Books The Briar Club by Kate Quinn (Author

The Briar Club by Kate Quinn is a powerful and haunting novel set in a Washington, D.C. boardinghouse during the McCarthy era in the 1950s. The story begins with a murder on Thanksgiving in 1954, inside the attic apartment of Mrs. Grace March, a mysterious woman from Iowa who has settled at Briarwood House. The novel then shifts back four and a half years to explore the lives of the women living in the boardinghouse, their struggles, secrets, and interpersonal connections.

Grace, who is later revealed to be Galina Stepanova, a defected Soviet spy with a painful past and a secret mission, becomes the heart of the Briar Club, an informal sisterhood that brings together the diverse and troubled tenants. The story delves into their personal battles, from escaping restrictive families to overcoming abuse, prejudice, and ambition. The club nurtures a sense of community and healing through small acts of kindness, while the boardinghouse itself acts as a silent witness to their lives.