The Housekeepers by Alex Hay – Book Review
Mayfair, 1905. The grandest house on Park Lane has just dismissed its housekeeper.
All manner of treasures lie behind the pillared doors – and scandalous secrets too. With the event of the season looming, nothing must go wrong.
But what no one knows is that Mrs King will be back at Park Lane on the night of the ball. She has an audacious plan in mind… and knows just who to recruit to help her clean up.
Housekeeper. Sewing maid. Kitchen girl. Thief.
Never underestimate the women downstairs.
The Housekeepers is at first a heist novel, detailing what happens when the servants have had enough of being the underclass, and decide to take what they feel is owed them. But it develops into something so much more than the sun of its parts. There are plot twists that I never saw coming, moments of tension that had me gripped, and a cast of awful and loveable would-be rogues.
Peeling back the veneer or respectability, Hay uncovers the glistening underbelly of wealth, and revels in the mischief his characters cause. His historical knowledge comes to the fore as we welcome a cast of wealthy and workers, each as alike as they are different.
Mrs King leaves no stone unturned in her quest to bring her version of revenge to the De Vries household, and the crew that she assembles seem to be as focused as she is in their plot to take on their enemies. The characters are wildly different in their reasons for wanting to be part of the heist, and the plot pulls you along at breakneck pace to find out what those reasons are.
While historical fiction is not usually my cup of tea, this is a superb debut novel and one that I am recommending to readers of all genres.
The Housekeepers is released on 6th July from Curtis Brown
