Mulligan's Yard

by Ruth Hamilton

Set in the 1920s in the northwest of England, this novel chronicles the lives of a new landowner and the people who live and work in Mulligan's yard, an area that is a mixture of homes and businesses.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance, Fiction

528 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2000

About the author

Ruth Hamilton was one of North West England's most popular writers. She was the bestselling author of twenty-five novels, including Spinning Jenny, The Bells of Scotland Road, Mulligan's Yard, Mersey View and That Liverpool Girl. She was born in Bolton, which is the setting for many of her novels, and spent most of her life in Lancashire.

(source: http://www.panmacmillan.com/author/ru...)

Reviews

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a hard time coming up with a rating for this book. It is well-written with a good storyline. There are a lot of characters, and it took me a bit to get them straight, but once I did, I found them to be well-developed. However, I never felt excited to pick up the book, and I fell asleep while reading it, which is unusual for me. So, I decided upon 3 stars. I will definitely give this author another try...overall, not a bad book.

[Rowlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this tale. First one I have read by Ruth Hamilton.

[Carole Parkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent book. The author brings to life realistic characters-- some very poor, others not so--some lovable, some not. They seem so real the reader can't help but care about what happens to every one of them.

The three well-to-do sisters and their mother, recently impoverished, look immensely rich compared to the sad little street urchin known as Diane, who steals to provide food for her little brother and sick grandmother. The two families lives are intermingled with the suspicious actions of a religious zealot, another two overly-large sisters who own and manage a wash-house, the servants at the big house where the impoverished sisters used to live, and of course Mr Mulligan, new owner if the big house, who lives there with his aunt.

The story covered so many different families it could almost pass as a soap opera, and I'm a sucker for soap operas. The undercurrent that carried the plot so successfully through, was the mystery of what was in Mulligan's cellar. It kept me guessing right to the very end.

Well done Ruth Hamilton. As an indie author myself, I strive for the standard this author reaches.

[Ann James · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I found it difficult to get into the book (possibly due to this not being my usual genre, and/or it was based at a time where there were major social changes going on). Once settled I couldn't put it down. Great characters...the privileged, poor, weird, wonderful and creepy all rolled into one. Yet the plot is written in a way that doesn't cause confusion, so makes for a decently-paced, coherent read.

I thought the quality of the writing was highlighted by the Irish character. None of the obvious in-your-face slang often used to remind us that a person is Irish, but subtle wording used here and there to remind us of his background.

The mystery in the cellar was a jaw dropper, for me anyway. I'd tried to imagine all kinds of things going on in the bowels of the house, but didn't come close to guessing what the 'secret' was.

Looking forward to reading more by this author.

[Jenni · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a gripping book of Ruths i cant remember the name of the other one i read but it was better than this one. I prefer a book i cant put down but this one was a bit of a struggle to finish. Bit of a let down the secret of what mulligan kept down in the cellar behind a locked door. thats why only 2 stars.

[Mookimook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book Ruth Hamilton has great characters

[Gillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a good book with lots of involving characters i particually liked the brain tumour storyline. Good book by this author i will definately look for some more books by her to read.