting in itself.
The Ophelia Girls is about a mother Ruth, and her daughter Maeve. Ruth reflects on the summer of 1973 when her friends and she spend the days recreating famous paintings from the pre-ralphaelite models. After a childhood friend comes to stay with her and her family, it brings back it brings back long held secrets from that summer.
Maeve, Ruth’s 17 year old daughter is recovering from a terrible illness. Maeve is also discovering who she is and which path to go into becoming a woman.
The story switches from Maeve’s point of view and Ruth’s with dual timelines, alternating between the present(1997) and the past 1973.
This story full absorbed my attention and I felt as if I was physically there as the story unfolded. The Ophelia Girls is a slow burning novel filled with vivid imagery and symbols. Jane Healey’s writing is very unique from anything I've read before. I loved the incorporation of Art into this novel. Art history has always fascinated me. I also loved the Shakespeare rephrences as well as the nod to Persephone and Ophelia.
The only issue I had with this novel is the grooming of a minor by an adult. Personally, I have a hard time getting into books that contain adult-minor sexual relationships(even if the relationship is consensual between both people). The novel does give off a sense of dread and foreboding as the relationship unfolds though.I also feel like persons who are not familiar with the pre-ralphaelite muses, shakesperean themes, and the stories of Persephone and Ophelia will have a difficult time understanding parts of this book.
Overall I did enjoy this poetic, whimsical, and at times beautiful story. The Ophelia Girls is definitely one of the most original books I've ever read. After reading The Ophelia Girls I am dying to read Jane Healey’s previous novel, The Animals of Lockwood Manor.
Many thanks to Mariner books for the gifted copy!
May 12, 2021
⭐⭐⭐⭐
I seem to be running into deeply dreamy, atmospheric pieces lately and I'm not mad.
The Ophelia Girls is a dual timeline adult novel that glides back and forth to an idyllic and tragic summer of a woman named Ruth and, later, her 17-year-old daughter, Maeve who is recovering from leukemia.
The imagery in this was absolutely stunning. Harkening back to the Shakspearean story of Ophelia, there is symbolism at every turn. Ruth and her friends when they were young took great care in their clothing, the choosing of flowers, the way their bodies were positioned in the water, etc in order to create gorgeous and lasting images.
The writing was lyrical but not overtly so, and I enjoyed the flow of the story and the characters introduced throughout the way. I wish we had gotten more information on them as the novel came to a close. With all the the various (I won't spoil) hurts and wants, I wondered what life was like for them after the fact. I do wish that we knew who's POV was who's as the chapters turned. Sometimes, I was having to flip back to see where we came from, other times it was obvious. It just depended.
I was uncomfortable with Stuart and Maeve's relationship. The age-gap itself was its own thing, but also the power-imbalance of a girl recently recovering from a potentially deadly disease and a fully grown man who seemed to carry a torch for her mother at some point....not my thing.
This novel is full of aching sadness, it breathes from between each page and reaches out to grip you when you don't expect it. You definitely come away feeling something, even if it's not what you wanted.
*My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for gifting me with this arc in exchange for my honest review.*
I seem to be running into deeply dreamy, atmospheric pieces lately and I'm not mad.
The Ophelia Girls is a dual timeline adult novel that glides back and forth to an idyllic and tragic summer of a woman named Ruth and, later, her 17-year-old daughter, Maeve who is recovering from leukemia.
The imagery in this was absolutely stunning. Harkening back to the Shakspearean story of Ophelia, there is symbolism at every turn. Ruth and her friends when they were young took great care in their clothing, the choosing of flowers, the way their bodies were positioned in the water, etc in order to create gorgeous and lasting images.
The writing was lyrical but not overtly so, and I enjoyed the flow of the story and the characters introduced throughout the way. I wish we had gotten more information on them as the novel came to a close. With all the the various (I won't spoil) hurts and wants, I wondered what life was like for them after the fact. I do wish that we knew who's POV was who's as the chapters turned. Sometimes, I was having to flip back to see where we came from, other times it was obvious. It just depended.
I was uncomfortable with Stuart and Maeve's relationship. The age-gap itself was its own thing, but also the power-imbalance of a girl recently recovering from a potentially deadly disease and a fully grown man who seemed to carry a torch for her mother at some point....not my thing.
This novel is full of aching sadness, it breathes from between each page and reaches out to grip you when you don't expect it. You definitely come away feeling something, even if it's not what you wanted.
*My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for gifting me with this arc in exchange for my honest review.*
January 12, 2022
Absolutely stunning cover, shame I can’t say the same for the story itself.
To metaphorical surmise my feelings; You know that moment that you get in from a hard, long day at work, and all you want to do is put your feet up, make a nice warming brew and escape into the depths of a good book for the evening?
Well, scratch that. It ain’t gonna happen here.
Perhaps my expectations were set too high, but for a book tilited “The Ophelia Girls” very little -if at all, was one of Shakespeare’s most well known and (one of many I guess) tragic characters referenced.
