The Girl from The Savoy: A Novel

The Girl from the Savoy is told from the perspective of two women from very different backgrounds trying to make sense of their lives in the aftermath of World War I. Dolly Lane takes a new position as a chamber maid at The Savoy, a hotel that caters to London’s most famous guests, in hopes of putting lost love behind her and climbing the social ladder step by step to the spotlight. Loretta May is the most well-loved leading lady of London’s theater scene. With Loretta’s health quickly – and secretly – declining, the two women’s chance meeting will offer each the opportunity to change reevaluate their priorities and this may just be the very opportunity they have each been looking for.

The story wasn’t bad by any means, but I felt more like I was being pulled along, rather than being pulled in. I read the description, but they didn’t come to life around me. I knew why the characters were doing what they were, but only because I was told why, not because I got to know the characters well enough to read between the lines. I found my mind wandering away while I was reading and would have to backtrack and reread the whole page. Perhaps it would have been more intriguing for someone who had a more pointed interest in this era. I chose it because I like historical fiction in general, but not this time period any more than another.