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Poor Girls

Meet the female Peaky Blinders in this gripping and darkly funny thriller

Clare Whitfield

$32.99

Paperback

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English
ARIES
01 March 2025
LONGLISTED FOR THE 2025 CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION HISTORICAL DAGGER AWARD!

'Funny, fast-paced and dark... with dialogue that absolutely crackles’ ELODIE HARPER 'A brave, bold novel' ARAMINTA HALL

IF YOU CAN’T MAKE THE RULES

1922. Eleanor Mackridge is staring down the barrel of two equally depressing life choices – serving the upper classes or finding a husband – when she crosses paths with the notorious all-female gang, the Forty Elephants.

YOU MIGHT AS WELL BREAK THEM

These are women who society would rather forget. They are bold and vulgar, they steal diamonds and fur, drink champagne and gin. They give young women ideas above their station – and Eleanor wants in. Now she has the chance to make sure that history remembers her.

Because women don't have to marry or serve to get ahead.

They can steal.

In Poor Girls, Clare Whitfield exposes the criminal underbelly of 1920s London – but this isn't a morality tale, it's an adventure for the willingly wicked.

'Memorable, outrageous and full of heart. Loved it – every time I put it down I couldn’t wait to pick it up again.’ ELENI KYRIACOU

'Wonderfully roguish characters, and great period detail. Really enjoyable.' IAN MOORE

'A richly vivid and picaresque masterwork, Poor Girls is by turns humorous, horrifying and humane.' TOM MEAD

'A compulsive read... A real page turner.' CAITLIN DAVIES

Join the growing fans of the Forty Elephants…

‘Clare Whitfield's best book to date.’ Reader Review

‘What a ride, this book is so much fun.’ Reader Review

‘Will make you laugh but also shed a tear.’ Reader Review

‘I highly recommend it to anyone drawn to tales of resilience, ambition, and rebellion.’ Reader Review

‘Such a brilliant book, everyone should read it!’ Reader Review

‘Glamorous and uncompromising.’ Reader review
By:  
Imprint:   ARIES
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 228mm,  Width: 146mm,  Spine: 34mm
Weight:   486g
ISBN:   9781837930876
ISBN 10:   1837930872
Pages:   416
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Clare Whitfield is a UK based writer. While studying for an MA in Creative & Critical Writing at the University of Winchester, her fiction appeared on Spelk, Commuter-Lit, Literary Orphans and in Matt Shaw’s Masters of Horror anthology. Clare has published two crime fiction novels, People of Abandoned Character, which won the Goldsboro Glass Bell Award in 2021, and The Gone and The Forgotten. Poor Girls is her third novel.

Reviews for Poor Girls: Meet the female Peaky Blinders in this gripping and darkly funny thriller

'Poor Girls is a brave, bold novel, illuminating the present through the past. It shows us how women have so often had to take the rights that society refuses to give them. You'll fall hard for Nell and the Forty Elephants.' * Araminta Hall * ‘Funny, fast-paced and dark, Poor Girls is a riveting read, with dialogue that absolutely crackles and a fabulously unsentimental heroine in Nell.’ * Elodie Harper * A pacy, entertaining caper with well-drawn characters * Good Housekeeping * Vivid, witty, and full of wonderfully drawn characters * Woman&Home * 'The story moves along at a terrific pace with wonderfully roguish characters, and great period detail. Really enjoyable.' * Ian Moore * 'A richly vivid and picaresque masterwork, Poor Girls is by turns humorous, horrifying and humane.' * Tom Mead * ‘A compulsive read. Brighton waitress Eleanor is recruited by the female crime syndicate the Forty Elephants into a world of champagne, diamonds and furs. But there’s a price to pay for postwar women who wanted to become something - how far will she go, and will she get away with it? A real page turner.’ * Caitlin Davies * ‘An addictive, thrilling five-star read with a plot that races along and is packed with unexpected turns. Nell and her friends in the girl-gang the Forty Elephants are unapologetically out for themselves, stealing, drinking and partying their way to infamy, and all the time defying expectations of what it means to be a woman in 1922. Memorable, outrageous and full of heart. Loved it – every time I put it down I couldn’t wait to pick it up again.’ * Eleni Kyriacou * Captivating * Crime Monthly *


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