I’m thrilled to be part of the tour for this new Adele Parks novel: Two Dead Wives. This one kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat! I stayed up late reading it so I could see what happened. If you know me, you know I love suspenseful mysteries – this was a great one!
Adele Parks, Hon Grad, photographed at home in Guildford for The Graduate magazine
Adele Parks was born in North Yorkshire. She is the author of twenty-one bestselling novels. Over four million UK copies of her work have been sold, and her books have been translated into thirty-one different languages. Adele’s recent Sunday Times number one bestsellers Lies, Lies,Lies and Just My Luck were short-listed for the British Book Awards and have been optioned for development for TV. She is an ambassador of the National Literacy Trust and The Reading Agency, two charities that promote literacy in the UK. She is a judge for the Costa Book Awards. Adele has lived in Botswana, Italy and London and is now settled in Guildford, Surrey. In 2022 she was awarded an MBE for services to literature.
Book Summary:
Lost. Missing. Murdered? How do you find a woman who didn’t exist? It’s a case that has gripped a nation: A woman with a shocking secret is missing, presumed dead. And her two husbands are suspects in her murder.
DCI Clements knows the dark side of human nature and that love can make people do treacherous things. You can’t presume anything when it comes to crimes of the heart. Until a body is found, this scandalous and sad case remains wide open.
Stacie Jones lives a quiet life in a small village, nursed by her father as she recovers from illness, and shielded from any news of the outside world. But their reclusive life is about to be shattered.
How are these families linked, and can any of them ever rebuild their lives in the wake of tragedy?
Thank you for my copy and for having me as part of the tour! I would LOVE to see this one on television some time!
I love the Cressida Fawcett cozy mysteries so I was thrilled to take part in Bookouture’s latest blog tour featuring the newest mystery by Fliss Chester. These stories are always well-plotted and fun to read. You can read them in order or individually as stand alones (always helpful!). Cressida is the type of person I’d like to be friends with — intelligent, intrepid, and funny!
Book Description:
Someone on board has a deadly destination in mind… can Cressida stop them before it’s too late?
After an eventful trip to the Scottish Highlands, Cressida Fawcett is looking forward to being back among her society friends in London. Enjoying an ice-cold martini in the lounge car of the express train, loyal pug Ruby on her lap, she’s ready to blow off some steam!
But Cressida’s hopes for a relaxing journey are dashed when a gunshot resounds through the carriages. Industrial tycoon Lewis Warriner has been shot dead in his cabin. And as this train has been racing through the countryside, the culprit must be among Cressy’s fellow passengers…
Teaming up with Detective Andrews of Scotland Yard, also on his way back to London, they work their way through the suspects. Did Warriner’s mistress, a famous dancer, see his death as her ticket on to the silver screen? Or was it the mysterious man who can’t take his eyes off Lewis’s close companion?
When the murder weapon is found in the compartment Mr Warriner’s wife occupies alone, she becomes the chief suspect. Until there’s another gunshot. When Cressida finds out that Andrews is hit, panic sets in, but she must try to stay calm.
But with her friend and co-investigator out of action, can Cressida get the journey, and the investigation, back on track? And will she catch the murderer before they reach their final destination?
Fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss will absolutely love this addictive Golden Age cosy mystery.
Author Bio:
Fliss Chester lives in Surrey with her husband and writes historical cozy crime. When she is not killing people off in her 1940s whodunnits, she helps her husband, who is a wine merchant, run their business. Never far from a decent glass of something, Fliss also loves cooking (and writing up her favourite recipes on her blog), enjoying the beautiful Surrey and West Sussex countryside and having a good natter.
As the interminable commute continues, I’ve been listening to audiobooks from Net Galley. I love that NG offers audiobooks to reviewers!
Two good ones I listened to this month were The Lost Girls of Penzance by Sally Rigby and A Traitor in Whitehall by Julia Kelly.
I love a good mystery! This one was set in Penzance (no pirates!) in Cornwall and kept me on the edge of my seat. It was narrated by Clare Corbett and I loved her voice and accent. She also was good at changing her voice to fit different characters.
Here’s the scoop:
Description
The pale outline of bones in the dew-laden grass catches and holds Lauren’s gaze. In the distance, she can hear the faint sound of crashing waves and the eerie screech of seagulls. Whose life was so brutally cut short in this beautiful, lonely place?
