Book Review: ‘The Phoenix Ballroom: A Novel’ By Ruth Hogan

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The book is in stores on Tuesday, June 11th form Morrow. Click on the link to buy a copy. https://amzn.to/4caQa7V

Venetia Hargreaves, 74, has just buried her husband of fifty years, and now is on her own, in her big house. Her son decides she should get live-in help because of her age. She’s not happy about this but agrees to hire someone. It turns out to be Liberty, whose mother just passed away, and left her nothing. She moves into the guest cottage, and becomes her assistant, and the two hit it off. Soon Venetia’s grandson also comes to live at the house, he’s having issues at the boarding school he lives in. When she learns that the old ballroom she used to teach at is going to be destroyed, she has a chance to buy the building and restore it. This becomes her main focus, as well as learning secrets that she finds when clearing her husband’s things. The ballroom becomes a hit, she reunites with her old love, and we learn about her earlier life, and the secrets and heartache she went through. This is a story about re-inventing yourself, regardless of your age, as Venetia says ‘Cher is older than me,’ and moving on with life. It’s the feel-good novel of the summer.