Shortlisted for the RNA People’s Choice Award 2010.

As a new millennium dawns, only 100-year-old Selma Bartley knows the secret behind a Yorkshire village’s refusal to honour its war dead. A mesmerising tale from Avon, about how a landmark moment in history affected the lives of so many.

Synopsis

Lest we forget! A poignant new tale from the English Maeve Binchy.

As a new millennium dawns, 100-year-old Selma Bartley alone knows the secret behind a Yorkshire village's refusal to honour its war dead. One summer's day in 1913, a brush with tragedy irrevocably binds the fates of two families forever. A year later, and West Sharland sends its men off to fight, leaving blacksmith's daughter Selma Bartley to manage the family business - and her blossoming feelings for aristocrat Guy Cantrell. Their friendship tests social convention - but will also have unimaginable consequences before the War is over.

When Guy is wounded in battle, his identical twin Angus - desperate for battlefield action but medically unfit - takes his place, unbeknownst to his brother. But, bitterly unprepared for war, Angus's actions result in catastrophe for the Bartley family, hundreds of miles away in West Sharland. Overnight, the village turns against the Bartleys and urged on by her distraught parents, Selma is forced to make a new life in America. Deeply ashamed at his brother's actions, Guy adopts a new identity, eventually arriving in Pennsylvania where he finds the peace that has previously eluded him.

But years later, with war again on the horizon, secrets are resurrected, reuniting Selma and Guy - and the names of the dead must be uttered once more! A mesmerising tale about how a landmark moment in history affected the lives of so many, guaranteed to capture the heart of all those who loved The Island and The House at Riverton.

Reviews

Praise for The Girl From World's End and The War Widows: 'A beautiful, almost poetically-written tale of love and tragedy in the Yorkshire Dales mainly set during the Second World War. The characters are real flesh and blood and the reader shares their ups and downs with genuine empathy.
Maureen Lee, bestselling author of Mother of Pearl.

'An epic tale of hardship and tragedy straddling the Second World War.'
The Bookseller

'A heartwarming read.'
Closer

About the Author

Leah Fleming was born in Lancashire of Scottish parents, is married with four grown up children and four grandchildren. She writes full time from a haunted farmhouse in the Yorkshire Dales and from the slopes of an olive grove in Crete. She graduated from Leeds University in the swinging sixties and taught in primary schools and Adult literacy classes. On moving to Yorkshire she ran a catering business from a market stall and trained as a therapist, running workshops in Stress management and worked for RELATE in a rural setting. More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation