Young Lily Bright works long hours on a market stall, selling furniture and bric-a-brac in order to make ends meet. When a handsome stranger approaches in search of a bargain, It's love at first sight. Swept off her feet, Lily falls for the debonair Charles Grey - only to discover, too late, that he is not what he seems. Pregnant, Lily turns for comfort to her childhood friend Ben James, but as World War II looms, Lily must find the courage to seize control of her own destiny, confront her past mistakes and win true love...

    But when the Blitz reaches Manchester, she is locked in the cellar by her feckless mother, Lizzie. As bombs rain down from a sky turned blood red with flame, Jess waits for Lizzie to return.But fortunes are fickle, and soon Jess finds herself packed off to live with her tyrant Uncle Bernie, a bullying black marketeer. Though he treats her like a servant, she seeks refuge in the Sally Army and her natural musical talent offers both an escape route and the chance for love.But Uncle Bernie never forgives his niece for refusing to join his illegal schemes and threatens to deprive Jess of her hard-won freedom once and for all. This is a sweeping saga of hope and resilience perfect for fans of Kitty Neale and Rosie Goodwin. Praise for Dancing on Deansgate ‘A heart-wrenching story’ 5* Reader review‘It drew me in straight away’ 5* Reader review‘Another gem from a great writer’ 5* Reader review‘A compelling story of separation and hardship, and heartache overcome at last’ 5* Reader review

    Her husband is away fighting in the Second World War and she has regretfully sent her two young children away to her parents in Galway, knowing that they will be safe there. She's grateful for her job in munitions but not so happy when that means getting home in the blackout, dodging the bomb damage.Then Lizzie is attacked on one such journey. She comes around battered and bruised, unable to remember the full extent of the attack – but she fears the worst, and is right to. Turning to her family in desperation, she is told she has brought them nothing but disgrace. Yet help is at hand, from the most unlikely place…

    Rose can’t imagine the future without Ray, but she’s certain he would have wanted her to start again. She decides to volunteer as a postwoman in West London, and when she courageously rescues a young boy from a bombed-out house and takes him home, she finds a new sense of purpose. Traumatised from losing his mother in the ruins, seven-year-old Alfie is also rebellious and withdrawn. However, he touches the hearts of Rose's family, and with kindness, patience and love, they eventually win his trust. But then a handsome stranger, Johnny Beech, turns up on the doorstep, looking for his son, and everything changes...

    Love is Blind is a gripping wartime saga from much-loved author Anne Baker, which follows a family's path through heartache and war. Perfect for fans of Katie Flynn and Sheila Newberry.Patsy Rushton's brother Barney doesn't know the meaning of hard work, so when their father tragically dies, Patsy has no choice but to save the family's business. Meanwhile, Barney has got his girlfriend pregnant and, feeling trapped, he abandons her and leaves Merseyside altogether. But trouble follows Barney wherever he goes and when he learns of his sister's growing success, he can't help feeling resentful. Why is their mother, Beatrice, so quick to forgive him? Surely, she can't be blind to his faults? As Patsy is to discover, there's something else about Barney that is frightening her mother so much she has never dared to speak of it before. What readers are saying about Love is Blind 'Very good, easy read. The twists and turns in the plot kept the intrigue alive. I would recommend to anyone''Engaging characters and a gripping war time story. A good insight into life during the war. Can't wait to read another of Anne Baker's books'

    Powerful, absorbing storytelling that is perfect for fans of saga by Dilly Court, Rosie Goodwin and Maggie Hope.

    For sisters Sophie and Maria, though, the upheaval is just beginning. For they have no choice but to leave their beloved home on the Isle of Man. It is a huge wrench for eighteen-year-old Maria, who can't forget Hans Bonhoeffer, a young Austrian, interned on the island during the war. For widowed Sophie, Liverpool offers a new beginning with her daughter Bella. She has no room for distractions - until she falls in love with Frank Ryan, a man married to a woman who, although she doesn't love him, has no intention of letting him go. Without the men they love, will the sisters ever find happiness?

    Amidst the chaos of the Bristol blitz, Carrie finds herself falling in love with a young doctor, Dev. Carrie's willing to defy convention and leave her stifling marriage for Dev, but one summer evening, horrific events change Carrie's life for ever. Since that night, for forty years, Carrie's beloved daughter, Gillian, has refused to see or speak to her. Now, someone is digging into the past. Will Carrie break her long silence and, if she does, will Gillian finally be able to forgive?Don't miss any of Amelia's romantic epics, Dance With Wings, A Song At Sunset, A Woman of Secrets and The Secret She Kept.

