The Shut Away Sisters by Suzanne Goldring
Genre: Historical fiction, Dual timeline, WW1
Read: 23rd June 2021
Published: 29th June 2021
DESCRIPTION:
Two ordinary sisters. A long and brutal war. A heroic sacrifice…
London, 1915. As German bombs rain down on the East End of London and hungry children queue for rations in the blistering cold, fifteen-year-old Florrie is forced to grow up fast. With her father fighting in the muddy trenches, Florrie turns to her older sister Edith for comfort. But the war has changed Edith. She has grown quiet, with dark shadows under her eyes, and has started leaving the house at night in secret. When Florrie follows her sister through the dark and winding streets of London, she is shocked by what she discovers. But she knows she must keep her sister’s secret for the sake of their family, even if she herself must pay the ultimate price…
Years later Kate, running from her broken relationship, is sorting through her dead aunt Florrie’s house, which she shared with her sister Edith. As she sits on the threadbare carpets, looking at photos of Florrie during the war, she notices the change in her aunt – from carefree young girl with a hopeful smile to a hollow-cheeked young woman, with dark sad eyes.
Determined to put her family’s ghosts to rest, Kate must unearth the secret past of her two aunts. Why is there a hidden locked room in the little house they shared? What is the story behind the abandoned wedding dress wrapped in tissue and tied up with a ribbon? And when Kate discovers the tragic secrets that have bound her family together, will she ever be able to move on?
A heartbreaking historical novel of war, tragedy and the sacrifices we make for those we love. Fans of Fiona Valpy, Kristin Hannah and Victoria Hislop will be hooked by The Shut-Away Sisters.
EXTRACT:
November 1999
Kate traced her fingertip through the film of dust that powdered the contents of the locked room. Everything, the bookcase, the desk, the row of books supported by onyx bookends, all was dusted in sleep. And the cover of the maroon book squarely centred on the blotter on the desk was faded, even though very little sunlight filtered through the window, almost completely shrouded as it was by Virginia creeper.
She opened the book, letting the pages fall open. Dates at the top of each page made it clear that this was a diary. The ink was still crisp and clear, curling and looping in handwriting formed by strict schooldays. She could see the stern schoolmistress, rows of desks, pens dipping into inkwells, tracing the script on straight lines. And the books standing neatly side by side before the window were also diaries. They were inviting her to read them, to discover why they had not been destroyed by their author, but had been locked in a room without a key for many years.
She flicked through the pages, then read, I fear for Edith’s wellbeing, but feel I must act with the utmost discretion for fear of drawing unwanted attention to her fragile state of mind.
Kate shivered. Perhaps she shouldn’t read any further. It felt like prying, reading a diary written by someone she knew, or at least thought she knew. But because Great-aunt Florrie was no longer here and because the events covered in these pages had happened so long ago, it seemed as if she’d been granted leave to read, to understand and maybe even begin to make amends.
And as she looked at the tired, faded journal in her hands and turned the closely written pages, she told herself that she should not be afraid to read its story. This time she could not be hurt and shocked. This time there would be no pain. This time she could just look on and observe.
But as she started to read, she felt the ache once more. Twisting, churning agony deep inside her, reminding her how she felt the day she discovered what David was really like, the day she uncovered the truth.
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