The Quality Street Girls
Inspired by the true story of the Quality Street factory and its loyal workers, this is a nostalgic and compelling novel and the perfect Christmas treat.At sixteen years old, Irene ‘Reenie’ Calder is leaving school with little in the way of qualifications. She is delighted to land a seasonal job at Mackintosh’s Quality Street factory. Reenie feels like a kid let loose in a sweet shop, but trouble seems to follow her around and it isn’t long before she falls foul of the strict rules.Diana Moore runs the Toffee Penny line and has worked hard to secure her position. Beautiful and smart, the other girls in the factory are in awe of her, but Diana has a dark secret which if exposed, could cost her not only her job at the factory but her reputation as well.When a terrible accident puts supply of Quality Street at risk, Reenie has a chance to prove herself. The shops are full of Quality Street lovers who have saved up all year for their must-have Christmas treat. Reenie and Diana know that everything rests on them, if they are to give everyone a Christmas to remember…
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Published by HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
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London SE1 9GF
Copyright © Penny Thorpe 2018
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollinsPublishers 2018
The âQuality Streetâ name and image is reproduced with the kind permission of Société des Produits Nestlé S.A.
Jacket design by Claire Ward © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2018
Jacket photographs @ Ildiko Neer / Arcangel Images (figures)
© Robert Lambert / Arcangel Images (terraced houses)
Shutterstock.com (window frame)
Penny Thorpe asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the authorâs imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.
Source ISBN: 9780008307769
Ebook Edition © November 2018 ISBN: 9780008307776
Version: 2018-10-30
In loving memory of Mary Lowes Walker, who made even more friends than Reenie.
Table of Contents
It was late, and the Baxterâs store on the corner at Stump Cross was closed, but the lights in the main window illuminated a sparkling display of Mackintoshâs Quality Street; the latest success from the sprawling factory they called Toffee Town. As Reenie rode her nag closer she could see that someone had taken the coloured cellophane wrappers from the chocolates and taped them between black sugar paper to make little stained glass windows. Between the tins and tubs and cartons were homemade tree baubles; an ingenious mixture of ping-pong balls, cellophane wrappers, glue and thread.
While there were plenty of other confectionery assortments that Baxterâs could have chosen to feature, Reenie couldnât imagine theyâd have had much luck making a stained glass window out of OâNeilâs wrappers. Besides, Quality Street was the best, everyone knew it; plenty of girls from Reenieâs school had left to work in Sharpeâs or OâNeilâs factories, but it was the really lucky ones that went to work at Mackintoshâs.
Reenieâs enormous, ungainly old horse shuffled closer to try to nose the glass, the explosion of colour bursting forth from the opened tins on display had caught his eye and was drawing his curious nature to the window. Reenie didnât blame him; it was a beautiful sight and he deserved a treat when he was being so good about coming out after putting in a dayâs work in the top field. She had a great deal of affection for the old family horse, and she liked spoiling him when she got the chance, so she let him dawdle a while longer.
Reenie gazed at the window display, and dreamed of growing up to be the kind of fine lady that bought Quality Street, and had a gardener, and got driven around in an automobile. For the moment she would have to be content with being a farmerâs daughter who had a vegetable patch and occasional use of her familyâs peculiarly ugly horse. Fortunately for Reenie, she found it easy to be content with her lot, she was an easily contented girl. As long as she didnât have to go into service she was happy.
âCome on, Ruffian. Weâve got a way to go yet.â Ruffian reluctantly allowed Reenie to steer him away from the bright lights, and continued up through the ever steeper streets of Halifax, over quiet cobbles she knew well. The night was cold for October, but she knew she had to ride out to get her father nonetheless.
Reenie didnât mind; Ruffian was technically her fatherâs horse, and most fathers would not allow their daughter freedom of the valley with it, so she supposed she ought to feel pretty grateful. And it wasnât as though she had to come out to get her father very often, she thought to herself. He only got this blotto once a year when the Ale Tasterâs Society hired out the old oak room and had their âdoâ, apart from that she thought he was pretty good really. He was very probably the best dad.
