While her mother is at home giving birth, eleven-year-old Isa must look after her younger siblings, but when her little sister is killed in an accident on a trainline she carries the guilt through the rest of her life.As Isa grows up, more tragedy strikes: her mother dies of a broken heart after giving birth to a stillborn son, and her father finds solace in heavy drinking. Though Isa finds satisfaction in domestic service for an aristocratic family in London, when her father retur...

You can never leave a bad man behind…Mavis Pugh has had a hard life. Despised and abused throughout her teenage years, she turned to the first man who showed her kindness. But her new husband, Alec, quickly revealed himself to be a violent bully.When Mavis escapes from Alec, she thinks the worst is behind her. Moving to a large family house with her two children is more than she ever dreamed of, and when handsome sign-writer Tommy takes an interest in her, she can't believe...

A new family, a new beginning or a life changed forever?When Clover Beckitt’s mother announces her impending second marriage, Clover can’t help but be wary. Especially as the new – very young – husband comes with a new stepsister for Clover.But Ramona brings with her a freedom that Clover has never been permitted. Like the aircraft being pioneered at the time, with Ramona in her life, Clover finds there are new horizons to explore and new people to meet. Her new outlook eve...

1945. Finally, peace has been declared. Cathie hardly dares believe that Alex, the fiancé she has not seen for nearly two years, is coming home. And, finally, life can begin again for Cathie and the orphaned baby in her care.But the Alex who returns is not the kind, loving man Cathie remembers. He’s cold, selfish, sometimes even frightening. So Cathie has a choice: stand by him, and try to contain his violent temper? Or hold her tiny baby close…and run from the man...

LONDON 1938. A gritty, heart-warming and wholesome drama about two girls united in friendship and tested in love. Perfect for the fans of Katie Flynn and Nadine Dorries.Lizzie Larch is a twenty-year-old hatmaker in London's East End. She is happy and popular, but she carries a secret. Seven years ago she was viciously attacked and recovered in a private sanatorium where she miscarried a child.Lizzie has no memory of the nig...

A gritty drama that will appeal to fans of The Throwaway Children and authors Nadine Dorries and Kitty Neale.When little Terry and Nancy arrive at the door of St Saviour’s Children’s Home, they seem shellshocked after being orphaned in the fire that killed their parents. Terry is terribly damaged by his experiences, though the concerned staff, especially Angela Morton, suspect that there is something more sinister behind his disturbing behaviour.Angela shares her anxieties ...

As families wrestle with the ups and downs of life in peacetime Britain, the Anderson's strive to make things better for those in their community.MAY 1945In post-war Leith, the church bells have barely stopped ringing but the Anderson family must quickly come to terms with the harsh realities of peacetime Britain. As Johnny's hopes of a life in politics finally come true, his vows to remain a dutiful husband and father and to keep himself a...

Call the Midwife meets Dr Barnardo’s in this gritty dramaWhen there is nowhere else to turn, St Saviour’s will give them hope…It’s 1947 and London’s East End is still a bombed-out landscape. Sister Beatrice, who runs the St Saviour’s Children’s Home, knows that life is still a precarious existence for many children and it seems that there is no end to the constant stream of waifs and strays who appear at their door looking for a safe haven.One such a...

FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF LIZZIE'S SECRET.LONDON 1940. A gritty, heart-warming and wholesome drama about surviving against the odds. Perfect for fans of Katie Flynn and Nadine Dorries.Against the devastating Blitz of London, normal life must continue for Lizzie Larch. With Sebastian returning to war, Lizzie must make a success of her business in order to survive and care for herself an...

Based in the shipyards of Leith, Silver Linings follows the ups and downs of the Anderson family through the darkest days of the Second World War as they struggle to survive. When war breaks out in 1939 the Anderson family ready themselves for the worst, but nothing can prepare them for the death of matriarch Sandra while giving birth to surprise baby Rosebud. Promising her mother that she will take care of her newborn sister, pampered fifteen-year-old Kitty must abandon her dreams of a ca...

A gritty and compelling drama from the bestselling author of The Orphans of Halfpenny Street. Perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries and Sheila Jeffries.Little twin sisters, Sarah and Samantha are all alone in the world. When their mother died giving birth to Sarah, she was blamed for the death by her father and her learning difficulties serve only to make him more angry and violent towards her. Now he’s finally abandoned them both and they’ve found sanctuary at St Saviour’s Children’s...

It's 1969 and Mary Schormann is living quietly in Wales with her ex-POW husband, Peter, and her teenage twins, Richard and Victoria.Her niece, Linda Booth, is a nurse - following in Mary's footsteps - and works in the maternity ward of her local hospital in Lancashire.At the end of a long night shift, a bullying new father visits the maternity ward and brings back Linda's darkest nightmares, her terror of being locked in. Who is this man, and why does he scare her so?T...