Life is tough. Women are tougher. When Gina Turner’s husband, Scott, is sent down for a ten-year stretch, her world falls apart. It’s not just that she misses her husband, but the fact that the Proceeds of Crime team are gunning for all the couple had: her home, her lifestyle, her safety could all be snatched from under her. But she’s not alone. Her friends Lola and Jess have seen their partners get slammed in jail too. Gina has an idea that could save all of them, but it means no more turning a blind eye – instead it’s an eye for an eye… While the women find out if they’ve got what it takes to navigate the Manchester underworld, Scott Turner must face up to the fact his biggest rival has landed in the same jail as him and to survive, both men may need to make a pact. For husband and wife, on the inside and out, it’s time to work out who they can trust – enemies, lovers, friends…or no-one?

The Trade

A mother will do anything to protect her child… Love and hate are no match for a prison’s walls What would you do if your son was sent down? Any parent would want justice – but justice takes many forms. Would you take on his enemies, protect his reputation, fight his battles? What if you had no choice? Zara Makin tried to give her three boys everything – but they wanted more than any mother could give. They’ve been running their patch of the city on fear and ruthlessness but now the law has caught up with the eldest of the Makin boys. With Tyler, the eldest, banged up in Strangeways, can he hold onto his empire from the inside, keep the family afloat and protect his nearest and dearest? Or will Zara have to fight tougher and dirtier to save her family than ever before? Find Karen on Facebook and Twitter @KarenWoodsBooks

The Con

A deadly choice. A secret between friends or a stab in the back? Four friends as close as they come. Until a girl’s weekend away leaves them with a shared secret that could destroy them all. But a secret is safe among friends, isn’t it? That’s what they think until in turn they all in turn receive a letter with the grim truth written down in black and white. Someone wants money for their silence – and quick… With the clock ticking, the girls must work out who they can trust and who’s been watching them. And ultimately, discover what they’d do to keep the truth among friends.

The Escape

Quiet streets hide the worst crimes Manchester’s Manor Estate is the kind of place people want to live – smart houses, neighbours who look out for you. But what if you don’t want to be seen? Behind the tidy front gardens and glossy painted doors it seems everyone’s got something to hide. Love, hate, addiction, jealousy – on a street where everyone’s watching, you can’t keep a secret forever. For these families, it’s time to find out what is really happening on home territory. Someone’s selling their soul, someone’s selling their body, and someone’s going to pay…

The Watch

The unexplained death of Kendal Wilson's mother hangs over her family like a dark, brooding cloud while the identity of her father remains a mystery her mother Mary took to her grave. Yet the secrets of Mary's death lie in a hidden diary she left behind. Unable to read or write, Kendal becomes trapped in a relationship with violent local gangster Scott while the discovery of the diary leads her on a journey of self-discovery with dramatic consequences.

Covering Up

The Hustle

All families have secrets. Some protect. Others destroy. Three sisters. A last wish from their dying mother. Can they forgive her? Brenda Smith shouldn’t feel lucky – she’s only got months to live, if that. But knowing this means she’s got one final chance to make peace with the grown-up daughters she’s not seen since she did something terrible decades back. Emily, her eldest daughter, moved on. She’s got a good job, nice family and a daughter of her own on the cusp of adulthood. Appalled by how her own mother tore the family apart, she could never do the same – or could she? Teresa, the middle child, learnt the hard way that she could only rely on herself – and if she wanted nice things, she’d have to go out and get them, by any means possible. She’s not proud of some of her choices – and it looks like it’s time for her to pay the price. And Shannon, the youngest? No one’s been able to reach her for years. She left home to outrun her pain but some things can never be escaped, only confronted. Will facing the truth set them free – or shatter even more lives?

The Truth

People can buy your silence, but not your loyalty… Macy Taylor was born in the shadow of Tavistock Square, at the heart of her Manchester estate. It’s got a reputation as a place where bad things happen. But it’s kept her secrets and she’s kept its code of silence. If you need something sorting, or want something you can’t get anywhere else – no questions asked – then you go to the Square. But everything in life comes at a price. Leanne Taylor is seventeen – she doesn’t understand why her mother wants her to keep clear of the life she led as a teenager. Leanne’s got dreams, but they don’t come cheap and the only people with money and power she knows are the boys and men that make their deals in the alleys and dark corners of the Square. For mother and daughter, it’s time to work out what they really care about, how fiercely they’ll fight to protect it, and what they’ll do when one day, the trouble they’ve worked so hard to outrun comes right to their own front door…

The Deal

You’ve got to fight for everything when you start with nothing. Susan Knight has a good life. So she turns a blind eye to the gambling winnings her husband Donny puts through the books at her salon. After all, he needs some way to unwind. At work, he is headteacher at Second Chance, an alternative provision school for kids who have nowhere else to go. Being the headteacher gives Donny respect, money, and charm. But respect can be lost, money can be stolen and charm can only go so far. The kids at the school all have a story to tell – as do the staff. Drugs, debt, violence and threat are part of their everyday lives. Donny’s got this far by never playing by the rules. But to keep winning, you have to keep chancing it all. To stay at the top means risking everything. Susan knows Donny walks a fine line – but if he stumbles too far on the wrong side of the tracks can she stand by him? And for Donny, if he loses Susan, he knows he might be pulled back into the life that’s been waiting for him all this time…

Tracks

Betrayal, family loyalties, secrets: not all gangsters live in the east end. Two families run this part of Manchester: the Johnsons and the Bennetts. With the head of the Johnson family banged up, the Bennetts have made their move. But power comes at a price… Now Charlie Johnson is out of prison and he wants his empire back. But the Bennetts have had a taste of the money and the control. Charlie’s sons want to strike now and destroy their rivals but Charlie wants to wait. He has a personal score to settle. Charlie’s wife Janey hates that her controlling husband is home from prison and is hatching a plan to leave him, but she knows he won’t let her go easily – not with the secrets she carries. She needs allies – and through her daughter and her passionate affairs, she may have found the way out she needs. But for all of them, getting what they want will mean risking everything.

Vice

When rebellious teenager Misty Sullivan falls pregnant to a local wannabe gangster, she soon becomes a prisoner in her own home. Despite the betrayal of her best friend, she eventually recovers her self-belief and plots revenge on her abusive boyfriend with spectacular consequences. This gripping tale sees the impressive debut of Karen Woods in the first of a series of novels based on characters living on a Manchester council estate. Themes of social deprivation, self-empowerment, lust, greed and envy come to the fore in this authentic tale of modern life.

Broken Youth

Lust, power, revenge: the gripping new gangland thriller from Karen Woods – the writer to show you the dark side of Manchester. Two women – one too innocent, one who knows too much. They have secrets, but none as lethal as those they uncover when they get caught up in turf wars between two strip club owners on the back streets of Manchester. Elsa Bradshaw is 18. Despite a tough start – never knowing her father, and barely seeing her mother who’d rather be chasing men – she’s grown up with her grandmother’s values and a desire to build a better life. But will falling for local bad boy, Clayton, change all that? Pamela Maylett seems to have everything – as wife of local lap-dancing club owner, Jordan, she’s got money, influence and plenty of life’s little luxuries. But is her beautiful home also her prison? She knows her husband is surrounded by women at work – after all, she was dancing when she met him. But Jordan won’t let his wife back on the stage and Pamela misses the lights, the lust and the power. When Elsa crosses paths with Pamela, she is grateful to be taken under her wing, and shown a world she never realised was out there. Elsa has a lot to learn – about the clubs, about what she wants, and most importantly, what she’ll do to get it. As the men that own the local clubs start a turf war, it’s time for the women to step up…

Tease

When her gangster boyfriend Tim is sent down, Susie Jones’ life is thrown into turmoil. Left to run his criminal empire, Susie finds solace in new acquaintances made in Strangeways Visitors’ Centre... with unforeseen consequences.

The Visitors

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