Decades of spiralling drug resistance have unleashed a global antibiotic crisis. Ordinary infections are untreatable, and a scratch from a pet can kill. A sacrifice is required to keep the majority safe: no one over 70 is allowed new antibiotics. The elderly are sent to hospitals nicknamed 'The Waiting Rooms', hospitals where no one ever gets well. Twenty years after the crisis takes hold, Kate begins a search for her birth mother, armed only with her name and her age. As Kate unearths disturbing facts about her mother's past, she puts her family in danger and risks losing everything. Because Kate is not the only secret that her mother is hiding. Someone else is looking for her, too.

The Waiting Rooms

Coming up 16, Tilly Trotter is different from the other girls in her village. Tall for her age and coltish, she is not afraid of taking on 'man's work' to help out the grandparents who raised her in a cottage at the edge of the Sopwith Estate. Testing times lay ahead for Tilly, often hard to endure and even bringing her the undeserved taint of being suspected of witchcraft. She only loves one man, farmer Simon Bentwood, and is heartbroken to discover he is betrothed to another. A spurned suitor takes a terrible revenge, and a betrayal forces her into the cruel drudgery of the local mine. But Tilly refuses to let her spirit be broken - determined that all this will only serve to make her stronger - and she grows to become a young woman of innate courage and fortitude.

Tilly Trotter

The start of BRAND NEW SERIES from bestselling author of 'The Tobacco Girls' Lizzie LaneBristol 1936 Jenny Crawford has resigned herself to a loveless marriage living hand to mouth with their two children. Like many others, husband Roy struggles to find work at the docks but a chance encounter turns the family's fortunes around. Not only does he get regular work but they are also allocated a council house on Coronation Close on the outskirts of the city. Jenny and the children are overjoyed, this is the fresh start she could only ever dream of. But trouble feels never too far away. With Roy spending more time with Sir Oswald Molsey bullying black shirts, Jenny is left to her own devices and eager to fit in begins to make new friends. Thankful of peace, Jenny has her head turned firstly by an old love and then by her knight in shining armour. Does she allow herself to glimpse a chance of happiness? Whatever happens the consequences could be dire if Roy ever finds out.

New Neighbours for Coronation Close - The start of a BRAND NEW historical saga series by Lizzie Lane for 2023 (Unabridged)

Yorkshire, 1913. Beth Beaumont enjoys her life as a rhubarb farmer's daughter. Although not thinking of marriage, when Beth meets village miner Noah Jackson, she is suddenly very aware that Noah is a man who could change her mind. But a disaster at the coal mine changes their lives forever and Noah's love for Beth is put at risk. However, Louis Melville, the wealthy son of a local gentry family, wants Beth for himself. At first he is willing to offer marriage, but when Beth turns him down, Melville, furious to be denied, wreaks revenge with devastating consequences. Will Beth and Noah find the happiness they wish for?

Market Stall Girl

The Market Stall Girl

When Daisy's family lose their croft on the Connemara coast, her Aunt Jane, housekeeper to Dr and Mrs Venables, offers to take Daisy back to Liverpool. There she can be companion to the Venables' orphaned niece, Cynthia. Daisy is a tomboy, strong-willed and hot-tempered. In Ireland, she was seldom in school but often in trouble. Now she tells herself that she must conform. She begins to work hard in school and life in Liverpool gradually becomes easier to bear. Although Daisy means to follow her friend Jake to university, war intervenes and she starts work at a munitions factory, falling in love for the very first time…

Sunshine and Shadows

Mum always knows best… The stunning debut for fans of Celia Imrie and Dawn French. Meet the daughters of Iris Parker. Dee; sensitive and big-hearted; Rose uptight and controlled and Fleur the reckless free spirit. At the reading of their mother’s will, the three estranged women are aghast to discover that their inheritance comes with very tricky strings attached. If they are to inherit her wealth, they must spend a series of weekends together over the course of a year and carry out their mother’s ‘bucket list’. But one year doesn’t seem like nearly enough time for them to move past the decades-old layers of squabbles and misunderstandings. Can they grow up for once and see that Iris’s bucket list was about so much more than money…

The Kicking the Bucket List

Aunt Mildred declared that no good could come of the Melbury family Christmas gatherings. So when Sir Osmond Melbury, the family patriarch, is discovered – by a guest dressed as Santa Klaus – with a bullet in his head on Christmas Day, the festivities are plunged into chaos. Nearly everybody stands to reap some sort of benefit from his death, excepting Santa Klaus, the one person who seems to have had every opportunity to fire the shot. Various members of the family have their private suspicions about the murderer, and the Chief Constable of Haulmshire, wishes before long that he understood them better. In the midst of mistrust, suspicion and hatred, it emerges that there was not one Santa Klaus, but two.

British Library Crime Classic

The Santa Klaus Murder

The Buffer Girls is an inspiring tale of love, heartache and ambition from bestselling author Margaret Dickinson. It is 1920 in the Derbyshire dales. The Ryan family are adjusting to life now that the war is over. Walter has returned home a broken man and so it falls to his son and daughter, Josh and Emily, to keep the family candle-making business going. The Ryan children grew up with Amy Clark, daughter of the village blacksmith, and Thomas 'Trip' Trippett, whose father owns a cutlery business in Sheffield. Romance blossoms for Josh and Amy while Emily falls in love with Trip, but she is unsure if the feeling is mutual. Martha Ryan is fiercely ambitious for her son and so she uproots her family to Sheffield, but all Josh wants is to continue the family business and marry Amy. As the Ryans do their best to adapt to city life, their friendly neighbour, Lizzie, helps Emily find employment as a Buffer Girl polishing cutlery at a local factory. It turns out that it is Emily who is best equipped to forge a career but, as time goes on, problems and even dangers arise that the Ryan family could not possibly have foreseen.

The Buffer Girls

Pre-Order the Brand NEW book from bestselling author Lizzie Lane's Cottage Hospital series Times are changing as secrets unfold... Somerset, 1931 Doctor Frances Brakespeare continues to settle into her new life in rural Somerset at Orchard Cottage Hospital, striving to improve the medical treatments on offer to the community. After successfully establishing a mother and baby clinic, Frances is determined to move with the times and add family planning advice to her roster - but are the residents of Norton Dene ready for such progress or will she face opposition? In her personal life, her relationship with the Reverend Gregory Sampson becomes her safe haven whilst battling with an embittered family relative in London. As always, Frances strives to honour the values inherited from her late benefactress Izzy Brakespeare. As further dark family secrets and sins unfold, it seems the Brakespeare family name will have more resonance to Frances than she ever imagined and when a stranger enters her life, Frances may finally have the answers she has always sought.Perfect for fans of Rosie Clarke, Fenella Miller and Patricia McBride. If you love this, try Lizzie's Tobacco Girls and Coronation Close series Praise for Lizzie Lane: 'An absorbing and fascinating read that kept me turning the pages until the early hours. Simply wonderful.' - Tracy Baines 'What a fantastic, unforgettable new series by the fabulous Lizzie Lane. I loved it!' - AnneMarie Brear 'Lizzie Lane has done it again! Fantastic writing, beautifully drawn characters and wonderful plotlines! What's not to love?' - Rachel Brimble 'A gripping saga and a storyline that will keep you hooked' - Rosie Goodwin 'A heartwarming tale of love and friendship and a must-read for all saga fans' - Jean Fullerton 'If you want an exciting, authentic historical saga then look no further than Lizzie Lane' - Fenella J Miller 'I thoroughly enjoyed reading 'A New Doctor At Orchard Cottage Hospital' and I wholeheartedly recommend this book to other readers. I will certainly be reading more of Lizzie's work in the future' - Ginger Book Geek 'Such a delight to read and by the end I felt invested in every character. Strong women and gorgeous men, combined with some brilliantly written baddies made it a perfect read. I'll be eagerly waiting for the next instalment' - Reader Review 'This is a heartwarming read, with some endearing characters (and some not so!) and in such an idyllic setting, I could completely visualise the setting' - Reader Review '😄 i didn't want it to end I'm hoping there would be a follow on as I'd like to find out more' - Reader Review

Orchard Cottage Hospital

Family Affairs at Orchard Cottage Hospital - Orchard Cottage Hospital, Book 2 (Unabridged)

Jessica is grieving for her beloved father, Jacob Kingdom, a trawler owner fondly remembered by his crew. But a confrontation with her mother leads to Jessica being cast out from the family home and the reveal of a shameful secret. It isn't long before she meets a charismatic trawlerman who is proud to walk out with Kingdom's daughter on his arm, in spite of the discontent among the fisherman now her cold-hearted brother is running the business. With Jessica desperate to prove herself worthy of a place in her tight-knit community, does she have what it takes to weather the storm of her life to come, or will her secret hold her back from embracing who she is?

Daughter of the Sea

1939. Eve Armstrong is being evacuated to Devon. As the train pulls out of London she takes a last look at the crowded platform, the shabbily dressed evacuees, and a rude little boy sticking his tongue out. At first Eve is happier than ever at Drake's Farm. It's a different world that invites fresh starts, and so when Eve runs into the boy from the station, Johnny Durrell, they call a truce and soon become firm friends. The war might be a distant reality, but the arrival of Connie Hale makes every day a battle. Connie is stuck up and spiteful – and Johnny's new best friend. Will Eve fight for Johnny or concede defeat?

A Christmas Candle

As a longstanding fan of bestselling author Jivan Childering, aspiring young novelist Jessica Lord is dismayed on encountering the man himself to find him stand-offish. But, some months later, many thousands of miles away in Western Australia, Jessica's path is destined to cross with Jivan's once more and she begins to see a different side to this talented yet reserved and private man. For his part, Jivan finds himself increasingly drawn to the unpretentious Jessica, and impressed by her single-minded determination to follow her dreams. But following a bitter divorce, Jivan has vowed never to get romantically involved with a woman again. Can Jessica break down his emotional barriers?

Tomorrow's Path

Is love just an illusion? To the outside, Clare has everything: a beautiful home, a devoted husband and daughter, and plenty of money. But she is bored. And she is plagued by doubts. Her husband Clive spends most of the year abroad – but what does he do after work hours? And her daughter Sally claims to spend all her time with horses and homework – but what about boys? Lonely, thwarted and unfulfilled – and against Clive's wishes – Clare takes a job managing a café. Her ambition is to experience real life, to escape the imaginary feelings that plague her. But when a handsome stranger walks through the door, there is nothing imaginary about her feelings…

Chasing Rainbows

After the sudden and brutal breakdown of her marriage, Jenny finds herself alone for the first time in her life when she leaves the comfortable farmhouse with her four-year-old daughter. Taking refuge in a seaside town in North Wales, Jenny finds a room in a boarding house. It's difficult at first, but as she gets to know her fellow residents, she gradually begins to see that life has much more to offer than she could ever have dreamed. And when she meets Bill, the owner of the local coffee bar, she finally understands that she is far happier now, living on her own, than she ever was when she was married.

Jenny Alone

1901. Tina Rose is the beloved daughter of a wealthy Jewish family, while Edward grew up with an abusive father in the wilds of New Zealand. Despite their differences, the two fall madly in love when Edward Neyler arrives in England, looking for a better future. However, the consequences of their love affair are terrible for Tina as she is shamed by the father she adores, and Edward is sent away. Against all the odds, Tina and Edward find each other again, and despite great hardship and tragedy, together they build a dynasty strong enough to withstand some of the worst catastrophes Britain has ever known.

The Pride

As World War One begins, no family, including the Neylers, will be left untouched, and by the time the war finally finishes, nothing will ever be the same again. Ted and Tina Neyler's children are growing up, doomed to be drawn into the Great War. Their son Frank will be scarred forever by one terrible day in the trenches, while Tina's brother Louis, the charming optimist, returns unscathed from the war to find that his wife and mistress have met up and that his misdemeanours are inexorably catching up with him. But despite the tragedy they face, the Neylers realise that even war can't break the bonds that keep them together.

The Glory

Liverpool, 1939. As winter descends on Tuppenny Corner and rumours of war float across the canals, 15-year-old Rosie O'Leary must come to terms with her own dramatic upheaval. Forced to say goodbye to all she holds dear and embark on a new life aboard the Kingfisher, her world is suddenly full of uncertainty. But new beginnings open up new possibilities...When fellow bargee Tim Bradley offers to show Rosie the sights of Liverpool, she jumps at the chance and it's not long before their friendship grows into something more. But when Tim is called up to join the RAF, Rosie's dream of a future together must be put on hold…

Christmas at Tuppenny Corner

It is 1931, and once again Europe is heading towards disaster. Life must go on however, and a new generation of the Neyler family are making their way in this turbulent world. Louis Rose, the self-confessed black sheep of the family, returns to England for his father's funeral and is greeted with more bad news: he has lost his mistress to his young nephew. Louis' son Simon, meanwhile, has matured and is embarking on his first love affair. Valentine Neyler, Simon's cousin, visits Berlin for the Olympics, but finds herself experiencing first-hand the prejudice which is gripping Germany. Before she knows it she is caught up in the tragedy of a Jewish family struggling to escape the Nazi horror.

The Splendour

A Christmas party is punctuated by a gunshot under a policeman's watchful eye. A jewel heist is planned amidst the glitz and glamour of Oxford Street's Christmas shopping. And lost in a snowstorm, a man finds a motive for murder…This collection of mysteries explores the darker side of the festive season from unexplained disturbances in the fresh snow, to the darkness that lurks beneath the sparkling decorations. With neglected stories by John Bude and E.C.R. Lorac, as well as tales by little-known writers of crime fiction, Martin Edwards blends the cosy atmosphere of the fireside story with a chill to match the temperature outside. This is a gripping seasonal collection sure to delight mystery fans.

British Library Crime Classics

The  Christmas Card Crime

1957. Newly-wed Val Walker is looking forward to starting a family. Her best friend, the previously flighty Cissie, is expecting her second child, content to settle down to full-time motherhood. Their mutual friend Janice, is engaged to boyfriend Paul. But life doesn't always turn out as one would expect. Val doesn't find it as easy as she'd expected to fall pregnant. Cissie is jealous when her husband Walter takes an interest in a new female colleague. Janice feels guilty for leaving her widowed father and young brother behind in Blackpool to start a new life in Yorkshire. Are the three friends' marriages strong enough to survive these unexpected obstacles?

Love and Marriage

Liverpool, 1940. There comes a moment in every child's life when they must learn to stand on their own two feet. For 15-year-old Ellie Lancton, that time has come all too soon. The death of her mother and the increase in air raids leaves Ellie alone and in grave danger. It's not long before she is forced to leave her beloved Liverpool behind and cross the Mersey to seek refuge in the countryside. But as the war takes comforts away, so too does it bring new opportunities; for work, new friendships, and perhaps a little love…

A Mother's Love

The Second World War sparked the writing of hundreds of short stories, by servicemen and women as well as civilians. They appeared in magazines and collections during and after the war, and addressed all areas of the conflict, from the home front to service abroad. Short stories offer a wonderful insight into everyday concerns on the various front lines, and illustrate the humour that kept up morale, as well as the despair and confusion felt by so many. This anthology introduces a selection of stories that are both unique representations of individual war experience and representative of larger trends.

Night in the Front Line

When Dot McCann, playing with her pals, decides to hide in Butcher Rathbone's almost empty dustbin, she overhears a conversation which could send one man to prison and the other to the gallows – and suddenly finds herself in possession of stolen goods. Dot lives with her aunt and uncle, abandoned after her parents died. She feels very alone, until she meets up with Corky who has run away from a London orphanage. They join forces with Emma, whose jeweller's shop has been burgled, and Nick, a young reporter who is investigating the crime. The four of them begin a plot to catch the thieves. But Dot and Emma have been recognised, and soon both are in very real danger...

The Cuckoo Child

Liverpool, 1917. When Irish seaman Michael Gallagher docks in Liverpool after years of fighting with the British Navy, he never expects to fall in love. But the moment he glimpses Stella Bennett, all thoughts of returning to his homeland vanish. Determined to be together, the young couple defy Stella's parents' wishes. But their plans to marry are soon derailed by the arrival of baby Ginny. Her crop of fiery red hair plants a seed of doubt in her father's mind and it's not long before their world begins to fall apart.

A Kiss and a Promise

It is 1900 and Adeline Warburton and Arnold Haslington have fallen deeply in love. But though both are from wealthy families, their social status is too far apart for their families to approve of the match. And when Arnold marries another, Adeline's reaction is immediate and altogether unexpected, as she travels to make a new life in China. But although they are separated by thousands of miles, the consequences of their youthful passion continue to haunt them and their children – Addy's daughter Nala and Arnold's son, Philip. As the years pass, and the children grow, violent forces are set to bring them together, unaware of the secrets from the past that bind them.

A Family Affair

Working at a tiny village school in rural Yorkshire has its own unique set of challenges – but when teachers Lydia Knight and Jake Immingham are tasked with getting the children to put on a Christmas play for the local elderly people's home, they know they're in for a tricky term! But in between choreographing sugar plum dance routines, reindeer costume malfunctions and trying to contain Rory Scott's wannabe rap star aspirations, Lydia realises that, even as a teacher, she isn't past being taught a couple of things – and one of those things is a much-needed lesson in Christmas spirit.

Christmas at the Little Village School

When war broke out, 17-year-old Christie could have stayed down on the family farm in Norfolk, where she was wanted and needed. So why had she joined up? Come to that, why had Meg from Cheshire, and Sue, very much the big city girl from Liverpool, and Shanna, the life-toughened product of a broken home in Glasgow? Mixed reasons. Very mixed backgrounds. But no time to think now. Not with the sergeant shouting and the station air-raid siren beginning to wail . . .

We'll Meet Again

Kay Duffield's fiancé is about to leave the country, and her own duty with the WAAF is imminent when she becomes a bride. The precious few days she spends with her new husband are quickly forgotten once she starts work as a balloon operator. There she makes friends with shy Emily Bevan, who has left her parents' hill farm in Wales for the first time; down-to-earth Biddy Bachelor, fresh from the horrors of the Liverpool bombing, and spirited Jo Stewart, the rebel among them, whose disregard for authority looks set to land them all in trouble. The girls stay friends through good times and bad, through romantic encounters and, ultimately, tragedy.

You Are My Sunshine

Living on the edge of the beautiful Norfolk Broads with her father, the only ripple in Tess Delamere's calm life is the disturbing dream about her dead mother which haunts her. She yearns to know more but the arrival of a new stepmother heralds the end of Tess's hopes that her father might divulge the past. As she grows up, Tess slowly starts to put together the pieces herself. But the outbreak of war brings tragedy and upheaval, changing Tess's priorities. Mal Chandler has travelled the length and breadth of Australia with his feckless father and weary mother. Now, the war brings Mal to England as a pilot for the RAF – and into Tess's world.

Still Waters

Hitler's war is reaching out to affect every member of the Neyler family. Val Neyler, driving an ambulance through the blazing heart of London, is in an impossible position, for the man she loves is a fighter pilot with the Luftwaffe. And Jenny, whose husband Simon is flying Spitfires, finds herself working as a landgirl on a Devon farm. Cara, by contrast, develops her social life, and Maude, in the WAAF, falls in love with two men at once ... And Tina, matriarch of the family loves them all, scolds them all, and tries to understand the new generation growing up in the troubled times of war.

Full Circle

Forgive and Forget is a heart-wrenching historical tale, from the much-loved Margaret Dickinson. Polly Longden's china-doll looks belie a strong and fiery personality. When typhoid strikes her home city of Lincoln, she needs every ounce of that strength in order to cope. With the death of her mother, thirteen-year-old Polly has to give up her ambition of becoming a teacher to care for her family. When their father, too, falls victim to the typhoid, his only hope is to go to hospital, leaving Polly to cope alone. Thankfully she has the support of her neighbours: Bertha Halliday and her son, Leo, a young policeman. Through all the hardships that follow, Polly is sustained by her dream of becoming Leo's wife. But her father's hot temper leads him to the wrong side of the law during the railway riots of 1911, forcing Leo to take drastic action that Polly will surely never be able to forgive and forget . . .

Forgive and Forget

Margaret Dickinson's Pauper's Gold is the heartfelt story of triumph over adversity, in the cotton mills of Derbyshire. Hannah Francis has been forced to leave her beloved mother and the life she knows in the silk mill town of Macclesfield and is set to become an apprentice at a cotton mill in the Derbyshire dales. It is a cruel blow for such a young girl, but her three travelling companions are even younger than she is, and Hannah is determined to keep their spirits up and remain in good cheer. Once she is settled in the mill, Hannah discovers that the hours of work are long, and the daily routine is dangerous, arduous and harsh, but her bright singing and capacity for joy lighten the load for everyone. Hannah soon becomes a favourite with the other mill workers. Friendships are forged and an innocent love starts to blossom. But can such a fragile love survive cruel reality? It is not long before she attracts the eye of Edmund Critchlow, the man who owns them all, body and soul – the man from whom no pretty mill girl is safe. Times are hard in the cotton industry as civil war rages across America affecting even the mill owner and the lives of all his workers . . .

Pauper's Gold

Dympna Byrne lives a simple life with her family on the Connemara coast. She adores her father Micheál, and does her best to help her family by working hard and expecting little. But beneath the surface there are hidden secrets. Dympna's mother idolises her clever eldest son, yet her attitude to Dympna is puzzling. So when her family find themselves in desperate need of money, it is Dympna who crosses the water to Liverpool to seek a better life. Immersed in the bustling streets of Liverpool, Dympna's circumstances begin to improve. But it is a chance encounter with orphaned, half-starved Jimmy Ruddock that sets her on an extraordinary path she never could have predicted…

No Silver Spoon

Hetty Gilbert is a canal child with no permanent address, so when she needs to join the library, she cannot do so. Miss Preece dislikes children, but Hetty's longing for books touches a chord and she stretches the rules to help her. Soon, Hetty's chief desire is to become a librarian like her friend. But with war on the horizon, their lives will never be the same. In 1939 Hetty joins in the war effort, for her knowledge of canal boats is desperately needed, whilst Miss Preece can only listen to the dangers her young friend faces, knowing she herself can do nothing to help. But her chance will come, and with it the meaning behind that fragile mistletoe kiss…

A Mistletoe Kiss

Liverpool 1934. Hester Lowe agrees to act as governess to spoiled, self-willed, little Lonnie Hetherington-Smith when they leave India to live with Lonnie's elderly aunt in Shaw Street, Liverpool. Hester speedily realises that her new employer dislikes her niece and means to make life uncomfortable for both of them. Things improve a little when they meet the poor but happy Bailey family who live in a court off Heyworth Street. Hester likes Dick Bailey very much, but her employer does not permit "followers" and Lonnie and young Ben Bailey are deadly enemies. But then the regime in Shaw street changes and Hester is forced to leave the comforts of a middle-class household to make her own way in what is, to her, a strange country . . .

Poor Little Rich Girl

Rose McAllister is waiting for her husband, Steve, to come home. He is a seaman, often drunk and violent. Rose does her best to cope and sees that her daughters, Daisy and Petal, suffer as little as possible. Sensing that war is on the horizon, Steve tries to reform, but on his last night home, he pawns the girls' new dolls to go on a drinking binge. When war is declared, Rose finds a good job but agrees the children must be evacuated. War brings hardship and difficulty for the girls and Rose as they face the destruction of their home and cruelty at the hands of others…

A Long and Lonely Road

One wild night in the 1930s, midwife Patty Peel is called to attend a birth on the opposite side of Liverpool. She pedals off into the storm and delivers a baby girl in a filthy slum dwelling, just as the mother dies. The drunk and violent father tells Patty to get rid of it so she takes the child away, meaning to deliver it to the nearest orphanage. However, Patty spent her entire childhood in an institution, except for the frequent occasions when she ran away, and cannot bear to hand the baby over. But she has few friends and despises all the men around her, so how can she hope to bring up the baby alone?

The Bad Penny

Addy and Prue Fairweather live with their widowed mother Nell, in a flat above her shop. Addy is plain and always in trouble whereas Prue is as angelic as her looks imply. To make matters worse, Nell makes no secret of her preference for the younger girl, increasing Addy's jealousy. On the other side of the coin, Giles Frobisher and his twin sister, Gillian, live in a crumbling mansion in Devon. The family have lost most of their money in the Depression, so Giles joins the Fleet Air Arm. He meets the Fairweather girls briefly but they lose touch. When they meet again the girls are no longer children and Giles realises he is falling in love.

In Time for Christmas

Amy Logan's family are poor but proud. They scrape a living by shrimping for the big Liverpool fish market, which Amy hates. It's only because her beloved, and strict, mother rules her with a rod of iron that she mucks in. But Isobel Logan dies in childbirth, and Amy and her brothers start to run wild. Matters aren't helped when her father marries Suzie Keagan from down the street: Until now, Suzie has managed to conceal a dislike for housekeeping and she forces Amy to slave at chores. Desperate to escape, Amy leaves home to take her first job. But her happiness is short-lived for her father becomes gravely ill. She must return home and take her place within the family once again . . .

The Girl from Seaforth Sands

It is the autumn of 1945 and identical twins Joy and Gillian Lawrence are on their way home to Liverpool, having been evacuated to Devonshire five years earlier.Their mother has been killed in the blitz but the girls hope that with their beloved father's help they will be able to manage. All goes well until there is a terrible accident and Joy loses her sight. At first she is bitter and resentful whilst Gillian is racked with guilt.However, as time passes Joy gains confidence, hopeful that her sight will return. Then there is a chance meeting on a train and once more the girls lives are in turmoil…

Christmas Wishes

Lottie and her mother, Louella, share a house in Victoria Court with Mr Magic and his son Baz. Lottie is a child star, dancing and singing at the Gaiety Theatre to an enraptured audience, whilst Louella acts as Max Magic's assistant. But a road accident causes Lottie to lose her memory. Louella tries to help but the white mist remains. Then Lottie meets a boy with golden-brown eyes who calls her "Sassy" and accuses her of running away. It is after this meeting that the dreams start, dreams of another life, almost another world, and Lottie, sharing them with Baz, begins to believe he knows more than he chooses to tell.

Forgotten Dreams

Dana and Caitlin meet on the ferry from Ireland, both in search of new lives in Liverpool, having left their secrets behind in Ireland. But Dana is ambitious, and when the opportunity comes to own their own tearoom she persuades her friend to join her. No one is willing to rent property to a couple of girls, so when Caitlin's new man-friend says he'll back them, they are delighted. Soon the tearoom is thriving. But after an accident which puts her in hospital for some time, Dana begins to remember her lost life with more affection, particularly Con, the boy she left behind…Then fate intervenes, and soon the girls find themselves fighting to survive in a world on the brink of war.

The Runaway

As the worst storm of the century breaks across the North West, sweeping through Snowdonia and across the Mersey to burst upon Liverpool, two women, Molly and Ellen, give birth to girls in a Liverpool maternity hospital. Molly lives on a hill farm in Snowdonia while Ellen is married to Sam O'Mara, a dock worker who is quicker with a punch than a kiss. After one punch too many, Ellen throws her husband out, and eventually leaves Liverpool to live with Molly. Ellen and her daughter throw themselves into their new life with enthusiasm, unaware that they are being watched by someone hiding in a ruined cottage. And as another horrendous storm breaks across the hills, the watcher makes his move.

