Blog Tour: Review of Christmas with the Shipyard Girls by Nancy Revell

by - November 02, 2019

Published by Arrow & Century, Penguin Random House
Get your copy here;


About the book:

Sunderland, 1942

Christmas is fast approaching and with it comes a flurry of snow and surprises… Against all odds, Polly’s fiancé has finally returned home from the front line. If they can keep things on an even keel, she might get the winter wedding she’s always dreamed of.

Meanwhile shipyard manager Helen is determined to move on after a turbulent year. Her sights are set on breaking the yard’s production record and no one, not even the handsome Dr Parker, is going to get in her way.

And head welder Rosie’s little sister Charlotte has turned up unannounced. Why is she back and so set on staying? Join the shipyard girls as they navigate through life, love and war this Christmas.


About the author:



Nancy Revellis the pen name of writer and journalist Amanda Revell Walton, who has worked for the national press for the past 25 years, providing them with hard-hitting news stories and in-depth features. She has also worked for just about every woman’s magazine, writing amazing and inspirational true life stories.


My thoughts:

A good series makes you feel like you are reuniting with old friends with every new book and that's exactly what Revell has created through her characters in The Shipyard Girlsseries.

I love that the series focuses on women in war time. So often it is forgotten how much they had to do in the absence of the men that went to fight in the war. Following Polly's story and her relationship with Tommy, we really get a strong feel for how the war affected people. The experiences they have in the war are so horrific that if they are lucky enough to return they are often changed and unrecognisable to their loved ones as the person who first left them. Polly has been through so much already and you really will there to be a happy ending for her and Tommy.

The story also addresses controversial activities at that time. The story following Rosie and her sister Charlotte delves into the dark world of prostitution. We are opened to the difficulties some families faced and the sacrifices people were willing to make in order to help their families. There is a lot secrecy surrounding Rosie's activities and Charlotte starts to become incredibly suspicious. It keeps you hooked seeing how their story will develop and a lot of tension waiting for Charlotte to discover Rosie's secret.

The beautiful thing about reading a series is watching the characters develop. There is an incredible transformation with Helen, who is a character that has till now been disliked. But in this story you start to learn a lot more about her story and you find yourself really understanding her as a character. It's a reminder that we never truly know about the difficulties others have faced and that we cannot always judged them for coming across as hard.

As always, I loved reading the stories of the Shipyard Girls... and with the added touch of Christmas in there it made for another beautiful story.

If you've read Christmas with the Shipyard Girls, or any of the previous books in the series, leave a comment to let me know who your favourite character is and which is your favourite book in the series!

Chat soon beautifuls,


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