As an art snob, especially when it comes to the Pre-Raphaelite era (one of my favourite periods of art history), I felt that Healey’s drawing of parallels to certain paintings and artists, came across disappointingly superficial. Delving nowhere near enough into the symbolism or similarities that she was so desperately trying to connect between certain figures -mainly Ophelia with Ruth and Maeve, and their shared complex, emotional and tragic nature.
I really don’t enjoy ‘hating’ on a book, so I will say that Healey’s writing -if a tad overly written at times, was very atmospheric and does well to represent themes of obsessiveness and suffocation when it comes to a young adults coming-of-age.
However, again, though these are commendable comments, the story itself was far too contrived and predictable for my liking. Especially when it came to the main arc of the ‘ethereal Ophelia girls’ and the ‘big mystery, surrounding happened on that “fateful summer”. Which was 1.) hardly explored in enough detail to keep me interested (let alone invested!) and 2.) when secrets and truths were eventually revealed, felt incredibly underwhelming and yup, you guessed it, predictable.
2.5/3 stars
To metaphorical surmise my feelings; You know that moment that you get in from a hard, long day at work, and all you want to do is put your feet up, make a nice warming brew and escape into the depths of a good book for the evening?
Well, scratch that. It ain’t gonna happen here.
Perhaps my expectations were set too high, but for a book tilited “The Ophelia Girls” very little -if at all, was one of Shakespeare’s most well known and (one of many I guess) tragic characters referenced.
As an art snob, especially when it comes to the Pre-Raphaelite era (one of my favourite periods of art history), I felt that Healey’s drawing of parallels to certain paintings and artists, came across disappointingly superficial. Delving nowhere near enough into the symbolism or similarities that she was so desperately trying to connect between certain figures -mainly Ophelia with Ruth and Maeve, and their shared complex, emotional and tragic nature.
I really don’t enjoy ‘hating’ on a book, so I will say that Healey’s writing -if a tad overly written at times, was very atmospheric and does well to represent themes of obsessiveness and suffocation when it comes to a young adults coming-of-age.
However, again, though these are commendable comments, the story itself was far too contrived and predictable for my liking. Especially when it came to the main arc of the ‘ethereal Ophelia girls’ and the ‘big mystery, surrounding happened on that “fateful summer”. Which was 1.) hardly explored in enough detail to keep me interested (let alone invested!) and 2.) when secrets and truths were eventually revealed, felt incredibly underwhelming and yup, you guessed it, predictable.
2.5/3 stars
March 4, 2022
Another book that I just absolutely LOVE the cover!
This book has several triggers: grooming of a minor, adult-minor relationship, drowning, homophobia, & cheating - and it's throughout the entire book.
This book is about art, desire, sisterhood, love, and hiding from those you love most. It is hard for anyone to ever really know someone 100% - but the characters in this book make it a mission to keep themselves, who they are, and who they love hidden.
The grooming and adult-minor relationship in this book was VERY disturbing to me. I know it happens all the time, but I just had never read a book written so detailed about it. The grooming of a minor absolutely disgusts me and I hate that in life it happens extremely often, but this book at least opened my eyes to how and why it's usually gotten away with - especially of someone so close to "legal" age.
I didn't love all the secrecy and innuendos in this book - but I get it. In life if you don't 100% love yourself, how is someone else supposed to love you? It is hard in life to be your true self, no matter what that struggle or secret entails.
Overall I would recommend this book based on just the writing style alone, and I really liked a few of the main characters and their stories.
This book has several triggers: grooming of a minor, adult-minor relationship, drowning, homophobia, & cheating - and it's throughout the entire book.
This book is about art, desire, sisterhood, love, and hiding from those you love most. It is hard for anyone to ever really know someone 100% - but the characters in this book make it a mission to keep themselves, who they are, and who they love hidden.
The grooming and adult-minor relationship in this book was VERY disturbing to me. I know it happens all the time, but I just had never read a book written so detailed about it. The grooming of a minor absolutely disgusts me and I hate that in life it happens extremely often, but this book at least opened my eyes to how and why it's usually gotten away with - especially of someone so close to "legal" age.
I didn't love all the secrecy and innuendos in this book - but I get it. In life if you don't 100% love yourself, how is someone else supposed to love you? It is hard in life to be your true self, no matter what that struggle or secret entails.
Overall I would recommend this book based on just the writing style alone, and I really liked a few of the main characters and their stories.
May 2, 2024
THE OPHELIA GIRLS
5/5 ⭐️
This historical fiction tells the story of Ruth and her four friends in the summer of 1973, where they recreate photos of the heroine Ophelia. The myth ends in tragedy and so does that summer.
Jane Healey has an impeccable writing style that had me obsessed from page one. I am a sucker for age-gap-romance, which is a little surprise that comes along with the story.
I loved how Ruth was not only portrayed as a mother but also as a struggling woman. It made her more realistic and less of a 'flat' character. I often feel like mothers in stories are these 'flat' characters. There should more to them than just being a 'mom'.
