The Ferryman's Daughter by Juliet Greenwood
Genre: Historical fiction, Sagas, WW1
Read: 19th October 2020
Published: 14th May 2020
★★★★★ 5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
Can Hester help her family escape desperate poverty and fulfil her dreams?
1908: Hester always loved her mother best, her father had always been a hard man to like, spending more time (and money) in the local than with his family. After her mother's sudden death, followed by an injury forcing her father to give up his job as the ferryman, Hester is placed in the position of care-giver for her young brother and sister.
As the years pass Hester must row the ferry night and day to keep them all from starvation, while her hopes of working in a kitchen and one day becoming a cook, slip further and further away.
But just how far is Hester willing to go to make her dream a reality? And as the threat of war comes ever closer to the Cornish coast, will it bring opportunities or despair for Hester and her family?
A gripping family saga perfect for fans of Sheila Newberry, Glenda Young and Mollie Walton. Escape to the Cornish coast and discover a strong woman who will do anything for her family and for her dreams...
MY REVIEW:
Isn't it just wonderful when a book turns out to be exactly as you hoped it would be? That is how THE FERRYMAN'S DAUGHTER by Juliet Greenwood was for me. It was delightful, engaging and a completely easy read that I immersed myself into the early 20th century Cornwall alongside Hester to live and breathe all that she experienced. By the time I reached the conclusion, I didn't want the story to end. I wanted to stay there in that cafe overlooking the crashing waves, the lighthouse and the sweeping beauty of Cornwall.
1908: Eleven year old Hester Pearce and her mother collect apples, blackberries and a variety of other fruits to make jams and chutneys before winter arrives. Her father is the ferryman who rows passengers from Hayle to St Ives across the estuary while her mother, who was once a head cook in a restaurant as well as a Afalon, uses her cooking skills to make preserves and chutneys to sell. Her grandmother is head cook up at the big house Afalon, home to the Elliots. When she is not in school, Hester helps her mother keep house and look after her younger siblings, Robbie (8) and Alice (5).
Hester adores her mother and as she watches the swell of her mother's belly grow once again, she recalls the doctor's words to her father at the time of the last lost baby. Then her mother dies after yet another stillbirth and her father is badly injured in an accident, losing his arm, making him unable to continue to ferry passengers across the estuary. Hester is forced to leave school to keep house and look after Robbie and Alice as well as take charge of the ferry herself. At least this way she can keep track of the finances so they always have enough for food, coal and the rent man. Plus her mother's secret stash of coins saved from selling her preserves and chutneys.
But before she died, her mother gave her a book filled with all her recipes and made Hester promise not to give up on her dreams of owning and running a cafe. But what with keeping the house and their bellies full, how was she to follow her dreams now? Her family needed her...and she couldn't abandon her siblings.
Then her father, who drinks at the Fisherman's Arms every night (even moreso since his accident), hatches a plan with young Jimmy Hacknell to take charge of the family's finances once again. Jimmy, who seems to be spending more and more time at their table, has taken a liking to Hester and between him and her father they have decided that Hester will marry the boy, and putting Jimmy in sole charge of ferrying the passengers and therefore her father in charge of the money. But Hester has no plans to marry Jimmy. She cannot stand the puffed up tosser who loudly boasts to anyone within hearing distance of his grand plans to become rich and lord it over the fishing village.
Then war breaks out and Hester escapes to become head cook at Afalon under the employ of new owner Miss Chesterfield, who has turned the once grand house into a convalescent home for soldiers. There she puts her mother's recipes to good use in simple and nutritious meals for the men whilst training up young Molly as under-cook.
Before the war, Hester had bravely saved the life of Clara Trewarren, who tried crossing the estuary in a storm and nearly drowned. Since that night, Clara owes her life to Hester and becomes firm friends with her, despite the difference in their classes. Now Clara has escaped a life that is expected of her as a lady to Afalon where she assists the old gardener after the young gardeners joined up to fight. When injured men are brought to Afalon to be treated as the hospitals are full to overflowing, Clara then assists the VADs with cleaning and treating the men as best she can. At least this way she feels as if she is doing something more worthwhile than sitting around embroidering and waiting for a husband.
Although Hester is now safe within the confines of the big house, she still must be careful when she walks to the village and keeps a lookout for Jimmy who attacked her one evening when she rebuffed his advances. When Jimmy leaves for war, Hester breathes a sigh of relief that at last she's safe. At least Robbie is now old enough to take over the running of the ferry but he must also find ways to hide the takings from his father who will scavenge it to buy a pint or three. But when Jimmy suddenly returns announcing to everyone that Hester is fiance, Hester realises she will never be safe here and begins to make plans to escape the village and Jimmy's clutches.
As time goes on, Hester begins to wonder will she ever be able to fulfill her dream of owning and running that cafe she saw overlooking the beach in St Ives with her mother all those years ago?
I loved THE FERRYMAN'S DAUGHTER and didn't want it to end. I love the Cornish setting and the era when women were just coming into themselves with war taking the men away and women having to fulfill the roles they left behind. I'm not a feminist but I loved Hester and her determination to make something of herself without the aid of a husband. I also loved Clara who stepped out of the mould that had been shaped for women in her position to befriend Hester, a working class woman, and did more than just sit around looking pretty. Besides, I'm a sucker for books set in Cornwall.
A refreshing and engaging story from beginning to end, THE FERRYMAN'S DAUGHTER is everything I had hope it would be and more. Even down to the unsavoury villain. Will he get his just desserts? You'll have to read it and find out!
Perfect for those who love historical fiction sagas or who just want something to take them away from the troubled times of a reality for a few hours.
I would like to thank #JulietGreenwood, #NetGalley and #OrionPublishing for an ARC of #TheFerrymansDaughter in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
Having worked in London for nearly ten years, Juliet now lives in a traditional Welsh cottage halfway between the romantic Isle of Anglesey and the mountains and ruined castles of Snowdonia.
After studying English at Lancaster University and King’s College, London, Juliet worked in a variety of jobs, from running a craft stall at Covent Garden Market to teaching English.
Juliet began writing seriously about ten years ago, after a severe viral illness left her with debilitating ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for years. Juliet always says that M.E. was the worst, and the best, thing that ever happened to her. On one hand, it sent her from being able to walk up mountains with ease to struggling to do the simplest of everyday tasks for more than a few minutes at a time. But on the other, it forced her to re-evaluate her life and her priorities. And it made her a writer.
Juliet is now well and back to dog walking and working on her beloved garden. As well as novels under her own name, Juliet writes stories and serials for magazines as ‘Heather Pardoe’.
When not writing, Juliet works on local oral history projects, helping older people tell their stories before they are lost forever. She also helps aspiring writers towards being published.
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