Mother’s Only Child

by Anne Bennett (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2006

  $3.25

  A powerful saga from the author of DAUGHTER OF MINE and DANNY BOY, in which a young girl is forced to give up her true love and marry for security - except that it leads her to danger and heartbreak before she finds happiness. Maria is a girl with a great talent for fabric design, and while the world becomes embroiled in war, all she can think of is her scholarship to the prestigious Grafton Academy. But then her father has a dreadful accident and her mother breaks down in guilt and grief. Maria, the only child, must care for them. Her hopes are dashed, not only of her career, but of marrying the one who's loved her for years. Reluctantly, Maria is driven into the arms of the supposedly reliable Barney. But he's no such thing. The young couple have to leave their home in a hurry and settle in Birmingham, where Barney grows increasingly difficult and finally goes too far. A family crisis ensues but out of it comes the one thing Maria had given up hope of ever finding again. This is a superb saga of love, loss and family closeness, set against the tumultuous years of the war and its aftermath. Established fans of this author will love it and it is set to win her many new dedicated readers.

• Used

  Hardcover
  2005

  $3.25

  A stirring and compelling saga from one of the rising stars of the genre, set in Birmingham and Ireland. Maria Foley thinks she's the luckiest young woman in the world. Even though there's a war on, this means her fisherman father's been able to rent his boat yard to the Navy for a generous wage, and the money will enable her to attend the prestigious Grafton Academy in Dublin. Not many girls manage to leave their small village, and Maria's won a scholarship through her own special talent at dress design. She can't wait. The dream falls apart when Sam Foley misses his footing down at the docks and is paralysed for life. Crazed with grief and guilt, his wife is no help and so it falls to Maria to look after them. Grimly she gets a job sewing uniforms, rather than study fabric design. When her true love marries another, she doesn't blame him, although it hurts; who'd take her on now? So when her father's former colleague Barney begins to take an interest, she feels grateful. Barney has his own reasons for finding a respectable girl: he needs a cover, for his so-called 'delivery job' turns out to be smuggling. Finally he is discovered and must flee, to Maria's uncle in Birmingham, who sets Barney up with a prime job at Dunlops. All too soon Barney's old habits re-emerge and he's sacked, while causing family havoc. It's the children who suffer, and one little girl in particular defends herself in the only way she knows -- with tragic consequences. Once again Maria must hold everything together, and she turns to what she knows best: dressmaking. It's the best decision she could have made -- for it draws someone very special back into her life! Anne Bennett's latest novel combines her trademark memorable characters, strong sense of time and place and plenty of high emotion in a wonderful read, which will appeal to saga fans everywhere.