The Briar Club by Kate Quinn - September 22, 2025

Our meeting was held in Sharon's new home, way up in the sky!  Sharon and Norm have moved to a beautiful apartment.  Present were Betty, Carla, Colette, Linda, Marg, Michèle, Sharon and Shirley.   Sharon had a lovely spread for us including the cake that Lina made for the Pillsbury Bakeoff. 

We discussed Linda's book choice The Briar Club by Kate Quinn.  

The story takes place in a  Washington DC Women's Boarding House.  The book is structured with a chapter for each boarder.  The narrator of the book is the house and a character itself. The characters are well defined and it is easy to imagine their life.  Near the beginning of the story there are two murders of men in the Boarding Room.  The murders do not come up again until about 2/3 through the book as it becomes a mystery story. Each chapter ends with a supper hosted by the newest boarder, Grace March.  A bond develops between the women boarders that help them cope with their lives.

The story often creates a lot of drama from the lives of the boarders, from events such as the Pillsbury Bakeoff.  The biggest drama comes near the end when we finally get more information about the events that lead to the murders of the two mens and the impact it has on the women. 

Most members very much enjoyed the book.  They liked the structure of the book that gave us an excellent description of each character.  We also felt that the atmosphere of those times, Mccarthyism, reminded us a bit of our present time of Trumpism.  It was an enjoyable book to read that had us turning the pages quickly.  

Thank you Linda.