The Girls Who Dared to Love

LoveReading Says

Two women lead very different lives in London as World War One breaks out in this epic historical novel.

Fans of Downton Abbey will love The Girls Who Dared to Love by Diney Costeloe, which is focussed on two very disparate women—one upstairs, one downstairs-- as Britain enters the war. Lucy, a newly married socialite whose husband gets sent off to the front in France, and Mabel, the accidental owner of a printing business who is trying to be successful in a man’s world. What the two have in common is they are both spirited and determined women.

The story is told from the both Lucy and Mabel’s point of view, and their contrasting circumstances is what makes this novel so interesting. The two have crossed paths before, in Costeloe’s The Girl Who Dared to Dream, where Mabel was a maid in Lucy’s household. But in this novel, they live very different lives. Royal audiences, debutante balls and transport by Rolls-Royce in Lucy’s case, and inky labour, crowded housing and transportation by bike in Mabel’s case.

The historical details remind readers how difficult women’s lives were at the time. Lucy is constrained by etiquette, including not being able to attend parties once she’s pregnant. Mabel is constrained by the provisions of her inherited business, which means that she needs to find two men to act as trustees. 

Like all good British lives, tea is the lynchpin of life, whereby no important decision takes place without it. This novel offers a real insight into women’s lives at the time. Highly recommended. 

Maureen Stapleton

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