At sixteen years old, Irene ‘Reenie’ Calder is leaving school with little in the way of qualifications. She is delighted to land a seasonal job at Mackintosh’s Quality Street factory. Reenie feels like a kid let loose in a sweet shop, but trouble seems to follow her around and it isn’t long before she falls foul of the strict rules.
Diana Moore runs the Toffee Penny line and has worked hard to secure her position. Beautiful and smart, the other girls in the factory are in awe of her, but Diana has a dark secret which if exposed, could cost her not only her job at the factory but her reputation as well.
When a terrible accident puts supply of Quality Street at risk, Reenie has a chance to prove herself. The shops are full of Quality Street lovers who have saved up all year for their must-have Christmas treat. Reenie and Diana know that everything rests on them, if they are to give everyone a Christmas to remember…
Many thanks to Harper Collins UK via NetGalley for my copy of The Quality Street Girls to review and to Sharon for having my review on the blog.
Inspired by the true story of the Quality Street factory and its loyal workers The Quality Street Girls by Penny Thorpe is a story steeped in nostalgia and will stir up many memories for its readers. We all know and love the famous brand that has been an accompaniment to our Christmas festivities for so many years. But how many of us have actually given scant thought to how this successful brand came about and who exactly were the people behind the delicious. mouthwatering creations? Little did the workers who toiled away on the factory floor in 1936 realise that the chocolate and sweets they were making would be a staple part of Christmas all these years later. Penny Thorpe has been an archivist at the Quality Street Factory for over ten years and thanks to her in-depth knowledge and passion for her subject she has brought us this wonderful book which celebrates factory life but yet does not portray it as all sweetness and light.
This book had so much depth to it with characters who experience ups and downs, joys and sadness but above all else they come together in times of strife to attempt to overcome problems and work as a team. The author has provided her readers with a fascinating, detailed account of factory life enthralling us with just how much work and effort went into producing chocolates that inspire so many memories for people the world over. Combined with some interesting and thrilling storylines, this made for an excellent read and one I found gripping from beginning to end with characters you root for and some which you feel deserve the old heave ho.
Mackintosh's Factory in Halifax, nicknamed Toffee Town, is the dominant setting for the story which follows four very different women as they make sweets in the factory where work and personal life collide in more ways than one. Reenie Calder is only 16 years old but is desperately hoping a job will arise that will prevent her from having to go into service, a life she doesn't want for herself. When she is given the chance to work at the factory she grabs it with wide open arms and is determined to make a success of her new job. Reenie was a girl wise beyond her years and to be honest for most of the book I forgot she was so young. From the outset she came across as a character full of promise, creativity and ingenuity. She could see solutions to problems or ways to improve work life and increase production that others just had no idea about.
Reenie was savy in more ways than one, she had a passion for solving problems and setting herself challenges. She was warned not to rock the boat with new ideas as the old ones are best but she is just not able to sit back when she sees what could be achieved. She took such an interest in the finer workings of the factory machinery and the bond she struck up with Peter, the new Time and Motion lad at the factory was a joy to see. Simply because he allowed her to voice her opinion and took her ideas for improvement on board in a time where it was a male dominated world. I mean women even had to give up work once they were married, I simply couldn't comprehend having to do that in this day and age.
Reenie was a fabulously written character who always got herself in many scraps and difficult situations but she rose above up everything and was always thinking two or three steps ahead of everyone else. Ways in which she could better the production at the factory but also when it came to the friends she had made. Despite being so young she slotted right in and I loved how the older women took her on board as a friend and an equal. Not taking her under her wing so to speak because she didn't need that at all. She was her own person and her arrival at the factory stirred things up a bit. Yes she may have been hasty at times and he did take action before thinking things through fully but everything she did was with the utmost of good intentions as she couldn't stand by and see other suffer in silence. It goes against the grain for her. If she observes something that needed fixing, be it with the factory or the personal lives of her friends, she will offer help or a suggestion to make life better for all involved. Reenie was not a person to be underestimated and her youth should not be taken for granted by anyone. She was kind and had a heart of gold and she won a firm place in my affections. The inclusion of her trusty steed – so to speak- was genius and offered plenty of comedic moments. It was different from having a dog that stole our hearts, this time it was an old loyal horse.
As for the other girls whom Reenie befriends they each have their own problems to deal with as they work the strawberry cream line or the toffee penny line, some grew on me more so than others. Mary and Bess are sisters and known as the Tudor Queens. Mary never cracks a smile and it seems like she is always covering something up but look a little deeper beneath the surface and Mary is not happy. She is keeping secrets and struggling but she remains loyal and steadfast to her family. Mary was a cold and aloof character who took time to warm up and to embrace what Reenie was trying to do but as the magic of the factory and the girls themselves begin to work she slowly started to thaw and came to understand you're better off working together rather than alone. As for her sister Bess she was the total opposite, she had her head permanently in the clouds and was very happy go lucky. She just always presumed everything would work out OK, that if there were problems someone else would sort them for her. She thinks little of the consequences of her actions and really she has gotten herself very deeply into a dark situation that needs sorting out soon before its too late. Will the girls be able to unite and help Bess and Mary?
Alongside Reenie for me the strongest and a stand out character was Diana. I could sense from the outset that in the past she had been through the mill and even now she hadn't come out the other side but was still in the midst of it all. Six years ago things changed for Diana and the carefree girl she once was has gone and in her place is someone who follows the rules and is respected on the factory floor. It felt to me like Diana was living by some sort of code and set of rules and boundaries that she had established for herself. To veer from any of this would upset the apple cart and with a long term goal in mind she couldn’t afford for this to happen at any cost. I guessed Diana's secret fairly early on but it didn't detract from her storyline in any way. In fact it made me admire her all the more and I understood her motives and actions even better. Outside the factory Diana's personal life was one she kept secret but as things began to unfold and danger, surprises and darkness to some extent began to make themselves known she had no option but to open up that little bit and embrace her friends. I felt she made the ultimate sacrifice and my heart broke a little bit for her. Frances Roth, the overlooker all the girls despise, had a cruel role to play and she was someone I desperately wanted something awful to happen to. I wanted a different outcome for Diana but I do think the author was brave to choose the option she went for. It shows times were tough and Diana was a woman who was brave and courageous and did what she felt was the right thing to do.
As work and the girls private lives intermingle, the enthusiasm Penny Thorpe had for her subject matter shone through as the various storylines began to take many twists and turns and join up with each other. I was on the edge of my seat wandering would certain things be discovered or left secret? Would certain people get the justice they deserved or would the poor innocents be the ones who the blame fell upon? The Quality Street girls is an honest, heartfelt excellent read that left me desperately wanting more. I do so hope we will read more about this wonderful group of girls as they all became so real I felt as if I knew them in real life. It is the perfect read for this time of year and yes I am going to say it a tin of the world famous Quality Street do need to be by your side whilst you become lost in the world of Reenie and co.
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