So very many books of historical fiction are about famous people and/or center around a specific series of events. This book, however, focuses more on the expectations and constrictive lives of women of the early 20th century as well as the role of children within the working class population. The story is beautifully rendered yet gritty and the several graphic scenes may be unbearable for some readers. It deals with child labor abuse, mental illness, addiction, narcissism, naïveté and desperation. It is certainly not a life or time to which I would like to belong but one does find sympathy for the young heroin of the story. In the end, hope does prevail.

I am grateful to author Tanya Eby and Goodreads Giveaway program for having provided a free copy of this book. Their generosity, however, did not influence this review - the words of which are mine alone. ( )

In the Garden Room is a dark historical story of life around the turn of the 20th century. The story mostly alternates points of view between Cora, a wife and mother, and her daughter, Lillian.
Cora has never been satisfied with her life. Her husband, John, is a fisherman and she must work as a servant for her richer neighbors. Lillian lives a fairly carefree life going to school and studying to be a scientist one day.
Cora is enticed into running away to Chicago by a man visiting her small town, mostly because he wants Lillian though she doesn't realized it. Lillian is forced into a new world where she works for pennies at a meatpacking plant to support her mother who dreams of a better life, but does nothing to achieve it. Eventually, Cora is so desperate that she sells Lillian to work in a brothel, the Garden Room.
Meanwhile, John has come after his family, hoping to save them before it's too late.
This is an excellent read. The story is heartbreaking and engrossing. The choices made and how they impact the lives around them make for a fine, though sad, story. In the Garden Room is gritty, sad, loving, and hopeful. ( )