right before she disappeared.
Meanwhile Sophie’s own life feels as blasted and bombed as the Blitzed city in the photograph she’s looking at. Her beautiful daughter – as full of joy and wild energy as Vivi had apparently once been – is gone; and Sophie’s heart has been left broken into pieces.
Retreating to the family home in rural Cornwall to seek solace from her pain and the feelings of guilt that she could have done more to protect her daughter – Sophie finds herself becoming obsessed with Vivi’s life.
But nothing can prepare Sophie for what she is about to uncover – the story of a woman who risked everything for the person she loved the most; and a secret family history that could be the key to Sophie’s own future.
A powerful, haunting and unforgettable read about love, heartbreak and betrayal set in Second World War Britain and France. Perfect for fans of The Nightingale, Under a Scarlet Sky, and My Name is Eva.
Order now!
Acknowledgements
To my wonderful husband, Matthew Wilson, the love of my life, and my favourite historian. Thank you for coming along on this journey again from the meticulously constructed timeline that we followed to guiding me back into reality when my fictional mind wanted to create a world that lived outside the boundaries of real history. I so appreciate everything that you do, and I’m grateful to walk the path of life with you.
To my son, Christopher, my other lockdown buddy. Thank you for your great sense of humour. For graciously dealing with what was possible for a twenty-first birthday party while I was on an editorial deadline, and also while we were under a pandemic. You give me so much joy every day, and I’m grateful and proud to call you my son.
To my amazing friends whose friendships have meant more to me during this pandemic than anything. All those who have been there for me in the hard times and the good. To Melinda Mack, Kim Weatherall, Shauna Buchet, and K.J. Waters, you are all so special to me, and I’m forever grateful for my little family of cosies.
To my editor, Audrey Mackaman. Thank you, Audrey, for all your fantastic work.
Also, I want to acknowledge the music of Al Bowlly, who sadly died during the London Blitz, and to Vera Lynn, who passed away while I was writing this book. Both of their music was an inspiration and a comfort as I attempted to immerse myself in this time.
I also want to thank my amazing Bookouture team. What a privilege it is for me to work with you all every day. I have to pinch myself that I got to be so lucky – it is pure joy to work on an ongoing basis with the very gifted Isobel Akenhead and all the rest of our incredible team. They include Jenny Geras, Peta Nightingale, Alexandra Holmes, Kim Nash, Noelle Holten, Sally Partington, Alex Crow, and the amazing Oliver Rhodes. Thank you all for your support and ongoing faith in me.
And lastly, thank you to you, my reader. Thank you for once again coming on this journey with me and for sharing in the emotional highs and lows of a journey back through World War II. I’m grateful for every one of you. Thank you so much for continuing to read my work, and for all the amazing emails and messages you send me, I so appreciate your thoughtfulness.
We – both author and publisher – hope you enjoyed this book. We believe that you can become a reader at any time in your life, but we’d love your help to give the next generation a head start.
Did you know that 9% of children don’t have a book of their own in their home, rising to 13% in disadvantaged families*? We’d like to try to change that by asking you to consider the role you could play in helping to build readers of the future.
We’d love you to get involved by sharing, borrowing, reading, buying or talking about a book with a child in your life and spreading the love of reading. We want to make sure the next generation continues to have access to books, wherever they come from.
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Thank you.
*As reported by the National Literacy Trust
Published by Bookouture in 2020
An imprint of Storyfire Ltd.
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Copyright © Suzanne Kelman, 2020
Suzanne Kelman has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publishers.
eBook ISBN: 978-1-83888-795-7
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places and events other than those clearly in the public domain, are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.