Detective Lauren Pengelly has only been part of the Penzance police force for less than two years, but that’s enough time to know that the sleepy Cornish town doesn’t see many murders. So, when the bones of a woman with a hole in her skull are discovered behind a derelict cottage, she immediately assumes the worst.
Rallying her team, Lauren is flooded with a strange sense of relief when the bones turn out to be almost twenty years old, not a recent victim. But it quickly turns to dread when she receives her second heart-stopping call of the day – a little girl, Isla, has been kidnapped from her nursery and seemingly vanished, despite strict security in the building. Are the two cases connected, or could the peaceful town of Penzance be harbouring more than one monster?
With the help of Detective Matt Price, her newly arrived second-in-command, Lauren is certain the suspicious behaviour of Isla’s estranged father on the day of her disappearance is a critical clue. But when another little girl is taken, again from her nursery in the middle of the day, it’s clear Lauren and Matt are still dangerously far away from discovering the harrowing truth…
Get ready to be totally hooked! From the bestselling author of the Cavendish & Walker series, you won’t be able to put this murder mystery down. Fans of Angela Marsons, Rachel McLean and J M Dalgliesh will love it.
Moving back in time, I also listened to the WWII mystery A Traitor in Whitehall, ably read by Marisa Calin (who has a smooth, calming voice and the ability to change accents as needed). If you know me, you know I love WWII mysteries that take place in England and involve women working under cover!
Here’s the scoop:
Description
“Calin’s versatile characterizations, subtle accents, and comfortable pacing capture this privileged world wherein modern ideas clash with traditional values” —AudioFile on The Last Dance of the Debutante
From Julia Kelly, internationally bestselling author of The Last Dance of the Debutante, comes the first in the mysterious and immersive Parisian Orphan series, A Traitor in Whitehall.
“Kelly spins an Agatha Christie-esque mystery . . . thoroughly delightful and well-researched.”—Susan Elia MacNeal
1940, England: Evelyne Redfern, known as “The Parisian Orphan” as a child, is working on the line at a munitions factory in wartime London. When Mr. Fletcher, one of her father’s old friends, spots Evelyne on a night out, Evelyne finds herself plunged into the world of Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s cabinet war rooms.
However, shortly after she settles into her new role as a secretary, one of the girls at work is murdered, and Evelyne must use all of her amateur sleuthing expertise to find the killer. But doing so puts her right in the path of David Poole, a cagey minister’s aide who seems determined to thwart her investigations. That is, until Evelyne finds out David’s real mission is to root out a mole selling government secrets to Britain’s enemies, and the pair begrudgingly team up.
With her quick wit, sharp eyes, and determination, will Evelyne be able to find out who’s been selling England’s secrets and catch a killer, all while battling her growing attraction to David?
A Macmillan Audio production from Minotaur Books.
Both of these titles published earlier this month and should be available wherever you get your audiobooks! Happy Listening!
Okay so this picture has nothing to do with audiobooks – but I liked it! And I feel like this is a picture of the inside of my head: thousands of books!
If you know me, you know I commute a lot (over 2 hours a day) during the school year. I find it rather deadly, so my saving grace is audiobooks. I have an Audible subscription, and I just remembered that Net Galley has audiobooks, so I will try to get more of those, too.
Recently, I listened to three different stories, all gotten through my Audible subscription. I liked them all!
What happens when a relationship with a new friend turns into a nightmare of lies and a web of deceit? Lisa Jewell is a master at this type of suspenseful writing and she’s one of my favorite “listens” for when I’m driving. My mind doesn’t wander! (Note: this story had multiple narrators.)
Here’s the scoop:
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author known for her “superb pacing, twisted characters, and captivating prose” (BuzzFeed), Lisa Jewell returns with a scintillating new psychological thriller about a woman who finds herself the subject of her own popular true crime podcast.
Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summer crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins.
A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.
Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realize that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life—and into her home.
But, as quickly as she arrived, Josie disappears. Only then does Alix discover that Josie has left a terrible and terrifying legacy in her wake, and that Alix has become the subject of her own true crime podcast, with her life and her family’s lives under mortal threat.
