In a bid to escape from her unhappy marriage and fearing for her own safety, Ayesha flees in the dead of night with her young daughter Sabina. In London she ends up finding refuge in a house where the other residents are also hiding from their past. There's Hayden, once a successful rock star but now burnt out and grieving for his lost love; elderly Joy, crotchety and set in her ways; and Crystal, warm-hearted and penniless, stuck in a degrading job. Ayesha's arrival is the catalyst for change, and all the inhabitants of the house learn to spread their wings and embrace a new life. But dark clouds from the past intrude into their world. They must trust each other and find courage before they can find peace and love. This author yet again proves why she's a best-seller, with warm characters and a plot which keeps the pages turning.
Freda Lightfoot - Peace in my Heart
Set in the aftermath of World War II, the novel follows Evie and her family as they struggle to reconnect with each other after being separated during the war. The children were evacuated and the two girls have lost touch with their brother. They have had many difficulties to surmount during their years away from home. Evie's husband has been a prisoner of war, and when he returns he suffers from psychological and health problems. It is a difficult path for Evie as she tries to make a home for her family. Meanwhile her elder daughter Joanne, now seventeen, has no time for young Bernie, who has been a good friend to her and now wants a deeper relationship - but he seems reliable and boring in comparison with the GI who stole her heart then returned to America. Struggling with unscrupulous and damaged people, it takes all the courage of Evie and her family to reunite and find happiness and stability. An emotional read, highlighting a time that is so often forgotten, when hostilities ceased and people had to try and pick up their lives again.
Hannah Richell - Secrets of the Tides
There's a double meaning in the title, as the novel focuses not only on a family called Tide, but also their home on the Dorset coast. The timeline moves between the past and the present. Dora Tide is living in London in the present day, but cannot move on to the future because of the events of a tragic day ten years earlier. Big changes in her life mean that the time has come for her to try and face the past, and she makes the journey to Dorset one more time. As the story unfolds, we are given glimpses of the past and the reasons for the tragedy, as well as its effect on Dora and the rest of the family. The characters are vivid and well-drawn, their faults and failings stirring our sympathy while we see them running from, and then facing, the actions of the past. A novel that draws the reader in and captures the emotions.