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Harriet Evans

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The Beloved Girls Kindle Edition

by Harriet Evans (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.0 3,510 ratings

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"It's a funny old house. They have this ceremony every summer . . . There's an old chapel, in the grounds of the house. It's half-derelict. The Hunters keep bees in there. Every year, on the same day, the family processes to the chapel. They open the combs, taste the honey. Take it back to the house. Half for them -" my father winced, as though he had bitten down on a sore tooth. "And half for us."

Catherine, a successful barrister, vanishes from a train station on the eve of her anniversary. Is it because she saw a figure - someone she believed long dead? Or was it a shadow cast by her troubled, fractured mind?
The answer lies buried in the past. It lies in the events of the hot, seismic summer of 1989, at Vanes - a mysterious West Country manor house - where a young girl, Jane Lestrange, arrives to stay with the gilded, grand Hunter family, and where a devastating tragedy will unfold. Over the summer, as an ancient family ritual looms closer, Janey falls for each member of the family in turn. She and Kitty, the eldest daughter of the house, will forge a bond that decades later, is still shaping the present . . .

'We need the bees to survive, and they need us to survive. Once you understand that, you understand the history of Vanes, you understand our family.'

Editorial Reviews

Review

A gorgeous epic... Wholly absorbing. I adored it.-- "Marian Keyes, bestselling author"

About the Author

Harriet Evans is the author of several top ten bestsellers including the Sunday Times bestselling The Garden of Lost and Found and Richard and Judy bookclub selection The Wildflowers. She used to work in publishing and now writes full time, when she is not being distracted by her children, other books, sewing projects, puzzles, gardening, and her much-loved collection of jumpsuits. Last year, she and her family moved from London to Bath.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09FJN3ZN6
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grand Central Publishing (May 10, 2022)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 10, 2022
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1708 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 465 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #1,146,348 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,669 in Women's Sagas
- #5,713 in Psychological Fiction (Kindle Store)
- #10,093 in Psychological Thrillers (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
4.0 3,510 ratings

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Harriet Evans

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Hello there! I'm the author of thirteen novels, two of them are Richard and Judy book club selections, several have been Top Ten Bestsellers, one won the Good Housekeeping Book of the year prize, but the accolade I'm most proud of is the lady on Twitter who wrote last month that she thought my books were real 'knicker grippers'. I suppose that's all you can hope for isn't it?

I was an editor in publishing working with lots of lovely authors for years but always wanted to write. My first novel, Going Home, came out in 2005 and my latest, The Beloved Girls, was published in paperback in April 2022. I wish I'd written more novels only it takes me longer than I think to write them, and I had babies at various points who don't get the whole 'I need to write for five hours now'. And the thing no one tells you is writing them gets harder, not easier, and sometimes I wish I did another job except I can't imagine not writing. I have written since I was a child, first on books I stapled together with paper then notebooks then a laptop that crashed and lost all of the novel I was writing in secret back in 2002. (So now I back my work up properly). Inbetween that I studied Classics at university which means I know all about Greek Gods and can win pub quizzes, worked in publishing as a very bad secretary and once had to make a cup of tea for Harry Enfield and shook hands with Lauren Bacall. I edited the late great Penny Vincenzi which was the highlight of my career, and I had some children. In 2019 I moved out of London, to Bath, city of the greatest lady novelist of all, Jane Austen. I love living here so much and I especially love seeing everyone back in the city post pandemic. (Also I love the fact you just randomly walk past people dressed in bonnets all the time and I'm never sure if they're extras from something or just really into the Jane Austen / Bridgerton thing)

My first novels were more about relationships and people in London and had more chicklit themes and the later ones are darker and more about families and secrets and houses and the past. Those themes have always been in my books, but as i've grown older I've enjoyed exploring them more. I have so many stories in my head all the time and I adore knowing that my job means that I can carry on telling them.

I am finishing my latest novel now. If you ask me how I'd describe my books I'd say I want them to be gripping, involving, heartwarming stories about families and mysteries in the past with a Gothic tinge. My favourite novelists are Penny, Rosamunde Pilcher, Daphne du Maurier and Elizabeth Jane Howard. Please, if you read one, do get in touch. I'm on Twitter at @harrietevans Facebook at @harrietevansauthor and Instagram as @harrietevansauthor too. Take care, and happy reading, Harrie x

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kathleen g

a good read

Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2022

When Catherine disappears in 2018, it sets the stage for an exploration of family secrets that span three time frames-2018, 1989, and 1959. The Hunter family has a ritual every summer - taking the honey from bee hives. Janey who stayed with them in the 1980s found herself fascinated by the family and Vanes the house where they live. This is a big immersive novel which is hard to synopsize but easy to enjoy. It's creepy and entertaining with good characters and atmospherics. Know that the male characters (especially the father) are less engaging, to put it mildly, than the female characters, who are sympathetic. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2022

The Beloved Girls is a dark family drama that rewinds the clock on Catherine following a loss in a high profile case. She starts seeing a girl or perhaps the ghost of a girl from her past that she is sure is dead. She finally cracks and runs from her life trying to finally get ahold of just what happened to her. We then go back to 1989 to get an understanding of why she is struggling and just what happened that year. We take one more trip back in time to 1959 to see how her and her family became intertwined with the Hunter family. We then go back forward in time to 1989 and 2018 to get some answers to the build up of questions and drama that has been building during these rewinds.

