When the light catches a diamond what women can resist. Well none of the Forty Thieves it seems, and especially of them – Ruby Mills. Beautiful and an eye for beautiful things, Ruby is one of the best thieves, but she wants to break out on her own and not be beholden. When you are in deep with the forty Thieves, there is it seems no way out.

Harriet Littlemore, from the right side of London, her marriage prospects are good but she still wants to forge her own path in life. Which is why she is dabbling in journalism, she writes pieces that the editor thinks women want to read about. Harriet desires to read pieces about the gritier side of life.

She gets her chance when she witnesses a robbery, and goes on to publisher her piece about it, with a rather good drawing of one of the perpetrators – Ruby Mills.

Two sides of London, two sides of society and two sides of the law. Harriet and Ruby gravitate towards each other, Ruby shows Harriet another side of life whilst Harriet shows Ruby that with money you can have freedom and not be restricted. What neither of these wonderfully drawn characters realise is that both lives and both their worlds have their own restrictions. The main one they share is they are other female.

It’s the 1920s, the decade is about to start ‘roaring’ and the scars of the war are being eradicated through frippery and finery and the muscle of the men that did come home, used to get what they want now that the whole world has shifted.

This is a great piece of historical fiction and I it had me drawn in form the beginning, as the story unfolded of these women. The supporting characters were rich in description and quite frankly despicable in some cases. The plotting, the deviousness could not be forgiven with some but when these desparate women were turning to all sorts to simply survive, you did suddenly realise how unfair class, society and gender can be and in some cases still is an issue.

This books is one to be read along Kate Atkinson’s latest, the two complement each other so well and the richness of the storytelling is excellent. It has brought a period of history that I was slightly aware more to the forefront and I hope to read more about these fascinating people that seem to be forever missing in history.

This book was a historical filled delight of a story that focused on following two women as they navigate very different lives.

The characters in this book were very well written they practically came alive off of the page. Harriett and Ruby sparkled as they made there way through their lives as they became more and more intertwined with one another. The wide variety of other characters were also well written and I really felt like we knew the main cast as they danced in and out of the narrative. And what I really liked was the historical names dropped in now and again. Of course I might have only known some of them from Peaky Blinders but that made me enjoy it even more!

The plot was simple enough to follow and I really liked how it got more and more complex as the two stories got more and more mixed together. It was so compelling to follow and see how it all panned out for the two women who were the beating heart of this book. The ending annoyed me ever so slightly but that was just because I had wanted it to go in another direction. As I mentioned before and will mention again, the historical aspect of this book and how grounded it was in the historical time period and the focus on the lives of these characters as well.

The writing was also wonderful. As said the historical aspect was amazing and something I always appreciate as part of the historical fiction genre and this was handled so well. It was such a rich and well crafted world that the story took place in and I really enjoyed myself as I read it.

I was kindly sent an ARC of this book by the publishers in exchange for an honest review.

What a joyous romp of a read! I ended up loving both Harriet and Ruby, and especially enjoyed when they met.

Ruby is the perfect loveable rogue - she does bad things but is so endearing you feel you can easily forgive her. Her greed and vanity make her who she is.

The forties made for fascinating reading, and I can't blame Harriet for her obsession with them, given her stifled home life.

The descriptions of the characters and places are vivid and I think because of the 1920 setting it feels quite Peaky Blinders at times (minus the Brummy accents.)

Harriet's sheltered life and innocence and Ruby's reality were in such stark contrast throughout, and I'm not sure Harriet could have ever understood Ruby's mindset or way of thinking because of that.

I'd have loved to learn a little more of Ruby's relationship with Solly, and I was hoping Harriet would end up with someone else, perhaps from the newspaper...

I have to say, I did appreciate that the ending was the most realistic scenario but I was disappointed for Harriet and wished for a continued friendship