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A Shop Girl in Bath (Pennington's Book 1) Kindle Edition
Hardworking and whip smart, Elizabeth Pennington is the rightful heir of Bath's premier department store – but her father, Edward Pennington, believes his daughter lacks the business acumen to run his empire. He is resolute a man will succeed him.
Determined to break from her father's hold and prove she is worthy of inheriting Pennington's, Elizabeth forms an unlikely alliance with ambitious and charismatic master glove-maker Joseph Carter. They have the same goal: bring Pennington's into a new decade while embracing woman's equality and progression. But, despite their best intentions, it is almost impossible not to mix business and pleasure...
Can the two thwart Edward Pennington's plans for the store? Or will Edward prove himself an unshakeable force who will ultimately ruin both Elizabeth and Joseph?
Previously published as The Mistress of Pennington's.
What readers are saying:
'It was so interesting to read... I hope Rachel Brimble writes another book about these characters. Highly recommend!' Sharon Brewer, NetGalley.
'The story was a pleasure to read as the writing was so very good and easy to get lost in... It's a captivating read that touched my heart deeply and is currently one of my top 5 favorite books to have read so far this year' Clare Roden, NetGalley.
'This story [...] brought out the fact that hard work and determination pays and that you can succeed despite the odds' Mystica Varathapalan, NetGalley.
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherAria
- Publication date1 July 2018
- File size3758 KB
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First 3£8.97
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First 3£8.97
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All 4£11.96
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This option includes 4 books.
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Product description
Review
'This story [...] brought out the fact that hard work and determination pays and that you can succeed despite the odds' Mystica Varathapalan, NetGalley.
'The writing was strong, the characters well developed and the plot engaging. Recommended!' Malia Zaidi, NetGalley.
'Perfect for fans of historical fiction! ... There's a romance, there's interesting historic details, but best of all, there are the two characters - Elizabeth and Joseph ... A very good read!' Kathleen Gray, Netgalley.
'A captivating read that touched my heart deeply and is currently one of my top 5 favourite books to have read so far this year. A brilliant 5 Stars!' Clare Roden, NetGalley.
'A first class saga that is absolutely perfect to curl up with and lose oneself in!' Julie Bonello, NetGalley.
'A wonderful debut by author Rachel Brimble. It's an incredibly welcome one' Katherine Hayward, NetGalley.
'This saga takes you right through the doors of the department stores of history and how such places began and made their name in the world. Think Harrods, Fortnum & Mason and John Lewis' Joanne D'Arcy.
'I really did feel as though I had been transported back to 1910' Amanda Oughton, NetGalley.
About the Author
Product details
- ASIN : B07C8FZK6C
- Publisher : Aria; 1st edition (1 July 2018)
- Language : English
- File size : 3758 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 363 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: 68,020 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- 243 in Happiness
- 325 in Political Fiction (Kindle Store)
- 625 in Political Fiction (Books)
- Customer reviews:
About the author
Rachel lives in a small town near Bath. She’s the author of 30 novels, including the popular Shop Girl series and Ladies of Carson Street trilogy as well as many single titles. Her brand new WWII series is published by Boldwood Books and set in Bath. The first book, The Home Front Nurses released 8th August with book 2 coming February 2025.
Rachel is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and the Female Entrepreneur Association and also runs a manuscript & proofreading service.
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings, help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers enjoyed the book's captivating and exciting plot. They found the romance touching. The characters were described as strong and well-developed. The setting of Bath was described as lovely and researched details helped set the scene beautifully. The writing quality was praised as good and easy to read.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They describe it as an interesting historical fiction story with strong characters.
"...ideas about her life as she is a woman with her own mind, she is a strong and stubborn character that refuses to do her fathers bidding and fights..." Read more
"...I am not normally drawn into historic fiction, but I absolutely loved this book!..." Read more
"...A sweet and touching romance wrapped up in an interesting, period read that is truly engaging...." Read more
"...It was a joy to read, as each chapter captured and kept me gripped wanting to read more of the wonderful storyline, and interaction of all the..." Read more
Customers enjoy the romance in the book. They find it sweet and touching, set in an interesting period. The characters enhance the story and keep readers gripped.
"...Their romance is very sweet and endearing it not only adds some very light hearted banter between the characters it helps to enhances the story...." Read more
"...element really surprised me; I loved that the story is set in the suffragette era, where strong women where able to start hearing their voices...." Read more
"...A sweet and touching romance wrapped up in an interesting, period read that is truly engaging...." Read more
"...captured and kept me gripped wanting to read more of the wonderful storyline, and interaction of all the different personalities and characters in..." Read more
Customers appreciate the strong-minded and stubborn character Elizabeth. They love her strength but also her vulnerability.
