Ellindale

Lancashire, 1930: After the death of their mother and father, it falls to Leah Turner to become sole provider for her little sister. But women's wages are half those of men, and pawning the few belongings she has left will keep their vicious rent collector at bay for only a few weeks.

Out of the blue, Charlie Willcox, the local pawnbroker, offers her a deal. His brother Jonah, an invalid since being gassed in the Great War, needs a wife.

The idea of a marriage of convenience doesn't please Leah, but she finds Jonah agreeable enough, and moving with him to the pretty hamlet of Ellindale may be the only chance of a better life for her sister. But other people have plans for the remote Pennine valley, and the two sisters find themselves facing danger in their new life with Jonah.

Book 1 in the Ellindale series.

Lancashire, 1932. Widower Harry Makepeace lives in Manchester with his sickly daughter, Cathie. But after she suffers a violent asthma attack, the doctors say she must move to the clean, fresh air of the countryside to have any hope of survival. When Harry chances upon a patch of land for sale in Ellindale and an advert for a disused railway carriage that can be made into a home, he snaps both up quickly.

Harry swiftly becomes part of the community in Ellindale, making friends with the locals, and soon finds himself attracted to Nina, another newcomer to the village.

But times are hard in Ellindale - Harry is not the only one struggling to find work. Then there's his old boss, who will stop at nothing to punish him for daring to leave. And Harry's already made an enemy in Ellindale…

Book 3 in the Ellindale series.

Lancashire, 1934. When Tam Crawford is unexpectedly bequeathed some money, he can finally realise his dream of settling down in the beautiful village of Ellindale.

Tam knows he can be impulsive but this time he is determined not to be ruled by his big heart and hot head. Yet somehow, within just one day, he has taken on a fiancée and two children to keep them out of the poorhouse - or worse.

Tam and his makeshift family are not the only ones facing difficulties. Local benefactor Finn Carlisle's attempts to help the unemployed are being sabotaged by an unscrupulous local councillor, and Tam's cousin-by-marriage Hilda Kerkham has been widowed and is struggling even to feed her son. Will the people of Ellindale be able to help one another in these hard times?

Book 4 in the Ellindale series.