    Young Thomas witnessed the atrocities that the Nazis had carried out in Spain and trained his pilots to show no mercy when towards the end of the book, he breached the rules to attack German planes. Published by The Electronic Book Company

    Jessie is just nineteen when her father passes away and her mother decides to return to her native Ireland. But Jessie, headstrong and independent, prefers to take charge of her own destiny and finds employment at a workman’s cafe, becoming the darling of the dockworkers who are fiercely protective of her.When one of her customers charms his way into her heart, Jessie becomes Mrs Conor McGonigall and soon assumes ownership of the cafe. All the pieces of her life are coming together. But when a pushy local businessman and a former employee with a grudge have other ideas, everything she has worked for is slowly chipped away. Can she find the strength to rebuild the life she wants in the face of immeasurable personal loss?‘Her debut book caused a stir among Cookson and Cox devotees, and they’ll love this. Compulsive reading’ Woman’s Weekly‘A heart-rending tale’ Gilda O’Neill‘A page-turner for all saga lovers’ Katie Fforde‘A heart-warming tale with a vividly drawn central character’ Peterborough Evening Telegraph‘Excellent and gripping . . . compelling. I am eagerly awaiting June Tate’s next offering’ Sussex Life

    The story covers Maggie Clarke's upbringing in the tenements close to the docks, the River Mersey and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal: an area notorious for having the worst slums in Britain, yet the closest community as well.At the tender age of 11, Maggie Clarke finds herself the matriarch of the family when her Irish mother runs off with another man. Leaving school at 14 to work at a local factory putting sticks into lollies, she is determined to make a better life for herself and her family - before starting her own family with her childhood sweetheart, who she marries at 19 after 'falling in the family way'. She has one night of married life with her husband before he is sent to India with the Navy and is devastated when she never hears from him again, presuming him a casualty of the war that is raging at home and abroad. Another tragedy strikes when Maggie's brother Tommy is also claimed by the war, leaving her father inconsolable, but Maggie knows life has to go on and falls in love with Joseph, an Irish settler who she has 8 children with. But her happiness is short-lived as her first husband suddenly appears out of the blue demanding a divorce, and her new husband drinks away what little money they have, returning in fits of rage that leave Maggie and her children hungry and afraid. Many times she is only able to feed her brood by the kindness of neighbours putting a 'pan of scouse' on the range for her, or feeding her kids jam butties to help out. Maggie's story sweeps across the changing face of Liverpool, from its squalid dock streets, the tenement blocks and cobbled roads to the decline of the docklands, new council housing, the rise of the Mersey beat, the Beatles and the energy and passion of a city that is home to a cast of colourful characters with the resilience to withstand the heartbreak and hardships that only the poorest can know.

    Rose McAllister is waiting for her husband, Steve, to come home. He is a seaman, often drunk and violent, but Rose does her best to cope and see that her daughters, Daisy and Petal, suffer as little as possible. Steve, however, realises that war is coming and 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 has a good job but agrees the children must be evacuated. Daisy and Petal are happy at first, but circumstances change and they are put in the care of a woman who hates all scousers and taunts them with the destruction of their city. They run away, arriving home on the worst night of the May Blitz. Rose is attending the birth of her friend's baby and goes back to Bernard Terrace to find her home has received a direct hit, and is told that the children were seen entering the house the previous evening. Devastated, she throws herself into the war effort, risking her life before she considers finding out what really happened that fateful night...A Long and Lonely Road is yet another confirmation of the brilliance and warmth of Katie Flynn's saga novels.

    But with the outbreak of World War II, the Flanagan family is torn apart, shaken from their crowded nest in London's East End. While the young ones are evacuated from the war-torn capital - the girls to Devon and the boys to a school in the Midlands - Joe is soon made a sergeant, fighting in France. Billy volunteers for the Army Transport, and young Dan fulfils his dreams and joins the RAF. The war brings tragedy - even the old home is in ruins, bombed and shell-splintered. It's Amy, with her fierce courage and determination, who must pull the family back together. But when a man full of wicked charm and Cockney banter walks into her life and wins her heart, more turbulent years are sure to follow.

    

    When Adina and her family are forced to flee Cologne to escape the vicious menace of German invasion in 1938, leaving their luxurious lifestyle is painful. Harder still is finding herself a refugee in a foreign country. But Adina is a compassionate and determined girl and as they settle into a new life in the Midlands she finds the strength to survive. However, her brother and sister aren't so lucky and their family ties are stretched to breaking point. And then Adina runs the risk of losing her family forever when she is drawn towards the one man she should never fall in love with...