"...life as she is a woman with her own mind, she is a strong and stubborn character that refuses to do her fathers bidding and fights him every step of..." Read more
"...I loved Elizabeth's character, her strength but also her vulnerability, in particular...." Read more
"...A strong-willed woman, fighting to gain control of the shop her father started. Lots of secrets arise. Definitely worth reading." Read more
"A great story of a strong minded woman. I kept wondering what she would do next and how she would achieve her goal. I loved it." Read more
Customers enjoy the book's setting, which is Bath in 1910. They find the researched details helpful for describing the streets and setting the scene well.
"...The setting of Bath is also lovely as its local to me so I could picture the streets and even where Pennington's would be...." Read more
"...and beautifully written, and researched detail help to set the scene beautifully. Thoroughly recommended!" Read more
"Set in Bath, 1910, fantastic historical romance!..." Read more
Customers enjoy the writing quality. They find it easy to read and immerse themselves in the story, with lovely dialogue and researched details.
"...The story was a pleasure to read as the writing was so very good and easy to get lost in...." Read more
"...Lovely dialogue and beautifully written, and researched detail help to set the scene beautifully. Thoroughly recommended!" Read more
"...Joseph Carter was her saviour. It was a very easy read and I found myself with Elizabeth all the way...." Read more
Top reviews from United Kingdom
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- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 July 2018Already being a lover of Rachel Brimble's stories, especially her historicals, I was so excited to get started on this the first book in her new series set in Edwardian England. The Mistress of Pennington's is set in 1910 at a time when women were still thought of as being incapable of having grand ideas of advancing themselves and of being equal to men, but this was also a time where small change was starting to happen and women were actually starting to fight for their rights, to get their voices heard and to be given the right to vote. This story features some of the struggles that women faced through the eyes of Elizabeth Pennington who tries to get her father Edward Pennington to give her more responsibility at their family store. Edward Pennington is a man very much prejudiced against women having any kind of position of authority, thinking that only a man has the intelligence to run his store and that Elizabeth should marry a man of his choosing for position and money. Elizabeth has other ideas about her life as she is a woman with her own mind, she is a strong and stubborn character that refuses to do her fathers bidding and fights him every step of the way. Joseph Carter is a forward thinking man that realises the changes that are happening and that there is a need to move with the times of the new modern era. He and Elizabeth bring forth those changes while trying not to fall in love. Their romance is very sweet and endearing it not only adds some very light hearted banter between the characters it helps to enhances the story. It pulls both of them emotionally in very different directions, and it leaves them both feeling guilty of where their romance will lead them and what consequences they will both face because of it.
This truly is my favorite of Rachel's books as she has totally outdone herself with her attention to detail and accuracy of the time period of which the book is set. The story was a pleasure to read as the writing was so very good and easy to get lost in. The characters were interesting and very well developed as was the plot of this book. It's a captivating read that touched my heart deeply and is currently one of my top 5 favorite books to have read so far this year.
A brilliant 5 Stars!
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 March 2019A fathers misdirected love for his daughter. A lonely man this is an affair of hearts and minds and shopping.
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 April 2020I loved Rachel's Templeton Cove series so based on that I decided to dive into the Pennington series. I am not normally drawn into historic fiction, but I absolutely loved this book! I think what draws me into Rachel's books are the characters.... I takes me no time at all to get invested into their stories and this book was no different. I loved Elizabeth's character, her strength but also her vulnerability, in particular. And the fact that I enjoyed the historical element really surprised me; I loved that the story is set in the suffragette era, where strong women where able to start hearing their voices. The setting of Bath is also lovely as its local to me so I could picture the streets and even where Pennington's would be. But as Elizabeth and Joseph walk around the store, I could smell it. Its a smell from my childhood (I am not that old though!) of a now gone department store where I grew up and I can still smell the perfumes, and picture the haberdashery department to this day. Thank you for bringing all that back to me Rachael. Book 2 and 3 already downloaded :-)
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 5 June 2019Elizabeth Pennington’s story is a reminder of how hard women had to fight, on every level, for equality. There was no nurturing, for this determined and rather stubborn young woman, from her father. A feisty, intelligent and very driven personality, she refuses to toe the line and marry a man of her father’s choosing. Elizabeth is out to prove herself.
When she meets Joseph Carter, a man who understands change is coming and is eager to move with the times, there are consequences to be faced. A sweet and touching romance wrapped up in an interesting, period read that is truly engaging. Lovely dialogue and beautifully written, and researched detail help to set the scene beautifully. Thoroughly recommended!