Who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?
Another suspenseful read, by another master of suspense, was Shari Lapena’s Everyone Here Is Lying (With narration by January LaVoy).
In this story, where a young girl goes missing, everyone really is lying! I was practically squirming while listening and I couldn’t wait to see how it ended.
Here’s the overview:
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!
Another thrilling domestic suspense novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next Door
“The most addictive book I’ve read in ages—so slick and disquieting and clever. Just brilliant.” —Lisa Jewell, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Family Remains
“Lapena is a master of manipulation.” —USA Today
Welcome to Stanhope. A safe neighborhood. A place for families.
William Wooler is a family man, on the surface. But he’s been having an affair, an affair that ended horribly this afternoon at a motel up the road. So when he returns to his house, devastated and angry, to find his difficult nine-year-old daughter, Avery, unexpectedly home from school, William loses his temper.
Hours later, Avery’s family declares her missing.
Suddenly Stanhope doesn’t feel so safe. And William isn’t the only one on his street who’s hiding a lie. As witnesses come forward with information that may or may not be true, Avery’s neighbors become increasingly unhinged.
Who took Avery Wooler?
Nothing will prepare you for the truth.
Finally, a friend recommended Maggie O’Farrell’s The Marriage Portrait (with narration by Genevieve Gaunt and the author). I loved loved loved her Hamnet. I loved this story, too. This was historical fiction, as O’Farrell builds us a story of Lucrezia de Medici and her short life as the wife of ruler of Ferrara in the 1500’s. What was it like to be married at 13? Sent away to live with your husband at 15? And then dead at 16? O’Farrell’s writing is so beautiful. She captures a phrase and describes a moment so beautifully, that listening to her work is as lovely as reading it.
(I’m just seeing that this was a Reese Book Club pick, too)
Here’s the scoop:
WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION FINALIST • REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK • NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • The author of award-winning Hamnet brings the world of Renaissance Italy to jewel-bright life in this unforgettable fictional portrait of the captivating young duchess Lucrezia de’ Medici as she makes her way in a troubled court.
“I could not stop reading this incredible true story.” —Reese Witherspoon (Reese’s Book Club Pick)
“O’Farrell pulls out little threads of historical detail to weave this story of a precocious girl sensitive to the contradictions of her station…You may know the history, and you may think you know what’s coming, but don’t be so sure.“ —The Washington Post
Florence, the 1550s. Lucrezia, third daughter of the grand duke, is comfortable with her obscure place in the palazzo: free to wonder at its treasures, observe its clandestine workings, and devote herself to her own artistic pursuits. But when her older sister dies on the eve of her wedding to the ruler of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio, Lucrezia is thrust unwittingly into the limelight: the duke is quick to request her hand in marriage, and her father just as quick to accept on her behalf.
Having barely left girlhood behind, Lucrezia must now enter an unfamiliar court whose customs are opaque and where her arrival is not universally welcomed. Perhaps most mystifying of all is her new husband himself, Alfonso. Is he the playful sophisticate he appeared to be before their wedding, the aesthete happiest in the company of artists and musicians, or the ruthless politician before whom even his formidable sisters seem to tremble?
As Lucrezia sits in constricting finery for a painting intended to preserve her image for centuries to come, one thing becomes worryingly clear. In the court’s eyes, she has one duty: to provide the heir who will shore up the future of the Ferranese dynasty. Until then, for all of her rank and nobility, the new duchess’s future hangs entirely in the balance.
Full of the beauty and emotion with which she illuminated the Shakespearean canvas of Hamnet, Maggie O’Farrell turns her talents to Renaissance Italy in an extraordinary portrait of a resilient young woman’s battle for her very survival.
Currently, I’m listening to Chris Bohjalian’s The Lioness with The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post up next!
I received a copy of this novel from Lyn Squire’s publicist. What an intriguing and fun read! I love Dickens and this story builds on his death and its cause, as well as the unfinished story of The Mystery of Edwin Drood.
