The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club

Thanks to NetGalley & The Dial Press/Random House for a digital advance reader copy. All comments and opinions are my own. When I saw Helen Simonson was the author, I knew I had to read this, and I was not disappointed. I have loved her other two books, and this one is just as good. All are standalones and I urge you to seek these out after reading "Hazelbourne": Major Pettigrew's Last Stand and The Summer Before the War. Although it took a little while for this story to get going for me, much like a motorcycle or airplane engine, once it finally “caught” I couldn’t put it down. It takes place in the summer of 1919, just after WWI when the men return from the front and the women are expected to go back to the kitchen or drawing room. Constance Haverhill is a wonderful main character whose friendship with Poppy Wirral, founder of the Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club, helps her to emerge from the grief of losing her mother. She must work to support herself, unlike Poppy and several of her other new friends. The need for employment after Constance’s job as a companion to elderly Mrs. Fog is soon to end, is one of the plot threads of this charming story. The writing is beautiful, and I loved the story with all its subplots and historical aspects that bring this time period to life. Cleverly written with witty banter and subtle double meaning, themes of feminism and women’s independence are woven throughout this delightful historical novel. It is both a coming-of-age story and a tender romance. But more importantly, it is also a commentary on the period’s classism and racism and the emerging struggle for women’s rights. Not to be missed!