The Girls’ Guide to Homemaking by Amy Miller

Amy Miller returns to the blog with another re-release of a clever and emotionally laden woman’s fiction title in

The Girls’ Guide to Homemaking

Juliet and Simon have been a ‘couple’ for a few years, and she’s convinced things are ticking along nicely. Until she discovers that Simon isn’t as commited to their relationship, having started up with her best friend. Devastated and wholly convinced that it was her at fault and not him, and still upset by her grandmother’s death, she retreats into an old “book for housewives’ that she remembered her grandmother frequently using. Depressed and sure that nothing is going to work out for her, it’s time for Juliet to take hold of her bootstrings (or apron strings in this case) and find her own path to travel.

Full of stories from her own past and family history, her fraught relations with her mother, her grandmother’s skills and, above all, the book and vintage sewing patterns that she started playing with as a way to ‘kill time and stop obsessing”, it soon becomes clear that Juliet needs to sort out much of the information that she had only seen through the eyes of a child, and recognize the death of her father and her mother’s desertion as a series of tragedies, none the fault of an eight year old.

Throughout the story, we see Juliet at her worst and best, finding friendships and answers to questions she was unable to face for years – new romance and new possibilities, including a new business that could combine her growing sewing skills with the fascination with ‘vintage’ outlooks, recipes and customs as provided by her grandmother’s book all allow us a look into the past with the modern sensibility and Juliet’s unusual spin on things. A lovely story for the characters, their challenges and the hope provided, with a lovely writing style that adds description, breath and life with ease.

The Girls’ Guide to Homemaking by Amy Miller

Title: The Girls' Guide to Homemaking
Author: Amy Miller
Genre: Contemporary Woman's Fiction, Family Saga, Friendship, Humor elements, Romantic Elements, Second Chance, Setting: Britain
Published by: Bookouture
Published on: 9 August, 2019 (Re-Release)
Format:eARC
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Pages: 295
Rated: four-stars

Heat:

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Single and definitely not ready to mingle – when Juliet’s heart is broken, she finds comfort in an unexpected place. As she unlocks a world of perfect meringues and cocktails at tea time, Juliet finally puts her life back together – one martini at a time!

On the first night with her boyfriend in their new flat, Juliet discovers that Simon has been sleeping with her best friend. After growing up in a dysfunctional family, and with secrets that haunt her, there's no way she is prepared to take cheating Simon back.

But then, heartbroken and seeking an escape from her troubles, Juliet discovers her grandmother's 1950s homemaking manual and she soon finds herself lost in a world of evening soirées and perfect soufflés. Taking control of her life once and for all, and picking up some new kitchen skills along the way, Juliet is determined to start putting herself first. But where will her new-found love of homemaking lead her? And who will she meet along the way?

A copy of this title was provided via Publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

About Amy Miller

Amy Miller is the pseudonym of Amy Bratley, who started her writing life working on magazines and newspapers. She has previously written three women’s fiction novels published by Pan Macmillan, the first of which was a bestseller in Italy. Her day job is being a freelance managing editor of both a vintage interiors magazine and a food magazine, two subjects she’s passionate about. Amy lives in Dorset with her husband and two children.

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