Here’s the scoop:
Death strikes England’s foremost novelist, his latest tale only half told. Was he murdered because someone feared a ruinous revelation? Or was it revenge for some past misdeed? Set in the Kent countryside and London slums of 1870, Immortalised to Death embeds an ingenious solution to Charles Dickens’s unfinished The Mystery of Edwin Drood within the evolving and ultimately tragic consequences of a broader mystery surrounding the author himself. Debut author Lyn Squire kicks off his fascinating Dunston Burnett Trilogy with legendary Victorian novelist Charles Dickens dead at his desk, pen still in hand. Convinced that the identity of Dickens’s murderer lies in the book’s missing denouement, Dickens’s nephew and unlikely detective, Dunston Burnett, sets out to complete his uncle’s half-finished novel. A stunning revelation crowns this tale about the mysterious death of England’s greatest novelist, and exposes the author’s long-held secret.
I really enjoyed reading this one and it kept me guessing and pondering and wondering how much could be true! I liked the character of Dunston Burnett and it looks like this is the first in a trilogy so we’ll be hearing more from him.
Thank you for my copy!
Here’s a bit about the author:
LYN SQUIRE was born in Cardiff, South Wales. He earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Wales, his master’s at the London School of Economics and his doctorate at Cambridge University. Lyn is now an American citizen living in Virginia. During a twenty-five year career at the World Bank, Lyn published over thirty articles and several books within his area of expertise. Lyn also served as editor of the Middle East Development Journal for over a decade, and was the founding president of the Global Development Network, an organization dedicated to supporting promising scholars from the developing world.
Lyn has always been an avid reader of whodunits and has reviewed scores of mysteries for the City Book Review (Sacramento, CA), but it was the thrill of solving Charles Dickens’s unfinished ‘Mystery of Edwin Drood’ that convinced him to put aside his development pen and turn to fiction. Finding a solution to the mystery has attracted massive interest since the author’s death in 1870. A 1998 bibliography lists over 2,000 entries, with continuations ranging from the obvious (a Sherlock Holmes pastiche) to the absurd (The Mysterious Mystery of Rude Dedwin). Lyn’s version of what happened to Edwin is revealed in his first novel, Immortalised to Death. The adventures of his protagonist, Dunston Burnett, a non-conventional amateur detective, continue in Fatally Inferior and The Séance of Murder, the second and third stories in The Dunston Burnett Trilogy. Find more about Lyn on his website.
I love the Julia Bird mysteries, set in the Cotswolds with intelligent and thoughtful retiree Julia solving murders that happen on her doorstep. This one was fun as it centered on a trivia contest at a local pub. It kept me guessing! I do love these characters, including Julia’s cumbersome Black lab!
Thanks for my copy and for including me on the tour!
Book Description:
Julia Bird loves the village pub quiz, but it seems one of her team won’t make it to the next round alive…
On the first Tuesday of each month, Julia Bird and her Agatha Quizteam teammates take part in Berrywick’s village pub quiz. They take it seriously – what’s the point of playing, after all, if you aren’t in it to win it? But it seems someone connected with the quiz night has taken the competition to a whole new level when Lilian, the local police constable and all-round general knowledge expert, is found fatally stabbed after the evening’s final round.
With local DI Hayley Gibson stuck home with a broken leg and an incompetent Superintendent brought in from the nearby town, it’s up to Julia to make sure the investigation stays focussed – whether they like it or not! While the police are convinced that the murderer is linked to Lilian’s professional life, Julia turns her amateur sleuthing eye to suspects much closer to home. Perhaps Lilian’s personal life could have something to do with the dreadful crime?
When another quiz team member is attacked, Julia is finally put on the right track. But what could possibly be important – or dangerous – enough for two attendees of the pub quiz night to meet such foul ends over? Could the culprit really be among them on that busy Tuesday night? As Julia’s race to identify the killer ramps up to desperate heights, she wonders, where will the murderous spree end?
Perfect for fans of M.C. Beaton, Faith Martin and Betty Rowlands, Murder at the Inn is a brilliantly compelling English cosy mystery.
Author Bio:
Katie Gayle is the writing partnership of best-selling South African writers, Kate Sidley and Gail Schimmel. Kate and Gail have, between them, written over ten books of various genres, but with Katie Gayle, they both make their debut in the cozy mystery genre. Both Gail and Kate live in Johannesburg, with husbands, children, dogs and cats. Unlike their sleuth Epiphany Bloom, neither of them have ever stolen a cat from the vet.
