Can two women get the lowdown on high society?

Louisa Delafield and Ellen Malloy didn’t ask to be thrown together to bring the truth to light. But after Ellen witnesses the death of a fellow servant during an illegal abortion, Louisa, a society columnist, vows to help her find the truth and turn her journalistic talent to a greater purpose.

When I agreed to review this book, I did not know how inspiring this book would be. The synopsis and book cover alone were enough to convince me to read. Debut novelist Trish MacEnulty’s has written such a compelling story it left me in awe.

This historical fiction is based on true events and factual persons that lived during this period. This was a turnkey period that opened so many doors for us womenfolk. Sometimes we forget how great the struggle was, but it is authors like Ms MacEnulty that remind us again of the sacrifices and the sheer will that drove these women to speak up.

The topics she touches on are not an issue for the poor, but one that touched every woman from the highest to the lowest in society. Even today, it is still a much debated topic with no straightforward answers to the problem. But theses women refused to be silent. Refused to lie down and accept it. They did something; and that alone makes this a powerful story.

The whispering women take you back to 1913 where gangsters made a living from poverty and the political, legal and power hungry rich ruled the world. (Nothing has changed, but today we see them for who they are.)

The Garrett’s, and Bloodgoods are prominent families in this plotline. Their goodness heralded on the front pages of the newspapers. But once Ellen Malloy sees the reality of who they are, she had to run for her life. When she met up with Louisa Delafield, hell was at their doorstep.

Louisa Delafield was one of the high society but also shun because of a murdered father whose failed investments left them destitute. However, her choice of work kept he doors open and with her pen and paper and the knowledge of this society she revealed what these people tried to hide. Her naivety quickly faltered when she experience how the other women lived. What they struggle with and the means to cope with unwanted pregnancies. And, when a policewoman is killed, she found her purpose.

Together, they set out to find the proof to bring the culprits to justice, and fight against an enemy out to destroy them.

The world of gangsters and suffrage, illegal abortions and sex trafficking is an ugly reality that cannot be ignored.

Especially Louisa had to realize who her so-called friends were. And the lengths they would go to protect their money and power. In the end, money doesn’t buy you peace when trouble knocks on your door and the women you try to silence refuse to be quiet.

With the help of an Irish police officer, and Teddy Roosevelt’s input, and a very handsome publisher, these two women find their way in a world so different from what they believed in. Their belief system challenged with each new door that opens, which leads to truths they cannot unlearn.

The author’s writing is crisp and clear. The fast-paced tempo takes you through the streets of New York at such a speed that your fingers struggles to keep up. Each moment a revelation of strength and determination as they built a friendship and grew in their own right. Both women’s characters are relatable. Their sheer will that drives them to the truth is a testimony of the courage each woman possessed. Their voices refused to be silent, no matter what curveballs life (the author) throws at them.

Even the supportive characters’s roles carried the weight of the story and emphasises their most vulnerable moments with honesty. ( )