The Eights  

They knew they were changing history

They didn’t know they would change each other

Oxford, 1920. For the first time in its 1000-year history, the world’s most famous university has admitted female students. Giddy with dreams of equality, education and emancipation, four young women move into neighbouring rooms on Corridor Eight. They have come here from all walks of life, and they are thrown into an unlikely, life-affirming friendship.

Dora was never meant to go to university, but, after losing both her brother and her fiancé on the battlefield, has arrived in their place. Beatrice, politically-minded daughter of a famous suffragette, sees Oxford as a chance to make her own way – and her own friends – for the first time. Socialite Otto fills her room with extravagant luxuries but fears they won’t be enough to distract her from her memories of the war years. And quiet, clever, Marianne, the daughter of a village vicar, arrives bearing a secret she must hide from everyone – even The Eights – if she is to succeed.

But Oxford’s dreaming spires cast a dark shadow: in 1920, misogyny is still rife, influenza is still a threat, and the ghosts of the Great War are still very real indeed. And as the group navigate this tumultuous moment in time, their friendship will become more important than ever.

The Eights is a captivating debut novel about sisterhood, self-determination, courage, and what it means to come of age in a world that is forever changed.

 

  • ‘A story about women taking their place in a man’s world, The Eights beautifully captures the power of friendship and love in the wake of extraordinary loss.'

    ― PIP WILLIAMS, author of The Dictionary of Lost Words

  • ‘I so enjoyed The Eights and became completely involved in the lives of the four pioneering heroines whose friendship is the beating heart of the book.’

    ― CLARE CHAMBERS, author of Small Pleasures

  • ‘The Eights is an entertaining and moving imagining of four smart women dealing with the engrained misogyny of the time. I came to love and admire the four as if they were my sisters.'

    ― TRACY CHEVALIER, author of Girl With a Pearl Earring

  • 'My favourite read this year. The writing is wonderful, the subject fascinating and the storylines utterly absorbing... I loved everything about this book. It is just perfect.'

    ― JILL MANSELL, author of Rumour Has It

  • 'Joanna Miller makes us care deeply about four young women who find themselves pioneers in a strange new world, trying to find a way forward in the aftermath of war. A thoroughly lovely debut.'

    ― JOANNA QUINN, author of The Whalebone Theatre

  • ‘Totally immersive and captivating. This is a GLORIOUS debut and the struggles of these four women felt incredibly real. Impeccably researched and beautifully written. I ADORED it. One of my books of the year.’

    ― JULIE OWEN MOYLAN, author of That Green Eyed Girl

  • ‘These women soon become friends through the page and make me fondly and nostalgically recall that feeling of pure hope, wonder and fear as one stands on the edge of adult life.'

    ― EMMA BARNETT, broadcaster and journalist

  • ‘Engaging, warm and intelligent, this debut about the first women students at Oxford - their deep friendship, and all they must face - is a delight!’

    ― LUCY ATKINS, author of Magpie Lane

  • 'I loved this book. A hugely entertaining and brilliant-written novel which gives us not one, not two but four incredible female characters to root for. Meticulously researched and impeccably crafted. An entirely delightful debut.'

    ― ANNA MAZZOLA, author of The Clockwork Girl

  • 'An impeccably crafted novel about four women struggling for equality in the 1920s that still feels painfully relevant today. It encapsulates the power and beauty of female friendships and it will stay with me for a long time.'

    ― JOSIE FERGUSON, author of The Silence In Between

  • 'I loved the carefully crafted world and the focus on the abiding friendship between the four... It was moving, spirited and a lot of fun, much like the heroines of the novel.'

    ― ZOE SOMERVILLE, author of The Marsh House

  • 'The Eights has all the hallmarks of a modern classic! Beautiful writing and superb characterisation evoking a hugely important time in our history which still resonates today. I adored this book.'

    ― CAROLE HAILEY, author of The Silence Project

  • 'What I adored most was the life-affirming friendships ... The true strength of this novel is the realisation of how powerful female solidarity can be. A joyous anthem to friendship.'

    ― KATE THOMPSON, author of The Little Wartime Library

  • ‘Charming, quietly devastating, the four young women at the heart of The Eights have stayed with me... A spellbinding, heartbreaking and utterly hopeful book.’

    ― CATHRYN KEMP, author of A Poisoner’s Tale

  • ‘A gorgeous debut about the first female students at Oxford in 1920, and I utterly adored it. I know I’ll come back to this book in the future for guaranteed blissful reading.’

    ― NAOMI KELSEY, author of The Burnings

  • 'A hugely atmospheric snapshot of Oxford at a momentous point in its history... Intriguing, clever and completely absorbing. The city itself was so cleverly drawn... I absolutely loved it.'

    ― CAROL ATHERTON, author of Reading Lessons

  • ‘Witty and charming … an atmospheric testament to the power of friendship and the tenacious young women who led the charge for equality of opportunity.’

    ― JESSICA BULL, author of A Fortune Most Fatal

  • 'The Eights is not only blissful escapism, it's also a beautifully wrought story of women’s rights, freedom, love and experience. I couldn’t put it down.'

    ― HARRIET EVANS, author of A Hopeless Romantic

  • 'What an achievement! It felt so energising, fresh, important. I loved that the heart of the novel is female friendship, power, possibility. It's the sort of book one gives one's best friends.'

    ― SUSAN FLETCHER, author of Corrag

  • ‘I loved this story of the first women admitted to Oxford University - and its gorgeously written characters. Rooted strongly in time and place, this novel transports you.’

    ― JENNIE GODFREY, author of The List of Suspicious Things

NB: WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS!