The Abortionist’s Daughter by Elisabeth Hyde

This book was not, as the name might suggest, a heavy novel about the rights and wrongs of abortion. It didn’t come down as either an anti-abortion or a pro-abortion novel. Although an abortion clinic was a fairly big part of the story, Hyde’s personal feelings on the subject are never actually evident.
It was a [...]

The First Casualty by Ben Elton

This is Ben Elton’s first historical thriller. It is set during the First World War. It tells the story of Douglas Kingsley, a conscientious objector, a former detective with the London police, before he was disgraced and sent to prison for his beliefs. He is ‘murdered’ and then sent to France under an alias in [...]

These Foolish Things by Deborah Moggach

These Foolish Things starts off in the UK with the story of Ravi. An overworked hospital doctor who is frustrated to have his father-in-law, Norman, living with him and his wife Pauline. A meeting with a cousin ends with them going into partnership together, running a ‘hotel’ for permanent elderly residents in Bangalore.
Ravi pursuades Norman [...]

Small Island by Andrea Levy

Small Island by Andrea Levy is about two couples - a white British couple called Bernard and Queenie, and a black Jamaican couple called Gilbert and Hortense.
Gilbert signs up to fight for the ‘mother country’ and whilst in England, he meets Queenie. Queenie’s husband is away in the RAF at the time. After the war, [...]

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank

The ‘blurb’
Since its publication in 1947, Anne Frank’s diary has been read by tens of millions of people. This Definitive Edition restores substantial material omitted from the original edition, giving us a deeper insight into Anne Frank’s world. Her curiosity about her emerging sexuality, the conflicts with her mother, her passion for Peter, a [...]

The House at Riverton by Kate Morton

 
 
From the back of the book:
Summer 1924
On the eve of a glittering Society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again.
Winter 1999
Grace Bradley, 98, one-time housemaid of Riverton Manor, is visited by [...]