Reviews - Mrs England | The StoryGraph

1.25k reviews for:

Mrs England

Stacey Halls

3.85 AVERAGE

axel_vms's review

3.75

adventurous emotional slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

enjoyed it even tho nothing really happened, the end was not rlly satisfying imo

Content Warnings

debby123's review

4.0

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

audrey2nams's review against another edition

4.5

emotional mysterious reflective relaxing medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

emily43's review against another edition

3.75

challenging emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

edanar's review against another edition

4.0

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

wjreadsbooks's review against another edition

3.0

Mrs England had an intriguing premise: a historical fiction novel set in the Edwardian times, where a newly-graduated nurse moves to West Yorkshire to live with a family that she knows nothing about. The book begins promisingly, as Ruby May declines to move with her original employer to America despite her love for her ward and her easygoing employers - why on earth would she decline such a thing? And then, she takes up an offer from the Englands, whom she knows nothing about. This decision comes with its own stakes:

"You're sure about the position? Once I write to Mrs England, the offer is made. I'll remind you that nurses who fail in three situations are invited to withdraw from the institute."

I bristled and sat a little straighter. "I shan't fail you again, Mrs Simpson. You have my word."

"Very well. I shall reply to Mrs England on my return."

"They sound like the perfect family," I said, trying to be bright.

Sim gave a dry laugh. "Nurse May, there is no such thing."

When Ruby arrives at the Englands' estate, it's clear that there's something wrong at the center of their marriage. Charles and Lilian appear estranged and Lilian, in particular, appears to be uncaring towards her children as she barely spends any time with them. As Ruby learns more about the Englands, the family appears to be headed to a breaking point and tragedy unfolds.

There's a tense atmosphere at the centre of Mrs England and it really sold the book to me, despite it having a somewhat predictable plot which is why I gave it a 3 star rating.

Spoiler

I'd already guessed earlier that Lilian wasn't the uncaring, callous mother that her husband had depicted her to be and that she'd actually been abused by him.

However, it also felt like there were certain plot points that were abandoned halfway.

Spoiler

Ruby appears to have somewhat of a fledgling relationship with Saul Booth, newly married to one of the Englands' former maids, but then this plot is sort of left out? Moreover, Charles England also makes a move on Ruby (in a way) but this also isn't really addressed. Both of these plotlines left me feeling uncomfortable and unsure about what Stacey Halls was trying to express.

What saved the book was its palpably tense atmosphere, which I've mentioned earlier, and I also thought that Ruby's backstory was a huge twist that I didn't see coming.

Spoiler

I was shocked that her father had tried to kill her, which was why she had been avoiding his letters despite her sister's request for her to read them.