Dressed By Iris by Mary-Anne O'Connor

 I really enjoyed this book, and I will look for more novels by Mary-Anne O'Connor.

Iris is a poor girl in Newcastle who comes from a warm Catholic family fallen on hard times. They eat 'bone soup', and wear 'cardboard shoes'. She is in love with a handsome Protestant, John Tucker, but it's the 1930s, and religion keeps them apart. The nasty Conlon's are also spreading rumours about their relationship.

When John wins a scholarship to university in Melbourne, and Iris's family move to Sydney, the star-crossed lovers agree to separate, but nothing can keep them apart...After John becomes a journalist, he meets Iris again, now set to become a dressmaker in a big store, but Robert Conlon is now a government minister, with evil designs.

Iris and John are lovely characters, struggling with their relationship against a backdrop of Depression and shady characters. The Depression era politics are well-researched, but I occasionally felt that I was receiving a historical lesson from one particular view. Some of my relatives lived through that era, so I also knew a little about their thoughts about the  politics of the time, so it was interesting, but a bit too polemical for a historical novel.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

EDITION	Mass Market Paperback
ISBN	9781867225447
PRICE	A$29.99 (AUD)