The Tobacconist’s Wife

The Tobacconist's Wife

by AnneMarie Brear
Setting: England
Genres: Historical Fiction
Published on November 12, 2020
Format: eARC Source: Book Tour, From author/publisher

Having lost her father, Thea Goodson is alone in the world.
It is true she has a husband, but Ernie is a brutal man, more inclined to use his fists to keep Thea in line than to build on their marriage. And besides, Ernie Goodson has secrets – secrets that even his wife cannot share.
But in Victorian Yorkshire, appearances must be kept up, so Thea goes on powdering her bruises and forcing a smile as she toils in Ernie’s home and tobacco shop. There seems to be no other option.
That is, until a handsome and well-bred stranger arrives to set up shop next door…
Can Thea escape her misery and break from the conventions of society? Or will the clutches of her abusive husband confine her forever?
The Tobacconist’s Wife is the latest book from AnneMarie Brear, the highly acclaimed author of bestselling The Slum Angel. Perfect for fans of Catherine Cookson, Dilly Court and Rosie Goodwin.

This book pulled me in from the opening pages. Thea married a man who was kind to her father during his terminal illness. Immediately her husband changed. He started beating her for slights real and imagined. She has experience in helping her father run a store but her husband won’t take her suggestions seriously. She is only allowed to help out when he is too busy. She’s bored and miserable and starting to suspect that her husband has a second illegal business running out of the shop.

Some neighbors try to help her but she can’t see a way out until her husband is arrested and suddenly she has to make a life for herself.

I love historical fiction that makes you feel what it was like to live in that period. This book does a great job with that. The setting of the story is small enough to get a good sense of the neighborhood. You meet several different shopkeepers in the area and see their lives. There is also a star-crossed love story when a son of a wealthy family takes the shop next door to sell his furniture. His family absolutely does not approve of him going into trade. They really won’t approve of a relationship with the wife of a criminal.

There is a lot of violence towards Thea described in this book. That could be difficult for some readers.

I would recommend this book for any lovers of historical fiction, especially stories that have romance and a little bit of mystery thrown in.

Author Bio – Award winning & Amazon UK Bestseller AnneMarie Brear has been a life-long reader and started writing in 1997 when her children were small. She has a love of history, of grand old English houses and a fascination of what might have happened beyond their walls. Her interests include reading, travelling, watching movies, spending time with family and eating chocolate – not always in that order! She is the author of historical family saga novels. 

Book tour through Rachel’s Random Resources