I’m thrilled to be part of the blog tour for Fliss Chester’s new historical cozy mystery DEATH IN THE HIGHLANDS, featuring her intrepid protagonist Cressida Fawcett. I love this series and have read them all! I love the time period (1920s) – it reminds me a bit of another series I adore: the Royal Spyness series by Rhys Bowen. Cressida is smart and fearless and funny, too. Plus she has a cute dog – what’s there not to like?
Here’s the scoop:
Book Description:
There’s a dangerous killer lurking by this loch… and only canny Cressida can track them down.
Scotland, June 1925.Socialite Cressida Fawcett has been invited to cast her interior design eye over the Stirling family’s new seat, Ayrton Castle, up in the Scottish Highlands. Thrilled to be spending the summer at the historic estate, Cressida fills her suitcase with this season’s hunting jackets – and some tartan for her little pug Ruby, of course!
But before the party is ready to tramp through the glens, shocking news puts paid to their plans. Hamish Glenkirk, former owner of Ayrton, has been found dead inside a turret room of the castle. The door was bolted from the inside, and the room is three storeys up, surrounded by impenetrable stone walls… How did the murderer get in? And out?
With Detective Andrews of Scotland Yard at least a day’s journey away, Cressida knows she needs to get to the bottom of this case – and fast. There’s no end of suspects among the hunting party. Could it be the local doctor whose wife left him for a fling with the now-dead laird? Or is the gamekeeper hiding secrets under his kilt?
Just as Cressida is closing in on the truth, a blood-curdling scream echoes through the mist. Another member of the party, and one of the suspects, has been shot. With a wee dram in hand, can Cressida find the killer before the bagpipes play for another victim?
An unputdownable and gripping cozy mystery which fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss will love.
Author Bio:
Fliss Chester lives in Surrey with her husband and writes historical cozy crime. When she is not killing people off in her 1940s whodunnits, she helps her husband, who is a wine merchant, run their business. Never far from a decent glass of something, Fliss also loves cooking (and writing up her favourite recipes on her blog), enjoying the beautiful Surrey and West Sussex countryside and having a good natter.
Thanks for my galley and for making me part of the tour. I look forward to the next installment! Just a note that you do NOT have to read this series in order to enjoy it. Each title can be a stand alone as well.
I should start by saying that I have always been a Royal Watcher. I adored Princess Diana. I have read about the courage and dignity of the Royal family during WWII. I have watched their weddings and have been excited to see their new babies. So – it was no surprise that I couldn’t wait to get this one (on audio through my audible account) and listen to Harry reading it himself. And of course I loved it!! It was so interesting to get his point of view in his words. I also have never been a Camilla fan and he’s not overly fond of her himself, it seems. And I’ve never been a huge Charles fan, but I softened to him as Harry shares that he is never called “Harold” by his father, but always “Darling boy”. I know other bloggers have criticized this title, but if you are entranced with the history, the pomp, and the personalities of the Royals, I think you’ll enjoy it. But do yourself a favor and get it on audio. I think hearing it in Harry’s voice is key.
Here’s the scoop:
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Discover the global phenomenon that tells an unforgettable story of love, loss, and healing.
“Compellingly artful . . . [a] blockbuster memoir.”—The New Yorker
It was one of the most searing images of the twentieth century: two young boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow—and horror. As Princess Diana was laid to rest, billions wondered what Prince William and Prince Harry must be thinking and feeling—and how their lives would play out from that point on.
For Harry, this is that story at last.
Before losing his mother, twelve-year-old Prince Harry was known as the carefree one, the happy-go-lucky Spare to the more serious Heir. Grief changed everything. He struggled at school, struggled with anger, with loneliness—and, because he blamed the press for his mother’s death, he struggled to accept life in the spotlight.
At twenty-one, he joined the British Army. The discipline gave him structure, and two combat tours made him a hero at home. But he soon felt more lost than ever, suffering from post-traumatic stress and prone to crippling panic attacks. Above all, he couldn’t find true love.
