Tuesday Tea and Tomes: The Secret Book Society - Women who read can be dangerous, especially in Victorian England

 

United by a passion for reading, four women in Victorian England form a clandestine club in The Secret Book Society.

There’s no greater luxury than a good book and a hot cup of tea. Today, that indulgence costs little more than a fragrant Earl Grey and the modest price of a novel. But for a lady of society in Victorian England, reading came with a far steeper price—one that could damage her reputation or even lead to permanent confinement. For women whose passions stretched beyond household guides and etiquette manuals, a simple gathering over tea and gossip could become the perfect cover for a clandestine club devoted to the pleasures of poetry and fiction.

That’s exactly what inspired the women of The Secret Book Society.

I hadn’t heard of this book until a recent stop at Novel, a newer bookstore–slash–sandwich shop in Rochester, Michigan. A particular section called to me, and after reading the back cover of this blue-and-gold–toned tome, I was hooked. Honestly, it had me at “forbidden.”

I found this book at Novel, a book/sandwich shop in Rochester, MI.

Written by New York Times bestselling author Madeline Martin, the novel follows four women—each trapped by the rigid expectations of their era and the pressure to maintain appearances. Martin weaves their seemingly unrelated stories into a seamless tapestry strengthened by support, compassion, and ultimately, the deep bonds of friendship.

These four women are at very different stages of life—widowed, long-married, newly married, and single—but all have endured merciless scrutiny. The consequences for stepping out of line were severe. Writing a poem or speaking an honest opinion could land a woman in an asylum without judge or jury.

If that still prevailed today, I’d be in lockup.

And what authors are they secretly reading? Poe, Brontë, and Austen.

Yes—by those standards, I’d be labeled a lunatic without hesitation.

While the injustice is infuriating, the balm is the way these women lift one another up—thinking not only selflessly, but ingeniously. Each has also known the sting of betrayal from a so‑called “friend” who sought to elevate herself at someone else’s expense.

We’ve all had those encounters—the sadness and frustration when someone breaks a confidence or lies to get a better place in line. But when you find your tribe, their friendship becomes all the sweeter. The joys are shared, and the struggles become a team effort rather than a solitary fight.

We’re lucky to have the bookstores and libraries we love, the freedom to choose what we read, and the chance to find our own special tribe.

And, we're crazy for this book!

We give The Secret Book Society two white‑gloved thumbs up.