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 March 2019Thanks to NetGalley and to Aria for an advance copy of The Mistress of Pennington's by Rachel Brimble.
I quite liked this story. It was like a twist on the Mr Selfridge story. I found that the department store came to life and I enjoyed reading about how they ran things. I also liked the mystery aspect: Who killed Joseph's wife? I liked the two main characters. And I didn't mind the stereotypical Edward Pennington. That's what men were like in 1910, and the character of Robert Carter is a suitable foil.
Unfortunately, that's where it all stopped.
Throughout the book we're wondering will they, won't they? Yet every time they decide they won't, they actually do; and every time they decide they will, they actually don't. Fortunately, that story thread is resolved one way or the other by the end.
I didn't like the constant hinting that Edward Pennington was going to drop a life-changing bombshell. I didn't like the constant allusion to some kind of twist that never came. And I didn't like that we never did find out who killed Joseph's wife, despite this being a major reason for Joseph approaching Pennington's in the first place.
So I was left with quite the anti-climax – a major anti-climax in fact. And this meant the book, though very well written was, overall, disappointing.
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 July 2020I really enjoyed reading my first historical fiction, and Rachel Brimble book.
The story is set at the turn of the century, Rachel Brimble conveys the struggles and the inequalities through her wonderful characters Elizabeth and Joseph and the august Pennington's store so well.
It was a joy to read, as each chapter captured and kept me gripped wanting to read more of the wonderful storyline, and interaction of all the different personalities and characters in this tale.
I look forward to reading more historical fiction, and the next book in the series "A Shop Girl Gets the Vote".
Top reviews from other countries
- Book SquirrelReviewed in the United States on 14 February 2020
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring and enjoyable.
Set in the early years of the 20th century amidst the campaign of the Suffragette movement and aa growing awareness of the inequality of women in a “man’s world”, the story of Elizabeth Pennington’s struggle to be acknowledged as an equal by her father is one that captures the challenges and frustrations of the generations of women who worked together to change the way the western world operated. More than a hundred years after the events that frame the story, in a world that has changed so much and yet seems to have progressed so little at the same time, readers can still be inspired and challenged by the commitment and aspirations of Elizabeth and other characters in this book.
Magnificent and luxurious, the eliteness of Pennington’s department store in Bath and the exclusivity of its clientele provide Elizabeth both enormous opportunity and significant frustration as she fights to bring the business into a new century and to make it increasingly relevant to a rapidly changing society.
Through Elizabeth’s experiences as businesswoman, daughter, lover and friend, the reader is confronted with a number of issues that women faced, often finding them insurmountable, and thus gains a clearer understanding of why so many women fought so hard to achieve greater equality— not just the right to vote, but also to be treated with respect, to be able to make their own decisions, and to overcome all sorts of deeply-ingrained discrimination that plagued them.
Even though Elizabeth is of a much higher social class than most of the readers, she is relatable and believable in her frustrations and responses to the society in which she lives. The cast of characters are realistic and believable, presenting a fair representation and cross-section of the working and upper classes that existed in society at the time.
While there is some adult content, making it suitable for an adult audience only, this is a most enjoyable work of historical fiction that it well worth reading.
One person found this helpfulReport - ErinReviewed in Canada on 31 October 2018
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved It!
Loved the book and the story was wonderful.. would recommend
- Belinda ButterfieldReviewed in Australia on 8 January 2020
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it
Easy read and characters very engaging.
- LuluReviewed in the United States on 20 July 2018
4.0 out of 5 stars My How Times Have Changed (Or Have They?)
As women struggle to emerge into their own identities and step out from behind their male counterparts (be it father, husband or boyfriend) it is interesting to read how times have changed. Or have they? Still finding ourselves in a kind of "power" struggle, you read a story like this and think we've come a long way! It is interesting to note not only the division of the sexes and the classes, but how department stores played into this. Yes, women were hired to work behind the counters, but only that. The biggest fight in that upward movement was between Elizabeth Pennington and her father. A man who doesn't see or acknowledge her potential. An interesting story in the shadow of Downton Abbey, which I thoroughly enjoyed, as I have enjoyed reading this book. What really brings to mind is the fact that today these big department stores are now facing an uneasy future. Social media has taken over, and now we can shop online from the comfort of our homes. For myself, I still enjoy going out to the stores, shopping around, feeling the quality of the clothing and trying on garments. It is an afternoon
escape.
This book, for those of you who enjoyed watching the likes of Downton Abbey, etc. this book is highly recommended.
- Sandy HReviewed in Canada on 16 October 2018
3.0 out of 5 stars I finished it but only just
The book was very repetitious. Dealt more with the relation ship of the two main people over and over