Then he met Meghan. The world was swept away by the couple’s cinematic romance and rejoiced in their fairy-tale wedding. But from the beginning, Harry and Meghan were preyed upon by the press, subjected to waves of abuse, racism, and lies. Watching his wife suffer, their safety and mental health at risk, Harry saw no other way to prevent the tragedy of history repeating itself but to flee his mother country. Over the centuries, leaving the Royal Family was an act few had dared. The last to try, in fact, had been his mother. . . .
For the first time, Prince Harry tells his own story, chronicling his journey with raw, unflinching honesty. A landmark publication, Spare is full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief.
I enjoy Sally Hepworth’s writing, so I was excited to get her latest novel The Good Sister from Net Galley. I enjoyed the story, which has some twists to it. To be honest, even if it wasn’t a mystery and just a straightforward story, I would have enjoyed it as I loved the character of Fern – a neurodiverse librarian who meets a young man as unique as she is and falls in love. For me, Fern’s story was enough for an entire novel – suspense wasn’t needed!
This was yet another book that I couldn’t put down and read straight through!
Here’s the overview:
Description
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “A stunningly clever thriller made doubly suspenseful by not one, but two unreliable narrators.” —People Sally Hepworth, the author of The Mother-In-Law delivers a knock-out of a novel about the lies that bind two sisters in The Good Sister.
There’s only been one time that Rose couldn’t stop me from doing the wrong thing and that was a mistake that will haunt me for the rest of my life.
Fern Castle works in her local library. She has dinner with her twin sister Rose three nights a week. And she avoids crowds, bright lights and loud noises as much as possible. Fern has a carefully structured life and disrupting her routine can be…dangerous.
When Rose discovers that she cannot get pregnant, Fern sees her chance to pay her sister back for everything Rose has done for her. Fern can have a baby for Rose. She just needs to find a father. Simple.
Fern’s mission will shake the foundations of the life she has carefully built for herself and stir up dark secrets from the past, in this quirky, rich and shocking story of what families keep hidden.
Today I’m part of the tour for this WWI historical fiction story about two sisters who live out their lives quietly in the house where they were born. They seem fairly quiet and ordinary, but, through diaries we come to know them and their lives, hopes, and lost dreams.
I really liked this one, though it was sad. This story is told in two parts: current day and 1917-22. I much preferred the story and characters from the past. I think they reminded me a bit of a relative I had that would have been the same age who also lived her life with her sibling in the house where she grew up. Who knows what stories she left behind that we have yet to uncover?
Thank you for my copy and for making me part of the tour! I always enjoy books from Bookouture!
Book Description: Two ordinary sisters. A long and brutal war. A heroic sacrifice…
London, 1915. As German bombs rain down on the East End of London and hungry children queue for rations in the blistering cold, fifteen-year-old Florrie is forced to grow up fast. With her father fighting in the muddy trenches, Florrie turns to her older sister Edith for comfort. But the war has changed Edith. She has grown quiet, with dark shadows under her eyes, and has started leaving the house at night in secret. When Florrie follows her sister through the dark and winding streets of London, she is shocked by what she discovers. But she knows she must keep her sister’s secret for the sake of their family, even if she herself must pay the ultimate price…
Years later Kate, running from her broken relationship, is sorting through her dead aunt Florrie’s house, which she shared with her sister Edith. As she sits on the threadbare carpets, looking at photos of Florrie during the war, she notices the change in her aunt – from carefree young girl with a hopeful smile to a hollow-cheeked young woman, with dark sad eyes.
Determined to put her family’s ghosts to rest, Kate must unearth the secret past of her two aunts. Why is there a hidden locked room in the little house they shared? What is the story behind the abandoned wedding dress wrapped in tissue and tied up with a ribbon? And when Kate discovers the tragic secrets that have bound her family together, will she ever be able to move on?
A heartbreaking historical novel of war, tragedy and the sacrifices we make for those we love. Fans of Fiona Valpy, Kristin Hannah and Victoria Hislop will be hooked by The Shut-Away Sisters.
Author Bio: Following an eventful career as a public relations consultant, specialising in business and travel, Suzanne Goldring turned to writing the kind of novels she likes to read, about the extraordinary lives of ordinary people. Whether she is working in her thatched cottage in Hampshire or her seaside home in North Cornwall, Suzanne finds inspiration in the secrets hidden by everyday life.
Beth's Book-Nook Blog 