Book picks similar to
The Runaway Wife by Rosie Clarke
historical-fiction
fiction_romance
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War Babies
Annie Murray - 2015
When her father dies, deep in gambling debt, her mother must harden herself to make ends meet, but becomes so hard she has little room left for affection or warmth. Mother and daughter work at the open market in Birmingham, selling second-hand clothes or whatever they can find just to put a little food on the table.But the market has a silver lining: it's there that Rachel makes her first childhood friend, Danny. As they grow older, the friendship grows into something more and their innocent romance gives Rachel the care and comfort she's always craved. But at just sixteen, as World War II breaks out, Rachel falls pregnant. They marry in haste but it isn't long before Danny is called up. Left on the homefront with a new baby and little else, Rachel must scrape by with the other residents of Sparkbrook. But if Danny ever makes it home, will he be the same boy she loved so fiercely? And if Rachel can sustain the family until then, will she end up as hard-hearted as her own mother? War Babies is a moving and insightful novel about hardships on the homefront and how the war changed everybody it touched...
Finding Dreams
Lauren Westwood - 2018
Perfect for the fans of Jane Costello and Milly Johnson.
Lizzie Greene is about to lose everything when her husband suddenly dies and his debts come to light. To make ends meet she opens up her quirky old house to be used as a set for a film based on a bestselling romance novel. Her life and household are turned upside down when a whole cast of colourful characters enters her family's lives: from an enigmatic author, a handsome location scout, a brooding director, to a heart-throb leading man, never mind her now ex-mother-in-law camped out in her drive. As Lizzie delves deeper into the film's book, all is not as it seems. Will her desire to save her house and unravel the secrets of the past lead to new love, or to mortal danger?
The Stationmaster's Cottage
Phillipa Nefri Clark - 2017
Questions needing answers.”Those words gave Christie Ryan a reason to stay in River’s End, when she should have gone home after Gran’s funeral. Inheriting a rundown cottage, far from her jet-setting life, she is drawn into a fifty-year-old mystery.Who wrote the letters hidden in the attic, an outpouring of love to a woman Christie suspects she is related to? What is the significance of a damaged painting kept by Gran but clearly painted in this seaside town?Local artist Martin Blake may have the answers she seeks, but refuses to help. His dog adores Christie, but Martin keeps his feelings locked away.As Christie faces difficult decisions about her own future, will the consequences of righting old wrongs be too high a price to pay?**New edition April 2019 completely re-edited**
The Wedding Dress
Dani Atkins - 2021
Three love stories. One dress. The new heartwarming and uplifting romance from award-winning romance writer Dani Atkins.Suzanne is engaged to be married to the man of her dreams – except the lead up to her wedding is beginning to feel more like a nightmare. Can Suzanne uncover the truth about her fiancé ahead of her big day?Bella's life was on track until the day of the hen party when everything changed. Now she must find the strength to rebuild her future – and decide who she wants to spend it with.Mandy's grandmother has fallen in love but her family don't approve. For her grandmother's dreams to come true, Mandy has a secret wedding to plan, and a very special dress to find.These are the three strangers whose stories are about to be woven together by one perfect wedding dress.Praise for Dani Atkins:'Emotionally intelligent, absorbingly rich ... Atkins is a brilliant writer who has created wonderful characters' Daily Mail'Genuinely moving ... Every character is immaculately thought out. Once you start reading it, you won't stop' Heat'What a gorgeously emotional and heart-warming read this is' LoveReading'A gorgeous story with a perfect ending' Faith Hogan'A captivating story which packs an emotional punch' Heidi Swain
A Greek Affair
Linn B. Halton - 2018
Halton also writes as Lucy Coleman, the top ten bestselling author of Snowflakes Over Holly Cove!
More than just a holiday romance?
Her daughter, her job and divorcing her untrustworthy ex are Leah’s main priorities. She isn’t really bothered that her life might be missing a few things. But after winning a prestigious travel blogger award, she’s inundated with offers to review glamorous holiday destinations.Lying around drinking exotic cocktails and being paid for it … what could be better? Perhaps a romantic trip to idyllic Greece to find the one man who might make Leah risk her heart again…
Readers love Linn B. Halton!
‘Perfect escapism … A superb book’ Karen, Netgalley‘Not quite what I expected, but better. Five stars’ Barbara, Netgalley
Everybody Lies
Emily Maine Cavanagh - 2020
But now they have found that poor girl down on the beach, I realize just how many secrets we’ve been keeping all along.Evvy has lived on the island of Great Rock all her life. Every year, after the holidaymakers have departed, storms begin to roll in off the Atlantic and the island returns to the small group of locals who, like her, have decided to make it their home.But when a body is found on the snow-covered beach it sends shockwaves through this tight-knit community and rattles Evvy to her core.The dead woman had worked on the island the previous summer and it seems strange she would have been visiting so out of season. What drew her back and who was she meeting? When Evvy learns that her partner, Ian, was the last person to see her alive, the shadow of the murder falls far too close to home.No stranger to being talked about on the island, where no one’s private life is their own, Evvy must protect her daughter, Daisy, from yet more island gossip. Her family’s happiness has felt fragile at the best of times and now with Ian under suspicion, she senses they are close to freefall once again.As the icy weather closes in, Evvy will discover that no matter how hard you try to hide it, the truth will always find a way out.A tense and atmospheric emotional drama that will keep you guessing. Perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty, Diane Chamberlain and Sally Hepworth.
The Second Chance Hotel
Rachel Dove - 2020
But will April find the new start she’s looking for?April Statham had it all – until her husband left her for a blonde ten years her junior. Now she’s thirty-five, single, and starting again. So she does what anyone in her position would do: she impulsively invests her life savings in the chalet park she used to visit as a child, on the beautiful Cornish Coast.The Shady Pines Chalet Park is… ramshackle. But it has one big advantage – it is as far as physically possible from April’s ex, his new fiancée, and her old life. With gorgeous handyman Cillian O’Leary, April is looking forward to the challenge.As visitors arrive, April realises that Shady Pines isn’t just a second chance for her, it gives Cillian another shot at happiness too.But when he moves into the chalet next door, April’s painful past starts to catch up with her, and she struggles to reconcile her feelings for Cillian.Is April’s new beginning destined to end in failure – or will she find new friends, a new life and new love at her second chance hotel?Fans of Jenny Colgan, Emma Davies and Debbie Johnson will love Rachel Dove!
The Lost Letters
Sarah Mitchell - 2018
Perfect for fans of The Letter by Kathryn Hughes, The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. What if keeping your loved ones safe meant never seeing them again? Norfolk, 1940: Sylvia’s husband Howard has gone off to war, and she is struggling to raise her two children alone. Her only solace is her beach hut in Wells-Next-The-Sea, and her friendship with Connie, a woman she meets on the beach. The two women form a bond that will last a lifetime, and Sylvia tells Connie something that no-one else knows: about a secret lover… and a child. Canada, present day: When Martha’s beloved father dies, he leaves her two things: a mysterious stash of letters to an English woman called ‘Catkins’ and directions to a beach hut in the English seaside town of Wells. Martha is at a painful crossroads in her own life, and seizes this chance for a trip to England – to discover more about her family’s past, and the identity of her father’s secret correspondent. The tragedy of war brought heartbreaking choices for Sylvia. And a promise made between her and Connie has echoed down the years. For Martha, if she uncovers the truth, it could change everything…
The Child Across the Street
Kerry Wilkinson - 2020
Suddenly, there’s a screech of car brakes. I rush over to see a bent bike wheel sticking out of the ditch, and underneath, a little boy…As I turn the rusty key in the lock of the house I grew up in, memories flood back. None of them happy. I never told anyone why I left home twenty years ago, and all I want is to sort out Dad’s funeral as quickly as possible.Now I’m trapped here, the only witness to a terrible incident that has left an eight-year-old boy fighting for his life. But after a lifetime trying to forget my past, I don’t know if I can trust my memory, or be totally sure of what I saw today.Sorting through Dad’s things one night – shopping lists in his curly handwriting, piles of old newspapers, dusty sports trophies – I think I hear the back door handle rattle. I tiptoe downstairs, past an open window I’m sure I locked. And a figure darts across the overgrown garden.Someone is watching me. Someone who knows I’m the only one who saw what happened to little Ethan… or could they know the real reason why I left? Either way, I’m certain that coming back was my biggest mistake. I can’t leave, but the longer I stay, the more danger I’m in…
One Quiet Woman
Anna Jacobs - 2017
But women's wages are half those of men and pawning the few belongings she has left will only keep their vicious rent collector at bay for a few weeks, so even if she finds a job, they'll lose their home. Out of the blue Charlie Willcox, the local pawnbroker, offers her a deal. His brother Jonah, an invalid since being gassed in the Great War, needs a wife. Charlie thinks Leah would be perfect for the job. The idea of a marriage of convenience doesn't please Leah, but she finds Jonah agreeable enough and moving with him to the pretty hamlet of Ellindale may be the only chance of a better life for her sister. But other people have plans for the remote Pennine valley, and the two sisters find themselves facing danger in their new life with Jonah. Can the three of them ever look to a brighter future?
My Life for Yours
Vanessa Carnevale - 2020
They have a beautiful home, a loving family and, most importantly, they would do anything for each other. Now, they are having a baby and it feels like all their dreams are coming true.But joy turns to despair when they discover that Paige has a rare, life-threatening heart condition and they lose their longed-for child. Heartbroken, the couple must accept the reality that they may not become parents after all.Just as they begin to come to terms with their loss, Paige unexpectedly falls pregnant again. Paige’s heart is still weak, and to carry the baby to term puts them both at risk. The couple now face an impossible decision: Paige’s life or the life of their unborn child?If Paige keeps the baby, she could lose her life and destroy the man she loves. If Nick tries to stop her, he may lose them both forever. It’s the most important decision they have ever had to make – and time is running out.My Life for Yours is a heartbreaking, gripping and emotional story about love, loss and an impossible choice, perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, Kelly Rimmer and Kate Hewitt.
Just the Two of Us: A heartfelt novel about finding love in unexpected places
Georgie Capron - 2017
Lucy is the wrong side of thirty and tormented daily by the idyllic family pictures cluttering up her Facebook newsfeed. All of her friends seem to be getting married and having babies, and yet here she is, resolutely single, and no prospect of creating the perfect family she's always dreamt of. How she longs for it to be her turn. But finding love is complicated, and as time passes she wonders if there might just be another way to make her dreams come true. Is she brave enough to go it alone, or is the fantasy of 'baby makes three' just too precious to give up on?
Blast from the Past
Cathy Hopkins - 2019
Unlucky in love, Bea learns that her true soulmate is still out there ̶ and that he’s someone she knew in a past life.Returning home, Bea revisits the men in her life and can’t resist looking up a few old lovers – the Good, the Bad and the… well, the others. As Bea connects with the ones that got away, she suspects that her little black book has remained shut for a reason. But one man out there has her in his sights.They say love is blind and maybe Bea just needs an eye test…Funny and wise, this is the perfect read for anyone who believes in finding love, no matter what their age.
Cloudy with a Chance of Love
Fiona Collins - 2016
Perfect for fans of Jane Costello, Helen Fielding and Fiona Gibson.
Every cloud has a silver lining when it comes to love…
Daryl Williams never minded the fact that she had a big bottom. It’s always been behind her. In fact, it was one of the things that her husband loved about her. Until he ran off with her best friend, Gabby.Daryl knows that she needs to get back in the dating game, she just doesn’t know how. So when her colleague suggests taking a fortune forecast, she reluctantly agrees. And it looks like Daryl’s luck is in, by Friday she has a 99% chance of falling in love!Only, even when it’s written in the stars, finding the one after the one is never easy… What readers are saying about Fiona Collins: ‘It’s harder than it seems to stay single for a year…a fabulously entertaining story!’ – Rachel’s Random Reads (top 1000 Amazon Reviewer)‘A laugh-out-loud hilarious book with a deft turn of phrase and a very real grasp of what it’s like to be a woman…a real cut above your usual chick lit!.’ – Sam (top 1000 Amazon Reviewer)‘Not at all a predictable ending…something a little out of the ordinary.’ – Sal’s World of Books‘Fiona’s writing style is wonderful and packed with warmth and humour.’ – Bookaholic Holly‘I loved this book and read it in one night – I couldn't put it down!’ – Amazon Reviewer‘A light-hearted, fun read, perfect for a rainy day, or lying on a beach.’ – Ceri (Amazon Reviewer)‘Absolutely wonderful…A joy to read. I would recommend this book wholeheartedly.’ – Michelle (NetGalley Reviewer)A thoroughly enjoyable, light-hearted and fun read.’ – A Spoonful of Happy Endings
The Lost Mother
Catherine Hokin - 2021
Her heart felt tattered and empty, like the hollow streets of Berlin after its people began to live in fear.Berlin, 1934. Homes once filled with laughter stand empty as the Nazi party’s grip on the city tightens. When Anna Tiegel’s beautiful best friend catches Reich Minister Goebbels’ special attention, an impulsive act to save her brings Anna under his unforgiving scrutiny. First, she loses her job, then slowly, mercilessly, she finds her life stripped away. After her father is killed by the Nazis, Anna’s final hope is to escape to America with her boyfriend Eddy, but when she reaches his apartment on the agreed date, she finds it deserted. Alone and pregnant, the future feels terrifying, but she must try to protect the life inside her.Rhode Island, 1957. Peggy Bailey stares in shock at the faded photograph of two laughing women which her beloved adoptive mother struggled to pass on to her before she died, whispering ‘It was inside your baby blanket when we brought you home’. As Peggy continues to stare, she realises that she has seen one of the girls before, in the most unlikely of places… Bursting at the realisation, she embarks on a mission which takes her across America to find the truth behind her heritage. Nothing, however, could prepare her for the tragic story her actions uncover…