Many of the characters in this book are hard to get a full read on, should we hate them, should we love them? What are their motives, why are they the way they are?

I much preferred the past sections of the book as compared to the present day. I understand the present day was necessary for the book to come full circle but those portions felt a bit out of place as they were not set in the shadows of "The Collection".

I recommend this to fans of atmospheric, dark family dramas that are okay with the story coming at you in pieces as you go. It is not a fast past book but one that keeps you reading to find the full story.

One person found this helpful

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Christine Moore

A good mystery book

Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2022

Catherine disappears from the train station. Where is she? Where did she go? The answers are full of secrets and hidden in the past. There is a lot of filler parts and I lost interest sometimes and just skimmed pages but all in all it's a good mystery read. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2022

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the eARC.
This book swept me away, I loved it!
The two main protagonists are Janey and Kitty, both emotionally damaged, find each other like long-lost sisters. Kitty's family is dysfunctional, but Janey badly wants to be part of it, though never feeling included. The men of the family, father Charles and Kitty's twin, Josh, are not particularly likeable. I actually found Charles awful; a bully who rules the family with an iron fist. The mother, Sylvia, was likeable, but weak. I felt sorry for her.
The most important time of the year is The Collecting, an ancient family ritual that involves the bees who live on their property. This ritual has caused lives to be lost, something that's not discussed and I felt doom lurking. Lives will be changed forever.
This story is so different, it was terrific reading something that wasn't the same old, same old. Great stuff. Highly recommended, 5 firm stars!

Reviewed in the United States on May 10, 2022

The Beloved Girls was an enjoyable Gothic mystery. I have enjoyed Harriet Evans’ previous books and was happy to receive a copy of her latest.

The story takes place in three different time periods and revolves around the strange Hunter family of Vanes house. In the 5o’s it tells the story of Simon Lestrange and Sylvia Raverat, later Hunter. In the 1980’s Simon’s daughter Janey and Sylvia’s children Kitty, Joss and Melissa (Merry) Hunter, and Catherine Christophe in 2018. The story slowly unravels how the different people interconnect and what happened that long ago summer of 1989 to Janey and Kitty, the Beloved Girls. The Hunters have a strange ritual that they enact yearly, the gathering of the honey from the wild bees that live in the chapel on their estate. The summer of 1989, Janey participates with tragic consequences. In 2018, Catherine is a successful barrister, married with two children who suddenly disappears without a trace, How does her disappearance relate to the tragic occurrences of that long ago summer?

I really enjoyed this book, the different perspectives of the characters and the ties that bound them.

Thanks to Netgalley, Grand Central Publishing and the author for the chance to read and review this book.

Helpful

ThePageLadies

mystery and the intrigue

Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2022

This is my first read by Harriet Evans and I really enjoyed this sometimes creepy but addictive story! There's dark family secrets and an outsider trying to fit in. There were a few times this book had me feeling the chills down my spine. The story moves back and forth in timelines from the 50s to the 80s and shifts character points of view. But it makes for a great build up! You see the past build into the present of Catherine's disappearance. The pace was nice for me and I can't say that I really connected with any of the characters but I did enjoy them especially Sylvia. I did form an idea of the who and when everything happened but not the why but this didn't take away from the story for me if anything it m0ade me want to read faster to understand why it happened. The book has a goth feel which I wasn't expecting. Overall I truly enjoyed the mystery and the intrigue and that sense of foreboding the story gives!

Reviewed in the United States on July 6, 2022

There is a lot to this story about privileged youth, elitism, belonging and tradition. I don’t know that I particularly liked it but I keep thinking about the bees!

Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2022

An atmospheric Gothic read that pulls at your heartstrings. Told over several decades , this family tale of dark traditions and unhappy people was a well written tight novel.

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M. Fraser

Dark, Unsettling and absolutely AMAZING!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 15, 2021

Verified Purchase

As with a lot of Harriet’s book’s it’s really difficult to try and summarise the synopsis without spoilers as they are always so complexly written, but I am going to give it a shot with this one….!

Catherine has it all but her past is rapidly catching up with her and she is beginning to wonder if she is slowly losing her mind as she’s seeing ‘ghosts’ she knows cannot be real. She knows the secrets she has buried deep within are vying to escape and understands they will hurt the ones she holds dear so there’s only one choice she can make……to leave.

Years before deep in the West Country Janey arrives to stay with the Hunter family after the death of her Father. Having only visited once before as a child her memories of the family are somewhat rose tinted, so when she arrives to a luke-warm reception from ‘Kitty’ the daughter who she’d previously thought of as a friend it signals the start of a mysterious summer that she will always remember.

