A FAMILY MATTER

WINNER OF THE NERO BOOK AWARDS DEBUT FICTION AWARD 2025**

No one need know about her mother's deviation

A mother following her heart
A father with the law on his side
A child caught in the middle

'I'll be thinking about it forever' Barbara Kingsolver
'Powerful ...smart and often heartbreaking' Guardian
‘A brilliant book… Full of heart, sympathy and sadness’ Sara Pascoe
'I was caught up from the first page' Clare Chambers
'I am in awe... a must read' Jennie Godfrey
‘Beautifully written’ Good Housekeeping, Book of the Month

1982 Dawn is a young wife and mother hemmed in by village life. Then Hazel appears like a torch in the dark. Their attraction is instant and suddenly Dawn’s world is more joyful, and more complicated, than she ever expected.

2022 Maggie has always lived with an absence where her mother should be. Her father never speaks of her and it feels impossible to ask. Then an official letter arrives with news from the past, and Maggie must face a truth far bigger than just her family’s secret.