I just finished listening to the audiobook of The Briar Club by Kate Quinn, and I absolutely loved it. From the very beginning, I was drawn in by the rich historical details seamlessly woven into the lives of the fictional characters. As someone who is passionate about history, I am always on the lookout for books that get historical facts right while still telling a compelling story. The Briar Club delivered on both of those fronts.What amazed me most was how the author brought real historical details into the narrative. The book is set in Washington, D.C., during the early 1950s. It captures the paranoia of the Red Scare (Communism) and the political repression during the McCarthy era. The women's stories in the book reflect real-life events such as the decline of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, the first birth control pill trial, and the tension between domestic expectations and personal ambition. There are unspoken, but prevalent tensions in the book when it comes to depicting LGBTQ individuals and the struggle to keep their lives secret. Racial prejudice is also touched on to show how many individuals had to deal with that during those years. The post-World War II era, with many refugees trying to find their place in a new country, was also masterfully integrated, echoing realistic events involving displaced persons and all they lost when they had to leave their homes.
Listening to the audiobook added another layer of immersion. The narrator brought each character to life, and the pacing made it easy to stay engaged. I found myself looking forward to my bus ride to work so that I could tune in to see what was happening next. After the audiobook ended, there was a bonus interview with author Kate Quinn and the narrator Saskia Maarleveld. Quinn shared insights into how each character was inspired by real historical archetypes, and how she wanted to give a voice to women whose stories were often overlooked back in the 1950s. Listening to her describe her favorite moments and how the book came into existence made me appreciate each character more.
The prologue of the book opens on a murder scene at the Briar House.
"The house had a lot of blood and two dead bodies, one upstairs and one down, with 17 suspects who have had too much rum punch."
The story rewinds four years to tell the different tales leading up to that fateful night. The book is extremely character-driven, and each section goes into detail about a different character who lives in the house. Slowly, with each character, you are getting more of the story until ultimately we land back at that fateful time the murders occurred among all of them.
I loved getting to know each of the characters. Quinn masterfully placed puzzle pieces together, and slowly, the entire story appears. When all of their stories are told, the ending makes perfect sense, and you can finally see the big picture. Each character that lives in the house has their own secrets that you are getting glimpses of throughout the book. I started to root for certain characters as I learned their story and as they themselves were forming friendships together. The final secret at the end was wonderfully crafted, as I did not see it coming.
The Briar Club is more than just a historical fiction; it is a story full of secrets, sisterhood, and survival. It is a beautiful reminder of how history shapes us, and how personal stories can illuminate broader truths.
Published: July 8, 2024Read: October 22, 2025
aB . All Rights Reserved . 2025