As someone who doesn't like flashbacks at all, the author did an amazing job at them. Instead of telling the past, it takes you back to 1973 using present tense. This was executed perfectly, so I wasn't confused. It truly felt like I was there alongside teenage Ruth.
5/5 ⭐️
This historical fiction tells the story of Ruth and her four friends in the summer of 1973, where they recreate photos of the heroine Ophelia. The myth ends in tragedy and so does that summer.
Jane Healey has an impeccable writing style that had me obsessed from page one. I am a sucker for age-gap-romance, which is a little surprise that comes along with the story.
I loved how Ruth was not only portrayed as a mother but also as a struggling woman. It made her more realistic and less of a 'flat' character. I often feel like mothers in stories are these 'flat' characters. There should more to them than just being a 'mom'.
As someone who doesn't like flashbacks at all, the author did an amazing job at them. Instead of telling the past, it takes you back to 1973 using present tense. This was executed perfectly, so I wasn't confused. It truly felt like I was there alongside teenage Ruth.
July 4, 2021
Really difficult to review this book, although the writing style was very good, I didnt empathise with any of the characters, disturbing storyline with Stuart having a crush on Ruth in 1973, and then in 1997 embarking on an affair with her daughter Maeve. For Ruth in 1973, her summer friendships which ended in tragedy was written about all the way through the book and then touched upon briefly at the end. I was also confused as she referred to 2 people dying but there was only 1 death?? Sadly not for me
Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review
Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 17, 2022
4.5 Het einde viel iets tegen, maar dit was opnieuw een fantastisch vermakelijk verhaal.
"Aan die middag bewaar ik de sterkste, de zintuiglijkste herinneringen: onze benen die elkaar raakten, onze armen die langs elkaar streken, dat ik haar zelfs als we elkaar niet aanraakten voelde door het water dat ze in beweging bracht, de golfjes die ze met haar armen maakte. Zelfs nu nog voel ik soms een fantoomdruk op mijn huid, heb ik koude plekjes op mijn lichaam, gaat er een trilling door me heen alsof de wereld één groot vat met water is en de koude echo's van haar trappende benen me nog steeds kunnen bereiken."
"Aan die middag bewaar ik de sterkste, de zintuiglijkste herinneringen: onze benen die elkaar raakten, onze armen die langs elkaar streken, dat ik haar zelfs als we elkaar niet aanraakten voelde door het water dat ze in beweging bracht, de golfjes die ze met haar armen maakte. Zelfs nu nog voel ik soms een fantoomdruk op mijn huid, heb ik koude plekjes op mijn lichaam, gaat er een trilling door me heen alsof de wereld één groot vat met water is en de koude echo's van haar trappende benen me nog steeds kunnen bereiken."
June 19, 2021
During the heat of summer in 1973, Ruth and her friends become obsessed with the image of the drowning Ophelia. They spend their days photographing each other in the river until one night, when everything goes wrong…
Twenty-four years later, Ruth returns to her fathers house with her husband and children, including her teenage daughter, Maeve. It’s supposed to be a summer of healing and renewal but when an old friend comes to visit, it seems that history is poised to repeat itself…
I LOVED this book.
It’s tense, intricately woven and the sense of setting is so strong that you can feel the press of the sun and the sting of river water against your skin.
It’s about secrets and lies, mothers and daughters and the power and the danger that comes with being a teenage girl on the cusp of womanhood.
I couldn’t put this book down and when I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it.
It comes out on 27th July and I’d highly recommend grabbing a copy - if you like your summer reads to have an edge to them, this is the book for you!
Huge thank you to @bookbreakuk for this gifted ARC copy.
Twenty-four years later, Ruth returns to her fathers house with her husband and children, including her teenage daughter, Maeve. It’s supposed to be a summer of healing and renewal but when an old friend comes to visit, it seems that history is poised to repeat itself…
I LOVED this book.
It’s tense, intricately woven and the sense of setting is so strong that you can feel the press of the sun and the sting of river water against your skin.
It’s about secrets and lies, mothers and daughters and the power and the danger that comes with being a teenage girl on the cusp of womanhood.
I couldn’t put this book down and when I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it.
It comes out on 27th July and I’d highly recommend grabbing a copy - if you like your summer reads to have an edge to them, this is the book for you!
Huge thank you to @bookbreakuk for this gifted ARC copy.
Read
December 19, 2022I truly do not know how to feel about this book. Though inherently clever—following the lines of a true shakespearean tragedy, undeniably—it also displayed incredibly uncomfortable and sickening things to the point where I can not find a proper way to review it. The grooming was sickening, the ending left me unerved, and everything on that end just kept getting worse.
The ophelia girls and their hauntings were beautiful, the rest was not—that is the best summary I can give you of this book. It is accomplished shakespeare, though this time I do not know if it is worth the suffering.
this review and/or rating might get altered in the future when I can make my mind up.
The ophelia girls and their hauntings were beautiful, the rest was not—that is the best summary I can give you of this book. It is accomplished shakespeare, though this time I do not know if it is worth the suffering.
this review and/or rating might get altered in the future when I can make my mind up.
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