A review by samturnspages
The Servant by Maggie Richell-Davies
5.0
TW: The book does deal with sexual assault and abuse.
It’s 1765. We meet Hannah, a 16 year old maidservant, as she is sent to the home of The Chalkes. Mistress Chalke is strict and Hannah finds herself alone, except for Peg, another servant who urges her to find new work before she completes a year. Hannah can’t understand what has terrified Peg and feels she must find out why. Not just that, but what are the secret auctions that take place upstairs behind the locked door? And what does her Master write all day? When she uncovers the terrible truth and understands how much danger she’s in - who can she turn to? Not Peg - she’s scared out of her mind! Maybe the friendly farmer, Thomas? Or maybe Jack the young apprentice she delivers her Masters papers to? Or will Hannah have to go it alone in a world not at all in favour of women?
This book really caught me by surprise. I was looking for my first book to read on my new kindle and saw that this was available on kindleunlimited. I was blown away by this debut historical fiction novel. Richell-Davies really captures the struggles of 18th century women to be seen, heard and respected. In Hannah we have the perfect protagonist up to the task. She is a realistic and likeable heroine of her time and you can’t help but root for her and want her to succeed.
There are some difficult themes that are dealt with (TW above) but the author has clearly given a lot of time and thought in how to portray these in a way that is, whilst uncomfortable to read, handled with care.
On the other hand, we do find a balance. Whilst we experience the harsh realities lived through by many women of the time, we also find hope glimmering in the darkness. We find kindness in small gestures. We find friendships in unlikely places.
This is clearly well researched and there are sources on the last few pages to read at your leisure.
Easily my second 5 star read of 2021.
It’s 1765. We meet Hannah, a 16 year old maidservant, as she is sent to the home of The Chalkes. Mistress Chalke is strict and Hannah finds herself alone, except for Peg, another servant who urges her to find new work before she completes a year. Hannah can’t understand what has terrified Peg and feels she must find out why. Not just that, but what are the secret auctions that take place upstairs behind the locked door? And what does her Master write all day? When she uncovers the terrible truth and understands how much danger she’s in - who can she turn to? Not Peg - she’s scared out of her mind! Maybe the friendly farmer, Thomas? Or maybe Jack the young apprentice she delivers her Masters papers to? Or will Hannah have to go it alone in a world not at all in favour of women?
This book really caught me by surprise. I was looking for my first book to read on my new kindle and saw that this was available on kindleunlimited. I was blown away by this debut historical fiction novel. Richell-Davies really captures the struggles of 18th century women to be seen, heard and respected. In Hannah we have the perfect protagonist up to the task. She is a realistic and likeable heroine of her time and you can’t help but root for her and want her to succeed.
There are some difficult themes that are dealt with (TW above) but the author has clearly given a lot of time and thought in how to portray these in a way that is, whilst uncomfortable to read, handled with care.
On the other hand, we do find a balance. Whilst we experience the harsh realities lived through by many women of the time, we also find hope glimmering in the darkness. We find kindness in small gestures. We find friendships in unlikely places.
This is clearly well researched and there are sources on the last few pages to read at your leisure.
Easily my second 5 star read of 2021.