The Girl From the Savoy by Hazel Gaynor
THE GIRL FROM THE SAVOY
A Novel
By Hazel Gaynor
William Morrow Paperbacks
May 31, 2016
About the Book
Presenting a dazzling new historical novel … The Girl From The Savoy is as sparkling as champagne and as thrilling as the era itself.
‘Sometimes life gives you cotton stockings. Sometimes it gives you a Chanel gown …’
Dolly Lane is a dreamer; a downtrodden maid who longs to dance on the London stage, but her life has been fractured by the Great War. Memories of the soldier she loved, of secret shame and profound loss, by turns pull her back and spur her on to make a better life.
When she finds employment as a chambermaid at London’s grandest hotel, The Savoy, Dolly takes a step closer to the glittering lives of the Bright Young Things who thrive on champagne, jazz and rebellion. Right now, she must exist on the fringes of power, wealth and glamor—she must remain invisible and unimportant.
But her fortunes take an unexpected turn when she responds to a struggling songwriter’s advertisement for a ‘muse’ and finds herself thrust into London’s exhilarating theatre scene and into the lives of celebrated actress, Loretta May, and her brother, Perry. Loretta and Perry may have the life Dolly aspires to, but they too are searching for something.
Now, at the precipice of the life she has and the one she longs for, the girl from The Savoy must make difficult choices: between two men; between two classes, between everything she knows and everything she dreams of. A brighter future is tantalizingly close—but can a girl like Dolly ever truly leave her past behind?
"Sometimes she is a Daffodil. Sometimes she is a butterfly. And, always, always she is surrounded by hope and love and adventure."Wonderful novel... truly exceptional writing! A story of loss, love, hope and adventures. Of letting go and moving forward and chasing your dreams no matter how out of reach they may be. I loved the imagery of the butterfly throughout. I am quite fond of the butterfly and all that it represents so this story truly wrapped around my heart from page one and didn't let go.
It is told from the POV of three people... Dolly, Teddy and Loretta. It is a moving story that takes you on a journey of slowly discovering the fate of the characters as they all face a future that was forever changed by war. They all dealt with loss very differently but it forever changed them and altered the path of their lives. The amazing web of details that are slowly revealed as the story progresses comes together beautifully in the end and left me feeling warm and happy. There are some truly powerful scenes throughout this book that brought on a few tears.
I loved Dolly and her desire to follow her dreams and her adventures. Her love for Teddy, her desire to be something more.
"Wonderful adventures await for those who dare to find them."
"Fly my little butterfly. Spread your wings and soar."
I don't know what else to say really except this book really made an impact on me. I have a total book hangover from reading this non-stop since I started it yesterday afternoon. Each page offered it's own poetry on life and how precious and valuable it is. My favorite line in the book:
"It's curious Miss Lane, how things are often at their most beautiful when they are at the end of their life. Shooting stars, autumn leaves. Nobody notices the leaves when they're all green and lush in the summer-only when they turn crimson and golden in the autumn. Perhaps we all become more colorful, more fascinating as we reach our autumn months."
It's true isn't it. Life becomes more visible and more beautiful when we find that there is less of it ahead of us. We begin to notice the things that matter the most. Our most valuable possessions are suddenly quite visible and treasured.
A wonderful story that will stay with me for a long time. :)
5 Shooting Stars!
Many thanks for the complimentary ARC of this book from the publisher William Morrow!
‘Sometimes life gives you cotton stockings. Sometimes it gives you a Chanel gown …’
Dolly Lane is a dreamer; a downtrodden maid who longs to dance on the London stage, but her life has been fractured by the Great War. Memories of the soldier she loved, of secret shame and profound loss, by turns pull her back and spur her on to make a better life.
When she finds employment as a chambermaid at London’s grandest hotel, The Savoy, Dolly takes a step closer to the glittering lives of the Bright Young Things who thrive on champagne, jazz and rebellion. Right now, she must exist on the fringes of power, wealth and glamor—she must remain invisible and unimportant.
But her fortunes take an unexpected turn when she responds to a struggling songwriter’s advertisement for a ‘muse’ and finds herself thrust into London’s exhilarating theatre scene and into the lives of celebrated actress, Loretta May, and her brother, Perry. Loretta and Perry may have the life Dolly aspires to, but they too are searching for something.
Now, at the precipice of the life she has and the one she longs for, the girl from The Savoy must make difficult choices: between two men; between two classes, between everything she knows and everything she dreams of. A brighter future is tantalizingly close—but can a girl like Dolly ever truly leave her past behind?
It is told from the POV of three people... Dolly, Teddy and Loretta. It is a moving story that takes you on a journey of slowly discovering the fate of the characters as they all face a future that was forever changed by war. They all dealt with loss very differently but it forever changed them and altered the path of their lives. The amazing web of details that are slowly revealed as the story progresses comes together beautifully in the end and left me feeling warm and happy. There are some truly powerful scenes throughout this book that brought on a few tears.
I loved Dolly and her desire to follow her dreams and her adventures. Her love for Teddy, her desire to be something more.
"Wonderful adventures await for those who dare to find them."
"Fly my little butterfly. Spread your wings and soar."
I don't know what else to say really except this book really made an impact on me. I have a total book hangover from reading this non-stop since I started it yesterday afternoon. Each page offered it's own poetry on life and how precious and valuable it is. My favorite line in the book:
"It's curious Miss Lane, how things are often at their most beautiful when they are at the end of their life. Shooting stars, autumn leaves. Nobody notices the leaves when they're all green and lush in the summer-only when they turn crimson and golden in the autumn. Perhaps we all become more colorful, more fascinating as we reach our autumn months."
It's true isn't it. Life becomes more visible and more beautiful when we find that there is less of it ahead of us. We begin to notice the things that matter the most. Our most valuable possessions are suddenly quite visible and treasured.
A wonderful story that will stay with me for a long time. :)
5 Shooting Stars!
Many thanks for the complimentary ARC of this book from the publisher William Morrow!
Purchase Here:
THE GIRL FROM THE SAVOY – https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062403483/the-girl-from-the-savoy
About the Author
THE GIRL FROM THE SAVOY – https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062403483/the-girl-from-the-savoy
About the Author
Hazel Gaynor is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of A MEMORY OF VIOLETS and THE GIRL WHO CAME HOME, for which she received the 2015 RNA Historical Novel of the Year award. She was selected by US Library Journal as one of ‘Ten Big Breakout Authors’ for 2015 and her work has been translated into several languages. Hazel is a contributing author to WWI anthology FALL OF POPPIES: Stories of Love and the Great War. As features writer for national Irish writing website writing.ie Hazel has interviewed Philippa Gregory, Sebastian Faulks, Kate Mosse, Jojo Moyes and Cheryl Strayed, among others.
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