A Sixpenny Christmas

Miranda Lovage and her mother have a blazing row when Arabella tells her daughter that she can no longer afford their present lifestyle. Miranda goes to bed angry and upset.When she awakes next morning, however, it is to find that her mother has disappeared. Miranda raises the alarm but everyone is baffled, and when searches fail to discover Arabella's whereabouts, Miranda is forced to live with her Aunt Vi and cousin Beth, who resent her presence and treat her badly. Miranda is miserable, but when she meets a neighbour, Steve, things begin to look up and Steve promises to help his new friend in her search, and does so until war intervenes…

The Forget-Me-Not Summer

It is a cold December night and Sylvie Dugdale is weeping as she walks by the Mersey. She fails to notice an approaching figure and jumping to one side to avoid collision, she finds herself struggling in the ice-cold river. Constable Brendan O'Hara, just coming off duty, sees the girl's plight and dives in to rescue her. He is dazzled by her beauty but discovers that Sylvie's husband is in prison and the closeness that Brendan soon longs for is impossible. But he is able to help her escape from Liverpool, arranging for her to stay with his cousin Caitlin in Dublin. There she meets Maeve, a crippled girl from the slums, who will change all their lives…

Little Girl Lost

Along a blacked-out wartime street a girl is scurrying, a basket on one arm. As sirens begin and bombs crash down, she is filled with panic and, with a heavy heart, abandons her burden in a sheltered doorway, meaning to return later. Even as she disappears in the resulting chaos, the bundle in the basket begins to wail. Years later, two young unfortunates meet on a November day. Martin has been desperately trying to hitch a lift along the lonely windswept road and when he sees a weeping girl in front of him, he hurries to catch her up. Rose and Martin become unlikely companions until they go their separate ways, not expecting to meet again. However, fate decrees otherwise…

A Mother's Hope

Liverpool, 1935. Kathy Kelling is coming home to Daisy Street from her first day at the High School, longing to tell her friend, Jane, all about it. The Kelling's life becomes a struggle when Kathy's brother Billy has a serious accident. He needs constant attention and Mrs Kelling must take in lodgers so that Kathy's schooling does not suffer.When war breaks out Kathy and Jane are forced to grow up fast. Kathy meets the handsome Alec Hewitt, but he is more attracted to blonde, bubbly Jane. But Fate has not yet finished with Kathy Kelling...

Down Daisy Street

Marianne seems to have everything. She is married to a handsome Naval officer, Neil Sheridan. They have a daughter, Libby, and a beautiful home near Prince's Park in Liverpool. When war comes, Marianne takes war work and moves in with her mother, Mrs Wainwright, and younger sister. Neil disapproves because the Wainwrights live close to the docks, which are bound to be a bombing target, but Marianne is firm. Meanwhile, Libby is evacuated to the countryside to stay with Miss Williams, who lives in an ancient house in North Wales. Libby, the wheelchair-bound Matthew and Miss Williams assume they can settle down to see out the war in comparative safety. But Libby is forced to return to the city when her mother suffers an accident and her gran finds herself unable to cope…

Such Sweet Sorrow

The tangled destinies of an unusual family are played out against the backdrop of the English countryside where two pretty sisters and a beautiful widow take center stage in a drama of dangerous flirtation and backstairs gossip. Esther Musgrave, an attractive widow, has her hands full trying to keep her energetic family together – and on speaking terms! Her three daughters, prickly Delia, sensible Meg and carefree Rose, mean everything to her, especially since the death of her husband, Charles.

The Musgraves

It wasn't a privileged childhood, but it was a happy one. Sybil and Lizzie Cream, brought up in a fisherman's cottage on the edge of the cold North Sea, were content to leave privilege where it belonged: with their friends the Wintertons. Christina Winterton was the same age as Sybil and the two girls were inseparable, but it was Lizzie whom Ralph Winterton, three years older, found irresistible. Then war came to East Anglia, and so did Manchester-born Fenn Kitzmann, now of the American Army Air Force. At their first meeting he is attracted by Sybil's subtle charm, but before he sees her again her own personal tragedy has struck, and he finds her changed almost out of recognition…

First Love, Last Love

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