Maggie Thatcher is prime minister, drainpipe jeans are in, and Miv is convinced that her dad wants to move their family Down South. Because of the murders.

Introduction to the author and book

Jennie Godfrey was raised in West Yorkshire in a mill-working family and her debut novel, The List of Suspicious Things, was inspired by her childhood there in the 1970s. In 2020, Jennie gave up her corporate career to build a life around books. She is now a writer and part-time bookseller who lives, and writes, in the Somerset countryside.

When Jennie Godfrey told colleagues she was quitting their FTSE-100 company to pursue her childhood dream of becoming an author, some rolled their eyes, others worried openly about her mental health. But just two years later she was signing a deal with Penguin to publish her first novel and translate it into four languages.

The List of Suspicious Things follows 12-year-old Miv as she navigates a 1970s Yorkshire plagued by the Yorkshire Ripper.

Jennie drew heavily on her own experiences growing up in the West Yorkshire town of Dewsbury, where the ‘Ripper Squad’ – the team investigating the spate of murders – was based.

Peter Sutcliffe’s presence dominated Jennie’s early life, but it was only upon his arrest that she realised how closely their lives had touched. Her mechanic father worked with Sutcliffe, frequently servicing the lorries he drove.

Jennie said: “I remember my dad staring open mouthed at the television and saying ‘but I know him, I know him’.”

If Sutcliffe played an outsized role in Jennie’s life, so did books. She was once dragged to the doctors by a mother worried she wasn’t sleeping because she spent so much time reading under the covers.

“I was obsessed,” Jennie remembers. “It was my way of escaping.”

A passion for books led her to a degree in English and Politics at De Montford University in Leicester. Three decades on, she is a student again, this time studying for a PhD in Creative Writing at the University of Bristol.

Jennie said: “I loved university and wanted to be a journalist, but at that time I couldn’t see myself as a writer because that seemed a leap too far for someone of my background: a working class, northern woman.

“During my degree my parents separated and my mum became homeless. It was during the recession, when things were just awful.

“I realised any high ideals of wanting to write had to be put to one side. I graduated and immediately went into business to make sure my family was secure.”

Jennie excelled in business, eventually working her way up to HR Director of a FTSE-100 company. But despite her success she always felt out of place playing the role of a “hard-nosed businesswoman”.

Jennie said: “It’ll sound really trite, but I really did have a moment where I thought: ‘I’m nearing 50, and I’ve had this thing that I’ve wanted to do since I was child. If not now, then when?’

“It was a midlife crisis, or maybe an existential crisis!”

Jennie gave herself six months to make a success from writing. After a few scrunched up manuscripts, Jennie leant on her love of true crime and hit upon her idea for The List of Suspicious Things. Soon her pen was ablaze.

“Writing the book was a homecoming and it’s fantastic to be showcasing my home area and people,” Jennie said.

“Both parents are really proud that it’s about Yorkshire, because it’s not necessarily a place that is reflected in literature in abundance.

“This isn’t a London-centric, middle-class novel; it’s a northern, working-class novel, and I love that the translations will be read all over the world.”

Engrossing and heartwarming in equal measure, The List of Suspicious Things follows best friends Miv and Sharon in the Yorkshire Ripper-era North, as they embark on solving the mystery of the disappearing women only to find unanswered questions much closer to home.

Yorkshire, 1979

Leaving Yorkshire and her best friend Sharon simply isn’t an option, no matter the dangers lurking round their way; or the strangeness at home that started the day Miv’s mum stopped talking.

Perhaps if she could solve the case of the disappearing women, they could stay after all? So, Miv and Sharon decide to make a list: a list of all the suspicious people and things down their street. People they know. People they don’t. But their search for the truth reveals more secrets in their neighbourhood, within their families – and between each other – than they ever thought possible.

What if the real mystery Miv needs to solve is the one that lies much closer to home?

MEDIA REVIEWS

What could be more magical than a writer who can flip from hilarity to darkness and back on the same page? Jennie Godfrey does this and more in THE LIST OF SUSPICIOUS THINGS, all told in a voice that is as authentic as it is unforgettable – Jenny Jackson

Funny, poignant and drawn with real compassion. This is a heart-warming book – Emma Healey, author of Elizabeth is Missing

A heartwarming tale about the power of human connection, written with empathy, warmth and care. To read it is to feel that little bit better about life – Elizabeth Day

I can’t believe this is a debut. Heavy themes handled with such tenderness and care, a moving, memorable tale of community, connection and curiosity. I loved it – Emma Gannon

Profoundly original and dazzlingly written. A beautiful mystery with heart – Rob Rinder

A book full of heart that drops you vividly into a time and place. Superb – Kate Hamer

This is such a tender coming of age story with unforgettable characters. Exquisite storytelling that’s full of heart – Julie Owen-Moylan

Absolutely loved it – it is so engrossing, utterly heart-breaking (made me cry!) but also redemptive and hopeful at the same time – Sophie Hannah

Pretty sure this will be the book of 2024. Bring tissues – Joanna Nadin

The characters completely burrowed into my heart. It’s a warm, funny, huge-hearted book without any twee – it’s truthful, carrying a sadness too – Chloe Timms

What do you think of this novel?

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Once you’ve read this month’s book, and after the end of FEBRUARY please, use the comments box below to say what you think about it; what you liked and didn’t like. What about the writing style, pace, mood, characterisation, use of description, the plot … ? Or get in touch with your comments and opinions by email to (rhossilihwb.cymru@gmail.com).

Vicki James & Helen Sinclair

The next book for March 2026 will be …

“Lucy Ultimate Survivor” by Elizabeth Hayward (published March 2021  –  408 pages.  Amazon 4.5*)

A dramatic and intriguing true Georgian tale of love, betrayal and survival.