I so enjoyed [ That Green Eyed Girl]. I loved the evocation of NYC, the jazz, and the two storylines . . . so compelling -- Melissa Fu, author of Peach Blossom Spring Rich’s discussion on compulsory heterosexuality and ‘heterosexuality as an institution’ is particularly relevant when analysing a queer text such as That Green Eyed Girl. Judith, the school secretary and Dovie and Gillian’s colleague, is a horrible, manipulative character you will love to hate. In some ways, Judith embodies compulsory heterosexuality, as she weasels her way into Dovie and Gillian’s lives and takes advantage of Dovie’s fatal flaw: her people-pleasing tendencies. She cares ‘too much… about what people [think] about [her] and has a hard time saying “no”. This is why she inadvertently ends up inviting Judith and her cousin to dinner, even though she and Gillian have a ‘no guests’ house rule to protect their love from being discovered. In her misguided efforts to guard herself and Gillian, Dovie believes ‘it wouldn’t do to antagonise’ Judith. Twenty years later in the same apartment, Ava Winters is keeping her own secret. Her mother has become erratic, haunted by something Ava doesn’t understand – until one sweltering July morning, she disappears. I've spent the whole day reading this mesmerising book. Such a devastating, gripping story and stunning, powerful writing. Once I started I just could not stop." - Aliya Ali-Afzal I really loved the dual timeline, in New York. 1955 the view from Dovie and 1975 the view from Ava. The same apartment but different people. It was so cleverly written in how everything unfolded and was so brilliantly weaved together. I really connected with both Dovie and Ava. Two very different women who just want to be loved and both suffer heartbreak. I really felt the emotions.

I so enjoyed [ That Green Eyed Girl]. I loved the evocation of NYC, the jazz, and the two storylines . . . so compelling Melissa Fu, author of Peach Blossom Spring Overall, this is such a compelling and impressive debut. Yes it’s painful and sad but you are swept along in a desire to see how it all pans out. I can’t wait to see what this author comes up with next. However, on the other side of that door they are much more and they do their best to guard this secret from a world full of criticism, judgement and unspeakable consequences should they ever be discovered for all they want is to love one another and be left in peace but when someone who really has no right to point fingers guesses the truth, a rift soon forms between them, testing their patience to breaking point when finally enough is enough and things change forever… Aside from romance, historical fiction is one of my favourite genres, so this hybrid blend of both was just perfect to me! ⁣ The mystery at the heart of this novel had me hooked from the start. I spent a weekend sitting in 1950s bars, listening to jazz with Gillian and Dovie, then skipping ahead twenty years to walk the same streets with Ava, remembering the awkwardness of being a teenager. Heartbreaking but with a satisfying ending, I will remember this book for a long time -- Louise Hare, author of This Lovely CityA special shout out to the supporting cast! I don’t think I have ever hated a character more than Judith – I’m not sure she has any redeeming features! But Ava’s friend Viola was an absolute darling. She tried so hard to make sure Ava is OK even when Ava won’t share her problems. She perseveres with Ava and eventually manages to break through her barriers to help her.

You know how there are some books you get so immediately excited about, but then because you’re so excited you then start worrying it won’t live up to your expectations so you put off reading it for ages?! 🤣 Well I needn’t have worried one little bit, because this was even BETTER than I expected 🙌 In an apartment on the lower East Side, two school teachers Dovie and Gillian live the seemingly innocent and care-free lives of lodgers just trying to get by in their jobs and private lives always enjoying each other’s company as good friends. With an intriguing opening line and a camera-like gaze, Julie Owen Moylan places her readers in a New York apartment, where you feel the heat and hear the tinny radio . . . There's a sensory filmic quality to this novel - the characters are deftly drawn and the plot develops at just the right pace. A very accomplished debut Woman Wonderful . . . utterly transported me to the jazz bars and stuffy apartments of New York, while telling a moving and compelling story about a time in history I knew little aboutTwenty years later in the same apartment, Ava Winters is keeping her own secret. Her mother has become erratic, haunted by something Ava doesn't understand - until one sweltering July morning, she disappears. This is the author's debut published novel and what a wonderful story it is. From the original and compelling first line, right through to the very end, this story totally captured me. I love a dual time slip story, and the short chapters, alternating between New York in the 1950s and the 1970s are done so very well. All too often, with dual time line stories, the reader can become more invested in one era. Not with this book. I was enthralled by both stories, by all of the characters and not least by the evocative and totally convincing portrayal of New York city.