The Hunter family focus each and every summer is firmly on the success of The Ceremony, an almost ‘cult-like’ harvesting of honey from the bees that reside in a nearby abandoned chapel. Steeped in family history and woven with secrets, mystery and tragedy , participation isn’t optional; for the family & that includes Janey even though she has no idea what is expected of her. It seems like a simple summer tradition, but it could prove to be more deadly than anyone ever expected.

Harriet is a masterful writer of the ‘big house’, family saga and in The Beloved Girls she uses this expertise mixed with a huge dollop of dark, atmospheric writing that I am all here for. It’s atmospheric, thriller style vibes were often unsettling in the best possible way and definitely kept me turning the pages whilst firmly hanging on the edge of my seat. This story certainly felt like Evan’s was giving us something extra and a bit different from her usual style, but it certainly works for her and I loved immersing myself in every second.

The pacing of this book is quite slow, but in a good way, with Evan’s drip feeding the morsels of information to you need to know slowly and steadily throughout the chapters. I was utterly absorbed in the multiple POV’s from the beginning as we see the story carefully constructed, I particularly enjoying the nostalgic nods to the 80’s haven grown up at that time. Told across three timelines, present day (2018), 1959 & the late 80’s, we as the reader are able to piece together a full picture of both character and story and I really enjoyed the level of depth and understanding of the main characters we are given allowing me to become invested in their stories. There are multiple aspects to this story including insightful commentary on topics which include society, discovering your true identity and family relationships, all of which is delivered in Evans’ easy to digest signature writing style.

The Beloved Girls is certainly a book you need to take your time reading, enjoying and absorbing each page whilst surmising where the story will take you; it definitely kept me on my toes throughout, unable to guess the ending. It was an extremely emotional read that really gave me everything I was looking for and more to boot; just perfection! I say it every time, as Harriet’s books just keep getting better and better, but The Beloved Girls has quickly become my favourite of her novels to date………..until she unveils her next offering that is! Dar

13 people found this helpful

Mag. Manfred Jordan

A depressing, creepy and boring novel

Reviewed in Germany on February 12, 2023

Verified Purchase

I tarted in good moods but after some time I felt confused, bored and depressed. The story is oldfashioned and if you want to feel low, go ahead. I stopped reading after 60%. Maybe I got the plot wrong. As a mystery story probably okay.

One person found this helpful

Jenny Edwards

beautifully written historical mystery

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 22, 2022

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This historical mystery follows Catherine, a barrister who has just lost a murder case. She starts to see a ghost from the past, but she isn’t sure if maybe they are real.

Suddenly she says goodbye to her husband and disappears, trying to work out her guilt and terror from a night thirty years ago.

Thirty years ago, she was staying at the Vines, where an annual ritual took place but ended tragically. The ritual involves harvesting the honey from the bees in the chapel, with the beloved girls following.

Will Catherine work through her past? Is she hiding secrets?

This historical mystery is beautifully written and is set in three timescales, where you learn more about the Vines and the ritual that takes place there. You also discover many hidden and dark secrets which are lying in the characters history.

I found the book a little slow for me, but it was still a compelling read and the different timescales helped to unravel the lies and secrets.

There is an eerie feel to the story especially with the ritual and the mystery behind what happened on that fateful night.

Overall, a beautifully written historical mystery where a family’s ritual brings tragedy.

3 people found this helpful

Bernadette Strain

An interesting story in parts.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 8, 2023

Verified Purchase

This was an interesting read in parts. But, the book was also boring in other parts. I didn’t feel that there was a twist in the tale at all. The ending was obvious 3/4 way through the book.

Shirl Davis

This historical mystery delves into the lives of a family with bees at their midst...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 1, 2022

Verified Purchase

The Beloved Girls by Harriet Evans

My image shows the front cover of my paperback copy. The glossy highlights on the cover design are really attractive. Beautiful. Beloved.

This is fiction for readers who appreciate depth, reading for reading's sake. I turned this title from my TBR shelf after reading several fast-paced crime thrillers and shorter stories. It was time for me to sink into a longer, more satisfying read. Perfect!

I discerned two distinct ingredients in this novel. The first is the history of beekeeping with its relevance to the mysterious rhymes repeated in the book. The second aspect concerns each of the characters, looking at their family lives, past and present. The two threads entwine as one story - take either of them away from the other, and you'd have no mystery.

Central to the novel is the honey bee. Nowadays we're aware how much human life and the environment both depend on this small creature - without the bees, we're doomed. In The Beloved Girls, Evans has imagined the way one family could alter the good nature of the bee. Why? How?

The final outcome is hinted at, carefully developed by the narrative, not disappointing when it is realised. Each character's story is given an ending - I particularly loved the way Sylvia's older days panned out. It's always good to be reminded it's not over until it's over!

There's room for every type of novel, differing genres, engaging themes, in my head and heart. This was my first read of a Harriet Evans title, and certainly not my last.

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